February 2018 Prospective

Page 1

PROSPECTIVE 801 N. Reynolds Rd. Bryant, Ark. 72022

Bryant High School

Vol. 25, Issue 4

Feb. 9, 2018

RELATIONSHIPS transformed bywords As Valentines Day approaches, love is on our minds. Love stories can be found in abundance in literature, but it’s the ones that come from real life that are truly stunning. page 3

MAXTON PREUNINGER | STAFF WRITER

CALL FOR CHANGE Sexual harassment stories inspire survivors H

er fingers slowly tapped at the keyboard, searching for the words that would leave her vulnerable, yet empowered. She sat nervously, thinking of all the positive negative reactions, but sophomore Rachel Grantham felt she needed to normalize an issue that had been kept in the dark. She tapped share and swiped out of Instagram before she could see her post, a post that would leave her with comments shaming her for speaking out, but also a number of direct messages reaching out for help. Established in 2006, the #MeToo movement has been encouraging women to stand by each other and against abuse. The tag went viral in 2017, and social media lit up with posts from all over the world with women sharing their

experiences with sexual assault and abuse, breaking down stereotypes about assault and gender bias. A student who chose to remain anonymous views sexual harassment as a problem left untouched at school, and said that the #MeToo movement is pushing women to speak out about their own experiences. The source said that it took them seven years to tell someone about their own experiences with abuse. “For a long time, I just tried to pretend that it didn’t happen,” the student said. “I convinced myself that nothing happened, and that it was all in my head, because can you really trust the mind of an eight-year-old? Then I took some time and reflected, and it was a lot more serious than I could comprehend at the time.” The student does not believe

that those convicted of sexually harassing others deserve a second chance, saying they need to take responsibility for their actions. Because of their experiences, their confidence has been impacted, and they struggled with being afraid of men. “The decisions you make will impact your life, whether or not you realize it,” the student said. “In making the decision to hurt somebody else, I don’t think that’s worthy of being forgiven.” In college, Engineering teacher Joanna Ritchie was the only girl in her classes and had no name. She was referred to as “girl” by all of her classmates and professors, and was told by a civil engineer that they “didn’t take women in this field, so don’t even bother.” “In the beginning, it was ‘Oh, you got an A, because you’re a girl,’ not

because I stayed up until midnight for two weeks in a row studying for one test,” Ritchie said. “I wanted to do better and work harder, and I wanted to be acknowledged for the work I put in and not [my] gender.” Having an-all girls class this year, Ritchie hopes that more girls will stay in the upper-level Engineering courses, because each year the number of girls goes down. Ritchie has recently seen more girls on competition fields at robotics competitions than she’s ever seen before, and says it proves that girls are just as capable as the boys. “I just want to see everyone accept everybody for what they have to give,” Ritchie said. “It’s ridiculous to think that sex determines what you can and cannot do.” Before Grantham’s post on Instagram, she came across the #MeToo social media movement

around the beginning of 2017 and admired how women from all over the world were providing a platform for victims of sexual assault to come out about their experiences without being criticized. She hoped that coming out about her own experiences would encourage other victims to reach out for help and let them know that they are not alone. “A lot of people I had helped in the past were thinking about killing themselves, because they felt so alone,” Grantham said. “But once they found out that they weren’t alone, and that so many other people have experienced the same thing, they felt like maybe they could deal with it because they had someone to talk to.”

CATHERINE ANDERSON | STAFF WRITER

BLACK HISTORY MONTH

Claudette Colvin

Bessie Coleman

She would not be moved. Sitting tensely in her seat with her feet glued to the floor in front of her, she would not be moved. She was dark-skinned and was told to get up, but 15-year-old Claudette Colvin would not be moved. “I just couldn’t move,” Colvin said. “History had me glued to the seat.” March 2, 1955, Claudette Colvin made history. On the ride to her home in Montgomery, Alabama, Colvin was told to move to the back of the bus to make space for a white passenger, but she refused. Colvin decided she would walk off the bus. Instead, she was carried off by the authorities. Rosa Parks stood up to a white male bus driver nine months after Colvin.

INSIDE

News Special Coverage Arts & Entertainment Feature Opinion Photo Essay Sports

As an African-American woman, Bessie Coleman was never expected to accomplish what she did. From growing up in poverty and facing discrimination, she had to push her way through a world that put everything against her. At the age of 29, Coleman became the first AfricanAmerican female pilot. In September 1921, Coleman returned to the U.S. from France, and newspapers reported that she was “a full-fledged aviatrix, the first of her race.” April 30, 1926, Coleman died in a plane crash during a flight in a new aircraft. She is remembered for her contribution to female and Black Civil Rights.

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Bass Reeves

Born a slave in Crawford County, Arkansas, Bass Reeves gained his freedom and made his way up to become the first African-American U.S. Marshal. By those who knew him, he was said to possess “superhuman” strength. Over a 32-year career span, he became widely known for his amazing abilities. Throughout his career, he arrested 3,000 felons and killed 14 men. Although he was notorious in the conviction of criminals, he was untouched by a single bullet. Bass Reeves is such a legend that he has been immortalized as “The Lone Ranger.”

Standing in front of all of her classmates and peers, Anaya Peterson reads “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou while dancers perform a routine behind her at the Black History Program Jan. 24. “It was definitely historic,” Peterson said. “I never thought Bryant was going to do something like that while I was still here. I wasn’t nervous, I was just glad to teach my peers about about Black history.”

#TIMESUP MOVEMENT SPARKS CONTROVERSY

FREE YOGA CLASS REVIEW

ART CLASSES WORK ON DIVERSITY PROJECTS

WRESTLING TEAM PREPARES FOR THE SEASON

page 2

page 4

page 5

page 8


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.