The Phoenix Volume 7, Issue 1

New Spiderman game see page 4

Homophobia in San Francisco see Special Feature

Sexism in tennis see page 11

Fremont High School

PHOENIX

Vol. 7 Issue No. 1 Oct. 12, 2018

Saying goodbye to milk tea sales at FHS by Samhitha Tumkur & Fiona O’Bannon

Collaboration

Clubs this year are facing a new concern: they no longer have the ability to sell food, specifically milk tea, during lunchtime as a result of statewide nutritional policies. These policies are not new, although it is only recently that they have been strongly enforced at Fremont High School. This battle of whether milk tea should be sold at school has been debated for a couple of years. For example in 2016, the Phoenix wrote a story about how selling milk tea during school hours violated district and state policies. The following year, selling milk tea was temporarily banned, but was repealed later than year. These policies were established by the government over concern of what students eat during school hours, specifically, concern over the healthiness of student-sold food and drink items like milk tea or popcorn chicken.

Drawings courtesy of Anubha Gupta and Samhitha Tumkur

“The idea is to change practices at schools, and to make sure that our students and our generations are building habits that ensure that they’re eating properly,” said George Bechara, Dean of Students. In previous years, students have relied heavily on the demand for food and drink services like milk tea and popcorn chicken in order to fund their clubs. “Last year, we did a lot of milk tea fundraisers.” said junior Dottie Yu, the co-captain of the Speech and Debate Club. “That was our main way of . We had about $1000 by the end of the year as a result of five or six milk tea fundraisers. I don’t think we did any other fundraising aside from that.” Although these foods have been popular fundraisers, they do not meet any of the district’s nutritional standards. The amount of sugar and sodium that students consume through these products go against the district’s attempt to promote healthy eating habits and a balanced diet. Attempts to regulate sugar consumption have already been placed in the

Fremont Union High School District’s (FHS) policy. These efforts include regulating school provided food services, such as school lunch and vending machines, to fit nutritional standards. However, the 2018 to 2019 school year marks FHS’ first official year as a non-

The idea is to change practices at schools, and to make sure that our students and our generations are building habits that ensure that they’re eating properly George Bechara

food fundraising school. According to the district regulations, student organizations are only allowed to sell food on campus after 2:45 p.m, during seventh block. Unlike last year, selling any food before or during school is prohibited, excluding the district-approved Tastes of the World event. During Tastes of the World, clubs are allowed to fundraise by selling foods which do not have to meet state nutritional guidelines. Apart from this event, student organizations will mainly have to fundraise without in-school food services. According to George Bechara, Dean of Students, the only other exception is if students wanted to sell fruits and vegetables during lunchtime. However, those too would require clubs to get ex-

plicit approval from the school before being able to sell to the student body. While these changes have been put in place with the intent to push students toward a less sugary diet, the sudden loss of both milk tea, and a way for clubs to fundraise, has some students concerned. Many students found buying milk tea at school lunchtime convenient, since many of them lack the ability to drive off campus to buy it. “I bought the milk tea at school specifically because I had and have all 7 classes …so I just buy it at school so that I can have some sort of caffeine to hold me over” said junior Chelsea Batalla. “I don’t have a car so I can’t just drive to some tea house during lunch.” Fremont’s location and 45 minute lunches make it difficult for students to buy milk tea during school hours. Especially since the nearest milk tea vendor, Sharetea, is about a mile away. Since most students at Fremont High School, do not have their own cars, it would take about 40 minutes back and forth from school. “It’s really frustrating because we don’t have any boba shops nearby and we always have to wait until the end of school,” said senior Khoa Tran. “Unless one of can drive, otherwise it’s impossible for us to get boba during lunch.” Many students are also concerned about the losing potential income for their own clubs, since many clubs on campus were funded by these milk tea fundraisers. “I understand why students aren’t allowed to fundraise using milk tea, but I think cutting it off entirely isn’t good for the school since so many groups at school rely on boba fundraisers to raise money,” said senior Amanda Liu, ASB member. Smaller clubs that relied on milk tea sales to fund their club activities are now left scrambling to find new fundraising methods, since they do not receive as many donations

as other clubs. “We depend pretty heavily on the fund of selling milk teas due to the lack of donation because badminton is not as big as football or basketball,” said senior Khoa Tran, secretary of the Badminton Club. “It’s really devastating because it was our main fundraising method but now they banned it. Not only is it harder for us to fundraise but it also affect others as well.” In response, ASB has advised clubs and teams to utilize alternative methods to gain alternative fundraising. “The best way to go about fundraisers is now going to be something around the idea of services,” said ASB mentor, Jeff Kakes. Although using students can sell services and merchandise during school hours, many club officials believe that inedible products are in less demand than selling food and drink like milk tea. “Students are more likely to buy the food or drinks we sell and less likely to buy our non-consumable merchandise,” said secretary of the Filipino Youth Organization, junior Chelsea Batalla.

I understand why students aren’t allowed to fundraise using milk tea, but I think cutting it off entirely isn’t good for the school since so many groups at school rely on boba fundraisers to raise money Amanda LIU

Past and successful service-based fundraiser have included the badminton team selling carnations during Valentines Day, and Choir promoting singing valentines for a specific fee. However, one downside to these services is that they are extremely seasonal services. Clubs can also make partnerships with local businesses like Chipotle and Pizza My Heart, which allocate a percentage of profit back to the clubs.

However, this type of fundraiser would require an application to be filled out on the business’s respective websites weeks prior to the actual fundraising date. The Fremont High School Music Department has benefitted from such food fundraisers reliant on profits from local businesses in the past, and as of this year, the Speech and Debate team has followed suit. Robotics Club has also utilized opportunities outside of school to fundraise. Although selling milk tea during school hours was not the Robotics Club’s main source of money, profit from sales helped pad their budget further. Clubs have also found success through outreach in the community to gain donations. “We just go to a library to do a demonstration, or flea market or some kind of event going on in the community, set up a booth and talk about our team and people oftentimes give donations,” said junior Marc Corfmat, Vice President of Marketing and Public Relations of the Fremont Robotics Team. Other clubs are also looking towards parental and community support to fund their club by setting up parent donation sites. “We’re stressing parent donations and we have a new Facebook page for Speech and Debate parent boosters, where parents can donate money,” said Yu. “We’re also working with a donor who is able to provide our school with a lot of the funding that we need for registering for tournaments.” Although finding alternative methods to fundraise food-free might be an initial challenge for clubs, there are many different opportunities for school clubs to fundraise past campus grounds. Even though the implementation of these food policies makes fundraising for clubs a challenge, this will hopefully lead students to eat healthier in the future. “We want everyone to be happy and healthy,” said Bechara. If clubs are able to find successful means to fundraise without food sales, then the school has successfully achieved their goal of promoting healthier diets for students.

News The effects of the new schedule this year

oct. 12, 2018

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by Sampreetha Tumkur & Magali Julien

Collaboration

For years, parents and faculty have raised concerns about the starting times of schools. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, students are starting school too early and do not have the time to sleep the full amount they need. Possible effects of sleep deprivation include depression, obesity, addiction to illicit drugs or alcohol, and decreased school performance. Over the last few years, the Fremont Union High School District has been working with a student wellness taskforce to make improvements to the schedule. The FUHSD wanted to address the effects of an early start time and change the schedule so that classes

start later. In order to come up with a schedule that could work for the whole district, the Teachers Association tried to work out what this new schedule might look like. “They [Teachers Association]... tried to take the best of all 5 schedules to try and get one that would work across, so now Cupertino, Homestead, and Fremont have the same schedule,” said Bryan Emmert, the principal of Fremont High School. Up until last year, FHS started first block at 7:35 a.m. This year, class schedules were changed so that students can start school at 8:00 a.m. According to Jessica Branco, a Spanish teacher at Fremont, class times are being cut shorter due to the five minute passing period. “I’m losing a few more minutes each day on a Mon-

day.” Branco said. With classes already short on Mondays, any time reduction can have an impact on teachers’ class plan. Along with shorter classes, the new start time forces students and staff to drive through traffic also coming from Cupertino Middle School, whose students start school around the same time commuters drive to work. As a result, many students have been having issues getting to school on time. “Because we start at eight, I feel like there is more traffic,” a junior at Fremont said. While last year most students came to school before 8:00 a.m., now both students and teachers have longer commutes and are often delayed by rush hour. Many students have been dealing with traffic issues, especially students that live

farther away. “If you live by Lakewood, a good amount of distance from school, it takes almost 30 minutes, cause of traffic,” junior Matthew Escobedo said. Students and parents who are looking to avoid driving to school altogether are turning to public buses. Unfortunately, the buses pose their own problems when it comes to their reliability, causing students to become late because the bus did not show up on time. “[I] was almost late to school because I had to wait for the bus,” one junior said. Despite efforts to allow students to sleep longer, many students’ sleep schedules have not changed, as the time difference from the previous year is only 25 minutes. “I feel like my sleep hasn’t really changed much,” said one junior. “Even with

all these new changes to the schedule, students are having issues with getting to school on time and getting more sleep.” Many students are still waking up at the same time as last year and utilizing that extra 25 minutes to study and get ready instead of sleep. “I wake up at the same

time as last year,” junior Amira Salama said. “And I guess I have more time to get ready.” Although the decision to change the schedule was well intended, the changes weren’t enough to make real difference and it seems to have inconvenienced both teachers and students alike.

