October 1, 2021

OUTHERN S The Student Voice of Florida Southern College

SGA senatorial elections conclude

Non Profit Org. US Postage PAID Permit 38 Lakeland, FL

FRIDAY, October 1, 2021 VOL. 138, NO. 2

Students create original musical production

Sophia Gonzalez Editor-in-Chief Florida Southern’s Student Government Association concluded their 2021 senator elections, and newly elected senators prepare to go back to in-person activities.

Last year, SGA held senator elections and most events virtually. Re-elected candidates are ready to kick-start this year now that events are back in person and all students are back on campus.

“I’m so excited for this year; last year being a senator was really fun, and that was when it was all virtual, so the fact that we’re going to be in person this year and can do even more is going to be really awesome,” Jessie Joyner, fourth-year greek-affiliated senator, said.

This is Joyner’s second year as a greekaffiliated senator in a row.

“My goals are to progress FSC forward along with my fellow senators, and to actually listen to students to address the change our school needs,” Dylan Olive, newly-elected first-year senator, said. “I expect this year to be great for SGA and FSC because we are all eager with excitement and new ideas, especially for finally being back on campus.”

Although campaigning this year allowed for candidates to use chalk and posters, both candidates used their online platforms to drive their campaign forward.

SGA senator elections closed on Sept. 23.

ELECTION RESULTS First-Year Senators: Julianna Gentile, Eion J. Mitchell, Dylan Olive, Noelia Velasquez Second-Year Senators: Tonia Alumba Second-Year Greek-Affiliated Senators: Reagan Orr, Ruby Silver Third-Year Senator: Zachary D’Onofrio Third-Year Greek-Affiliated Senator: Kat Ableman, Blake Loughrey Fourth-Year Senator: Hope Geraghty, Kevin I. Medina Fourth-Year Greek-Affiliated Senator: Jessie Joyner, Jack Wilkens Intercollegiate Athlete Senator: Emery Roth Computer Student Senator: Luke Garcia Honors Program Senator: Abigail Ghaly, Macey Tipton Barney Barnett School of Business and Free Enterprise Senator: Ben Greenman, Hannah Garcia, Connor McElroy School of Education Senator: James Houle, Ryan Foley School of Nursing and Health Sciences Senator: Kyle Herbers, Claire Winters School of Arts and Sciences Senator: Emma Edgar, Kiersten Bowser, Rory Tracy, Justin Kelleher, Lexi Trevillian

SOCIAL MEDIA

Photo by Jessica Stalter Christine Sells gives direction to her cast and crew alongside Kai Anderson as they go over scenes.

Read the full article on Page 3

Florida education system bans critical race theory Nathalie Moreno Opinions Editor On June 10, the Florida education system along with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis voted to ban critical race theory from the curricula throughout K-12 learning.

Florida is not the first state in which teachings of race, or anything having to do with race, have been prohibited. States like Alabama, Georgia and Louisiana all had the same debate about CRT and are among 28 states that have attempted to impose limitations on teaching topics related to critical race theory, according to Chalkbeat.

“CRT doesn’t belong in [American] schools,” Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said on the day CRT was banned there.

The rule amendment states that instruction on topics such as the Holocaust, slavery and the civil rights movement “must be factual and objective and may not suppress or distort significant historical events.”

The amendment also prohibits the use

of the 1619 Project, a NY Times exclusive diving deep into the history of slavery and all other materials that depict American history as anything other than the creation of a new, free nation based on the terms stated in the Declaration of Independence.

Critical race theory has been a prominent discussion since 2020, coming into the limelight after race protests and riots surged because of George Floyd’s death.

The movement and practice of CRT first began in the 1980s, when Derrick Bell and other legal scholars, including Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, came to the realization that the civil rights movement was still being largely overlooked, especially from a legal standpoint.

Dr. H.A. Nethery, FSC’s Associate Professor of Philosophy and an avid researcher on critical theories of race, believes that teaching theories like critical race theory and using materials like the 1619 Project is crucial to take action against the oppressive ways of the past.

“What kids get in school at a really

Photo by Jameson Champion Florida Southern’s Roux Library has a selection of books relating to Black and Latinx history.

@fscsouthern

young age sets their worldview,” Nethery said. “So if we get kids at a really young age who are being constantly told that racism doesn’t exist, [...] it’s just going to further sediment those bad feedback loops of [...] oppression.”

Critics of CRT argue that theories pertaining to race or challenging American systems will teach kids to hate the nation, encourage a separation within students based on skin color or impart personal biases within lessons, swaying students’ beliefs.

“Florida’s education system exists to create opportunity for our children,” DeSantis tweeted the same day the amendment was approved. “Critical Race Theory teaches kids to hate our country and to hate each other. It is statesanctioned racism and has no place in Florida schools.”

