Tatler Print Edition February 2024 by stmarystatler

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MEET THE STAFF

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EDITORIAL BOARD

WALLIS ROGIN CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

BRENNAN SELTZER CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

EMILY SMITH EXECUTIVE EDITOR OF ART

ELLA CURLIN STAFF EDITOR

KATE WOLFKILL STAFF EDITOR

ESHAAL HASSAN STAFF EDITOR

REPORTERS ANNA SMITH • AVERIE HOWELL • BIANCA DISHMON EVE PAI • KIM HUANG • LILY MIRZA MC HITT • MOLLY KIRSHBAUM • STELLA PITZER EMILY COLE • FARAH ARSHAD • LOUISE LAWHEAD ARTISTS/PHOTOGRAPHERS SARAH MOON • SJ • TRACY ZHANG LILLY COGGIN • MARY ELIZABETH AUTRY

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGERS ELLA TOWNSEND • BELLA CONNELL

P A G E 3 : When you’re taxed for having a period P A G E 4 : Reporting from Barbieland P A G E 5 : This is your reminder that Taylor Swift is not a god PAGE 6/7: The root of the problem PAGE 8/9: Walk with me PAGE 10/11: The end of affirmative action PAGE 12/13: Tennessee’s blocked drag ban brings theater communities closer PAGE 14/15: Our exclusive interview with new Memphis mayor Paul Young PAGE 16: Games WEBSITE

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MISSION STATEMENT Tatler is a student-run news publication dedicated to sharing school, local and national news with the St. Mary’s Upper School with integrity, honesty and accountability. We work to deliver unbiased and impartial information. For any questions related to our policies, please contact the email below. CONTACT US

Connect with our editors-in-chief, Wallis Rogin and Brennan Seltzer, and the Tatler advisor, Margaret Robertson, at wrogin@stmarysmemphis.net, bseltzer@stmarysmemphis.net and mrobertson@stmarysschool.org.

EDITORIAL

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WHEN YOU’RE TAXED FOR HAVING A PERIOD

ave you ever looked at your receipt after buying pads or tampons? We have and were no less than shocked. With further inspection, one number sticks out in particular: 9.75%. That is the combined state and local sales tax charged on period products in Memphis, Tenn. Tennessee is one of 21 U.S. states to still enforce a standard sales tax on menstrual products – including pads, tampons and menstrual cups – a practice sometimes called the tampon tax. These products are charged a 7% state tax plus a 2.75% local sales tax in Memphis because, according to the Tennessee government, they are non-essential, unlike food and fuel. Wrong. Tampons are essential. Pads are essential. Cups are essential. Period underwear is essential. Like food or fuel, menstrual products are necessary to go to work or school, to have good hygiene and to participate in the full range of human activities. If menstrual products serve a similar purpose to basic essentials, then they should be treated and taxed as such. To make matters worse, Tennessee has one of the highest sales taxes in the country, making it even more difficult for people who menstruate in Tennessee to afford necessities. The Tennessee state legislature has discussed this very topic many times but has taken no action. When the inclusion of period products in Tennessee’s annual tax-free weekend was proposed in 2020, Republican Sen. Joey Hensley of Hohenwald, Tenn. found fault with the plan, claiming that women would take advantage of this opportunity and buy in bulk. As a result of voices like his, the 2020 taxfree weekend, like all the others before

EDITORIAL BOARD it, excluded menstrual products from the tax exemption. But Tennessee state officials are still talking taxes. Another tax proposal went through the Tennessee legislature in 2023 about creating a 91-day tax

the Tennessee House of Representatives (which is 90% male) responded with a hard no. But steaks and potatoes? Those are served with a side of tax exemption. According to the Alliance for Period Supplies, one in three low-income

WALLIS ROGIN I EDITOR -IN-CHIEF At local drugstores like Walgreens, period products have a 9.75% sales tax also known at the tampon tax.

exemption on food and food ingredients. This bill passed through the Senate without much resistance. State officials, including Hensley, supported forgoing tax revenue for three months worth of taxes on food, which is great for many Tennesseeans, but outrageous when contrasted with the refusal of a mere three-day tax-free interval for period products. When it came to period products,

people in the U.S. have missed school or work due to insufficient funds for period products. In Tennessee, one in five women and girls aged 12 to 44 fall below the federal poverty line, creating significant period poverty throughout the state. Without access to adequate period products, people are forced to use unhygienic backups like rags, paper towels, toilet paper or cardboard,

which simply aren’t meant to serve that purpose. If they bleed through their clothes, they have to go home and miss school or work. Other victims of period poverty may use products longer than the recommended time, which increases the risk of infections like urinary tract infections, bacterial vaginosis and toxic shock syndrome. All of this is happening in Tennessee because officials want to keep profiting from tampons. (The tax on period products is 0.05% of their total revenue). But 24 states have been willing to forego this revenue, and they are doing just fine. Period products are taxed in Tennessee. It sucks. But we can do something about it. One option is to be deliberate when voting for elected officials and ensure that your candidate believe period products are essential and should not be taxed. If you want to take a more direct approach, try emailing your lawmakers and expressing your opinion. If you are looking to volunteer your time or money, there are plenty of non-profit organizations looking for help to work against the tampon tax. CVS is also attempting to fight the tampon tax by covering the tax in 12 states, including Tennessee, that still deem tampons as non-essential goods. We recommend buying period products from CVS instead of other drugstore chains. And if you are looking for a five-minute fix and a way to save thousands, the answer is simple: buy a menstrual cup from CVS. One can last up to ten years, which means zero exposure to tampon taxes and may save you up to $2,300 over the lifetime of the cup. It’s bloody well time that the tampon tax dies.

