October 23, 2018 - Volume 116 - Issue 4- Santa Monica College - Every Copy of The Corsair is free, each copy after is 25 cents
Face Your Fear
Vote
Homecoming; Huge Loss, Winning Half Time Show, and SMC Spirit P.12
Special Election Coverage Inside P. 5 Santa Monica College, Student Run Newspaper since 1929
Sustainability Week Get Your Green On! P.4
2 CONTENT
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
Editorial Staff Pyper Witt………….....….Editor in Chief Dakota Castets-Didie.…...News Editor Casey Contreras…..……..Culture Editor Lauri Helin………....…...Opinion Editor Dylan Cortez……….........Sports Editor Pyper Witt………......…...Photo Editor Nicole Washington…........Digital Editor Blake Atwell….................MultiMedia Editor Lauri Helin……...........….Design Editor Casey Contreras…............Design Editor
Corsair Staff Cristian Vasquez, Will Dicke, Adriel Navarro, Victor Ronderos,Chrissy Clark, Irving Santiago, Yasser Marte, Ricardo Herrera , Jazz Boothby, Oskar Zinnemann, Muhammad Khokar, Bradley Elyghanian, Ana Duraes, Hugh Garbarini, Evan Minniti, Shayn Almeida, Melanie Delgado, Michelle Ayala, Earl Agustines, Austin Sebesta, Brenna Spalding, Jacob Victoria, Julie Dole.
An unnamed/undead performance artist struggles with a modern crosswalk, attempting to cross with his zombie brethnen during their 10th annual "Zombie Walk" on October 14,2018 on Hollywood Blvd. in Los Angeles, Calif. (Oskar Zinnemann/ Corsair Staff)
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Pyper Don Witt
Contributers Ryanne Mena
Editor-in-Chief
Faculty Advisors Ashanti Blaize-Hopkins........... Journalism Advisor
Gerard Burkhart.........................Photo Advisor
FRONT COVER An undead Performing artist growls at the camera during their 10th annual "Zombie Walk" on October 14,2018 on Hollywood Blvd. in Los Angeles, Calif. (Oskar Zinnemann/ Corsair Staff)
Teaser Left to Right Spirit Week on Santa Monica College, former Chearleader Litzy Diego shows her Spirit with a Gittler tattoo on October 16 2018.(Janet Ali/Contributing Photographer) A tattered American flag flies in the wind at the top of the Wisdom Tree Hike in Universal City, Los Angeles, California, on March 13, 2018. (Pyper Witt/ Corsair Staff) Fresh products given away to students at the Farmers Market. Earth Week started with 'Students Feeding Students' Free Farmers Market & Food Demos on Monday, April 16, 2018. At Santa Monica College, Santa Monica California. (Emeline Moquillon/Corsair Photo)
These past two weeks since our last released publication have been a wild roller coaster ride for our staff here at the Corsair, to say the least. Remarkably, the editors and staff have persevered and come out stronger than ever. The editors - Dakota, Dylan, Casey, Lauri, and Nicole - have kept morale up through all the chaos, and I cannot express in words how truly lucky I am to get to watch such incredible individuals grow and become the leaders that they are right now. I am aware that many of my readers do not understand the time and effort that goes into creating this bi-weekly paper, which is understandable. It's hard to appreciate something you haven't been apart of; to see the process through someone else's perspective. I would like shine a little light on what we do: The Thursday after production night (this thursday), the staff starts planning the next paper. This is nearly two weeks ahead of its time. Desk editors begin figuring out what articles will be run and what our photostory will be. Leaving our options open for spot news and events that come up out of nowhere, the paper is laid out on a whiteboard in the
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classroom. Fast forward a week and a half, the design team (Casey, Lauri, and Nicole) collaborates together the Monday before production night to begin the design layout process. This Monday, October 22, these three were here until 11 p.m. getting the kinks straightened out. Then Tuesday rolls in, and it rolls in fast and on fire. This small team of creative individuals are here from 9 a.m. to some time past 11 p.m. - last production night we left the classroom at 12:30 a.m. Wednesday morning is our distribution day. The distribution team arrives on Santa Monica College’s main campus in the early morning so that our readers can hold our hard work in their hands and flip through the pages as they wait for their class to start, or for their friends to meet up for coffee, or maybe even read it in the most boring of classes. This week, as I mentioned before, has been deranged. This edition needed to capture many prominent aspects of our lives within merely twelve pages. We not only have Halloween on October 31, but also the widely anticipated Midterm Elections on November 6. The Corsair is very pleased to bring to
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you a breakdown of 6 California Propositions in our paper, with the complete 12 on our website, thecorsaironline. Our Special Election Coverage section commences with a brilliantly written opinion-editorial by our long-term staff member, Ryanne Mena, and News Editor, Dakota Castets-Didier. Further, we have covered the SMC Homecoming game and halftime show, which can be found at the back of the paper alongside many pictures captured by a large variety of our staff and collaborating photographers. Readers can learn of the history of Halloween and get a glimpse of the SMC double one-act play, the Real Inspector Hound and the DieVersions in Murder, as well as get the lowdown on what to expect at next week’s SMC Sustainability Week, and lastly get their periodic dose of genuine protest reporting by the girl who does it best. Essentially, this week's edition of the Corsair Newspaper is jam-packed with a variety of different topics to tickle your eyeball taste buds.
