Spring 2020 Issue 2

SF State’s student-run publication since 1927

Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020

Market car ban changes local commutes

Since the implementation of the private car ban on Market Street from 10th Street to Steuart Street in the Embarcadero, many residents changed their commutes. While the morning rush on Market Street in San Francisco can have hundreds of thousands of pedestrians, cars and MUNI transit, later at night the streets are bare, January 29, 2020. (Photo by shaylyn martos/Golden Gate Xpress)

CAMPUS

Lost master keys left residents at risk

BY SIOBHAN EAGEN STAFF REPORTER SF State residential halls, University Park North and South and apartments on central campus were compromised for over 30 days after a set of “unmarked master keys” to the residences had been reported lost. Students, employees, staff and faculty who live in university housing were impacted. The incident is expected to cost at least a million dollars in materials, labor, and safety measures according to Director of Residential Life, David Rourke.

According to an email sent by Rourke on Dec. 18, 2019, a “university

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vendor” reported the keys missing to campus Facilities the previous night.

“My understanding was, is [it was] a pest control vendor,” Rourke said.

“They were doing their work and then somehow misplaced the keys, reported that to the university and that started the whole process.”

Residents of Mary Ward, Mary Park Halls, Towers Jr. Suites must vacate their housing during winter break. Residents in the student apartments may stay if they choose. Rourke said they had originally underestimated how many students remained in housing during winter break. They discovered during the process, Rourke said, that the number was three-fold what they

estimated. He said around 20-25% of students stayed in housing.

This means some students may have lived a month with compromised locks in an area frequented by robberies and break-ins. There have been at least 10 residential burglaries reported on UPD’s crime log since August of 2019.

Students do pay for renters insurance through student housing fees. They are covered by Markel American Insurance Company’s GradGuard policy which protects up to $100,000 in theft or damage of personal property.

Rourke’s initial email to residents listed three immediate actions taken by the university including: 24-hour security service with a security offi-

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cer available at affected buildings, increased patrols by UPD and new keys and locks were issued for every building – a process which Rourke wrote could take two to three weeks.

Leon Jensen and ChunChen Lai are both SF State Seniors studying international relations and live in housing impacted by the lock changes. Jensen said he did not feel safe knowing that the master keys were lost.

Lai agreed it did not feel safe, but said he took precautions to protect his valuable belongings.

“If they have [the master keys], I mean they can go in, but it’s like, I’ve got nothing important to store except from [my] CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

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TUESDAY, FEB. 4, 2020 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Bomb threat remains unsolved

BY JACQUELYN MORENO STAFF REPORTER

On Thursday, Dec. 19 during the final week of the Fall 2019 semester, the university activated a campus closure, informing all students and faculty to stay off the main campus. The University Police Department’s online crime log would later list that a, “ false bomb threat reported to police” had occurred at 12:35 p.m.

Just after 2 p.m., UPD began sending out calls, texts and emails disclosing that they had received an unconfirmed bomb threat for “a few buildings” on campus.

“University Police is working with SFPD to investigate the matter,” UPD said in the email. “No one will be permitted to remain on campus.”

At 3:04 p.m. UPD confirmed evacuations from Humanities, Library, Thornton Hall, Burk Hall, Business, HSS, Centennial Village, Fine Arts, SHC, Hensill Hall, Creative Arts, Science, Student Union, Ethics Studies

and Psychology, and Gym buildings.

The final update from UPD was an email sent at 6:26 p.m. saying that the campus would reopen on Friday morning for regular operations.

“Law enforcement has concluded their search of the impacted campus buildings and the investigation determined that there was no threat to public safety,” UPD said.

Professor Lourdes Cardenas was in the Humanities building during this time and preparing to meet her class for final presentations.

“Sometimes we are kind of skeptical of these alarms,” Cardenas said. “We knew there was a bomb threat but no one was in panic.”

The case was suspended on Dec. 20, according to UPD Deputy Chief Wailun Shiu. Shiu declined to comment on why the case was suspended.

Maria Calderon was finishing the last few questions on her Special Education 630 exam in the library moments before other students started receiving the call from campus.

Calderon had to close her laptop

and leave campus once the emergency alarms went off. She immediately emailed her professor from her friend’s dorm to figure out what to do about her remaining final.

“I just asked her, ‘ I was in the library on campus doing the final is there anyway I can get an extension?,” Calderon said.

Calderon was given the opportunity to finish her final online later that night once she got off work.

Students on campus were alarmed by the emergency response and evacuated. Finals that were not yet taken were postponed until further notice.