OPINION

PAGE 4 ceed and pursue all of our interests no matter the subject. We can be Lawyer Barbie, Doctor Barbie, President Barbie and Engineer Barbie. The environment created by an allgirls community is safe, empower ing and nurturing. Girls can come to school bare-faced, with no pressure to wear makeup or dress a certain way. No one is telling you that you cannot do something or win something simply because you are a woman, and you never have to wonder if you were discredited because of your gender.

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JUST LIKE BARBIE, WE ARE FREE OF SEXIST SOCIETAL EXPECTATIONS AS WE STEP FOOT ON CAMPUS.”

LILLY COGGIN I STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Eighth grader Luciana Szatkowski leads the Barbie parade for St. Mary’s annual Constitution Day chapel.

REPORTING FROM BARBIELAND

t the climax of Greta Gerwig’s recent film “Barbie,” the character Gloria delivers a striking monologue about the difficulties a modern woman has to endure to fit the expectations of a patriarchal society. “I’m just so tired of watching myself and every single other woman tie herself into knots so that people will like us,” she says. I understood what Gloria was ranting about. I’ve felt those feelings. But I’ve found a safe haven away from all of that. How? I attend an all-girls school. St. Mary’s is Barbieland, and we are

STELLA PITZER STAFF REPORTER

Barbies. In the film, Barbie lives in a female-empowering world called “Barbieland” until she journeys to the Real World, where she is exposed to the idea of patriarchy. It shocks Barbie that real women do not live in a female-centered world, but a world where women are frequently treated as subordinate. Barbie has a hard time grappling with the truth that in reality, women are not given

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the same treatment as men. I think that if Barbie could visit St. Mary’s, she’d feel right at home in our girl-centered environment. At SMS, women are put in positions of authority. We have a female head of the upper school, middle school and lower school. Our student leaders are girls. Girls are the strongest athletes and best math students, the award-winners that everyone looks up to. Here we are given the space to suc-

OUR STUDENT LEADERS ARE GIRLS. GIRLS ARE THE STRONGEST ATHLETES AND BEST MATH STUDENTS, THE AWARD-WINNERS THAT EVERYONE LOOKS UP TO.”

Just like Barbie, we are free of sexist societal expectations as we step foot on campus. But not all schools are like ours. According to the CDC, three in five teen girls in the U.S. struggle with poor mental health. Many girls experience feelings of prolonged sadness and hopelessness. St. Mary’s has the resources specifically to support girls through these issues, and an environment that limits some of the pressures that can produce these feelings. In fact, a study performed at Sogang University, Seoul suggests that an all-girls education is beneficial to our mental states and “has significant positive effects on mental health outcomes, especially for girls” Growing up in public school, I felt pressure from the adults around me at a very young age. At eight years old, there were dress codes in place that labeled my body as a distraction to boys, and I often saw boys’ sports taking priority over their female counterparts. As I got older, I felt like I had to always look presentable and even impressive because that was what was expected of me by what seemed like the whole world. Movies, magazines and social media all told me how to look and how to act, and none of it celebrated who I was. But I don’t feel that way here. And until the whole world becomes Barbieland, I will enjoy every last minute I get to spend at St. Mary’s.

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OPINION

THIS IS YOUR REMINDER THAT TAYLOR SWIFT IS NOT A GOD BIANCA DISHMON & ANNA SMITH STAFF REPORTERS

Taylor Swift, the most-streamed artist on Spotify and Time’s person of the Year for 2023, seems to hold the whole world in her hands.

he’s on billboards, every news channel and even Sunday Night Football. She’s on small children’s backpacks, pillows and credit card advertisements. Taylor Swift is everywhere. As she has nearly 300 million Instagram followers and was recently named Time’s Person of the Year for 2023, it is safe to say that Swift is one of the most famous celebrities of our generation and possibly of all time. But has her immense popularity created a monster? When 96 St. Mary’s students were polled about the media coverage of Swift, 52.6% said that it was excessive, with many citing invasions of privacy as the primary reason. Every move Swift makes is covered by the media, and while we are more than supportive of the promotion of Swift’s music and talent, the way her fame has molded her into an idol is less than

ideal. Swifties, the name given to her fanbase, latch on to her easter eggs and coded teasers. They religiously track her movements and posts to explore all of their hidden meanings. Despite managing a busy schedule, Swift has an amazing amount of interaction with her fans. However, at times, it seems as if the relationship becomes parasocial, meaning the relationship is often one-sided as the other person, in this instance the celebrity, is blissfully unaware. Because of this many Swifites could feel closer to Swift than they are. In August 2023, one Swiftie, a 43-yearold man Ashley Arbour, broke into Swift’s New York home claiming that it was because “She is truly the only one that understands [him].” Thankfully, Arbour was arrested by the NYPD and was charged with two counts of trespassing. Furthermore, in instances when Swift might be facing controversy for valid

