CORSAIR
volume 108 issue 11 • November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
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Fanning the flames of Creativity
Creative collaboration club: an expressive gathering Pg. 6
The mustaches are back for Movember Pg. 4
Bringing clean water to Mexico’s needy Pg. 8
Tanna Frederick on “Train to Zakopane” Pg. 9
SMC soccer star Xiovana Ordaz Pg. 12
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2 contents
volume 108 issue 11 •November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
E D I T O R I A L S TA F F Alci Rengifo············ Editor-in-Chief c o rs a i r. e d i t o r i n c h i e f @ g m a i l . c o m Rachel Gianuario····Managing Editor Co-A&E Editor, News Editor c o rs a i r. n e w s p a g e @ g m a i l . c o m Paulina Eriksson·····Health & Lifestyle c o rs a i r. l i f e s t y l e p a g e @ g m a i l . c o m Jonathan Ramos········ Opinion Editor c o rs a i r. o p i n i o n p a g e @ g m a i l . c o m James Powel··············· Sports Editor c o rs a i r. s p o r t s p a g e @ g m a i l . c o m Ronja Jansz ........ Multimedia Director c o rs a i r. m u l t i m e d i a d e p t @ g m a i l . c o m Mia Duncans ············· Photo Editor c o rs a i r p h o t o e d i t o r @ g m a i l . c o m Ju a n L o p e z . . . . . . . D i g i t a l E d i t o r c o rs a i r. w e b e d i t o r @ g m a i l . c o m Jhosef Hern····················Illustrator c o rs a i r c a r t o o n @ g m a i l . c o m c o r s a i r s ta f f Zafer Acar, Jose Barajas, Brandon Barsugli, Scott Bixler, Carlos Espinosa, Jazmine B. Heard, Adrien Piteux, Luis Salvador, Raven Newaly, Brenda Cruz, Matthew Toss, Stacy Ellen, Jeffrey Chacon, Stella Ngigi, Carlos Espinosa, Alfredo Gutierrez, Zoila Campos, Jillisa Jenkins, Yasha Hawkins, Branisolv Jovanovio, Jose Gutierrez,, Julianne Oseberg, Nour Kabbani, Farhanah Ali, Devin Page, Jason Biney, Jose Lopez, Sherrie Dickinson, Patricia Stallone, Ava Gandy, Nicholas Cardona, Nick Carrion, Veronika Kacha, Hans Saudestroem, Adriane Hale, Tiffany Hernandez, Mary Leipziger, Claudius West, Deni Rodriguez, Richard Lewis, Brandon Wong,, Maddy Weber, Lorena Garcia.
Brandon Barsugli Corsair
The Women’s Soccer team held practice on Tuesday to prepare for the Southern California Regionals where they will play against the Ventura College Pirates on Saturday evening at 7pm. The Soccer team is 11-3 in conference so far this season. Their goal is to stay strong in the next four rounds of playoffs and win what would be the first conference championship for women’s soccer here at Santa Monica College. SMC Student Armand Nairizik performs a fire dance routine at an event hostede by the SMC Creative Collaborations Club on Sunday in Los Angeles, Calif. Besides fire dancing, the event featured Spoken word, Poetry, Monologue, Sound Healing and Musical performances, all in an effort to encourage not only student participation, but community interest as well.
FA C U LT Y A D V I S O R S Saul Rubin & Gerard Burkhart AD INQUIRIES: Sa r it Ka s h a n i a n corsai r. admana g er@g m ai l . co m (3 1 0 ) 4 3 4 - 4 0 3 3
Mia Duncans Corsair
Letter From the Editor Alci rengifo Editor In Chief
With the the twilight of the fall semester now upon us, our final three issues for this season are once again dealing directly with issues both at home and abroad. As I have stressed in previous editions of The Corsair, what happens abroad has an effect at home. In our Opinion section I explore a current crisis in Mexico. The disappearance and likely murder of 43 students by corrupt police forces and local drug gangs in the state of Guerrero, Mexico has sparked a nationwide wave of unrest. As news begins to leak that President Obama is preparing to unveil a vast immigration reform package, which might finally provide a legally recognized status for at least five million immigrants, our next door neighbor is being shaken by this major social upheaval. For us, it should be not only a wake-up call to the realities of life across the Rio Grande, but a clear reminder of why so many Mexican citizens (as well as Central Americans), risk themselves in crossing the border. Mexico is a nation where the state itself is proving to be a crumbling shell hiding a rotten core. Years of sharp inequalities and near feudalism are reawakening the same rage that sparked the original 1910 Mexican Revolution, the first major upheaval of the 20th century before Russia or China. In fact, I highly recommend readers to head over to our campus library and check out the excellent, eloquent, bloody chronicle of that conflict, “Insurgent Mexico,” written by the journalist John Reed (who was later played by Warren Beatty in one of my favorite movies, “Reds”). It is a bold, tragically heroic tale of a nation at arms against tyranny, and a landscape of peasants fighting for basic necessities such as land and bread. It is no joke to compare Mexico’s social crisis to that of France in 1789, as the lavish
oligarchy and political class live in a marble tower, oblivious to the lives of their subjects. Their subjects are beginning to set fire to their country. We as Americans, living in a country birthed in a revolutionary war against the British crown, should sympathize with our Mexican neighbors and support their struggle. It is a struggle against injustice, and that is universal. Also in our Opinion section, Devin Page discusses the reality of sexual harassment on campus. It is a topic I discussed in detail in the letter from last week’s issue, but it is also a topic that merits as much discussion as necessary. There is no excuse for harassment to be rampant on college campuses. Sometimes I wonder if we have evolved much from the ape swinging the bone in the opening of Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Other sections of this week’s issue also provide insights into local art and theater culture. Local actress Tanna Frederick is interviewed about her role in a Santa Monica Playhouse production of “Train To Zakopane.” Interviewing Frederick was an interesting experience because she began to open up about the difficulty of playing a brutal anti-semite in the play. Not only is her interview a discussion about the technique of acting, but of the fear of discovering our inner, more unpleasant selves. But as the Mexican masses are doing, it is always good to self-reflect. The late Mexican poet Octavio Paz, who’s centenary is being celebrated this year, once stressed the need for occasional solitude for a writer. In this way, the writer better understands his or her thoughts, and can reflect on decisions and the world. The Mexican people have been living in the solitude of repression and corruption for too long, now they are reflecting and beginning to break out.
