R_WURD 2015 Columbia Links Progam at Columbia College Chicago

Fall/Winter 2014 – 2015

Spring 2015

Summer 2015

STUDENT STAFF

PROFESSIONAL STAFF High School Student

Academy of Communications and Tech Chart Jihan Angeneet Davis Academy of Communications and Tech Chart Milan Amari Christine Williams

Brenda Butler, executive director Charles Jefferson, program coordinator Billy Montgomery, journalism lecturer (Roosevelt University) and professor

Benito Juarez Community Academy Gabriela Guevara Brooks College Prep L’oren Chanel Parker Daniel Hale Williams Preparatory Joseph Thomas Hendrix School of Medicine DeVry University Advantage Academy Alexandra Macias Evanston Township High School Jeremy Llewellyn Swift Evanston Township High School Jane Ryan Mather-Glass Francis W. Parker School Natalie Selena Braye Gwendolyn Brooks College Prep Marcus Lamont Tabb, Jr. Harlan High School Daisy Redmond Hyde Park Academy Vinkela Mary Parker Kenwood Academy High School Messiah Young Lane Tech High School Anum Shafqat Lincoln Park High School Victoria Ashley Hill Lincoln Park High School Teddy Alan Menna Lindblom Math and Science Academy Amber Brochelle Fry Lindblom Math and Science Academy Alondra Lopez Lindblom Math and Science Academy Bethany Mikayla Stubbs Lindblom Math and Science Academy Ayanna Janee Hayes Metea Valley High School Milan Williams Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School Dyana Alexis Daniels Noble Street College Prep Joseph Charles Vanorsby Noble Street College Prep Jamal Anthony Ray Northside College Prep High School Kristen Noelle Rigsby Northside College Prep High School Susie Lin Phoenix Military Academy Christian Avalos Rickover Naval Academy Pablo Oswaldo Pinto South Suburban College William Anthony Brooks University of Chicago Woodlawn Charter School Ahnday Mizhan Hashim-Huff Urban Prep Academy West Brandon Spencer Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center Sofiya H. Affey Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center Matthew Anderson Reilly Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center Gianna Celeste Andujar Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center Yael Jonas Reyes Walter Payton College Prep High School Allison Cho

LINKS MENTORS JOURNALISM HIGH SCHOOL MENTOR Solomon Davis, Marist High School JOURNALISM GRADUATE MENTORS Elizabeth Beyer, Columbia College Alexandra Marshall, Columbia College Kyra Senese, Columbia College Jacob Wittich, Columbia College PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTS Monroe Anderson, reporter/columnist (Chicago Tribune, Newsweek) Nia Andrews, publisher, One Purpose Magazine Leah Banks, academic adviser, University of Illinois, Chicago Brandon Campbell, news anchor/reporter, Public News Service Glenn Jeffers, editor, Kellogg Magazine, Northwestern University Ray Flores, sports reporter, ESPN Chicago La Risa Lynch, reporter, The Chicago Reporter Candi Meriwether, adjunct journalism instructor, Columbia College Keisha Price, academic adviser, University of Illinois, Chicago Glenn Reedus, publisher, South Suburban News Michael Sandler, reporter, ModernHealth magazine Clarence Waldron, adjunct journalism instructor, Columbia College and Northwestern University Regina Waldroup, reporter, NBC 5 Avis Weathersbee, editor (Chicago Sun-Times); editor/consultant (Jetmag.com), Ebony magazine Jean Williams, author, filmmaker, reporter (Chicago Sun-Times, ADA) COLLEGE PROFESSORS Matthew Cunningham, adjunct Radio professor, Columbia College Hope Daniels, associate Radio professor (ret.), Columbia College Yolanda Joe, associate TV broadcast professor, Columbia College Peter Von Buol, adjunct journalism professor, Columbia College COVER DESIGN / MAGAZINE DESIGN Colin King, art director, colinkingdesign@gmail.com

Westinghouse College Prep Karina Monrreal Sanchez Westinghouse College Prep Miles David Somerville Whitney M. Young Magnet High School Elizabeth McCormack Kepner Whitney M. Young Magnet High School Paul Maurice Thomas Whitney M. Young Magnet High School Julian Pujols Quall William Jones College Prep High School Ciera Bonnie Ann Barnett William Jones College Prep High School Orla Ellen Levens William Jones College Prep High School Eryn Danae McCallum Young Women's Leadership Academy Cheyenne Ford

To read more stories, go to our online magazine at www.columbialinks.org.