SARAH MOON | STAFF ARTIST

reasons, her fans are quick to jump to her defense. For example, when Swift was revealed to have released carbon emissions nearly 2,000 times that of the global average, Swifties were rushed to defend her from those who were criticizing her large contribution to the world’s growing climate issue, claiming her emissions were so high because her selfless loan of her planes to her friends or her inability to fly on a commercial flight for safety reasons. But even if the claims about Swift lending out her plane are true, she is still responsible for the consequences of these emissions. Something many fans never admitted to seeing. Although it seems harmless, idolizing and forming parasocial relationships with celebrities is harmful to both the celebrity and the one idolizing. When we place celebrities on these pedestals,

we are unintentionally burdening them with unrealistic standards. These standards are rarely met by celebrities, and fans are often left with hopelessness caused by the misdeeds of their “gods.” We have seen this in our own Memphis community with Ja Morant. Morant is revered by the city because of the success he has brought to the Memphis Grizzlies. However, for Morant, the idolization began to waver following incidents involving a gun. Fans and critics alike have expressed their disappointment for Memphis’s star player, and his run-ins with the law have caused his reputation to be diminished. He is no longer considered the Grizzlies’ golden boy by many. If we didn’t hold Morant to this unattainable standard, the backlash he faced would not have been as negative nor would it have deeply disappointed as many people. Swift directly addresses how unrealistic standards from fans have negatively impacted her in the documentary “Miss Americana,” which documents Taylor’s career in the public eye. Yet, some fans persist with their unrealistic ideals. “[Musicians] are people who got into this line of work because we wanted people to like us, because we were intrinsically insecure because we liked the sound of people clapping because it made us forget how much we feel like we’re not good enough,” Swift said. “And I’ve been doing this for 15 years, and it’s just, I’m tired of it… It feels like it’s more than music now at this point… It just gets loud sometimes.” We must continue to remember that although they might appear like gods to some, celebrities are ultimately human and should be treated as such. Although Swift is fully aware of her position in the public eye, she still deserves the right to keep some parts of her life private, and fans need to learn how to respect this. There is no harm in expressing love and admiration for a celebrity, but fans must keep in mind that celebrities share many of the same emotions and feelings that we do and are not just objects intended to provide us with entertainment. If fans learn to respect celebrities’ boundaries, the relationship between celebrities and fans would change for the better.

FEATURES

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THE STIGMA unattractive bareness ROOT unhygenic beauty BODY HAIR OF dirty CHOICE THE feminine HAIR

NATURAL comfort standards authentic PROBLEM $ $ Stigma around body hair runs deep, but attitudes are shifting LOUISE LAWHEAD

enior Elizabeth MacQueen remembers the moment she realized was supposed to be shaving her legs already. “When I was 12, we would have camp dances every Saturday. I remember not thinking anything of [shaving],” she said. “But then suddenly as everyone was getting ready, I looked out on the porch and saw a few of the people in my cabin with buckets of water and shaving cream just shaving their legs.” MacQueen had never seen girls her age shaving before, so the idea was foreign, but the moment stuck with her. “Ever since then, my belief became… to seem prepared to just be a person, I need to shave because that’s what everyone else is doing,” she said. “It was very much a peer pressure kind of thing that got me to start shaving. Right after camp, we went to Target… we got a razor, we got shaving

STAFF REPORTER

cream, [and] that’s when it all began.” After that experience, MacQueen joined the 90% of women who regularly shave their legs, according to a survey conducted by Mintel, a marketing research company. Body hair has been grown, plucked, shaved, waxed, encouraged, emphasized, adored, reviled, criticized and coveted at different times and places throughout the history of the world, but our conflicting attitudes have their beginnings in the 20th century. In the West, as societal norms changed and women’s fashion became more revealing, body hair removal grew more popular. Razor companies like Gillette and later Schick, capitalized on these fashion changes with targeted marketing. Advertisements singled out women who did not shave, and depicted body hair as crude, embarrassing and masculine. For example, a 1946 shaving advertisement by the brand Silkymit called

SHICK

Shick’s 1943 adverstisement depicts how women can “attract the admiring eye” through shaving. This ad was part of to the long line of societal pressures to remain more attractive.

women’s body hair “unsightly” and “taboo.” Shick has been making ads like this for decades, like a Shick ad from 1960. By 1965, 98% of women and teen girls regularly shaved. Even throughout the 1970s feminist movement, the view of women’s body hair as unhygienic and embarrassing continued to be prevalent, and shaming in marketing did not waver, though ads became more subtle. Shari Ray, English department chair, recalls that when she was growing up in the 70s, shaving product companies pushed hairlessness as the heteronormative beauty ideal. “When I was growing up… it was, use this and… as a woman, you’ll be more attractive to a man,” [or] as a man, use this and you’ll be more attractive to a woman,” she said. Ray recalls that even in the midst of the feminist movement and the push for workplace equality, the double standards for body hair were still

FEATURES almost universally accepted. “[Shaving was] a rite of passage, it was what all the girls did,” she said. “It’s not that I never thought of it as a choice, I just never thought about it.” In the 80s, marketing from hair removal brands continued targeting body hair as a source of disgust, and in the 90s, celebrities popularized extreme removal techniques like bikini waxing, a method where body hair is covered in hot wax and then ripped off, pulling out the hair. The pressure to remove body haircontinues for women and girls today. Shaving companies still use marketing that targets young girls, though now they’ve moved to social media like TikTok and YouTube. For example, a Shick women’s razor ad currently running on TikTok implies that shaving is required for “self-maintenance,” reinforcing the idea that body hair is unhygienic, a tactic they’ve been using since the 1960s. On social media, freshly shaven and waxed legs appear constantly in posts from both influencers and average users. Like many other girls, MacQueen feels more put together after shaving, especially for formal events. “If I shave, then I feel prepared,” she said. “I feel like I’ve made myself the best version of myself.” MacQueen acknowledges that she feels her best when she is shaven because the idea of “being different” can attract negative attention for women, especially surrounding norms like shaving.

sion, our expectation of normal, then we notice it.” Of course, not everyone who chooses to shave does so as a result of societal pressure. As an observant Muslim, junior Yusra Siddiq chooses to keep her legs covered when she is out in public but makes the choice to shave anyway. “I shave because it makes me feel better,” she said. “I think it’s uncomfortable when body hair is on my legs, and I don’t like having it there, so I shave.” Body hair removal comes at a cost, though, both physical and financial. Without proper technique and products, women are at risk of razor burn, cuts and ingrown hairs. Body hair removal can also cost a significant amount of money — especially for women. Women’s hygiene products typically cost more than men’s, a phenomenon

It’s a phenomenon MacQueen has noticed.