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NEWS 3
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
"The Great ShakeOut" Hits SMC
Dakota Castets-Didier News Editor On Thursday, October 18, Santa Monica College (SMC) participated in an annual statewide earthquake drill, better known as “the Great Southern California ShakeOut.” This year's ShakeOut marks the 10-year anniversary of the event, which aims to provide Southern California residents with an opportunity to practice a potential earthquake scenario. At exactly 10:18 a.m., alarms sounded on all three of SMC’s campuses, instructing students to duck and cover. Some classrooms reacted immediately, while others delayed, finishing class work before responding to the drill. After a few moments, building monitors dressed in blue vests and helmets began ushering students and faculty out of classrooms and towards the exits. On all three campuses, students walked nonchalantly through the halls, following their professors and security personnel to reach designated safe areas. These areas were marked on maps distributed to faculty members the night before. Student Alberto Hernandez, one of the first out of SMC's Center for Media Design
The building monitor controls the crowd as he walks around the campus inspecting the safety of the students at Santa Monica College's Center Media and Design building. (Yasser Marte/Corsair Staff)
said, “Our teacher explained what was going to happen before the drill. I think it put us in a pretty good situation.” While several students reported that faculty had warned them of the impending drill, some expressed they felt that warning them beforehand made the circumstances unrealistic. Santa Monica College Police Chief Johnnie Adams spoke to SMC’s effort to limit information distributed about the ShakeOut: “In any training we want to make it as realistic as possible. And in this situation we limited the amount of people that were here to be involved so it would simulate a regular day’s operation.” Student Sam Nelson was taking classes at the CMD building during the ShakeOut
and evacuated to the Stewart St. bus stop. He explained, “Initially I didn’t know what to do, but the staff came along and instructed us,” but when asked if he’d know what to do in a real emergency, Nelson said, “Maybe not, I’d probably come [outside], but if the crowd got too big it could be dangerous.” Student Alexis Green, sitting beside Nelson at the bus stop in front of the CMD, agreed, “in a moment of panic, you’re not thinking of all the right things to do. The way CMD is structured, it’s pretty problematic.” Both Green and Nelson explained that they thought SMC Security should post more signs and maps for students to know proper evacuation routes in case of a real emer-
gency. When asked if he hadn’t been warned by his professor, would Hernandez have known how to react if an earthquake struck while he was in class, he expressed, “I don’t know.” During the ShakeOut, after campus monitors had evacuated campus buildings, some students and faculty were seen casually congregating under large glass windows and brick buildings, two considerably dangerous places in the event of an earthquake. At the CMD campus, no clear safe area was delineated and individuals were seen leaning up against buildings and sitting under the shadow of large glass panes. In about a half hours’ time the all-clear was sounded, and students and faculty began to return to classrooms. SMC Police Chief Adams explained that events such as the ShakeOut are always an opportunity to learn and grow.“We learned in this particular drill that sometimes when we’re putting our little signs on the windows saying that’s it’s all clear. There are certain rooms that may not be clear because they’re locked and we can’t get in. We should have a different designation on there," he said.
Student Homelessness at SMC Reveals National Trend Shayn Almeida Staff Writer Walking through any college campus in 2018, stereotypes of college life hold true to some glaring similarities nationwide. Books, backpacks, reading, writing, and doing homework is all assumed to be part of getting one's college degree but, for at least 36 percent of college students who are housing insecure, living in their cars or being homeless is also part of the equation. A recent study by Temple University and the Wisconsin HOPE Lab revealed that 36 percent of college students say they are food insecure, another 36 percent say they are housing insecure, and nine percent report being homeless.Sadly, these figures are even higher when focused on community colleges. When limited to students at community colleges, 42 percent say they struggle to eat, nine percent admitted to having gone at least one-day last month without eating, and a whopping 42 percent of community college students say they cannot afford housing. Another recent survey by Temple University and the Wisconsin HOPE Lab, focusing on 43,000 students at 66 institutions, including 31 community colleges and 35 universities from 20 states, had very similar results to a UC Berkeley study done in 2016, which concluded that at least 42 percent of students in the UC system were food insecure. In California specifically, at least five percent of UC students, ten percent of CSU students, and 19 percent of Los Angeles Community College students are currently experiencing homelessness. Although Santa Monica College (SMC)
does not yet provide these services, currently, the UC System provides what is called the “UC Food Access and Security Plan," and some students are pushing for similar initiatives at SMC. UC’s Food Access and Security plan includes expanding food pantry storage and access, integrating food preparation and secure storage space into new housing design and construction; increasing collaboration with state and county offices to register students for CalFresh, California’s nutrition assistance program, and establishing and expanding campaigns for students on student support services and food access awareness. Finding resources on the SMC website for students who might be struggling with food insecurity remains elusive. Although there were links for potential housing or student aid, no access or resources for food could be found. Some of the brightest initiatives seem to be coming from grassroots student groups who are taking responsibility to create food pantries and student-run housing services. One of these groups, "Students 4 Students" whose primary aim is "to shelter and support college students experiencing homelessness," says that there are more than 58,000 homeless college students in the U.S. right now. A former SMC student said: "Without Students 4 Students shelter, it's a really scary thought. I just can't imagine where I’d be. I don't have the words for all the help provided. Without all of the support [they've] given me I would be in a much worse state. The biggest change I’ve noticed is I have the strength and optimism now to get my diploma."