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news 3
volume 108 issue 11• November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
SMC officer arrests campus transient
Man engaged in confrontation with campus police officer and was arrested. Incident occurred a day after a series of strange incidents around the campus Theater Arts building and Lot 2 parking area. Jose gutierrez & rachel gianuario Staff Writer According to Santa Monica College Police Sergeant Jere Romano, a man is in custody in the Santa Monica City Jail after attempting to flee from an SMC College police officer, and upon being detained, assaulted the officer. Cabrera is being held in custody for “battery on a peace officer, resisting arrest and an outstanding arrest warrant originated by the Los Angeles Police Department,” according to an email from Romano. At 2 p.m. on Monday, SMC police received reports of a man, identified by Romano as 22-year-old Rogelio Cabrera, not an SMC student, suspiciously wandering outside of the SMC Theater Arts Complex. When confronted by an officer outside of the theater, Cabrera became “uncooperative and continued to refuse to identify himself ”, and tried to escape, according to Romano. The officer attempted to restrain Cabrera, at which point he struggled, became belligerent and struck the officer in the head. The officer then subdued and arrested him. Though Romano would not disclose who the officer was, he explained that the officer was not seriously injured. According to Romano, Cabrera was wanted for questioning regarding an incident that occurred on Sunday night, in which he entered a vehicle of a female SMC student without her permission and made an implied threat at her. At an SMC theater student performance of “Richard the II (Plus I)”, Cabrera interrupted the end of the production, according to an SMC student who attended the show, Joi
Saulsberry. At the end of the adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Richard III”, Saulsberry explained Cabrera stepped up on stage and began dancing alongside the cast members, holding up a skateboard. According Saulsberry, she heard Cabrera ask the show’s director, Terrin Adair-Lynch, if he could keep the prop of a corpse used in the production. “He asked the director if he could take the dead body and like, chop it up and eat it...He’s like ‘it’s different from all the other dead bodies I’ve ever seen’”, said Saulsberry. The Corsair attempted to contact Lynch for a comment, but did not receive a response. Saulsberry, the girlfriend of SMC student Zeno Robinson, who performed as the friar in the production, waited for Robinson outside the theater with his mother and sister when Cabrera approached them. According to Saulsberry, Cabrera approached Robinson’s mother and called her a spider, and then introduced himself as “Tito”. He shook the mother’s hand and told her, “Remember my face. You will see me again.” Cabrera then walked away and proceeded to get into the car of 20-year-old SMC student, Isabel Alfaro who was parked in the campus lot two on Pico Blvd. Alfaro, friend of Saulsberry, was sitting in the car with 17-year-old Sade Gabb, Saulsberry’s cousin, when he jumped into the passenger seat. Gabb immediately fled the vehicle. Alfaro later told Saulsberry that Cabrera yelled at her, claiming that she was supposed to pick him up. Brought to tears, Alfaro explained to Cabrera that she did not know him and told him to get out of her car. As he exited the car, Saulsberry noticed
that his attitude rapidly changed from angry to calm. “It’s almost like he woke up,” Saulsberry said. Saulsberry recalled Cabrera then asked the herself, Gabb and Robinson’s mother if he scared them, blaming his breath and his clothes. He then yelled at the group, “Remember my face! Remember who I am! You’re gonna see me again”. Cabrera then crossed Pico Blvd. and yelled at another person. A video was posted yesterday on that captures the altercation between the officer and Cabrera on Monday outside of the theater. The video shows the officer trying to stop Cabrera from struggling. Cabrera makes a clear hit to the officer’s face and then steps away. He tells the officer, “Stop. I’ll go home.” The officer then approaches him and Cabreara clearly attempts to run. The officer then restrains his hands and Cabrera then says, “I’ll stop. I’ll stop.” Afterwhich the officer asks him to turn around to be handcuffed. The video was posted by Youtube user Sekai Dessalines Menes D’ivoire, a film school graduate of SMC, Sam Stewart. This incident is similar to others seen on the SMC campus. In March, Police Captain Raymond Bottonfield was attacked by a man who witnesses saw lunge for Bottonfield’s gun. Romano communicated to The Corsair that this man was homeless and an “outsider” who liked to hang out on campus. Both Bottonfield and the attacker were taken to the hospital for minor injuries. According to Sergeant Romano, Cabrera has had no previous contact with the SMC Police, nor do they have any information regarding his mental wellness, but he is being held on multiple charges.
SMC grad returns as renowned stylist
Adam Pineda Corsair
Renowned make-up artist Kim Vo returned to Santa Monica College, his alma-mater, and poses with his former Professor Felipe Felix (left) and Cosmetology chair John Rogers(right). He shared his cosmetology experiences with current staff and students on Monday in the Student Resource Center. Vo now owns four hair salons and is a global ambassador for the hair product line Schwartzkopf Professional Hair Care. “I had to do it on my own. I had to work while I went to beauty school, so it’s not like nothin’ [sic] was handed to me. If I could do it, you all can do it,” Vo said. The event was meant to showcase the kind of professional successes that emerge out of SMC’s cosmetology program. Students are trained in every facet of beautification, hair styling, makeup and general skin care. Vo commented that one of the lessons he learned was that “you have to be humble, you have to get rid of your ego and you have to learn from the bottom up and soak it all in.” for extended coverage visit us at thecorsaironline.com •
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SMC may offer new design B.A.
Yasha Hawkins & rachel gianuario Staff Writer A four-year Bachelor of Arts pilot program in interaction design might be coming to Santa Monica College. Back in September, Governor Brown signed a bill allowing for a program that would test out Bachelor’s degree programs at state community colleges, and SMC could be one of the schools selected to participate. According to student trustee Daniel Kolko in an Associated Students meeting from November 10, the state has a goal to offer 60 thousand bachelors degrees in interaction design by 2025 and community colleges are going to have to help provide that. The major, abbreviated as IxD, is the software development of shaping interactive digital products for people use. This kind of design, and not science, chiefly focusses on behavior and how things are. Initially, the proposed program will cater to students interested in Interaction Design, as there is no such degree offered in the UC/ CSU system. Only California College for the Arts currently offers a B.A. in the area. Jamie Cavanaugh, an Associate Professor sees this as “an opportunity to provide our students access to an Interaction Design B.A. degree and to offer this degree to a broader student population.” ICC vice president Courtney King put the major into terms of aesthetic design, specifically referencing the detail that goes into the background at Walt Disney amusement parks. “It all had to be designed by someone,” said King. “Interaction Design is more than designing for the web and mobile devices because it’s not confined to interaction with a mouse or touchscreen,” says Cavanaugh. “It’s usercentered design for how we interact with objects and systems. Interaction Design focuses on the behavior of the device or product, as well as the user. User-centered design considers the needs and desires of the user.” The program is still in its developmental stages according to Board of Trustees President, Georgia Lorenz. While the major has been identified, the classes and levels of achievements are still not known. “We are proposing several options for students. In addition to the 4-year B.A. degree in Interaction Design, students may elect to earn a Certificate of Achievement or an Associate’s degree in User Experience Design,” says Cavanaugh. Currently, SMC students can major in graphic design and web design, but a specialized skill like interaction design would appeal to many tech firms and major computer companies, according to Kolko. He named Direct TV, Google, Snapchat, Sony Pictures, and Walt Disney amusement parks and resorts to name a few companies that are currently looking for graduates in interaction design. Android began incorporating interaction design software into its latest Android 5.0 “Lollipop” developed by Google, available for updates by November 12. According to App Developer Magazine, the new material design will help users create tangible surfaces, authentic motion, and adaptive design. At this point the Board of Trustees has until December 20th to submit the proposal. They’ll know if SMC has been selected before the end of January. Although the new bill gives community colleges until 2020 to create such a program, the proposed program should be in full effect by Fall 2017 or earlier according to Lorenz.