Supporters of critical race theory assert that teaching topics about race is important in schools because it allows students to have a transparent and honest view of the world they have to grow up in and to understand all the societal factors in play.

Though the Florida State Board of Education was on board with the ban, the Florida Education Association argued that the diction used in the rule amendment itself paints a negative light on classroom instruction and education.

“What we need to be teaching students how to do is to understand the world that they live in and to be able to critique the world that they live in,” Nethery said. “If we don’t teach them that we are fallible and that our legal systems can be fallible then they’re never going to critique the world; they’re never going to buck against authority and we’ll just have the same authoritarianism, racism, oppression, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, [etc].”

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The Southern OCTOBER 1, 2021

2

NEWS BRIEFS

Political Science Department hosts Constitution Day Salvatore Ambrosino Features Editor

Counseling Center: Making time for me On Oct. 5, the Florida Southern College counseling center will be hosting an online “Making time for me” event. The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. and feature lessons on time management skills to be able to spend time more productively and efficiently.

Scholar’s Picnic The Scholar’s Experience will be hosting a picnic from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Oct. 8. The event will be hosted at the Badcock Garden and feature activities, free food and giveaways.

On Sept. 17, Florida Southern College’s Department of Political Science hosted several key speakers, including a former and current Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice for Constitution Day event.

The event, kicked off with an introduction from Dr. Anne Kerr and emceed by several students of political science who helped organize the event.

U.S. House Representative (R-FL) Scott Franklin and State Representative (D) Anna Eskamani attended via Zoom.

Former Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice R. Fred Lewis, an alumni of the college, also made an address following Chief Justice Canady, whose statements about his tenure as a Justice concerned

some students, including organizers for the event.

“What I want to address is the false narrative about the constitution that it has become common today,” Canady said. “And that is the false narrative that the constitution was established as an instrument of oppression, and that the Constitution has set up a system that is systemically oppressive.”

“These are experts on the constitution,” Associate Professor of Political Science Dr. Bruce Anderson said. Anderson called the opinion of Canady “unassailable.” “You can disagree with what they said, and you may even have a different interpretation of the document itself.”

Some students believe Canady used the platform to deny the constitution being “systemically oppressive,” calling himself a “partisan of the constitution” in defense

Music Under the Stars The Festival of Fine Arts will be hosting “Music Under the Stars,” a symphony band and jazz ensemble concert. The event will take place at the Branscomb Auditorium on Oct. 12 from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Admission to the concert is free.

Photo by Salvatore Ambrosino

The Student Government Association will be hosting a farmer’s market on Oct. 13.

The event will run from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and will be located in Wynee’s Bistro. This event will allow students to buy fresh fruit and produce with their points.

Florida Minimum Wage Increase On Sept. 30, the first Florida minimum wage increase was instated. All employees in the state of Florida will now make at least $10 an hour. Florida residents voted in 2020 to increase the statewide minimum wage to $15 an hour over the course of six years. The next increase will happen on Sept. 30, 2022.

Spivey Pool Tournament On Oct. 6, the Spivey residence hall will be hosting a pool tournament in its lobby. The event will take place from 8 to 9 p.m. and all residential students are invited to attend.

U.S. Representative Scott Franklin talks to College Republicans Emily Miles and Eion Mitchell.

Yik Yak app makes return to app store Diego De Jesus Staff Writer A new social media app called Yik Yak has become popular among the FSC student body. Yik Yak is an app where users can anonymously make locationbased posts within a five-mile radius.

Yik Yak was created by Brooks Buffington and Tyler Droll in 2013 but was deleted in 2017 after a large decline in its userbase.

There were claims that people abused anonymity to make offensive posts, leading to a drastic decline in usage in 2015.

Yik Yak allows users to type out posts, send them, and receive feedback through likes or dislikes from fellow users. After that, the community determines if the post stays. Posts get deleted if they get five downvotes.

On Aug. 16, Yik Yak announced that it would be returning on Apple devices. The app had trended and reached fourth on the app store.

Many students at Florida Southern College have been part of this trend.

Some students have become concerned due to the anonymous aspect of the app and how users can post about anything, even potentially misinformation.

One of these students is Blake Loughrey, who shared his opinion on the app and some recent posts.

“Personally, I believe nothing good will come from Yik Yak, it’s a platform that encourages fake news regardless of how the company presents itself,” Loughrey said. “Some people may say it encourages people to be able to speak exactly how they feel, but it actually spreads lies and rumors with fewer chances of having any consequences.”

Loughrey went on to say that the things said on Yik Yak could destroy the reputation of people and organizations indiscriminately.

At Florida Southern College specifically,

“

So I felt a certain peer pressure to download it and see what the hype was about.

-Joseph Boticello FSC student

“

SGA Farmer’s Market

of the document’s viability.