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4 NEWS
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
Fall Semester’s Sustainability Week - Get Your Green On! Julie Dole Staff Writer Grab your reusable shopping bag, Sustainability Week is here! Each semester, Santa Monica College (SMC) students, ranging from vegans to carnivores and all in between, celebrate yummy food and help the environment by participating in the school's Sustainability Week festivities. Activities include free recipe demonstrations and finished food samples, sustainable swag offers, and free bicycle repair. Participants are also invited to get their hands muddy making their own seed bombs. The event is sponsored by the college's Associated Students, Center for Environmental Studies, Eco Action Club, Plastic-Free SMC, Club Grow, and SMC Bike Club. Jake Allen, manager of SMC's Organic Learning Garden and past president of Club Grow, supervised the free farmers' market at last semester's event. Allen described Club Grow as "a club that teaches students to grow their own food," and was pleased to see a high turnout for last semester's free farmers' market, where students accepted every fruit and vegetable offered. Also at last semester's fest, Club Grow
Santa Monica College (SMC) student Laura Jayne Blackwell (center) stops and points to the fresh cilantro that she would love to add to her basket of fresh produce during the Santa Monica College Earth Day event “Students Feeding Students” from the Corsair Farmers Market at the Organic Learning Garden on the SMC main campus in Santa Monica California, on Monday April 16 2018. (Matthew Martin: Corsair Photo)
members Emi Osaki and Arthur Rodriguez demonstrated how to make a kale salad with food from the local farmers' market, and offered free samples to students. Rodriguez described their presence at the event as part of the club members' goal to promote food security and safe food preparation to both students and the local community. Rodriguez added, "and today we're teaching how to eat seasonally." As reported elsewhere, buying locally
can also help minimize consumers' carbon footprint - i.e., reducing the carbon released into the air during production and shipping - by decreasing the amount of fuel needed to bring food to market. Beekeeper Susan Rudnicki of Susan's Manhattan Beach Honey displayed live bees in a hive slice at last semester's do-it-yourself row. Rudnicki's business rescues unwanted bees, and sells honey from their recycled hives. "There are a lot of bees in
Los Angeles that need rescuing, because bees almost always go where people don't want them living," said Rudnicki. "Not all beekeepers know how to do rescue... [and] they live in the tens of thousands in a natural colony." Rudnicki also accepts people who want to learn her craft as student interns. SMC students Anastasia Bashuk and Yevgem Chevotar scored recycled reusable straws at Plastic-Free SMC's booth last spring. Plastic straws have since been banned on campus. Anastasia said, "I've seen videos of the turtles with the straws stuck in their noses, and it's very, very sad. We can live without [plastic straws]." She continued, "All the generations before lived successfully without using the straws. I don't know what happened over the past 50 years, but I'm 100 percent sure that we can go back to a more natural way of living, without harming ourselves and the environment." On Wednesday, October 24, students can head to the Organic Learning Garden, located next to the Art Department buildings on SMC's main campus. There will be hands-on demonstrations, free food samples, and presentations on foraging, composting, and seed bombs.
Trump Can't Erase Them Ryanne Mena Staff Writer The LGBTQ community is the latest group being targeted by the Trump Administration, as a policy focusing on establishing a legal definition of sex at birth is underway, as reported by the New York Times over the weekend. This led to hundreds of trans-rights supporters organizing protests in cities across the country. TransLatina Coalition held a rally that gathered hundreds of trans-rights supporters and advocates at the front lawn of Los Angeles’ City Hall in downtown on Monday, October 22. The events Facebook page, Defining Our Lives: Angelenos Response to Transphobia, stated: “Trump is again planning a dangerous attack against our community on a federal level. But, like we always have, we are going to fight back for the rights and respect that we deserve. Trans and gender non-conforming people are deserving of equal treatment to those that are cisgender and we must stop being defined as 'other' or mentally ill.” According to the New York Times, the Trump administration's consideration of narrowly defining gender goes directly against decisions made by the Obama administration that, “loosened the legal concept of gender in federal programs, including in education and health care, recognizing gender largely as an individual’s choice and not determined by the sex assigned at birth.” Trans rights supporters stood amongst one another in the crowd filled with those holding protest signs and transgender pride flags. “I stand in front of you in my womanhood, in my trans-ness, unafraid. And no one will ever fucking erase me,” said Trans-
Trans Pride Flag Courtesy of Creative Commons
Latina's president, Bamby Salcedo. The protest allowed space for dozens of others to speak on the issue of trans-rights, such as Jasmine Harem. “We’re doing what needs to be done on a daily basis, not just for yourself, but for your community and for the world at large. And I say to Donald Trump, how dare you, we ain’t going anywhere,” said Harem. As the event came to a close, Salcedo walked back up to the top of the stairs to give the crowd a closing statement. "So thank you so much for your presence, but what we need to do is not just to come here and say that we are supporters of what needs to happen. There's tangible shit that needs to happen, and all of us can make it happen. We are going to strategize what we need to do to combat the oppression that we continue to experience," said Salcedo. "So, stay tuned cause we are going to lead the charge of what needs to happen."
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ELECTION 5
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
The Corsair
Special Election Coverage
Reclaim Your Power & Vote Ryanne Mena, Dakota Castets-Didier
The current political state of our country, and world, seems to constantly be erratically changing – and not for the better. All the power seems to be left in the hands of the orange man in the White House, or so it seems. The news is filled with atrocities and tragedies again and again, as if they will never end. But the fate of this nightmare we are all living in does not depend on the interest of those belonging to the ‘one percent,' but rather on the interests of the remaining ninety-nine percent of Americans, which compose the electorate. This is something I’ve observed many people to have forgotten about. Something that outnumbers and outweighs the bottom line, and that is the power that the people possess. Voting is not the sole answer to fixing our society, but it is one that should not be underestimated. It should especially not be forgotten by demographic groups that could greatly impact election results, such as millennials, that is if they turn out to the polls. Millennials, which the Pew Research Center defined as people from 18-35 years old,
A tattered American flag flies in the wind at the top of the Wisdom Tree Hike in Universal City, Los Angeles, California, on March 13, 2018. (Pyper Witt/ Corsair Staff)
made up approximately 31 percent of the electorate in 2016, while the “silent generation” (71 years or older) make up 12 percent, Generation X (36-51 years old) holds 25 percent, leaving the rest to the baby boomers (52-70 years old). According to NPR, only 49 percent of millennials voted in the 2016 presidential election that led to the current Trump Administration. Imagine the impact that a significantly large demographic group could have generated if even 25 percent more of them voted. Well, another election is around the corner. The midterm elections are on Tuesday, No-
vember 6, in the state of California. Presidential candidates may not be on this ballot, but local measures and propositions are that could greatly impact your everyday life. These measures, ranging from water-management projects, to Santa Monica City Council term limits are all highly important local issues with large and lasting implications. But, California’s recent decline in midterm election participation is concerning. According to PBS, nationwide voter turnout in the last midterm election in 2014 was the lowest since 1942, when the nation was heavily embroiled in the conflict we know as World War II. Of the entire electorate, only
36.4 percent participated in casting a ballot. Even worse for Californians, voter participation across the state of California was down 25.5 percent in 2014 from the previous midterm election in 2010, a troubling trend for a state often looked to for setting a democratic example. The continuing downtrend in voter participation for general and midterm election cycles in California, and the United States as a whole, is unsustainable to maintaining a functioning democratic system of government. Now more than ever, the millennial generation has the national presence to command the stage of government, and we must find pride in sounding our voices and participating in the collective fate of our society. Many have already heard the call to action, and encouraging surges in voter registration nationwide allows sight of a small glimmer of hope that 2018 will see a renewed energy and level of participation from the changing electorate. However, there is still much work to be done. If you think, "my vote doesn’t matter" or anything similar, it does. If everyone possessed that mentality, well, then of course it wouldn’t matter. But if everyone eligible to vote saw the power in exercising that right, maybe in the future we won’t have to deal with the orange man in the White House.