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4 Opinion
volume 108 issue 11 •November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
Let them eat cake: the bonfire of Mexico The disappearance of 43 students sparks wide protests and brings sharp attention to the country’s decaying political system alci Rengifo Editor-in-Chief
D
ivert your attention away from the Ebola crisis or the wars of the Middle East because right next door, Mexico is beginning to quake. For weeks now, protests and unrest have swept through large swathes of our southern neighbor, putting into question the stability of Enrique Pena Nieto’s dictatorship, ahem, presidency. It is perhaps the first sign of a social explosion in a country mired in inequality, corruption, and decay all held together through a capitalist mirage. For years, if not centuries, the Mexican aristocracy has watched from the windows of its own Versailles, gazing at the crowds and fires below. The gates were stormed once during the 1910 Revolution, and they may very well be stormed again, as they should be. The current spark of public rage was set off on September 26 in the state of Guerrero, when 43 students from the town of Iguala went missing following a protest against raising tuition fees. Students gathered to protest the government’s plans to hike tuition fees to levels that would make education entirely unaffordable for the working class. Police commandos fired on the protesters in the downtown, killing six. Afterwards, 43 remaining students were taken into custody soon after, and have not been seen since. Their exact whereabouts remain a mystery, but according to confessions from arrested police officers affiliated to local narco gangs, the students were handed over to local drug assassins by the police, according the New Yorker. Allegedly, the students were then killed, tossed into a ditch, and incinerated. Iguala’s mayor, Jose Luis Abarca, and his wife Pineda Villa, initially fled the country as rumors of their corruption and conspiracy stormed their illustrious Bastille. As of November 4, they have been arrested and accused by Mexico’s Attorney General, Jesus Murillo Karan, as “masterminds” of the students’ disappearance. But there arrest has not been enough to calm down the raging streets. Demonstrators are demanding the students either be safely returned or their exact fate be revealed. Thousands have gathered in Mexico City, with protesters attempting to set alight the large doors to the Presidential Palace. At a Friday press conference, Karan admitted the students’ bodies were burned to a point in which forensic evidence could not identify the bodies. Karan gained no fans when he slumped out of the public’s adamant questioning at an earlier press conference by simply stating, “Alright, I’m tired.” The public’s furious demand for answers sparked a trending social media protest movement on Twitter, #I’mTired. And yet the real subtext of the current unrest has more to do with Mexico’s deeper, wider social problems. This is not the
first time students have been the victims of state terror for speaking out. On October 2, 1968, Mexico had one of its most notorious tragedies when students gathering in Mexico City’s Tlatelolco square, demanding greater social equality in the spirit of the global protests of the time, were gunned down by the army. An estimated 300 students were killed in a day still commemorated by the country’s Left every year. The 43 disappeared students belonged to a rural college where radical teachers educate the local poor for free. The school’s walls are plastered with the faces of revolutionary icons such as Che Guevara and Emiliano Zapata. This adds a more direct meaning to the disappearances: If radical voices speak out in Pena Nieto’s Mexico, they will be drowned in blood. Iguala’s youth are only the latest victims to be incinerated by a furnace of violence that has engulfed the country since 2006, when former right-wing president Felipe Calderon initiated a military campaign to stamp out the drug cartels. But as has always been the case in Mexico, the ruling class nothing to do with the state. As journalists like the late Charles Bowden and Anabel Hernandez have documented in books like “Murder City” and “Narcoland,”
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organized crime has become so embedded in the Mexican army and local police. So much so that there is virtually no functioning, state system of law and order anymore in most of the country. In fact, at the recent marches taking place in Mexico City, the crowds have been chanting “the state is dead.” Since Pena Nieto was elected in 2012, there has been little advancement for the country’s poor which total 52 percent of the population according to the World Bank. Mexico, which is actually the number one oil provider for the United States, has not been able to provide electricity to its rural schools, where dismissed, peasant communities don’t even bother to purchase shoes as reported in a recent New Yorker report. It is a society where skin color still serves as an indicator of rank (as in most of Latin America), because it is a lasting brushstroke of the Spanish Conquest which left those of Spanish descent in power over the conquered indigenous societies. Pena Nieto himself looks like an older Calvin Kline model, his wife is a lightskinned former soap opera bombshell for one of the country’s largest TV networks, which broadcasts watered down garbage and pro-government “news” on a daily basis. Their daughter recently attended a red carpet
event, when asked about the missing students she said, “We’re here to have a good time.” For the Mexican masses, this has turned into a quote akin to Marie Antoinette’s “let them eat cake.” And as cities and towns boil, one of the country’s top independent reporters (the only trustworthy kind) Carmen Aristegui, has revealed the scoop on the presidential couple’s $7 million mansion was remodeled with state funds. Pena Nieto is also quickly privatizing Mexico’s oil sector, with major foreign companies eagerly waiting with fork and knife. The Mexican people now face the choice of either being trapped within a rotting system or reclaiming their history. Mexico is no stranger to revolt, the 1910 uprising was the first great revolution of the 20th century. It was never fulfilled because its main icons, leaders like Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata, were assassinated by the kind of politicians who still run the system today. Many have decided to take their chances emigrating to the United States and flee the violent chaos. Like their neighbors in Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador, the Mexicans protesting must form popular, revolutionary parties to take power and sweep away the old order. And if the situation is so dire that such moderate moves are not possible, then they must revolt in full to save their country. What will save Mexico is not outside intervention (although we are their favorite drug clients), but the establishment of a genuine, popular democracy, radical in its structure. Already calls are growing at various protests demanding Pena Nieto resign. Even his recent visit to Australia to sign new, lucrative trade deals that will only benefit Mexico’s ruling class, was met by protsters forming human chains, demanding he step down. But replacing one crook for another is not enough. A possible foreshadowing came in 2006, when the capital of the state of Oaxaca became ground zero for a mass uprising against the state’s local, corrupt government. Like the Paris Commune of 1871, the Oaxacans kicked out the police and overthrew the capital city’s government, taking it over themselves and running it together through a popular, elected government. So radical was the moment that documents later revealed that the CIA became nervous that the Oaxaca rebellion would spread like fire. Unfortunately it did not, and security forces invaded the city to smash the people’s government. But there lies a possible seed, a possible germ of the future. The Mexican people now stand together in a sorrow that is birthing a great rage. May they resist, and in doing so they may provoke tremors that will reverberate far north. As the 19th century Cuban poet Jose Marti once wrote, “Now is the time of the furnaces, and Jhosef Hern Corsair only the light can be seen.”