“There was more of an emphasis on who truly respected the constitution, people’s personal criticisms on modern day views of the constitution rather than educational discussions over its impact,” Arlette Martinez, a freshman political science major who helped organize outreach for the event, said.

The Constitution has contested interpretations and criticisms that persist in America, often causing rifts in political understanding.

“I heard things there that I strongly agreed with, I heard things there that I strongly disagree with,” Dr. Kelly McHugh, the Department Chair of Political Science, said. “I know students from all sides of the political spectrum felt the same way. The point is not to avoid things you disagree with. All four of the talks outlined different perspectives.”

Martinez does not believe the event to have been non-partisan as advertised, and although she did expect the event to be political in nature, she did not expect any of the speakers to make a remark which might have made some students uncomfortable.

“I did not think they would go as far as denying an issue that impacts millions of people today,” Martinez said. “POC students being required to listen to politicians put this document on a pedestal and use it to invalidate us is the perfect example as to why we feel alienated.”

Some students say the event was a bipartisan outlet that may have worked to alleviate political tension brewing since the election year.

“College Republicans and College Democrats have been getting a little heated since the election year,” College Republican Will Doro said. “I felt like the event was a really great way to put away our differences to celebrate one document.”

organizations and people have been namedropped. However, these posts remain on the feed due to the number of likes they get from users.

Joseph Boticello is another student who shared their opinion on Yik Yak and why they downloaded it in the first place.

“It was becoming popular. So I felt a certain peer pressure to download it and see what the hype was about,” Boticcello said.

“I think the app is incredibly toxic. It warps people based on the sort of obligation of involvement.”

Before its dissolution, there were many middle schools, high schools and universities that reported offensive and threatening posts made on the app towards individuals and organizations.

As a result, geofences were established

by Maponics, a company specializing in drawing geographic borders in middle and high school zones.

Geofences are digital fences that inhibit access to certain utilities. In this case, the owners established geofences in middle and high school zones specifically because of the cyberbullying issue and because Yik Yak is meant for college students and older.

Now, on their official site, Yik Yak advertises itself as a social media app that allows its users to connect with fellow users anonymously. There’s also an emphasis on its return from deletion four years ago and that it’s the same app as before.

Yik Yak’s website also emphasizes user guidelines and mental health resources to ensure users are able to enjoy the app.

Many students have downloaded Yik Yak. Although it’s unavailable on Android devices, there are plans to allow android users to access it soon.

3 The Southern OCTOBER 1, 2021

FEATURES Sells, Anderson and Uslan bring original musical to life Jessica Stalter Staff Writer The door to the practice room opens, and music mixes with voices. Kendall Uslan can be heard giving blocking information while Kai Anderson runs one of the lead actresses through her solo. Even to the closest follower of broadway, however, these scenes and songs are not familiar.

Many people dream of writing and publishing their own content but for Christine Sells, Anderson and Uslan their dream is becoming a reality. The three have such a strong passion for musicals, that they wrote one themselves.

“The Icarus Project” is what they call “steampunk rock,” loosely based on the myth of Icarus. It follows inventor Ariadne, who is hoping to save her city which is falling from the sky. The musical also follows other inventors at an inventors fair in the city sponsored by a powerful corporation Helios.

Although enjoyable and rewarding, writing an original musical has not been an easy task for the trio. The concept for the musical originated in January, then scratched and entirely reworked in July and August.

“It was a crazy idea but we decided to start over. We started with a project that I’d been sort of brewing in the background a little bit for a concept album about the Myth of Icarus and we just talked about it and we had great ideas,” composer, lyricist and music director Anderson said.

“It flowed more naturally and so we just dove into it and started working on it and it progressed further than the previous show had in six months in one month.”

They were then given the opportunity to turn their concept into a real product through Florida Southern’s Theater After Dark (TAD). The program gives students

Photograph by Jessica Stalter The cast for “The Icarus Project” rehearses their scenes. both inside and outside the theatre department a chance to perform their own creative works.

Both majors and non-majors can participate in themed cabarets, which are nights where students can perform original songs that they or someone else wrote, and more recently, it opened the door for this student show.

“I think that having new productions especially at FSC is definitely a big step forward when it comes to theater and future productions, because I think one of the big things that not only ‘Icarus’ but also TAD and vagabonds, which are our clubs on campus, are working to do is to create more opportunities for students and also to give opportunities that haven’t been available before,” book writer and director Uslan said.

Because of its focus on student involvement, “The Icarus Project” is being written and produced very differently from what is commonly seen in the world of

theatre. The directors are creating much of the blocking, how the actors move on the stage, and even dialog in collaboration with their actors rather than handing them a completed script.

Typically when a show is put on, the director will purchase the full script and musical score and will hand the completed package to their actors. Although there are still creative liberties with this method, the focus is on performing what the actors have in front of them, rather than creating the characters and scenes around them.