Resources: How to Vote Informational When to go to the polls: General election voting polls open on Tuesday, Nov. 6, from 7am-8pm. Early voting is available through a mail in ballot or by going to one of the 10 early voting locations in LA County open two weekends leading up to Nov. 6 (Oct27-28 & Nov. 3-4). For more information, visit www.LAvote.net.
What to bring to the polls: Besides yourself, in California voters aren’t required to bring a form of a government issued I.D. to a voting poll, unless they are voting for the first time after registering to vote by mail and did not provide a divers license number.
Where to find your poll: The location of an individuals voting polling place is on the back page of the mailed County Voter Information Guide. You can also find your polling location at www.LAvote.net/locator where you can also find a sample ballot along with a voters district information.
Getting to the polls: Uber and Lyft will help lift the transportation barriers by offering free rides to a persons voting poll on election day, just be sure to have the latest downloaded version of each apps.
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Illustration by Andrew Khanian
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6 ELECTION
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
The Breakdown 6 of 12 Propositions On The California Ballot
As part of our coverage of the 2018 midterm elections, The Corsair has selected six of twelve propositions to profile that will be voted on in California. These propositions deserve your attention and your vote, as they will decide the course of California’s whole government for the next two years, and possibly longer. Wherever you fall on the political spectrum, the Corsair Editorial Staff considers it among our highest responsibilities to inform and encourage our entire student body and faculty to vote. Through the next two weeks leading up to Election Day, The Corsair will be regularly updating our election coverage online. The remaining six propositions, as well as details on local Santa Monica ballot measures will be elaborated upon on our website thecorsaironline.com. California is counting on us. -Dakota Castets-Didier
Prop 1 YES VOTE: Supports money being allocated to housing related programs including CalVet and Low income programs and loans. NO VOTE: No new money would be allocated to housing programs and loans. ORGANIZATIONS IN SUPPORT: California Democratic Party City Of Santa Monica Affordable Housing Now ORGANIZATIONS IN OPPOSITION: CA Republican Party
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Prop 2
YES VOTE: Revenue from a previous proposition allocated to Mental Health Services will be allowed to include using money toward housing for those receiving Mental Health Services.
NO VOTE: Money that has previously been allocated for
Mental Health service will NOT be allowed to be used for housing programs for those with mental health.
ORGANIZATIONS IN SUPPORT: CA Labor Federation CA Democratic Party CA Republican Party
ORGANIZATIONS IN OPPOSITION: California Libertarian Party
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ELECTION 7
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
Prop 3 YES VOTE: Supports funding for water infrastructure, watershed improvements and habitat protection. NO VOTE: Opposes funding for water infrastructure and improvements, no change. ORGANIZATIONS IN SUPPORT: Agricultural Council of California The Watershed Project California Greenworks ORGANIZATIONS IN OPPOSITION: Sierra Club LA Times Editorial Friends of the River
Prop 10 YES VOTE: Repeals Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing and allows local governments to create rental control on any form of housing. NO VOTE: Supports Costa Hawkins Rental Housing Act remaining and does not allow local governments to create rent control. ORGANIZATIONS IN SUPPORT: California Democratic Party ACLU of Northern California ORGANIZATIONS IN OPPOSITION: California Republican Party California Chamber of Commerce
Prop 6 YES VOTE: Supports repealing fuel tax of 2017 and requires voter approval for any future vehicle tax increases and vehicle fees. NO VOTE: No change, fuel tax enacted in 2017 remains in place and allows the state to enact further fees and taxes without voter approval. ORGANIZATIONS IN SUPPORT: National Federation of Independent Businesses California Republican Party ORGANIZATIONS IN OPPOSITION: Sierra Club Democratic Party
Prop 12 YES VOTE: In Support of of establishing minimum space requirements for breeding calves, pigs, egg-laying hens. The sale of livestock not meeting space requirements would be banned. NO VOTE: No vote opposes new space requirements for calves, pigs, and egg laying hens. ORGANIZATIONS IN SUPPORT: The Humane Society Of The United States Marine Humane Societies ORGANIZATIONS IN OPPOSITION: Friends of Animals People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals
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8 ELECTION
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
SMC Students vs. Millennial Voting Trends Julie Dole Staff Writer Moved by the sad state of affairs left to them by their parents’ generation, young people typically aim to change the world - or at least their corner of it. But they are also famous for not exercising their right to vote. The millennial generation appears to be continuing this trend. A recent survey of millennials by the University of Chicago’s GenForward project reports that just 16 percent always vote. Broken down by ethnicity, 20 percent of African-Americans reported voting in every election, followed by whites at 18 percent. Latinx and Asian voters trailed last, at twelve percent and ten percent. Asked about the upcoming election, 31 percent of voters aged 18-34 claimed they would definitely vote, while 19 percent reported as not likely to vote, and 25 percent were unsure whether they would vote or not. Thirty-four percent of white millenials were the most likely to say they would vote, followed by African Americans at 32 percent, with Latinx and Asians at 25 percent. Issues millennials said might drive them to the polls included immigration, education and racism, with African Americans also citing police brutality, and Asians listing gun control as one of their top political issues. Recent polls of younger voters also suggested a number of reasons why they failed to vote, including a lack of understanding about how and where to vote, a lack of knowledge regarding who is running, not understanding the local ballot initiatives, thinking their vote doesn’t affect the outcome of elections, taking time off from work, and general apathy. While some factors seemed to attract millennial voter participation, such as greater candidate diversity, even that could come in second to apathy. For example, in the most recent NextGen survey, 39 percent of young voters replied that greater candidate