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[WOMEN ARE] CALLED UNHYGIENIC IF WE DON’T SHAVE, AND YET YOU ARE MAKING US PAY MORE TO DO SO.” ELIZABETH MACQUEEN ST. MARY’S SENIOR

“[Women are] called unhygienic if we don’t shave, and yet you are making us pay more to do so,” she said. However, since the 21st century, the idea of body hair being taboo has decreased in specific ways. More attention has been brought to shaving and its social effects, allowing women to feel more comfortable if they choose not to shave. The popular women’s razor com-

PAGE 7 few years have prompted a perspective shift. “It’s just been in the last couple of years that I’ve noticed my students making this choice [not to shave],” she said. For sophomore Lucy Roberts, shaving isn’t a priority, and body hair doesn’t frequently cross her mind. “I don’t [shave] super often,” she said. “I don’t think about it when I’m in the shower or at a time when I could shave.” Roberts is not alone. Many celebrities such as model Emily Ratajkowski, actress Bella Thorne and musician Willow Smith have publicly shown off their natural body hair on social media and in magazines. Because their celebrity status gains more attention, their influence helps suggest that society is working towards accepting body hair on women.

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EVERYONE ASSUMES THAT WHEN YOU GET TO A CERTAIN AGE, YOU SHAVE, IN THE WAY THAT IF WE SAW SOMEONE, … AND SHE DIDN’T HAVE SHAVED LEGS, [IT] MIGHT CATCH YOUR EYE. ELIZABETH MACQUEEN ST. MARY’S SENIOR

“Everyone assumes that when you get to a certain age, you shave, in the way that if we saw someone, … and she didn’t have shaved legs, [it] might catch your eye,” she said. “When something doesn’t align with our vi-

YOUTUBE | BILLIE ADVERTISEMENT

This actress poses with underarm hair in a commercial for Billie, a razor company focused on creating body care products without the societal expectations or pressures.

called the “pink tax.” On average, women’s razor cartridges cost between 47% to 66% more than men’s, according to a study published in the International Journal of Women’s Dermatology. Women’s shaving cream costs nearly 10% more. According to a 2009 survey by the now-renamed American Laser Skincare, the average American woman spends approximately $10,000 on shaving in their lifetime, and $23,000 when waxing once or twice a month.

pany Billie runs ads that call out the fact that society pretends women’s body hair doesn’t exist and challenges the expectations of women to shave. In fact, the company made history by showing body hair in its ad campaigns. As pressure on women to shave decreases in ads, people may feel more comfortable making the decision not to shave and are less affected by the expectations of body hair removal. Although Ray has experienced pressure to shave her entire life, the past

MacQueen pictures a future where women feel confident to choose their own standards of self-maintenance whether or not that includes shaving. “I think people should be able to do what is going to make them feel the most comfortable,” she said. “If that means shav[ing], go for it, if that means not shaving at all, then sure! [As long as] that’s what’s going to make you feel like the best version of yourself.”

Ella Curlin contributed additional reporting to this story.

FEATURES

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WALK WITH ME World’s biggest activist comes to Memphis WALLIS ROGIN CO EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

LILLY COGGIN I STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Little Amal stands on the lawn of the Historic Clayborn Temple honoring the efforts of the sanitation workers during the strike. 55 years earlier, the sanitation workers’ strike began on the same lawn.

he met Pope Francis. She delivered letters to the European Parliament. She has been to 14 countries. She provides hope for millions of refgees all over the world. She is Amal, a 12-foot puppet depicting a 10-year-old Syrian refugee. On Oct. 4, Amal stopped in Memphis where she was greeted by an enthusiastic crowd downtown. The Little Amal Project began in 2021, the brainchild of producers David Lan and Tracey Seaward, who created the project to rewrite the narrative surounding child refugees and spread positive messages about the contributions immigrants make to communities. Child refugees’ voices and experiences are rarely discussed, but the

Little Amal Project tries to change that. Since the outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011, over 14 million refugees have been forced to flee from the region, and around 47% are 18 or younger. They are not alone. Millions of people in Ukraine, Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia, Ethiopia and Venezuela have been forced to flee as a result of ongoing conflicts or evironmental disasters. According to the UN Refugee Agency, 108 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced from their homes in 2022. Of those, 40% were children. These children have grown up in the midst of chaos and most have lost homes, family members and their chance at an education. In the story of Amal’s journey, her walk began as

she travelled across Europe to find her mother, separated from her by the chaos of the Syrian Civil War. But Amal has grown to become a representative of human rights throughout the world.

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THIS YEAR, AMAL SET OUT ON A JOURNEY ACROSS NORTH AMERICA TO HIGHLIGHT THE IMPACT THAT REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS HAVE HAD ON THE CONTINENT.”

