Issue 29: May 22

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VOLUME 148, ISSUE 29 | THURDSAY, MAY 22, 2025

Second week of Dominguez trial underway, witness and professional testimony examined

As week two of the trial begins, the prosecution and defense focus on the examination of forensic and physical evidence

BY GIA LOOMIS city@theaggie.org After beginning on May 5, the trial of Carlos Dominguez continues to determine his level of guilt in the 2023 serial stabbings case in Davis, which left two dead and one injured.

With Dominguez pleading not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity, the case is currently in stage one: guilt. This stage aims to determine if Dominguez committed the crimes with criminal intent. If found guilty, the case will enter stage two to determine his sanity at the time of the crime. As of May 12, the trial has entered its second week, where it’s focusing on exploring forensic aspects and evidence of the case.

Week one of the trial began with lengthy opening statements from the prosecution and defense that established their case. The prosecution argued that Dominguez premeditated these attacks with willful intent beginning back in 2022. The defense’s opening statement focused on emphasizing the distraught of Dominguez’s mental state during the stabbings. They argued that he was not of sound mind when committing this crime, as he was suffering from a schizophrenic break.

The first week finished off with several witness statements, testimonies from involved law enforcement and the presentation of the believed stabbing weapon. Now, the second week of the trial began on May 12 by bringing more than one dozen witnesses to testify on the forensic evidence aspects of the case.

First, the court heard from Megan Wood, a criminalist from the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office, who was established as an expert witness in DNA analysis. On the stand, Wood recounted her part in processing DNA on several items in the case,

Stabbing suspect Carlos Dominguez (left) listens to testimony while deputy public defender Daniel Hutchinson (right) takes notes on May 7. (Nathaniel Levine / Courtesy, Sacramento Bee Pool Photo) including the knife sheath found by victim David Breaux’s body, which she determined had a high likelihood of containing Dominguez’s DNA. “I did take swabs from the inside and outside of the knife sheath,” Wood said. “When I received a DNA profile, it was a mixture that I assumed were three contributors, at least two male. [...] Then when I compared, Mr. Dominguez was included, and it is

at least 1 times 10 to the 28th times more likely if Mr. Dominguez and two random unrelated individuals contributed to the mixture than three random unrelated contributors.”

Forensic testimonies continued on Tuesday, May 13, with several expert and law enforcement witnesses. One notable testimony of the day came from Heather Tomchick, a criminalist from the United States Department of Justice

Dozens of UC workers arrested while protesting unfair labor practices at May UC Regents meeting

Arrested workers, now released, protested staff vacancies, UC’s hiring freeze, increased healthcare costs and a lack of competitive wages

For the labor story: UPTE-CWA and AFSCME 3299 members were among those protesting the UC Regents meeting. (Christian Cendejas / Aggie)

BY KHADEEJAH KHAN campus@theaggie.org Some two dozen University of California workers protesting alleged unfair labor practices at a UC Regents meeting, May 15, were arrested and charged for disruption of a public meeting and unlawful assembly. Those arrested have since been released, according to a UC San Francisco spokesperson.

The workers, represented by American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299 (AFSCME 3299) and the University Professional and Technical Employees Local 9119 (UPTE-CWA), protested working conditions and called for the UC to engage in fair contract negotiations.

The workers picketed at UC

San Francisco’s campus the morning of the meeting where, at a public comment session, some workers and union members, including AFSCME President Michael Avant Jr., criticized unfair labor practices and the lack of competitive wages that exacerbate staff vacancies.

“13,000 of our members — employees you once called heroes — heroes have left the job in the past three years,” Avant said. “Why? Because our jobs pay 10% less than they did seven years ago. Because we can’t afford housing. Because we are asked to do the jobs of three people. Instead of investing in us, you invest in executives with mass raises and housing assistance they don’t need.”

Following the public comment session of the meeting, protesters began chanting: “Whose university?

Our university.”

“You are welcome to sit and observe this meeting, but you are not welcome to disturb [the meeting],” Regent Janet Reilly said after less than half a minute of chants. “At this point we will recess the meeting, and we will meet in another room.”

The livestream of the meeting paused for 15 minutes while members of the UC Police Department arrested protesters.

In an emailed statement to The California Aggie, a UCSF spokesperson said the UC “supports [their] employees’ rights to engage in lawful protests and free speech activities” while enforcing time, place and manner restrictions.

This past academic year, the two unions have gone on strike four times to protest staff vacancies, interference with workers’ rights, bad-faith bargaining and, most recently, UC’s hiring freeze.

“These are not people that are trying to buy a yacht or a second home or a third home,” AFSCME spokesperson Todd Stenhouse said in an interview with The Aggie. “These are people that are trying to get a roof over their head and sufficient staff to deliver services to the patients and students that they have to look into the eyes of every single day. These are people who are committed to the mission of UC, not just in word, but in deed.”

In an emailed statement from a UC spokesperson, the UC claims to have offered “fair and reasonable” healthcare and wage offers, in addition to increased premium subsidies.

“While disagreements over offers are common in contract negotiations, the University believes the most effective path to resolution is through meaningful counter offers from both sides,” the statement reads. “We hope our unions will engage in this process.”

who evaluated the alleged stabbing weapon. Tomchick explained how her findings showed a strong likelihood that bloodstains in a bag of groceries held

by Dominguez when he was caught were contributed by victim Karim Abou Najm, as well as a possibility of contribution by victim Kimberlee Guillory.

“It is 1,100 times more likely to receive these DNA results if Mr.

Abou Najm and two unknowns are contributors to that mixture than if three unknowns were the contributors,” Tomchick said. “Then I calculated a likelihood ratio of 1.6 for Ms. Guillory, which means it’s an uninformative statistic for this, meaning that there’s no support for inclusion or exclusion.”

Many of the forensic testimonies and evidence presented on Monday and Tuesday increased the likelihood of Dominguez’s involvement in the stabbings. However, this was to be expected as he had already admitted his involvement in the crime.

Finally, some physical evidence was brought into the courtroom on the latter part of Tuesday and Wednesday. A tent of the same make and model that the victim Guillory was residing in when stabbed was examined. Additionally, prosecutors presented the clothes that Guillory wore the night of the stabbing.

Wednesday focused on examining this evidence along with testimony from the detective on the case, Derek Russell. He focused on presenting the clothes that Guillory wore during the attacks while describing his part in Dominguez’s case.

“On the sweater [that Guillory wore] there was blood,” Russell said.

“This shirt also had some blood, it also seemed to be cut, possibly by the paramedics.”

For the remainder of week two, the prosecution and defense will continue to examine evidence and hear witness testimonies. While this is an estimated 10-week case, it is quickly developing.

On Monday, the prosecution states that they may rest as early as this Friday, May 16.

This is a continuously developing trial, follow The California Aggie’s coverage for case updates in the following weeks.

The Davis Collection nears its grand opening

As some stores in the shopping center prepare to open, Davis residents share reactions to the long-awaited development

BY EMME DUNNING features@theaggie.org For the past year, something has been brewing at the site of the old University Mall. Behind construction fences, a major new shopping center has taken shape: The Davis Collection.

For those who have been waiting for the opening since the announcement of the project, they can soon experience the start of The Davis Collection, with some retail stores set to open as early as May 22. As construction crews put the finishing touches on the space, community members have begun to weigh in on the merits and shortcomings of this new space.

Emi Sorensen is a longtime Davis resident and remembers the old development, which featured World Market, Forever 21 and Subway. Now a student at UC Santa Cruz, Sorensen said she was surprised to learn the space was being rebuilt.

“I was honestly surprised that they were trying to make something of that area, but it does just kind of seem like your average outlet mall,” Sorensen said.

“I went to the old University Mall a few times (as a child), but it was always a ghost town.”

Sam Schick, a fourth-year

economics major at UC Davis, believes the current plan for the Davis Collection does little to address the core reasons that University Mall failed and is unsure if the new development will meet the same ghost-town fate.

Schick feels encouraged by the possibility of having more shopping options for students in a town like Davis with a small number of clothing stores, but asserted that the current development reflects a lack of understanding of the needs of the Davis community. With his background in urban planning and extensive knowledge of the housing crisis, Schick believes the city could have better utilized the land that is now The Davis Collection.

“In a city like this where we have a housing crisis and a student housing crisis, we had an opportunity to build a mixed-use development with housing directly next to the UC Davis campus with space for new small businesses in an area that doesn’t really have anything aside from Trader Joe’s and Rite Aid,” Schick said.

Instead of seizing this opportunity, Schick believes the city of Davis replicated an unsuccessful model of bigbox retail that does little to support the needs of its residents and small business owners.

DAVISCOLLECTIONUPDATE on 9

The Davis Collection, a new shopping center by Trader Joe’s, is opening soon.

(Sacha Chickering / Aggie)

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Photo Gallery: Federal funding cuts impact the Yolo County Food Bank

BY CHRISTIAN CENDEJAS city@theaggie.org

See the rest of the photo gallery online:

The California Aggie recently reported on federal spending cuts affecting Yolo County Food Bank. These cuts result in a more than $2 million budget shortfall for the organization’s annual operating budget. This photo gallery presents a visual story of the Yolo County Food Bank’s daily operations and how they would potentially be affected by the spending cuts.

Yolo County appoints new director of Health and Human Services Agency

Effective June 4, Mónica Morales will take on the director role for HHSA AGGIE FILE

LANHUI ZHEN / AGGIE

BY OLIVIA HOKR city@theaggie.org

The Yolo County Food Bank relies heavily on volunteers to put food together for food recipients.

(Christian Cendejas / Aggie)

The Yolo County Food Bank provides food at 21 different sites across Yolo County. (Christian Cendejas / Aggie)

Yolo County recently announced the appointment of a new director of the Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA), Mónica Morales.

The HHSA provides a wide variety of services dedicated to promoting health and safety throughout the county.

The department ranges from services to assist the community with behavioral and mental health, homelessness, substance use, public health and various welfare programs.

Morales previously served as director of the Health Services Agency for Santa Cruz County. She received a master of public administration in public policy and administration from Columbia University and has a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from UC Santa Cruz.

In the press release shared by Yolo County, Chair of the Board of Supervisors Mary Vixie Sandy and County Administrative Officer Mike Webb expressed enthusiasm for Morales’ appointment.

“We are thrilled to welcome Mónica Morales to Yolo County,” Vixie Sandy said in the press release.

“Her demonstrated success in managing complex health and human services systems, along with her commitment to innovation and equity, make her an exceptional choice to lead HHSA. [Morales’] collaborative leadership style and strategic approach will strengthen our ability to serve residents and address the growing needs in public health and human services.”

Webb, who worked for the city of Davis for nearly three decades and recently took the position of

Yolo County administrative officer, reflected on Morales’ work history and professional skills that make her the right fit for the job.

“With her extensive professional experience and leadership in the critical services that HHSA provides to our community, and her expertise in navigating challenging resource constraints, [Morales] is the right person at the right time for Yolo County,” Webb said in the press release. “[Morales’] strategic thinking, collaborative approach, and proactive communication skills will facilitate continued effective and efficient delivery of vital services and partnerships to those most in need.

I am excited to welcome [Morales] on board as a dynamic leader of the Yolo County HHSA team.”

In her previous role as director of the Health Services Agency, Morales directed reforms concerning welfare programs, mental health services, substance abuse, emergency medical services, public health and clinical services.

Morales is filling the spot of Nolan Sullivan, who previously held the position from 2007 until early 2025.

During this time, he was a division director, supervising all of Yolo County’s eligibility and employment programs.

He now works as the director of the Department of Health Services for Sonoma County.

Morales shared her appreciation and eagerness to serve the people of Yolo County and promote health and safety in the press release.

“I look forward to working with the dedicated HHSA staff and community partners to advance the health and social needs of the community in an equitable way during these uncertain times,” Morales said.

Police Accountability Commission reviews complaints toward Davis police The meeting focused on the auditor report review of police military equipment

BY YUENJO FAN city@theaggie.org On May 5, the Davis Police Accountability Commission met to discuss the police auditor update and an annual review of the Davis Police Department’s military equipment.

The police auditor’s report specifically focused on two recent police incidents. The first involved a teenager who claimed to have been stopped and momentarily detained by police on her way home from the convenience store on suspicion of shoplifting. Following this incident, the mother of the teenager reported her concern that this may have been attributed to racial profiling.