“Rather than trying to write the whole show and then throw it on actors, what we’re really doing is developing the show with the actors as we rehearse… ‘here are our ideas, here are some scenes we have written, let’s work together to develop the characters, develop the scene, develop the structure,” Anderson said. “I think I speak for all of us when I say this show is very early in development and so with that comes some growing pains.”

This unique approach allows the actors and actresses to really connect to their characters and let them develop naturally.

They are not building off of a version of the show they have been watching for years, or even that they have seen once. They are truly making their characters come to life for the first time.

“I think it’s like every theater kid’s dream to do something like this— to originate a role. Basically everyone in there is creating the characters,” said Sarah Conte, who plays the character Ariande in the musical.

“Book writers are giving us baselines, but kind of just making a character your own and not having anyone else’s performance to base it off of is a really cool experience that not a lot of people get.”

It is to be expected that the process of producing an original show comes with both its upsides and its downsides, and that has proven true for Anderson, Uslan and Sells. There have been parts of the process that have gone very smoothly, while challenges inevitably arose as well. One large challenge they faced was the time it takes to write a musical.

Sells explained that the process of creating a show is exhausting, especially when people are going on vacation or working over the summer and dealing with the demanding academic and social expectations of the school year alongside writing and rehearsals. Uslan added that working as a team on a creative project, though worthwhile, was a challenge.

“A lot of the songwriting is just songwriting. It’s just what does this melody sound like, okay what does it look like on the page, lets get it for actors,” Anderson said.

This story continues on fscsouthern.com

Vaccination is key to prevent infection, according to Polk County health director Salvatore Ambrosino Features Editor In the last week of September, 39 coronavirus patients in Lakeland remained on ventilators. In the county, 113 died.

Data on Florida’s COVID-19 deaths only recently made a return to the federal dashboard, as Polk County’s college-aged students returned to classes in late August to early September.

Hospitalizations peaked in mid-August, when the delta variant spread through Polk County, where mask policies and capacity limits are no longer enforced due to an executive order by Governor DeSantis, only weeks after vaccines became available.

Combined with the county’s stagnant vaccination rate, Director of Polk County Department of Health Dr. Joy Jackson says it created an unprecedented surge of infection and death into the beginning of September, before case numbers began a steady decline.

“What is happening to Polk is not unexpected looking in the rearview mirror,” Jackson said. “Unfortunately, what we experienced and are still experiencing, but it is improving, makes sense. It’s regrettable, but it makes sense.”

Florida Southern College students returned to Polk County in late August, with over a 60 percent vaccination rate, in the wake of what had been the county’s deadliest coronavirus outbreak.

This outbreak somewhat quieted by an interruption in communications between the state and CDC. Jackson could not speak directly to the impact of colleges, but she did confirm that college-aged young adults did represent a fairly significant portion of positive testing in the county during the time of the spike.

The demographic most impacted by the increase of infection were those unvaccinated aged 25 to 49.

The weekend crowds at large inside Lakeland’s downtown bars substantiate Jackson’s concern.

Polk County, maintaining a vaccination rate of just over 54 percent, struggled with the whiplash of

infection, some county hospitals having to arrange for coolers to store bodies in the midst of the increasing number of dead. As of October, no federal mandates currently exist that prohibit large, maskless gatherings indoors, though the community metrics being at their worst so far into September, the risk associated with these events remain present.

“I implore individuals to make decisions regarding their own health,” Jackson said. “Large group gatherings are risky endeavors.”

Polk County, like every county in Florida, maintains a high rate of community transmission, meaning more than 100

Polk County, at a SVI ranking of greater than 0.9, is flagged as “highly vulnerable” by the CDC.

positive cases for every 100,000 residents.

As of Sept. 28, the CDC recommends residents in every county in Florida wear masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status.

But unlike other counties in the state, Polk ranks higher than most on the CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). At a vulnerability index of just over 90 percent, it means county communities are more susceptible than most to human suffering, including serious infection and death, according to the CDC. The ranking also estimates the impact of the virus on local economy and community health will last longer than in other counties that rank lower on the SVI. “If individuals who are unvaccinated are going to potentially be around people who are at risk of severe complications, like people with underlying health conditions or eldery, I would ask that they take extra precaution,” Jackson said.

“College Thursdays” by Rec Room, a colorful Massachusetts Avenue barcade, attracts student masses on a weekly basis; a demographic said by experts to easily spread the virus.

“The best prevention against COVID-19 is vaccination,” Jackson said.

“Vaccines are safe and highly effective.

So I encourage people for their own health and safety, for the health and safety of their classmates and the rest of the population, that they strongly consider getting vaccinated.”