This year, Amal set out on a journey across North America to highlight the impact that refugees and immigrants

have had on the continent. Over the course of three months, Amal will travel 6,000 miles and visit over 35 cities to spread her message. On the day of her visit to Memphis, Jordan Chatman, a volunteer supporting the fundraising element of Amal’s visit, described Amal’s North American journey as split into three acts. “Act one is the formation of America, act two is America coming into itself and act three is what the future of America is going to look like,” he said. During act one, which took place over the month of September, Amal visited New York, Boston and Philadelphia to learn about America’s foundation. This provided context for act two, which focused on the Civil Rights movement in which Memphis played a central role. She will conclude her North American journey by exploring immigration on the West Coast. As she made her way south from Chicago to New Orleans, Amal was taught about events such as the Great Migration of Black men and women to northern cities like Chicago and Detroit and Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination in Memphis. Along the way, each city organized a unique welcome celebration that connected Amal to the local community and its history. In Memphis, the city welcomed her to its “Culture of Love,” an effort organized by the Historic Clayborn Temple. Rev. Vahisha Hasan, the program director at Clayborn, said she was thrilled that her community was chosen to help with Amal’s visit. “[The Little Amal Project] reached out to Clayborn to see if we could be the cultural anchor for their trip to Memphis, which was really exciting for us,” she said. “This fits perfectly how we want to show up in the world.” Choosing Clayborn was no accident. In 1968, civil rights and labor activists gathered at Clayborn to organize the sanitation workers’ strike, which began in response to the poor working conditions endured by Black sanitation workers. Thousands faced armed police as they gathered on the lawn of Clayborn carrying signs that said “I am a Man.” On Oct. 4, Amal began her walk through Memphis on the lawn at Clayborn, the exact spot where the strike began 55 years earlier.

FEATURES The 12-foot tall puppet with long brown hair continued downtown, visiting sites like the Lorraine Motel — the infamous spot where Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated and the current site of the National Civil Rights Museum — and finished by stopping at the Orpheum Theatre and the newly renovated Tom Lee Park. Speaking at the welcome event, Raily Henry, the great-great granddaughter of sanitation striker Jesse Smith, connected Memphis history with the needs of today. “In the culture of love, we pay for the sins of the past, we think about the people left behind, the people held back and the people that we ignored and even the people that need

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IN THIS CULTURE OF LOVE, EVEN OUR INSTITUTIONS, SYSTEMS AND GOVERNMENTS ARE [BOUND] BY SACRED COMMITMENT TO UNDYING LOVE.” RAILY HENRY GRANDDAUGHTER OF SANITATION WORKER

the help most of all,” she said. “In this culture of love, even our institutions, systems and governments are [bound] by sacred commitment to undying love.” Amal’s Walk and the sanitation strike share a starting point, but Hasan emphasized that they also share a message: “Don’t forget about us.” “We start[ed] down the same street with the same messaging for Amal, for our children and for all of us,” she said. “We all deserve to be seen in the fullness of our humanity and seen as valuable, worthy and part of community. And that just sends me to a place of goodness.” It’s that fullness of humanity that guides her emphasis on recognizing young people. Hasan said she felt the majority of the news about Memphis teenagers tends to depict them negatively, but that Amal’s message could change this stereotype. “The message is that Amal and refugees like her all bring possibilities to communities and not just problem,” she said. “We feel like

Memphis children have similar messages.” To make this idea visible, organizers turned to innovative puppeteer Jeghetto to create a “Memphis girl” puppet named Imani to represent the youth of Memphis by walking alongside Amal on her journey across the city. Standing approximately eight-feet tall, the Imani puppet features a face made of cardboard, green fairy wings and a blue tutu. She clutches a teddy bear. Anasa Troutman, the executive director at Clayborn Temple, introduced Imani to the crowd that assembled for Amal’s Walk. “Imani represents all the Black children in our community, and they walk together to be able to tell us that our young people do not bring problems, they bring possibilities,” she said. Imani and Amal’s walk to the river was accompanied by African drumming, a marching band and dancers. Upon her arrival at Tom Lee Park, Amal received an Amal-sized “Culture of Love” blanket from Imani. Preparations for the welcome event began weeks in advance, with organizations such as Bridges USA and the Brooks Museum inviting young people from all over the city to create their own puppets using yarn, buttons and other craft materials to represent themselves. Freshman and Bridge Builder Gemma Ferguson, who participated in making a puppet for Amal’s visit, said she appreciated the focus on getting youth involved in the process. “I think it’s really cool,” she said. “They said that their goal was to get a bunch of kids to be there. Because it’s one thing for grownups to be there. But it’s another for kids to be showing their support. And like, showing that they know what it is, and [that they know] what it means.” Ash Love, the creative and community strategist for the welcome celebration in Memphis, said that as an artist, she appreciated the significance of having a piece of art like Amal share messages about human connection. “We use art as a modality to help us share the story, and Little Amal is at that intersection of historian and art that shares a story,” she said. “[She is] sharing the story of human rights, sharing the story of children, sharing

the story of Syrian refugees and also in this moment, sharing the story of Memphis kids.” But what she loved most was the sense of connection Amal’s visit created.

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WE’RE NOT JUST BUILDING COMMUNITY FOR RIGHT NOW, WE’RE BUILDING COMMUNITY FOR THE FUTURE.”

VAHISHA HASAN PROGRAM DIRECTOR AT CLAYBORN TEMPLE “What gets me really excited, is to think about the possibility of how we’re not just building community for right now, we’re building community for the future,” she said. Hasan is also grateful that this project unintentially brought the Memphis community together.