Stephen Connolly, an auditor representative, said that the Davis police consequently opened a formal investigation into the issue.

“We were really impressed with that investigation,” Connolly said.

“The allegations of racial profiling and problematic interactions between the police and young people are two very sensitive areas, and this checked both of those boxes. We thought the department was very conscientious about trying to do a thoughtful job of verifying and figuring out what the basis of the young woman’s complaints to her mom had been about.”

Furthermore, the Davis police interviewed the teenager, her mom and a school representative to discuss the incident. Police also looked into onduty officers at the time and the GPS

locations of patrol cars, yet neither fit with the teenager’s claims. Ultimately, Connolly explained how the police could not verify the allegations made by the young woman, though due diligence was done during the investigation.

Commission Chair Dillan Horton brought up his concerns about the difficulties of identifying racial profiling, due to the blurred nature of the issue.

ALLISON VO / AGGIE He specifically noted past incidents solvable problem for the [auditor], but where Davis police had investigated it’s a continuing concern that I have racial profiling but yielded no conclusive when there is a review of this type of evidence. complaint.”

“It makes me worry about a system The second case regarded a call for that we as a society have created where service following a quarrel between two there is an impossibility to determine a Davis residents. This issue arose after the racial motivation, unless it is the most caller felt that one of the responding overt, in-your-face kind of version,” Davis police officers was dismissive Horton said. “I know that’s not a of her and did not take her concerns

seriously.

“While it fell short of being formal misconduct, we certainly thought there was room for counseling the officer, working with him and sharing her perspective a little bit,” Connolly said.

Following the incident, the police attempted to reach out to the woman for further inquiries, but when she refused to participate, the investigation was dropped. Connolly described the approach as “suboptimal,” with the auditor’s report drawing on three different recommended approaches toward a similar situation in the future.

Moreover, the commission also conducted an annual review of the Davis Police Department’s renewal/ usage of inventory deemed as military equipment. Commission Member Mary Bliss pointed out the lack of mentions about police tasers, questioning whether Davis police should keep a closer eye on their usage and stock.

“There’s no policy that I could find on the use of tasers,” Bliss said. “We have three complaints coming up about the use of tasers, [...] and there’s a huge safety issue with it. Not that I think we misuse them, but I do think it is an important thing that I would like us to look at more.”

Aside from this, the Police Accountability Commission did not provide any major pushback or critique on the military equipment review. The Davis Police Accountability Commission meets on the first Monday of each month at City Hall. More information can be found on their website.

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Black Family Day to Who is James B. Milliken, the be hosted on the UC next UC President?

Davis Quad on May 24 With a multitude of issues affecting the UC, Milliken’s history

The event will feature performances, vendors and events to highlight the African diaspora

offers a glance at where the future of the UC system lies

BY RIVERS STOUT campus@theaggir.org

James B. Milliken, the chancellor of the University of Texas (UT) system, is set to start as the new president of the University of California (UC) system this August. As the UC enters a new stage of leadership, we look at where the system stands now and what Milliken’s past may indicate about the direction he will take.

Attendees participate in a line dance as part of UC Davis’ Black Family Day festivities. (UCD Cross Cultural Center / Courtesy) reads. “Over the years, the stage at

BY JESSICA YUNG Black Family Day has featured many campus@theaggie.org legendary performers and speakers, including famed writer and poet Black Family Day, hosted by the Maya Angelou in 1998, celebrating Cross Cultural Center, is set to be held themselves and taking a stand against on the UC Davis Quad on Saturday, historical and cultural exclusion on May 24, from 12 to 8 p.m. The event campus.”

Last year’s Black Family Day will feature speakers as well as vendors selling crafts and food from across the event was canceled due to rain. This year’s event has a rain plan should the African diaspora.

Makhi Jones, program coordinator weather be unfavorable, according to of the African diaspora and Middle Jones.

The headliner for the event is John Eastern, North African and South Asian (MENASA) communities at the Mackk, a Bay Area-based hip-hop and Cross Cultural Center, describes the rap performer. Visitors can also expect event festivities as a celebration open performances from DJ KweKu and Shabbal Dance, a Sudanese and East to all.

“Black Family Day is a day of African dance group based in the Bay remembrance, a day of new experiences Area.

There will also be performances by within the campus of UC Davis for Black families as well as anybody else the UC Davis Majorettes. Majorette who is welcome to come and just is a dancing style that combines parts experience the day and the culture of jazz, hip-hop, marching band and that we’re having,” Jones said. “It’s a contemporary dance. The UC Davis good place for families to come out majorette team is relatively new and enjoy some great food. So we have to campus, having formed earlier some good Black-owned food vendors this year. The Sacramento State that come out, craft vendors who end Stingerettes, another majorette group, up selling their clothing, merchandise are also slated to perform.

Other activities include a that they end up making themselves, Stompfest, an alumni wine and jazz all Black-owned businesses.”

Black Family Day has its roots event held at the Coffee House, a in the picnics hosted by the Black children’s fair with bounce houses, a Student Union in the 1970s, which book talk, recreational basketball and live music from a cover band. sprouted into a larger gathering.

Those interested are encouraged “Black Family Day began in the spring of 1970, when the Black to RSVP for the event on Eventbrite, Student Union held a barbecue on however, it is not required. Students the Quad — though there were only can reach out to Jones, mojjones@ 100 or so Black students at the time,” ucdavis.edu, directly for support and the Cross Cultural Center’s website to collaborate with for future events.

The University of California: Where is it today?

Outgoing President Michael V. Drake became the 21st president of the UC system in 2020; his reasons for stepping down have not yet been made public.

While Drake came in during the difficulties of the early COVID-19 pandemic, Milliken will no doubt face a variety of internal and external challenges.

The last few years have seen several system-wide labor strikes affecting campuses and medical centers as well as protests over a variety of issues, including the Israel-Palestine conflict, transgender rights and immigration policy.

Federal funding cuts and scrutiny from the Trump administration on higher education at large have also placed pressure on the UC and senior administrators on ways to move forward and continue the system’s research and educational missions. In the courts, the UC, alongside other universities, has an ongoing case against the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the National Institute of Health (NIH) for proposed cuts and budget restrictions.

The UC is also facing budget cuts from the state, which, though slightly relieved, will still result in the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars.

The UC has also faced accusations of antisemitic discrimination in the wake of pro-Palestinian protests and encampments.

University response hasn’t been uniform to protests, with some protests over immigration policy and funding cuts having less police presence than others within the system.

James B. Milliken: Who is he?

Throughout his career as an

James B. Milliken, chancellor of the University of Texas system, is set to assume the role of UC President in August.

(Charlie Palafox, University of Texas / Courtesy of UCOP) academic administrator, Milliken has been lauded for his ability to fundraise and increase graduation rates.

Milliken led a campaign that raised over $1.2 billion from 2005 to 2014 as the president of the University of Nebraska. Funds went to various causes, including constructing and expanding academic facilities and sponsoring student scholarships. He also took part in creating the College Bound Nebraska program (now the Nebraska Promise), which greatly lowers university costs for many students.

He is perhaps best known for successfully creating and expanding the Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) at the City University of New York (CUNY), which assists students financially and academically. ASAP saw significant increases in graduation rates across many students, including in other university systems that have recreated ASAP to similar degrees of success.

The UT system has also seen an increase in four- and six-year undergraduate graduation rates during Milliken’s chancellorship.

During his time as CUNY Chancellor from 2014 to 2018, the Professional Staff Congress — a trade union for academic and professional staff — criticised Milliken and CUNY management for slow negotiations. For

his part, Milliken publicly approved of negotiation agreements, expressing satisfaction at their conclusion.

“I am very pleased that [CUNY faculty and staff] voted overwhelmingly to ratify the agreement that their representatives and the University had reached through lengthy and ultimately productive negotiation,” Milliken said in a 2016 CUNY statement.

As chancellor of the UT system, a role he has held since 2018, the two largest labour movements included an employee strike of the UT Dallas student newspaper, The Mercury, in 2024 and a faculty and staff work stoppage in support of pro-Palestine protests that same year.

In a statement from UT faculty, the president of UT Austin (UTA) and UTA administrators were criticized for inviting police to campus. As the chancellor, UTA leadership responded directly to Milliken, though Milliken is not in direct control of UTA. On the student pro-Palestine movement, Milliken has been publicly in favor of students’ rights but critical of the movement in general. While at CUNY, the university conducted investigations into allegations of antisemitism by Students for Justice in Palestine campus organizations.

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ASUCD Senate hears quarterly reports, funds campus bike counters at May 15 meeting The Pantry reported strong volunteer activity and plans for a mobile site; Innovation and Research lab to install bike counters and monitor ridership

BY AALIYAH ESPAÑOL-RIVAS and KHADEEJAH KHAN campus@aggie.org The ASUCD Senate heard multiple quarterly reports on May 15 and passed a bill to purchase and install new bike counters on campus.

Quarterly Reports The Senate first heard a quarterly report from The Pantry. Unit Director Andie Tarabzooni, a third-year economics and communication double major, outlined the accomplishments and goals of The Pantry for next year.

The Pantry had over 250 volunteers this academic year, 29 paid staff members and 36,000 ID swipes from students, according to Tarabzooni.

Additionally, The Pantry saw an increase in its budget for food orders, a larger stock of hygienic products and the introduction of over-the-counter medication.

“Beyond food, there is always advocacy needed for basic needs,” Tarabzooni said. “Even just volunteering is enough.”

Next year, students can anticipate a new mobile pantry, cultural food days and collaborations with registered student organizations (RSOs).

Tarabzooni hopes to increase publicity, procure more volunteers and expand stock in other categories for students.

Afterward, the Senate heard a quarterly report from the Campus Center for the Environment (CCE).

Advocacy Director Arianna Blandon, a third-year environmental policy analysis and planning major, discussed the accomplishments and challenges of the ASUCD Garden, a five-acre community garden where students can buy a plot of land and tend to their plants.

Since fall quarter 2024, the garden has seen 30 new gardeners, new tools and less garden complaints. However, it has also seen a loss of equipment due to the lack of a tool shed.

Set to be introduced at the next Senate meeting, Senate Bill (SB) #88 authored by Senator Zack Dollins seeks to allocate $4,514.73 from the ASUCD Senate reserves for CCE to “revitalize and reimagine the ASUCD Garden.”

“We’re hoping the bill will allow us to put a tool shed in the garden

and replenish the tools we have lost,” Blandon said. “The shed would offer guidance for gardeners and a level of accountability that ensures everyone has equal access to our tools.”

Next, the table heard a quarterly report from the Environmental Policy and Planning Commission (EPPC) from Chairperson Annie Kanjamala.

In the presentation, she outlined the various projects the EPPC underwent and is currently working on, including the Cool Campus Challenge, a sustainability audit and advocacy surrounding the UC Davis-Pepsi pouring rights contract. The EPPC hopes to collaborate with more RSOs and other student organizations to host environmentally friendly events.

From the Coffee House (CoHo), the Senate also heard from Associated Students Dining Services Director Darin Schluep. This quarter saw the reintroduction of Saturday hours for the CoHo and extended hours on special event days like Aggie Day and Picnic Day. Schluep also discussed the introduction of new programs copiloted by their adopted senators, including Senator Lexi Raben’s Share a Table initiative and Senators Jenna Younes and Mia Cohen’s partnership program that allows RSOs to fundraise at the CoHo. Additionally, the CoHo is set to host and cater the ASUCD 530 Market: Asian and Pacific Islander Community Health and Culture Fair on May 30.

Looking ahead, the CoHo continues to work on phasing out single-use plastic bottles and continuing sustainability initiatives with EPPC and UC Davis Sustainability.

Legislation After passing a series of bills, the Senate began considering old legislation starting with SB #81, aiming to restructure the Executive Branch and remove the administrative divisions of Executive Agencies.

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It’s giving unrealistic

If settling feels like a sin, then perfection is an idol

BY NEVAEH KARRAKER nakarraker@ucdavis.edu The perfect school. The perfect career. The perfect home. The perfect partner.

Most influencers on social media post about their surplus of accomplishments and their outlandish income. No matter the type of perfect we see on social media, we all strive to acquire the best possible things in life, and understandably so: If someone else can have that, surely I can, too, right?