Graphic Courtesy of tadalafilforsale.net

A-Building to be finished by December by Natalie Wolff Staff Writer

The highly anticipated building that has been under construction since the end of the last school year is finally going to be complete by December 2018. It is a two-story building, called the “A-Building” with several different rooms. This building is already partially done and there are different kinds of classes already moved in. According to Vice Principal Jeff Rosado, there will be a total of 25 classrooms. The top floor of the building will have normal classrooms and workspaces, while the bottom floor will have four new science labs, more classrooms and the administrative offices. These offices will be moved from the main building to the A-building. Rosado also said that

the extra space at the front will be a comfortable place for students to eat lunch. There will be several benches there with turf lawns, and an open walkway to get to class. This courtyard will be complete in December as well. Although the new building and courtyard are things to look forward to in the future, construction has still caused some negative impacts on students and teachers. For example, the construction has blocked off several routes for students to get to their classes creating a large inconvenience. “The construction on campus seems to be really making my trips from 4th block, math in the B-building, to Biology in the science wing really difficult,” said freshman Gunjan Bhuller. “It also causes a huge traffic jam for me, as well as many other students in general,

along that cramped pathway in front of the A and Bbuildings.” In addition to traffic while moving between classes, other students have struggled with paying attention to class since the construction has been distracting for them. “On my first day here in Fremont, the construction has bothered me,” said sophomore Aintzel Soliman, “As I observed, every time the shade of the excavator is passing by the window of our classroom, most of my classmate’s glimpse over and their attention gets drawn away. Hopefully, it will end soon to provide bigger space for the students and faculties of FHS.” As a result of the new schedules this year, passing periods are also only five minutes, compared to seven minutes last year. This leaves no time for students

to do anything else like going to the bathroom or getting textbooks out of their lockers. “For me, the construction causes an inconvenience when going to classes,” said senior Rahul Madhugiri. “This is because of the increased time it takes to get around campus and be on time with the given passing period. I often find myself rushing in the passing periods to avoid being late to my class because I would have to go around the construction.” The construction’s negative impacts on students and teachers will finally come to an end next semester. With no more loud noises distracting classes and no more crowded pathways, it will definitely be something to look forward to. Magali Julien | The Phoenix

Board elections in the FUHSD district by Quentin Seghers Staff Writer

As the Fremont Union High School District board elections for the midterms come up, candidates from all over FUHSD begin competing against one another in order to secure a position on the board. Although dozens of other elections take place during the school year, such as the Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) presidential election. The Board of Trustees election is the most important for a various number of reasons. Running for a position in the school district, especially the Board of Trustees, is a great opportunity to show the community the

right steps needed towards a great education for all FUHSD students. The Board of Trustees is an elected group of five individuals. The Board of Trustees also appoint the superintendent, however, their main goal is to establish policies and regulations. Which all schools in the district must follow it. The Board currently consists of trustees, Bill Wilson (president), Barbara Nunes (VP), Hung Wei (clerk), Jeff Moe, Roy Rocklin, and Indali Bora (Student representative). The Board of Trustees also sets the vision and goals for the district, adopt policies that set the district in the right direction to achieve their goals, and they

also create and oversee the budget. The Board of Trustees makes policies that involve for example the districts dress code, the districts anti-bullying policy, and much much more. Since the Board of Trustees holds so much sway over everyday school life, it makes voting for the Board of Trustee elections that much more important. Elections for the Board of Trustees take place every two years and everyone who lives within the school district boundaries can vote. Voting is a key part of every election cycle for a democratic society. Fremont High School Principal Bryan Emmert also feels strongly about this responsibility of

all American citizens. “In a democratic society, voting is an important way to have one’s voice heard in the process.” Emmert said, “We can all do everything so our votes serve as our voice to direct others with our opinions.” The Board of Trustee election always follows the presidential and midterm election cycle, with voting taking always place on November 6th. During the midterms, three new Board of Trustee members are elected. Then, during the presidential election, two new Board of Trustee members will be elected as well. The term is four years, and the Board Trustee can run for re-election as many times as they wish.

The current midterm elections have three spots that anybody can run for. Currently, six people are running for the three open positions. One of the candidates for the Board of Trustees, Benaifer Dastoor, believes that a crucial quality needed in order to run for the Board of Trustees is caring for the community. “I’m running because l care, l care for our students, teachers and the community.” Dastoor said, “I’ve grown up with a defining value of care and compassion, passed on to me by my parents. I’ve volunteered and lead many organizations in our schools since my daughters started school. So l listen to parents and

students all the time.” Running for the Board of Trustees is an enduring endeavor, and it is also one that can only be undertaken by somebody who wishes to represent and benefit the community as a whole. So make sure to look out for all the candidates in the 2018 FUHSD Board of Trustees Election! The current list of candidates are: Bill Wilson-incumbent (Board President), Benaifer Dastoor, Naomi Nakano Matsumoto, Don Sun, Rosa Kim and Meena Juttukonda

News

oct. 12, 2018

New OCP policy at FHS by Nevaeh Campos Staff Writer

Starting this school year, the Open Campus Policy has changed. In previous years, freshmen could not leave campus until after the first trimester and had to maintain a 2.0 GPA. All students had to have their ID cards scanned before leaving by a teacher or other member of the staff. According to Assistant Principle Jeff Rosado, the off campus privilege policy changed because of the new schedule this year. “It took a lot of manpower to always have scanners out at lunch,” said Rosado. “Not being able to cover all the exits, some students would still sneak off.

“The reason we had this policy was because about six or seven years ago there was a bigger problem in the community about students’ behavior and making bad choices when they left campus. Now we haven’t been seeing it that much,” said Rosado, “so we didn’t find the need to monitor who left campus at lunch.” However, some students disagree with this new policy. Many upperclassmen feel that this policy is unfair since they had to wait for a semester before going off campus when they were freshmen. “I don’t think it’s fair because, I couldn’t even go out freshmen year, for the first semester… now that ev-

erybody can go off, it’s kind of crazy around here,” said senior Simeon Jackson. However, some students view the new policy as a welcome improvement. “Everybody deserves the right to decide if they want to leave campus for lunch or not,” said freshmen Natalie Roman. Kiana Van Scyoc, a senior here at Fremont, had given her opinion on the old OCP as well. “I thought it was unfair… it also took a long time to get off campus, because they would scan everybody’s IDs. People would waste a majority of their lunch waiting in line, just to get off campus.” The new change in the

off campus policy has staff worrying about the safety of students. “It’s a little different getting used to having so many students leaving and coming back during lunch,” said Chris Moore, Dean of Students. “I’m always nervous just because we have such busy streets around here, and students don’t always use crosswalks and wear helmets and do the thing that students are supposed to do.” The new off campus policy has its ups and downs, but students and teacher are getting used to it and ultimately, it gives more independence to the students.

Bonds and their importance by Caroline He & Leann Bast Collaboration

In 2014, the Fremont Union High School District received a $295 million school bond to fund construction on their five campuses, according to the Measure K Bond Program. Fremont High School, as a part of this, began construction on a new classroom building, new field facilities and classroom modernization. Bonds are voted on and passed through a majority vote to fund school projects and construction. After they are passed, districts are allowed to take out loans. “[Bonds are] paid for by the voters in the community because the rationale is... having really good schools drives a lot of demand for people to live in this area, along with other things,” Fremont High School Principal Bryan Emmert said. “So as part of

living in this area [and] having the good things here, we want to make sure we have good schools.” The FUHSD has been growing in student population, especially in the past few years. To accommodate this increased demand of facilities, the district has begun construction for new classrooms and buildings in almost all schools in the FUHSD. In an attempt to become more environmentally sustainable and cut down on operating costs, FHS will also be updating its lighting, heating, and cooling systems so that the school becomes more energy efficient. “These are all light bulbs [and the] system was put in twenty years ago, and it works, but the technology today is so much better that, if we replace the lighting, then we’re using less electricity which is good for the cost of the district,” Emmert said.

The bond will also fund the construction of a field house with a wrestling room for the wrestling team. This would be useful because the two gyms right now do not have enough room to accommodate all the needs of P.E., sports, and other activities such as AP tests, which require a large space to hold many students.

we want to make sure we have good schools. Bryan Emmert “We’re the only school in the district that doesn’t have a field house right now,” Emmert said. “If it rains, we don’t have places for [P.E. classes] all to go. We have a lot of groups that are practicing, whether it’s cheer or band and basketball or wrestling. We don’t

have enough spots for them all to fit in if we want to use a space.” The nice classrooms and buildings around the schools in the FUHSD don’t just fall into our laps, instead they are in the schools because of the generosity of the community. “We wouldn’t have the nice cafeteria and classrooms. We wouldn’t have the new building that’s coming in. Without the support of the community, we wouldn’t have had enough room to put everybody. “You can go to other places throughout the state or throughout the country and there are schools that have very poor facilities. They don’t have nice updated renovated classroom like we have. They don’t have larger classrooms where we can have some of our computer tech rooms. They don’t have some of the athletic facilities we have.”