PAGE 9 “We have actually created or deepened our community… I feel like we’ve reached a milestone that we didn’t even realize that was what it was going to do,” she said. “And that, in essence is also what Amal and refugees are looking for. They’re looking for connection, and community.” Although Amal has left Memphis and is off to be welcomed to other cities, Hasan encourages Memphis to continue the work of the Little Amal Project. “Amal [came] here for one day and we welcome[d] her to this culture of love,” she said, “but we need to continue that culture of love.”

Brennan Seltzer and Lilly Coggin contributed additional reporting to this story.

LILLY COGGIN I STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Little Amal and Imani share an embrace as they meet each other for the first time. Clayborn Temple connected Amal’s story to that of Memphis youth’s, which in turn strengthened the Memphis community.

FEATURES

The End of Affirmative Action “

hat colleges want is a diverse student body, and diverse in every way possible,” St. Mary’s college counselor Beverly Brooks said. “They want geographic diversity, they want socioeconomic diversity, they want racial diversity, gender diversity [and] religious diversity.” But now schools have one less tool to find it. On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions. Most U.S. colleges and universities can no longer consider race when selecting new applicants. “Checking a box for race was never a requirement, but it was always an option,” Brooks wrote in an email. “It remains optional now, though many colleges are choosing to remove it when they download a student’s application, the same way they might choose not to look at a student’s essay, social security number, or some other information provided.” The Supreme Court’s decision, which upended the practice of affirmative action, applied to two concurring lawsuits, Students For Fair Admissions (SFFA) v. the University of North Carolina (UNC) and SFFA v. Harvard. The plaintiff, SFFA, filed the lawsuits in 2014. It argued that Harvard’s and UNC’s admissions programs should be raceblind. SFFA is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to omit “racial classi-

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Students, colleges reckon with Supreme Court’s historic decision BY LILY MIRZA I STAFF REPORTER

fications and preferences” from college South Asian, and I know that there has admissions. It has more than 20,000 membeen a lot of scandal around colleges bers. On its website, SFFA argued that “a holding higher standards for specifically student’s race and ethnicity should not Asian students, and that includes East be factors that either harm or help that Asian, South Asian, pretty much just if student to gain admission to a competitive you put Asian for your race, then you’re university.” automatically held to a higher standard, Their argument hinged on evidence and I feel like I did notice that comparing that Asian students may have been held to myself to my white friends. I knew that I a different standard than other groups in had done all the same things that they did, college admissions. yet a lot of them still According to the got opportunities that I I DO THINK AFFIRMATIVE ACTION court’s published didn’t.” syllabus of the cases, The Supreme Court HAS DONE A LOT TO CLOSE THOSE SFFA argued that ruled in favor of SFFA, [RACIAL] GAPS [IN ADMISSIONS],” SHE saying that affirmative “over 80% of all black applicants in SAID, “BUT I ALSO THINK IT’S HARMED action violated the the top academic Equal Protection Clause OTHER MINORITIES IN THE PROCESS.” of the 14th Amenddecile were admitted to UNC, while ment. under 70% of white In his concurring ANONYMOUS ALUM and Asian applicants opinion, Supreme ST. MARY’S CLASS OF 2022 in that decile were Court Chief Justice John admitted.” Roberts wrote, “Harvard’s and UNC’s adA St. Mary’s alum from the class of 2022 missions programs… cannot be reconciled (who wished to remain anonymous given with the guarantees of the Equal Protecthe controversy surrounding affirmative tion Clause.” action) said that even though affirmative He added, “Many universities have action was created with good intentions, for too long wrongly concluded that the it had drawbacks that the Supreme Court touchstone of an individual’s identity is cases highlighted. not challenges bested, skills built, or les“I do think affirmative action has done a sons learned, but the color of their skin.” lot to close those [racial] gaps [in admisAffirmative action policies placed an sions],” she said, “but I also think it’s emphasis on race with the goal of ensurharmed other minorities in the process. ing that the demographic of a company, For example, like me specifically, I’m school or institution reflected the demo-

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graphic of the population at large. They were meant to provide equal opportunities for historically marginalized groups, including women and minorities. They also have decades of legal precedent. The term “affirmative action” first appeared in an executive order issued by President John F. Kennedy in 1961. Executive Order 10925 instructed federal contractors to take “affirmative action to ensure that [ job] applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin.” Three years later, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 established a broader set of protections, outlawing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued an executive order requiring government contractors to take “affirmative action” to expand job opportunities for minorities. In the 1978 case Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, the Supreme Court upheld affirmative action in college admissions for the first time, on the condition that colleges cannot admit applicants based on race alone, nor can they use racial quotas by setting aside a certain number of spots for minority students. For over 40 years, affirmative action was a staple part of college admissions at many schools. The period of affirmative action corresponded with a period of increasing

FEATURES diversity in college admissions. Accorddeserve a spot at a school, and that spot ing to the Clinton White House Archives, is being ‘taken’ by someone less deservin 1965, just 4.9% of college students ing,” she wrote. “What I would say to this nationwide were Black. Once affirmais that a) the diversity that student adds tive action was introduced, that number is valuable in itself and is reason enough grew steadily each decade. By 1990, it had to consider them more thoughtfully as increased to 11.3%, and, according to the a potential student, and b) affirmative Postsecondary National Policy Institute, action doesn’t work by ‘taking’ but by alit had reached 12.5% by 2020. The United locating resources according to need. It’s States Census Bureau states that currently, ‘affirmative’ because it affirms the varying the U.S. population is 13.6% Black. levels of need among students as well as But the history of affirmative action also the value of students who historically have includes controversies and legal challengbeen undervalued.” es. According to Brooks, there are a host Affirmative action in education was of other factors giving certain students an challenged at the Supreme Court in Grutadvantage in college admissions. ter v. Bollinger (2003) and Fisher v. Univer“Race isn’t the consideration that I sity of Texas (2013), but it was upheld both think we should be as mindful of as things times. like legacy status or recruited athletes or Recent changes in the political makeup students whose families have given sigof the court may explain the new ruling. nificant amounts of money to the school,” The Supreme Court consists of nine jusBrooks said. tices and votes on a majority-rules basis. According to ABC News, between 2014 Currently, there are six conservative-leanand 2019, a student applying to Harvard ing justices and three liberal-leaning was about six times more likely to gain justices serving on the court. admission if they were a legacy student Former president Donald Trump and about seven times more likely to gain appointed three conservative-leaning jusadmission if their family made a donation tices — Neil Gorsuch, to the school. Brett Kavanaugh and According to The Amy Coney Barrett New York Times, — during his term, recruited athletes shifting the court’s also have a signifoverarching political icant advantage view to the right. in the admissions It ruled against afprocesses at 19 firmative action 6-3 elite colleges. in the case against Specifically, UNC and 6-2 in recruited athletes the case against have a 30% higher KATE STUKENBORG Harvard, splitting chance of accepST. MARY’S CLASS OF 2020 across ideological tance to these lines both times. schools than Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson abstained non-athletes. from voting in the Harvard case because Brooks recalled a situation at a previous she had served on the school’s advisory job where a student was accepted to Duke board. University, a highly competitive school, In her dissenting opinion, Justice Sonia in spite of having low standardized test Sotomayor, who is liberal, wrote, “The scores, because he was a recruited athlete. majority’s vision of race neutrality will “He was a D1 soccer recruit,” she said. entrench racial segregation in higher “He ended up staying for a semester and education because racial inequality will then signing a professional contract, but persist so long as it is ignored.” he had like an 1150 on the SAT, certainly Alum Kate Stukenborg (‘20) wonders not the standard that most students have why affirmative action has been disputed when attending Duke, but because he was so much more than other programs meant an athlete, he got in.” to increase diversity. Alum Ashley Graflund (‘21) is a 2nd “I’ve wondered why [affirmative action class cadet at the United States Air Force is] so controversial while tools like DEI Academy, one of the few schools exempt [diversity, equity and inclusion] director from the affirmative action decision. positions, updated curriculum or the Because her school is just 30% female, she gradual elimination of requiring standardthinks that affirmative action might have ized test scores are decided on with more helped her gain admission there. agreement,” she wrote in an email. “I could definitely be considered as a Stukenborg believes that affirmative diversity admission,” Graflund wrote in action was a good thing that some misunan email. “I would be remiss if I believed derstood. my gender did not have an impact on my “It seems like the perspective of some admission.” white students and parents is that they Even though she suspects affirmative

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THE DIVERSITY THAT STUDENT ADDS IS VALUABLE IN ITSELF AND IS REASON ENOUGH TO CONSIDER THEM MORE THOUGHTFULLY AS A POTENTIAL STUDENT.”

action probably aided her in her college search, she sees both potential pros and cons to it. “I believe that diversity of upbringing, culture and mind are important aspects of having a well-rounded education,” she wrote. “However, [affirmative action] can mean that well-deserving students who may not be as diverse on paper are overlooked in the admissions process.” (Graflund added that she is not representing the views of the United States Air Force or the Department of Defense and that these are her personal opinions.) Although she said she can sympathize with both sides of the controversy, current senior Zoe McMullen sees affirmative action as a vital resource for first-generation college students and for students from low-income households who may not have access to the same resources as students from high-income households. “Affirmative action really helps equal the playing field for those students,” she said. “Honestly, bring back affirmative action.” Despite its broad impact, it is not easy to determine how affirmative action affected any individual’s college search in the past, according to Brooks. “I don’t know that it made it easier or harder, especially at highly selective schools, because the reality is that colleges accept students who can do the work, and so I think there’s this misconception about affirmative action that students who are somehow incapable of doing the work are the ones getting in,” she said. “What’s important to know is that race especially is not the only thing considered when a student is applying to college, and so I don’t know that it would positively or negatively affect past applicants from St. Mary’s.” Nonetheless, for Brooks, the end of affirmative action feels like a net loss. “I think affirmative action was a good thing,” she said. “I think we should always be looking for classrooms that have diverse voices, and that create space and opportunity for students who wouldn’t have had that opportunity otherwise.” Of course, applicants still have the opportunity to share their unique stories and talk about their race, culture and background. Because affirmative action has ended, some colleges have created new essay prompts that allow students to explain their identity and their role in their community. “If there’s a part of their background that they feel is central to who they are, there are spaces where they can share that,” Brooks said. “It’s important to know that students should always be sharing their story authentically.”

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It’s not just race... Recruited athletes are

30%

more likely to be admitted to an elite college according the New York Times

Legacy students are about

more likely to be admitted to Harvard according to reaserch based on documents from SFFA v. Harvard

Students whose families donate are about

more likely to be admitted to Harvard according to reaserch based on documents from SFFA v. Harvard

NEWS TENNESSEE’S BLOCKED DRAG BAN BRINGS THEATER COMMUNITIES CLOSER

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KIM HUANG | STAFF REPORTER RuPaul’s Drag Race in 2014, he realized there was an avenue to channel his interests. “Drag, for me, is the highest form of expression [because] it takes parts and elements of yourself that are maybe not standard for everyday life and allows you to live through them… in a

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DRAG IS ALL ABOUT LOVE AND STORYTELLING AND EXPRESSION, AND I THINK BECAUSE OF THAT, DRAG MEANS SO MUCH TO SO MANY DIFFERENT PEOPLE.” DEEJAAY ROLLION MEMPHIS DRAG QUEEN TIFFANY MINX

Friends of George take the stage with signs to support drag and the LGBTQ community. The theater troupe was at the center of a lawsuit that successfully challenged Tennessee’s drag ban .

t first Sandy Kozik couldn’t believe it. Memphis theater company Friends of George’s, on whose board Kozik serves, had just won their hard-fought effort to strike down the 2023 Tennessee drag ban. He and his group learned of their victory the day before the Memphis Pride parade, and the news made the parade even more celebratory. “People had spoken up in the community, so there were many people who were excited,” he said. “It was really special to know that we had a… small part in history.” In 2023, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed into law a ban restricting drag performances in Tennessee. The bill was set to take effect in April. However, Memphis-based theater troupe Friends of George’s filed a lawsuit against the state and won. Federal Judge Thomas Parker struck down the

bill as a violation of the First Amendment. If passed, the drag ban would have criminalized “adult cabaret entertainment” on public property or in any location where it could be seen by minors. The ban defined “adult cabaret entertainment” in one aspect as entertainment by “male or female impersonators.” In this sense, the ban’s vague wording could have potentially criminalized anything from Halloween costumes to cross-dressing in school plays. Attempts to criminalize drag, the art of dressing exaggeratedly as another gender, are not a new occurrence in the United States. Drag’s roots can be traced back to the ancient Greeks, who specialized in plays where men dressed up as female characters. Perhaps the most famous example of drag is Shakespeare’s plays, where male actors played female characters in plays that

COURTESY OF SANDY KOZIK | FRIENDS OF GEORGE BOARD MEMBER

frequently toyed with societal gender expectations. Later, during the Harlem Renaissance in the early 20th century, drag balls gained prominence in the emerging LGBTQ community, despite police raids and arrests aimed at suppressing them. The 1960s and 70s marked a turning point in the fight for LGBTQ rights. In 1969, the Stonewall Inn riot, where patrons of a gay bar fought back against a police raid, brought attention to the movement towards acceptance. The 21st century has brought more acceptance of drag in mainstream culture, with episodes from the television show RuPaul’s Drag Race reaching a total of 1.3 million people across the US. Growing up queer in Mississippi, Memphis drag queen Deejay Rollison (stage name Tiffany Minxx) always felt a pull towards stereotypically feminine things. When he discovered

fantastical kind of way,” he said. “Drag is all about love and storytelling and expression, and I think because of that, drag means so much to so many different people.” When he first heard about the ban, Rollison only felt shock. “I’ve always been an advocate for social justice and change,” he said. “But it was a very different experience when the thing that was being attacked was the thing you are a part of.” Friends of George’s was in the midst of producing a theater production when the ban was announced. Not only did the ban threaten to put an end to something that brought the group joy and ruin the hard work they put into the production, but it would also jeopardize their First Amendment rights. “[The ban would] take our choice away,” Kozik said. “Friends of George’s [supports] the First Amendment.” Kozik also believes that the ban was motivated by fear and serves as a distraction from larger issues. “I think what motivated the ban was it’s something unknown, it’s fear,” Kozik said. “It’s also a way to mask other things that are more important

NEWS that society needs to be worrying about.” The ban specifically focused on children, described as “a person who is not an adult.” However, Kozik considers the concern that seeing drag will be harmful to minors completely unfounded. “People… went ‘oh my goodness, our children will see [drag] and not understand,’” he said. “Whereas children… usually get it way before their parents. It’s like seeing Cinderella at Disney World or Ronald McDonald at McDonald’s. It’s a fantasy character, and they’re like, ‘oh, it’s not really real, but it sure is cool’.” Taylor Ragan, director of plays at St. Mary’s, has worked in theater communities for over 10 years. She believes that in theater, experiencing new things should be a way to learn. “[The ban is] a limitation of your freedom – your freedom of expression, your freedom of speech,” said Ragan. “If you start there, what’s next?” “The thing that is so amazing about

theater and about art in general… is that it’s meant to create dialogue,” she said. “When you leave, you are supposed to think and reflect on… what you just saw and how that either affects your life or informs everyday aspects of your life… [the unknown] should create an opportunity to learn and grow.” The ban attempt seemed to have the opposite effect of what its writers intended. Their efforts to overturn the ban brought Friends of George’s national attention. Kozik recalls the group making national news, from NBC to Time Magazine and Rolling Stone. Back in Memphis, this attention meant a wave of new audience members wanting to see drag for themselves. Over time, Rollison also discovered that the ban attempt brought the drag and queer communities closer together and drew out more support between drag queens. “[The ban] didn’t make us cower,” Rollison said. “It made us come forward.”

unenforcable restriction law enforcable restriction law

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BRENNAN SELTZER | TATLER CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF CREATED WITH MAPCHART.NET

This map shows the six states that have passed laws restricting drag or “adult performances.” Four of the states, like Tennessee, have court rulings or termporary blocks on these laws that make the laws unenforcable. The other two states still have enforcable restrictions on “adult performances” that could impact drag performances.