Over time, our standards and expectations evolve. The list of what we want grows longer, and the way we want our life to look feels more serene and unreachable. Ironically, while social media encourages us to never settle, it rarely shows us the full picture of all the turmoil and setbacks experienced in the quest for perfection.

We often see adorable videos paired with a cliche “Pinegrove” song, of partners singing “Happy Birthday” while being served breakfast in bed or a student getting accepted into their

dream internship. These wholesome posts all have one motivational caption: “Don’t settle.” Influencers encourage their viewers to exercise perseverance and resilience for what they truly want, whether it’s in their relationship, career or their life goals; It’s a gentle reminder that everyone has self-worth and value, which should guide our decisions.

Yet, the use of this term poses a risk of setting expectations that are unrealistically high. While immediately accepting the first opportunity that comes our way may not be the most beneficial action if it doesn’t align with our goals, we also have to be careful not to dismiss every imperfect option out of fear of settling and missing out. There’s a fine line between knowing your own worth and chasing a level of perfection that doesn’t exist.

When it comes to relationships, we have to hold ourselves to the same standards at which we hold others.

Since no one is perfect, including us, we can’t expect to be with a partner that never makes mistakes and always makes us happy. When it comes down to it, accountability goes both ways.

Homer’s ‘Odyssey’ and the archetype of the siren

The ancient Greek myth of the sirens continues to fuel a harmful portrayal of women in the media

BY JHANA RHODES jsrho@ucdavis.edu If Homer’s “Odyssey” taught me anything, it’s that the unfair stereotype of women as “sirens” is inherently dangerous and manipulative, with a long history dating back to ancient myth. While sirens aren’t the beautiful half-woman, half-fish mermaids prevalent in pop culture today, their original portrayal, immortalized by Ancient Greek poet Homer, depicts a much more terrifying hybrid: creatures with the body of a bird and the head of a woman.

To fully understand the genesis of the siren archetype, we must first look at how society has viewed

voices were their deadliest weapon.

In contemporary versions of the siren, retellings rely more on how these sirens appeared, luring men with not only their voices but their seductive beauty as well. This emphasis on physical beauty as a tool of temptation is what ultimately solidified a harmful archetype imposed on women today.

Even when we aren’t seeing a bunch of mermaids on screen, the archetype is heavily present in modern media tropes.

The femme fatale, the cold and calculating career woman, the black widow — t h e tropes that h a v e b e e n used t o label women are endless.

Another

w o m e n historically. Women h a ve l o n g b e e n c h a r a c t e r i ze d a s irrational and more familiar easily swayed by their example is the “golddesires and, if left digger”: someone unchecked, capable who pursues a of leading men astray. relationship with A real-life example a (wealthy) person of this stereotype for the sole purpose includes (but is not of financial gain. limited to) the witchcraft The trials in Europe and late actress SAVANNAH BURGER / AGGIE North America, where and model, women were accused of witchcraft by Anna Nicole Smith (26 years old at those who feared their sexuality, power the time), was a tragic example of and perceived influence. how unfairly this label can be wielded.

This perception of women likely When she pursued a relationship contributed to the creation of beings and married American businessman like the mythical sirens. However, Howard Marshall (89 years old at the this archetype isn’t unique to Greek time), Smith was relentlessly vilified mythology. There are countless examples by the media. The media’s narrative in ancient and religious texts, such as often focused closely on her supposed the Judeo-Christian narrative of Eve — ulterior motives, without considering a story that has been used historically to her own perspectives or experiences. portray women as temptresses leading This branding ultimately stripped men to destruction or “sin.” her of her agency, reducing her to a Given how society has historically caricature of a woman who used her viewed women, it’s interesting to note physical appearance for financial gain. how the portrayal of sirens has shifted Of course, this issue isn’t unique to over time. Perhaps influenced by rising Smith, as there is an underlying societal mermaid folklore or by varying artistic bias about women who wield power and interpretations, the perception of sirens wealth — prejudices that can highlight strayed from their original depiction, the parallels between the label of the which relied less on their looks and more on the fact that their enchanting SIREN on 9

At the same time, this doesn’t mean staying in a toxic relationship or ignoring clear incompatibilities. Those in a relationship should be rooted in shared morals, not forged merely out of convenience. You certainly shouldn’t sacrifice your core values, but it is equally important to have realistic expectations.

This mindset doesn’t just apply to relationships; It affects many other aspects of our lives. Sometimes, this pursuit of perfection leads us to sabotage our own progress, causing us to put our goals on hold as we endlessly wait for the perfect thing that’s missing. In reality, everything requires a level of sacrifice.

We fear making the wrong choices and experiencing a sense of failure or regret. However, we need to accept that trying and failing at doing what you love is better than failing doing the thing you hate. This is why a growth mindset is essential — life is brimming with opportunities, even though not all of them will turn out how we imagined them to be.

Each closed door is a redirection; Success rarely comes from perfect

STEPHANIE CHAN / AGGIE timing but instead from learning how to pivot, a willingness to grow and the experience of joy from where we currently are. None of us will have that perfect life we desire, and that’s okay. Each one of us was born with different preferences, goals and values — but that’s exactly what makes our journeys so unique and enthralling.

Rather than succumbing to something that goes against our nature or chasing unattainable ideals, maybe a new approach needs to be adopted: one of gratitude — a strong antidote to perfectionism.

Appreciating where we came from and who supported us along the way tethers us to reality. When we learn to value the present moment, peace comes.

In the end, the decisions we make, regardless of whether they’re the correct

one, will ultimately lead us to exactly where we need to be.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

Our silence speaks volumes Parallel play as an adult model of social intimacy

BY ABHINAYA KASAGANI akasagani@ucdavis.edu So much of my adult life has been informed by the enclosure of my friendships within four walls, stationed in the same room and space. I do not think I understand much about the world outside of two girls sprawled across the floor listening to Fenne Lily sing “Car Park,” or rewatching the first season of HBO’s “Girls.” The continual influx of friends through my door — with no expectation of worldliness from me — is why I am able to hold this happiness in the palm of my hand.

In the simplest of words, parallel play is primarily about “children playing independently in the same area, with the same materials, but with minimal engagement with one another,” according to the Neurological and Physical Abilitation Center. What initially starts with building blocks or coloring, with the passing of age, transforms itself into more interactive play, becoming extremely valuable in adulthood.

For children, the integration of parallel play into their playdates comes more organically. Free from implicit biases or inhibitions, they prioritize physical presence over communication.

The inclination for parallel play in adult relationships, however, often gets overshadowed by our need for more structured interaction or socialization, where we are often predisposed to evaluating our friendships based on the depth of conversation and shared activity they provide.

You pencil your friends in for coffee, meals or drinks, demanding from these relationships constant engagement that can be overstimulating and overwhelming for both parties. This expectation of conversation inhibits your relationship and, as a result, pressurizes it. Parallel play offers you an alternative: low-pressure intimacy.

This approach to social togetherness can allow you to be present and meet more realistic demands, while simultaneously reevaluating your own, without the constant need for dialogue or active engagement.

The need for new models of social intimacy is a byproduct of the quickness with which the world is evolving and changing. The COVID-19 pandemic only accelerated this shift, forcing many of us back into our holes of solitude (which were, more often than not, computer screens), making it difficult to readjust to the constant flux of information we were bombarded with.

Parallel play antidotes these overstimulating settings, allowing us

NOVA MAI / AGGIE to recognize the importance of finding new ways to connect with one another that don’t require consistent verbal interaction. Moving away from the traditional approach to “quality time” that hinges on shared conversation can lead to rewarding moments of closeness — the anxiety that comes with keeping up the conversation and constant performance is done away with.

The beauty of this model is that it not only manages your anxieties regarding your relationships but also allows you to remain accountable.

Modern adulthood looks dystopian at times, with lives distilled through layers of media — you never fully know if you or others are being taken at face value. Interacting within a common space like this allows you to prioritize your time: you might read together, work alongside one another or finally devote yourself to a hobby you’ve always wanted to learn. What was once the stress of overscheduling or the insistence that “quality time” be of high quality now requires no planning.

Many already participate in forms of parallel play without considering it as such. The appeal of parallel play as an adult model of social intimacy eliminates further pressure within social settings for introverts, allowing them to enjoy the company of others without the expectation for reciprocity — engagement is encouraged at your own pace.

The science behind parallel play suggests that non-verbal communication

can strengthen social connection, not only through the release of oxytocin, but also through the theory of attachment, which claims that presence stimulates feelings of safety, familiarity and trust. The practical implementations of parallel play include but are not limited to: social media-free gatherings, collective hobbies, book clubs, silent retreats, craft nights, walking and yoga.

Inculcating this method of play is fairly easy for those who find themselves able to limit their use of technology and maintain a healthy work-life balance.

The primary challenge with embracing parallel play as a social model is overcoming the misconception that intimacy inherently demands interaction. Some might feel as if, by not speaking, the relationships lack an arbitrary fundamental element — this is not necessarily the case. Understanding that being present is what’s most necessary to foster intimacy can help veer one away from this school of thought.

The rediscovery of parallel play provides adults with access to novel vocabulary to define social intimacy, suggesting the cultivation of meaningful and wonderful relationships without an itinerary. Listen to the loudness in the silence, and hear it speak volumes.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

HUMOR

100 men versus the Primate Research Center Who will win?

JASON XIE / AGGIE

BY ALLISON KELEHER adkeleher@theaggie.org

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

Recently, there’s been some rumbling caused by grown men on social media, who think that they could collectively take down a single gorilla.

Not only is this troubling because it promotes violence, but the poor gorilla would be forced to interact with 100 men at once.

I thought we were safe here at UC Davis, since those in higher education should surely understand that they don’t stand a chance against a 400-pound gorilla. Unfortunately, a cohort of male students has proved me wrong. One of my spies informed me that a secret society has appeared on campus, and they are planning to find a gorilla to take on. Since trends are so fleeting, these students wasted no time getting together to plan their gorilla excursion.

I have confirmation that they have met bi-weekly for the past three weeks.

To make things even more juicy, I got tipped off that this secret society was planning to take on a gorilla that same night. Naturally, I, informing no one, took matters into my own hands.

Armed with my notebook and night vision goggles, I prepared to follow these men to their demise.

Many are probably wondering where these men would find a gorilla in Davis. Another source of mine told me that, in their first secret society meeting, the men searched “gorilla near me” on Google and, surprisingly, received no results. Without a gorilla in their sights, they did the only thing that felt right — they decided to break into the UC Davis Primate Research Center in hopes that the facility would have a gorilla just lying around.

Unfortunately for these men, I happen to know that the Primate Research Center does not have a gorilla.

I followed the men in my Jeep Grand Cherokee all the way to the Primate Research Center. Normally, I tailgate people with my brights on, but I thought it would be better to follow at a safe distance to maintain my secrecy.

One of these men miraculously had a key to the Primate Research Center, and they all filed in one after another.

They were wearing black ski masks (classic) to conceal their identity, which was perfect, because I was able to put one on and blend in with the group.

Dare I say 101 men versus one gorilla?

Unfortunately, I wasn’t there to help them — I was there to watch and secretly take notes — so they were on their own with the imaginary gorilla. I watched

as they filed through different labs and found no gorilla fighting ring. Even with the ski masks covering their faces, I could tell that they were disappointed.

When they reached the final lab room, it was becoming glaringly obvious that there was no gorilla. The men sighed in disappointment and looked around at each other, searching for something to do or say.

That was when a couple of the men started interacting with monkeys in the lab. It appeared that the monkeys and the men had many things in common.

So, when it was time to leave, the men felt an overwhelming amount of sadness to let their new friends go. Until one of them said, “Guys, what if we took the monkeys with us?”

With that, it took very little convincing to get all 100 of the men to pick a monkey to take away from the lab. Nestled on their shoulders, it appeared that the monkeys were also enjoying their rescue. One by one, the men filed out of the Primate Research Center, each with a monkey on their shoulders. None of them had a care in the world about what would happen next, because all they needed were their newfound primal friendships.

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

THURSDAY, MAY 22, 2025 | 5

OPINION EDITORIAL

Violent attacks and political movements against women are a result of widespread rightwing extremism

Reproductive injustice in red states and the recent bombing of a Southern California fertility clinic are part of a dangerous national trend WRITTEN BY THE EDITORIAL BOARD

On May 17, 2025, a Southern California fertility clinic was damaged by a bombing labeled as “an intentional act of terrorism” by the head of the Los Angeles Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) field office.