Special thanks to Ahmad Hamad, Tess Hynes, Chris Richert, Lou Foglia, Rena Naltsas and the Columbia College Journalism Program, to Barbara Calabrese, chair of the Radio Department, and Thomas Joyce, head of internships, Radio Department, Columbia College.

Columbia Links is committed to supporting and providing quality journalism instruction and training to Chicago teens and teachers.

Columbia Links is the product of the leadership and commitment of Columbia College Communications and Media Innovation Department associate professors Nancy Day and Curtis Lawrence.

Columbia Links is supported by Columbia College Chicago and funded by the McCormick Foundation, Dow Jones News Fund, the Roger and Chaz Ebert Foundation and Voqal.

If you are a Chicago teen interested in participating in Columbia Links, call 312.369.8993 or email columbialinks@colum.edu

Find us on social media

Editor's Note The authentic teen voice? It is spoken, written, amplified and underscored. And by all means, it must be heard. This edition of R_Wurd reflects topics and ideas that 46 Chicago-area teens deemed important enough to put in the human capital of time and energy to produce over three reporting academies. Here are some highlights: Lockers & Lessons / Winter 2015 Often the best stories are in immediate surroundings. Students spend most of their time in school, learning and engaging, from classroom dynamics to life experiences. The merits of charter schools are constantly debated, as one student reported. His story asks that everyone take another look at them. Should schools start an hour later? Studies of sleep-deprived teens say: Yes. Speaking of studies, racial profiling of black males is examined, especially from a student's viewpoint.

#CivicsEngage / Spring 2015 Many high school students are not of voting age but they soon will be. Many issues are being decided without the youth input or awareness.

This reporting academy addressed the importance of youth getting involved with their communities and their city. A youth activist from Mikva Challenge inspired teens to get involved

in the political process to make a difference.

Unemployment is still pervasive among Chicago teens who find that the hardest job is finding one. The literacy gap can impede a student's education. One reporter finds there are ways to bridge the gulf and increase graduation rates.

Parks & Recreation / Summer 2015 Chicago, home to more than 500 parks, 31 beaches and 50 nature areas, should be extremely proud of its park district. Many are being upgraded and one big plus is more parks are being named after women, a reporter finds.

And the parks are public lands and sometimes others want a slice. One reporter takes a look at the Friends of the Park and its mission. For the most part, parks are safe harbors but dangers lurk. A teen journalist examines the plague of sex trafficking and why young people should be on the lookout for predators.

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An 'A' for charter schools The sleep-deprived student To whip or not: No spanks Targeting racial profiling

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#civicsengage

Mikva youth activist inspires Home chores vs. homework Teen unemployment still up How to survive adversity

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Homeless teens seek refuge Get ready to vote Activists fight for safe parks Young immigrants speak up

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Report cards are in!

Charter schools could merit the support of naysayers

By Joseph Vanorsby Noble Street College Prep

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hen it comes to selecting a high school, you might want to consider one of Chicago's top-performing charter high schools. But charter schools are not for everyone. To attend a charter school, you must have self-discipline, focus and determination.

Charter schools are on the rise in Chicago. There are about 19,000 students on waiting list for charter schools in the city because most of them are performing better than Chicago Public Schools, according to a Stanford University study. Not only are they performing better, charter schools also have a higher graduation rate than traditional public high schools, the study said.

Samantha Wilson*, 18, is a senior at Noble Street College Prep, one of Chicago's top performing high schools in the Noble Square neighborhood on Milwaukee Avenue and Noble Street.

"I chose this school because I knew it

would help prepare me for college better than a regular CPS school," she said, adding that the rules at Noble are "strict" but they "are justified" because it "helps with the culture and keeps stability in the school."

