collegian.tccd.edu
Netflix’s new true crime docuseries PG. 4
Wednesday, February 3, 2021 – Volume 33 • Issue 16 News LEARNING AT HOME Students reflect on the shift to online-only classes. PG. 2
Feature CERAMIC ART Expression through miniature sculptures. PG. 3
Entertainment
Opinion
Editorial
BACK FROM THE DEAD Ubisoft revives Scott Pilgrim for new console generation. PG. 4
2021: THE YEAR OF BOY BANDS Why boy bands are back in style. PG. 5
CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY Black history is American history. PG. 5
SOUTH
South Campus presidential race heats up
South Campus has been without an official president since September of 2020. TCC will elect a candidate to fill the position during the week of Feb. 1.
Azul Sordo/The Collegian
The three final candidates presented their case as to why they are qualified for campus president ALYSON OLIVER campus editor
Community colleges are the embodiment of democracy and the center of America’s economic future because they provide access to brighter futures, South presidential candidate Feliccia Moore-Davis said. The final three candidates for the next South president — Daniel Lufkin, Alessandro Anzalone and Feliccia Moore-Davis — spoke during a forum on Microsoft Teams. They each had an hour to answer nine questions submitted in advance by members of the TCC community. During their introductions, they briefly shared about their careers. All have many years of experience in higher education, and Moore-Davis said she is a first-generation college student. They were asked how they intend to get to know and be an advocate for South students, faculty and staff.
Lufkin said he would spend half of his first year listening and learning about TCC’s goals and challenges in order to advocate accordingly. Anzalone said he would focus on meeting and understanding the expectations of faculty, staff and students. Moore-Davis said she hopes to be able to advocate for people on campus by meeting and getting to know them remotely. The candidates provided examples from their careers when they addressed diversity, equity and inclusion. Anzalone said he was born and raised in Venezuela with parents born in Sicily. He believes diversity equals power. “In professional groups, it’s proven that every time that you have increased diversity, you have increased productivity,” he said. “You always come to better solutions to problems.” He said he wants faculty and staff to reflect the population they serve. Moore-Davis said in the case of equity, it takes a village to move outcomes. She said
it is important to look at data holistically when trying to ensure equity and plans to organize equity summits to open up conversations if she is elected. Lufkin cited similar research to Anzalone. He also described his experiences assisting a faculty member who lost her hearing. “I thought I was doing everything I could to help this faculty member,” he said. “Turns out that I didn’t.” After being told he wasn’t doing enough to help, he realized his initial approach — telling the faculty member to come to him with concerns — wasn’t adequate. “If we’re truly inclusive, 100% inclusive, you shouldn’t have to ask,” he said. “It should already be there.” The candidates addressed what they would do for mental health and emotional wellness on campus. Lufkin said at his current school, they’ve implemented a program called Sin-
gle Stop for access to mental health resources and adopted a wellness program for employees. Anzalone focused on the need for people to connect and communicate during the pandemic. He said he’s hosted campus forums and provided mental health resources at his own school during the lockdown. Moore-Davis highlighted the need for continued mental health awareness. She said she would start an awareness campaign and assess the resources available on campus if elected. The candidates were also asked about works that have impacted them, why they chose to look beyond their current schools, how they conduct difficult conversations, what major changes they’ve brought to a school and what their response — plus the eventual outcome — was to their significant professional challenges at their current school. TCC will announce the new South president the week of Feb. 1.