Speech and Debate new coach by Suryan Bhatia Sports Editor

With Greg Lambrecht, the former Speech and Debate head coach, leaving last school year, the Speech and Debate team was in desperate need of a new coach. For the team, this has caused a myriad of problems, such as not being able to sign-up for tournaments. According to senior Shreya Kasetty, Public Forum captain, not having a coach has made it harder for the team to find and use rooms, as each event needs a room and has different meeting times. Kasetty added that many teachers have been helping Speech and Debate through this tough time. “The team is currently working with several different teachers and build-

ing a schedule in which both speech and debate can hold their respective weekly meetings in different rooms,” said Kasetty. “Many teachers including Ms. Lomando, Ms. Salvador, Ms. Martin, and Mr. Eeg have been kind enough to let us use their rooms to hold out meetings during flex and late start mornings.” Although the search for a new debate coach has been solved, the Speech and Debate team is currently facing financial difficulties. Vice President, junior Sana Prasad said the team did not have enough money to pay the fees for the league and other club activities. “We had very little money in our account at the beginning of the year,” Prasad said. “We needed to buy pizza for the recruit-

ment meeting and we had to pay the league fees in order to be able to go to tournaments. While we have been able to pay the league fee, we don’t have enough to refund the person who bought the pizza.” With the new policy that prevents clubs from selling food during school hours, the Speech and Debate team and other clubs need to find a new way to fundraise. For the coach situation, new Chemistry and Academic Foundations teacher, Mary Sargious, stepped up to the challenge. “I student taught here last year,” Sargious said. “I did debate in high school, so I was really interested in that. I helped last year and really enjoyed that experience, so I wanted to continue helping this year.”

Sargious said she hopes the transition can be smooth so that everyone on the team can compete in tournaments. She added that she wants to be able to support novices and new members. Despite these setbacks, the entire Speech and Debate elected council believes the whole team will come out stronger from this experience. “Strength and personal bonds are forged through adversity, so not only will we come out of these obstacles as stronger individual leaders, we will come out as a more tightly-knit team,” Valerie Fu, Speech Captain, said in a message. “I trust that we will make it out on top and successfully carry on the torch Mr. Lambrecht has handed to us.”

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PHOENIX Editor-in-Chief Nadia Anees | Caroline He News Leann Bast | Samhitha Tumkur Arts & Entertainment Trixie Rodriguez | Vivien Su Sports Suryan Bhatia | Patrick Ramos

Opinion Michelle Cortez | Ambika Vaidya Center Spread Sophia Pulido | Sydney Sharp Online Katherine Davis Staff Writers Shira Agmon Enrique Alfaro Clarissa Bunker Nevaeh Campos Kiana Thelma Devera Madellyn Garcia Jay Ghate Magali Julien Anastasiia Klymenko Vikash Kumar Abigail Mingus Nicole Morris Fiona O’Bannon Abel Ochoa Valencia Maximillian Palli

Atharv Panditrao Lauren Panzer Diana Piper Thomas Poplawski Anahi Ruvalcaba Quinten Seghers Asaf Shchory Sophia Suon Sampreetha Tumkur Sonia Wadher Aoibhe Walczak Michael Wang Emily Wilson Natalie Wolff

Fremont High School 1279 Sunnyvale Saratoga Rd, Sunnyvale, CA 94087 (408)-522-2400 | fremonthighphoenix@gmail.com Advisor | Emer Martin Mission Statement: The Phoenix, protected under the California Education code, is a public forum for the students of Fremont High School. The Phoenix staff will publish features, editorials, news and sports in an unbiased and professional manner. The Phoenix is the official student newspaper and is distributed free of cost to the students. The Phoenix publishes eight issues throughout the school year.

Editorial Policy Editorials are the official opinion of The Phoenix. Opinions and letters are the personal viewpoints of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Phoenix. All content decisions are made by the student editors and do not reflect the official policy of Fremont High School, nor the opinions of the administration, faculty, or adviser. Advertise with The Phoenix Contact us for more details at fremonthighphoenix@gmail.com or call at (408)-522-2200. Want to be part of The Phoenix? Letters to the editor and questions for Ask Esteban may be submitted online through our website, room 87, Ms. Martin’s mailbox, or emailed to us. Identities of those who submit questions will remain anonymous. The staff reserves the right to edit letters to conform to styles and policy.

Arts & Entertainment

Oct. 12, 2018

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Tofu Plus is an A plus by Vivien Su

Arts & Entertainment Editor

Ever since the announced closings of Fremont High School’s local restaurants, students have been facing the dilemma of choosing a new place to spend their lunchtime excursions. Thankfully, the Cupertino Village has a plethora of great restaurants that students can choose from, one of the most popular ones being Tofu Plus Korean BBQ. Tofu Plus is a great venue for authentic Korean food. Tofu Plus provides a multitude of side dishes as a part of their in-dining experience including everyone’s favorite kimchi, as well as broccoli, noodles, onion cake and much more. One of the best things that Tofu Plus offers is free side dishes. During their dining experience, customers can ask for refills at their discretion at absolutely no extra

charge. These side dishes are also sold to customers, so anyone can enjoy the vibrant flavors at home. Aside from the side dishes, Tofu Plus has a great array of entrees. A seafood connoisseur can indulge in fried fish. A meat lover can munch away on sizzling short ribs. Those who prefer noodles or soup can order Tofu Plus’s seafood ramen in spicy tofu soup. There is surely something for everyone to love. As for beverages, ice water and hot tea are free, but there is a slight charge for customers who prefer sodas or other drink types. The service is one of the best in the area. Waiters and servers constantly walk the aisles, happily offering their assistance. In addition to the great service, the atmosphere is comfortable. The tables are completely clean and the seats are overall very comfortable. Gratifying music lingers in the background as customers engage in conversation and consume their entrees. The restaurant is spacious, and

tables are spaced out very nicely. Customers have more than enough space to enjoy their meals. Accompanying the tables and chairs is a simplistic interior design. Perhaps Tofu Plus’s one flaw is its distance. From Fremont High School, a one-way trip walking takes around half an hour, but a one-way trip driving only takes ten minutes. To escape the long wait lines, the best times to come include the early afternoons (3 to 4 P.M.) or the late evenings (after 8 P.M.). The restaurant easily fills up, and the wait times can be up to an hour. However, long wait times are easily beatable. Tofu Plus will surely leave every customer with a fine dining experience. With its impeccable food, soothing atmosphere and accommodating service, Tofu Plus is truly a topnotch restaurant that many will surely enjoy. Photos courtesy of Plus PNG and Vivien Su | The Phoenix

Mission Impossible Fallout by Jay Ghate Staff Writer

On July 27, Paramount released a new edition to their acclaimed spy franchise, Mission Impossible: Fallout. Directed by Christopher McQuarrie, this movie has reached an impressive, 97 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Returning cast members such as Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Alec Baldwin, and Ving Rhames came back as well as newcomers like Henry Cavill, best known for playing the latest version of Superman. This movie also explores the top International Monetary Fund agent; Ethan Hunt’s past. For example, his estranged wife, portrayed by Michelle Monaghan, makes a reappearance in the film. This movie follows the IMF and the Central Intelligence Agency attempting to collaborate, while a terrorist

group, the Apostles, plan to blow up Vatican City, Jerusalem, and Mecca. Fallout has been a critical and commercial success. “These intense physical displays have long served as his most persuasive markers of authenticity; [Tom Cruise’s] toothy smile and persona may be contrived, but the motorcycle he races on helmetless and the wind that pummels him during a free-fall are anxiously real,” Manohla Dargis, movie critique for the New York Times said. Even though this edition had typical Mission Impossible tropes and cliches, Fallout had its own unique moments. There is also a level of realism since Tom Cruise, at age 56, performs his own stunts in the believable and marvelous scenery of urban Paris and rural Kashmir. This movie was clearly well thought and took a lot of planning and effort, as there were always twists at every turn. This time, for the end credits music,

Lorne Balfe’s combined multiple soundtracks from the previous Mission Impossible films into one main theme. The music complemented the film perfectly, especially at intense moments. You will always be at the edge of your seat, waiting to find out what happens to our beloved hero, Ethan Hunt. But of course, every great hero needs a great villain. Unfortunately, this film does not deliver. The film’s main antagonist, Solomon Lane, is painfully one dimensional and his motives are either unclear or cliche. Despite this blunder, the film still offers two hours and thirty minutes of non-stop thrills, in addition to, great characters, witty dialogue and of course, a happy ending. Mission Impossible: Fallout is fun for the entire family!

Photos courtesy of Clip Art Library, OnlyGFX.com and Pinterest

New Spiderman game swings into action by Patrick Ramos Sports Editor

Spiderman has always been a huge pop-culture icon. Ever since his first comic in 1963, Spiderman’s popularity has grown from comics into movies, television shows and countless video games. All these mediums have contributed to Spiderman’s reputation as the most marketable superhero of all time, according to the Hollywood Reporter. This high publicity mostly stems from his character. He is not a billionaire, a god of thunder or an

alien; he is just a teenager in high school which is more relatable. Ever since Disney bought Marvel studios back in 2009 for the reported 4 billion dollars, Disney has wanted as much power as it can over Spiderman. Sony, who owns Spiderman’s cinematic rights, teamed up with Disney to allow Marvel to have creative control of the webslinger. They cast Tom Holland as Spiderman, and since then, they have

had great success. Eventually, Marvel approached Sony to develop Spiderman PlayStation 4. Marvel was determined to compete with games like DC’s Batman Arkham Asylum. Sony agreed to license it to Insomniac Games, who gathered its largest group of developers for the game. It was finally released on September 7th, 2018 as a PlayStation exclusive. The game was a global success, dominating in sales despite being a single console game. Critics from all over praised it to be the best superhero game of all time. At the beginning of the game, Peter Parker is no longer a teenager, but a struggling college graduate. His job as a lab assistant does not pay well, and has relationship problems with Mary Jane. The story is consistently fast-paced and engaging, until you play as Mary Jane who has multiple missions. She reveals valuable plot points, but her overall gameplay slows down the pace. When you play as Spiderman, it is the complete opposite. It’s fun and smooth. Other