In the Noble Network of Charter Schools, not only is the curriculum more

vigorous than a traditional CPS school, the discipline is as well. Students receive demerits, which are like strikes against a student, for not following the rules: not in uniform, being tardy to school or class, or being off task; consuming pop, hot chips, or any type of junk food. A certain amount of demerits in a cycle equals a three-hour detention after school on a Friday.

A majority of the 48,000 students in Chicago's charter schools are low-income African-American and Latino students.

Charter schools do not have admissions tests or tuition. Since the demand for charter schools is high, most charter schools hold a lottery to determine admission.

Charter schools are public schools, but they have a longer school day and academic year. For example, Noble Street College Prep ends its school day at 4 p.m. and starts the school year two weeks before CPS does. Charter schools have the ability to hire the best teachers, regardless of their credentials, and maintain greater control of their curriculum than traditional public schools.

Phillip Jackson, founder and executive director of The Black Star Project, discussed the importance of young black males becoming properly educated.

"Charter public schools and all schools should create policies and programs that support and empower young black men to succeed in their educational system.

Nationally, this generally is not the case.

Black males are being decimated in our education system, which leads to most of the other ills for young black men. All

Tonya Milkie, co-founder and dean of students at Noble Street College Prep: "Our students really love the [school] culture. The learning environment helps the students get the education they need." Photo by Joseph Vanorsby

Tim King, CEO and founder of Urban Prep Academies with WBEZ's Natalie Moore at a Columbia Links Town Hall: "We stress the importance of great character as being equal to great intellect through a school culture based on respect, responsibility, ritual and relationship—our 4 Rs." Photo by James Foster

High School, said, "I had the choice to go to a charter school, but I chose a CPS school instead."

His reason for not attending a charter school was because he thought the charter school was "not the right fit for him."

Charter schools are often criticized.

Voices of Youth in Chicago Education (VOYCE) also criticizes charter schools.

VOYCE believes charter schools take their discipline too far and get rid of the bad students from their schools, according to the organization's website.

However, according to the Illinois Network of Charter Schools website, "By law, charter schools are open enrollment schools, and may not counsel students out based on student performance or behavior challenges."

The charter school debate will continue in Chicago for now. Do charter schools take money away from CPS schools, or do they actually help students succeed after high school and college? The high test scores and graduation rate of Noble Network and the all-male 100 percent college acceptance rate at Urban Prep Academy are among the reasons more Chicago parents are sending their children to charter schools.

No matter what type of school you choose, charter or public, Phil Jackson emphasizes, "Nothing is more valuable than a proper education." *Student prefers not to use her real name.

columbialinks.org Phillip Jackson, founder and executive director of The Black Star Project: "Charter public schools and all schools should create policies and programs that support and empower young black men to succeed in their educational system. Nationally, this generally is not the case." Photo by Kevin Obomanu

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schools should have mentoring, tutoring, fathering, community building, financial literacy, positive female relationship, and spirituality classes for young black men.

Without a new approach, we will keep getting the same unacceptable results for young black men in our society."

When it comes to discipline, Jackson said charter schools are "able to remove young black boys easier than CPS schools."

He explained: "Most public schools have to go through a process before they can remove a student from their roster. Charter public schools have their own policies and can remove students without going through an elaborate process."

Ninety percent of Noble students become enrolled in college, and 84 percent of them are first-generation college students.

Tonya Milkie, co-founder and dean of students at Noble Street College Prep, shared the key to the school's success.

"Our students really love the culture the school has," she said. "The learning environment helps the students get the education they need."

The discipline helps the students "stay focused in their school work." The teachers, she said, "have the willingness to work

and have love for what they do."

At Noble Network schools, freshmen, sophomores and juniors take a standardized test called the Interim every few weeks. This gauges students' ability to show what they learned in math, reading, English and science classes. Students receive about two hours of homework a night as well. If a student does not complete their homework, that student receives a LaSalle. LaSalle is a one-hour homework detention after school. Students must attend their LaSalle session to complete the homework they did not do or get a detention. Teachers expect students to do their best work..

Urban Prep Academies, another successful charter school network, has had 100 percent of its students graduate and get accepted to college.