DISTRICT
Harvard professor speaks to TCC students about political division LOGAN LO GAN EVANS
campus editor/photographer
The common ground between political leaders on both sides of the aisle has completely eroded over the last 50 years, says Thomas Patterson of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Patterson detailed this erosion and more in a Jan. 27 lecture to TCC students and staff. The virtual lecture was titled “America, the Divided,” but it began with a display of likeness — a collage of words President Joseph Biden and former President Donald Trump said during each of their inaugural addresses, which illustrated a lot of overlap. “Now, those are very different speeches,” Patterson said. “But I think if you plugged in the speeches of Lincoln, Reagan and Roosevelt, you’d find many of the same words.” Patterson said that despite this, polarization is worse than ever. A Pew Research Center poll featured in the lecture found that 70% of Democrats think of Republicans as closed-minded, while 70% of Republicans think of Democrats as such. Patterson believes that rampant misinformation is to blame. Citing media coverage of the voter fraud
claims that spurred the insurrection at the Capitol, he said that reporting on false information, even just to to label it as false, can still lead to that misinformation spreading. “People tend to remember the claim, but not the fact that it was judged to be inaccurate,” Patterson said. “It still gets nestled into their mind as fact.” This is especially true when confirmation bias — the tendency to interpret evidence based on preconceived beliefs — comes into play, Patterson explained. He believes that partisan media can chain viewers to a single point of view. “We don’t detect misinformation very easily when it’s on our side,” he said. “ When we hear something about how bad the other party is, we’re likely to believe it. Patterson has a history of speaking out against the negative ways he believes mainstream news can impact the political process. In 1993, he received the American Political Science Association’s Graber Award for his book “Out of Order,” a critique on the media’s “domination” of politics. Many ideas explored in his book came up in his presentation. “Dr. Patterson touched on a lot of topics that I feel are very important in the political landscape currently,” NE student Derek Kendall said. “With so much false information
Screenshot courtesy of NE Department of Government Thomas Patterson, a professor at Harvard’s Kennedy School, focused his workshop on misinformation in the news and the government. available to use, it's crucial that we can make informed decisions about what’s presented to us.” NE assistant government professor Christopher Douglas moderated the lecture. He believes that students should take the extra time to consume political news from multiple sources, including from public figures directly. “Various points of view can be more in-
sightful than just relying on the same messenger,” Douglas said. After his lecture, Patterson opened the floor to questions from the audience. A student asked how members of the media should ethically cover misleading info from elected officials. “They’ve got to keep their heads about them,” he replied.
Page 2 • February 3, 2021
News
The Collegian
DISTRICT
Being home and changing daily routines
Azul Sordo/The Collegian
Maskless shoppers pass a mural depicting a masked man in Sundance Square, downtown Fort Worth conveying life one year into the pandemic felt around the world. TOMMY KIMBROUGH reporter
The pandemic resulted in schools all around the world shutting down, and college students were required to take classes online. “Going from driving to campus for class, to waking up out of bed and hopping on the laptop for class has been a complete change,” TR student Maggie Cooper said. Being on campus can provide the best study spots to concentrate on schoolwork,
she said. “Living with my parents and younger siblings as a current college student has been very challenging when it comes to alone time to focus on daily assignments,” Cooper said. NE student Rita Gonzales said since the pandemic has forced everyone to stay inside their homes and remain safe, the world has been locked inside a cage. “Life at home during this pandemic has my mind going crazy, I’m so tired of being treated like a kid in 6th grade by my par-
OPINION COLUMN
ents,” Gonzales said. She realized how going to campus and getting that time away from her family for three-plus hours made an impact on how she focuses. “The pandemic has shown me all of the things I forgot that made an impact on how my days could go to make me feel productive,” Gonzales said. TR student Corey Davis said the pandemic has been more difficult for some when it comes to adjustments and living conditions.
“COVID took so much from all of us and seeing people on the news lose their jobs and homes has shown how blessed some of us are to be in life right now. To still be able to live with family,” Davis said. He said he feels blessed to have his parents around and still be able to continue to pursue his education online. “I was just trying to let them know how thankful I was and looking forward to things returning back to normal soon and hopefully returning to campus in person in fall 2021 if available too,” Davis said.
DISTRICT
Reddit’s winning money Student organizations match against GameStop adapt to an online world JANINE SHUMAN SHUMAN reporter
Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash
GameStop has been a struggling business for a couple of years now. They have been laying off numerous amounts of staff members including district managers. JOSE ROMERO campus editor
In November 2019, I bought Gamestop stock for about $6 a share. This past week, it reached over $200. I ended up selling my shares last September with about an 80% return, but if I would’ve waited, my returns could have been over 1000%. I try to laugh it off, but the wound is still fresh. The sudden increase in Gamestop’s share price isn’t because people finally saw value in the company, but because of a Reddit group of 2.5 million users called “r/WallStreetBets.” The community came together in protest of hedge funds by flooding Gamestop, Blackberry and AMC’s shares on a stock trading app, Robinhood. In doing so, they ensured that institutional investors don’t make any money off of their short positions — placing bets that stocks will drop. Short sellers have lost $19 billion during this fiasco, according to Business Insider. A way to combat losing money from failed short positions is by buying shares,
which raises the stock price. Individuals continued buying shares to anger companies like Melvin Capital, a hedge fund that was shorting Gamestop. The response by Melvin Capital and other hedge funds resulted in the value rising again because they’re now also buying shares to counter the money lost from shorting. It’s a game of cat and mouse where there doesn’t seem to be any losers because, in actuality, hedge funds are investing as well, so they’re recouping the initial losses. That’s not the end of it. Robinhood has now halted purchases of shares in Gamestop, AMC and Blackberry because of the volatility. Reddit users have responded to the new restrictions with a class-action lawsuit against Robinhood for market manipulation. The eruptive nature of the current market has elicited a response from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. They said that they’re “Aware of and actively monitoring the on-going market volatility in the options and equities markets.” It is uncertain what the response will result in, but this event will go down in history. As users say in r/WallStreetBets, “To the moon.”
Many of TCC’s student organizations are experiencing challenges with their transition to the virtual world. However, for some, there are silver linings. Connect organization Beta Chi Zeta is concerned with a lack of student engagement said public relations officer Ingram Brueck . “We struggle somewhat with engagement,” she said. “Especially right now, we’re having a hard time connecting with new and current members as everyone is struggling with the new normal we live in. We are hoping that utilizing our social media will give us an opportunity to connect amidst the pandemic,” said Brueck. Similarly, NE organization Psi Beta is struggling with student engagement with no current new members for the semester. “Psi Beta experienced struggles such as low engagement, low new members, finding ways to connect, and finding ways to participate in our community like we normally do,” said Oliver, vice president of Psi Beta. While there is no shortage of complications, for some student organizations the introduction of the virtual world worked out in their favor.
NE Library Book Club acknowledged that without the virtual setting, they may not have had a chance to even exist. The club was presented with the opportunity to open when campus services were forced to transition online in March 2020. A common effort among all the organizations is acquiring new members and keeping them engaged and interested throughout the semester, especially for those who are not accustomed to the online environment. NE Library Book Club uses their technology resources to resolve this concern and reach out to students who may struggle with the virtual platform. “Engaging users of the club who may not be entirely comfortable using technology requires us to reach out to users who are unsure of how to access the club and assist them however we can,” Library Specialist Samantha Kayem said. TR student Katie Moore regularly participates in weekly meetings for the Student Government Association. For Moore, online clubs have an advantage in flexibility. However, she feels that she would participate in more clubs if she were on campus. “It’s really important to get involved to make long-lasting connections,” Moore said. “Especially with depression rates on the rise during COVID, it’s really important to not feel so isolated.”
Screenshot courtesy of TCC Club Rush
District Club Rush introduces students to organizations, motivating them to join.
Feature
The Collegian
February 3, 2021 • Page 3
Photos courtesy of Ariel Bowman
The site showcases “Birds, Beasts, Trees, Flowers Ceramic”, a mixed media project from 2019.
The site showcases “Haute Couture Ceramic,” a mixed media, porcelain table from 2018.
The site showcases “This Thing All Things Devours Ceramic,” a mixed media project from 2019.
The site showcases “Baignoire Sur Pieds Ceramic,” a mixed media, porcelain table from 2018.
NORTHEAST
Ceramics professor showcases inspirations Ariel Bowman creates elaborate worlds through her aesthetically unique ceramic pieces
AZUL SORDO photo editor
A prehistoric species of aquatic sloth lounges in a luxurious 18th century Rococo style bathtub, overflowing with bubbles — a glimpse into the elaborate worlds constructed by NE ceramics instructor Ariel Bowman. Fascinated by the parallels between art and science, Bowman works to unite these worlds through her detailed ceramic pieces. Perhaps her most widely-recognized body of work, “Wondrous Creatures,” places carefully selected prehistoric animals in picturesque Enlightenment-era environments. This juxtaposition mirrors “a time when our relationship to nature was being expanded by scientific discoveries, yet separated by
the disappearance of wild places,” Bowman wrote in her art portfolio. As a child, Bowman spent her time flipping through animal encyclopedias and working in the ceramics studio with her mother, NE ceramics professor Karmien Bowman. Her father specializes in restoring 18th century Rococo furniture, a style that heavily influences much of her work. Having always been drawn to the stranger and lesser-known creatures, her artistic focus on prehistoric animals goes beyond aesthetics. “I definitely try to find the weirdest ones possible,” Bowman said. “People get so excited and interested when they find out that they really existed, that there are fossils of that strange thing — I love that.” In her piece “Haute Couture” a prehis-
toric giraffe wanders behind a folding screen, intricately decorated gowns draped over it’s antlers. The screen, a sprawling landscape painted on its panels, symbolizes transformation through natural selection, Bowman said. “It’s worlds within worlds and you keep questioning your understanding of the piece,” Bowman said. “That constant questioning that I feel is very indicative of scientific people and artistic people. We’re always questioning everything.” This body of work can still be viewed at Florida Museum of Natural History’s virtual exhibit. After organizing a temporary exhibit June 2018, project manager Dale Johnson said he wanted the experience to live on through their website. “I am awed by the fine detail in her ceramics — the most delicate lace and folds
of fabric, furnishings and glazes all executed perfectly,” Johnson said. “This uncommon combination of knowledge and skills allows her to engage with people at many levels.” Before the pandemic, Bowman held ceramics workshops alongside her mother in their shared studio in Flower Mound, TX. Bowman now holds workshops exclusively online, opening her doors to students across the globe. Professional sculptor Diane Cardill, based in Montreal, Canada, was grateful for the opportunity to work with Ariel Bowman despite the 1,746 miles between them. “After taking my first workshop I was hooked,” Cardill said. “Technology has brought our studios together and I hope the online efforts continue.”
Page 4 • February 3, 2021
Entertainment
The Collegian
NETFLIX REVIEW
Investigators shine in serial killer series LOGAN EVANS campus editor
The latest true crime docuseries from Netflix is built up as the story of serial killer Richard Ramirez, and it is — sort of. Yes, his face mopes in shadow on the series’ thumbnail. His presence stalks just behind the narrative, scuttling from crime scene photo to suspect sketch, always felt but not often seen. But his evil is just the backdrop. Where “Night Stalker: The Hunt For a Serial Killer” really finds its pulse is in the strength of a community that persevered. Producers Tiller Russell and James Carroll have crafted their series to mimic the investigation it’s covering exactly as it unfolded. There’s no early tease of Ramirez as a mythic figure in true crime canon — his name isn’t even known until the third episode. We don’t explore a tortured childhood, and we never get a motive for his brutality. The idea of pure cosmic evil is raised, but it hardly matters. “Night Stalker” is not about the making of a killer, but the unmaking of one. The bulk of the story is delivered through an interview with Detective Gill Carrillo, the man largely responsible for catching Ramirez. His story is compelling — an aimless-Los-Angeles-street-kid-turned-savvy cop
with a knack for intuition. There’s a touching moment in the first episode when another officer recalls his shock that seasoned homicide detective Frank Salerno chose Carrillo to take on the Night Stalker case. “He was notorious for eating sunflower seeds and spitting the shells out all over the place,” he says. “This guy ends up working for Frank Salerno?” A lot of the intrigue in Night Stalker comes from watching Carrillo’s work. His methods are simple, but he delivers again and again — many times, just a hair’s length from success. The choice to frame the series as a mystery also pushes the focus onto Ramirez’s victims, and rightly so. Several survivors give chilling first-hand interviews. We get a strong sense of the brutality of the crimes, their indiscriminate nature and the grip they held the LA community under from 1984–1985. Despite some overly-sensational b-roll shots of bloody knives and darkened windows, there’s enough respect paid to the victims and their families to convey the weight of what they went through. One of the most crushing interviews comes from a woman who recalls begging her grandmother to begin locking her doors at night. The grandmother refused, not wanting to live in fear, only to be killed by Ramirez
Photo courtesy of Netflix
Netflix explores the manhunt for Richard Ramirez, the Night Stalker, who terrorized California residents during the mid-80s.
weeks later. Night Stalker covers a lot of material in just four episodes, and at times it can feel a little bit quick. A few of the crimes detailed can blur into others. This might be inevitable, covering a spree as grim and lengthy as Ramirez had, but an additional episode or two might have helped the viewer settle into the pacing. Some dedicated fans of true crime might
be disappointed with Night Stalker’s lack of analysis on the mind of Ramirez, but the series works fine without it. It’s an empathetic look at the pain he caused and the people who brought him to justice.