than the puzzles the game has, which are easy and skippable, everything else feels amazing like fighting bad guys to swinging across Times Square. The game also has a wide selection of gadgets and 28 different Spiderman suits. That’s not all: there are several side missions that are really fun, ranging from capturing birds to defeating bases full of enemies. No matter how dumb these missions may seem, they are fun because of the gameplay as Spiderman. The music is revolutionary in the game business as the gameplay activates different sections of the soundtrack and harmonizes them together. The game was scored by John Paesano who also worked on other Marvel properties like Daredevil, but also on games like Detroit: Become Human. Insomniac really took time to help develop an open world that is well detailed. There are real landmarks like the Empire State Building and fictional landmarks like the Avengers Tower, hinting at a Marvel video game universe. Even the acting is extremely

well like Yuri Lowenthal’s performance as Peter Parker. When he cries, he really sounds as if he is crying in a recording booth. The writing also helps the story the most as the creators took inspiration from all over the place and combines them seamlessly. Elements from the Sam Raimi Spiderman movies that add into the nostalgia are added along with the Tom Holland’s fun and youthful snarkiness but most importantly the optimism and courage Spiderman has in the comics. The story is one of the best Spiderman stories out there, as it ranges from being fun to being dark and grim at times. The deaths along the way adds stress to Peter’s already stressed life as a regular person. The game eventually starts to feel like Gotham City by making New York a battleground. The story has many twists and turns that seem like both a cartoon and reality, making it appealing and engaging. Spiderman Playstation 4 is one of the best games to come out of 2018. The game has the graphics and massive map of Grand Theft

Auto and combines the fun and amusing gameplay of a Lego Batman Game and a Batman: Arkham Knight Game, with one of the world’s favorite superheroes. If you are a huge Spiderman fan, I cannot stress enough how much you should get this game, even if you do not own a PlayStation 4 because it is most certainly worth it. And if you have a PlayStation 4, you most definitely should spend the 60 dollars on this game. I do hope that Marvel’s next superhero game fixes the issues that I had in the game such as the Mary Jane levels, which when paired with the gameplay as Spiderman, feel much slower. The easy puzzles which are skippable and also slow down the gameplay. Insomniac has stated that they plan on working on future downloadable content for the current game as well as a sequel Spiderman game. However, the flaws are not problematic enough to take away from the fun I had playing this game.

Photos courtesy of Open Clip Art and Patrick Ramos| The Phoenix

Arts & Entertainment

oct. 12, 2018

Summer of love: return of the rom-com by Trixie Rodriguez A&E Editor

There are few things in this world better than a good old-fashioned romantic comedy. Girl meets boy. They fight. They fall in love. Something goes wrong. Someone makes a grand romantic gesture. And voila, they live happily ever after. It’s a predictable formula, but it works. Romantic comedies have always been a big part of popular culture, from Bringing Up Baby to Bridget Jones’ Diary. However, over the past 10 years, romantic comedies have grown noticeably absent from the silver screen. Recently, franchises have dominated the box office, and art house films seem to have a monopoly on awards shows. The comedies that do manage to make it to the big screen are often hard R and Judd Apatow-esque. That style certainly has its own charm. But sometimes a girl just wants a sweet heartwarming romance without having to hear Seth Rogan make a joke in reference to his penis. Netflix finally decided that they could not sit idly by as romantic comedies

continue to disappear. Over the summer, Netflix released 6 new original rom-coms. Some were good. Some were great. Some…tried their very best. The Kissing Booth, released on May 11th, was an early on hit. For a month following its release, it seemed to be all that people could talk about. Whether you loved it, hated it or loved to hate it, you definitely had an opinion. The Kissing Booth was pitched to me as a “guilty pleasure/ so bad it’s good” comedy. That description was about half true. It was definitely bad, and there was a certain level of guilt for spending almost two hours of my life watching a movie so terrible it would make Roger Ebert roll over in his grave. The Kissing Booth centers around Elle Evans (Joey King) who’s madly in love with her best friend, Lee’s, older brother, Noah Flynn (Jacob Elordi). Noah Flynn, who was sup-

posed to be a suave bad boy, ends up coming across as a creepy possessive jerk who more closely resembles

Heath Ledger as the Joker than Ledger in 10 Things I Hate About You. And then there is Elle Evans, who is about as unmemorable and boring as a female protagonist gets. With rom-com royalty like Molly Ringwald in the cast, you would expect more. Set it Up was hailed by

critics as “the return of the rom-com” and it’s pretty apparent why. The movie’s protagonist, Harper (Zoey Deut-

ch) and Charlie (Glenn Powell) play matchmaker with their bosses and find love in the process. It’s a classic romantic comedy structure. The movie has all of the

essential rom-com ingredients like the meet cute and the kiss cam. Perhaps the best thing about the movie is Charlie and Harper’s chemistry, despite the evident talent imbalance. Deutch’s portrayal of

Harper is lovable, endearing and simply adorkable, while Powell’s performance is adequate but, ultimately unmemorable. Overall, Set it Up, on its own, is nothing special, but it did manage to fill the rom-com void for, which I am eternally grateful for. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is easily the best thing Netflix produced over the summer. When Lara Jean Covey’s (Lana Condor) love letters get leaked, she is forced to team up with Peter Kavinsky

5

(Noah Centineo) to save her reputation and hopefully win over the heart of her long time crush, Josh Sanderson (Israel Broussard). This movie is everything a romantic comedy is supposed to be. It’s heartfelt, charming, funny and filled with just the right amount drama. However, what really sets TATBILB apart is the fact that it creates characters that you can’t help but root for, and for many teen girls across the country, even fall for. Lara Jean Covey is the teen protagonist high school entertainment has been missing. She is funny, fashionable, smart and confident. Then there’s Peter Kavinsky…..Oh Peter. Centineo manages to portray the perfect love interest. His charm is simply undeniable, and he is able to turn cocky into crush worthy. However, the most impressive thing about his performance is that he was able to portray Peter as a sincerely caring but not obsessive (a common trait of today’s male leads) character. Together, Laura and Peter form, possibly, the best rom-com couple of the past decade.

Rolling Loud Review FHS Phoenix Playlist by Maddy Garcia & Sophia Suon

by Asaf Shchory & Clarissa Bunker Collaboration

Collaboration

Imagine being just feet away from your favorite artist, hearing one of their top hits blaring through the speakers and being surrounded by the people you vibe the best with. If you’ve ever been to a concert, you know this feeling; it is possibly the best feeling you’ve ever felt! People go to music festivals to let go and have fun with people that share the same interests as them. Festivals are places to make friends and meet new people. You would be surprised at just how many groups of friends have met through these music festivals. There are food stands, trucks, ferris wheels and much more. Music festivals have grown in popularity recently in Northern California. You might have seen a few advertisements popping up and tickets selling out in seconds. More and more music festivals have been appearing in the Bay Area; we are totally here for it and you should be too! Two to three day music festival ticket prices range from $120 to $350. There are even single day tickets for about $100. Some of the music festivals are two days long, such as Rolling Loud, Hard Summer and Camp Flog Gnaw. Other music festivals that are three days long cost a little more, but the prices are reasonable. Some popular and well-known all weekend

festivals are Outside Lands, Lollapalooza and Coachella. The prices may scare you a bit, but these music festivals offer many popular artists. Usually at smaller concerts for one artist, the prices range around $70-80. Tickets for bigger and more popular artists that play large stadium shows can get up to $900. Yes, almost $1,000 just for one artist! This was my second year attending Rolling Loud. The question that everybody asks: which year was better? Rolling Loud Bay Area 2017 or Rolling Loud Bay Area 2018. For me, both years were equally exciting and fun in their own way. This year, Rolling Loud was in Oakland, and I loved the location, the spacious parking lot of Oracle arena. Rolling Loud did a fantastic job with publicly advertising their festival, making sure people heard about it. The Bay Area has the best music festivals because the people here are energetic, lively and friendly. I had such a great time with people who love my favorite artists as much as I do. Rolling Loud was really

well organized, and they even have their own app for all the news and updates. Some people do tend to complain that Rolling Loud gets too violent and rowdy, but I honestly I do not agree because everyone is just trying to have a good time and dance to the music. If you aren’t the type of person to jump around in mosh pits, I recommend staying in the back of the crowd. I personally love to dance and jump around with everybody, but since I’m five feet tall, it’s difficult to see. Nevertheless, people at these events are always so kind and social. One of my favorite performances was Travis Scott and Rae Sremmurd. They are both amazing performers. Travis Scott rapped“Butterfly Effect” and “Sicko Mode,” which are my favorite songs from him. Rae Sremmurd played “Come Get Her” and “Guatemala”. I loved this year, and I am definitely coming back for my third year. I definitely recommend you get tickets for next year and prices always start out very low!