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Opinion 5
volume 108 issue 11• November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
Facing the reality of sexual harassment Sexual harassment is a sad reality of campus life that requires us to get serious about how to deal with it and stop it Devin page staff writer
Situation 1: You were just lab partners. It meant nothing. Now they want to go out on a date and take things further. They just won’t get a clue and won’t stop texting you. Situation 2: You fail your history exam and you need extra credit. Instead of giving you an assignment to earn extra points, your teacher hits on you and offers you another way to get an A in the class. Situation 3: You’re at the water cooler looking over your lectures you have planned for today, when a fellow staff member makes a suggestive comment and feels you up. Student to student, faculty to student (or vice versa), and intra-faculty cases of sexual harassment are all possibilities that can surface within a college. Sexual harassment is a serious issue that occurs among all ages, but especially among young adults. This problem largely extends to college campuses. While many deem the Santa Monica College campus as a safe space, SMC Psychology Professor Alexander Schwartz argues that the same does not apply to to the people within the campus. “People will be people wherever they go,” said Schwartz. President Barack Obama has legally mandated that college campuses have taskforces that specifically deal with sexual harassment. This problem has never been as
dealt with in legal matters to the extent that gender group led by Economics Professor it is now. A federal initiative has required Eileen Rabach that tackles these issues. The further investigation of these matters. group recognizes that this issue is not only Sandy Chung is the title IX officer for SMC, something that women have to deal with, which began after SMC President Chui L. but men and trans persons as well. Tsang assembled a taskforce that deals with sexual harassment on campus. “Our understanding and view of sexual Cases of sexual harassment are currently harassment and how we respond to it may be being reviewed by the taskforce which will as a result of being a nonresidential campus,” be tackled by mid-spring. Though cases are says Psychology Professor Chante De Loach. confidential, Chung does recall an incident a “When talking about sexual harassment few years ago regarding catcalling that took we limit it artificially to dorms, when in actuality it can place in the main quad. The Unheard voices are still buried in occur and does catcalling not the shadows, and new cases are still occur all over.” T h e only involved undiscovered. Now more than ever, c o n v e r s a t i o n men, but women too. cases have unveiled themselves and has to shift from whatever C a m p u s have demanded attention. preconceived police dealt notions we with the have about sexual harassment and take into situation and reminded students to remain consideration more than just ourselves. professional and respect each other. Most people probably think that this While this is most of the extent that problem doesn’t exist at SMC and look the harassment has been reported, it is not to say other way, but as De Loach says, “We reflect that nothing else is possible. On four-year campuses where there are the communities that we’re apart of.” Dean Deyna Hearn, Robert Myers of dormitories, incidents of a larger nature, such as rape, tend to occur. While sexual Campus Counsel, and Vice President Mike assault is not impossible at SMC’s campuses, Tuitasi still have yet to comment, but that is Chung reports that incidents of that nature not surprising, as this school’s administrators tend to occur away from campus since we have their work cut out for them. This is are a commuter school without dormitories. something that they are taking seriously, as SMC doesn’t have a bubble around it it is not something that can just be glossed and in order for these instances to become over. In order for progress to move forward, we regulated, people will have to come forward, and the school will have to take action. need to all get our heads out of the sand There are still sexual predators wherever you and address the fact that real issues occur at go. They don’t have to be dressed in hooded SMC. We live in a culture where not everyone clothing and have social ineptitude. looks at sexual harassment as a big deal. It’s Besides the presidential taskforce, there just catcalling. It was just a text. It was just is a faculty run taskforce: the women/
an embrace. Maybe it was just “innocent” flirting. The lines are so blurred that we can’t see through them. We need to have parameters to recreate what we have lost and build a more informed future. Whether it’s sexual pressure from a teacher or a fellow student, none of it is okay. “You can’t just wear a sheet over your head,” Chung says. A line has to be drawn and that is what the taskforce is working on. Any non-consensual acts are not acceptable by any means. If you don’t know where to go or who to turn to, there are multiple outlets on campus that deal with sexual harassment. You can talk to the dean of the college, Human Resources, Campus Counsel or Police, or anywhere else that receives and processes complaints. Unheard voices are still buried in the shadows, and new cases are still undiscovered. Now more than ever, cases have unveiled themselves and have demanded attention. Victims of sexual harassment across the country are demanding attention. Obama has put the pressure on and now it is in the hands of individual college administrators to process these issues and handle them accordingly. It should not be underestimated, though, the power that students have to recognize sexual harassment and to report it, whether it happens to you or someone else. Instances of sexual harassment may not be as prevalent at a community college such as SMC, but the issue should not be minimized. In fact, we should be trying all we can to prevent or lessen future occurrences. SMC administrators are reviewing cases and taking the matter seriously, so it can only be asked that students do the same once prompted by administration.
WE START AS STUDENTS WE LEARN BEYOND THE CLASSROOM WE TRAIN IN OUR COMMUNITY
At CSU Channel Islands
& THEN WE TAKE ON THE WORLD
working side-by-side with professors, industry experts and professionals is an opportunity for every student. They bring theory into practice. They learn how problems can be solved. These are more than field trips or internships to put on resumes. These are the lessons on which to build careers. RESEARCH: An environmental studies class stops to discuss island environment as part of the California State University Channel Islands (CI) Santa Rosa Island Research Station (SRIRS).
LEARNING THROUGH EXPERIENCE Learn more at go.csuci.edu/smc
for extended coverage visit us at thecorsaironline.com • CSU Channel Islands - Take on the World/Research Santa Monica College - Corsair Run dates: Nov 12, Nov 19, 2014
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10” x 7.5” BW email: orders@mymediamate.com Due: Nov 3, 2014
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6 PhotoStory
volume 108 issue 11 • November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
Carlos Espinosa Corsair
Member of the SMC Pan-African Student Union, Brittani Blackwell, (above), hosts the first annual Creative Collaborations Event at the AFIBA Center in Los Angeles, Calif. on Sunday.
Mia Duncans Corsair
Jon Kent, SMC Student, performs a monologue on stage Sunday at an event hosted by the SMC Club, Creative Collaborations.
Carlos Espinosa Corsair
Although a donation jar sits at the entrance of the AFIBA Center in Los Angeles, Calif. on Sunday, donating was an option. SMC club, Creative Collaborations, put on the event titled “Good for the Community”. It included many musical, theatrical, and poetic performances that featured current and former SMC Students and Professsors.