NETFLIX REVIEW
Netflix brings a magical childhood classic back to life KRISTAL BLANKINSHIP graphic desginer
Photo courtesy of Netflix
Terra, played by Eliot Salt, practices her earth powers under the guidance of Headmistress Dowling.
At first glance, “Fate: The Winx Saga” does not seem like it’s based on a cartoon series with major magical girl vibes, but it is. The new Netflix series, released on Jan. 22, is an edgy live-action adaptation of “The Winx Club.” One day after it’s release, it was on Netflix’s top-10 list. The six-part series created by Brian Young; known for creating The Vampire Diaries, follows the coming-of-age journey of five fairies attending a magic school named Alfea. At Alfea, the girls must learn to master their skills fighting off life-threatening monsters alongside the usual dilemmas that come with being a teenager. Viewers are quickly introduced to the main character, Bloom played by Abigail Cowven. She is an Angsty and rebellious 16-year-old who comes from the human world and never knew magic was real only until a few months before. Bloom tells her parents, who are not fairies, that she is going to an International school in Switzerland, instead of telling them the truth about her powers. Bloom discovered that she was a fire fairy after she lost control of her powers and placed the lives of her parents in danger. Bloom is brought to the Alfea by the headmistress, Mrs. Dowling, in hopes to learn control. On her first day, Bloom meets the
school’s pretty boy, Sky, played by Danny Griffin, who will eventually become her love interest. She then meets her five roommates, each with their own personalities and backgrounds. Bloom first meets a light fairy named Stella, played by Hannah Van der Westhuysen. Stella is the crown princess of Solaria. Bloom shares a room with Aisha, played Precious Mustapha, a water fairy athlete who she becomes friends with fast. Fans of the original series will notice that Flora has been replaced with Terra who is played by Eliot Salt. Her casting on the Netflix series has caused a bit of controversy, as Flora is Latina and Terra is played by a white actress. Many fans believe that her character was also whitewashed, but the actors’ ethnicity has not been publicly discussed. The series focuses on Bloom’s existential crisis as her origin is mysterious. She learns she was adopted. Bloom is what Aisha calls a “changeling.” This development shows that the writers did extensive research. A changeling, in European Folklore, is a fairy child swapped with a human that was stolen by fairies. Through the mystery of her birth, Bloom searches for who she really is. The answer to this question, the series suggests, she can only really find through the friendships she forms.
GAME REVIEW
Seven evil exes stand no chance against Scott Pilgrim JOSE ROMERO campus editor
“Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game” is back, ten years after its initial release, seven after being delisted from digital storefronts, and it has aged surprisingly well. The game had quite a bit to live up to. High-quality beat ‘em ups have been prominent in the past few years. Last year alone gave players “Streets of Rage 4” and “River City Girls,” two games that got a lot of praise. It wasn’t the magnum opus of beat ‘em ups, but it was a short and sweet experience that oozed personality. Scott Pilgrim, the main protagonist, is on a mission to defeat his girlfriend’s seven evil exes. Each of the seven stages has a distinct theme to differentiate them from one another, and players can bring along up to three friends to join them in local or online co-op. At the time of writing, the online portion of this game is busted. The game is presented in a retro 16-bit style, and it’s gorgeous. The attention to detail in the environments and character animation is great. A vibrant palette stimulates your corneas by
throwing primary colors at you every step of the way. The almost rubber hose-esque animation brings the six, functionally similar, main playable characters to life with distinctive features and personalities. Even enemy characters all had a certain pep in their step. The combat is easy to get a hang of but hard to master. At the start, there are only about four moves that can be used but, as you level, more skills are unlocked. About an hour in, players can start chaining together swanky combos that are gratifying to pull off. There’s also an assortment of items and weapons that can be grabbed from the environment to bonk unrelenting enemies. The soundtrack is filled with some amazing chiptune done by the band Anamanaguchi. Players will get into the groove as they batter enemies down with a trash can. But not everything is dandy. The balancing could use some tweaks. There were too many instances in which I was trapped in a corner because objects were being tossed everywhere and enemies just kept coming. It was frustrating to deal with because there wasn’t anything that could be done to combat it. Some abilities are locked away that shouldn’t be, like a ground kick and an evasive
Photo courtesy of Ubisoft
A game tie-in with the cult classic film, “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World,” which is based on a graphic novel of the same name. roll. The boss battles were pretty hit-or-miss as well. The majority were fun to go through, but near the end of the game, they got tedious. This goes on for most of the final hour of the game. It’s almost as if the developers ran out of time. For a licensed game, it’s surprising that it’s as good as it is. The flaws can be in-your-
face at times, but they don’t hinder the experience too much. “You know what sucks?” Not much. Balancing could’ve been better but overall, it’s a fun time with some satisfying combat to boot.
Opinion
The Collegian
Viewpoints
How to reckon with your digital shadow
LOGAN EVANS campus editor
Somewhere in a flurry of ones and zeros is all that will remain of us. Maybe that’s stretching it. But scrolling through social media, I’ve had the recurring thought that many decades from now, centuries even, when myself and everyone I know are gone, our digital footprints will linger on like cybernetic ghosts. To me, it’s a scary notion. Chilling enough is the idea that our words and likenesses will live forever on inactive social media profiles, gathering artificial dust and calling out to no one. Even more chilling is the idea that those profiles might only look like us. How many times have I spouted a half-baked opinion online just to have something to say? Or engaged with a meme that wasn’t really my sense of humor just because it was trending at
the time? I’ve never posted an idea I didn’t believe in, but I’ve posted lots of things I only halfway believe in. Things I didn’t think hard enough about. Social media has caused a paradigm shift in how we communicate. It’s given voices to those who would otherwise be voiceless, but it can also make those voices sound the same. If you’re not careful, that person on the screen won’t be you anymore. For the last few weeks, I’ve gone without social media for the first time in almost a decade. I didn’t have a moment of clarity or anything. There was no decision to break the shackles of internet culture that were binding me and walk off free into the “real world.” I just wanted to take a step back — to breathe a little. In that time, I’ve thought a lot more about the things I really care about. Many of those things wouldn’t garner hundreds of likes or retweets. They wouldn’t spur on debate or shower me with approval. They wouldn’t get people talking. But they make me feel like me. Whatever phantom version of myself will haunt the creaking walls of dead chat rooms and vacant profiles one hundred years from now, I hope he’ll feel as close to me as he can get.
Boy bands: cultural reset and successes
LINDA PUGA
campus editor
2021: the year of a continued global pandemic and the return of boy bands. After a year like 2020, the unthinkable is possible. And if boy bands want to come back, I will welcome them with open arms. The term itself can evoke a negative response due to the stigma of headset mics and synchronized dancing that bands like NSYNC and New Kids On The Block popularized, but even bands as classic as The Beatles can be considered boy bands. The tradition of marketing a group of young musicians on equal parts music, looks and personality is as old as popular music itself. Boy bands have been a staple in the music industry for decades, regardless of whether they were classified as good. And boy bands are being put to-
gether in more unique ways than ever. Singing reality TV shows like The X Factor creates hit bands. Talent scouts find nobodies and turn them into somebody through viral singing covers on social media platforms like YouTube and TikTok. Why Don’t We formed after five social media singers who knew of each other from the internet, got together in Los Angeles to collaborate. Fast forward four years, and they’ve done multiple tours, celebrated a certified gold single and just recently hit the Billboard charts for the first time in their career. The Vamps became the first band to headline the 02 Arena in London for five years in a row. 5 Seconds of Summer has made their mark on pop music with multiple hit singles and albums. Not to mention BTS racking up over 20 million album sales and selling out world tours. Boy bands influence our culture and lifestyle and that’ll never change. Bands to come can continue the legacy of hit music making while also breaking out of the image of what a boy band should look and sound like. Not only that, but the younger generation of teenage girls will need a new set of boys to put on a pedestal and worship with fan pages and concert tickets. I know that one all too well.