Tim King, CEO and founder of Urban Prep Academies, also shared the key to Urban Prep's success. "We stress the importance of great character as being equal to great intellect through a school culture based on respect, responsibility, ritual and relationship—our 4 Rs. Building character is essential . . . to achieve academically. We stress academic rigor and intellectual development, but these aren't possible without the stubborn determination of a sense pride and belief in one's self. That's how you get 100 percent of your graduates into college. You teach every last one of them to believe in themselves 100 percent."

Isaias Lopez, a senior at Lincoln Park

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More sleep for students?

Studies show the earlier classes begin, the more students struggle

By Joseph Hendrix Daniel Hale Williams Preparatory School of Medicine at DuSable

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November 2014 where Dr. Stephen Sheldon, director of the Sleep Medicine Center at Lurie Children's Hospital, testified: "Sleep is as important to our health as food." However, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel stated back in August that he would not use what he calls “preliminary research” that’s “not conclusive” as the catalyst for an overhaul of CPS start times.

How beneficial is more sleep to teenagers? Lane Tech senior Kayla Martinez, 18, believes so. “[It would] allow for more rest, very important both psychologically and physiologically,” Martinez said.

Other students noted gang violence and other problems plaguing many neighborhoods as stressors that keep teens up at

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hough it’s commonly not considered a public health issue, teen insomnia is plaguing many students within Chicago Public Schools. But is the solution pushing school start times back? More importantly, is it one that CPS should consider?

The debate over school start times has progressed as sleep deprivation becomes an increasing problem in teenagers who stay up late. A report issued in August 2014 from the American Academy of Pedi-

atrics and endorsed by the Sleep Medicine Center at Chicago’s Lurie Children’s Hospital stated that “most teenagers on average don’t get nearly as much sleep as they should.”

One reason for the lack of sleep is “due to teens’ development, they go through a natural period where their circadian rhythms make them prone to staying up later and having a difficult time rising in the morning,” according to the Northwestern Memorial Hospital Sleep Disorders Center’s Dr. Phyllis Zee. "It's not just because they're lazy and don't want to get up in the morning," Zee said.

Her testimony was part of a heavy discussion at a City Hall meeting last

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Jessika Williams, senior at Daniel Hale Williams, believes more sleep time could alleviate certain stressors such as living with community violence.

Photo by Joseph Hendrix

Kathleen Ryan, an English teacher at Daniel Hale Williams, questions the wisdom of later start times: "Students would spend part of the year leaving school when it's dark out" but "would they get home safely from clubs or games that ended at 9 [p.m.]?" Photo by Joseph Hendrix

year leaving school when it's dark out,” Ryan said. “I also worry about what would happen to sports and after-school activities. Would it be possible for students to get home safely from clubs or games that ended at 9 [p.m.]?”

However, Ryan believes the primary problem for students isn’t insomnia. It’s their inability to separate themselves from social media, texting and all the trappings of active teenage lives that keeps students from getting a proper night’s rest.

“Most students sleep with their phones

— Ald. Margaret Laurino (39th)

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'You can't change school time without the agreement of a lot of parties.'

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night. Extra time in the morning could help alleviate that stress, says Jessika Williams, 18, a Daniel Hale Williams senior.

“Students today are under a lot more stress than they were even 10 years ago," she said.

While many see more rest as a benefit to stress, that same issue of safety becomes a concern for both students and faculty if the school day is delayed one hour. That spectre of gang violence may be a prime reason CPS start times should not change as students may be dismissed even later. “At certain times of the year, it gets late,” Daniel Hale Williams junior Maria Greer, 17, said, “and if school gets out later, there are safety issues that could occur.”

CPS teacher Kathleen Ryan at Daniel Hale Williams says she also fears for student safety, especially in the winter months when the sun sets in the late afternoon, around the time after-school activities are done.

“Students would spend part of the

right next to them, just in case they get a text at 2 a.m.,” she said. “With all of the drama that occurs on social media, I cannot imagine how this wouldn't be anxietyproducing.”

However, social media obsession hasn’t stopped other school districts around the country from reevaluating their policies.

The Long Beach (Calif.) Unified School District in California changed its original start times of 7:50 a.m. and 8 a.m. to 8:50 a.m. and 9 a.m. in 2014 and saw a cost-benefit savings. A superintendent in the Denver (Colo.) Public Schools system allowed students to choose their own schedule, with most choosing the later start time.