Mia Duncans Corsair
SMC student Armand Nairizik performs a fire dance routine on Sunday. Holding the stick above his head, whirling it slowly, the fire at both ends of the stick raged and whipped with the night's wind. The fire dancer approached the edge of the crowd surrounding him, manipulating the stick around his arms and body ever so calmly. A woman shouted from the nearest part of the circle, "My hair is highly flammable!" The dancer lightly smiled and slowly stepped back from Aisha Conde, Ambassador of the Alumni Association. All the while, the over-sized flaming baton gracefully flew up above his head and back down again. Despite fears of getting a touch too close, Santa Monica College student, Armand Kizirian's fire dance performance was definitely a crowd favorite at the Creative Collaboration Club this Sunday evening. Featured at the African Firefighters In Benevolent Association Center (AFIBA) in Crenshaw, the CC Club invited artists of the Santa Monica community to showcase their work. The event's coordinator, Osiris Booque, explained that the purpose of the event was to "create a space wherein the student artists of SMC and other artists...[to] showcase their work." Booque also
CREATIVE COLLABORATIONS Deni Rodriguez & Rachel Gianuario Staff Writer
mentioned that goal in inviting all artists is aimed towards liberating and bettering of all society. In order to help serve the event's theme "good for the community," Booque decide the event would be open to all ages as well as free admission. He explained that the students who volunteered to showcased their work were not paid, wanting to simply express their art. Performances at the event ranged from poetry readings that alternated in English and Armenian, to the showcasing of student films, to singers. “It was awesome, definitely representative of SMC and its students. Seeing a student on campus and then seeing them onstage is different, you get to see more than one person in a single body,” said Brittani Blackwell, CC club vice president. Short films produced and acted by SMC students showed a symbolic struggles of the underserved poor and the American dream. One after another, SMC students shared various stories performing spoken word acts, and poetry. One acted as a sound healer who translated the audiences' vibes into symphonic sounds with the use of technology. SMC
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student Andres Zapata, described his interest in poetry as taking root in his home country, Costa Rica, with poets in mind such as Pablo Neruda. As one of the last artists of the night to perform, Pablo Lenero, part of the applied music program at SMC, performed a stunning piano piece he called "Lagrimas de un Torero" (Tears of a Bullfighter). He explained that it was the "machismo" or masculine pride that often oppress men in Mexico, that inspired his song. Playing for ten years, he described dedicating six hours a day this year, more than previous years. As the event closed, Osiris Booque's grass roots band, Eye-Opening Hallucinations. "The best part is that artists can come together and share their talent with the students in camaraderie, as a student planned event," said Professor Doucet. Booque mentioned that this year was only made possible through the community, particularly thanking local farmers markets who spared some produce as well as Sweet Lady Jane Bakery who donated bread. He said there will be another Creative Collaborative Club artist showcase in the next two months. /thecorsairnews •
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volume 108 issue 11 • November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
PhotoStory 7
Mia Duncans Corsair
SMC Student and one of the founding members of the SMC Club, Creative Collaborations, Osiris Booque, (above) performs at “Good for the Community”, an event he hosted in Los Angeles, Calif. on Sunday. The event featured Musical Performances, Poetry, Monologue, Spoken Word, Sound Healing and Fire Dancing in a move to create community oneness. The majority of the performers all hail from SMC.
Carlos Espinosa Corsair
SMC English Professor, Dr. Wilfred Doucet, (above), takes the stage and reads to the audience on Sunday. “Good for the Community” was hosted by the SMC club, Creative Collaborations. The event was put on in an order to bring people together, have them join forces, and share their many talents and skills with the community.
Mia Duncans Corsair
Mia Duncans Corsair
Gabriel Ballini, (top left), Avila Santo (lower left), Jesse Wright (lower right) and Skylar Krohn (top right), who are current and former SMC Students, give a musical performance at an event hosted by SMC’s Creative Collaborations Club on Sunday at the AFIBA Center in Los Angeles, Calif. for extended coverage visit us at thecorsaironline.com •
SMC Student and Creative Collaborations Founder, Osiris Booque, (left) looks on as former SMC Student Matt Rich (right) rocks the mic at an event they hosted in Los Angeles, Calif. on Sunday in an effort to bring SMC Club activity off campus and into the Community. The duo, along with a few others, all Santa Monica affiliated, are known as the Ubiquitous Love Tribe and perform often at various cities in the area.
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& Lifestyle 8 Health
volume 108 issue 11 •November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
Pure Drift clears the stream for the needy Pure Drift seeks to provide communities in the Third World with filtered drinking water with group of volunteer dreamers Paulina Eriksson Health and Lifestyle Editor In San Miguel, a quite fishing village in Baja California, Mexico, a little boy patiently waits for something to grab on to his bait. It’s well known that patience is the key in fishing but hours goes by and nothing happens. The little boy refuses to give up. A group of fishermen arrives back to the village. One of them walks over to the boy and gives him a small fish they had caught during their trip. His face lights up and a huge smile spreads from one ear to the other. You could see on his face that it meant a lot to him. “I’ve never seen a kid so happy with a fish. It was like he got a new iPad or a new Playstation,” SMC student Andres Renella said. “As soon as you travel and you see how simple people live about a lot of stuff, it just kind of humbles you and brings you back to earth,” Corey Eichenberger added. What began as a desire to travel back to his hometown in Ecuador, suddenly evolved into a much bigger, and more important project when Renella and Eichenberger decided to start the non-profit organization called Pure Drift. “I’ve always wanted to drive all the way south, from here to Ecuador, and surf along the way. It all began as a personal kind of thing, like mostly something that I wanted to do,” Renella said. But he soon realized that the trip could also be a “huge opportunity to give back.” Both Renella and Eichenberger have travelled a lot and experienced villages that are not as lucky as many other places. “You get in touch with things that are pretty messed up. People that live right next to the ocean, right next to rivers, and they still get [water related] diseases that can be prevented,” Renella said. And that is how he came up with the idea for Pure Drift. He wanted to bring someone on board, someone that would really care about the
Carlos Espinosa Corsair
Roberto Hernandez, local fisherman, and SMC students Chris Curl, Corey Eichenberger and Andres Rennella set up the water filter bucket for the village of San Mateo to get potable water during the demo trip of The Pure Drift Project on October 12, 2014. project and someone that would be nice to be around, and even though he didn’t know Eichenberger very well, he knew that he would be the perfect partner. Eichenberger loved the idea. “He sends me a text like, ‘Hey bro, you got plans next year around this time? do you want to drive to Ecuador and give out water filters on the way?’ That was pretty much that’s all it said and my response was just yes. It was an insane opportunity and here we are planning it out,” Eichenberger said. To test out the filters, they went on a trip down to Mexico last month. “There was this little fishing village and we asked if we could do a demo and give them a free water filter and they were super happy and yeah, they loved it. It went all great,” Eichenberger said. The feeling of giving something back was