February 3, 2021 • Page 5
Editorial
Recognizing Black history and culture
Amber Davis/The Collegian
Black history is American history. In 1915, Carter G. Woodson and Jesse E. Moorland founded the organization known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life. The purpose of the organization was to shine a light on the accomplishments of Black Americans and peoples of African descent. Initially, it was only a week of celebration, but because of the civil rights movement, it shifted into the entirety of February during the 1960s. In 1976, President Gerald Ford finally officially acknowledged Black History Month. He said, “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history,” according to History. It took awhile for African Americans to get the recognition they deserved. For a long time, Africans were a heavily oppressed group. From slavery to racism, it was a never-ending cycle of maltreatment. Even today, African Americans still suffer prejudice because of the color of their skin. Black History Month gives them the chance to show how rich their history is — a history filled with extraordinary figures like Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Malcolm X and W.E.B. Du Bois, to name a few. African Americans have had to fight continuously for better societal treatment as a whole. They rallied together in the streets, ending institutionalized racial segregation. Millions united together to protest police brutality against African Americans. Each step they take for change has a great impact on future generations. They have come
together time and time again to fight back against unfairness in society. Recently, the Black Lives Matter movement has garnered traction, furthering the battle for equality. According to The New York Times, BLM may be the largest movement in U.S. history. It’s a culture that deserves celebration. The 1910s and 1930s are considered the golden age for Black culture, according to History. That was the time of the Harlem Renaissance in which African Americans formed a unique identity through literature, music and art. Jazz’s popularity also came out of this cultural boom. It became so popular that the white community often listened to it as well. The willingness to share African American culture with their oppressors is demonstrative of how proud of a group they are. Instead of doing the exact thing that was being done to them, they took opportunities to educate others on their culture, rather than excluding them entirely. America wouldn’t be where it is today without the hardships that African Americans went through. A month isn’t enough time to reflect on all the trials and tribulations Black Americans have had to overcome. But, even when adversity is directly in front, the Black community manages to stand up and have their voices projected worldwide. Unfortunately, society hasn’t reached the levels of tolerance expected by this point in history. Recent events have uncovered the ugly ignorance that many still have. But, as they’ve done before, African Americans will stay united, informing outsiders about the fight for their culture and heritage. Black history is American history.
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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Michael Foster-Sanders
MANAGING EDITOR Maddy Remington
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Feature
Page 6 • February 3, 2021
Michael Foster-Sanders Editor-in-chief Dream job: Announcer for Japanese game show Favorite TV show: Tales from the Crypt, The Wire and Spawn What I like about The Collegian: I boss Maddy around!
Abbas Ghor Lead Designer
MEET THE STAFF Introducing the hard workers of The Collegian for Spring 2021
Amber Davis Illustrator
Jose Romero Campus Editor
Maddy Remington Managing Editor Dream job: Foreign Service Officer Favorite TV show: Wandavision, The Originals and The Society What I like about The Collegian: Staff is so great!
Alyson Oliver Campus Editor
Dream job: C. E. O.
Dream job: Disney artist
Dream job: Nintendo localization
Dream job: Music reporter
Favorite TV show: SUITS
Favorite TV show: The Office
Favorite TV show: Sunny in Philadelphia
Favorite TV show: The Haunting of Hill House
What I like about The Collegian: I get to take many breaks (brb)!!!
What I like about The Collegian: Get paid to ART!!
What I like about The Collegian: The constant BULLYING!!!!!
What I like about The Collegian: Online meetings
Logan Evans Campus Editor
Linda Puga Campus Editor
Kristal Blankinship Web Coordinator
Azul Sordo Photo Editor Dream job: Photojournalist
Dream job: Fantasy/Horror writer
Dream job: Journalist in New York
Dream job: Book layout artist
Favorite TV show: Bojack Horseman
Favorite TV show: Twilight Zone
Favorite TV show: Vampire Diaries
Favorite TV show: FRIENDS
What I like about The Collegian: The wonderful staff I get to work with
What I like about The Collegian: Telling stories with great people
What I like about The Collegian: Getting to write new stories each week
What I like about The Collegian: The people I work with
Stayce Petties Campus Editor
Janine Shuman Reporter
Lydia Regalado Campus Editor
Mary Maturo Campus Editor
Dream job: Blog writer
Dream job: Counseling Psychologist
Dream job: Audio-visual in Sports
Dream job: Screen writer
Favorite TV show: Vampire Diaries
Favorite TV show: Hannibal
Favorite TV show: The Mandalorian
Favorite TV show: Infinity Train
What I like about The Collegian: Writing and having people read it
What I like about The Collegian: Awesome Staff and the fact I get to write
What I like about The Collegian: Working with talented people
What I like about The Collegian: The amazing Staff
Illustration by Amber Davis /The Collegian