diversity would help attract them to the polls, but 47 percent said it would make no difference in their interest, and 13 percent said it would make them even less likely to vote. Midterm elections historically attract lower voter turnout of all ages, since no presidential candidates are running. However, these elections also often determine whether the sitting President will face a changed Congress, since the Federal offices that are up for midterm election include all 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives, and one-third of the 100 seats in the United States Senate. At the local level, voter turnout is often key to whether support for local policies will change, which can snowball into a nationwide impact. Business administration major Masai Spencer said that while he’s aware young people are less likely to vote, he is registered to vote, and will vote this midterm election. Spencer explains: “I think it’s a sense of awareness… I didn’t vote last time, I just wasn’t aware, I didn’t see the importance of it. But now, just seeing who’s president, and what’s going on, it’s real important to vote.” Spencer reports he’s focused “on laws that I feel are unjust, and need to be changed.” SMC accounting major Jose’ Barrera also planned to vote November 6th. Barrera said he was motivated by the fact that “Not a lot of people vote, specifically not a lot of young people vote.” Barrera said that while he didn’t have specific candidates in mind yet, he reported choosing candidates “based upon their knowledge, what they’re about, and their wisdom.” Chemistry major Nicole Rodriguez reported she was registered to vote but did not plan to vote this November, “since I do not know what was really going on. I feel like I need to educate myself more to actually vote.” She added that she didn’t want to cast her vote “if I don’t really know what [the issue] actually is,” adding “I feel like
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there should be an app,” to learn about issues, and also expressed interest in websites that might help her find where she was registered to vote. But she added, “If I know exactly where [I’m registered] and what I’m voting for, then I would [vote.] You definitely have to take time out of your day to do it, but it’s worth it. Your vote matters.” Even if SMC students failed to make the registry deadline on October 22, voters can still cast a conditional ballot at their local polling station on the day of the election Nov 6, 2018. SMC Natural History club member Emily Brougher expected her absentee ballot to arrive shortly, saying “I never miss an election. I’m more up to date on California issues, like Proposition 10, [but] I still feel very close to my hometown… I’m going to stay registered in Maryland for now.” But “on a national level, I’m interested in getting money out of politics… we can try to elect officials who will reject money from corporations and lobbyists, and reverse Citizens United.” Psychology major Joshua Joun said he’s registered to vote, and was researching issues and candidates, though he hadn’t formed any strong opinions about what to vote on yet this November. Joun says he wasn’t enthusiastic about voting “until about two years ago, when ’45’ happened. The area I’m in - Koreatown - they’re not really interested in politics unless they think it directly affects them. But now people are starting to see how it affects them, so some are more open to it. But others are still being snarky about being publicly aware.” Romio Rezoana, another psychology major, mentioned her own watershed moment being when she was verbally accosted on the bus. “Someone assumed I was not born here, maybe because of my skin color, they suggested, not to my face, that I should go back to the Middle East.” she said. “I didn’t vote the last time, I didn’t care about voting,
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because I didn’t think my vote mattered, but my views are changing. I plan to register and vote - I need to do my research, I don’t know all the [propositions]. I plan to talk about it more, and not be afraid to speak my mind and share my opinion, because you never know; just because someone has a different opinion doesn’t mean it’s wrong.” She added, “People should vote, you need just one person to make a change, just one.” Foreign SMC student and economics major Pema Zonglo felt strongly about voting, despite being unable to vote in the U.S. “I care very deeply about what happens, when there is inaction,” she said, “…when the other side just didn’t show up. Maybe one voice doesn’t sound loud, but together it can make a huge impact, we’re bereft of that right now.” “I try to raise awareness, that you should vote, this is a privilege that you have, that’s something I don’t have. Brick by brick, you make a difference. In some countries, you don’t have that agency. It’s something that is sacred, and it’s an obligation that you should do, to see the change that you want, to be part of the change.” “Eligible citizens who missed the October 22 deadline can go to their county elections office or a designated satellite location to register and vote conditionally. Their ballots will be processed once the county elections office has completed the voter registration verification process. Voters can complete the conditional voter registration process from October 23 all the way through Election Day on November 6. To find out where conditional voter registration is available near you, check the Early Voting web page. Californians can search by county or city.” - California Secretary of State’s office, website. Other non-partisan websites to research voter registration status, polling places, and additional voting options online include: vote.org, and vote411.org
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AD 9
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
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10 CULTURE
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
A History of Hallow's Eve
Spooky Speakeasy
Brenna Spalding Staff Writer As the spookiest time of year draws in, some may ask the question of how the considerably silly tradition of Halloween came to be. While some version of Halloween tradition has occurred for centuries, it didn't become the kid-friendly, neighborhood festivity we recognize today until recently. According to History.com, the story behind Halloween began roughly two thousand years ago, when an ancient Celtic festival, called Samhain, was celebrated. In the places we know today as the United Kingdom, Ireland, and northern France, Samhain was celebrated among the Celts in light of what was considered their new year, on November 1. Because of the long, dark, and cold winter season these people endured, their new year marked the start of a time that was heavily associated with human death. It was believed that the boundaries between the living and the dead became blurred the night before the new year, and therefore, ghosts of the dead walked among the living. This supernatural presence that was believed to occur each year influenced the tradition of prophecy telling in the Celtic culture. Priests would burn large sacred bonfires and attempt to tell fortunes that the Celts often clung onto for hope throughout the hopeless and dreadful Winter months. During this celebration, people wore costumes consisting mainly of animal furs. After the Roman's gained control of the Celtic regions in 43 A.D., two of their celebrated holidays took the place of Samhain. History.com says, "The first was Feralia, a day in late October when the Romans tra-
Jazz Boothby Staff Writer Halloween, the most recent rendition of the series, opened to a $77.5 million weekend, marking it as the best opening in franchise history. The opening also shed light on lead actor Jamie Lee Curtis, 59, whose part in Halloween marks her as the highest grossing female in a leading role over 55. The film begins four decades after Michael Myers murdered three people in the town of Haddonfield, Illinois, on Halloween night. Legendary “scream queen,” Jamie Lee Curtis, reprises her role as the sole survivor, Laurie Strode, who is reeling from the trauma, and leads a life controlled by paranoia and obsession 40 years later. Strode is convinced that one day the imprisoned Myers will escape and come to kill her. Laurie lives is in a remote location on the outskirts of Haddonfield, in a house equipped with a panic room, booby traps, motion sensor lights, and plenty of firearms. Her obsession with Myers cost her two marriages, and put a strain on her relationship with her daughter Karen, played by Judy Greer. Despite being semi-estranged from Karen, Laurie maintains a close relationship with Karen’s teenage daughter, Allyson, played by Andi Matichak.