the best part according to Renella. “We go So far everything has been paid out of their to their spots, we go to their towns and little own pockets, but to help raise money for the villages, and we enjoy just being there and upcoming trip they are going to organize we surf their waves so we’re basically just some local events. “We are going to have giving something an art show, we want in return out of the to have a few beach “As soon as you travel and cleanups, we want to amount of things we get,” she said. have a surf contest you see how simple people and we are going to The filters are an attachment to a start a Kickstarter as live about a lot of stuff, it bucket that comes well,” Renella said. with a hose and the “Whatever we can get actual filter. “They just kind of humbles you and we will be more than are not regular filter, happy to accept it.” brings you back to earth,” not like the ones They are currently you will find at Bed in the process of Cory Eichenberger Bath and Beyond. becoming a legal nonThese will last for profit organization either 5 years or a but it is pricey and a thousand gallons, so process that takes a long time. “For this trip whatever comes first,” to Ecuador, we have to raise $11000 and so Renella said. we started this whole project a year before we Eichenberger also are going to leave because we want to do it explained that you right,” Renella said. can put any water Pure Drift requires a lot of work and in there, except salt dedication but that is not something Renella water, and it will come or Eichenberger sees as negative. Both of out perfectly clean and them would drop everything to be able to, if healthy to drink. possible, continue doing this for years. The next big step for The ultimate dream would be to continue Pure Drift will be the helping communities in other places like trip to Ecuador next Australia, Europe and Africa, but right now year. They will start in they are just focusing on closer locations. September and then “We just trying to take it one step at the travel for 3-4 months, time, but if we can keep doing it then for giving out 20-25 filters sure, I’m down with it,” Renella said. on the way. “Our main They are both sure of the fact that there is goal is to travel from a strong connection between being a surfer Los angeles to Ecuador and starting the Pure Drift project. and give out as many Caring about the water, our earth and the filters as we can. But environment is something Eichenberger feels before that I think we is in his nature. “I think as surfer, it’s kind of are going to do a few programmed into you as a kid.” more smaller trips,” Renella also believes that there is a strong Renella said. connection but that their motivation and “We are going to hit drive is also based on their personalities, schools, communities, adding that, “the way things turned out it’s surf communities, because who we are, who Corey is and who I Carlos Espinosa Corsair pretty much just am. What we are doing is basically just giving Members of the Pure Drift Project help locals in accessing clean drinking water during their demo anyone that needs all we have, and I only speak for myself but trip to Mexico. The project seeks to provide clean water for communities in areas where scarcity of water,” Eichenberger I think I can speak for Corey as well, that’s resources deprives communities of basic commodities and utilities. added. just who we are.” for extended coverage visit us at thecorsaironline.com •
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Health & Lifestyle 9
volume 108 issue 11• November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
Movember, growing ‘staches for charity
Juan Lopez Corsair
Chris Rojas, also known as “Niner,” is a barber at Active Barbers in Santa Monica on Wilshire. Juan Lopez Digital Editor November is in full swing and you may have noticed a few people on campus looking just a bit different. More mustaches, more beards, and all around just more hair. Associated Students outreach director Robert Espinoza is cultivating a beard along with instructional support director Jeffrey Lewis Jr., as well as campus club Generation of the Future’s president Trae Smith. For the last couple of years, November has been a full month of determination for both men and women to grow out unruly hair. Many people conceptualize this month as “no-shave November,” an annual dedication to surrendering the razor; Movember. Movember is a month-long event dedicated to raising money and spreading awareness
for men’s health, with a particular focus on, prostate cancer. Founded in 2003 in Queensland, Australia, Movember is now present in 21 countries. Eleven years later, the event has gathered four million participants and raised $600 million in the U.S. Tom Whiteside, business and community engagement manager for the Movember Foundation commented, “[It’s] a registered charity, an organization, and in full, a global men’s health movement, with no affiliation to any other November hair contests.” This is in reference to later organizations with different names that have sprouted around the world with the same or similar premise. Movember goes beyond a competition of lengthy facial hair. Participants register at the Movember website, and begin growing a mustache for 30 days to “spark conversation
and raise funds,” said Whiteside. Registered participants create a “mo- space,” which is a personalized fundraising page dedicated to spreading the word and raising money. Chris Rojas, who goes by “Niner,” is a barber at Active Barbers in Santa Monica who started growing his mustache during Movember of 2013. “My dad thought it was a dumb idea at first,” said Rojas, recalling initial reactions from his friends and family. Participants have the opportunity to attend any number of Movember events, all accessible through the website, or even host an event of their own. Some of these events include, “Shave the Date,” a party dedicated to starting freshly shaven on the first of the month, “Mustache Dache,” a five-K marathon held in 23 cities, and the “Movember Gala Parté,” an end of the month costume party in celebration of the achievements and efforts by all the participants. “Barbershops are becoming like hot clubs everybody wants to go to,” said Rojas. “I think it’s a barber’s job to tell clients about the Movember month movement.” SMC student Sarah Winick attended last year’s “Mustache Dache” with her boyfriend, Angel, who has been participating for three years now. “Movember is a clever idea,” Winick said, adding that, “It’s a fun way to get people involved and to raise money for prostate cancer. It’s not really something we hear about often.” SMC student Jake Tartaglini participates in Movember and was initially interested in it, because, like so many, cancer has touched some part of his life. “My granddad’s a survivor of testicular cancer, and that’s the only reason I know what I know about it.
It’s really common in younger people, which isn’t typically the case for this kind of thing,” said Tartaglini. Rojas also learned of Movember and became interested because someone in his family was affected by prostate cancer. “It’s really embarrassing to talk about,” said Rojas. “Men don’t like to talk about what’s going on in the behind, it’s a big insecurity for men.” Although Movember is a male-oriented foundation, Whiteside remarked that they truly do invite women to participate. In fact, he says, this whole movement was inspired by women and their health movement. “It’s usually the women in our lives that encourage visits to the doctor,” said Whiteside. Whiteside elaborated that some easy facts about health can change the life of many. In the U.S., for example, prostate cancer will be diagnosed in at least one in seven men throughout their lifetime, one in 36 will die from it, and likelihood increases with age. Testicular cancer is the most common cancer in men of 15-35 years of age; and 79 percent of U.S. suicides in a given year are men. Whiteside still stresses to SMC that “it’s not too late to get involved.” Although the month has already started, he still calls it a fair game. “We suggest [students] visit the website to learn about it and how to become empowered participants.” Rojas is hoping to still get more people involved next year with his barber shop. His advice to people interested in participating in Movember is simply forget about the razor and let the mustache grow. “See how it goes. Go to your barber shop and let them clean it up for you.” In the end, Rojas said, “Just have fun with it.”
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& Entertainment 10 Arts
volume 108 issue 11 •November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
Veronika Kachanovskaya Corsair
SMC dancers perform “Reign,” a choreographed dance featuring Maisha Morris, who plays a queen, showing her power over her slaves during the rehearsals for this weekend’s Synapse dance show at The Broad Stage.
Synapse: A dancer’s journey
SMC dance company gives student the opportunity to storm The Broad Stage in a dazzling show of movement Juan Lopez Digital Editor Watching the short statured student choreographer Glenn Rodriguez leap in the air with tightly held poise, it would be hard to believe that he started his journey to soloing at the Synapse show at the Broad Stage as a Biomedical Engineering major at Santa Monica College. He dropped the major two years ago, despite the opposition of his parents, to pursue his dream. His piece, which he also choreographed, is inspired not only by his own personal journey but by the classic video game “Zelda: A Link to the Past.” Rodriguez, relates the Synapse program and teaches to items and quests he used to defeat the bosses of his own end game. “I took what I had, what i was given, what SMC had to offer, and just took the tools, started using them, manipulating them, and augmenting them so I could use [them to] fulfill my dream of choreographing,” said Rodriguez. The co-directors of this semester’s Synapse show, Jae Lee and Mark Tomasic, chose four student choreographers at the beginning of the semester to round out 12 choreographers made up of dance instructors and guest choreographers. Those choreographers were then part of a rigorous audition process in which many dancers auditioned with each choreographer, one after the other. “It’s furious, and fast, and crazy, and it’s awesome,” said Tomasic. Tomasic describes the production as “a huge gamut.” He described the range of styles in music and dance as well as the styles in production from piece to piece from all of the different choreographers, saying “I’m sure our audience members will find something that they can attach to.” Synapse usually invites guest choreographers to work with students, with this semester landing Kate Hutter, co-founder and Artistic Director of the L.A. Contemporary Dance Company, and Joelle Martinec, founder and Artistic Director of SoleVita Dance Company. “It’s very exciting to have people from the
profession bring their expertise, making When the dancers contact with our students, training our take the stage on Friday, students and then giving our students in November 21 and return the beginning of a network for when Sunday, November they leave,” said Tomasic. 23, the choreographers After ten weeks of preparation from and dancers will be auditions to run throughs, the program focused entirely on tests the students most intensely during the their performance final two weeks before they perform live to and connecting their an audience. “That’s when they get a sense movements with their of how much conditioning they need,” said purpose. Tomasic. Directing these student dancers, Co-director Lee Tomasic said takes “knowing when to step knows her abstract style in, [and] knowing how much to hold back.” choreography may no be Some dancers may end up performing taken the way she means up to three consecutive pieces and the them to be and says “it’s run throughs have them practicing their part of the beauty of performances with one piece separating, modern dance.” so that they do not feel overworked. “[The Meanwhile, former co-directors] managed the time very well, biomedical engineering and my rehearsal schedule, so it wasn’t too major Rodriguez says “I intense,” said Rodriguez. “But I was still at really want it to be more school six days a week.” on the emotional level Tomasic goes over the many paths a dance where the audience can major can take, highlighting industry or feel what I’m feeling and commercial dancing for TV, commercial, I want them to experience film, and stage, modern dance companies a journey with me.” which perform in cities around the world, “We all have emotions,” Veronika Kachanovskaya Corsair teaching and choreographing. He even said Rodriguez, “and The scene of the play REIGN, where the central part mentions less conventional career choices that’s the one part that of the stage takes Maisha Morris, at the Broad Stage, for those in the dance industry like, dance connects the artist and during Synapse Dance rehearsal therapy, physical therapy, or massage therapy, the audience.” and stage management or stage production. “There’s a whole kind of world of opportunity and we really try to make sure our students are aware of all of it,” said Tomasic. “At some point most of us have to stop, because our bodies tell us it’s time one way or another,” said Tomasic. “We encourage our students to transfer and get their B.A. degree.” In terms of what the program does for students, Rodriguez relates his own experience, saying “‘Most of my works have been developed through SMC and because of faculty here.” He added, “It’s very Veronika Kachanovskaya Corsair nurturing for an artist to develop a lot of their SMC dancers perform “Reign,” a choreographed dance featuring Maisha Morris, who plays craftsmanship in such a a queen, showing her power over her slaves during the rehearsals for this weekend’s Synapse unique way.” dance show at The Broad Stage.
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volume 108 issue 11• November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
Arts & Entertainment 11
Jose Lopez Corsair
Tanna Frederick offers a glympse of her dressing room by pointing at the layers of decorations she has personalized her space with at the Edgemar Center for the Arts. Frederick shared that this one of the spaces she feels most safe to retreat to when she practices her lines.
Tanna Frederick discovers her dark heart
Local actress opens up about the intense but fulfilling experience of acting in the production “Train To Zakopane” alci Rengifo Editor-in-Chief Tanna Frederick has spent years making her name as a local actress in the Santa Monica community, headlining several notable productions at venues like the Santa Monica Playhouse and the Edgemar Center For The Arts. A native of Iowa, Frederick majored in Theater and Political Science at the University of Iowa before moving out to Los Angeles to start auditioning for theater productions.”I was valedictorian, giving the speech was hell on earth,” she recalled with jubilee during a phone conversation last Thursday. Since then she has graced the local stage and has even attained a certain cult status for playing a lovable dog in a 2011production of “Sylvia.” “No matter what play I do, I will never never be able to live that one down. People walk up to me four plays later, ‘I loved you as a dog,’” she shared. Frederick is an easy talker with an immediately friendly air about her, so she was astounded to discover the depth to which she could explore her darker self in a new production of “Train To Zakopane.” Directed by Gary Imhoff, “Train To Zakopane” opens this Friday at the Edgemar in Santa Monica. It tells the story of a Jewish Russian businessman played by Mike Falkow who takes an army train to Warsaw during World War II. On the train, he meets a nurse (Frederick), whom he falls for only to discover she’s a rabid anti-semite. The play was written by Henry Jaglom, and was inspired by his father’s memories of riding a similar train across Poland in 1928. Frederick explained that she has never played a hateful character before, and in order to produce a powerful effect on stage, she needed to search in the darkest recesses of her heart. “To create a real change in the audience, I need to find this absolute hate in myself, which has been a really weird
Courtesy Tanna Frederick
journey,” she said. If Nietzsche warned those who fight monsters to be careful in not becoming one during the process, for Frederick, the experience of playing her latest role has forced to face a more uncomfortable side of herself. “I was taught growing up to be completely prejudice against prejudice...But on the other hand, I didn’t realize where I do have existing anger and hatred,” said Frederick. “My whole world has been turned upside
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down because I’m examining all of my views on prejudice,” she added. Even little altercations, she mentioned, can amass huge amounts of hatred, using arguments between her family members as an example. Surprisingly, Frederick shared that the easiest scene for her to rehearse was a pivotal monologue in which her character spews her reasons for hating Jews. The hardest moments, however, are ones involving simple, racist insults. “I either land on the lines too hard, like with a hammer and say @t h e _ c o r s a i r •
them very violently, or I completely throw them off, as if I were sneezing,” she said. For Frederick, embodying this character has even taken a physical toll. “I keep joking ‘Train To Zakopane’, brought to you by Tums,” she added. So searing has the experience proven to be that Frederick has found herself going to the theater bathroom to simply be alone and cry. Like an athlete, Frederick has been disciplined in waking up in the morning and preparing for rehearsals. Preferring not to dabble too much at home on the hatreds humans expunge, she instead explores connections with her co-workers. “I love the director, I love the cast. We have an amazing group. I’m trying to just be present,” she emphasized. With “Train To Zakopane”, Frederick is walking through new terrain emotionally, but is confident in what she can produce. “I’ve already come in from such a place deep within me that I can trust myself as an actor not to do some b.s. portrayal. It’s in my bones,” she said. As a political science major in college, emphasizing in international relations, Frederick has compared the play’s content to the sectarian violence and bloodshed now engulfing the Middle East. “When it comes to headlines, I’ve seen a lot of parallels,” she said. Despite the grey clouds that dominate the daily newspapers, Frederick still believes today’s youth culture is actually more hopeful. “I do think the current 21 to 30 year- olds are more aware about bullying and treating others like crap. They have this attitude of ‘it’s not ok to treat someone like that’,” expressed Frederick. She believes this makes a modern audience more receptive to the ideas in “Train To Zakopane.” As she prepared to head back into rehearsals ahead of Friday’s premiere, Frederick contemplated the positive side of playing a downright nasty character. “I guess I’m pleased that I’m not a racist. At the end of the day, I can say I had a hard time being really shitty to another race,” chuckled Frederick before making her way back to the dressing room to prepare for “Train To Zakopane” for Santa Monica’s theater goers.