The move saved the district the use of 60 buses and $750,000 in annual costs.

Last September, Ald. Margaret Laurino (39th Ward) submitted a resolution calling on the City Council Committee on Health to explore the possibility of later school start times for CPS. While Laurino says the research she’s read—including the American Academy of Pediatrics report released last August—suggests later school times would benefit students, the alderman and President Pro Tempore of the Chicago City Council is quick to remind us that the issue requires further study.

“You can’t just change school times without the agreement of a lot of parties, including Chicago Public Schools,” she said. “You have to consider coordinating school schedules with work, after school activities, and the use of school facilities for community activities.”

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Fragile femininity

Results still out for girls in STEM fields

By Anum Shafqat Lane Tech High School

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lthough society has progressed in terms of gender parity, many girls are discouraged from pursuing STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields.

In elementary school, 74 percent of girls say they are interested in math and science classes. However, women only make up 26 percent of STEM careers, according to a 2014 TIME magazine article about Chelsea Clinton and the Clinton Foundation’s No Ceilings initiative.

The issue begins with high school, said Alaina Percival, CEO of Women Who Code, a global nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring women to excel in technology careers.

“You see girls dropping out of STEM subjects and in U.S. culture, it’s not considered attractive for a woman to be smart and successful. [Girls themselves] should be thinking of other things to make herself attractive and that’s the point in a woman’s life where, for the first time ever, she’s thinking about what it means to be attractive. A lot of our culture is not telling girls often enough that being smart and successful is beautiful,” Percival said.

According to the Girl Scout Research Institute, 97 percent of STEM girls agreed “whatever boys can do, girls can do.” However, girls often are discouraged against that idea as they progress.

Sana Slote, a 17-year-old student at Chicago Math and Science Academy, took this injustice to the officials at her school.

Slote began a robotics club at her school as a sophomore. This club was a brand new opportunity and Slote joined, in hopes of progressing her interest in engineering. However, her coach had other ideas. Slote and the other two girls on the

team were put on “engineering notebook” duty and their job was to design boards and decorate the notebook. This was the daily planner for the team.

“Our first competition came along and . . . we just sat at a table while the guys played the matches. As I saw everyone running around, I tried to show some leadership in my group. I tried to be a manager in the other way, even though the captain was a guy too,” she said. “I felt like that’s the closest I would get to having some control. But that didn’t work because the engineering notebook took up most of my time, which was easy, but time-consuming.”

Slote decided to teach herself programming software systems and was successful. However, she was still not respected or welcomed to the main team. For this reason, she and her friends tried to talk to the coach about this.

The coach came to the girls first and accused them of spreading rumors. This caused parents to be involved and the principal also heard about this issue.

A week later, the coach was transferred, and the robotics club was no more.

“One of the most annoying things that he said was to a girl. He said, ‘If your parents were here, they would beat you,’” Slote said. She also does not think he would never say such a thing to a guy on the team.

This, unfortunately, is still the reality in some schools. Even the teachers discourage girls away from pursuing STEM fields.

“Culture affects women right when they are born. The little girl plays with an alphabet puzzle, but everyone says she’s going to go into literature. You’re already steering her toward language, while the boy is playing with objects,” said Eileen Pollack, a scientist and author of “Why

Are There Still So Few Women in Science?”

“Even the toys little girls play with, they’re just Barbies. Nothing technical about it,” Slote said.

Little girls play with dolls and little boys play with trucks. This is a common misconception in society. Most females are discouraged against playing with “boy” toys, and most males are only directed toward "masculine" toys.

Emma Watson, actress from the internationally famous “Harry Potter” film series, is an ambassador for UN Women, the United Nations organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women.

“I started questioning gender-based assumptions . . . . when at 14 I started being sexualized by certain elements of the press. When at 15 my girlfriends started dropping out of their sports teams because they didn’t want to appear ‘muscly.’ When at 18 my male friends were unable to express their feelings,” said Watson in her speech at a HeForShe campaign. HeForShe is an international solidarity movement for gender equality.

Some teenagers see feminists as being “bossy” and “man-haters.” