TCC The Collegian November 16, 2022

Students come to terms with midterms

Emotions ran high as students wonder how Abbott will address their issues

share my voice because I knew as a young person it was my job to show up and vote,” she said.

Issues such as the power grid, gun control and abortions were on everyone’s minds and they were the main reason for some to cast a vote.

NE Campus hosted three informal seminars to teach students, staff and faculty the best ways to navigate social encounters and difficult conversations.

NE speech chair A’Isha Malone held “Communicating in a World of Chaos” Nov. 10, where hosts shared tips and tricks with audience members to help them improve their communication skills.

“Good communication skills are important,” NE speech instructor Jamie Melton said.

Effective speech is a necessary element in a person’s day-today life, Melton said.

“Communication is how the world works,” she said. “This is how we establish our relationships. It’s how we work. It’s how we communicate with those at work. It’s how we communicate with our family members.”

During the event, Melton said changing approaches while talking to others can be beneficial.

“We talk to people with diverse communication styles every day,” Melton said. “We are living in a very diverse world, and it helps us understand different people with different world views.”

NE student Hannah Morcha said she thinks the event was created to inform and empower people.

“I think the motivation behind the event was to help people learn better communication skills,” Morcha said. “I think it helps you build more confidence when communicating with other people.”

She said the event allowed people to understand why learning how to speak effectively with others can be challenging.

“I think communication can be very hard,” Morcha said. “It’s easy to get nervous, and it can be a very shaky experience.”

NE student Tin Nguyen believes the idea behind the event was to teach people the benefit of talking with others.

“I think the purpose of the event is to have professors spread their knowledge to the students to help them become better when they’re on their own,” Nguyen said.

The important lesson from the event was understanding the benefit of good communication skills, Nguyen said.

“Connection – making people connected is the benefit,” he said. Event co-host and NE speech instructor Amber Meyers said she hoped people walked away from the event understanding the significance of different forms of speech and where to apply them.

“I hope to share that conflict arises from the perception of a threat,” Meyers said. “There are ways we can act when those around us feel threatened or act in ways we find disagreeable...I wanted to share that we have the

For students, the 2022 midterm elections represented a time to use their voices to create change, and the results will now determine what that change looks like.

Nov. 8 was the last day to cast a vote, and for some students the days beforehand were tension-filled to say the least.

“Honestly, leading up to the midterms I genuinely felt terrified,” said NE student Ashley Foster. “I was terrified for women and our rights and what could possibly continue to be stripped away from us.” Foster was a first-time voter. She spoke about the importance of making her opinion heard and the genuine excitement she felt of being able to speak up for what she believed in.

“It was very important to me to

For students like Foster, many issues were unresolved on the front line when it came to the midterms. Having the chance to resolve them felt more crucial than ever.

“Gun control and abortion are at the top of my personal list of importance,” said Foster. “I think the fact that after the tragic shooting in Uvalde, action needed to be taken.”

Much like Foster, NE student Jake Sembritzky also had a lot riding on the election. For him, the main concerns were regarding the issues with Texas’ power grid and the large number of mass shootings.

“Texas is in a bad spot when it comes to the power grid,” he said.

“Nearly the entire state is cut off from the two major international power grids. Yet if we had access to these, millions of people wouldn’t have had to freeze for days on end, resorting to caveman-like survival.”

“I voted this year, and the main area of importance to me was fixing the power grid and solving the mass shooting crisis here in Texas that has gripped the entire nation,” Sembritzky said.

Sembritzky also spoke about his opinion on Gov. Greg Abbott’s performance during the previous term and how it affected the way he decided to vote this year.

“I think Greg Abbott has done a fair job as governor of Texas the past eight years, keeping taxes low and keeping Texas open to business,” Sembritzky said. “But I personally think Beto would have been a better fit for the next four years as governor of Texas.”

For him, choosing a candidate was about more than picking a side. It was about choosing someone See Election, page 2

power to create a calmer society by intervening when we see bad behavior in public.”

Meyers said she wanted to help people sharpen their communication skills because of her past experiences.

“As an autistic person, communication has never come naturally to me,” she said. “I guessed that if I struggled, others must struggle too so I decided to polish my skill set to learn and then be able to present ideas in a hopefully fun and interesting way.”

Throughout the event, discussions were had about the best aspects of speech and Meyers said speech’s greatest strength was its ability to allow others to understand different types of people.

“Language development allowed us to transmit knowledge from one generation to the next,” she said. “Nonverbal communication enhanced those verbal utterances and allows people who don’t speak the same language to still communicate, trade and prosper.”

After being asked why many people struggle when talking to others, Meyers said poor communication comes from underexposure and an inability to change.

“Mostly it comes down to a desire to learn and a desire to change,” she said. “Change is always hard, but the benefits of learning to communicate are worth the discomfort of change.”

NE government instructor Lisa Uhlir was passionate about bringing attention to the lost acknowledgement of Native discoveries.

The NE presentation “How Native Americans Transformed the World,” on Nov. 9 was given by Uhlir, a member of the Ojibwe tribe. She brought up the importance of not only talking about Native struggles but celebrating and calling attention to the positive effects Native people have had on the world.

“What I was trying to go for was several things,” she said. “First was I wanted people to start thinking from a new perspective of not how we negatively affect each other as different ethnic groups, but how we positively affect each other as different ethnic groups.”

The potato was something largely attributed to the Irish, yet Uhlir said this was not so much the case. Where Natives developed over 3,000 different types of potatoes, two of the types found their way to Ireland from the New World.

NE student Isabella Parsons said that though she felt a lost connection to her Native blood through erasure, she felt a sense of enlightenment. Being able to educate herself more on original Native knowledge made her realize what she unknowingly did have a connection to, like the potatoes.

“You always think ‘Irish, Irish, Irish,’ and that’s part of my dad’s history,” she said. “So, I was always thinking ‘Oh, that’s my connection to that!’ and then it was actually,

‘No, that’s my mom’s connection to that!’”

Ranson Mears, another NE student, had discussed his thoughts on Natives gaining more recognition for the things they discovered before Western Europeans, saying they deserved to have more.

“I feel like we stole a lot from them, not just land but ideas, culture, so I feel kind of bad about that,” he said.

Philosophical thought in the New World influenced Western politics, Uhlir said. Freedom and equality were egalitarian concepts to Natives, she said. The Great Spirit created the community as equal, and these ideas existed long before Western philosophers began to explore it.

“We as indigenous populations, we as Native Americans, have affected your everyday life in ways you don’t even realize or understand,” she said. “They get credited to Western inventors or Western discoverers like James Lind with the cure for scurvy.”

NE Intercultural Student Engagement coordinator Marjeanna Burge, part of the Comanche tribe, had considered how people proceed in helping to advocate for more Native voices being heard despite the silence.

“The more that people understand what these things are and become knowledgeable then they can become an advocate for what is going on,” she said.

The most important thing for Uhlir is students staying educated.

“Always my answer as a professor: The more we know about things, study. The more you know, the better,” she said.

Rebecca Slezak/Dallas Morning News/TNS Texas Governor Greg Abbott speaks on Nov. 1, 2022, at Cafe Republic in Fort Worth. Joel Solis/The Collegian

Native knowledge reveals insight to misconceptions

SE military breakfast honors those who served

nected students, faculty or staff members,” McDonald said.

SE Campus hosted a breakfast to honor military service on Oct. 28 and was available to all staff and students and was celebrated as part of TCC’s week long Veterans Day celebration.

SE veterans counselor Christy McDonald coordinated the breakfast. The event was a chance to show her appreciation for the students and staff who have served.

“The event is important to me because it is an opportunity to serve those who have served our country,” McDonald said. “Although I can express my gratitude to our veterans for their service through my words, the event allows me to show appreciation through my actions which veterans have stated are far more meaningful.”

Among those in attendance was SE student Jason Hu, who served in the Marine Corps for four years. He expressed appreciation for events celebrating veterans.

“It’s actually really nice,” Hu said. “One of the things I often talk about is how helpful and supportive the veteran community is here. Doing events like this is a really good way to show people care.”

SE student Robert Harris served 10 years in the Army. His education at TCC is an opportunity to further the knowledge he can provide to his children.

“It means a lot to me,” Harris said. “I’m the veteran of my family so I’m trying to start generational wealth and teach my kids everything. Pretty much teach them everything I’ve learned and further that by coming to college.”