A student wanted to keep his identity confidential when commenting about his experience with the bomb threat on campus during his final. The student was taking a math course and walking towards Thornton Hall when the alarm went off. As he waited with other students outside of the building he eventually had to evacuate with no completion of his final exam.

“I spent my vacation studying cause you forget things. You want to prepare

not be known or not seen in the act and as such, those crimes are harder to apprehend someone for,” said Robert Quimbo, the dispatch and records supervisor for UPD. Per usual, the most common type of crime was property crime, with approximately 60% of all cases being thefts or burglaries. The primary difference between theft and burglary is that burglary entails entering a structure (such as a home or car) with the intent of stealing whereas theft occurs in public areas.

Lot 25 contained half of all vehicle burglaries, making it the most common place for crime on campus last semester, followed by the Mashouf Wellness Center.

In general, crime rates went up from the previous spring semester, according to spring semester crime

stats provided by Quimbo. Thefts almost doubled, while vehicle break-ins nearly tripled.

Violent crime is generally not common at SF State, but a few notable incidents shook the campus last semester, including two bomb threatsone that led to UPD evacuating the library, the other led to an evacuation of the entire campus.

The crime data within the graphs below has been grouped into larger categories to improve clarity. For the complete figures, head to goldengatexpress.org

for new classes and a new semester,” the source said.

This has caused an extra workload and suspense for students who have not received a final postponed date resulting in an undetermined final grade.

Jared Sena had gotten the alerts on his phone leaving the Creative Arts building right after his BECA production and knew this was a serious matter.

“I just remember getting all these text messages and calls saying ‘bomb threat’ as soon as I was leaving the school,” Sena said. “One of my friends was happy it happened because he didn’t have to go through a final as bad as that sounds.”

The office of Beth Helwig, the vice president for student affairs and enrollment management, did not reply to a request for comment.

Fall campus crimes recap BYJUAN CARLOS LARA CITY EDITOR Since 2020 began, the University Police Department has received 33 crime reports, an average of approximately one per day. Before we begin reporting the scores of crimes that will occur this semester, we’d like to take a look back at all the crimes that occurred on campus last semester.

In total, the Fall 2019 semester contained 137 reports. Of those cases, only 19 led to arrests. Four cases were deemed unfounded and another four ended with alternatives to arrest, such as a referral to the university.

The remaining 80% of cases remain unsolved.

“Many of these crimes are typically ‘cold crimes’ meaning they are reported after the fact where a suspect may

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“The most common

type of crime was property crime, with approximately 60% of all cases being thefts or burglaries.”

Graphic by Juan Carlo Lara / Golden Gate Xpress

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GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG | TUESDAY, FEB. 4, 2020

12,000 locks changed in residental housing

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 passport, but I already locked [it] somewhere safe.”

They both felt that the university took sufficient measures to protect students.

“I see a lot of them [private security] before the lock changes,” Lai said.

Studio Art Major and Junior William Hunter is also a resident of an impacted building. He said he felt safe and that his experience was mostly an inconvenience.

“It was annoying. Tedious,” Hunter said.“I’m not familiar with what circumstances required such a change [in locks], but I had to make an extra stop before I was able to go home. I had just flown in, which means I had to lug around bags that were incredibly heavy for even longer than I thought I would need to.”

Jensen had a similar experience when he returned home from Denmark, he said.

Residents, residential staff and faculty were not the only people impacted though. Several campus departments were involved in the efforts including UPD, facilities, housing administration and budget and finance.

Rourke said “We [residential] submitted $12,000 worth of overtime,” Rourke said.

A full aggregated total cost is still being determined by the University.

“But I think I heard at one point our security measures cost at least a half a million dollars. So that in and of itself brought us up to that point. I’m sure all of the materials and then the labor to cut about 12,000 keys probably took

us the rest of the way.”

Students were able to pick up their new keys by Jan. 25, though it took a few more days to finish replacing all of the locks.

SF State Residences experienced a smaller master key loss in 2013, which Xpress reported on, and Rourke confirmed.

“Yeah, there was [a lock change in] 2013 because I was around when that happened to be honest with you,” he said. “That was a partial though it didn’t affect our entire housing operation. The access level was limited, but we were also concerned about that and did the same thing [security and lock changes.]”

Rourke was unable to comment on the key keeping practices or policies of the Facilities department.

Interim Facilities Director, Thomas (Tom) Hill, declined to comment and referred Xpress to SF State Public Affairs.

When residential life utilizes a master key they have a different process, Rourke said.