Jazz Boothby Staff Writer
From Creative Commons
ditionally commemorated the passing of the dead. The second was a day to honor Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees. The symbol of Pomona is the apple, and the incorporation of this celebration into Samhain probably explains the tradition of 'bobbing' for apples that is practiced today on Halloween." In the next thousand years, the influence of Christianity would transform the belief behind these celebrations. When All Saints Day was moved from the Spring to November 1 by Pope Gregory III, the following day became All Souls' Day. History.com continues to state, "It’s widely believed today that the church was attempting to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a related churchsanctioned holiday." The festivities of this day took on much of the same atmosphere as the Celtic holiday, Samhain. "The All Saints Day celebration was also called All-hallows, or All-hallowmas, and the night before it, the traditional night of Samhain in the Celtic religion, began to be called All-Hallows Eve and, eventually, Halloween." Halloween had a small start in America
in colonial New England, but gained popularity as time went on. The distinctly dramatic traditions of the different cultures living in America at the time blended to create a unique version of Halloween that one might consider truly American. It started as a celebration of harvest, including parties, dancing, telling fortunes, and sharing stories of the dead. As more immigrants flooded into America, the tradition of Halloween became more and more enthused. By the end of the 1800s, traditions like trick-or-treating and festive costumes developed as a result of neighborly get-togethers and family-focused festivals. History.com explains that trick-ortreating was also a "relatively inexpensive way for an entire community to share the Halloween celebration." In the mid 20th century, during the baby boom, Halloween began to cater much more to children, "By the 1950s... Halloween had evolved into a holiday directed mainly at the young." Therefore, as parties and festivities moved from the town into the home, the all-American Halloween we know today was born.
Film Review: Halloween Inexplicably, authorities decide that Halloween night is as good a night as any to transfer Michael out of the facility that has confined him for the last four decades, putting him on a bus with a bunch of other mentally ill prisoners. Thus beginning a chain of gruesome bloodshed. The film is laced with call backs to John Carpenter’s original, and even a reference or two to the sequels. At one point Allyson explains to her friends that her grandmother is not Michael Myers’ sister, “That’s just something people made up.” Clearly a nod to the now extinguished plotline, first introduced in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later, that Laurie was Michael’s baby sister. The violence is updated for today’s audiences, which entitles a higher body count and far more shocking gore. The film is genuinely terrifying at times. Green builds tension throughout, moving scenes along slowly, but deliberately. The viewers find themselves holding their breath, waiting for the moment when they can jump, and release the stress. Green constantly holds out, toying with the audience. It’s a classic slasher film formula that at times feels a bit derivative, but remains consistently entertaining. The supporting cast is all great too, particularly a scene stealing performance by Virginia Gardner who plays Vicky, Allyson’s best friend. She takes over the role of babysitter in this Halloween, running around a house, doing her
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best to elude the murderous Michael Myers and save Julian, the child she’s watching over. Overall, the film is a lot of fun. The whole experience benefits from an in-theater viewing, especially with a large crowd. Don’t wait to catch this one at home. Green’s Halloween acts as a homage to the original, as well as to the slasher genre at large, while managing to breathe new life into a franchise that, at times, has felt dead. Happy Halloween.
Image Courtesy of Halloween Movie 2018.
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The Del Monte Speakeasy sits in the basement of the Townhouse restaurant and was an actual speakeasy from 1920 to 1933. Established in 1915 by Italian immigrant Cesar Menotti, Townhouse is the oldest bar in Venice and one of the oldest bars in the Los Angeles area. Speakeasies, which were illicit establishments that sold alcohol during the Prohibition era, were often masked by deceptive store fronts with passwords required to gain entry. Menotti’s speakeasy was concealed by a grocery store front, and was a central part of Venice’s nightlife. The roaring twenties saw a social, political, and cultural dynamism that was unprecedented. Today, the bar acts as a perfect time capsule for the era, bartender Max Martinez tells, “We’ve kept the place the way it’s been. Very old-school, with almost no restoration whatsoever.” The retro ambiance only adds to the tavern’s reputation as one of the most haunted bars in the United States. Rumor has it that the now deceased former owner is often seen sitting downstairs, keeping watch over his beloved bar. When asked whether or not he’s ever had an encounter with the supernatural, Martinez paused his duties as a mixologist and explained, “I’ve worked here for 10 years. I think everyone who has worked here has had some sort of an experience like that.” Martinez elaborates: “Once, a few years back, I had just opened the bar, there was no one else in the place besides me and one gentlemen who was sitting at the bar. We were chatting, and he got up to use the bathroom, he came back and said, ‘Who the fuck is that guy in the bathroom?’ He described the guy as being huge and wearing a black hat with a suit and tie. So I went to the bathroom and no one was in there.” Stories like this have attracted the supernaturally-curious to the establishment from all corners of the world. “We have people coming from all over the world who have heard of this bar and made it a point to come here while they’re in LA," Martinez boasts. Today, the bar is divided by two floors, the downstairs being the original space of the speakeasy, which hosts live entertainment including live music, DJs, comedy and burlesque as often as seven nights per week. “We have a huge event on Halloween this year. Costumes, live music, speciality drinks,” Martinez reveals. A visit to the Del Monte Speakeasy means sipping a handcrafted cocktail in a fashionably dated environment that somehow manages to be welcoming and wonderfully creepy, all at the same time.