TCC provides several services for veterans to bridge the transition after leaving the service including: counseling, registration assistance and many more. McDonald acknowledged the importance of creating connections for veteran students.

“Connection is considered instrumental in student veterans’ academic and personal success,” McDonald said.

For Hu, these services have been instrumental in easing back to civilian life.

“The support staff here is really great,” Hu said. “The military prepares you so much for everything you do that once you get out, they’re like, ‘alright, here’s your paperwork, bye’ and so it’s really nice to have people sort of ease you back into that space in life.”

With events like these, McDonald hopes to show TCC’s gratitude for veterans on campus.

The military breakfast was one of the events this week that celebrated Veterans Day, with a luncheon being held on Monday at TR Campus.

“The military breakfast is a time to give back to our service members by providing them with refreshments and an opportunity to visit with other veterans or military-con-

Election

“TCC values our veterans because the institution recognizes the sacrifice and service of our veteran students, faculty, staff and community members,” McDonald said. “TCC also acknowledges the skills and leadership qualities veterans bring to our classrooms and the workplace developed during their time in the military.”

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who wanted to help the people of Texas as a whole, and according to him, Beto was the clear choice.

“His [Beto] passion to solve the mass school shooting epidemic we are seeing, as well as fixing the power grid and reinstating a women’s right to choose whether she can obtain an abortion or not, and most importantly his passion to serve all Texans, republican or democrat,” he said.

TRINITY RIVER

Some students like Sembritzky wanted to create the change they needed to start at the top, but others felt that sticking to what is known was the best choice for them.

“Most people I know were voting for Beto, which I thought was really interesting,” said NE student Emily Harrison. “Because for as long as Abbott has been in office he’s done a lot to contribute to Texas, making sure that everyone is safe and mak-

ing sure that everyone is obeying the laws.”

Harrison said she too was nervous about the election this year and wanted to make sure that she made the right decision on the ballot.

“I was honestly anxious as well because I felt like if I didn’t vote for a certain person and they ended up winning I felt like I voted for the wrong person,” she said. Now as the elections have concluded

and the results are in, students are facing the reality of making peace with their votes and coming to terms with how they feel regarding the results.

“As the next few years go on, it will depend how he does things for me to really understand what he’s doing and why he’s doing it,” Harrison said. “It will then make me reflect on ‘Did I regret voting for him or did I like my choice?’”

First-generation students share their struggles, experiences

IRENE DOMINGUEZ

campus editor

irene.dominguez370@my.tccd.edu

At least 50% of students identify as first-generation. This means that neither of their parents obtained a college degree.

TR Campus’ TRiO Student Support Services Program: National 1st Generation Student Celebration was held Nov. 8.

TRiO is a federally funded program serving students who are income-eligible, have a documented disability or are firstgeneration college students.

Chasity Alexander, director of TRiO student support services, welcomed the audience to the event and recognized TRiO participants.

Anthony Walker, director of campus initiatives, introduced several panelists that were there to have a discussion about the struggles of being a first-generation student and how that has impacted their life.

Walker began the discussion by asking the panelists what made them want to go to college, for students at TCC this can be a complicated question.

TR student Dani Mares didn’t know if she was going to be able to go to college or where she would live, but she didn’t let that stop her from forging her own way.

“I never really knew all the opportunities that I had,” Mares said. “I didn’t know that as a first-generation student I could be an educator or a woman in STEM, or a busi-

ness manager. I just knew I wanted to help people with the knowledge I gained.”

Walker said that programs like TRiO and other organizations are very important for representation.

Teague said. “Having family members, mentors and role models who can relate and advise is underappreciated.”

Walker asked the panelists what made them want to go to college in the first place.

Diana Garcia-Allen, vice principal of Young Men’s Leadership Academy, said back in her home state of New York, college was never discussed.

“Moving to the great state of Texas, a whole new world was exposed to me,” she said. “I realized that in order to better provide for my family I was going to have to get a college education.”

Teague has a similar background.

“I always knew I would go to college,” Teague said. “I don’t know why. My parents don’t have college degrees, nor do any of my siblings.”

Teague said it is his children that motivate him to keep going. He has two boys.

For other students, their motivation is their parents. Mares is one of those students.

