Garfield Messenger: Volume 97, Issue 4

THE

MESSENGER

JANUARY VOLUME 97 ISSUE 4

CONTENTS Cover by Jefferson Ashby

ISSUE 4, VOL 97

A&E

NFO 4

GET TO KNOW: JAMYA JONES

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NEWS BRIEFS Hailey Gray

SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN

Jaya Duckworth

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PAINTING THE WORLD

Ke’Von Avery

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ARTIST ALUMNI OF GARFIELD Arlo Van Liew

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A BATHROOM FOR ALL

Simone Cielos

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REACH FOR THE STARS Sara Javkhlan

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Ben Mefford

Molly Chapin

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SORRY, YOU’RE STUCK

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ARE WE SAFE? Sav’ell Smalls

23RD AND UNION Milena Haile and Izzy Lamola

STUDENT SUBMISSIONS

SPORTS 16

Various Students

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THE OSCARS ARE NO STRANGER TO CONTROVERSY Ava Klubberud

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FASHION AT GHS

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ALL AGES MUSIC

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Mena Bova

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PLAYLIST

Tova Gaster

SIGNED TO SUCCESS

Millan Philipose

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Sophie Reichert

Tova Gaster

DRIBBLING THEIR WAY TO THE DOME

MATH TEAM HAS THE ARITHME-TRICKS Camryn Soo

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TAPPING INTO WRESTLING Tsion Belgu

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THE CLOSURE

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MESS GUESS

Téa Fortune

John Volk

STAFF Arlo Van Liew Ava Klubberud Ben Mefford Camryn Soo Cecilia Hammond Clara Neville Téa Fortune Grady Canty

Hailey Gray Izzy Lamola Jaya Duckworth Jefferson Ashby Ke’Von Avery Mena Bova Milena Haile Millan Philipose

Molly Chapin Sara Javkhlan Sav’ell Smalls Simone Cielos Sophie Reichert Sophia Chrysanthakopoulos Tova Gaster Tsion Belgu

EDITORS

Julia Lin • Editor in Chief Lily Laesch • NFO John Volk • Sports Delphi Drake-Mudede • A&E Freya Wiedemann • Photo Flora Taagen • Layout Ariel Cook • Graphics Izzy Woods • Business

NEWS

GET TO KNOW: JAMYA JONES

Sophomore singer takes the stage.

By Molly Chapin

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By Hailey Gray

Los Angeles Teacher Strike

On January 14th, 2019, Los Angeles public school teachers organized one of the biggest school strikes in our nation. Gathering over 30,000 people, many individuals in the Los Angeles area went on strike for various reasons: increased teacher salaries, smaller classroom sizes, and more school support staff (such as nurses and counselors). Originally, the United Teacher Los Angeles Union (UTLA) was planning on striking until the demands were met, but now there is a bit of concern shadowing the movement. As a result of the prolonged striking, parents have expressed concerned about children’s loss of learning time and a strain of the finances of the Los Angeles school district (losing $125 million and counting during days of strike) were primary issues.

Update: Over the weekend of January 18th - 20th, the UTLA negotiated with Los Angeles Unified School District and made a tentative deal of a 6% salary increase for teachers and decreased class sizes.

S

tage fright can afflict even the most confident people, especially when competition is involved, and for sophomore Jamya Jones it was no different. But in spite of her fears, she made it onto American Idol. In August of 2018, Jones auditioned for the upcoming season of the renowned television talent show.

“I have stage fright, I didn’t start coming out [to perform] until seventh grade” Jones said. “It was still lowkey hard.” Yet just three years later, here she is. Jones started singing at the age of four. Early in her life, her mom encouraged her love of Whitney Houston, who is now her main musical inspiration and one of her favorite artists.

“Whitney Houston is where everything came from” Jones said, explaining that her passion for singing began with listening to Houston’s songs.

Some of her favorites include, “I Will Always Love You” and “I Have Nothing”, the latter of which she sang during her audition for American Idol.

After waiting for hours in a room packed with people practicing for the auditions, Jones stood in front of a judge, ready for the first round.

“The judge with me told me to stop singing and then she said to sing another song, but I didn’t have another song in my mind yet. That’s when I did the Whitney Houston song, and it came in clutch, she loved it.” Jones said.

“When everyone else was auditioning she was on her phone. When I auditioned, she put her phone down, put her hand up to her face, and was really listening.”

Jones was the only soul and R&B singer who sang in the auditions that day as well as the only high schooler among the 20 year olds who made it.

“When she called us all up she said that none of us had what she was looking for, except for me.” Jones said. She was pushed through to the second round of auditions, and wowed the judge again, securing herself a place on the show.

“I wanted to cry, and I don’t really, I don’t cry.”

Jones said of her reaction upon hearing she had made it. “I thought it was a dream to be honest, because we stayed in there for twelve hours.”

However, her joy was accompanied by trepidation, as the other contestants around her were all older and seemingly more experienced.

“They’re all 20 year olds, grown, they’ve at least had some experiences with vocal coaches.

Mind you, I taught myself to sing, I didn’t have all the extra stuff...they’ve been doing concerts, I’ve only done national anthems and stuff like that” Jones said. But even though the season hasn’t aired yet, Jones is already being noticed in the musical community.

NEWS BRIEFS

Cyntoia Brown Recieves Clemency

Sophomore singer Jamya Jones on the steps of Garfield High School.

“I think there’s a lot coming my way...certain people from different areas have looked out, seen me, tried to talk to me about writing music” Jones said. “People have said ‘oh, we need to get her in the studio, see what she can do with this and that’.”

Jones almost didn’t go to the auditions, because she didn’t trust she could do it and thought it to be a waste of time.

“You know, there were thousands, 1600 people that came and auditioned. My first judge, she had 500, 600 kids audition for her, she passed six of them.” Jones said. But ultimately, she was one of the six that made it through.

“Don’t be scared,” Jones advised, “Sometimes the people who you think have the most talent, they’re always missing something you have...If you don’t think you can do it, just try anyway, because you don’t know what could happen.”

PHOTO BY FREYA WIEDEMANN

TW: sexual assault/violence, prostitution, and death Cyntoia Brown, a 30 year old Black woman, was granted clemency after serving 15 years of her life sentence for the murder of Johnny Michael Allen.

Brown was forced into prostitution at age 16, and claims Allen was expected to pay her for sex. However, during Brown and Allen’s interaction, Brown claims to have been in danger and shot and killed Allen in self defense. She was then tried as an adult and given a life sentence.

However, on January 7th, 2019, Brown was granted clemency and is going to be released from her sentence on August 7th, 2019. Although some justice was finally bestowed on Brown, she is still under supervised parole for 10 years. While the case shows improvement in the criminal legal system, there are a variety of flaws surrounding the treatment of Black people, youth, and victims of assault and violence which still need to be addressed.

Alaskan Way Viaduct Closes

On January 11th, 2019, Seattleites said goodbye to the Alaskan Way Viaduct, a freeway in Seattle which holds part of Route 99. The 66 year old freeway will later be replaced with a 4 lane underground tunnel, nicknamed “Big Bertha”, which will run through the greater Seattle area. However, during the Viaduct’s demolition, Seattle traffic is expected to temporarily increase due to the increased construction.