“To the extent of a policy, again, keys are under the purview of facilities. So I couldn’t respond,” Rourke said. “I know that in residential life, whenever we need broad access, like a master key, we don’t give to an individual. We put that in a sequence lock, with an access key … So we always know who has it and then if it doesn’t return, we can follow up with whoever’s key code is on there. But in terms of university vendors, that’s probably going to be a question for facilities.”

Illustrated by Siobhán Eagen / Golden Gate Xpress

SF State Public Affairs Communications Specialist Kent Bravo, did not have enough information to comment.

Other faculty members in the Public Affairs office could not be reached by time of publication.

UPD could not be reached by the time of publication.

Students begin resettling themselves after studying abroad

BY DOMENIC STRAZZABOSCO STAFF REPORTER After spending the final few months of the decade exploring different corners of the world, SF State students who studied abroad for the fall semester of 2019 have returned and began adjusting to their old norms.

From Denmark to New Zealand, to Ghana and Hong Kong, SF State sends roughly 200 students a semester to a diverse range of countries around the globe. During the Fall 2019 semester students ventured to 49 cities, totaling 21 countries across five continents New time zones, operating in countries that may not frequently use English, and food perhaps not even found anywhere in the United States, going abroad forces one to willingly give up what they are comfortable with to immerse themselves in the new environments.

Though those going abroad are braced to experience some degree of culture shock when arriving at their new homes, the Office of International Programs is careful to warn them

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of reverse culture shock when landing back in the states.

The melting pot of San Francisco and how different and distinct cultures can co-inhabit the city is what Kathryn Souza, who spent the 2018-2019 academic year in Kyoto, Japan, emphasized she missed about the city. Other significant differences she noticed: cheaper housing and a secure feeling of safety in Japan, and the visible and seemingly increasing homeless population of San Francisco.

The very visible levels of racial and gender diversity are partly what make San Francisco stand out against many other major cities around the globe.

This coupled with the political energy in the city and around campus, sets SF State students up with a college experience unlike many of their other international classmates.

“The political atmosphere we have here, we’re all very charged up,” said Ashley Crump, who just finished a semester in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

She noticed some actions that are ei-

ther widely discouraged or accepted in San Francisco were not regarded to the same degree by her classmates abroad.

One instance she recalled that upset her was seeing a student wearing blackface on campus.

“I thought tolerance for them meant something different than how we see it.

For them tolerance means we’re dealing with them being here, and for us it is acceptance. It’s a little misconstrued.”

“What students don’t realize about living in another country for that long a period is that you evolve, you change, you start adapting to your new way of life and that becomes your new norm,” said Dr. Janelle Waldrep, a study abroad coordinator in the Office of International Programs. She noted hearing many students say leaving one’s home away from home is the hardest part of their experience abroad.

“When you have slow changes like that you don’t always see them in yourself, so when you’re back suddenly they become very obvious. When you come home it’s a surprise, because it’s home,

it should be exactly the same.”

Waldrep encourages students to study internationally, naming her time abroad as one of the highlights of her undergraduate.

“It’s not going to be the same as when you are a tourist or when you’re there for a short period of time, you are not going to get that same sense of what it means to be someone living in that country. I think it’s something our students really appreciate,” Waldrep said.

Looking forward, the Office of International Programs is looking to continue expanding options for students, with new programs being available in St. Petersburg, Russia as well as in the U.A.E. and Colombia.

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TUESDAY, FEB. 4, 2020 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Market Car Ban changes local commutes

BY SHAYLYN MARTOS STAFF REPORTER

In an attempt to make one of San Francisco’s busiest streets more accessible for pedestrians, cyclists and public transit users, the city banned private cars from driving on Market Street as of January 29, 2020. Market is one of the busiest stretches in the city, according to data compiled by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. Five hundred thousand people walk the street daily, as well as 650 bicyclists and up to 400 private cars.

This car ban applies to all private drivers, including ride-share companies like Uber and Lyft, and an infraction could mean a $238 ticket and a point against your driver’s license.

While the long-term effects of the car ban are yet to be seen, for those who drive, ride or walk often on Market Street there are already some changes.

In San Francisco, as of January 29, 2020, all private cars are banned from Market Street from South Van Ness Avenue to Steuart Street in the Embarcadero. This city enforces this ban in order to make one of SF’s busiest stretches safer for pedestrians, cyclists and public transit users. (Photo by shaylyn martos/Golden Gate Xpress) Iryna Bilohorka, International Relations Student “I don’t really commute in a sense, because I don’t usually use public transportation since I live on Market. So everything is pretty accessible. I would say like I walk more than I use public transportation. I guess there is maybe a bit less traffic but like we still have lots of transportation so, it makes a difference, but it’s not such a significant difference.