“My parents are immigrants and worked so hard to give us the life we have,” she said. “I feel like it is up to us to pay it back to our family and take care of them,” Mares said.

ican who obtained citizenship at the age of 19. She knows how overwhelming it all can be.

Speaking up when you need help can make all the difference, she said.

“Don’t be scared to reach out,” Morales said. “Definitely look for resources because they are out there for you as a student.”

South Campus TRiO services coordinator Eliana Thomas is one resource students can utilize. She is a first-generation college student herself and has made it her mission to give back.

Thomas did not have a clear example in her family to show her how to navigate college life. She hopes to prevent students from going through the same thing.

“I knew that I wanted to go to school, but I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” she said. “I just knew that I wanted to help people.”

The TRiO program drew her in because she saw students facing challenges familiar to her own.

“Being able to see individuals who look like you or have similar experiences gives you someone to talk to,” he said.

For many first-generation students, this can be difficult and is one of the hardest parts of their journey. That was the case for TR student Terrance Teague.

“Having representation matters,”

Connect Campus student Amy Morales has similar views. She is pursuing an ITbased degree to expand her career.

“I want to have something I can say I worked for,” Morales said. “I feel like I owe it to both my parents and myself. I don’t want their struggles to be in vain.”

Morales is also a first-generation Amer-

“I know what it is like to be a first gen student, I know the obstacles that we run into,”she said. “I want to be that person that encourages them not to give up. Hold their hand and be somebody that I didn’t have.”

Thomas hopes to see first-generation students reach their full potential.

“I want to see those students that I’ve been advising get to the end,” Thomas said. “Graduate with their associates or transfer out.”

Joel Solis/The Collegian

Joel Solis/The Collegian

SE student Isaiah Moore peruses the buffet table that was provided for breakfast provided at the Veteran’s Breakfast on SE Nov. 9. Everyone was welcome to join.

SE students Robert Harris and Christy McDonald serve themselves breakfast at the SE Veterans Breakfast in ESCT. The breakfast honored veteran TCC members.

Although I can express gratitude to our veterans for their service through my words, the event allows me to show appreciation through my actions which veterans have stated are far more meaningful.

Christy McDonald SE veterans counselor

I want to have something I can say I worked for. I feel like I owe it to both my parents and myself. I don’t want their struggles to be in vain.

Amy Morales Connect Campus student

Students engage in body image discussion

NE attendees address effects of body stigmas

XAVIER BOATNER campus editor xavier.boatner@my.tccd.edu

Body image discussions have broken into the mainstream in the last few years, and people have been taking note.

TCC students shared their opinions on the representation of diverse body types and how media affects people’s perceptions of them.

The idea of building positive body image had its roots in the 1960s when it began as a social movement to eliminate stigmas surrounding overweight individuals. Over time, the definition has become more inclusive and now aims to help people with a wider variety of body types feel included.

According to a 2019 body image survey conducted by YouGov, an international market and research firm, and the Mental Health Foundation, a charity organization focused on promoting good mental health, one in five adults felt ashamed of their bodies.

NE registered nurse Susan Alvarado said that body image is difficult to address.

“Body image is very personal, and unfortunately it seems to be up for opinions by other people,” Alvarado said.

NE student Jane Dent said she believes certain body types haven’t gotten enough representation in the mainstream.

“I feel like averagelooking guys and girls are underrepresented,” Dent said.

“I think really tiny and skinny girls are overrepresented.”

Many factors influence the way certain people with unconventional body types see themselves, she said.

“I think there are factors that affect a person’s body image like the media, how they grew up, their prior health and how they’ve been feeling physically,” Dent said.

Dent believes the stigmas that have developed in society and media can lead to people making judgments about people’s bodies.

“If you’re small, people think you don’t eat enough,” Dent said. “If you’re bigger, people think you eat too much when that’s not always the case. I think people should worry about how they themselves feel physically. I think if you feel good, then you’re good to go.”

Dent thinks body image

representation in the media has improved in recent years.

“I think the media’s moving towards representing more body types,” she said. “It’s better now than it has been in the past, but they could do better.”

NE student Bailey Boulter said the benefit of promoting more body types can help educate various people.

“People can know different kinds of lifestyles,” Boulter said. “They can know what’s healthy and know that all body types are OK.”

Boulter said she’s hopeful for the future of body image and bodypositive movements and representations, specifically in media.

“I think one day, body image representation will not be so black and white,” she said. “I think the media’s getting there.”

Alvarado said she believes people who are selfconscious about their bodies should focus on learning to love themselves.

“I applaud all diversity,” Alvarado said. “People are more concerned about themselves and aren’t really paying attention to you and your body. Celebrate yourself.”

Illustrations by Amanda Tello/The Collegian

Pop punk makes an explosive comeback in album

ALEX HOBEN editor-in-chief alexandra.hoben@my.tccd.edu

A group of Los Angeles punk musicians are shredding their way through an apocalyptic sound track with this debut album.

The band Qbomb started in 2016, and on Oct. 30 they released “Hyperpunk,” their official first album. It includes 12 songs of crunched out, punked out, sci-fi techno melodies, shredding guitars and vocals. These songs are reminiscent of early 2010s punk and mosh pits, but with the sweetness of synths and melodic harmonies.

The album has a definite flow and cohesion to it. Each of these songs has consistent pushing of not only the melodies harmonizing but also the vocalists’ abilities while still sounding like they all belong together. The only main experimentation in this album isn’t through trying new methods to make music, but instead the music genre itself. Because to be honest, who really thinks of pop punk as a popular music genre anymore?

Pop punk music has been dying out as of late, but this new band coming along revitalizes it in a crazily good way. “Poison Pop” reaches into your chest and pulls out that defiance against the system in you while you chant with the chorus. “Insania” tells the relatable story of self-doubt and self-hatred when a project isn’t going in the way it should and gives you a reason to scream out insane for cathartic release.

This album is quintessential punk in its message, and their delivery of these messages was a new and fresher version of the qualities usually associated with the genre. Where there would’ve been a guitar riff, there’s now an added keytar offset with a key change that will blow your mind like in “Insania.”

This album has one of the strongest introductions and sequences that I have seen in a while. The first six tracks all seem to get better with each one that passes. It starts with a song setting up the exposition and tone of the whole album through an announcing format with “Buzzkiller” and just keeps building from there.

The switch from the desperate “Everything is Fine” to the angry “Insania” is just beautiful. The vocal acrobatics in both “Soften the Grave” and “Build a Giant Robot out of Trash” are inspiring, and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget the lyrics “Reduce! Recycle! Revenge!”

The lyrics and stories behind this album are well-thought out and fun, even if their message is incredibly dour. Due to the music being so high energy and upbeat to stay with the punk and metal aspects of it, there’s no time to feel the repercussions of all the anger in the lyrics. Only the excitement and adrenaline that the guitars and drums push out of you.

While the quality is pretty consistent throughout the tracks, there is a bit of a dip in the middle third in the songs in both energy and harmony. “1,000,000 A.D.,” while it added story and world-building to the wasteland, it was a bit clunky to listen to.

The two different dialogues within the robot were very obvious, but got repetitive after a while. The sudden slow down of the

whole song takes the listener out of the rhythm and momentum you just built up with the past six songs building up.

Though there is a definite slow down in the momentum, the album still ends strongly with the last two songs. “Crackershock” has some of the best deep bass singing in the album and is able to use the voices of the three vocalists evenly and meld them with the instruments really well. In the songs before you could tell who was the singer, but in this they all blend so well together it’s hard to separate them. Where the album started with a call of defiance, it ends with an exclamation of having enough. “Overkiller” is one of the grungier and discordant songs on the album and

a strong note to end on. The way the song has run on lyrics and simple but hard hitting chords makes you want to hear what happens next but instead it ends abruptly with the sound of pulling out a plug, as if to say “the album’s done now, go home.”

“Hyperpunk” is an incredibly strong opening album for Qbomb, and their prowess in music shines through with pretty much every song. Here’s hoping this band blows up the charts and the punk scene so there’s a new age of hard-hitting, fun, experimental grunge with the message of raging against the world.

The game is once again afoot for detective Enola Holmes

her personality. She is seen as less a runaway and more like a stubborn, curious and smart woman that her mother molded her to be.

Sister of the famous Sherlock Holmes, the protagonist Enola Holmes from “Enola Holmes 2,” is a cunning, hyper-independent and talented detective.

“Enola Holmes 2” follows her life after she escapes her older brother’s captivity from the first movie. She opens up a business called Enola Holmes Detective Agency, but customers seem to like her last name rather than her skillset. She is often undermined and asked about her brother or told that ‘she is a woman’ in a condescending tone. Eventually she receives a case in which a little girl is looking for her missing sister.

Starring Millie Bobby Brown as Enola, Henry Cavill as Sherlock and Louis Partridge as Viscount Tewksbury, Enola Holmes 2 was even better than the first for a variety of reasons.

Enola has character development that wasn’t seen in the first movie. She struggles with her family, business and asks for help when she needs it. It is new because she was under Mycroft’s control as his ward in the first movie but now, another side of the new detective that is making a name for herself is being shown.

The movie is action-ridden with a sub-genre of romance and each contributes greatly to the film because Enola sees receiving help from her famous brother and pursuing Tewksbury as burdens.

She was raised to be hyper-independent by her mother, learning the art of the sciences, jujitsu, history and more so that she would not have to depend on anyone in her life. Even her name spelled backwards is the word ‘alone’ so it seems as though she was destined to do everything alone.

Her mother says otherwise, suggesting that she find allies and people that she can trust including her brother, Sherlock and Tewkesbury. The realization that she needn’t be alone was a true character development for her and better humanizes and strengthens

In the first movie, Tewksbury is escaping from his family and while Enola helps him do that, a romance brews. The romance is further explored in the second movie and the tension and longing that both of the characters displayed with their acting was beautiful.

The movie is largely focused on finding the girl’s sister however in the moments that Tewksbury and Enola are alone, it seems as though they only see each other, as corny as that sounds. Both Brown and Partridge obviously worked hard on their characters both individually and conducting their chemistry with one another.

Throughout the movie, Enola speaks to the audience and addresses them especially when she is in trouble or is anxious. In a scene where Tewksbury and Enola are dancing, she looks directly into the camera and displays signs of nervousness.

Enola Holmes 2 is one of a kind. From character development to romance it seems the audience begs for more or there wouldn’t be an Enola Holmes 2 to begin with. However one thing that was mildly distasteful was the pacing of the movie.

Don’t get me wrong, the execution of the film was stellar but it read more like a series than a movie. Rather than have Enola solve one case, a series would allow her to explore more and give more to the audience. The pacing was a little too fast and it felt forced a lot of the time, almost like there were too many ideas but a time frame that was too small to execute it in.

All in all it truly was a movie that deserved another following it, I just hope the directors flip the script like Enola’s mother flipped her name, and leave the movies alone.

Photo Courtesy of Qbomb

Hyperpunk is Qbomb’s first official album. The band is made up of Los Angeles-based artists and animators rocking out.

Twitter is in terrible hands and it shows

Twitter is under new management and everyone is feeling his wrath.

On Oct. 27, Elon Musk finished his purchase of Twitter after a six month-long acquisition.

Following the initial announcement of the acquisition, the concept of Musk owning Twitter seemed like a joke. Memes littered social media apps for months. But with the purchase of the site now finalized, the future of Twitter already looks bleak.

Elon Musk is the CEO of several companies, Twitter is simply the newest addition to the list. With an estimated net worth of $148 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, buying Twitter for $44 billion barely made a dent in his fortune.

Musk is no stranger to pulling stunts, prior to his acquisition of Twitter the mogul had amassed quite the platform and attention due to his antics on the site. From tweeting COVID-19 misinformation to offering a grossly oversimplified resolution to the war in Ukraine, Musk’s designer rose-colored glasses has clouded his ability to understand the consequences of his actions.

Though Musk may be a CEO of several companies, his work in cars and rockets does not translate effectively into the media.

Twitter was one of the least censored of social media site. But

VIEWPOINTS

those who participated in spewing hate speech were often suspended or banned from the platform entirely, as observed with former President Donald Trump. With Musk as a proponent

of ‘free speech,’ it comes as little surprise that racist rhetoric has increased. And with little being done to prevent or condemn the hate speech being spread, Twitter is becoming a hostile environment for

all minorities. The NAACP has met with Musk to discuss the increase in hate speech since his acquisition. They acknowledged the sanctity of free speech while also urging Musk not to let Donald

Trump back onto the platform and to denounce further use of it. Musk may have acknowledged the hate speech on Twitter, but holding true to his word to put safeguards on the site is a different matter.

Unfortunately, to some Americans, free speech has become synonymous with hate speech. The fact that Musk’s very presence made racists feel welcomed to share their bigoted opinions already shows what kind of platform he has created.

Perhaps Musk’s most notable offense was laying off thousands of employees. Many former Twitter employees took to the site after discovering they could no longer log on to work.

Employees that have worked at the company for years, contributing hours of creativity, have been fired with no other notice. Musk displayed absolutely zero grace or respect to his employees.

It is evident that Musk’s reign over Twitter has already been problematic, but the future of Twitter seems to no longer be guaranteed. Twitter has always been somewhat controversial, yet somewhat controlled.

Under Musk’s control however, Twitter seems doomed to become a forum where bigots feel entitled to divulge their unsolicited opinions, and employees behind the scenes are exploited for their labor.

There is something exciting about being in a society for your school, living together with the same interests and garnering a sense of community among each other, but it is unfortunate that Greek life societies have such a different reality, a cultish look.

On top of obscene sums of money pocketed by major greek-letter organizations, it’s hard to imagine why anyone would want to live together in one house following far stricter rules than campus living, the social image to keep up, the endless climb. Finding friends is always going to be hard, no doubt, so maybe there’s no right to speak on Greek living.

It just seems that if there were a show of hands in one room, there wouldn’t be a whole ton who made a friend via physical branding or general harassment, though.

That’s hazing —by the way—a practice that has yet to die out, most notably the 2018 incident with a TCU student. Being able to coerce students like that rings a cult shaped bell, right?

Think of Jonestown, the Manson Family, or Heaven’s Gate, all cults with a history of making their members do harmful acts to themselves and others.

Devotion seems like the most crucial component, without that it makes Greek life less credible, it loses the novelty of being

in a sorority or fraternity because you are supposed to be sworn into this exclusive group. Similarly, cults begin to dissipate if there isn’t any serious allegiance to the cause.

So, students are initiated in extreme and odd ways that will ensure their loyalty.

Much like cults, Greek life brings a steady stream of people joining based on hope. There are certain weeks at the beginning of universities’ school year, dedicated to “rushing.”

Most rushers are hopeful and looking for community, since most recruitment is towards freshmen with little to no connections in their new university.

The idea of a sorority or frat demanding a pledge to swear loyalty doesn’t even border a line, the line was way back behind the phrase “pledge” and at this point is in deep weird territory.

Wear a certain color, don’t step on any campus grass, all of these different things something pledges must do. And to think there are things people don’t know about, things the sorority or frat don’t tell people.

Cults have a draw for a reason, people don’t just join them for fun. Greek life’s draw is community and connections. There are special benefits, and because of the amount of charities and donations partaken in, they contribute to the community and in turn the community applauds them. In the end, their name being known is the biggest return.

More people hear about them, and more people want to join.

It’s something that goes far deeper than what’s been touched on, yes, and there may be things about Greek life that will never see the light of day. All people can do is work off of what has been leaked and what is observable, and what’s observable isn’t looking so good, they’re looking a little cultish.

While some may live by the sentiment, “family is everything,” this can be harmful for those who weren’t fortunate enough to experience healthy relationships with family members.

Sayings such as, “you’re nothing without family,” can perpetuate this expectation that families support one another when that’s not always the case. Growing up in a dysfunctional home can make it a treacherous journey to feeling safe in one’s identity especially when so much of it is so closely knitted to those who raised you.

I think it’s important for people to try and consider who’s in front of them when attempting to say something they think may be universal. You are something without family. You have inherent worth as a human being. Families can also be chosen. They don’t have to consist of people you are related to.

Friends and pets can be everything, passions can be everything and things that uplift and empower can be everything. Not everyone has the privilege to say that they came from households that made them feel strong and worthy. Whether the negative experiences were filled with malice or not, it doesn’t change the fact that sometimes mothers and daughters don’t make up in the end.

Sometimes a father isn’t forgiven, and every once in a while siblings find happiness in not having such a close relationship.

Part of what can make growing up a beautiful experience is learning about oneself. Resonating with certain hobbies and interests and recognizing yourself in certain people. Feeling at home in certain spaces. People aren’t bound to their pasts.

The first time I heard the saying was probably in elementary school. Looking back, I wonder if there were any kids who felt out of place because they couldn’t resonate with the idea that parents always put their children first. While there’s value in the message, it’s an easy way to create an opportunity for people to feel outcasted. To teach children, one of society’s most vulnerable groups, that family is everything can actually be quite dangerous. It’s a time in a person’s life when they are trying to figure out what safe is and what it looks like.

The saying can result in a child feeling unsure of themselves and what they are experiencing because they’ve been taught that families love and support one another, as if that’s always the case. Sometimes the saying can be used as a tactic to keep people tied to family dynamics that are filled with toxicity.

Teaching people about their worthiness and importance as a human may be a better sentiment to focus on due to the fact that, no matter what someone has experienced, or where one may come from, it is an individual’s prerogative to define themselves and keep redefining for as long they live. No matter how many families they choose to create along the way.

Markus Meneses/The Collegian

SMITH campus editor hope.smith393@my.tccd.edu

KEYLA HOLMES campus editor keyla.holmes@my.tccd.edu

Students open up about the struggles they face with their non-Western names

the original though.”

that they liked my name and were familiar with it.”

Names have been stripped of their originality and meanings due to their “hard pronunciation” and Americanization.

Whether it be Arabic, Spanish or Vietnamese in origin, for native-born English speakers it is hard to pronounce which leads people with ethnic names a choice to Americanize their names.

SE Campus student Rashwinder Kaur uses an Americanized name but still was able to tie it to its original meaning. The suffix “ras-” meaning sweetness with the suffix “-winder” or “-inder” to make up her name Rashwinder from Punjab.

Being that her name is not of English origin, people mispronounced it her entire life.

“I’m a first-generation American and came here when I was 5 years old,” she said. “I grew up in a predominantly white community where none of the kids were exposed to any cultural names. So, I always had to deal with hearing complete perversions of my name, whether it be students or teachers.”

Kaur proceeded to refer to herself as Rashi, omitting its original pronunciation.

“I genuinely can’t remember a time when I said my first name the way it should’ve been pronounced since it had been butchered since kindergarten,” Kaur said. “I do remember trying to get others to say it in the closest American way possible that was still slightly similar to

She narrated the story of how she was named, being that her mother wanted to name her either Rashmi, Rashmeen and Rasham.

“My mom actually never wanted to name me Rashwinder,” she said. “However, patriarchal customs won over, and my dad and his family chose my name and left me with this. Ironically, no one in the family even calls me Rashwinder. They all just refer to me as Rasham. Even outside of [my] family, I’m never called Rashwinder unless it’s a substitute teacher butchering it beyond recognition — everyone just calls me Rashi.”

South Campus student Fatimah Habeeb immigrated with her parents to America in 2016 and had a more pleasant interaction with native-born English speakers.

The name Fatimah is of Arabic origin meaning the shining one, captivating, chaste and infallible. It also has a religious significance, Fatimah being the name of the daughter of Prophet Muhammad in the Islamic faith.

Habeeb expressed her opinion about her name and how she does not wish for any other.

“I like my name due to the beautiful meaning behind it and feel complimented by it,” she said. “I have never felt like I wanted to have another name. I like my name and am happy with it.”

Like Habeeb, SE student Haneen Alkewaifi is also an immigrant with Arab origins in her name. Her parents named her after the Arabic meaning nostalgia, longing, yearning or loving.

“I Americanize my name because I know it is hard for most American people to pronounce my name’s first letter, so I Americanize it to make it easier for them,” Alkewaifi said.

“When I say my name, some people ask me to repeat it because it is their first time hearing the name Haneen. Some of them ask me what it means, and some of them call me “Honey” because it kind of has the same pronunciation.”

“I always try to explain the meaning behind my name and how it’s originally pronounced in Arabic then they would try to pronounce it the correct way,” Habeeb said. “I felt that they were curious about how it’s pronounced in my culture and felt

When asked whether she would change her name she said that as a kid, yes. However, when she learned the meaning of her name she changed her mind and said that she would never change it despite the wrong pronunciation by nativeborn English speakers.

OLLA MOKHTAR campus editor olla.mokhtar@my.tccd.edu

I like my name due to the beautiful meaning behind it and feel complimented by it.

Fatimah Habeeb South Campus student

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