Have you ever wondered what type of music people like at your school? At Fremont, most students tend to connect to the same music and artists, whereas the staff here at Fremont typically enjoys older types of music. Music is not just something for people to have fun listening to. For some people, music can act as an escape to help them through the problems they’re undergoing when in turmoil. For example, listening to music can make people feel motivated, energetic, or focused. Adults seem to like jazz, country and rock because that’s what they grew up with. It carries a meaning for them and makes them feel like they are at home. Music might also remind them of happy times they have experienced. The majority of our generation prefers hip hop music and R&B because it makes us feel relaxed, valued, stimulated, and satisfied. During the past couple years, the music industry has changed a considerable amount. We interviewed a few people around the school to find out what our school’s overall music taste is like. In an effort to get the most accurate information, we interviewed both students and staff. Based off our interviews, we have come to the conclusion that Hip Hop/Rap and R&B are the most common types of music people listen to here at our school. We compiled all of the results into one playlist. This playlist will be on Apple Music and Spotify. We hope to balance our playlist with many types of genres because we wanted a well rounded mix. The playlist not only has Hip-Hop, Rap and R&B, but also Jazz, Rock and House EDM. This is something very rare to Fremont: Everybody can choose how they express themselves. Everyone can express their culture and their music in a way they like, and they won’t be made fun of. A lot of people from Fremont are from different cultures, so we all respect each others’ choices and different tastes in music. We hope you’ll enjoy our playlist. Search, “FHS PHOENIX PLAYLIST” on Spotify to listen. Here’s a sneak peak!

Garden Shed, by Tyler The Creator Life Goes On, by Lil Baby Angel, by The Weekend Hey Jude, by The Beatles Icon, by Jaden Smith Ight, Black Youngsta Mob Ties, by Drake BIG BANK, by YG CAN’T STAY, by Travis Scott Leave Me Alone, by Flipp Dinero My Way, by Comethazine One, by U2 Photos courtesy of Front Gate Tickets, techFlourish and ClipArt Library

Special Feature

Oct. 12, 2018

6

SF Faces Homophobia

Hate in

victims o By Diana Piper The Bay Area is generally considered a liberal and accepting area for the LGBTQ+ community. San Francisco is one of the biggest hosts of the annual pride parade, with almost a million people gathering there this past year to celebrate their identities. San Francisco is often referred to as the “gay Mecca,” the Bay Area being a refuge for the gay community. Devin Graham, a woman in the LGBTQ+ community living in the Bay Area, enjoys her life out of the closet. “Out here, you can be pretty open about being gay, especially right in the Bay Area,” Graham said. “It was one of the reasons I wanted to move here.” Fremont High School sophomore Melanie Parlan, a member of the Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) club appreciates the openness in the Bay Area as well. “We are still becoming more accepting than if you compare it to 10 years ago.” Parlan said. “People are becoming more open to expressing their opinion, being an ally or even being a part of the community.” However, the nature of the Bay Area cannot be explained that straightforwardly, according to the attorney general of California, Xavier Becerra, in a report about hate crimes. Hate crimes based on sexual orientation have risen 18.8 percent

in the past year alone. Hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community are the second most common form of hate crime, after race. Pairing statistics to substantial situations, in San Francisco, Tim Tate, a drag queen known as Ginger Snap, was attacked while walking home from a gay bar, according to a National Broadcasting Company Bay Area article. Believing that he was solely singled out because he was leaving a gay bar, Tate recognizes the bigger problem of the Bay Area. “I think it’s important to get the word out, that this is still happening in 2018 in San Francisco [during] Pride Month,” Tate told NBC Bay Area. “It’s not right.” Graham has also witnessed discrimination against people who are in the LGBTQ+ community in the Bay Area. “I used to work as a monitor at the gay pride march and there would almost always be some sort of anti-gay violence, on the outskirts of the march itself,” Graham said. “It has definitely gotten worse, even here, I think it has.” With the current political climate of this country, people in minorities are on edge, even in the Bay Area. Specifically, those who identify as a part of the LGBTQ+ community are feeling more unsafe because of their

identity. Not only has there been a rise in hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community, politics are shifting in support of anti-gay ideals, as described by Graham. “Around the country they are trying to pass laws so that they can discriminate against us in stores and in adoptions,” Graham explains. “A lot of the progress that we have made has started to get lost in certain areas.” With politicians and officials being replaced and a relatively new president, people are now in a more comfortable position to express their hate, which GSA president and FHS senior Miranda Kushner highlights. “I don’t think that we are going back, but people feel safer being rude and discriminatory,” Kushner said. The Bay Area has been described as one of the most welcoming areas of the LGBTQ+ community by many. However, no area is ever faultless. With hate against people in the LGBTQ+ community rising and laws changing because of it, one must question how accepting their community truly is.

Sexism in Tech

Oscar Grant

Nia Wilson

is bart safe? By Lauren Panzer

At the MacArthur Bay Area Rapid Transit station in Oakland, an ever-growing memorial sits by a support pole. Tens and hundreds of colorful flowers surround the area around the name ‘Nia’, which is spelled out by tiny, lit tea lights. In Swahili, the name ‘Nia’ means purpose. This memorial honors the life of Nia Wilson, the youngest of eight siblings. Wilson always wanted to help others. She performed the Heimlich on her choking aunt at a party, and she “[offered] pep talks to her sisters when they were down,” according to the New York Times. Nia Wilson’s life was bound to be full of purpose. As stated by the New York Times, she had deep ambitions for her family, herself, and others. Wilson had her entire future ahead of her. She thought about joining the military, becoming a paramedic, and maybe her passion for music would bring her fame and fortune as an aspiring rapper. Now, Nia Wilson is famous, but for a much worse reason. On July 22, 2018,

Wilson and two of her sisters were attacked by a knife-wielding man in a BART station in Oakland. Wilson was fatally stabbed and bled to death in her sisters’ arms. She was only 18 years old. Crime runs rampant throughout America, and Wilson’s death has only brought about more controversy and grief. The assailant was apprehended less than a day later in a bay-wide manhunt, and identified as John Lee Cowell, a homeless, Caucasian man with a long criminal record. Many have pegged this case as a hate crime, given that Wilson and her sisters are African-American. Cowell refuses to reveal his motive, so determining whether the murder was racially oriented is difficult. Cowell’s attacks may have also been aimed at women, because only a week before the attack, two women reported be-

By Anahi Ruvalcaba The Bay Area is known to be one of the most liberal places in the United States. In recent years there has been an increase in women succeeding in career paths widely associated with men. Due to this, many view Silicon Valley as a place of opportunity to break through social barriers. While there has been opportunity, companies still fail to fully eradicate discrimination against women in the workplace. Due to gender bias in the Silicon

Valley, careers involving science, technology, engineering and math hold a small percentage of females in their employment. Given that women are usually thought of as workers in service professions, such as secretaries or teachers, it becomes hard for women to thrive in STEM careers due to the way that society has perceived women in the workplace. This reflects back on the misogynistic idea that women are incapable of working in a complex and skilled career.

Observer’s “12 Statistics About Women in Tech That Show How Big the Gender Gap Truly Is” says “women hold only 11 percent of executive positions at Silicon Valley companies.” This can be a potential answer as to why Silicon Valley clearly doubts the capability of women in STEM. In addition, Fast Company’s “ 60% Of Women In Silicon Valley Have Been Sexually Harassed” says “47% have been asked to do lower-level tasks that male colleagues are not typically asked to do such as note-taking or

ordering food and that “88% have had clients or colleagues address questions to male peers rather than to them”. This is not a product of one gender being more approachable or capable than the other, this is caused by both a lack in proper female representation and respect within the Silicon Valley tech industry. While women can reach successful positions in tech companies, they have to work much harder to gain the same respect that a man would in the same position. It is easy to doubt a woman’s

ability to su there is a ste constantly m one step bac The sol discriminati females in S companies i vate and enc younger gen girls to purs fields. The c can do this b ing startups women in o vide more ro Women empowered to address th representati Valley.

Special Featu

Oct. 12, 2018

in the Bay

Letter from The Editors Through the process of writing this issue, we have been exposed to unthinkable tragedies and struggles throughout the Bay Area. We want to recognize that while we have only written a select few stories highlighting the hatred that minorities are subjected to, we do not want to ignore the experiences of anyone. Every minority faces their own struggles and we are here to listen to your stories. Whatever you maybe going through, know that you will always have a place within Fremont High School.

ctims of HatE

American Horror story By Nadia Anees Trayvon Martin

disorder, so it is possible that his attack was only on a whim. BART stations have become a common site for these devastating crimes. Robert Arns, the Wilson family’s attorney, claims that this case was one of cause and effect. “Nia’s death is not some horrific anomaly that occurred in two seconds that nobody could do anything about,” Arns said. “There’s a serious and endemic public safety problem on BART, and just about everybody who rides BART knows that.” Wilson’s death mirrors a killing that happened almost 10 years ago, also in a BART station. In the early morning of January 1, 2009, Police arrived on Fruitvale Station on reports of a fight in a

Since Donald Trump has come into office dozens of deadly riots have broken out across the nation, spreading hate of all kinds. Even in my own community, hate groups have been coming into the light, expressing their hatred towards all sorts of minority groups. On June 24th, 2018 inside a local gym, Crunch, in Sunnyvale, a woman verbally and physically harassed two Latina women in the women’s locker room, yelling racial slurs at them and attacking them. I thought that my community was fairly accepting of all cultures and backgrounds, but in the past two years, it seems that people are beginning to feel emboldened to express their unprecedented hatred. According to The Nation, the “Trump Effect” has led Americans to develop more hateful views of minorities. Trump’s hateful and ignorant rhetoric

Tim Tate

subway car. Two officers apprehended Oscar Grant, an unarmed African-American man who was not involved in the fight. They pinned Grant down and shot him fatally in the back. Grant’s tragic death brought about a rise in protests, just like Wilson’s. According to Jim Wilson on the New York Times, activists “stampeded through the city streets [...] burning cars and smashing store-fronts”. Wilson’s death spurred protests as well. Activists formed rallies to fight race and sex-based hate crimes, as well as callings for better standards of safety in BART stations. Wilson and Grant were people with incredible potential, which is why so many are outraged. They died through no fault of their own, based on traits they could not control. The lax safety regulations at the BART stations allowed their killers to act, which signals to others who belong to groups targeted by hate crimes that they are vulnerable as well. These crimes need to stop, because even in the land of the free, our citizens can never escape the bonds of fear.