The Southern OCTOBER 1, 2021

4

CENTER

Café con Leche

Hi

Why is

“Being in a mostly whit of them being limited d Month, it celebrates th Latinx people like me. Fe efforts done by organiz

“Hispanic/Latinx rep the more culture we ha the more it shapes th real people and deserv within our schools. ”

Photo by Caroline Bryant Alitzel Rodriguez and Danielle Deonarine pose while in attendace at the event Café Con Leche, an event hosted by the Simmons Center, the Counseling Center and Hispanic/Latinx Student Coalition.

“Representation helps ok. I don’t want my littl because she doesn’t se

5 The Southern OCTOBER 1, 2021

CENTER

ispanic Heritage Month

s Representation Important?

Photos by Caroline Bryant

te school has its disadvantages, one diversity. But with Hispanic / Latinx he diversity we have of Hispanic / eeling seen and seeing the beautiful zations to celebrate the month.”

Melanie Mendieta

presentation is important because ave in our school systems and media hose societies. Hispanic people are ve to feel comfortable and validated

Karishma Priyah and Angedith Ortiz talk to each other while in attendance at the Café con Leche event.

Corrine Harvey

s people learn that being different is le sister growing up feeling less than ee people like her.”

Mylena Ferman

Emmanuel Zellner-Philanthrope, who works at the Simmons Center, speaks to a student.

The Southern OCTOBER 1, 2021

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ENTERTAINMENT WHAT’S NEW

Marvel ‘Eternals’ film release draws closer Some fans begin to quetsion, ‘Is there too much Marvel?’

Disney’s “Muppets Haunted Mansion,” offers a fresh new take on the Halloween time classic, “Haunted Mansion.”

The trailer shows two muppets, “Gonzo the Great” and “Pepe the King Prawn” on a journey to stay overnight in a haunted mansion. It will be released on Disney+ on Oct. 8.

‘Squid Game’ Netflix new drama, “Squid Game” focuses around a fictional competition that puts a deadly spin on children’s games. The contestants are offered the equivlent of $85,000 for winning the game. Each game has consequences, and if someone loses or tries to leave the game early, they are eliminated.

‘On the Verge’ Netflix new show, “On the Verge,” features four women working in different fields going through their version of a “mid-life crisis.” It was created by Julie Delpy who also co-stars in the show.

‘You’ season 3 This season of the Netflix drama, “You” continues to follow the story-line of the main character, Joe, and his new family. The trailer shows them moving to a new town for a fresh start, but he quickly finds someone new to obsess over. The season offers many new twists and turns for the couple and their new baby, Henry. It will be released on Oct. 15.

‘Sex Education’ Netflix recently released “Sex Education” recently on Sept. 17. This season follows the main cast during their final school year. The show has recieved good feedback for its portrayal of healthy relationships.

Jameson Champion News Editor On Nov. 5, Marvel is set to release Eternals, the next installment of the popular Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The film will be the seventh major installment in the MCU this year and now has some people raising the question: is there too much Marvel?

In 2021 fans have received six major installments of the MCU so far, all belonging to what Marvel refers to as ‘Phase Four.’ Three of these have been streaming series’ that have impacted the overarching story of the MCU, one is a spin-off series and the remaining two installments are films.

Marvel has progressed its larger cinematic universe through several phases which have been divided by the release of a larger ‘Avengers’ crossover film. Marvel is currently at its fourth phase of content, with ‘Phase Three’ having been wrapped

“

I feel like from what I’ve seen all of the content that they’ve put out so far is pretty amazing.

-Anna Lyons FSC senior

“

‘Muppets Haunted Mansion’

up by ‘Avengers Endgame’ in 2019.

Eternals marks the third Marvel film that will be released this year and with the release of a Hawkeye series later in November, a new Spider-Man in December and a potential Mrs. Marvel series in December, this means fans will have had 10 pieces of Marvel content by the end of this year. To contrast with previous years; Marvel’s phases one and two had just 12 films between them and stretched from 2008 to 2015.

Photo courtesy of Flickr

‘Eternals’ cast on stage with Marvel Studios president, Kevin Feige at 2019 D23 Expo.

Marvel’s ‘Phase Three’ had 11 films, released over the course of three years.

The new series have been released in such a fashion this year that fans have not had to wait long for new content. 2021 began with the release of “Wandavision” in January, which ended in March two weeks prior to the release of “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.” “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” would end in April and it would not be until June when “Loki” was released. July saw the release of “Black Widow,” August contained Marvel’s ‘What If…?’ and “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” was released in September. May is the only month this year which has seen no MCU content.

This massive amount of content that Marvel has released in just this year alone raises a question, can you have too much Marvel?

“They’ve done a really great job with story lines and adding depth to characters to make each one interesting in their own way,’’ senior Anna Lyons said.

“I feel like they’ve made them unique enough to capture their audiences well.”