Changes in the Band Department

The newly hired Garfield band teacher, Tomisha Price-Brock, will not be returning second semester, say sources. Personal issues arose, leading to the abrupt departure of Price-Brock.

NEWS

SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN

What does the partial government shutdown mean for the Seattle community?

By Jaya Duckworth 35 days and counting, we are currently in the longest government shutdown in United States history.

The U.S. entered into a partial government shutdown on December 22nd when Congress and President Trump failed to reach a budget agreement. Since then, Trump has refused to compromise on his demand for a $5.7 billion wall on the southern border despite firm opposition from Democrats.

While Washington D.C. remains in a political stalemate, the scope of the shutdown has extended across the nation, and its effects are being felt right here in Seattle.

800,000 federal workers—including 11,000 in Washington state—are affected by the shutdown. Those deemed “essential” are working without pay, while others have been furloughed— meaning they’ve been placed on temporary leave.

The President’s threat that the shutdown could last for “months or even years,” has left many across the country anxious about surviving without their regular income.

Federal employees are finding themselves short on rent and grocery

bills, worried about mortgage and credit card payments, and unable to afford childcare. TSA workers at prominent airports are calling in sick, creating long wait times and travel backups. This isn’t the case yet at SeaTac Airport, according to the Media and Public Affairs’ Manager, Perry Cooper.

“Things are going really well so far, we’re not seeing wait times go up,” Cooper said.

However, if TSA workers continue to miss paychecks, Cooper anticipates that SeaTac could face challenges.

“Workers may start seeing it in their pocket book and looking for a part-time job,” Cooper said.

Low-income housing is also threat-

ened by the shutdown. The Seattle Housing Alliance serves about 34,000 low-income tenants, a majority of whom are dependent on federal funding.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has assured housing authorities that it can continue payments for low-income housing through February. Without funding in March, landlords would be legally allowed to evict tenants, pushing housing providers into an emergency budget situation, according to Kerry Loughlin, a spokesperson for Seattle Housing Alliance.

“We’re optimistic that [the shutdown] will get resolved before it gets to that point,” Loughlin said. “If this

goes beyond March, this nation is in a very, very dire situation.”

Along with jeopardized housing, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) may run out of funding for food stamps in March.

In Washington, 900,000 children and adults receive these food benefits. ¾ of SHA’s tenants are either elderly, disabled, or children, so many of them rely on food stamp services, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal programs.

“Millions are in jeopardy,” Coughlin said. “This puts everybody right on the edge of a very precarious situation.”

The evidence of this instability is everywhere—unkempt National Parks are overflowing with trash, immigration courts are backlogged by more than 800,000 cases, tribal communities have lost funding for basic services, and federal employees are lining up outside food banks.

With no end in sight and the Capitol in gridlock, millions of Americans are feeling the growing impact this political standoff has on their livelihood.

ART BY SOPHIA CHRYSANTHAKOPOULOS

A BATHROOM FOR ALL

A new all gender bathroom comes to Garfield.

By Simone Cielos Across the hall from the band room, the bathroom which had previously been assigned “Girls Only”, has been converted to an all-inclusive restroom with a bright blue sign titled “All Gender Bathroom”.

Its abrupt arrival has startled many Garfield students. The reactions vary in and out of the Garfield community, some rejoice and others worry.

This bathroom feels necessary to many of the non-binary and trans students at Garfield, because previous to the all gender bathrooms, many had to resort to using the single toilet in the Teen Health Center. Having to Personally ask to use the bathroom with THC staff consent.

“In my freshman year I didn’t go to the bathroom once at Garfield,” said Alex Reynolds, GSA president. They said they would find themself waiting out 5th and 6th period in discomfort only to race home at the ring of the final bell.

Students explained the experience as seperating and slightly dehumanizing.

While this fight for bathrooms has been long standing, many are curious as to why it took so long. Garfield has a long history of social justice a nd is typically the first to launch new inclusive initiatives, but in this instance most elementary schools received all-gender bathrooms first.

Reasoning varies, but overall it relates community pushback and whether the bathroom would be welcomed within Garfield. According to GSA, educating the community seemed to be the clearest option.

The main goal of educating was to explain the bathrooms practical use and the meaning of having one in our school. Unfortunately the date changes and the uncertainty of the situation made it more complicated.

ART BY SIMONE CIELOS

“Putting it off for so long made it impossible to do education on the front end.” said Alex Reynolds. They believed that being able to reach out to the cis-gendered students to explain the need for the bathroom was an important step in the process, and could’ve prevented much of the confusion its sudden and unexpected arrival has brung.

The location of the bathroom is a large center of conflict as the bathroom chosen is one of the most used girl’s bathrooms in the entire school.

While it is still accesible to cisgender woman, many would prefer to either not use it or do not want to fill the only bathroom accesible to non-binary and trans students.

The girls bathroom on the first

floor was the original choice, which is used much less fre quently, but a final decision made by the district moved it to it’s current placement.

Some believe the decision was deliberate, but while this is still unclear, it is fair to question the decision.

Now that the bathroom is accessible to all genders, some cis women fear the bathroom being used by cis men and the dangers that may bring.

“Ultimately a sign isn’t going to stop a sexual predator .” Alex Reynolds said. “People should know that that fear is not particularly founded in any data”.

While it has been rather sudden, the bathrooms open a new door for many students within Garfield now and in the future. It is important to those who have been fighting for it and it is important to our schools growth. So if your walking down the hallway and you see the all gender bathroom, don’t be afraid to go on and use it!

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NEWS

REACH FOR THE STARS

Astronomy is coming to Garfield.

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By Sara Javkhlan

t’s almost time to start choosing classes for the next school year and you may find yourself wondering what classes to take. Perhaps you should consider taking astronomy, a brand new science class that would cover all things space-related —the solar system, stars, black holes— you name it.

Let’s clarify that this class is about astronomy, not astrology. Nonetheless, this immersive and interdisciplinary course that incorporates chemistry, physics, biology, and other topics will help explain the space phenomena that fascinate us all.

Chemistry and physics teacher Zachary Shaw has been leading the way for this addition and will be teaching the course. For months, he has been working to make astronomy a real possibility.

Shaw has many reasons for wanting to bring an astronomy class to Garfield. First, he thinks that people, but especially high schoolers, have a profound interest in space. He cited the recent solar eclipse several summers back as an example of public enthusiasm.

“When students bring up space ideas, they tend to get very excited, and I think that reflects the public interest in space,” Shaw said.

Such a course offering would stir a lot of excitement about science, which is one of Shaw’s main goals.

Unlike other science courses, astron-

omy would be more of an exploratory class. For example, if a student wants to learn about comets one day, then the class could spend time learning about that.

“I want to embrace that sense of wonder,” Shaw said.

Shaw also wants to teach this course for another practical reason.

Garfield has many options for those who are willing to commit to an AP science course, but Shaw believes there aren’t enough non-AP science courses available to take.

“One of the things we talk about at school is that we service the high skilled student and we favor that student more,” Shaw said.

Shaw understands that there are various reasons for students to not take up an AP science course, which is why he began working on an astronomy class that would be more accessible to a wider range of students.

“If a student is passionate about science, but they don’t want to necessarily embrace the AP workload for a particular class, then there aren’t

a whole lot of options for that student,” Shaw said.

Astronomy will be a great class for those who want to continue learning about science but without the workload usually seen with a typical AP course. Shaw doesn’t want to see these students lose their passion for the sciences just because they choose to not take an AP class.

“The biggest tragedy is that we lose these students.

Some end up not taking a science because they don’t see it as something reasonably available to take,” Shaw said.

This ART BY SIMONE CIELOS course will be open to everyone, so long as they have completed the district-mandated science courses: Chemistry/Physics 1, Biology 1/2, and Chemistry/ Physics 2.

This addition would be a first for Garfield, but several other high schools in the Seattle area already offer the course.

Christopher Rose, the astronomy teacher at Roosevelt, just started teaching the course this year after developing a curriculum on his own.

“Other than the weather ruining all of my night sky observation assignments, it has been fun,” said Rose. “We have been doing a unit on ancient astronomy tools which the students have enjoyed building and learning how to use them.”

Rose garnered a lot of student interest for the class and ultimately, over 60 students signed up.

“As with any school, they should offer classes that fit with the interests of the students,” Rose said.

Franklin High School also offers an astronomy class to their students.

Student Tess Imanishi opted to take astronomy instead of a more traditional science course because of their interest in the subject.

“I think astronomy class gives a great opportunity to learn more about topics that seem impossible and aren’t talked a lot about in normal classroom settings,” Imanishi said.

This is exactly what Shaw hopes to offer through his course. But most importantly, Shaw hopes to ignite curiosity and enthusiasm in students not just about space, but also science in general.

“At the very base level, I hope to make this a class where students will leave high school with a positive view of science and are advocates of science in their adult and professional lives,” Shaw said.

well, it doesn’t make sense to keep them in that class.”

There has also been very little communication to anybody this issue affects, and no one knows for sure how strict this rule will be.

“It’s all rumors,” Sample said.

“There’s been no staff meeting announcement or mass email.”

There could be many consequences if this policy is held up. Students might not be able to switch out of

classes that aren’t a good fit for them, or they might not be able to switch into classes that could benefit their education and be a better fit for them. If worst comes to worst, some students might not be able to complete all their graduation requirements.

With teachers being kept in the dark, it’s uncertain if they’ll stick to this uncompromising protocol. But one thing’s for sure, this is a considerable change to Garfield administration.

SORRY, YOU’RE STUCK

No schedule changes second semester?

By Ben Mefford On January 8th a notice was sent out from the PTSA of GHS regarding the counselors and selecting classes for next semester.

“The Counseling Office is NOT accepting change requests for 2nd semester,” the first line of the notice reads.

The notice goes on to explain that students get to choose their classes in the spring of the year before and that at that time they are picking classes for both first and second semester.

“The master schedule is developed based on the course requests they receive in the Spring of the previous year,” reads the notice.

This raises many questions. What

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if a student wants to switch out of a class that is too challenging for them? What if a student needs to switch into another class for a graduation requirement and needs a specific credit?

“It makes sense to switch kids around at the semester based on how well they’re doing in the class,” said Ian Sample, a math teacher at Garfield. “If they’re in an honors class and not doing

The Garfield Messenger 01/25/2019 garfieldmessenger.com

“IT’S ALL RUMORS. THERE’S BEEN NO STAFF MEETING ANNONCEMENT OR MASS EMAIL.”

FEATURES

PAINTING THE WORLD

History unfolding in our beloved GHS murals.

By Ke’Von Avery

T

he murals of Garfield tell the inspiring stories of marginalized communities all the way from the thriving towns developed by the indigenous people of this land to the various alums that became prominent moguls in music, art, activism and more. We see the varied masterpiece every time we walk through the halls of the first floor. To the Garfield community, it’s more than a few bright colors plastered on the wall— it’s an engaging history lesson complete with a representation of multiple racial identities that provides inspiration to future world leaders and change makers.

Students here appreciate that the art that was done by a Garfield alum.

There are many facets of the mural to explore and feel inspired by.

“My favorite part are definitely the stats about the 80’s and 90’s that are right outside of the women’s bathroom on the first floor. It’s my favorite because it shows how much history Garfield carries and how Garfield has always been a barrier breaking school” said Garfield senior Leila Adams. “We were the first school in Seattle with majority POC and it also shows how rich the Central District’s history is.”

The murals also bring recognition to the history of the Central District

before colonized America, which is a huge deal since there has been a narrative that civilization didn’t start until the European settlers arrived.

“My favorite part of the GHS murals is all of the history. Each mural has a piece of history that is never taught in school. That also gives us the opportunity to not only learn about the history of Garfield but the history of Washington is in a visual form” said sophomore KyRi Miller. “My favorite

“My favorite mural at Garfield is the image of the one and only Martin Luther King, Jr. and the people of Seattle protesting. The reasons why I love this image is because Dr. King on November 9th of 1961 spoke at Garfield; inspiring the local civil rights movement and gave a speech about activism amongst young people” said Garfield senior Xihomara Urrea.

“The mural represents the fight, the struggle, the power that we the peo-

“THE MURAL REPRESENTS THE FIGHT, THE STRUGGLE, THE POWER THAT WE THE PEOPLE GAVE TO ACHIEVE WHO WE ARE TODAY AND THE LIVES WE LIVE WITH THE MOVEMENT AND CHANGE THAT WE CREATED AS A COMMUNITY” mural is the Native American mural because in almost every part of the world we don’t get much history or their culture. Also it reminds us that we are on stolen land and we need to understand the importance of that.”

The activist scene is becoming more enveloped into Garfield culture and in the past few years we have seen a wave of fresh faces speaking out and motivating their peers to speak out as well.

ple gave to achieve who we are today and the lives we live with the movement and change that we created as a community” said Urrea.

As we know, history is never-ending.

New chapters unfold each passing day and great things continue to happen at Garfield. What new images will be painted on the walls of the second story?

“I think I would want the first basketball game I ever went to to be on

the mural, because although Garfield tends to divide itself during school hours when it comes time to cheer for our teams we’re all bulldogs and that spirit shows” said Adams.

Not only do we show our bulldog unity at our school sporting events, but we also come together in times of protest. The 2016 protest against the election of Donald Trump was considered to be a huge success and even made television.

“A defining moment in my high school experience that I would love to have added on to the mural would be the moment that we as Garfield students stood by each other to protest the presidency of our current president of the United States. To shine a light on the oppression of immigrants, LGBTQIA, discrimination, misogyny, black lives and many more” said Urrea. “This is definitely one of the amazing moments where we all stood together, getting to understand each other, and all of us came together as a community to fight for our rights.”

The murals accentuate the greatest parts of Garfield and the Central District. The mural takes the diversity in the halls and puts that diversity on display and that is a huge deal for many students here.

PHOTS BY BEN MEFFORD

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FEATURES

ARE WE SAFE?

Looking at the safety of our very own Garfield High School.

By Sav’ell Smalls

On January 4th, 2019, an article titled, “I’m A Seattle Teacher: School Safety isn’t taken seriously enough,” was published in the Seattle Times.

The author? Garfield’s own Jerry Neufeld-Kaiser, known by students as Mr.NK. In this article, NK expresses his frustrations with the way the district has regarded the safety of everyone in the building.

The saying, “there are two sides to every story” is relevant to almost every situation in the world. But with the way times have changed, people have adapted to go with the first thing they hear. So when a piece on school safety comes out in a legitimate newspaper by a real teacher, many questions are sure to arise.

“I tried getting the district and the school board to pay attention to this, because they haven’t,” Mr. NK said.

“They didn’t take me seriously, and they’re clearly unprepared, and that concerns me. So going to the newspaper was my way to make a stink in public.”

Mr. NK’s strategy worked-Well sort of. It did get some of the publicity he wanted, but he still has yet to see what he really sought out to gain.

“Throughout this whole situation there has been zero progress made, and I mean zero,” Mr.NK said. “I mean we did have a nice conversation with our admin team on how worrisome this situation is and how confused we are, but we’ve gotten no help or ideas from downtown and it’s frustrating.”

But what does NK want to see?

There’s a lot of things going on at every school, especially one in the heart of Seattle, so the change NK finds necessary is still unknown.

“To be honest, I’m completely un-

“ I JUST WANT OUR LEADERS TO TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY”

informed about school safety and security,” said Mr. NK. “But there’s a million schools in this country, and I know some have figured out things that work. I just want our leaders to take this seriously and figure out what makes sense.”

The very same leaders that Mr. NK has called out are the same ones he’s hoping will do the right thing, before something tragic could happens.

“The fear last year when that student threatened to shoot up the school was palpable and ugly,” Mr. NK said. “I remember people saying they were scared to just be in the building. God forbid that from happening, it would haunt me forever.”

But while one side expresses extreme concern, another says things aren’t always as they seem.

“I think that a lot of the time ev-

erybody believes in transparency,” said long time police officer Bennie Radford. “Transparency is a dangerous thing. If you let people know what you’re doing, they’ll know what you’re doing. Just because you don’t see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t there.”

But Mr.Radford believes that everything isn’t as simple as it seems, and there are factors that can be seen that play into the situation.

“Times have changed. Everybody is complacent now,” Officer Radford said. “When I was coming up, if something happened around us we were spooked and stayed away for at least a week or two until things died down. But now things have to happen directly to us in order for us to take things seriously.”

“TIMES HAVE CHANGED. EVERYBODY IS COMPLACENT NOW” But the attitude of people isn’t the only thing that has changed with time. “We used to have two officers, me and another, and would go from school to school patrolling making sure everything was fine,” said Officer Radford. “Now it’s just me by myself, we don’t have the manpower nor strength. Some people don’t even want us in the building.”

Although officer Radford has preached that things aren’t always as they seem, NK, and him do see eye to eye on one thing.

“There’s always room for improvement,” Officer Radford said. “Now I’m not going to tell you what, but if I could make those changes I would.”

But even with a short wish list of things he’d do, he sticks with his word. “Garfield’s at a point where I like it. It’s secure and I’m going to leave it at that.”

There will always be more than one side to a story. That’s just how things work. In this particular story, it’s up to the Garfield community, built of wonderful students and administrators to decide where they stand. Do you feel safe? Or do you think more should be happening? Whatever the case, you might want to do some digging for yourself. After all, it is your safety we’re talking about.

Have thoughts on this issue?

Email us at garfieldmessenger@ gmail.com.

FAST FACTS: SAFETY IN SEATTLE SCHOOOLS

By Grady Canty-Swapp

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Seattle schools are required to do the following: 3 fire evacuation drills/3 lockdown drills/ 1 shelter in place and 1 earthquake drill per year.

Safety and Security Services says that staff should be trained in verbal confrontation skills and necessary prevention programs.

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According to Campus Safety News, school shootings in 2018 were higher than they’ve ever been since the 1970’s.

ART BY CECILIA HAMMOND

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23rd and Union is a corner with some of the richest and most deeply-rooted history in Seattle.

But things are changing.

Everybody is scrambling for a spot in the Central District. Whether it’s developers, 30-year locals, or people searching for new apartments, pieces of the CD are being snatched up by the second.

“Developers came with a narrative that Black people didn’t want to be in the CD. So it’s very important for us, as an organization [Africatown], to let developers and government stakeholders know that Black people want to be here and many of us have never left,” said Omari Salisbury, a marketing and communications officer for Africatown. “And the Black people that have have had to leave, majority have been forced out.”

Gentrification and constant change is something that the Black Seattle community has become all too familiar with.

“We have to learn to have no emotion,” said Jason Moore, a barber from Earl’s Cuts and Styles. This has led many locals to hold pessimistic ideas and hopeless views.

“We are holding on to what’s already gone,” Moore said.

Efforts are already being made to soften the blow of gentrification on the community by creating a space to remember the history of the CD before the change. The Africatown Community Land Trust has plans to create a building made for the Black community, which was, and still is, being pushed out of the Central District. This building will be named the Liberty Bank in honor of the history of the area.

“On 23rd and Union there was the very first Black owned bank West of the Mississippi river,” said Salisbury.

This building will not only have affordable housing but a Seattle soul food restaurant named “That Brown Girl Cooks!” with the lo-

cal barber shop “Earl’s Cuts and Styles” underneath.

Africatown is an attempt to preserve the history that has been part of the CD for 140 years and is now being erased.

“In the Central District, people want to just steamroll over our history, [they] act like we were never here,” Salisbury said.

Systematic attempts to move African Americans out of the Central District have been around for decades, and the effects can be seen today.

“The gentrification in the Central District has been systemic.” Salisbury said.

Salisbury was a Garfield student around the time of project Weed and Seed, a government program to reduce crime, drug abuse and gang activity in high crime neighborhoods.

This program targeted poor Black neighborhoods tried to “lower crime” by forcing people out of their houses for possessing illegal substances. While project Weed and Seed has ended, some may think that this gentrification is simply a more modern version.

Africatown has played a large role in giving a voice to the community when it was forcefully silenced. The organization has met with South Lake Union Apartments, owner of a majority of the apartment buildings on 23rd and Union and many more, to create the Liberty Bank building and hold events for the community and the culture.

While Africatown is largely supported by many, other members of the community feel they are not proportionally represented.

Saad Ali, the owner of the 99 Cents Corner store on the 23rd and Union lot, has expressed serious frustration and concern regarding the changes. Lake Union Partners, Capitol Housing, and Africatown itself are awaiting his departure.

“They kept texting, calling, sending letters, telling me to move out,” Ali said.

He then received 400 signatures for a petition to stay at his location.

“I was supposed to move out on December 31st. I’m still here. I told them I’m not moving,” Ali said.

A Scramble for the CD

By Izzy Lamola and Milena Haile.

Art by Molly Chapin “I needed $50,000 to relocate, find another place, and keep working,” Ali said.

At first, Ali was not offered any relocation money which led to fear regarding his future.

As an immigrant business owner and someone who has been on the lot for over 20 years, the offers he was receiving were simply not enough. After various meetings and prolonged back and forth, Capitol Hill Housing and Africatown offered Ali aid during his search for a new location.

“This city has changed a lot. They started pushing people out years ago and slowly but surely it has completely changed,” Ali said.

He explained that 90% of his customers have moved away from the Central District into the suburbs and outskirts of Seattle.

As rent costs reach skyrocketing numbers, low-income and minority populations are often targeted, which forces a suburban sprawl. With the people goes the culture, community and history. Ali’s 99 Cents is one of the few corner stores left in the CD. “Once I close this store, you won’t see nobody,” Ali said. The Central District community has been spreading farther and farther apart as families search for affordable housing anywhere possible.

Ali is now searching for a new location and getting ready to leave.

As old community members say their goodbyes, others are being welcomed with open arms. Two large apartment buildings have opened across from Uncle Ike’s and Earls Cuts and styles. East Union apartments opened in November, replacing the old 76 gas station. With 85% of the building already filled, resident numbers only continue to grow. Most apartments are one bedroom and one bath with an average rent of $2,000.

A spacey gym, a beautiful large rooftop, and a Tacos Chukis right across the street, make the apartments undeniably sought after. However, the building will also house a New Seasons, a Portland-based grocery store with a controversial history of low wages and poor working condi-

tions.

With high rent come those who can afford it. Residents are mainly upper-middle class, and a majority are white, coming -from similar occupations.

As new and old residents co-exist, there has been a clash in cultures.

“Us people who have been here for a while feel alienated,” said local Ted Evans, who feels that people who are from the CD originally are looked down upon.

Passersby who know the history of the neighborhood spoke of the changes, saying “it’s a slap in the face” and “this is what colonialism looks like.” While newcomers feel that “you have everything you need here”, “it’s changed, I guess, for the better.”

In attempts to tackle this issue, buildings have made some accommodations, “the NFTE [Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship] forces 20% of the building to be affordable housing,” said Everline Animas, Assistant Community Manager of the building.

The Liberty Bank Building itself will be solely for affordable housing in attempts to cater to low-income families.

The Central District is our neighborhood, and as Bulldogs we must continue our legacy of fighting for what we believe is right. The history of the CD is the history of Garfield High, and as the CD changes, so are we.

“The biggest threat for Garfield with gentrification is losing our magic forever. If people value what makes Garfield special, that is what makes you want to get involved,” Salisbury said.

To get involved with what Africatown is fighting for, text “HOME” to (206) 309-6324. It allows Africatown to know who is willing to assist in meetings, organizations, take part in protests and so much more.

“Do something. Do something and believe in it.” Salisbury said. “Garfield is more than just a high school that you know. It’s a legacy.

It’s a place that’s so magical.”

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A&E

THE OSCARS ARE NO STRANGER TO CONTROVERSY

Over 90 years of questionable-ness.

By Ava Klubberud

N

ext month, celebrities, creators, technicians, and many more from across the globe will gather together in the City of Angels to celebrate the many films and projects from this past year. The Academy Awards, no matter the prestige or credibility, remains a source of controversy and outcry due to its racist and sexist history.

In the past few years especially, Hollywood has been rocked by the rise of social movements like Black Lives Matter and #MeToo that aim to call out the injustices within the industry a n d society as a whole.

In 2015, activist April Reign coined the phrase “Oscars so white” to call out the fact that none of the top four categories recognized actors of color. This was met with outcry from those in and out of the film community. Many celebrities spoke out against this exclusion and ultimately boycotted the event altogether.

The Oscars that year served as a severe reminder of Hollywood’s prejudice and exclusion throughout history. In response, the Academy, an organization with only

30% members of color according to its yearly report, vowed to increase its diversity. The Academy Awards has fallen short in the fight against sexual assault.

The viral movement to recognize and combat sexual assault began in 2017 with the hashtag

#MeToo. The film industry was shaken by the landmark allegations against Harvey Weinstein who had been a producer for almost forty years. His case set in motion widespread outcry from survivors and completely altered the conversation around sexual assault, especially within Hollywood.

Despite hopes that the Academy Awards would reflect the new trend, Oscars were ultimately awarded to Casey Affleck, who has multiple allegations against him, and Kobe Bryant, who was charged with sexual assault in 2003.

This year films created by creators of color continue to be snubbed as the proposed introduction of a popular film category was seen as a way to belittle films such as Black Panther, which is the largest earning superhero film ever, that celebrated African American culture while also being one of the best movies of the year.

With nominations being announced on January 22nd, it will be interesting to see if the Academy has followed through on their promise to recognize a wider range within the film industry.

Thought to be the best animated film of the year, Into the Spiderverse follows the coming of age of a new Spiderman, Miles Morales. Spiderverse stands out from the crowd of superhero movies with its different animation styles and heartfelt storyline.

Roma Set during the conflicts in Mexico City during the 1970s, Alfonso Cuaron’s Roma follows Cleo, an indigenous housekeeper of a wealthy family. This film revolves around the interactions between Cleo and the family she works for. Filmed in black and white, Roma is one of the most Oscar-worthy films.

1938

Cinematographer James Wong Howe is the first Asian to be nominated in any category.

1940

Hattie McDaniel, Best Supporting Actress, is the first African American to be nominated and win in any category, ever.

1957

Myoshi Umeka is the first Asian entertainor to win an Oscar. And is also the only Asian actress to win Best Supporiting Actress.

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Sidney Poitier is the first African American to be awarded Best Actor.

1970

Chief Dan George wins Best Supporting Actor, the frist Native American to ever win this award.

2010

mess movie picks Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse

Historic Wins

Eighth Grade Comedian Bo Burnham wrote and directed Eighth Grade, a widely loved film that transported audiences back to their own days of middle school. Elsie Fisher stars as Kayla, a breakout role for the young star.

Kathryn Bigelow becomes the first woman to win Best Director for her work on The Hurt Locker, which also won Best Picture that year.

2015

The Academy nominates only white actors in the Best Acting categories. Prompting the social media movement #OscarsSoWhite

Art by Sophia Chrysanthakopoulos

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ALL-AGES MUSIC

Where to find tunes as a teen in Seattle

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By Tova Gaster

t’s Friday night and you want to dance -- or at least bob your head to some music with a (non-alcoholic) drink in your hand. But for a young person in Seattle, the live-music options feel frustratingly limited.

Since most shows take place in bars, minors are excluded from a huge slice of Seattle’s music scene. Aside from the bigger, pricier, venues such as the Paramount, where big-name artists play, a world of all-ages music is out there to experience. From venues like the Vera Project (which boasts the slogan “Always all ages!”) to the house show/DIY scene, there’s more all-ages music available than meets the eye.