The clinic, American Reproductive Centers located in Palm Springs, was left with significant damage, and four individuals were injured.

The alleged perpetrator died in the bombing and had attempted to livestream the attack; his online writings included nihilistic, antinatalism views. In other words, the suspected bomber believed that reproduction was unethical and that life was meaningless. The attack on the fertility clinic was, according to investigators, a targeted act.

In the United States, we are seeing a rampant epidemic of right-wing extremists who act on their ideologies with violence. Directly following the 2024 election of President Donald Trump, researchers and educators found a drastic increase in misogynistic attacks. With political leaders like Trump and Elon Musk and other figures in the public sphere like Charlie Kirk and Andrew Tate, it has become

easier for men to be influenced and inspired by hateful, sexist rhetoric.

The bomber’s online writings, including social media posts and a manifesto, are another unfortunate example of this violent trajectory.

“Today, we basically have a [doit-yourself ] (DIY) ecosystem where lone folks can engage in conduct that previously tilted more towards groups and small cells,” an expert said in an article by The Los Angeles Times.

“There’s a whole cauldron that involves radicalization, misinformation, legitimization of violence as a method within this grievance set and that’s what you have.”

Additionally, the overturning of Roe v. Wade — a decision made by a Supreme Court with three out of the nine justices appointed by Trump in his first presidency — has yielded continuous ramifications in the country, predominantly against women. Without the constitutional right to abortion, right-leaning states have instituted laws that take away an individual’s right to choose.

In Georgia, a “heartbeat law” dictates that pregnancy cannot be terminated after about six weeks when a fetal heartbeat is able to be detected.

A woman in Georgia, Adriana Smith, was declared brain dead at nine weeks pregnant. Smith’s body has been kept alive for three months following her

brain death without the consent of her family.

At this time, the health ramifications for the fetus are unclear, and various experts have weighed in on the possible complications that may arise throughout the duration of the pregnancy. The medical prognosis already stands on shaky ground, and the ethics of using a woman’s body as a human incubator to maintain fetal life until viability are non-existent. With this decision, it has been made clear that a nine-week-old fetus has more rights than its mother.

Without the ability to hold a funeral service and with constant visitation, Smith’s family has been unable to fully grieve her death. Even though the fetus is without thought, feeling or otherwise any significant human consciousness, medical professionals and lawmakers have decided that a brain-dead pregnant woman can be used as an object for birth — for the simple fact that she no longer has the ability to not provide consent.

The only individuals in the country whose bodies can be used in death to sustain another potential life are women. In the United States, it is clear that women cannot trust their bodily autonomy and freedom of choice to be respected by medical professionals or government officials, even in death.

Following years of social progress, the recent trend of growing sexism and misogyny is disgusting and terrifying.

In an NBC News poll, it was found that the divide between young men and women on various political issues was larger than any other surveyed age range.

With Generation Z expected to have been the most progressive generation yet, it turns out that progressive views are championed by young women and abandoned by young men. While statistics like these are not cause for generalizations of either gender, it is clear that there is a higher percentage of right-leaning young men and of left-leaning young

women than the alternatives. Not only is this disappointing, it is a serious cause for concern.

The U.S. is a terrifying place to live in for women, and it is vital that we do not ignore this trend toward misogynistic rhetoric and violence.

With right-wing extremism, targeted violent attacks against women and the

objectification and abuse of women’s bodies on the rise, the Editorial Board urges you to not fall victim to this nationwide movement. Respect the women around you, remain educated on political developments and think critically about how the media you engage with influences your belief system.

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

To our readers, thank you

The California Aggie has grown so much this year, all thanks to your support

BY CHRIS PONCE editor@theaggie.org Dear Readers, Firstly, thank you for your continued support and readership.

For the last 100+ years, this newspaper has been serving the campus and local community — we are proud to be your trusted source of news in Davis. Believe it or not we are quickly approaching our last few issues of the academic year. Don’t worry, we aren’t going anywhere, but the end of this school year is almost here.

That being said, I wanted to write this letter to highlight some of our accomplishments and share some updates with you.

On May 7, the ASUCD Senate passed our 2025-2026 operational budget. One of my goals as Editorin-Chief this year has been to be transparent. So I admit, the budget process was not an easy accomplishment, but it is one we take pride in. Frankly said, without your continuous support, we wouldn’t be where we are.

We had reason for serious concern regarding support for our proposed budget before the first round of budget hearings, so we responded with an editorial explaining the process and calling for ASUCD to support our operations. Our editorial was signed in support by several student newspapers including: UC Irvine’s New University, UC San Diego’s Guardian, UC Berkeley’s Daily Californian and UCLA’s Daily Bruin.

The New University even wrote an editorial of their own regarding our print operations.

It’s been a long journey, but we are proud to share that next year we will be able to maintain our print operations and compensate our staff. I’m proud to share that next year we will be reintroducing paid positions that had been lost in the previous years. Thanks to your support we will be able to hire a new media manager, a videographer, an assistant layout manager, paid assistant editors and more. If you’re interested in any of these roles be sure

to follow https://vacancy.ucdavis.edu.

In other news, we also recently hosted our first alumni conference.

Our panel consisted of Sacramento Bee Visuals Editor Nathaniel Levine, former Editor of the Almanac Angela Swartz and Pulitzer Prize Winner / San Francisco Chronicle Investigative Reporter Matthias Gafni — all California Aggie alumni. I’m grateful for all those who could attend and

forever thankful to our staff who helped me organize this event. This was certainly one of my highlights during my time at The Aggie.

I’ve dedicated myself to this newspaper for the last four years and I’m proud to share that in my time as Editor-in-Chief I’ve seen our newspaper grow so much. In my time at this paper, one thing has been constant: we have some of the most

talented staff and loyal readers that any publication could wish for. I don’t anticipate this changing anytime soon.

If this is my last letter from the editor, I’d just like to say thank you.

Maybe you only pick up this paper for the crossword, maybe you’re a Davisite who reads us every Thursday, whoever you are, this newspaper will always be for you. No matter who you are, dear reader, thank you.

Best, Chris Ponce Editor-in-Chief If you ever wish to reach out to me, please send me an email at editor@ theaggie.org.

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

6 | ITHURSDAY, MAY 22, 2025

ARTS & CULTURE

BY CHRIS PONCE arts@theaggie.org

Movie: “Sinners” dir. Ryan Coogler (2025) Before I start this review, please go watch this movie. It’s still in theaters, so put this newspaper down, skip your next class (or two) and go watch “Sinners” right now. Okay, you’re still here, so hopefully you have some time before the next showtime. “Sinners” is one of the best horror/thrillers to be released this year. Starring Michael B. Jordan as our twin protagonists (Parent Trap style), the film puts a new spin on a classic horror set up. The film discusses race, class, family and the interconnectivity of music. Before the inciting incident, “Sinners” gives ample time to familiarize the audience with the movie’s ensemble set of characters. While “Sinners” tackles a classic horror concept that’s been done before, it does so in a way that feels fresh and original. I’m trying my best to not spoil this movie before you see it, so please do yourself a favor and see it in theaters.

Movie: “Bring Her Back” dir. Danny and Michael Philippou (2025) From the directors of “Talk to Me” (2022) comes their next horror film which explores themes of grief, family and acceptance. I was able to see this movie as part of Cinemark’s monthly mystery movie (this is not sponsored, but it’s really awesome) and I was taken aback. This film was not only terrifying but uncomfortably relatable in the ways it explores losing a loved one and how essential acceptance is in the stages of grief.

If you are not a horror fan, I’d recommend sitting this one out, but I recommend this movie if you’d like to see these themes explored further.

And again, please see it in theaters.

Book: “Sunrise on the Reaping” by Suzanne Collins Yes, this book has been talked about enough already. Even our own staff has written great reviews on Suzanne Collins’ new installment of “The Hunger Games” series. But, I’m still going to rant about it because this book has consumed me. As Collins writes her books with an explicit purpose each time, “Sunrise on the Reaping” is no exception. This book tackles themes of censorship and propaganda. We learn that the history we knew about the Hunger Games is not entirely accurate, with the reveal that there have been attempts at resistance in the nation’s past, long before the events of the original trilogy. Sometimes change takes time, sometimes change fails and sometimes we can’t see the results of our resistance in our own time. “Sunrise on the Reaping” explores these themes and then some.

The Basement Gallery and Open Walls Collective come together to celebrate graduating student artists, senior show at Pence Gallery on June 7 Board members speak to the significance and process of the upcoming collaborative event

BY SAVANNAH ANNO arts@theaggie.org Creating their own portable gallery walls from the ground up and converting the Art Building’s basement into an exhibition space, neither Open Walls Collective (OWC) nor The Basement Gallery (BG) are unfamiliar with bringing a complex vision to life.

This June, the student-led organizations will be teaming up to showcase the work of graduating UC Davis artists, displaying as many different mediums, voices and themes as possible.

“We had multiple meetings during winter quarter to discuss potential collaborations,” Lead BG Director Shaelyn Smith, a fourth-year art studio and design double major, said. “Once we were introduced to the idea of creating a joint senior show at the Pence, we were sold. Bringing graduating student artists deeper into their professional practice excites us, so we figured this show would be a very fitting send-off.”

In the planning process since March, the senior show will be hosted at the local Pence Gallery. While it will be The Basement Gallery’s first time curating a space outside of their homebase, Open Walls Collective previously worked with the Pence Gallery to host “Are you better than AI?,” an interactive exhibition including one secretly Artificial Intelligence produced work.

“One of the key differences this year is our mindful curation,” Open Walls Collective member Krishna Das, a fourth-year art studio major, said. “I made an effort over the past few quarters to pay close attention to my peers’ unique voices and mediums, and it’s important to us that the spotlight we are creating for our community highlights how they want to be seen.”

Crediting the Pence’s Education Director Katharine Schultz, a UC Davis alumna and past member of BG, for the opportunity, OWC will return to the space in hopes of building even

The Basement Gallery’s board. (Basement Gallery / Courtesy) greater momentum as an emerging art collective.

“It’s exciting,” Das said. “She once helped run The Basement Gallery as a student, and now she’s generously providing us with the space to showcase the incredible talent of our graduating seniors. Through this collaboration, we all want to establish a working relationship between the undergraduate community and leading local, regional

entities.”

With enough space to fit both organizations’ ideas and curation practices, the June 7 senior show is projected to be one of the largest events yet for both groups.

“In The Basement Gallery, we usually try to choose a proportional number of mediums based on what’s submitted and at least three sculptures to fill our space,” BG Director of

Communications Abby O’Sullivan, a third-year art studio and cinema and digital media double major, said.

“However, at the Pence, we have a lot more room to fill and are thrilled to be able to accommodate as much work as we can. This show is a celebration of everything these seniors have accomplished, and it’s important to include as much of their work as we’re able to.”

No stranger to the concept of a senior show, The Basement Gallery has been inviting groups of graduating art studio majors to exhibit their final works for years. Hosting a different show almost every week of each spring quarter, BG allows student artists to experience the process of creating an exhibition from start to finish: the artists curate, install, host and de-install their own show.

Lola Jung, a fourth-year art studio major and BG preparator, who last year referred to herself as “The Basement Gallery’s biggest fan,” discussed the value of the senior shows in a past interview with The California Aggie.

“I love the student-centered nature of it all,” Jung said. “I think it’s really good at actually preparing art students for a future career. A big factor that college art curriculum lacks in general is practical application, actually getting involved in the art world, in the people, and actually setting up art in a gallery.”

In this new expansion of senior shows into the Pence, soon-to-begraduated students will be able to see their work celebrated and curated within a professional art institution, furthering the BG and OWC’s collective mission to highlight and set artists up for success beyond their time at UC Davis.

Months in the making, The Basement Gallery and Open Walls Collective continue to plan and curate the upcoming show, currently working through a long list of art submissions.

“As a third-year, I feel like this show will be incredibly bittersweet for me,” O’Sullivan said. “I’m so proud of us and everything we’ve accomplished, and this show is going to be a celebration of us.

The Pence show will give us one last chance to put an exhibition together while spending time with each other.”

Join both organizations as they reveal the final coalescence of student artists’ unique and moving works on June 7 at the Pence Gallery.