Charlie Osbourne, Coder “I live in the Mission. And it’s like a 20 minute bike ride. And it’s a lot of fun and also, you know, sustainable, no carbon way of commuting. Market’s kind of the hub of the city and no one wants this to be like Chicago or New York where you just wall to wall cars. Less congestion, which would be nice for my commute. ”

Chris McDermott, Garbage Man “It’s nice. They’re not in my way. I just hope that they control the pedestrians now. Hopefully the pedestrians continue to use the crosswalks and the bicyclists and everybody else use the bicycle lanes. Hopefully they don’t think it’s just a free for all.”

Earl Lang, SF MUNI Operator “I just started, this is my eighth or ninth month. I noticed a difference.

You know, uh, it’s easy to get up and down here. Before I had to fight with all these cars cutting you off, doing everything they want to do. But I like it, I hope it stays like this. I don’t drive to San Francisco, you know, in my own car. So I don’t know how that would affect drivers. But as a bus driver, this is perfect.”

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Nancy Hilton, Public Transit User “Does it affect the Lyft drivers? When I see accidents happen, that’s usually who it is. It’s somebody who’s new to the taxi service and they get nervous. Understandably, San Francisco’s a big town, but they’re usually the ones who aren’t the most savvy to pedestrians because there’s a lot of a lot of people who come to San Francisco to appreciate the more aesthetic side and they might not follow the traffic signals all that well. So you have to be wary. You have to watch the people who might wander in front of you.”

The push for a car-free Market Street is driven by the city’s Vision Zero goal, which aims to eliminate traffic fatalities. Each year 30 people lose their lives and over 500 are injured while traveling on city streets, according to Vision Zero’s Action Strategy.

Within the next year the SFMTA is planning more changes to Market Street, including closing the stretch from any motor vehicles but MUNI buses and trolleys. Utilizing quick-build projects, which are low-cost solutions that include new signage and painting roads, the city hopes to continue making SF’s most busy streets safer for all.

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GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG | TUESDAY, FEB. 4, 2020

Bay Area Painters Battle through art

BY JEREMY JULIAN STAFF REPORTER Music flowed through the dimly lit Great Northern Club in the Mission on Wednesday night as a large crowd watched 12 artists paint pieces within 20 minutes at Art Battle San Francisco.

This battle consisted of two rounds with six contestants each, with two finalists from each round moving on to the finals. Tracy Piper, the featured painter for the event, won some of these competitions before, including internationally. Each artist had their own distinct method and style of painting.

“We’ve never really had a theme so we just let the artists do what they want,” said Keri Kekkonen, an SF State alum who runs the San Francisco battle. Kekkonen and her partner Ellis Briery took over the battle in 2019.

Abstract design, portraits and elements of nature and fantasy were all on display for the crowd to see. The show did not have a theme, which gave more creative freedom to the artists and made for a more interesting event.

The winner of each 20-minute round was voted for by the crowd. The voting took place via text message and the top two from each round found themselves in the four-person finale.

The announcer introduced each competitor one-by-one as they walked out, a similar entrance style to a boxing match or UFC fight. All of the artists painted in the middle of the floor on a raised platform while spectators walked around the circle during bout to get a look at what each artist was working on.

“See what you like, that’s what art is,” said Aaron Louyeh, a frequent spectator of these art battles.

Artist Tracy Piper began the early stages of painting her portrait on Jan. 29, 2020. (Photo by Jeremy Julian / Golden Gate Xpress).

The crowd was struck with intrigue and tension as each artist tried to create the best possible painting in a short time window. The margin for error was quite small and the artists seemed to make little to no mistakes after they got started on the paintings.

Most of the artists were experienced in this event; it was not their first time competing.

The competition had a sport-like feel; many spectators who stayed involved and excited about the art. There were also some individuals who were clear crowd favorites among their rounds.

One of the more popular artists was Tyler Williams, a resident of Oakland who drew a painting of the late Kobe and Gianna Bryant. Tyler said he was a part of four Art Battles in the city so he had some experience with the time constraints and setting.

Some upcoming art battles take place in cities such as Oakland, Barcelona and Toronto according to https://artbattle.com/tag/san-francisco/.

Finished Portrait of Kobe and Gianna Bryant by Tyler Williams. (Photo by Jeremy Julian / Golden Gate Xpress)

Grammys inspire youth to genderbend

BY SMIT PAREKH STAFF REPORTER

Illustration of Lil Nas X ( Smith Parkeh and Siobhan Eagen / Golden Gate Xpress)

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After observing celebrities at this year’s award season with the popular trend of clothing choices moving beyond the categorization of gender and size, it’s time for the 92nd Academy Awards’ red-carpet to roll out for bolder fashion choices on Sunday, Feb. 9.

Serving as an appetizer for the Oscars, the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Jan. 26th gave a platform for celebrities such as Billy Porter, Lizzo, Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X to embrace their form of self-expression on the red carpet by breaking the norms of clothing choices.

The clothing choices that celebrities would make for their red-carpet looks, will have a ripple effect on the people who idolize them. SF State students, especially the ones who are experimental with fashion, have accepted the trend to express their gender identity through their clothing.

“I grew up getting confidence from bold fashion choices by Lady Gaga and Madonna from the red-carpet.

Now there’s Billy Porter and other celebrities like him, who plays a role model for the upcoming generation,” said Ashesh Arora, a Fashion Merchandising major at SF State.

At the Grammy’s Billy Porter wore a dazzling jumpsuit, dripping in sil-

ver fringes surrounding his matching remote-controlled hat, which made him star in numerous memes on social media, attracting appreciation. “Old Town Road”, rapper and singer, Lil Nas X, appeared in all fuchsia leather look, with western inspired hat and boots.

“People like Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X, the young people, the people of our generation, they are the ones we look up to,” said David Doucette, who studies at SF State as a Political Science major.

Lizzo, appeared at the Grammys in a white slit dress hugging her body while Billie Eilish, 18, the youngest to win four major music awards later that night, appeared in an oversized sparkling Gucci ensemble, covering her body and face with a mask and sunglasses. “Bad Guy” singer, Eilish, continues to choose oversized clothing style to avoid other people from exerting an opinion on her body.

“I have seen girls wear baggy clothes, like Billie Eilish. On our campus women tend to be more experimental than men in terms of fashion,” said Francis Pizzaro, a Visual Communications and Design major at SF State. Pizzaro adds that fashion is being inspired by LGBTQ+ icons and celebrities who

have larger LGBTQ+ audiences.

Many students, regardless of their area of study and interests, are denying the role of gender in their clothing. They claim that clothing choices should not relate with gender but only to one’s personal choice.

“I used to wear princess dresses when I was a kid, not because I wanted to be different or anything, but because I thought they looked cool on me,” said Doucette. “But I dress more masculine now, because I have different interests than I did as a kid. It’s my choice and it’s not anyone else’s.”

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TUESDAY, FEB. 4, 2020 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

GOLDEN The Women’s Building walks GATE away from conservative rally XPRESS EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Karamel Nunez-Martinez knunezmartinez@mail.sfsu. edu

PRINT MANAGING EDITOR Andrew R. Leal aleal@mail.sfsu.edu

ONLINE MANAGING EDITOR Alondra Gallardo agallardo2@mail.sfsu.edu

ART DIRECTORS Briana Battle bbattle@mail.sfsu.edu Alexis Joseph ajoseph3@mail.sfsu.edu

CITY NEWS EDITOR Catherine Stites cstites@mail.sfsu.edu

CAMPUS NEWS EDITOR Juan Carlos Lara jlara9@mail.sfsu.edu SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR Kameron Hall khall6@mail.sfsu.edu

SPORTS EDITOR Grady Duggan gduggan@mail.sfsu.edu

OPINION EDITOR Kerasa Tsokas ktsokas@mail.sfsu.edu ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Felicia Hyde fhyde@mail.sfsu.edu PHOTO EDITOR Shandana Qazi sqazi@mail.sfsu.edu

XPRESS ADVISERS PRINT ADVISER

Laura Moorhead lauralm@sfsu.edu

PHOTO ADVISER

Kim Komenich komenich@sfsu.edu

@ggxnews @ggxnews

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Scott Presler speaks to #WalkAway supporters in front of The Women’s Building on Feb. 1 (Photo by Andrew R. Leal/ Golden Gate Xpress)

BY ANDREW R. LEAL MANAGING EDITOR Organizers for the #WalkAway campaign, led by Brandon Straka, held a rally in front of The Women’s Building in the Mission on Feb. 1, to promote a pathway out of the Democrat Party for members of the LGTBQ+ community and other groups who traditionally vote blue.

The event was originally scheduled to be held inside The Women’s Building but a tweet posted by Straka three hours before start time, detailed that “The Women’s Building of SF has caved to extremist leftists who have labeled #WalkAway ‘anti-homeless community.’”

Straka shared a screenshot of an email #WalkAway had with Olivia Herrera, The Women’s Building Booking Director, which read that “we cannot execute the proposed contract…The disparagement of a group, in this case, the homeless population, would be against the terms of the proposed contract.”

Another email sent by Herrera on Jan. 17 stated that, “You are welcome to begin advertising, as there is no risk of losing the space unless you all cancel.”

Members of #WalkAway led by Scott Presler organized a clean up outside of SF town hall earlier Saturday morning.

At the event, Presler and cleaners were accused of being anti-homeless.

“Isn’t it a kinda of like a negative comment on how you feel about homeless people if you’re like ‘no they like living in trash, leave the trash all around them,’” said Straka, “I mean I think even homeless people enjoy living in a clean neighborhood.”

A panel of speakers that included Blaire White, Mike Harlow, Scott Presler and Straka were to speak at the #WalkAway rally but instead voiced their grievances with the Democrat Party on the sidewalk of 18th street outside the venue to a crowd of supporters and counter-protesters.

“I want everybody to hear me loud and clear,” Presler yelled. “I reject the Democrat Party!”

Presler stood microphone in hand to list out his criticisms which include an accusations the democrats have locked up Black men and given undocumented immigrants priority attention.

“Why do Democrats hate Blacks so much that Blacks come last?” asked Presler.

Presler and many supporters in the crowd expressed their intent to vote for President Donald Trump in the 2020 general election.

“This is like Stonewall for LGTB conservatives, we’re gonna fight back,” said Straka.

Proponents for #WalkAway were met with chants of opposition throughout the two hour long affair.

“Queers, straights, Blacks, whites all unite to fight the right!”

“Fascist fascist go away racist sexist anti-gay!”

“We stand together we say no, this racist shit has got to go!”

The mission for the #WalkAway rally was to sway large voting blocs from the Democrat Party and in Straka’s mind he succeeded a little bit at the event.

Transgender Youtuber Blaire White, who covers social and political topics on her channel, was present at the protest to meet up with fans and eventgoers. She along with the other mem-

bers of the panel were supposed to be speaking inside the venue.

“Unfortunately there’s no productive conversation happening here today,” said White. “There’s only two sides screaming at each other which is not what I do.”

White expressed the want for people to think for themselves and not because of their skin color, sexuality, or gender orientation. She believes that it is hard for people to stand up for what they believe in.

“I have fans who are scared,” said White, “People get intimidated and it’s just unfortunate.”

Karina Navarro, a fan of White, attended the event to hear the many perspectives on the panel. Navarro felt there were more people protesting that she originally thought.

“I’m in the LGBT community as well and I’m very against what they have done politically,” said Navarro.

She is leaning towards voting Trump in the 2020 election citing a lack of “good candidates.”

“Even though their venue shut everything down we still come to hear what they say and that’s more important than just sitting comfortably in a venue.”

Mixed crowd of proponents and counter-protestors gather to hear #WalkAway organizers speak on Feb. 1 (Photo by Andrew R. Leal/ Golden Gate Xpress)

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OPINION•7

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG | TUESDAY, FEB. 4, 2020

Australian fires linked to climate change

BY PAMELA ESTRADA STAFF REPORTER Across the ocean, a thick fog-like cloud of smoke has invaded the surrounding air space in Australia. Snowlike ash blankets everything in its path, much like we have seen here in California. While CA rests from the fire season, Australia continues to burn.

“One day we saw it was like red and orange in the sky and it’s initially really grey and cloudy, so you can’t see much of the view,” said Claire Sa, a resident in Sydney, Australia. “You can definitely really smell the fires, it just smells so bad. So, everyone has to have masks on to protect yourself.”

Since October, Australian skies have been marked by the same dark smoke that California knows too well. The world has been shocked by the damage to wildlife and the horror of its continuous rampage of destruction.

Though there is no fire currently raging in CA, SF State students are still at risk.

“It’s important to pay attention to any natural disaster, anywhere it is. You never know if it is gonna happen to you,” said Amanda Daulton, prospective transfer student touring SF State campus. “And even if it’s not happening to you it’s still happening on your planet.”

The fire has killed over 500 million animals and has caused over $1 billion in damages according to CREATE. Ecosystems are built by mother nature

to work a certain way and if tampered with, can cause an imbalance.

Each animal on this planet serves a purpose despite their size. If an animal’s environment no longer exists, the animal eventually dies off. When other animals depend on the deceased animal, they also die off resulting in multiple species’ extinction.