Seattle’s club scene wasn’t always limited to those over 21. In the 80’s and 90’s there was a big, thriving allages club scene, but concerns about safety led to tightening of liquor license restrictions. If a venue wants to play an all-ages show now, they either have to give up their bar sales or hire extra security.

“Venues have a pretty specific liquor license with a ton of rules, so if you’re gonna have a bar show that’s all ages, you’re liable if kids try to drink at your show,” said Elyse Lankford, a talent buyer at the music venue Abbey Arts. “So you have to hire the extra security which is an extra cost.”

As Seattle has grown more expensive in the past two decades, the turnover rate for music venues, especially all-ages ones, has increased.

For all-ages venues, which can’t rely on alcohol to make a profit, skyrocketing rents often spell doom. This byproduct of gentrification is reducing Seattle’s arts and music scene, pric-

ing both artists and venues out of the city.

“I think it’s hard to see that venues are struggling too, that rent’s tough for venues too,” Lankford said.

“Only the really big corporate venues make money. It’s a circle of artists wishing they could be paid more and venues wishing they could pay more but also needing to make their own rent.”

The all-ages venues that persist fill a valuable role, benefitting beyond young audiences.

“Obviously, [all-ages music] is important because kids are the future, and if they’re not seeing good bands, they’re not gonna make bands and then music’s gonna die,” Lankford said. Without the presence of the next generation, the music community can’t sustain itself.

The community which music provides is deeper and more valuable than a night of entertainment. Allages music spaces allow young people to connect with others who share their interests, and for young musicians, they provide inspiration and a chance to get experience.

Garfield junior Aimee Lefkowicz participated in More Music at the Moore, a program run by Seattle Theatre Group which provides a platform for talented young musicians to showcase their work.

“They’re really welcoming to youth artists, plus they pay you because it’s their philosophy that artists shouldn’t go unpaid,” Lefkowicz said.

Playing live is essentially the only way smaller musicians can

make money in the industry. Most high schoolers access music through streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music.While these grant artists exposure, musicians are only paid between $0.006 and $0.0084 per stream. This is nowhere near enough for an emerging musician to make money from their art. Although fewer live music spaces are open to teenagers, musicians we love deserve our live presence and to be compensated for their labor.

If there are nonlocal artists you wish you could show up for, Elyse Lankford, who books musicians at Abbey Arts, wants you to reach out.

“Put a little pressure on the venues and artists, slide into your favorite musician’s DMs and ask them to ask their agent if they can play an all ages space when they come to Seattle,” Lankford said. “Let promoters and venues know what bands you want to see and that you are under 21. It just takes a little research and talking to people to get involved.”

ART BY ARIEL COOK

Abbey Arts:

The basement of the Fremont Abbey building holds one of the coziest, most overlooked venues in Seattle. Tickets are $5 with a TeenTix pass. They lean towards folk, but also host a monthly-ish “Soul Selections” show curated by local musicians showcasing rap and R&B. Abbey Arts also holds shows at Ballard Homestead, The Auditorium in the U-District, and St. Mark’s Cathedral on Capitol Hill.

-Upcoming shows: 2/1 Fremont Abbey: Soul Selections, 2/8 Ballard Homestead: Katie Kuffel

Vera Project:

With their motto of “Always all ages!” the Vera Project is the first name in all-ages music in Seattle.

Along with shows, the Vera Project also runs programs where you can learn skills like audio tech, sound mixing, and screenprinting. Located in Seattle Center, the Vera Project is a hub for youth engagement in the music community. The venue is wheelchair-accessible.

Upcoming Shows: 2/2: Anika, 2/10: Adrianne Lenker

DIY Scene:

Many musicians play in smaller venues and house shows, which you can learn about by following artists on social media. Smaller venues such as the Black Lodge in South Lake Union or Cafe Racer in Ravenna often play inexpensive all-ages shows, and can be a great way to discover new acts.

See the playlist for recommendations.

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15

SPORTS

DRIBBLING THEIR WAY TO THE DOME

The womens team is ready for state.

By Mena Bova

W

atching the Garfield varsity womens basketball team play is like watching a force of nature. As they play, you’ll see looks of concentration and determination on their faces, as they dribble, practice, run drills and work hard.

An unstoppable force, they work tirelessly to overcome any opposition that stands in their way.

The team has had a shining season so far.

Coming in as the reigning second place 3A team in the state, they currently have a 12-0 winning record, and seemed poised to keep that record up. Not only are they are undefeated in their league, but they’re also ranked eleventh in Washington. And this year, they’re ready to win state.

The team is no stranger to success. They made it all the way to the final round in state last year, but ended up falling to Gig Harbor by three points in a tight game. The loss was disappointing for the team, but it helped to shape their determination and motivation even more this season. “[Last year] definitely impacted this year. I mean, even though we didn’t win, this year we’re more hungry, and we’re more determined to win this year,” Senior captain Sam Tolliver said.

Junior captain Dalayah Daniels has noticed that last year not only boosted the motivation and determination of the team, but also positively affected their playing styles.

“Everyone’s a lot smarter and everyone’s a lot more disciplined, and I think everyone wants to hold themselves more accountable. We all kinda play for each other, and not ourselves,” Daniels said.

That determination and tight playing style certainly seems to shine through in their record this year. Not only are they currently undefeated

16

in their Metro Valley League, but they have the best record of all the Metro leagues, beating the top teams in both the Metro Mountain and Metro Sound Leagues.

It is not only a season of victory for the team, but also a season of transition, as the the program gained a new head coach, Marvin Hall. However, while it is Hall’s first year as head coach, he is no stranger to the program.

He was the assistant coach last year, which allowed him to get to know the team and establish a good relationship with them, helping to ease a potentially rough transition.

Daniels has noticed the easy shift as well.

“The transition has been smooth. [Hall] has been in some of our lives for a while anyway, but you know, just having him in the system last year was good, because he was able to see what we’d already worked on and what we needed to work on,” Daniels said.

Additionally, the team chemistry this year has been noticeably strong, causing positive attitudes throughout the team, and leading them to being close on and off the court. Daniels has noticed a marked improvement in team dynamics this year, especially from last year.

“I think our team this year is a lot better than we were last year, just because, we all play together.

Everyone’s having more confidence in themselves and in each other as well. You know, we’re sharing the ball a lot more than we were last year. We could share it a little bit more, but you know, it’s a process. We all definitely play a part,” Daniels said.

The team is undoubtedly filled with talented players with inspiring individual ac-

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complishments. For example, Daniels is a five star recruit on ESPN, and ranked thirteenth in the nation from the class of 2020, according to ESPN. Tolliver made the all Metro-League first team last year, and recently scored her thousandth career point.

However, what really helps to distinguish the team is how well they blend all of their talents to come together. Tolliver seems to agree.

“We all bring something to the table, so that’s what makes us unstoppable,” Tolliver said.

That team strength, coupled with the determination and focus from last year’s season, have all combined to give the team their competitive edge, letting their hard work shine through to secure them victory after victory.

One of the biggest of those victories so far has been against West Seattle, one of the team’s biggest rivals, with Garfield winning only one game against them in the past three years. This year, however, with the Bulldogs continuing to channel the strength and determination that they’d been displaying all season and with the help of a loud and supportive student section, they managed to beat them 61-50.

“The West Seattle game was my favorite game because we were all on in that game, it was just a really packed game, the student section was loud, and so they got us going, and so we were all just hyped,” Tolliver said.

The season hasn’t been without losses, however.

While they remain undefeated in all of the Metro Leagues, at the Holiday Swish tournament, which they played over winter break, they won their first game, but lost their next two games. However, Tolliver believes those losses actually proved to be beneficial in the long run.

“We’re kinda happy that we lost, just to see that we needed to work on other things more,” Tolliver said.

“So, I’m actually pretty glad that we lost, so we didn’t have to lose a game in Washington, and we can keep going and keep increasing our wins.”

The team seemed to identify any problem areas from the tournament quickly and accurately, managing to turn the tide back around to win the next four games, supporting Tolliver’s point, and putting them back on track.

The group’s undefeated status in league play has them in high hopes for the rest of the season and puts them in a good place to make their way back to the Tacoma Dome this season.

“I’m feeling really confident this year, especially with this team, that we’re just gonna be undefeated, go to state, win that, and get a ring,” Tolliver said. “Gotta get that ring—it’s ring season.”

The team’s determination to make it back to the Dome can be seen everywhere from their work ethic to their motto.

“Our saying is, ‘We have unfinished business’,” Tolliver said. “Since we lost last year, and we want to prove to everyone that we can actually win it this year.”

So far, the team is certainly living up to that motto, and seems primed to make this season the one where they finally finish their business.

PHOTOS BY JEFFERSON ASHBY

SPORTS

SIGNED TO SUCCESS

Winter Box Scores

Womens Basketball (14-2)

Senior athletes commit to colleges.

Garfield 105 Chief Sealth 23

By Millan Philipose

Kaia Simpson

UC SAN DIEGO SOFTBALL PITCHER/1ST BASEMAN

UC San Diego accepted only six people onto their softball team this year. Senior Kaia Simpson, a pitcher and first baseman on the Garfield softball team, was one of those six.

Simpson’s softball career began at age four and continued throughout her elementary and middle school years. Backed by a rigorous routine of daily practices across the Puget Sound region, Simpson began reaching out to recruiters as early as ninth grade.

“It’s a really intense process,” Simpson said. “Everyone gets started super early. If you’re not already pretty heavily into it by your sophomore year, it gets difficult.”

A self-described “science person,” Simpson took on a challenging slate of honors and AP courses.

Combined with her regular athletic practices, the nightly homework from these classes made for a grueling after-school routine.

“My junior year was really rough,” Simpson said. “I was tak-

ing four APs, I was practicing two or three times during the week, and I was up until 2 AM almost every night, doing homework. I was super stressed.”

Despite this heavy workload, Simpson managed to maintain a near-perfect GPA. She plans to continue her academic focus at UCSD as a pre-med biology major.

Though UCSD is known as a strong science school, the college appealed to Simpson for more than just its academics.

“I loved that UCSD genuinely cared about me as a person,” Simpson said. “When I went on my unofficial visit, they wanted to meet my family. They wanted to know what we’re about.”

Her advice to future Garfield athletes looking to play on a college team?

“Don’t get stuck on one school,” Simpson said. “Enjoy the process.

As hard as it sounds to say that, it’s really fun when you see all your hard work pay off in the end.”

PHOTOS BY FREYA WIEDEMANN

Lyric Harris

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY TRACK AND FIELD SPRINTS/JUMPS

For Lyric Harris, the path from Garfield to Georgetown University was paved in bright red rubber.

Reigning champion of the Washington State 3A girls triple jump, Harris was groomed from an early age to excel on the track and field.

“I’ve done track since I was really little,” Harris said. “My dad was the track coach for a club team. I got involved and decided to stick with it.”

Harris had planned on competing for a college team since middle school. To achieve this goal, Harris needed to carefully juggle her schoolwork with her athletic commitments.

“Getting home from practice at 8:00 and still having to do homework — that’s definitely hard,” Harris said. “I’ve gotten used to long nights.”

But Harris’ hard work paid off handsomely. After receiving offers from several universities, Harris

signed to Georgetown University, taking her place among some of the best track athletes from across the country.

“It’s a family feel on the team,” said Harris. “I’m definitely excited for that.”

Harris emphasized that she chose Georgetown for more than its excellent track team.

“I chose Georgetown because it has a good balance between academics and athletics,” Harris said.

“It has a great track team, but it also has a strong nursing program and med school.”

Harris encourages other Garfield athletes to seek out colleges with a similar kind of balance.

“Look at all the aspects of the school: not just the athletic program, not even the amount of money they’re offering,” Harris said.

“Look at the school as a whole, and what you’ll take out of the school in the four years you’re there.”

Saturday, January 19 Chief Sealth High School 5:30 PM

Upcoming:

Eastside Catholic

Friday, January 25 Garfield High School 6:30 PM

Mens Basketball (11-4) Garfield 85 Chief Sealth 55

Saturday, January 19 Chief Sealth High School 7:00 PM

Upcoming:

Eastside Catholic

Friday, January 25 Garfield High School 8:00 PM

Swim and Dive (2-3) Garfield 66 Roosevelt 120

Friday, January 18 Evans Pool 4:00 PM

Upcoming:

Bainbridge

Friday, January 25 Bainbridge Island Aquatic Center 8:00 PM

Gymnastics Upcoming:

Garfield vs.

Roosevelt, Ingraham, Franklin Friday, January 25 Roosevelt High School 7:00 PM

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17

SPORTS MATH TEAM HAS THE ARITHME-TRICKS

Math Team prepares for their ultimate competition.

By Camryn Soo he GHS Math Team prepares as the clock ticks down to their biggest competition of the year: the annual American Mathematics Competition. Also referred to as the AMC, team members will participate individually in a 75 minute examination in early february. The test will be proctored by their advisor conveniently after school at Garfield.

“I hope a lot of people take it because it’s a really great opportunity,” said Michael Duan, President of the Math Team. “This year we are trying to get as many people in the club to go to the AIME.” The American Invitational Mathematics Exam is a three hour test that team members can qualify for if their AMC test scores are high enough. Depending on their grade, members can either sign up for the AMC 10 for 10th graders and younger, or the AMC 12 for 11th and 12th graders.

“It’s a great way for people to be more interested in math, particu-

T

larly olympiad math,” Vice President Zhemin Shao said. “It’s not really covered in the school curriculum.

It’s more discrete math… things like number theory.”

Number theory is one of the four branches of math covered in olympiad mathematics, the others being algebra, geometry, and combinatorics. Number theory is also one of the harder branches to teach others.

“Geometry and algebra have practical applications.

[Number theory] is more

theoretical,” Duan said.

Earlier in the school year, the math team participated in the Math Is Cool competition in Eastern Washington which, unlike the AMC, was a team tournament. “I think we did really well. We got third in the highest division,” Duan said.

With their season’s new successes under their belt, the team continues to train for the AMC. At meetings, both team offi-

cers and members dedication can be seen through their presentations on the Olympiad branches of math.

Unfazed, they work together stepby-step through rigorous problems on the board. To get familiar with the types of questions, the team also goes over problems from former tests, even occasionally taking practice tests.

“This competition does have more than just knowing math. There are some tricks in doing math,” Duan said.

To fully prepare for the AMC as it looms nearer, the team added more meetings on top of their normal Friday lunch ones in room 234. Now the team meets after school Wednesdays and during advisory Thursdays.

The math team’s hard work is preparing them well for their most important competition of the season.

TAPPING INTO WRESTLING

Meet the monsters on the mats.

By Tsion Belgu For the past couple of years, the Garfield wrestling team has been showing incredible progress and great strength. This year, the team is bigger and stronger than ever.

Junior Xavier Weaver is entering his second year of wrestling at Garfield.

“This season has been going pretty good, I’ve been winning more matches, and we have more people from last year,” Weaver said.

Princess Asencio is a sophomore and, as a first-year wrestler, she is already pushing herself to be the best.

“We run the mile at every practice, and everytime I run it I try to run faster, then we usually roll down the mats and do our warm-ups together, and start to also do break-down drills,” Asencio said.

With new people joining every year, the team has to get to know each other quickly so that they are able to learn and grow.

“It’s been really good, there are a lot of people who are new to the team as well, so getting to know the team and being able to learn from our weakness,” said Asencio.

When it comes to sports at Gar-

18

field, the wrestling team has historically received less recognition than flashier winter sports. Nevertheless, they put in as much work as other sports do, whether if it’s waking up early in the morning to practice, or coming home late from their meets.

“Our meets last about from 5:009:00 or 10:00, and so it makes it hard to do homework on Thursdays, because we have a meet every Thursday. So during advisory periods I usually do my homework, and on the bus on our way to matches,” said Weaver.

Balancing school while playing a sport is especially difficult for firstyear wrestlers.

“I’m still trying to figure [it] out. I get up around 5:00 in the morning if I didn’t finish it the night before,” said Asencio.

In wrestling, participation is a big factor for the team.

“We have two matches, everytime we go to a match, each person has to participate or we [have to] forfeit,” said Asencio.

Wrestling is one of the few coed sports at the high school level, a group that is rounded out by cross

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country and track and field. With many more boys represented in the sport than girls, a special bond is formed between the female athletes.

“There’s only four girls on the wrestling team and we try to help each other,” Asencio said. “Like if one of us needs to work on something, we’ll take our time to try to make each other better, because we’re such a small team of girls, so we try to be more understanding.”

The team has had a challenging schedule so far this season, with a much awaited match up with Franklin always looming at the end.

“Chief Sealth and Rainier Beach were the most competitive,” Weaver said. “There are 4 teams and Franklin always comes with us, and so Franklin wrestles one of the teams while we wrestle the other team, and then we switch, but we don’t wrestle Franklin until the end of the year.”

Overall the wrestling team has had a great season and are working harder than ever. As they continue this season, as Bulldogs we should go out and support them!

PHOTO BY BEN MEFFORD

SPORTS THE CLOSURE

A look across the street.

By Téa Fortune hortly before the New Year, the Medgar Evers Pool closed down for renovation. According to the Seattle Gov website, Medgar Evers deck will receive a completely new finish, new drains, and the pool bulkhead will be refurbished.

Seattle Gov also mentioned that Medgar Evers is a part of the city wide pools project where seven pools will be closed one at a time to get remodeled. This project has been in the works since October 2018, with Queen Anne pool being the first to close. Queen Anne is expected to reopen sometime this February.

With this closure, the Garfield swim team’s practice location switched to Rainier Beach pool. Armin Magness, a senior at Garfield says this change has been challenging for both him and his team.

“I live in the north side and going down to rainier beach and coming back is a hassle. It’s also after school now so it cuts into my homework time,” Magness said.

S

“A lot of members swim on club teams so there’s not that many people coming to practice anymore since their swim club also practices in the afternoon. We also don’t have as much practice time so it really cuts into the dynamic of the team. We get one less day of practice and about 45 minutes less per practice day.” Some members on the swim team are apart of a swim club called SMAC, a swim club that practices at locations from

Mercer Island to West Seattle.

“Since I’m a part of SMAC It’s really hard for me to skip club practices so I have to start skipping a lot of Garfield practices,” said Remy Freeman, a junior who has been a part of the swim team at Garfield for three years. “Practice being at Rainier Beach makes it hard for people who aren’t as invested in the swim team to go to practice and so in that way the team has kind of

ART BY ARIEL COOK

lost an aspect of teammates and it makes it hard for us, but we are doing our best.”

Medgar Evers usually closes towards the end of the swim team’s season every year at the end of February for maintenance that lasts a couple of weeks. This closure is aimed at making much more significant changes.

Garfield also has a semester-long swim class that will now be participating in weight training instead.

Paul Spang, the swimming teacher this year, teaches the class first and second period.

“We are very fortunate to work with a partnership with Seattle Parks and Recreation because they provided Garfield the pool for years because it benefits the beginner swimmers, teaches kids safely [in the water] since our state is such a water state, and for kids to improve their health” Paul Spang said. “We really do love and miss the pool and are really grateful for it and I can’t wait to go back and see what’s changed.”

MESS GUESS

9th Grade: Lidiya Kiflom

10th Grade: Charles Justice

Return of the King

(6-4)

(4-6)

(5-5)

(5-5)

(4-6)

NFL Pro Bowl: AFC vs.

NFC

NFC

AFC

NFC

NFC

AFC

NCAA Mens Basketball: Kansas vs. Kentucky

Kansas

Kentucky

Kansas

Kentucky

Kentucky

English FA Cup: Arsenal vs. Manchester United

Manchester U

Arsenal

NBA: Golden State Warriors vs. Boston Celtics

Warriors

Celtics

Warriors

Celtics

Warriors

HS Womens Basketball: Garfield vs. Eastside Catholic

Garfield

Garfield

Garfield

Garfield

Garfield

WEEK 3

11th Grade: 12th Grade: Amahrie Ashley Audrey Ostenson

Staff: Ms. Marshall

Manchester U Manchester U Manchester U

After a brief themed issue hiatus, Mess Guess is back with a vengence. The freshmen were able to keep their strong start going, a wave Lidiya Kiflom hopes to keep riding. Meanwhile the juniors and seniors are neck and neck with Amarhie Ashley and Audrey Ostenson hoping to get their classes above .500. The sophomores slipped into a tie for last place after Mr. King’s heroic performance for the staff last month. Charles Justice and Ms. Marshall battle to leave the other behind.

The Garfield Messenger 01/25/2019 garfieldmessenger.com

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T

e h Backpage with Jaya, Delphi, and Ariel

It’s cuffing season, Bulldogs! With Valentines Day around the corner, we ‘ve created some cards that will help you shoot your shot with that special someone. Remember to be loud, be proud, and get tested regularly.