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

THUSRDAY, MAY 22, 2025 | 7

Stay Unkempt: Debating college students for Davis Feminist Film fun and profit Davis students discuss the popularity of online content Festival celebrates UC showcasing debates on university campuses its 20th year Davis Feminist Film Festival interns and director share their process in coordinating the festival event

This year’s Feminist Film Festival with the theme “Unkempt.”

(Sonny Baker / Courtesy)

BY EVELYN SANCHEZ features@theaggie.org Hosted by the Women’s Resources and Research Center and sponsored by the Manetti Shrem Museum, the Davis Feminist Film Festival (DFFF) celebrated its 20th anniversary on the weekend of Friday, May 9 and Saturday, May 10.

With a team of eight interns led by a graduate director, the festival’s theme, “Unkempt,” showcased feminist films from around the world. This year’s grassroots event featured projects that represented the messiness of gender, bodies and nature.

Beginning as a fundraiser for the Gender and Global Issues program in 2005, the DFFF amplifies personal, intimate and political projects, seeing 1,182 submissions from 88 countries.

Outreach and Marketing Coordinator Sonny Baker, a second-year English and cinema and digital media double major, offered their sentiments on the outcome of the event.

“I’m really, super happy with how everything turned out and how much energy people put into stuff this year, especially with how [large] the turnout was,” Baker said. “This is our biggest festival yet.”

With an estimated 130 attendees on Friday night alone and film selections from countries from Canada to Iran, success for the festival represented something more for the team. With DFFS occurring during a troubling political climate for women and queer people, Baker finds it more important than ever to celebrate marginalized voices and their work.

“There are stories that are not going to get told through the general media that need to be told,” Baker said.

Having the final say on the selections, Co-Curator Ngoc Tran, a third-year Asian American studies and psychology double major, elaborated on the process of the film selection.

“We work to screen most of the films so that we can decide which ones we want to put in the lineup,” Tran said. “We also develop the theme surrounding the festival. We don’t necessarily pick films that are supposed to be exactly aligned with the theme, but we use it to frame our thinking and curation process.”

The approach to film curation also resonated with Aaron Benedetti, the director of DFFS for the past three years, who is a UC Davis Ph.D. candidate in cultural studies and feminist theory.

“Directing the festival has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my time as a graduate student here at UC Davis,” Benedetti said. “On the one hand, I am able to experience and curate a huge variety of really fantastic independent feminist films.”

Similarly to Baker and other interns, the messages that are conveyed through works made for and by marginalized voices resound with Benedetti, encouraging him to work diligently to promote the messages.

“Queer [and] feminist stories, onscreen and off, have always really interested me and affirmed me at different points in my life,” Benedetti said. “To help plan and execute an event that uplifts this kind of art is extremely rewarding and politically meaningful.”

A personal connection underscores the team’s relationship with the film. With “Unkempt” focusing on reimagining, redefining and reclaiming established systems, DFFF allows for the dominant perspective to be challenged.

“The theme is collectively agreed upon,” Baker said. “The way we choose our films is between a thousand submissions that get pre-screened to fit our criteria, which has to be about women or a minority group of [people of color], queer or transgender peoples.

We had about 100 films get through that prescreening.”

Baker continued to outline the selection process, highlighting a personal favorite film.

“Then, the interns take teams of two and go down the list and watch them, rating them one through five,” Baker said. “My [ranked] five pick is actually going to be filmed at the end of the day, which is ‘Mpamosavy.’ It’s my favorite, and it is phenomenal.”

“Mpamosavy,” directed by Arielle Lone, follows the events of the French occupation’s massacre of Malagasy rebels in 1947. The film contrasts the past experiences with present-day descendants, following the Mpamosavy’s revenge as history repeats itself.

“Unspoken injustices inspire me to create,” Lone said in the festival’s written program. “My goal is not to victimize Madagascar to glorify the violence, but to denounce it. To confront the audience with reality, I must show the horrors of history.”

Benedetti also shared one of his standout selections screened during the festival.

“One film that especially stuck with me this year was ‘Desync,’ directed by Minerva Marie Navasca,” Benedetti said. “She and her co-writer, Chen Sing Yap, created a film about how something as personal as your relationship with your mother can be tightly coiled up with historical forces that appear very impersonal or distant from us — like colonialism, capitalism, eugenics [and] histories of exploited labor. It’s important to recognize that the specifics of those experiences are particular to the Filipina and Filipina Canadian women in this film.”

With such careful effort being placed on curation and design, Nico Singh, a first-year biomedical engineering major and a general graphic designer for the festival, shared their experience with designing the messiness of the theme.

“We picked ‘Unkempt,’ because we’re really trying to focus on intersectionality and this inherent messiness [and] taking pride in that,” Singh said. “A lot of that came down to reclaiming our roots and embracing the natural world. So, when I was doing a lot of the design work, I interpreted that as plant life and growth, and we knew that eco-feminism was also something that we really wanted to highlight for the festival. Keeping that in mind, I knew that we wanted a lot of those lineheavy images.”

The year’s program was also a highlight of the event. The booklet, containing all of the screenings and directorial biographies being featured in the festival, interwove the Unkempt theme within its pages.

“One of the definitions of Unkempt that really stood out to me was the hair,” Cassie Ngo, a third-year design major and the festival’s program designer, said.

“Because of a lot of colonial views of hair, when women of color are in their natural state, their hair is curly, frizzy and unkempt, but with a negative connotation. We wanted to reclaim that.”

The program is designed elegantly with many forms of lines running through all pages, where Tran deliberately drew splintered cracks on the page of films that all dealt with breaking — whether from the cracking of a pot or a shattered mirror, there was much deliberation in the design of the festival.

“This inherent messiness is boiled down right into our core,” Singh said.

“It’s written into our DNA. Unkempt is a fundamental part of every living thing, so I wanted the graphics to reflect that.”

The Davis Feminist Film Festival is an important platform on campus that continues helping to tell stories about people whose stories are not normally told, including communities outside of Davis. For those interested in interning for DFFF, visit the Women’s Resources and Research Center’s website or visit their Instagram at @femfilmfest.

BY LAILA AZHAR features@theaggie.org

It’s a familiar scene by now: a well-known media personality stands confidently amidst a crowd of college students, as a well-meaning but perhaps slightly overconfident undergraduate attempts to articulate a point about gender identity or racial equity.

The student stumbles, backtracks, reaches for the right phrase. The crowd jeers and boos. Phones are out. Later, the footage will appear online under the title, “Woke college student destroyed by facts and logic,” or perhaps, “College social justice warrior gets owned in debate.”

Online personalities from across the ideological map have found that debating their opposition makes for reliably popular content.

Dean Withers, a popular livestreamer, often debates conservatives through TikTok Live. Jubilee, a digital media company with nearly 10 million subscribers on YouTube, has found success producing videos such as “1 LGBTQ+ Activist vs 25 Conservatives” and “Should the U.S. Deport Its Citizens?”

College campuses are a popular battleground for these debates, and college students are a popular opponent.

Popular political commentator Ben Shapiro is known for his debate-style online content, often involving college students. One of Jubilee’s most popular videos, with nearly 30 million views, is “Can 25 Liberal College Students Outsmart 1 Conservative?”

Several of these debate-style videos have taken place at UC Davis, particularly in recent months.

In 2023, Charlie Kirk, co-founder of the political organization Turning Point USA and the “1 conservative” in the aforementioned Jubilee video, hosted a Q&A session at UC Davis, posted to YouTube as “Charlie Kirk debates College Students At UC Davis.”

This month, YouTuber and political commentator Brandon Tatum, otherwise known as The Officer Tatum, has posted videos including “Antifa Punks TRIED ME at UC Davis and FAFO!” and “Officer Tatum BATTLES HEATED Antifa Activists at UC Davis.”

Some UC Davis students have reported being approached on campus by people with microphones and cameras to film similar content.

As Sneha Manikhandan, a secondyear neurobiology, physiology and behavior major, recalled, she and a friend were approached for a video as

they were leaving the Memorial Union.

“The interviewer asked if we would be willing to participate in a five-minute interview and when asked what it was about, we were told it was about relationships and our ‘icks,’” Manikhandan said. “The more the interview went on, the more controversial the questions got, diving into gay marriage, men wearing makeup and my political viewpoints. These were topics I was not prepared to speak about, given that I was misled as to what the interview was about.”

About a week later, Manikhandan’s friends began sending her the two clips from the interview which had been posted on TikTok and Instagram.

“I don’t believe that my views were effectively communicated through the videos that the interviewer shared with his viewers as he clipped the segments of the interview that could be considered more controversial without giving the background of the conversation leading up to it,” Manikhandan said.

Manikhandan reported that while one of the videos received supportive comments, the other was met with thousands of negative comments, including some expressing racist sentiment toward her.

As students have pointed out, it often seems like the goal of these videos isn’t good-faith exploration of controversial issues, or even to persuade those with differing views.

To Nicole Lee, a second-year

political science major, the goal seems to be simply entertainment.

“I worry about the people whose only way of being politically informed is through influencers,” Lee said. “It’s easy to see why people enjoy watching this content. It’s entertaining to watch people dunk on opinions you disagree with; It affirms your own beliefs and makes you feel smart. But that’s all it is: entertainment, not education.”

Lee went on to detail reasons why this content may be considered unfair.

“These people whose job is to talk in front of a camera debating a college student with no experience in the media is clearly unfair,” Lee said. “But even if it was a debate between two people on an equal playing field, the person with the camera still gets to edit the video and frame it however they’d like.”

Emerie Elrod, a second-year cognitive science major, pointed out that the people who create this content are often intentionally inflammatory.

“I don’t think the debates we see on TikTok are genuine,” Elrod said.

“The end goal of these creators is to get as many views and likes as possible.

Involving controversial topics makes viewers upset, therefore getting the video more engagement.”

With this in mind, she recommends students ignore creators seeking out debates.

ONCAMPUSDEBATES on 11

DARIXA VARELA MEDRANO/ AGGIE

UC Davis students set to leave for annual Houseboats trip Memorial Day weekend

Students describe the experience planning for and going on houseboats

BY GRACIELA TIU features@theaggie.org Each Memorial Day weekend, many UC Davis students head to Lake Shasta for Houseboats — a highly anticipated, student-organized tradition centered around rented houseboats, partying and fun. While the trip is known for its craziness, students say it requires just as much planning and awareness as it does excitement.

Greek life organizations are often primarily associated with the event, but many other campus organizations and sports teams participate in the weekend as well.

“It’s definitely people in Greek life,” Liesl Steffenson, a fourth-year animal science major, said. “There’s also a lot of sports teams that go, and social clubs, too. Another group that always comes is Oregon students — they’ll show up around the same time, usually for the same weekend.”

The process of organizing a boat varies depending on the group, but planning usually begins weeks or even months in advance.

“This year, me and my friends are doing our own boat,” Steffenson said.

“We had to go to Costco, organize food, rent the boat, pull together a security deposit; It’s a lot. And then there’s driving, figuring out who’s bringing what — it takes real coordination.”

Some groups choose to partner with other organizations when renting out boats.

“I went with a [fraternity], and they had multiple boats,” Giselle Choi, a second-year managerial economics major, said. “They just balanced it out to make sure there was an equal number of people per boat.”

Packing for the trip can feel exciting, but students stress the importance of doing it efficiently.

“I had packed a lot of clothes and shorts that never got touched [last year],” Choi said. “You spend most of the trip in a swimsuit. And I was really glad I brought a hoodie, because it gets cold at night.”

Steffenson also emphasized packing with safety in mind, especially since the trip sometimes involves walking along

slippery rocks and dark areas near the boats at night.

“Good shoes are so important,” Steffenson said. “The rocks are slippery, and you have to wear ugly water shoes, but you won’t regret it. I also brought a flashlight and a bunch of portable chargers.”

Costs for the trip vary depending on what is included in the boat, with most students attempting to split costs evenly.

Prices typically range from around $160 to $400 per student, according to a few students.

While the party atmosphere on houseboats is known to be intense, many students describe the scene as fairly contained to each boat.

“It’s not really like a huge rager,” Marcela Wisniewska, a second-year sustainable environmental design major, said. “You just hang out with your group since you can’t have too many people on a boat.”

Despite the fun, safety remains a primary concern for students, especially around the water, and with alcohol and drug use.

“I brought Narcan just in case,” Steffenson said. “I don’t use drugs, but you never know what could happen.

I always stay with my friends, and

we make sure no one runs off or does anything unsafe.”

Choi stressed the importance of being around people you trust and maintaining a level of caution.

“It’s important to have your own cup and not put it down,” Choi said.

“Surround yourself with people you trust — people who will support you if something goes wrong.”

Students are also trying to be more mindful about trash levels and environmental concerns, after hearing about the state of the lake following last year’s weekend.

“The island was totally trashed last year, and I felt so upset by that,” Steffenson said. “This year, I’m going in with a ‘leave no trace’ mindset. We have to respect the park rangers and the people who are there to keep us safe.”

For fourth-year students like Steffenson, the trip comes with a bit of nostalgia, marking one of the last big weekends to spend with friends in college.

“I’m getting kind of emotional, because I don’t have much time left with my friends here,” Steffenson said.

“Houseboats is just so fun — being outside, swimming, tanning, talking. I couldn’t pass that up.”

Last year’s Houseboats celebration at Shasta Lake. (Giselle Choi / Courtesy)

8 | THURSDAY, MAY 22, 2025

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

Sacramento band Lo-Fi Lowdown electrifies Sudwerk Brewing Co.’s outdoor patio

As part of Sudwerk’s Concert Series, patrons enjoyed spirited tunes of classic rock and blues

BY PIPER AWEEKA city@theaggie.org Sacramento band Lo-Fi Lowdown held a set at Sudwerk Brewing Co. at 7 p.m. on May 8. The set was part of Sudwerk’s Concert Series, featuring touring and local artists for live performances.

With the sound of electric guitar, drums and banjo ringing in the air, Dana Hanson, musician and girlfriend to one of the six band members, gave a brief rundown of Lo-Fi Lowdown.

“James [Berry] is the lead,” Hanson said. “He plays banjo [and] guitar and sings. It’s really cool, because this is all really done with electric instruments.

All of them play multiple instruments.

They do half their own music, and then they take rock and roll and make it bluegrass.”

Clay Walton-Hadlock, mandolin and occasional guitar player, as well as backup vocalist for the band, discussed the origins of Lo-Fi Lowdown. “[Berry] put out a Craigslist post,

I want to say spring of 2021, when things were just starting to open up after [COVID-19],” Walton-Hadlock said. “He was saying he wanted to put together an americana, roots, rock, bluegrass-inspired classic rock ensemble. What I usually hear, what people are impressed by, is the vocal harmonies, which I think is unusual for an all-male band. I think what sets us apart is not only can we be a jam band, but we can also do some pretty decent open work.”

Chris Preston, a sound contractor for Sudwerk, spent most of Lo-Fi Lowdown’s performance sitting at a table nearby tinkering with sound quality. In working with the brewery, Preston expressed the success that Sudwerk’s Concert Series has had so far.

“The Concert Series has been going great,” Preston said. “It’s a great thing in the community to put on free music. Whether it’s the free Concert Series or the ticketed concerts, Sudwerk has become a really good music venue.”

Sarah Martinson, lounging in a patio chair while sipping beer, echoed Preston’s sentiment about the importance of Sudwerk’s Concert Series for the community.

“I’ve lived here [in Davis] for about two years,” Martinson said. “We come here pretty regularly, at least about once a week for the food, the drinks and also the amazing live music.”

With consensus around the success of Sudwerk’s free performances, Lo-Fi Lowdown shares an enjoyment for the Davis atmosphere. Hanson, in describing the reasoning behind this show at Sudwerk, relayed their own pleasure for the small city. “[Berry] does all of the concert coordinating for the band,” Hanson said. “But the thing is, they like Davis.

It’s Davis, and it’s fun.”

With Berry passionately harmonizing with his band behind him, Walton-Hadlock highlighted LoFi Lowdown as the lead singer’s true passion project. “[Berry] would never say it, but we all know it’s his band,” Walton-

Davis celebrates National Bike Month with rides, events and community initiatives

With events for every rider and tools to get started, Davis makes biking accessible, fun and community-driven this May

BY ALMA CULVERWELL city@theaggie.org May is National Bike Month, and the city of Davis, long known as a national leader in bike-friendly infrastructure, is celebrating with rides, special events and incentives that encourage residents to bike more.

National Bike Month, established in 1956, aims to promote cycling as a sustainable, healthy mode of transportation for community members. In the Sacramento region, including Davis and Yolo County, May has been celebrated as National Bike Month for more than two decades.

May is Bike Month is a regional campaign run by the Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates (SABA) that celebrates local biking culture and encourages both new and regular riders to leave the car at home.

Jennifer Donofrio, the senior transportation planner for the city of Davis, explained the goals for this year’s bike month.

“The goals of May is Bike Month are to encourage people to try bike riding and thank and celebrate people who ride their bike,” Donofrio said. “We measure success using the new NorCalGO app. People who participate in bike month log their trips on the app to win prizes. They

People biking at a Davis event. (Kaila Mattera / Aggie) also have access to incentives for bike tune-ups, accessories and money toward a new bike.”

Residents can participate by logging their bike rides, whether to work, school or around town, through the app or website. Each ride earns points, and participants can track their progress throughout the month.

Rides can be logged automatically or manually, and even added retroactively until the end of May. SABA hopes that this year’s campaign helps new riders discover the joy of biking. La Reina Lavon, SABA’s community engagement manager, further explained these sentiments.

“We’re hoping riders can have fun this May is Bike Month — that’s the main thing,” Lavon said. “It’s about

getting outside, feeling the benefits of a bike ride and having a positive impact on the environment. We’re hoping people will feel encouraged to ride more often, try out a new route around Sacramento and encourage others to do the same.”

To reach hesitant or new riders, SABA is partnering with local groups to host events throughout the month, ranging from maintenance workshops to group rides and bike parties. Lavon described some of the upcoming events and goals of the organization to help increase ridership.

“We show that biking is for everyone,” Lavon said. “Additionally, our platform has local information on where to find bike shops, quick courses on how to build biking

Sudwerk hosts a free concert featuring Americana group Lo-Fi Lowdown.

(Christian Cendejas / Aggie) Hadlock said. “It’s his concept.”

As Hootie and the Blowfish and Lo-Fi Lowdown’s exclusive “Oaktown Buddha” reverberated into the dusk, patrons tapped their feet and sang along heartily. The patio at Sudwerk Brewing Co. was scattered with a happy audience, eating, drinking and

singing along with the harmonious melodies.

Preston, taking a break from sound contracting, encapsulated the enjoyment of those listening.

“There’s no doubt about it, the five-part harmony is pretty killer,” Preston said.

confidence, how to prepare for riding in all weathers and loads more.”

Davis has historically been recognized for its unique and inclusive approach to cycling infrastructure. In 1967, it became the first United States city to construct a dedicated bike lane, which paved the way for decades of urban bike planning to follow. Today, Davis features more than 100 miles of bike lanes and over 4,000 bike racks.

The city’s bike-friendly culture dates back even further, with early plans for bike paths and tunnels emerging in the 1960s. In the early 1990s, Davis became one of the first cities in the country to install bike signal lights, another landmark for protecting cyclist safety.

Davis residents have a full calendar of events to look forward to this month. Loopalooza, which was held on May 4, is a family-friendly community ride organized by Bike Davis, The Bike Campaign and the Safe Routes to School Program.

Trish Price, the interim president for Bike Davis, explained the organization’s involvement in the month-long event.

“We helped organize the Loopalooza with the city,” Price said. “We shared a station with Peter Wagner and his WhymCycles. We’re also hosting an Energizer Station on May 16 at Third and B Streets, where cyclists can get some May is Bike Month swag and snacks, meet some Bike Davis board members and tell us about their cycling experiences in and around Davis. Finally, we’re promoting the annual Bike Scavenger Hunt, organized by the city and UC Davis design students, on May 31.”

She emphasized the organization’s collaborations and advocacy efforts.

“We table with Cool Davis at the Davis Farmers Market on the third Saturday of each month, and many board members attend the monthly Davis Bike Cafe on the fourth Friday

of the month,” Price said. “We are in regular contact with other local advocacy groups like Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates and CalBike.”

On Saturday, May 17, the Davis Double Century will challenge cyclists with a 200-mile ride through the counties of Yolo, Napa and Lake. The city is also participating in Celebrate Davis, a Davis Chamber of Commerce event scheduled for May 16 that offers valet parking for bikes. During Bike to Work Week from May 13 to 17, residents are encouraged to commute by bike with various incentives throughout the week.

Toward the end of the month, the city will host a Community Bike Party on Friday, May 30, a festive celebration featuring bike-themed activities and entertainment. Additionally, residents are invited to participate in the Davis Bike Scavenger Hunt, an event that encourages cyclists to explore local landmarks and neighborhoods.

Donofrio explained how Bike Month supports the city’s long-term sustainability and transportation goals.

“Bike Month is fun,” Donofrio said. “It is meant to highlight how easy and comfortable it is to get around Davis by bike. The city encourages people to use bikes as a form of transportation. Biking is meant to be enjoyed.”

Lavon echoed this message, noting that community engagement is key to the campaign’s success.

“Community is super important to us,” Lavon said. “Our May is Bike Month platform allows riders to post pictures of their activities, give each other high fives and words of encouragement. Using the community feedback map on our app, riders can understand the comfort ridings of other riders in the Sacramento area and plan their ride accordingly.

BIKEMONTH on 9

Senior Send-off: Jordyn Stiles on club water polo, finding confidence and preparing for veterinary school

This spring, fourth-years reflect on their time at UC Davis and share their post-graduate plans

BY JALAN TEHRANIFAR feature@theaggie.org

Jordyn Stiles, a fourth-year animal science major from Rancho Cucamonga, California, came to UC Davis with a clear goal: to become a veterinarian. Now, with graduation in sight and veterinary school applications underway, she is proud of how far she’s come — and a little surprised by how hard it is to say goodbye.

“I didn’t realize how sad I would be about leaving,” Stiles said. “At first I was like, ‘Okay, I’m ready to be done, I want to go to vet school and get on with my life.’ But now it’s very bittersweet. I’m very excited to do all of those things, but I’ve really loved this life that I’ve had in undergrad.”

Throughout her time at UC Davis, Stiles took full advantage of those opportunities — both inside and outside the classroom. She joined pre-veterinary groups like the Davis Veterinary Aide Club and completed multiple internships through the veterinary school. For nearly two years, she’s worked at a Midtown Animal Clinic in Downtown Davis, where the doctors have supported her career goals and helped her build the practical skills needed for veterinary school.

“All of the doctors there know that their undergraduate students want to go to vet school, so they’re super helpful and encouraging,” Stiles said. “It’s been a really amazing place to develop my skills and solidify that that’s the field I want to go into.”

Outside of her academic pursuits, Stiles found community in the UC Davis club water polo team. One of her most cherished college memories came last year when the team qualified

for nationals.

“We had a really close game at championships that went into overtime, and it felt like we had worked really hard for it,” Stiles said.

“We were all really excited to go [to nationals].”

Reflecting on how she has changed since her first year, Stiles believes she has grown into someone who feels more sure of herself — not just in academics, but in all areas of her life.

“I definitely think I’ve gotten a lot more confident in who I am and what I can do,” Stiles said. “I’ve matured a lot as a person, and I’m just excited for what’s to come.”

After graduation, Stiles plans to remain in Davis and work at an animal hospital while applying to veterinary schools. She’s hoping to start her next chapter soon, with the end goal of practicing small animal medicine.

“I’m staying in Davis right now and taking a gap year,” Stiles said.

“Hopefully I get into vet school this cycle, and after that it’ll be another four years of school.”

Looking back, Stiles said one of her proudest accomplishments is the balance she has maintained across academics, athletics and friendships.

“I think I’m really proud of the life that I’ve set up for myself right now,” Stiles said. “I’ve managed to maintain pretty good grades, have a really good group of friends and also be on a competitive water polo team. So, I think just being able to do all of that has been really awesome.”

What she’ll miss most, though, is the simple everyday closeness of college friendships and the comfort of knowing her best friends are just a few steps away.

“Even though I’m staying in Davis, after graduation [it] is going to be very different,” Stiles said. “I’ll miss coming out of my room and just

seeing all my roommates in the living room, doing stuff together or playing a game. I know they’ll still be there, but I’ll miss just having them so close.”

Stiles has grown especially fond of Davis itself. She expressed an appreciation of the “college town energy,” where students fill downtown coffee shops during finals week and then disappear once exams end. She also enjoys the physical layout of the campus and all of its contrasts.

“I like that I can go see the cows and then I can take a five-minute walk and go to the Arboretum and then I can go to the creek,” Stiles said. “There [are] just so many different things to do on campus.”

When asked what advice she would give to current or incoming students, Stiles encourages others to step out of their comfort zones early.

“Just say yes to things,” Stiles said. “At the beginning of my college experience, I was too nervous to do a lot of things, and looking back at my first year, I wish I just went out of my comfort zone and did more. That’s something I’ve been working on a lot, and I’m doing better at now.”

Stiles credits Dr. Russ Hovey, an animal science professor, as someone who made a lasting impact on her experience at Davis. “[Hovey] teaches very niche, specific classes that really help you gain an understanding of just how complex medicine is and sciences in general,” Stiles said. “He really cares about his students and wants them to succeed.

I think he’s definitely been one of my favorite professors I’ve had.”

Stiles is still planning to pursue small animal general practice — and although she has yet to settle on a specialty, she feels confident that she’s on the right track. For now, she’s embracing the transition and looking forward to what comes next.

Graduating fourth-year animal science major Jordyn Stiles.

(Jordyn Stiles / Courtesy)

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

9 |THURSDAY, MAY 22, 2025

Crossword Answer to previous puzzle 5/15/25

Sudoku

Enter digits from 1 to 9 into the blank spaces. Every row, column and 3x3 square must contain each digit. Each Sudoku has a unique solution that can be reached logically without guessing.

DAVISCOLLECTIONUPDATE FROM FRONT COVER “It’s in a great neighborhood in a prime location, and we decided to build a one-unit strip mall exactly like the one that failed and got demolished,” Schick said. “We traded Starbucks for Cold Stone Creamery and didn’t really get anything out of it. With how sustainability-conscious the city and the university are, I think it’s a shame that we didn’t do a better job.”

While some have concerns about a lack of regard for housing in The Davis Collection, others have found their existing housing directly affected by the development.

Anna Bronstein, a fourth-year psychology major, is a resident of a neighboring apartment complex and has witnessed the development’s progress from demolition to near completion. She particularly noted the changes in traffic and parking availability.

“The construction has disrupted the traffic flow, which has been really annoying,” Bronstein said. “It’s really been an interruption to my daily activities. It’s just too much for residents.”

Ho w e v e r, Bronstein also acknowledged that the development has the potential to provide a practical benefit to the community, particularly to students.

“I am hopeful for incoming freshmen, because I would have to go to SPCA or Goodwill for clothes, but this new development is very central,” Bronstein said. “Next year, students will have access to shopping options that we never had access to as freshmen. I think that has the potential to make things a lot more convenient.”

After its completion, The Davis Collection will feature a variety of food and retail stores, including Ulta, Nordstrom Rack, Mendocino Farms and PetSmart. Once it opens, Davis residents and students will have the opportunity to determine the success of this long-anticipated development.

UCPRESDIVE FROM PAGE 3 “CUNY leadership have promptly and strongly condemned speech — even when legally protected — that is hateful, discriminatory, antisemitic,” Milliken said in a letter preceding the investigation report.

At UT, Milliken approved of the UT Board of Regents’ decision to adopt a policy reinforcing freedom of speech. However, police were called during student protests last year in support of Palestine, resulting in student arrests and suspensions.

A year ago, as UT Chancellor, Milliken oversaw the dismantling of the system’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives, in compliance with Texas state law. More recently, the UC announced the end of diversity statements, and the Trump administration has proposed changes to the accreditation process that would further weaken diversity initiatives.

SENATESQ7 FROM PAGE 3 The bill would move the Disability Justice Committee (DJC) under the Legislative Branch at the supervision of the External Affairs Commission (EAC). DJC and the Housing and Transportation Advocacy Committee (HTAC) were both moved to the Executive Branch at the start of this school year from EAC. HTAC was moved back to the EAC during the prior week’s meeting with the passing of SB #80.

Senator Ezra Rubin believed SB #81 would provide “broader structural

reform for oversight and accountability” in regards to units and committees. After brief discussion, the Senate moved to table the bill in order to further consult with more units and committees.

Next, the Senate unanimously passed SB #82, allocating just shy of $32,000 to the Innovation and Research Lab (IRL), ASUCD’s in-house research and software design team, for the purchasing of bike counters around campus.

IRL Unit Director John Carraher, a fourth-year computer science and engineering major, speaking on behalf of IRL Associate Director Jeremy Elvander introduced the project, titled “Aggies on the Move.” In this project, IRL collected 15 years of data on Unitrans ridership, precipitation, environment and transportation data in collaboration with the National Weather Service and National Center for Environmental Information to determine transportation infrastructure improvements for UC Davis.

“As part of this project, we have identified major weaknesses in UC Davis’ planning capabilities, despite being known as the bicycle capital of the [United States,” Carraher said. “Working with [the UC Davis Office of ] Campus Planning and [the] Moving Forward Together [plan], we have determined that the installation of permanent bike counters at eight campus locations would be transformational in Davis’ ability to monitor cycling habits and plan for key infrastructure updates.”

Senators overwhelmingly supported the project, with Senator Dhilena Wickramasinghe describing it as “one of

SIREN FROM PAGE 4 The constant, negative portrayal of women as “sirens” confines women to two extremes. They are either an idealized version of purity or a manipulative and cunning temptress.

It’s important that the media and society remember that women have their own motivations, goals and agency beyond their physical appearance. Only by moving past archetypes like the siren are we able to foster a more respectful environment and facilitate a more authentic representation of women in the media.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

ONCAMPUSDEBATES FROM PAGE 7 “It’s not productive for anyone but the creators themselves when students engage,” Elrod said. “They ask questions that are meant to make us mad and discuss topics they know that the majority of university students feel strongly about. To engage with them is just giving them more power over you.”

Manikhandan expressed a similar opinion and provided advice for those who want to engage in seemingly harmless questions on TikTok. “The best way to engage in TikTok debates is to either not [engage] or understand that not everyone will agree with you,” Manikhandan said.

“If I had seen that video, I would have also thought we were salty teenagers.

Without the full picture, viewers can

only see a glimpse of your character.

I would suggest clarifying where the content would be posted, the exact questions/topics they plan on discussing, and their social media account they plan on posting the clip on, to gauge the end goal of their video.”

At the end of Tatum’s most recent video on the UC Davis campus, a student who had been arguing with the YouTuber highlighted the artifice of the exchange, predicting how the YouTuber will depict him.

“You have this whole fucking set up where you’re farming clips, you’re farming this engagement,” the student said. “But I know, in the editing room, you’re gonna say look, look how these people are shutting down conservative voices on campus. That’s your whole game. It’s been played out. It’s been done for like 10 years.”

“You’re playing in the game with me,” Tatum said in response. “You’re complicit.”

The moment is not presented as a reckoning, or even a critique. The student’s comments are not examined, nor are Tatum’s. Instead, the exchange becomes the dramatic finale of a video titled “WOKE UC Davis Student CALLS ME A N*ZI Then CRASHES OUT!” — another installment in a genre that, as these UC Davis students have pointed out, funnels political discontent into bite-sized entertainment.

Answer to previous puzzle 5/15/25

BIKEMONTH FROM PAGE 8 Without the Sacramento community, it wouldn’t be possible to run such successful events each May.” Donofrio also explained the city’s goals surrounding long-term engagement with biking beyond May. “We have year-round activities,” Donofrio said. “We like to say that every month is bike month in Davis.”

Lavon explained the advice she would give to first-time or lessexperienced bike riders.

“Enjoy it,” Lavon said. “You don’t have to ride for miles and miles every day — just one short bike ride can really boost your mood. Take a look at the great events going on around Sacramento, too.”

Logging only one ride before the end of the month enters you into a drawing for a brand-new bike.

Registration and more information are available on the SABA website.

Price also shared why Bike Month is important to the Davis community.

“Even in Davis, it’s so easy to get into the habit of just hopping in the car to get to places that are easily accessed on foot or on bicycle,” Price said. “Unfortunately, owning a car is a luxury that many can’t afford, and the presence of cars makes our streets less safe and more unhealthy for everyone.

Bike Month gives us a chance to celebrate alternative, slower modes of travel that enhance our personal and community well-being by bringing people into direct contact with each other and their surroundings.”

SPIKEBALL FROM PAGE 12 “Spikeball is poised to be the next ‘Great American Sport,’” Ruder said on Shark Tank. “Like all great sports, Spikeball is very easy to learn but really difficult to master. It can be a casual, fun backyard game or it can be a hardcore competition. Another

great thing is that Spikeball is ultraportable. All you need is this ball, that net and one of these backpacks [and] you can take it absolutely anywhere.”

Spikeball games can happen anywhere. From beaches to parks to college campuses or someone’s backyard, there’s always going to be space for Spikeball. A single set of trampoline and ball is all that’s needed to spark excitement and competition among friends and family. The accessibility of Spikeball is a level above some of the other sports and allows it to be a great pastime.

In the past decade, Spikeball has built a legit competitive scene.

Tournaments now take place across the United States and even internationally. ESPN has even started covering these matches, elevating the sport to a new level. The fast-paced action and the strategy all contain a strong resemblance to the intensity of traditional mainstream sports.

As Spikeball tournaments continue to grow in number and scale, the sport will begin to show up in more places

than ever before. High schools and colleges across the country might start forming Spikeball clubs dedicated to the sport. Popular strategies or compelling actions of games might appear on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. All of this just further fuels its popularity and makes the sport impossible to ignore for any casual person.

It’s no surprise that Spikeball is doing extremely well. It sits perfectly between the two ends of the spectrum: it’s light and easy for people to casually enjoy, with the depth and competitiveness to satisfy athletes. That balance is important in maintaining a large audience. The accessibility of Spikeball allows it to grow at an exponential rate.

Over the next few years, it might not be surprising when family households start tuning into Spikeball games on TV just to see the action unfold around the infamous trampoline. Whenever people see a small trampoline out, you’ll know that Spikeball is there, ready to be played.

10 | THURSDAY, MAY 22, 2025

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

SCIENCE AND TECH

THURSDAY, MAY 22, 2025 | 11

A closer look into reef fish

Recent study on the lateral jaw motion of reef fish shows key feeding-related innovations

BY MADELINE HASS science@theaggie.org

A team of biologists at UC Davis have recently discovered lateral jaw motion within species of reef fish, a discovery that is rather rare amongst vertebrate animals and often coincides with major ecological and evolutionary shifts. The simultaneous rotation of both upper and lower jaws was found within the Zanclidae family, while rotation of the upper jaw was found within the Acanthuridae family.

This distinctive function allows for a significant increase in the diversity of jaw mechanisms in these fish and their ability to acquire food, contributing to their ecological dominance.

“Lateral jaw motion in fish expands the functional repertoire of vertebrates and underpins the success of a dominant herbivore lineage,” the published study reads.

The team worked to expand understanding of vertebrate jaw mechanics and how important feeding-related discoveries are in boosting herbivory. These discoveries were made possible through a combination of methods such as highspeed videos, computed tomography (CT) scanning and dissections of the studied fish.

Michalis Mihalitsis, a postdoctoral researcher at UC Davis in Peter Wainwright’s lab at the time of the study, described the importance of utilizing high-speed videos and the inspiration behind this research.

“If you’re on a coral reef or in the wild snorkeling or diving and see a fish feeding, the whole thing just happens so fast that you can’t actually see how the fish is doing it,” Mihalitsis said.

“We wanted to know anatomically

how it is able to do all kinds of different things that allow the fish to feed. If you feed on plankton, you need to feed in one way. If you feed on attached algae, you need to feed in a completely different way. So, this is sort of what we were trying to figure out — how different fish species are able to feed.”

Scientific research of aquatic environments and the behaviors of these different species has been limited in the past due to restricted access. However, recent advancements in technology have allowed for researchers to explore these habitats more thoroughly and take an indepth look at the different behaviors exhibited.