that he poses in the media influences people that it is okay to carry racist views and hate others. Some of his tweets are examples of cyberbullying such as his tweet directed towards Harry Hurt in which he said, “How can a dummy dope like Harry Hurt, who wrote a failed book about me but doesn’t know me or anything about me, be on TV discussing Trump?”. Ironically, his own wife, Melania has started campaigns like “Be Best” which work to end cyberbullying. According to the website for her campaign, she believes that children “must choose their

words wisely and speak with respect and compassion”. Perhaps before teaching children how to use respectful language, she should teach her husband first. There is an entire webpage from Forbes that lists the president’s 10 most offensive tweets. The plain fact that several websites are listing Trump’s most offensive tweets and comments for humorous effect are an alarming sign that the president can not even be professional. In an article titled “Trump is leading a ‘hate movement’ against the media” by the Washington Post, Greg Sargeant discusses an instance of

Donald Trump and his son encouraging hatred towards journalists whose job is to deliver t news to the nation. Tru retweeted a post made by his son, Eric Trump i which he said “#Truth” following a video of Tru supporters chanting “C sucks!” and aggressively yelling and pointing mi dle fingers at reporters. The first amendment allows freedom of the press, and the Presi dent’s encouragement o attacking journalists is detrimental example fo Americans, conveying t Americans are encourag to attack other working Americans, causing div sion and chaos. America’s diversity is a virtue that should b cherished. Our diversit should be used to unite not separate us. Unfortu nately, proposals like th wall that Trump wants build to prevent illegal immigration to the Uni States is symbolic of the separation he wants to create among the U.S an other countries.

Local Hate Groups Map Key

ability to succeed when there is a stereotype constantly moving them one step backwards. The solution to discrimination against females in Silicon Valley companies is to motivate and encourage the younger generation of girls to pursue STEM fields. The community can do this by promoting startups founded by women in order to provide more role models. Women will be empowered and go on to address the lack of representation in Silicon Valley.

Nation of Islam (Black Nationalism) Counter Currents Publishing (White Nationalism)

STOCKTON Mill Valley

X OAKLAND

SAN FRANCISCO KKK

X

Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust (Holocaust Denial) Conservative Forum of Silicon Valley (Anti-Muslim)

cupertino

Opinion

12, 2018

8

A summer’s journey down the rockiest road

byAmbika Vaidya Opinion Editor

Over the past month and a half of school, I have heard summer stories about internships, jobs, volunteering, classes, vacations, or simply relaxing at home, eating, sleeping, and watching TV to a heart’s content. Usually, my summers go somewhere along those lines. However, my past summer was focused on a major jaw realignment surgery that I went through in the last half of July. This surgery, more stressful than studying for SATs and AP tests combined, was to correct my severe underbite. The underbite was too major for braces to fix alone and I had a team of plastic surgeons cut the bone near my upper palate area, insert plates there— inside the cheek skin—then put screws attached to the plates. After the surgery, these screws had to be turned once a day in order for the plates to move and properly align its middle with the lower jaw’s middle. Imagine biting into an apple or a slice of pizza with your lower jaw shifted in front of your upper jaw. Properly biting into it is impossible—how

can you when your jaws are misaligned? I literally had to use only my lower jaw to take a bite out of something. That was essentially what it was like for me for nearly seven years—my upper jaw’s growth had been delayed during several growth spurts and so I gradually, unconsciously got used to biting into foods without the use of my upper set of teeth. To have this jaw surgery not only meant being able to eat more comfortably in general, it also meant better breakdown of food and therefore better digestion. I would also be able to eat crunchy fruits and vegetables like apples, guavas and carrots without much effort and strain on my mouth. But the surgery was also a massive emotional rollercoaster. I always looked “different”. When I was younger, I had an eye condition called strabismus, which was later corrected. Then there was the underbite—which because my upper jaw was so far in back—made my upper lip touch the tip of my nose. (The only remotely positive thing I got out of that was that I could touch my tongue to my nose, a feat that most other people could not perform.) Over the years, I learned to harden myself from the stares of people. From curious little kids to nosy adults. If someone stared, I would stare at them right in the eye. If a young kid stared, I would wave hello. If someone pointed or yelled, I would ignore them.

If a peer or a friend politely asked me about the few, lingering traces of strabismus I had, I answered. I progressively become less and less self-conscious. I learned to embrace the people around me who accepted me and learned to cast out the people who didn’t. The first two weeks after the surgery, all that walk-with-yourchin-up façade crumbled and I became increasingly self-conscious about my extremely swollen mouth and cheeks. I didn’t want to go out of the house or show my face to the world. In fact, during the first few days after I was discharged from the hospital, I did not even want to watch T.V. My head hurt too much to read. My day consisted of sleeping and eating and not much else. Turning the screws in my mouth, which my mother did every evening with a headless screwdriver; this was painful as hell. Since the surgery had been near the cheek-and-lip area, my nerves had been jacked up. The slightest touch on my upper lip would send them tingling and buzzing crazily. Additionally, I grew extremely sensitive to light and to loud noises or shrill sounds. Every night, after the turning-of-the-screws ritual, I would sit in my pitch-black bedroom, door closed, and with my head burning up and face ready to explode. If I went down to my living room, the living room’s lights had to be

turned off. The pain was unbearable. Imagine breaking a bone and then having that bone set without any anesthetics. It pretty much resembled my situation. The still soft and tender bone was being shifted by a millimeter in front and sideways every day. My hormone levels went berserk too. I started having the most extreme mood swings. I would tear up at the silliest and most insignificant of things like a couple breaking up on TV. Although I tried as hard as I could to keep it inside, anger would crawl up in me, like a snake waiting to attack. At the slightest annoyances, the snake would flare up and strike. On days when life seemed darkest and bleakest, I used to shut myself in the bathroom and get out all the frustration, anxiety, and despair through tears. I grew angry at myself for being self-conscious, but at the same time, I couldn’t help myself. It was a vicious cycle; at times I would find myself overwhelmed with these tumultuous feelings. I started having intense food cravings. However, I could not eat any solid food even if it was soft. Everything had to be purréed or liquid for me to eat. I started longing for chocolate—any chocolateflavored food. I was discouraged from having chocolate because I couldn’t brush my teeth (I was stuck with rinsing my mouth with a strong oral rinse three times a day). Hence, because of both the

sweetness and acidity of chocolate, I couldn’t satisfy my chocolate craving and this, in turn, worsened my mood swings. Two weeks after the surgery, the screw-turning came to an end. A huge burden flew off from my shoulders. I no longer had to spend my days dreading the evenings and I loved that feeling of relief. For the first time in a fortnight, I didn’t have to spend my evenings caved up in a dark room. I was ready to spend my night sitting up in bed, watching TV. I was elated when the headaches started to vanish and I could finally curl up on the couch with a good book. As days went by, I could slowly eat soft, solid food. I could spend time doing AP summer homework—something that would not normally excite me, but in this instance, I loved that I could finally regain some normality in my post-surgery weeks. I still had the screws poking into the inside of my cheeks. The screw that made the jaw move forward was especially bad because it stretched out my cheek skin so that it looked like any minute, it would rip open a hole in my cheek. On some of the bad days, my cheek throbbed with pain and some of the anger and frustration would flare up in me, a fire burning in the pit of my stomach. In August, the Tuesday before school started, I had another, much smaller, surgery to

remove the screws from my mouth. The plates would remain there until December of this year, but since the screw-turning was done, there was no point in keeping the screws in my mouth. The procedure was easy and done within an hour and I experienced no headaches, no sensitivity any more. In all the chaos and the turbulence during and following the major surgery, one thing that remained constant in my life was support from my friends and my parents. Even in my worst moments, when I was in the darkest mood ever, I was grateful for the undying patience and help that my parents gave me. In the darkest of times, it was their comfort that helped me find some light. My friends visited me both in the hospital and at home. Visits from friends lifted my spirits even during the screw-turning days. As I started hanging around my friends more often, with their acceptance and warmth towards me, I started to lose my selfconsciousness and become more carefree. We all have bad, dark points in our lives. Events that bring out the worst in us, challenge our inner strength. It is how we deal with that challenge that defines us: whether we mope around and let the darkness envelope us or we break free from its grasp and get on with our lives. After all, it is events like this one, which either break us or make us.

The stigma high school lowerclassmen face

by Sonia Wadher Staff writer

Our society is filled with stereotypes: in our schools, workplaces, and coffee shops. We analyze a person based on social class, wealth and societal standards. Discrimination in our workplaces and schools affect everyday lives. In high school, the largest amount of stigma is between the upper and lower classmen. For example, the biggest insult a senior can receive is “you’re acting like a freshman” or “I thought you were a sophomore”; society categorizes lower classmen as being immature and irrelevant. They judge lower classmen because of their inexperience with the

societal expectation of high school and by their ignorance to any social aspect of high school. The first year of high school can be an intimidating experience for many; lower classmen usually use their time to familiarize themselves with clubs, classes and on campus sports. But by the time a student becomes an upperclassmen, they have familiarized themselves with their surroundings and can easily find their way around school, but lower classmen have a harder time getting adjusted to a new school and environment. What I have noticed as an upperclassman in high school is that juniors and seniors don’t want to be associated with lowerclassmen because they can harm or have a negative effect on their social lives. It is no secret that popularity is a priority for high-schoolers: we talk about the raves, and parties that we went to over the weekend and what our plans for the weekend are.

Lowerclassmen typically don’t have those experiences and find high school overwhelming compared to their middle school years. As one goes higher up in high school, their dominance in school increases. Upperclassmen gain more respect from lowerclassmen and when a student first enters high school, teachers tend to treat him or her differently. It is really uncommon for upperclassmen to help freshman find their way. More should be done at Fremont to foster empathy between classes. This would create community and enhance the high school experience for everyone. Overall, it isn’t fair that we treat lowerclassmen and upperclassmen differently because in the end we all have similar experiences in high school. After all every naive freshman will be a jaded senior in time.

Drawing courtesy of Ambika Vaidya | The Phoenix

opinion

Oct. 12, 2018

The stereotypes young women face

by Sophia Pulido

Centerspread Editor

Walking down my street was never an issue for me. I loved looking at all the houses and how different they were decorated. It was somewhat therapeutic for me to walk by myself no matter what time it was. That was, until I went through puberty: when my hips widened and my breasts became the size of ripe apples. Apparently I wasn’t the only one who noticed this change. Walking down the street had become risky for a girl my age.

Middle-aged men, the same age as my dad, would make comments towards me and one even followed me home once. The sad part about this was that I blamed myself for their response to my body. I was angry at myself for going through puberty. However, this wasn’t the only factor that played into my hatred towards myself: I was no longer comfortable to go braless in my own home. My family had made it seem abnormal for me to want to be comfortable in my own skin. I grew up with comments like “I would never let my daughter go out like that!” coming from my family members. This developed into insecurity when it came to how I expressed myself through my clothing. I felt limited because the people around me had given me attention that I didn’t want to receive.

For the longest time I felt that I needed to dress the way that society had taught me, following the standards from past conservative time period of the ‘70s. There was a point in time where I was so unhappy that I hated to get dressed in the mornings. Now, I’m not too sure on what has changed my mindset, I

just know that I was tired of the cat-calling from random people and the snippy remarks from my family. That’s when I figured out what I needed to do: simply stop caring.

Women grow up with heinous, unattainable beauty standards that lead them to a life of blandness, self-consciousness, and insecurity. Instead of blaming the young girl or grown woman for the distasteful sexual remarks thrown at them or harassing that they’ve experienced, the blame should go on the person who is going out of their way to make that woman uncomfortable. Instead of teaching

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girls to “cover up,” we should teach people to not only keep their genitals in their pants but to be respectable. How can I be expected to respect a 50 year old who follows a young girl until she feels the need to go to a random house and ask the owner to keep a conversation until the man leaves? The answer is, I cannot nor will not respect anyone who goes out of their way to sexualize my peers or me based on our youth and gender.

Drawing courtesy of Garcia | The Phoenix

The Hate U Give; The Hope It Shares

by Kiana Devera Staff writer

With the anticipated movie adaptation coming out this fall, the New York Times best-selling book, The Hate U Give, is the book that the public desperately needed. Shining a light on the struggles of being a black teenager in America, Angie Thomas’s debut novel is praised and admired by critics and audience alike for its awareness of police brutality and its portrayal of the voices of the black community. Receiving numerous awards such as a Coretta Scott King Book Award, a William C. Morris Debut YA Award, a Michael L. Printz Award and two Audie Awards, THUG possesses the timeless message of the importance of equality within a society. In the book, 16-yearold Starr Carter lives her life balancing her time between her predominantly poor black neighborhood of Garden Heights and her largely white private school, Williamson Preparatory. After reluctantly attending a party in her home neighborhood, Starr reconnects with her close childhood friend, Khalil, who offers to take her home after the police break up the party. On their way home,

they are stopped by a white police officer who orders Khalil to get out of the car so he can search him. When Khalil reaches for a hairbrush in his car, the officer shoots him, claiming that he mistook the brush for a gun and leaves Khalil for dead and Starr in shock. “Khalil stares at the sky as if he hopes to see God,” Thomas writes Starr saying. “His mouth is open like he wants to scream. I scream loud enough for the both of us… His body stiffens, and he’s gone. I hope he sees God.” As we follow Starr’s journey throughout the book, we see her turn her trauma and grief into activism as she joins the growing movement against police brutality.

We see her turn her trauma and grief into activism Devera

Today, situations where law enforcement unfairly target African Americans continue to occur with examples such as Terence Crutcher who was shot by Officer Betty Jo Shelby who claims that he was a “bad dude” and was going to retrieve a weapon from his car. Seventeen year old, Antwon Rose Jr., from East Pittsburg, was shot three times by Officer Michael Rosfled who, according to CBS News, had inconsistent reasoning behind his firing. However, one of the most notorious incidents is the shooting of Stephon

Clark in Sacramento, who was shot a total of 20 times by two police officers who mistook the cellphone in his hand for a gun. When the news of Khalil’s death breaks out, people of the Garden Heights neighborhood begins to riot and it results in vandalism, robberies, and businesses burning down; including Starr’s father’s local shop. Situations such as this aren’t just words written in a book however. Many occurrences of revolts led by African Americans have happened since they were no longer forced into the shackles of torture and fear of working the cotton fields. The shootings of Crutcher, Rose Jr., Clark, and many other innocent African Americans lead to the same thing. Black people and their supporters rioting, hoping their voices will be heard. Their outrage is the consequence of us not listening. “As we witness injustice, prejudice, and racism rear their ugly heads even higher both in the US and abroad, I think it’s important to let readers know that they aren’t alone in their frustration, fear, anger, and sadness,” Thomas said to epicreads.com. “But it’s also important to provide glimmers Photo courtesy of gaurani. almightywind.info

of light in the darkness. I hope that The Hate U Give provides some of that light. But my ultimate hope is that every single person who reads it walks away from it understanding those feelings and sharing them in some way.” This issue has been recently

pushed back into the shadows with the Washington Post pointing out that it is because the “White House is plagued by scandals, constant turnover, policy reversals, leaks and staff infighting… deservedly the drama at center

stage. Cable news stations, the political press corps and social media networks have covered Trump above all else.” With the upcoming film being released on October 19th however, this topic can resurface once again and open our eyes to the many imperfections in the society we live in. In the end, THUG is a plea for all of America and the rest of the world to see the black community as valuable, non-threatening human beings and it is an important message that needs to spread.

opinion 10

Oct. 12, 2018

Is censorship really necessary for citizens?

by Max Palli Staff writer

Censorship: every dictatorship’s favorite weapon. Every institution, every country, every system uses it somehow, in some way. Whether it’s churches shielding their followers from ‘dangerous’ beliefs, parents protecting their children from things that they should not know yet, or countries hiding the truth from its citizens. All organizations use censorship in some way shape or form. This has never been so prevalent as it is right now, with the current White House administration. When the book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House

was released, our president tried to buy as many copies as possible, apparently forgetting about eBooks. But when does censorship begin to cross a line? First, let’s focus on the merits of censorship in conjunction with the first amendment. Speech isn’t as free as people think. In 2018, the Trump administration’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention employees were asked not to use words like “evidence-based,” “science-based,” “transgender,” “fetus” and even “climate change.” This forces the CDC to use words such as “unborn child” instead of fetus, making abortion seem worse. Other federal agencies are also removing “climate change” from their websites, refusing to acknowledge its existence. But the U.S. government has other institutions closer to home: schools. Schools mainly target things like nudity, inappropriate words, hate speech or even political material. On one hand, banning these forms

of speech seems sensible as it will probably cause trouble or encourage illegal actions. At the same time, one should be free to say and believe anything as long as they take local rules into consideration. This area has a relatively high amount of freedom in terms of information, since this is the literal epicenter and culmination of the internet, but not every area or even state runs this way. In most states, only one in five middle schools and every other high school teaches all topics recommended by the CDC about Sex Education. In Arizona, only 21% of CDC-recommended material are covered by schools. Only 13 states in the U.S. require sex education to be medically accurate, and a lot of potentially important information is left untaught. A study complied by the Public Library of Science details that, “when sex education is comprehensive, students feel more informed, make safer

choices and have healthier outcomes — resulting in fewer unplanned pregnancies and more protection against sexually transmitted diseases and infection.” One of the best cases of censorship is very relevant right now—Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation. Republicans withheld 100,000 pages of records of his time serving as a judge in the Bush administration. They released the pages 16 hours before the hearing, a pace that no one can read at. The Grand Old Party tried to censor the records of Brett Kavanaugh to, presumably, hide bad things that he did in his time serving. So, how much censorship is too much? I believe that all information should be free. Everyone should know all sides to all perspectives, especially something as important as confirming a judge for life or preventing an HIV/AIDS outbreak. We should know if the government is losing the Vietnam War. The CDC shouldn’t be banned from using “climate

change”. Everyone who says it is for the good of the people to withhold Kavanaugh records, the word “fetus”, or any other form of highly influential censorship is either lying or being lied to. Look at what censorship has

done to North Korea: we don’t want that, no one wants that. We all need to know important things about subjects that we review because if we don’t our education, the environment, and the American democracy are at stake.