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CULTURE/OPINION 11
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
A Murder Within A Murder; A Play Within A Play Yasser Marte Staff Writer A double act playbill hit Santa Monica College’s (SMC) Theater Arts studio stage on Friday, October 19. The first act, The Real Inspector Hound written by Tom Stoppard, is a dark comedy about two critics who unwittingly get caught up in the play’s murder mystery. The second act, a companion piece, Diversions in Murder written by SMC’s Theater Professor Terrin Adair, continues to weave the narrative of the first act as it comically battles between absurdity and reality. “The second act I thought, ‘well, I’ll just go from the playwright’s perspective.’ The critic from the first act wakes up in the second act and now he’s the playwright. So it’s sort of a tongue and cheek about Tom Stoppard’s process,” said Adair. The play’s enthralling juxtaposition hurls its audience into a whirlwind of high jinx, as it trapeze swings between the worlds of a play within a play. The performers skillfully blaze through each scene with a Molotov cocktail of emotions ranging from farcical, pragmatical, and maniacal. “This one [first act] starts in reality… the two critics being in realism, and the farcical elements of the play sort of merge onto each other turning it into absurdism balancing back and forth,” said first act
Teagan Sirset (left) plays Cynthia Muldoon who gets interrogated by Inspector Hound played by Matthew Goodrich (right) trying to figure out who the murderer is. Oct. 18, 2018 Santa Monica College (SMC) studio stage. (Yasser Marte/Corsair Staff).
director Mikael Mattsson. The two murderous stories manage to be layered with humorous surprises as tensions heighten from the first to the second act. Mattsson continues, “Then the next one [second act] goes further in farce and further into absurdism.”
"The performers skillfully blaze through each scene with a Molotov cocktail of emotions"
The Real Inspector Hound is written by famous Czechoslovakian playwright Tom Stoppard. He began his career as a journalist working for the Western Daily Press and The Bristol Evening News. In London he became a theater critic for Scene Magazine, in 1962, and a year later began his career writing plays for radio and television. Stoppard’s work has been known to intellectually push the envelope of absurdity, including his most famous play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (1967), a tragic comedy about two minor characters in Hamlet. “Stoppard if you know him as a
playwright, he really likes to poke fun at other people. He has a whole play, poking fun at the playwright Tennesse Williams,” said Adair. Adair pays tribute to Stoppard as she admirably writes a second act to his one act play The Real Inspector Hound. In her original piece she pokes fun of David Mamet, Harold Pinter, and George Bernard Shaw as the main character of her play battles with finishing his own work. “David Mamet loves the F-U-C word. Pinter is a playwright who loves long pauses and I also poke fun at George Bernard Shaw. Yeah, I kind of go into the playwright world and poke fun,” said Adair. The play transitions from making fun of playwrights to big films such as A Few Good Men, There Will Be Blood, Jerry Maguire, The Devil Wears Prada and much more. The plays production will continue to go on for two more weekends at SMC’s Studio Stage. General admission at the door is $13 but advance ticket sales online are ten dollars. Don’t miss these witty and entertaining plays. Come watch a night of mysterious thrills and shrills. With Halloween just around the corner this is perfect play to sit down for a laugh and scream.
Vote Without Illusions, A Lesser of Two Evils? Evan Minniti Staff Writer In the time since his election, President Trump has appointed an alleged sexual predator to the Supreme Court, cut taxes for billionaires (such as himself), launched attacks on the environment, all the while currying favor with right-wing extremists at home and abroad. With a Republican majority in both houses of Congress, and five conservative judges on the Supreme Court, many Americans may sincerely believe that electing the Democrats back into office can undermine Trump’s reactionary agenda, as well potentially implementing policies in favor of social change. However, looking back at the recent history of the Democratic Party shouldn’t give anyone reason to believe that a Congressional Democratic majority would have intentions of doing either of these things in any meaningful way. After all, from 2008 to 2010, the Democrats held the Presidency and had majorities in both Houses of Congress. What meaningful progressive reforms happened in this time? Essentially none. The Obama Administration, whose transition team was selected by Citigroup, from the start made it clear that it's loyalties lied with Wall Street: they bailed out big banks instead of punishing them. They also implemented the highly ineffective Heritage
Foundation-inspired Affordable Care Act, which was precisely designed to pivot around having to provide universal healthcare; which is not only a basic human right but one that the vast majority of Americans support implementing and which would be cheaper than the current model. While in office, the Obama administration broke records by dropping over 26,000 bombs on seven different countries, which killed thousands of civilians. Obama presided over a “shadow war” across Africa, supported Al-Qaeda jihadists in Syria, and provided support for Saudi Arabia’s war on Yemen, a humanitarian disaster that is causing death and starvation for millions. In addition, he ramped up attacks on immigrants, a campaign that Trump has gladly continued.
"What meaningful progressive reforms happened in [2008-2010]? Essentially none."