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12 Sports
volume 108 issue 11 • November 19, 2014 • santa monica college
Football to face Soutwestern in bowl Trev Angone Sports Editor
Mia Duncans Corsair
Captain of the SMC Womens Soccer Team, Xiovana Ordaz, takes a break on the field Tuesday.
Eat, sleep, soccer, repeat
Claudius West Staff Writer For Xiovana Ordaz, her entire life thus far has revolved around a black and white, synthetic leather ball. “I just know that my whole life was soccer,” Ordaz said, with the smile of a person content in her athletic passion. “It was just school, soccer, homework, sleep.” The Santa Monica College Corsair sophomore forward and woman’s soccer team captain is poised to lead her team into the state playoffs. Ordaz women’s soccer forward/midfielder
has all of the signs of an athlete who has spent most of her life on the soccer field. Her superior ball control and speed has helped her set up goals for teammates and can put the ball in the back of the net as well. She current leads her team team in assists with 11 and in goals with 11. Ordaz’s story begins far away from the foaming shores of Santa Monica in the small, northern California farm town of Lodi, about 90 miles east of San Francisco. Ordaz, an only child, joined her first soccer team at 5 years old. “My Mom just said that I liked the sport so she put me on the soccer team, and I fell in love right there and then,”
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Ordaz said. Her earliest memories of the game is the experience of playing goalie which was when she realized that she would rather be scoring goals than blocking them. “Playing goalie was the worst thing because I wanted the ball and I would never get the ball and I knew then that I wanted to be the one making the goals not being in the goal,” Ordaz said. When she was 16, Ordaz traveled with her team, the Stockton Cougars, and made the single game winning goal that advanced her team a berth in National Champion Tournament where the Cougars would place third. In her career as a player for Lodi High School, Ordaz accumulated 18 goals in 65 games over the course of her four years on the varsity squad. Though Ordaz grew up in the dry and dusty plains of a Lodi small town, she longed to change her scenery to an ocean view. “I’ve always wanted to be around the beach,” Ordaz said. “I didn’t know SMC was around at all until my cousin, who I live with now, told me. So I came out in the spring while still in [High] School, tried out with the team for a day and loved it.” Ordaz made the team and just two weeks after graduating from Lodi High School, she moved to southern California to live with her great aunt and play for the Corsairs. Amongst the trophies strewn around the various offices that straddle Corsair Pavilion and Corsair Field, a Western State Conference women’s soccer title is missing from the collection. This version of the Corsairs womens’ soccer team has a realistic shot of filling that hole. Finishing with a 14-1-3 overall record, second in the WSC and 7th in the California Community College Athletic Association Women’s Soccer State poll. The team takes every game very seriously Ordaz is all smiles confident in her team’s abilities. Besides her pure love for the game, Ordaz’s ability to make friends quickly is what the sophomore says has kept her playing for so many years. Of her current team, she said,“I love my team, I need to have good chemistry with the girls if I am going to play hard. We play for each other and I think that’s what makes us a good team.” No matter the result of the games or the teams she tries out for, she will do the one thing she has done her entire life. Play soccer. @t h e _ c o r s a i r •
The Santa Monica College Corsairs once again stand alone above the rest as four-time consecutive American Pacific Conference champions. But although they’re in the midst of a dynasty, there is one crowning achievement missing from their resume: a bowl game victory. The Corsairs were ineligible to play in a bowl game last year, but this year is a different story. Finishing undefeated in conference play, and with only three losses overall, the Corsairs will have the opportunity to finally add that elusive bowl victory to their list of achievements. But, before anyone starts clearing shelf space for that glorious trophy, they might want to check who the Corsairs are scheduled to play this Saturday. Not only are the Corsairs going up against one of their opponents from the 2014 season, but that team just so happened to hand the Corsairs their biggest loss of the year, the Southwestern College Jaguars. “We know that Southwestern is an outstanding football team. But we’re competitors. We’re excited about another opportunity to face those guys,” SMC head coach Gifford Lindheim. Southwestern College finished the season 9-1, with their only loss coming against Victor Valley College, the American Mountain Conference champions. Although Southwestern could not get the job done against their American Mountain Conference rivals, they lost by a field goal. If the Corsairs are going to avenge their 52-27 loss against Southwestern, they will have to reach into their bag of tricks. “Southwestern is a talented, well coached organization,” said Lindheim. “I think we’re a different team now than we were in Week 2 of the season. We’ve been through some wars since then, and I think we’ve grown, matured, and improved as a team,” If the Corsairs are going to upset the powerhouse Jaguars, they’re going to have to play their best game of the year. “This is a tall order. It’s a long trip down to Chula Vista for us, they’re 9-1 and an outstanding team,” Lindheim said. Luckily, the Corsairs have truly hit their stride in the last month, returning to championship form, while firing on all cylinders. Southwestern is very similar to the Corsairs. They have a two-prong quarterback attack which averages over 300 yards passing, and features Luis Perez, and Isaraelu Paopao with each completing over 60% of their passes on the season. Perez has thrown for 1556 passing yards on the season, while Paopao has thrown for 1342. The two headed attack is complimented by a rushing attack that averages about 140 yards per game. The Southwestern defense is also just as stingy as SMC’s, giving up only 23.7 points per game on average. But the Corsairs do have the advantage of already seeing their opponent in action, which makes all the difference. If SMC sticks to the routine that helped them capture their fourth consecutive conference championship, it could be fiesta time in Chula Vista. “Our goal all season was to improve each week and keep battling until the last play, of the last game of the season,” said Lindheim. “We’re treating this as a Championship Game. However, we’re not just satisfied to be in the game. We want to win it.”
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