Recently, scientists identified the deaths of the common murre as part of the change in temperature of the ocean water. Fish that normally ate in cold water found themselves migrating in order to survive. The change of location of the fish left the common murre with nothing to feed on.

Though this type of extinction isn’t happening here in California, both locations share one commonality—hot climates.

Apart from the harsh environmental changes, fires have the ability to change the weather. The first step is smoke plume created by fire. At this first stage we can see something similar to the red and orange Sa mentions in her observation of the Australian sky during the bush fire.

The layers of the fire and the impact it has on the world is not understood in all its dimensions by each student on campus but if the conversation begins maybe we can all care enough to gain knowledge and maybe create some positive change.

Illustration by Siobhán Eagen / Golden Gate Xpress

“The way I grew up. It was really instilled in me that everything we do leaves a footprint on the earth,” said Annette Loynaz, a first year grad student.“And it doesn’t matter if something is happening in a different country or in our own it’s all that we are doing to contribute to the world.”

“And even if it’s not happening to you it’s still happening on your planet.” said

Amanda Daulton.

Asian communities under heavy criticism after coronavirus outbreak

BY CIERRA QUINTANA & WHITNEY PAPALII STAFF REPORTERS The first case of the flu-like virus was reported last year on Dec. 31. The Wuhan virus has since caused a global widespread panic. At a recent press conference, the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the Wuhan Virus, or mostly known as the “Coronavirus,” to be a public health emergency.

UCSF Nurse Mark Wolfskill expressed how he pushed through a 12 hour shift this past Saturday because of people’s phobia of the virus “A lot of people from the ages of 12-60 were getting flu shots. I must of did over 200 shots on Saturday,” said Wolfskill.

Recent studies have shown that the coronavirus was first seen in Wuhan, China from a delicacy of bat eating.

Since then more Asian communities are receiving racial slurs, and inappropriate comments.

Many tweets on Twitter have revealed xenophobic and racist beliefs towards Chinese people regarding the coronavirus outbreak. It’s shocking and disgusting just how many people think something so racist can be “just a joke.”

Twitter users even started a “#ChineseDon’tComeToJapan” and “#Yellowalert” trend—the whole epidemic is disgusting.

“No one knows what caused this [Coronavirus],” said Lena Zhang,

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Broadcast & Electronic Communication Arts professor at SF State. “So, we can not just directly link to certain nationalities and ethnic groups.”

Sadly, the racism that the Asian community is facing is nothing new. When the Ebola virus caught everyone’s attention in 2014, the African American community was under extreme criticism. Diseases are going to continue to spread and people are going to continue to get sick, that does not give anyone an excuse to start being racist.

Micheal Rubin who is a medical profession at Blue Shield Medical, posted on his personal account about the “rumors, and false information” about the coronavirus.

“The misinformation about the coronavirus is more deadly than the virus itself which in fact is deadly,” said Rubin. “The common flu has more of a fatality rate and has hundred thousands confirmed deaths.”

As the number of deaths increase and more cases regarding the Coronavirus are discovered around the world, I can’t help but think, is there an increase in racial prejudice and xenophobia that is connected to the virus? And if so, what is SF State doing on campus to maintain a safe zone for all students?

Frederick Smith, Assistant Vice President of the Equity & Community Inclusion Division at SF State, says he has not received any reports on campus but assures that any incident of that nature will not be tolerated.

“It’s unfortunate that that many people will resort to basic stereotypes that are only based on a feeling and not on any knowledge,” said Smith. “I’m hoping and thinking that our campus values and the ways in which people bring themselves on campus are above that.”

2/3/20 10:03 PM

8•SPORTS

TUESDAY, FEB. 4, 2020 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Chiefs win Super Bowl after 50 year dry spell

BY ALONSO FRIAS STAFF REPORTER Super Bowl LIV took place this past weekend in a highly anticipated match between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers.

The Chiefs lifted their first Lombardi trophy after 50 years by defeating the 49ers 31- 20.

The game saw both teams playing their best on both sides of the ball.

San Francisco’s defense managed to pick up two interceptions on Mahomes, while the Chiefs tallied two interceptions on Garoppolo as well.

The game went into halftime tied 1010, a score that did not represent the excitement and high energy played in the first half. The 3rd quarter was dominated by the 49ers as they headed into the 4th with a 10-point lead.

The downfall of the 49ers would be Garrapolo’s inability to make plays to put the Chiefs away, giving Mahomes 3 drives in the last 8 minutes of the game in which the Chiefs put up 21 unanswered points.

Andy Reid finally won his desired and much deserved Super Bowl Trophy that he has been chasing for many years, and he can thank Patrick Mahomes for helping him achieve that goal. Mahomes, at only 24 years old, won the SuperBowl MVP award, making him the first quarterback under 25 to win a ring and MVP. As Mahomes’ impressive resume continues to grow, he has proven his position as a franchise quarterback and leader for the Chiefs. We can expect to see more greatness from Mahomes as he continues to develop and will look to lead his team to another Super Bowl appearance next season.

As for the 49ers, after rebuilding for many years and finally reaching the Superbowl since 2013, what lies ahead? Was it Jimmy Garrapolo’s Fault? Was it Head Coach Kyle Shanahan’s Fault? It’s unsure how the team will react, but considering the current team they have, they reached a superbowl, they have a shot at making a run again. Although they

Karen Bueno Manny Ramirez embrace in a hug after the San Francisco 49rs score a touchdown in the second half of Super Bowl LIV at Underdogs Too in San Francisco Calif., on Sunday February 2, 2020. (Photo by Emily Curiel/ Golden Gate Xpress)

had the best defense in the league, their secondary, specifically Richard Sherman, was exposed greatly by the Kansas City Chiefs. If any defensive moves are made, we can predict a change in the secondary could happen this off-season. As for the rest of the team, there shouldn’t be any drastic changes to coaching staff or offensive players.

Perhaps the greatest change that could come forth for next season isn’t for the Chiefs or the 49ers, but for the Las Vegas Raiders. Tom Brady announced during the Super Bowl in the words “I’m not going anywhere”, that his future is up for grabs where the Raiders, rival of both Super Bowl teams, are one of the front runners for his services.

Hamilton Wong reacts to the Kansas City Chiefs winning Super Bowl LIV at Underdogs Too in San Francisco Calif., on Sunday February 2, 2020. (Photo by Emily Curiel/Golden Gate Xpress)

Giants hope to make big play in 2020

BY GRADY DUGGAN SPORTS EDITOR For the first time in over a decade, the San Francisco Giants will look a whole lot different.

Former manager Bruce Bochy will no longer be atop the dugout at Oracle Park.

Now Arizona Diamondback Madison Bumgarner will now longer be leading the Orange and Blacks pitching staff.

Both played interal parts in all three of the Giants World Championships last decade and both have been constant fixtures for the organization since at least 2007.

It is officially the Farhan Zaidi show.

Zaidi, who took over as President of Baseball Operations in November of 2018, has brought in his own guy, Gabe Kapler, to be the new manager of the Giants. It has been three seasons since San Francisco has made the postseason and the organization finally has their eye on

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the future; rightfully so.

With less than three weeks until Spring Training kicks off, it is time to start looking at the 2020 season and beyond. Unfortunately, following a lackluster 2019 campaign, the Giants front office has made very few moves that would excite the fanbase.

Zaidi has put fliers out on pitchers like Drew Smyly, Kevin Gausman and Jerry Belvins who all have seen little success in the big leagues and have even bounced back and forth from the minors in recent years. Expectations should be wary for those three players. Although these moves present a mundane vibe to the Giants off-season, Zaidi has brought back one fan favorite. Pablo Sandoval, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, is returning to San Francisco on a minor league deal. However, he is

likely to miss the first part of the season as he is still rehabbing from his injury.

While it can be hard to understand why a new front office would refrain from making transactions that could aid the Giants in being competitive next year, it is all due to the front offices realistic and futuristic approach.

They are well aware they don’t have the roster to make a playoff push next year, but they are also well aware that the prospects waiting in the wings have a chance to do something special.

The second overall pick of the 2018 MLB Draft, Joey Bart, appears to be the next replacement behind the dish for Buster Posey. Bart put up strong numbers in his first full professional season last year despite injuries, hitting .278 with 16 home runs. Next up is Heliot Ramos, the 19th overall pick in the

2017 draft out of Puerto Rico looks to be the next outfielder to roam centerfield at Oracle Park. Ramos put up impressive stats last season with a .290 batting average and 16 home runs, which is not the power you expect to see from your centerfielder.

Both of these players have the chance to make splash debuts at some point this season and the opportunity to ignite excitement around the fanbase that has been given little to cheer about this off-season.

Spring training begins on Feb. 22 and the regular season kicks off on March 26. Fans are hoping to watch a competitive team this season but the front office has made it clear that they prefer to have their eye on the future.

2/3/20 10:03 PM