Drawing courtesy of The New York Times

How materialism plays into our daily lives

by Abby Mingus Staff writer

The youth of our society are being drastically influenced by the media: platforms like Instagram and Twitter are displaying the latest and greatest trends from the new iPhone to the recently released limited edition pair of Air Jordans. Whatever it is, teenagers are sure to see it. As a society we have become attached to the material aspect of life. Materialism is a growing phenomenon that has been largely present since the 80’s. Celebrities and influencers are built on the idea of money. Being the child of parents obsessed with music from the 70’s and 80’s, I grew up listening to songs like Material Girl by Madonna and Living In The Material World by George Harrison. I was never sure if I was supposed to see materialism as a bad thing, to be obsessed with what I wear or drive. As a high schooler today, I am a subject to the material side of things. On some level, I do care about what I wear and what I have and don’t have. Hearing famous women like Madonna sing about being a “material girl, living in a material world”, shapes

how you view the world as a kid. From a very young age, kids are subjected to this idea that what you have and don’t have is what makes you who you are. The average student has a job for the sole purpose of making money. Although many teenagers are contributing to their household income, the majority of them pocket the money for themselves and spend it on things like shoes and clothes. This is not all their fault: they are not being selfish nor inconsiderate. Before kids are exposed to the internet and television, their only sense of the real world is what they witness at home. No one is brought into this world falling in love with designers. Instead, they are slowly influenced by members of their families, to gravitate toward materialistic items. Mothers and grandmothers who spend hundreds of dollars on Michael Kors and Coach purses are showing little girls that it’s justified to spend exponential amounts of money on a new purse. In the end, if the blame goes to anyone, it goes to the parents. According to the LA Times, there are 300,000 items in the average Americans home. Being surrounded by expensive kitchen gadgets and As Seen on TV products influence someone’s concept of money and what it should be spent on. Kids are given toy after toy. In a study by UCLA, 3.1% of the world’s children live in America, but they own 40% of the toys con-

sumed globally. Childhood is about fun. It’s about writing letters to Santa Claus and getting coins from the tooth fairy, but many times we see greedy kids kicking and screaming when they get a Barbie instead of a Bratz doll, or a dollar instead of five under their pillow. In today’s society, kids are growing up spoiled. Too many kids are growing up with this mindset that what they want is what they get. Parents feed into this giving money for doing chores. It is not a bad thing to reward good behavior but more often than not, I see kids being handed money for “half-assing” the job. Teenagers deserve to have a good time while they’re in high school because high school only happens once so it’s okay to spend money on a trendy jacket. The problem isn’t the material, but rather the way we view ourselves because of the materials.

What we have and don’t have isn’t what makes us who we are. As a society, especially the youth of our society, we need to remember that our personality is

what makes us unique and special. Clothes can be used to express ourselves, but the money value or brand of those clothes shouldn’t be what we focus on. The

media is a wonderful thing and way to experience new things, just make sure to look away from the screens for a while and view the people around you for who they truly are not who their wearing.

Drawing courtesy of Michelle Cortez | The Phoenix

sports A successful year for Fremont’s cheer team

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OCT. 12, 2018

by Michelle Cortez Opinion Editor

The Fremont Cheer Team has recently joined the athletic department, making the cheerleading program at Fremont High School an official sport on campus. But what exactly does this mean for the team and why should Fremont care? All in all, it can potentially bring in lots of money into the school. This may not take place right away due to it being a long process, however, with athletic boosters now being able to help fund a portion of cheer expenses, future Fremont cheer teams have the opportunity to purchase cheer mats which would make Fremont High School eligible to a host cheerleading competitions. This would bring in not only money, but also publicity for FHS. The current 2018-19 cheerleading team is also extremely excited about becoming a sport. “Now that we practice almost everyday, we are able to improve our strength and

our ability to stunt and improve our jumps” senior and cheerleader Alyssa Gonzalez said. Cheerleading Coach Dan Callanta agrees.“Becoming a sport gives us the opportunity to develop well- rounded athletes and try out the competitive atmosphere for both teams,” Callanta said. Becoming a sport is not the only way this team has advanced. This past summer, cheer attended a weeklong cheerleading camp at Santa Cruz hosted by the United Spirit Association (USA). This year both junior varsity and varsity earned many awards for their improvement in stunts, choreography and spirit. FHS’s very own Darion Isaiah Dizon earned the award “Best Jumper,” which is extremely impressive since he had the highest jump in the entire camp which included over 600 athletes. This year, six FHS cheerleaders from both varsity and JV received the All-American award. This

award is an exclusive invitation to perform during the 2019 New Years parade in Rome. Congratulations to the following for this amazing accomplishment: Darion Isaiah Dizon, Alyssa Gonzalez, Natalia Richards, Michelle Cortez, Alinna Rivera and Andrea Maminta. Summer camp is always something this team looks forward to attend. “My favorite part of camp was meeting a lot of people, making connections and learning new things while having fun and bonding with both my own team and other teams” Gonzalez and Natalie Eizips said, as this will be their last year attending. In addition, both JV and varsity are taking the program a level higher by becoming competitive teams. Last year, only members from the varsity cheer team were able to tryout for the competition team. Even then, the competitive team faced obstacles such as only being able to practice one day a week. “Due to the increase in

hours in our practices per week the team has grown in strength and consistency” Callanta said. Now that both teams are automatically apart of the competition team, they are able to rise the level of difficulty in their routine and hopefully place higher in their division.

Varsity captain, Natalie Eizips along with coach Dan Callanta, have been working closely with the varsity team focusing on stunts to set the foundation for incoming teams to follow. “I definitely think our stunts will look a lot better because we have a lot of returnees on the team and

have been non stop increasing the difficulty in our stunts.” Eizips said as the cheer team inches closer to their first competition date; October 13. Good job to the FHS cheer teams and good luck for this year’s season!

Photo courtesy of Dan Callanta

Sexism in Tennis by Emily Wilson Staff Writer

Serena Williams, one of the best tennis players of all time, still struggles with racism and sexism in her career. Whether it has been due to her skill, her etiquette or being depicted in a racist cartoon, Williams has faced constant discrimination for her actions as an athlete. Recently, Williams wore a full catsuit — a skintight bodysuit made of a spandex-like material — to the 2018 French Open, which took place from May 27 to June 10. Some tennis fans had no issue with William’s outfit. Their argument was that Williams’ outfit did not affect the way she played. Others, however, had an issue with her ensemble. “I think that sometimes we’ve gone too far,” French Tennis Federation President, Bernard Giudicelli, told the Guardian. “Players must respect the game and the place. This will no longer be respected.” While Williams’ catsuit was not in direct violation of any of French Open dress code rules, it

has been banned. Williams is not allowed to wear the suit anymore. The catsuit was not modest because it was very tight. It wasn’t appropriate for female tennis players to wear, according to Giudicelli. Tennis has been a sexist sport for a long time. Women’s outfits have been picked apart for centuries. In the 1800s, female tennis players wore their street clothes, including petticoats, corsets, and large skirts. Skirts shortened as time went on. One of the first female controversies occurred because American player Gertrude Moran wore a skirt, which exposed her

lace shorts underneath. As female clothing became more and more exposing, women’s outfits became more and scrutinized. Serena Williams has been subject to this sexism for as long as she’s been a tennis player. Williams has a history of repeated blood clots after the birth of her daughter, and the suit helped prevent the blood clots. The move by the French Open President Guidicelli not only opens the door to stricter dress codes but also contributes to the fact that tennis may be a bit sexist. Men’s outfits have much less restrictions. For example, men are allowed to change shirts during their match. Though the new rule seems sexist, she respected it. “Obviously the grand slams have a right to do what they want to do,” Williams told Time Magazine. “But I feel like if and when or if they know that some things are for health reasons then there’s no way that they wouldn’t be okay with it.”

Not valid with other offers. Regular, everyday haircut prices are $17 for adults and $15 for seniors & kids 10 and under. Not for resale. Expires March 25, 2018. Photo courtesy of ET Online

sports An insider’s look on year round athletes

OCT. 12, 2018

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by Michael Wang Staff Writer

Rohan Kale

Junior Rohan Kale was a yearround athlete last year at Fremont High School. He chose to do cross country, track and field and basketball because he enjoys running and playing basketball. He did cross country mainly to help him improve in track. He started playing sports when he was around four years old. Kale’s inspiration in life is a family friend who achieved academic and athletic success and is now going to MIT. Kale plans to play sports in college, but not professionally.

Edgar Ramos Sophomore Edgar Ramos did cross country, wrestling, and track and field last year at Fremont High School. He has a passion for doing wrestling and track and field. In order to handle both sports and school, Ramos said he does all his homework on specific days and asks his teachers to get his homework earlier than his classmates. He started playing soccer when he was just six years old, but he eventually got tired of it. His inspiration is his wrestling coach, Erik Duus, one of the toughest people Ramos has ever known. Ramos said he wants to do wrestling or track and field in college. Currently, he hasn’t dedicated his life to sports, but plans to focus much more on them in college.

Ivan Munoz

Junior Ivan Muñoz played sports all three seasons last year at Fremont High School. He played soccer, track and field and cross-country. He chose to play year round because he wanted to challenge himself while also impressing colleges. In order to balance his academic and athletic lives, Muñoz sacrifices sleep and tends to stay up past one A.M. He first started playing sports in his freshman year of high school when he joined Fremont’s soccer team. His older brother is Muñoz’s inspiration because his brother worked hard throughout school and sports. He has not decided if he will play sports in college or professionally.

Alex Garcia Junior Alex Garcia did cross country, soccer, and track and field last year as well. He chose to do three sports because he liked all of those available for all the seasons. In order to lighten his workload, he does homework during lunch and right after he comes home from practice. He started playing sports at a very young age. He is inspired mostly by his family to strive in life. He is not sure if he wants to play sports in college or professionally, but he would like to become a professional soccer player. Photos courtesy of Justin He and Michael Wang | The Phoenix