“We saw that when you slow everything down, all of a sudden the jaws of the Zanclus cornutus were able to do this super weird motion that we were very intrigued by,” Mihalitsis said. “When you think of lateral jaw motion in vertebrates, the most classic example is in mammals. If you think of our lower jaws, we’re able to move them left to right, back and forth, we can move our jaws three dimensionally.

This kind of evolution allows species to conduct novel motions with their jaws, which allows them to eat on novel resources. Suddenly, you can chew and feed on a lot more things, and you can acquire more nutrients.”

Maelan Beil, an animal biology major, shed more light on the usage of high-speed videos.

“High-speed filming allowed us to see the movements of these fish in much more detail than would otherwise be possible,” Beil said.

“The film analysis showed us how this adaptation [of lateral jaw movement] was used in the context of benthic feeding.”

Despite some of the difficulties associated with getting footage of the fish at the specific angles and doing the specific tasks of interest, the team was able to compile footage highlighting their distinct jaw movements. This feeding-related innovation allows for the Zanclus cornutus to easily and efficiently eat algae off surfaces.

“Unlike mammals or other vertebrates where it’s only the lower jaw that moves from side to side, we saw that the Zanclus is able to move both of its upper and lower jaws from side to side,” Mihalitsis said. “We also saw in the sister group, the surgeon fishes, that they were only able to rotate their upper jaw from side to side, but they also have these very weird teeth called multi-cusped teeth.

It’s basically teeth with cutting surfaces on the sides, so when they bite on algae and rotate their upper jaw they can cut the algae already inside their jaw. This allows them to feed on the algae much more efficiently; They can stay in one area and just keep feeding.”

This specific innovation correlated to increased bite rates of the surgeon fishes compared to many other herbivorous fish lineages that the team observed. Because of this lateral jaw motion, the surgeon fish are able to feed at a significantly faster rate, highlighting the importance of bite rates in ecosystem processes.

To gain a more in-depth view of how the fish were operating and confirm the motion they were seeing was accurate, the team also looked closely at other morphological features through CT scans and dissections.

They wanted to have a very clear picture of the anatomy of the bones within the fish jaws and in what ways the bones and muscles were operating.

Denise Yamhure-Ramirez, a

NOVA MAI / AGGIE

graduate student in the Evolution and Ecology Department at UC Davis, was the team’s CT-scanning expert and remarked on the process.

“With CT scanning we were able to really differentiate the different bones; we could see where they started and ended and understand the angles of how they were connecting to each other,” Yamhure-Ramirez said. “This was something that we hadn’t been able to see before. The team had an intuition of what was happening but it was very hard to see when you don’t have a three-dimensional model that you can play around with. So the nice thing about the CT scanning is that after you dissect the bones that you’re interested in, you can understand more about how each bone is connecting to each other and potentially then moving” This deeper anatomical understanding and a threedimensional model of the jaws helped to validate what the researchers had seen in the high-speed footage. They now had a clear understanding of how

these complex jaw movements were produced.

“The videos were great to understand the motion and to see it, but you don’t understand what’s actually happening with the mechanics of that motion,” YamhureRamirez said. “That’s where the CT scanning and manual dissections came into place. That kind of combination of different techniques really gave the study a big leverage on its innovation and impact.”

This groundbreaking study not only highlights the discovery of lateral jaw motion within Zanclidae and Acanthuridae families, but it also showcases how modern technology is able to reveal new insight into the biology of species. This can help give insight into the ecological dominance and evolutionary success of different species. As scientists continue to explore aquatic life and their many complexities, our understanding of these environments will only deepen.

The average citizen can contribute to formal science research

With recent research supporting the consistency and validity of citizen science data, the role that the average citizen can play in formal science research has been emphasized

BY KATELYN BURNS science@theaggie.org For those passionate about science, citizen science offers the average citizen the opportunity to contribute to formal science research. Apps like iNaturalist and eBird can help you contribute from the comfort of your phone. However, how does it actually work?

While iNaturalist and eBird both involve making observations and recording your data, there are some key differences between the apps. For example, the different data reporting mechanisms can result in more observations from eBird. However, unlike eBird, iNaturalist has photo sharing and community features.

Dr. Laci Gerhart, an associate professor of teaching in evolution and

ecology at UC Davis, commented via email on citizen science with iNaturalist and eBird.

Gerhart described iNaturalist as “Instagram for organisms,” noting that the social media-like operation can make it particularly beginner-friendly.

The community feature can also help those less confident in their knowledge of the organisms.

However, eBird shines when photos or recordings are no longer possible. It’s been used for a program called Land Together, which aims to provide environmental education and community building within prisons.

“We can use the eBird protocol to support a variety of goals, including practicing wildlife identification, following a formal protocol, viewing the prison space as an active ecosystem (as opposed to only the built environment), and even generating artwork and interpretative signage

around the birds that we find in the prison space,” Gerhart said.

A study published in the Citizen Science: Theory and Practice journal in 2025 looked at the consistency and validity of the mass amounts of data produced by the citizen science apps iNaturalist and eBird. With people being more likely to report from their homes or popular birding spots, Gerhart and her colleagues looked to test whether an observer’s behavior might influence the data.

“Fortunately, the answer was no,” Gerhart said when commenting on the results of their study. “Whatever biases in observer behavior exist, and however those biases may differ between the two projects, we are still able to use these data to get an accurate picture of bird seasonality in the area.”

As for what bird seasonality is, it refers to the times through the year that a given bird species is present in a

given area. They gathered observation counts of each representative bird species, noting the data source and year, and then looked at their seasonality, separating the bird species into five groups based on different seasonal migrational patterns; spring, summer, fall, winter and year-round species.

They used and compared the seasonality data from both iNaturalist and eBird from different years, also comparing it to the known seasonality and migratory patterns, to determine the overall “mergeability,” or consistency, of the different data sets.

Their results support high consistency and validity of the citizen science data.

“The iNat 2019 dataset exhibited the most discordance with eBird 2022, with 88.6% mergeability; though this rate suggests data is still fairly consistent for most species, even when varying databases and years,” a 2025

Theory and Practice study reads.

Biases from human behavior, like behavioral changes resulting from seasonably inaccessible habitats or specialized requirements for observation, were present. However, these biases weren’t as problematic as the team expected.

Given the data’s consistency and validity, citizen science data’s usage in formal science was supported. In fact, eBird and iNaturalist track formal, peer-reviewed publications that utilize their citizen science data.

“We encourage public participatory projects to build easily accessible, public-facing data portals (or contribute their data to other public portals) not only to support formal research such as the project described here, but also to encourage exploratory engagement by the public community who contributes data to these portals,” the 2025 study reads.

HUMOR

What’s in my bag — Whole Earth Festival gets a The California Aggie Mother’s Day surprise tote edition

BY LAUREN SWING laswing@ucdavis.edu

Disclaimer: (This cartoon is humor and/or satire, and its content is purely fictional. The story and names of “sources” are fictionalized.)

BY AILI KOGA aakoga@ucdavis.edu

Disclaimer: (This cartoon is humor and/or satire, and its content is purely fictional. The story and names of “sources” are fictionalized.)

12 | THURSDAY, MAY 22, 2025

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

SPORTS BASEBALL

Baseball claims victory over Utah Tech as season’s end inches ever nearer

The Aggies pair dominant pitching with ample offense in 6-2 victory

BY THEO KAYSER sports@theaggie.org

On May 13, the UC Davis baseball team hosted Utah Tech University for a late-season matchup. This one game serves as UC Davis’ penultimate series of the 2025 season, as they will finish their schedule at the end of the week.

The UC Davis Aggies wound up victorious with a score of 6-2, bouncing back following a 23-0 loss in their previous game against UC San Diego.

The game began in favorable fashion for UC Davis, with starter Noel Valdez, a fourth-year human development major, tossing a 1-23 at the top of the first. This was immediately followed by an onslaught of offense for the Aggies, as they would score three runs in the inning.

These runs came by way of a wild pitch that scored Tyler Howard, a second-year managerial economics major, followed three batters later by a two-run single off the bat of Korey Williams, a third-year undeclared major.

The top of the second inning saw

Utah Tech fail to respond in any way offensively, with three batters going down in order once again.

It was in the third inning that Utah Tech got their first base runner after they began the inning with a leadoff single. Valdez continued his dominance from there, though, as he went on to pick the runner off from first base to go along with two more strikeouts, leaving the score at 3-0 after two and a half innings. This, too, is where Valdez’s night ended after striking out five over three scoreless innings.

At the bottom of the third, the Aggies extended their lead further.

After beginning the inning with two consecutive outs, the lineup rallied for three consecutive singles, with a run finally earning a score after Ethan Felix, a fourth-year managerial economics major, was hit by a pitch.

The rally concluded here, with UC Davis in the lead now 4-0.

Matthew Barnes II, a first-year undeclared major, replaced Valdez in the fourth inning and immediately notched a scoreless inning of his own. He recorded a 1-2-3 inning in the fifth, concluding his night with a strikeout, his third across two innings.

UC Davis pitcher Noel Valdez throws a pitch against Utah Tech.

(Andrew Huang / Aggie)

The bottom of the fifth began with singles by Nick Leehey, a fourthyear communication major, and Ryan Lee, a third-year economics major, followed by a walk by Jason Hanson, a fourth-year history major, to load the bases with no outs. The Aggies capitalized on this advantageous situation in their signature small-ball style, with Williams and Felix each recording productive outs to bring the score to 6-0.

Utah Tech’s offense finally responded at the top of the sixth, scoring their first run on a double hit off of Max Hippensteel, a third-year communication major. They scored another run in the following inning, after a groundout that earned a run off of Rowen Barnes, a third-year managerial economics major, made the score 6-2. In the meantime, the Aggies’ offense went quiet for the final three innings.

The Utah Tech comeback attempt was foiled by scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth. Mason Lerma, a second-year human development major, and Carter Delaney, a master of management graduate student, paired up to squash the warming Utah Tech bats, finishing the final two innings while facing just six batters.

The key to the victory for UC Davis was strong performances by both the offense and the pitching staff.

The Aggies’ lineup was led by Williams and Felix, who combined for five Runs Batted In (RBIs) batting seventh and eighth in the order.

On the other side of the ball, Aggies’ Head Coach Tommy Nicholson deployed an unorthodox pitching plan, utilizing six pitchers to span the game’s nine innings. These six arms would combine for an impressive 10 strikeouts to go along with their immaculate run prevention.

This victory brings the Aggies ever closer to the season’s fastapproaching conclusion. Their final three games will be played at home against California State University,

SPIKEBALL

Spikeball bounces back into the world of mainstream sports The once forgotten, but fun and competitive sport

People play Spikeball on the sand. (Spikeball / fair use)

BY DAVID HU sports@theaggie.org When people think about sports, chances are they aren’t thinking about Spikeball. With industry giants like the National Basketball Association,, Major League Baseball, National Football League and even the infamous International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) Club World Cup 2025 dominating headlines, it’s easy to overlook lesserknown sports. But every now and then, Spikeball finds its way into sports conversations and into social gatherings.

Spikeball actually originated back in 1989, which makes it a relatively young sport compared to classics dating back many centuries.

Created by Jeff Knurek, the sport is similar to volleyball, containing familiar mechanics such as serving and receiving. But instead of a net, players hit the ball off a small round trampoline that sits in the center of the action.

The goal is simply to keep the rally going and avoid the ball touching the ground. With quick reflexes and strategy, teams aimed to outperform the opposing team in order to win the

game.

At the time of its creation, Spikeball didn’t catch fire. The equipment was outdated, causing the sport to lack the player experience people sought. It was not long before the sport was forgotten into obscurity.

Spikeball wouldn’t be dead for long, as the 2000s rolled around. In 2007, Chris Ruder, who saw the potential in what everyone else had forgotten, founded Spikeball Incorporated, a company fully dedicated to reviving the sport. In 2015, his company made its way to national television, where he appeared on Shark Tank.

During his pitch, Ruder showcased a live Spikeball match, introduced new-and-improved gear and explained how a growing community was forming around the sport. Ruder was able to land a deal, in the hopes of expanding his company and the sport of Spikeball.

Behind the scenes, the deal didn’t go through, but the impact was already there. Millions of viewers had seen Spikeball on national television.

The word was out there. A sport once obscured had an expanding community from virality. Ruder not only sold the game, but he was also responsible for a movement.

SPIKEBALL on 9