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Now out of office, the Democrats have proven to be a spineless “resistance” to Trump. They have backed Republican whips on multiple occasions. The Democrats, while accusing Trump of being authoritarian, have systematically assisted him in greatly expanding the surveillance state and the budget of the military. They cowardly backed down on protecting DACA in return for a completely meaningless deal. When a Democratic Representative from Texas tried to start a process of impeaching Trump, Democrats overwhelmingly voted his proposal down. At a time when tens of millions of young people are moving left, Nancy Pelosi affirmed that the Democrats would not support universal healthcare and socialist policies. In light of all this, many Democrats have understood the need to at least pose left, but even these supposed progressives should have their credentials tightly inspected. One of the most blatantly opportunist examples is Shri Thanedar, a supposedly progressive Democratic candidate for Governor of Michigan. Thanedar, who is a multimillionaire, almost ran as a Republican, and supported Marco Rubio during the Republican primaries. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who won an upset victory over establishment Democrat Joe Crowley in New York’s 14th @THE_CORSAIR •
congressional district, failed to give a straight answer on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and advocated uncritical support for New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and “all Democratic nominees”. However, this trend can even be seen in incumbents facing reelection. For instance, California Senator Kamala Harris has no problem speaking at AIPAC and meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while dozens of unarmed Palestinians are murdered and illegal settlements are built across the West Bank. New Jersey Senator Cory Booker accepted huge donations from pharmaceutical companies, while promoting their agenda in congress. In short, this shouldn’t dissuade you from going to the voting booth. There are important ballot measures like Proposition 10; which if passed, could be used to springboard rent control across California, which would undoubtedly provide relief for hundreds of thousands of working families. And it is understandable if you want to vote for a Democrat. While seeing the Republicans potentially lose Congress would be just desserts for their horrific policies against poor and oppressed people, there shouldn’t be any illusions in how the Democrats will act in office.
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12 SPORTS
VOLUME 116 ISSUE 04 •OCTOBER 23, 2018 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
The Corsairs Sink At Homecoming Santa Monica College Corsairs run onto Corsair Field after being announced during the homecoming game against Allan Hancock College Vikings on October 20th, 2018. Corsairs lose 52-0.(Ricardo Herrera/Corsair Photo)
Cristian Vasquez Staff Writer Santa Monica College Corsairs hosted the Allen Hancock College Bulldogs (AHC) on Saturday night’s homecoming game at Corsair Field. The Bulldogs were coming off a four-game winning streak while the Corsairs had won the previous game in a tough fight during overtime. The Bulldogs received the ball to start the game. Freshman quarterback Steven Schouten (#4) started the game for AHC after losing their starter, Thomas Carr (#7) to injury. On their opening drive, the Bulldogs found the end zone, scoring the first of seven touchdowns on a five-yard run by Sophomore Ryheem Skinner (#22). Skinner would finish the game with a total of 116 rushing yards and two touchdowns. From the first snap, the Corsairs’ rush defense was vulnerable, allowing the Bulldogs to enter the red zone on every offensive possession. The Bulldogs outgained the Corsairs in rushing yards, 418 to 26. Offensively, the Corsairs couldn’t find the end zone. Corsair Sophomore quarterback Paul Davis (#8) wasn’t successful through the air. Davis only managed to pass for 90 yards. On the ground, Christoph Hirota (#5) managed to move the chains on a few plays, but totaled just 32 yards.
The Corsairs went into halftime scoreless and struggling on both sides of field. The Bulldogs took a commanding 31-0 lead at the half. Davis and his offense got the ball to start the second half of the game. Their drive ended with Davis being sacked on third down and forced to punt it away on fourth down. The Bulldogs kept pounding on the ground via runs by Freshman Jayden Vargas (#1) and Sophomore Isaac Bausley (#27). They penetrated into the end zone after a 70-yard drive with a rushing touchdown by Bausley. The Corsairs began their seventh offensive possession on a good note. Sophomore running back Trevor Nofoa (#23) opened the drive with a 17-yard carry. Davis led the way for the Corsairs into the red zone. However, disaster struck when Freshman Isiah Brown (#28) carried the ball intending for the end zone, but fumbled it. The football rolled outside the end zone, resulting in a touchback. Fans shouted from the stands and teammates argued that Brown had broken the plane of the goal line, which would have resulted in a touchdown. The referees reviewed the play and concluded that Brown had in fact fumbled the ball prior to entering the plane, therefore the call stood. The Bulldogs showed no mercy and scored two more touchdowns on the ground before
Santa Monica College team celebrates lgbtq+ history month and breast cancer awareness month at Santa Monica College Homecoming on October 19th, 2018, in Santa Monica, California. (Matan Mallinger/Contributing photographer)
running out the clock in the final seconds of the game. The Corsairs finished the game with a small total of 116 yards and one turnover. The final score was 52-0 in favor of Allen Hancock College. This loss is the fourth of the season for the Corsairs and the team now stands with a 3-4 season record. The Corsairs have been out scored by at least 50 points in all four of their losses.
Santa Monica College mascot Pico The Pirate during Spirit Week on Tuesday October 16, 2018. (Irving Santiago/ Corsair) SMC Corsair cornerback Antonio Hill (25) tackles Allan Hancock Viking after a running play by the Vikings on October 20, 2018. Corsairs lose 52-0. (Ricardo Herrera/Corsair Photo)
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Head coach Kelly Ledwith said, “We made a lot of mistakes today, so we have to come in at practice this week and fix the mistakes and make the corrections I know we can make and set ourselves up to have a good week next week.” Only three games remain in the season for the Corsairs. They will be on the road next week to face off against Pasadena City College on Saturday, October 27.
Lead singer of the band Weezer, Rivers Cuomo singing the chorus part of Africa by Toto that he did a cover of during the Halftime show of the Santa Monica Corsair's Homecoming game in Santa Monica, California on Saturday, October 20th. (Jacob Victorica/ Corsair Photo)
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