Critics of Marvel can point to how with every show or movie having an impact on the greater MCU, missing anything can quickly result in a fan ending up lost. Further, there may be a superhero genre fatigue as more and more content gets pushed out. Even in The Southern, a reader can expect Marvel to make the entertainment section regularly, with four of the last seven issues having a Marvel article or brief.

“I will say that the Loki show was disappointing and didn’t have the plot that I was hoping for,” Lyons said. “I felt like they could have done a lot with his character that they didn’t do.”

Fans of Marvel meanwhile are now spoiled for choice on what they want to watch because many of these productions have taken on multiple different genres. “Wandavision” was a combination of sitcom and thriller, “Black Widow” was a spy thriller, and ‘What If…?’ being an anthology series.

“I feel like from what I’ve seen all of the content that they’ve put out so far is pretty amazing,” Lyons said.

‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’ returns to Lakeland Emma Matzen & Sami Beason Staff Writers Lakeland has two different Rocky Horror events each year, the “Rocky Horror Picture Show: Hell of Heels” screening at the Silvermoon Drive-in, and “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” which will be screening at the Polk Theatre.

Silvermoon’s “Hell on Heels” event is taking place on Oct. 2 and 3 from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m., featuring the stage cast on rollerskates going around the drive-in lot.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a 1975 horror-comedy musical film starring Tim Curry, that has been celebrated and enjoyed by LGBTQ+ folks for decades.

While the film was originally unsuccessful, this changed as the film was put out in midnight screenings in New York in 1976, eventually becoming a cult classic in the LGBTQ+ community of the time, where it became a “camp” cult classic.

Since the initial underground success, the film has continued to have yearly midnight screenings every year around the world.

Based originally on a 1973 musical stage play, Rocky Horror pays homage to science fiction, low budget horror movies and grind-house horror films. As the movie continued to be put out for midnight screenings, eventually people began coming to the shows dressed as characters in costume, and eventually actors would act out the movie onstage in front of the screening while the audience part-took in the experience.

Tickets are $20 per car, with up to six guests per car. Tickets have already sold out. The Polk Theatre’s event is on Oct. 29 and 30, with open doors at 9 p.m. for pre-show activities, while the movie starts at midnight.

Tickets start at $18, but guests can also buy prop bags to play along with the show for an additional $5. Tickets are still available on Polk Theatre’s website.

Both experiences are a must-see for Lakelanders. It offers an immersive experience for show goers. Not only will the audience time warp out of their seats, with the prop bag,

one can be part of all the action.

Many past attendees have reported to enjoy the several memorable interactive moments at the event. From throwing rice at the wedding scene to snapping on latex gloves with “Dr. Frank N Furter,” the experience seemly immerises the audience. The crowd seems to grow every year for these midnight showings.

The Polk Theatre is historic to Lakeland, featuring its brilliant stage and the painted starry sky on the ceiling.

It features several classics around the year but by far, Rocky Horror is infamous to the location.

The Silvermoon drive-in is known for their retro style and double features.

The pair of movie experiences goes head to head to bring the classic to life.

Though it is celebrated by the LGBTQ+ community, it excludes no one in the fun.

There are a slew of activities that happen before the movie begins. From dance offs to trivia games, to epic drag shows featuring the characters, this event is one to mark on the calendar.

7 The Southern OCTOBER 1, 2021

OPINIONS Ban on CRT further silences voices and experiences of BIPOCs Decision limits proper education of youth all over Florida Sami Beason Staff Writer What are we arguing about? What are we debating? Critical Race theory is pivotal and a real step towards equality in this country.

For those that don’t know, critical race theory or CRT is known as the examination of how systems created, like housing, labor and criminal law, have laws and regulations that produce different outcomes due to race. This practice takes into account the historical prejudice that has been in the United States since the introduction of race.

“

If we as Americans don’t learn about how people of color are treated in this country...we will never grow.

“

-Morgan Shelton member of FSC Allies

However, there are certain parties propagating that learning CRT would demonize the generation of white people now and thus only be inefficient, causing more cultural divide. The decision affects the younger generation in education today.

CRT is banned in multiple states along

Photo courtesy of Creative Commons//@knittymarie

An example of what an inclusive learning space could look like, learning about places and people all around the world. with Florida, with Gov. Ron Desantis’s encouragement. There is a well-known saying that “history repeats itself” and that’s exactly why I would have to disagree with said parties and advocate that the education of CRT is crucial.

As a Black person attending a predominantly white institution, or a PWI, I am tired of being the teacher and the example. There are many occurrences that happen with my fellow classmates where I educate them on historical events and instances that happened in U.S history, particularly about black culture.

Teaching CRT early on would relieve the burden that all people of color feel in having to teach people right and wrong,

HB-167 threatens right to choose Nathalie Moreno Opinions Editor Florida is no stranger to taking one step forward and ten steps back, most recently with the ban on CRT, and now, with news coming out that Republican State Representative Webster Barnaby proposed a new bill on Sept. 22.

HB 167, or the Florida Heartbeat Act would be passed on July 1, 2022, and would enforce strong restrictions on abortion, similar to the recent Texas abortion ban that was passed.

The official proposal states that the physician must test for a fetal heartbeat and inform the mother if one is found. It also “prohibits physician from performing or inducing abortion if fetal heartbeat is detected or if physician fails to conduct test to detect fetal heartbeat.”

Barnaby’s proposal only causes any hopes of Florida getting it together to plummet further. Criminalizing abortion would be an injustice to women everywhere, another loss in the battle we already face everyday in trying to control what happens to our own bodies.

The debate surrounding abortion is not new; it’s been around since the 70s, resulting in two sides, pro-life versus prochoice. When a revolutionary episode of the television show “Maude” focusing on the main character’s decision to abort aired in 1972, it sparked national conversation

about the morality of abortion. A few weeks later, the famous Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling was issued, respecting a woman’s choice to decide what to do with her pregnancy.

Since then, politicians all over the world, most of which are right leaning, have fought tooth and nail to overturn this law, arguing that abortion is inhumane, evil and downright murder.

Even in Argentina, where abortion protection laws were just passed, Pope Francis recently said that the laws are only further perpetuating “the waste of children that we don’t want welcome” and that abortion “is really a murder.”

Politicians on the only ethical side of the debate, like FL Democratic State Rep. Anna Eskamani, have been fighting like hell to make sure all women have access to a healthy sex life of their choosing.

Eskamani tweeted that the proposed bill is “disgusting” and “a FL version of TX’s bill.”

Being pro-choice is not being against the life of unborn children. It simply means that women should be allowed to have a say in the matter of what they and their bodies can (and in a lot of cases cannot) handle at the time.

Passing a bill like HB 167 would be the true evil. Taking away a woman’s choice on whether or not they are ready to start a family shouldn’t be in the hands of anyone (let alone a man) if not the person bearing the child.

or explain a history that’s already at everyone’s fingertips if they just look.

Morgan Shelton, an RA for FSC and member of Allies, had some opinions about how the ban on CRT would affect the States.

“My opinion is that so much of US history is founded on the backs of people of color,” Shelton said. “If we as Americans don’t learn about how people of color are treated in this country and learn to empathize with said groups then we will never grow.”

There is a reality of living in the United States with the systems in place that POCs understand due to the learned history of this country and it is regarded in our

everyday lives. Our parents, community and non-mainstream history teach us these lessons because our classrooms won’t.

Critical race theory demonizes no one.

It just examines the truth. It examines the hardships and the inequality, particularly when dealing with race.

It shouldn’t be in college, in an interpersonal communication class, that someone who happens to benefit from the systems in place begins to realize the depth of prejudice and inequality for the first time.

With the introduction of CRT earlier in education, young people can start understanding, thinking and reacting to inequality. There is a select number of courses that examine these topics at a college level. Most of them are not required or there is an alternative course to fulfill the credit instead.

The opposition of the introduction of this in classrooms states that teaching CRT leads to new ideologies rather than the facts. Though overall topics of history are taught by schools, it negates the fundamental details and the real consequences that we are dealing with today.

“As a POC in the U.S. I would appreciate it if [everyone was] educated about the history of people of color so there is not a blatant ignorance when interacting with them,” Shelton said.

This shouldn’t be a debate or an argument. Give students all the facts. Fill in those gaps.

Explain the systems in place that are causing the issues we are having today.

Anything short would be an injustice to a supposed growing America.

SOUTHERN

The Student Voice of Florida Southern College Florida Southern College 111 Lake Hollingsworth Dr. Lakeland, Florida 33801 Always on fscsouthern.com 863-680-4456 fscsouthern@gmail.com

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Sophia Gonzalez

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The Southern OCTOBER 1, 2021

8

SPORTS

Women’s Volleyball 10/1 vs. Lynn* 10/2 vs. Palm Beach Atlantic* 10/5 vs. Tampa* 10/9 vs. Nova 10/12 vs. Eckerd* 10/15 vs. Rollins* 10/16 vs.

Embry-Riddle

Women’s Cross Country 10/2 Division II National Preview* 10/9 UAH Invitational PM *

Men’s Cross Country 10/2 Division II National Preview* 10/9 UAH Invitational PM *

Women’s Soccer 10/2 vs. Lynn 10/6 vs. Tampa 10/9 vs.

Florida Tech* 10/13 vs. Flagler 10/16 vs. Barry*

Men’s Soccer 10/2 vs. Lynn* 10/6 vs. Tampa* 10/9 vs.

Florida Tech 10/16 vs. Barry

* Indicates away game

Caroline Bryant Staff Writer

On Saturday, Sept. 25, both the FSC men and women’s swim teams attended the UNF Season kickoff in Jacksonville, alongside five other colleges in the FloridaGeorgia area. The men’s team stole 1st place with a team score of 988.5, while the women’s team took 3rd with 519 points.

Despite it being the first meet of the season, the freshmen class heavily contributed to their team scores. But according to most of them, their wins were outshined by the overwhelming experience of their first college meet.

“This meet had a lot more energy than high school meets had,” freshman Janie Davis said. “Every team was up and cheering on their teammates behind the lanes, and it made it way

“

The team atmosphere here is so much better and everyone supports each other.

“

UP NEXT

Swim teams kicks off this year’s season

- Maja Erikkson swim team, freshman

more exciting than what I’m used to.”

Freshman Niko Frese agreed.

“In Germany, we don’t have any team rankings on normal meets, which is why the team spirit is by far not as good as here,” Frese said. “[The cheering] gave me a lot of motivation and helped me swim well since the practice last week was pretty hard.”

Photo courtesy of Jack Portune, FSC Athletics

FSC Women’s swim team takes their mark at the annual school Pentathlon.

Olivia Miles, freshman, attested that the Mocs are “a lot more team oriented” than her team back home too.

Coming all the way from Margate, UK, having her first collegiate meet in the United States felt like a huge change.

“I loved swimming in an outdoor pool,” Miles said. It was the first time she had ever raced outside, as all meets in the UK are held indoors- even during the summer season.

Another international student, freshman Maja Erikkson, continued to explain how different American meets are to those in Europe.

“It’s such a big difference in a good way,” Erikkson said. “The team atmosphere here is so much better and everyone supports each other. It’s also different to swim in yards instead of meters, but I think I’ll get used to it soon.”

On the other hand, Italian freshman, Ludovico Viberti, described American meets as “more intense.”

“I’m not an expert, but from what I saw I can say that American ones [meets] are more intense,” Viberti said. “Yesterday, I did seven events in five hours. The team result is very important here and the unfolding of events is different, faster, and maybe a bit more confusing.”

So confusing that freshman Alizee Pelletier, didn’t quite understand the format of the meet.

“In France, we have a waiting room before races, so I was a little bit confused when I was walking to my block directly,” she said. “[Also] in my country we have 3 judges [officials] on each side of each lane. [Here] there were just maybe 5 or 6 people around the pool.”

While there are obvious cultural differences between American and European swimming, the sport as a whole is a place of common ground, unifying each Moc swimmer. At the end of the day, they all share the same passion for the pool.

Men and women’s soccer season updates Sophia Gonzalez Editor-in-Chief

As men’s and women’s soccer seasons closes in on its fourth week, here is an update on the season so far.

Men’s Soccer Florida Southern men’s soccer team has earned an 1-4-3 overall record and a 0-2-1 conference record as they close their eight game of the season with a loss against Nova Southeastern on Sept. 25.

During their Sept. 22 game against Rollins University, the Florida Southern mocs ended the game with a 2-2 tie.

“In our [...] game vs Rollins we had a lot of positives to take away,” junior player Kyle Carr said. “Alberto Diaz had a fantastic goal from outside the box and Julian Jordan had a good performance in his first start since his injury in preseason.”

Nova ranks No. 9 in the division and holds a 4-1-1 overall record and 1-10 conference record as of Sept. 25.

“Our expectations from the rest of the season is to make the conference tournament and get some more big wins at home,” Carr said.

Men’s soccer team is scheduled to play two away games versus Lynn University at Boca Raton on Oct. 2 and versus Tampa University on Oct. 6. Their next home game is on Oct. 9 versus Florida Tech.

Photo courtesy of Kat Hostetler, FSC Athletics

FSC Women’s soccer huddle during their game.

Women’s Soccer Florida Southern’s women’s soccer team has earned an overall 3-4 overall record and a 0-2 conference record, following four consecutive losses.

Catilyn Lowery scored 2 goals during the women’s game versus Nova on Sept. 25, but the mocs fell short with a 3-2 loss to Nova.

That game was Lowery’s “second multi-goal performance of the year,” according to the FSC athletics website.

Despite their recent losses, the women’s team started out the seaon strong with three

consecutive wins on Sept. 2, 6 and 10.

Their game versus Rollins University on Sept.

22 was postponed due to inclement weather.

“A makeup date for Wednesday night’s women’s soccer game will be announced as soon as more information is made available,” according to the FSC athletics website.

Women’s soccer is scheduled to play two home games against Lynn University and against Tampa Spartans on Oct. 2 and 6, respectively. On Oct. 9 they’ll play an away game vs Florida Tech in Melbourne.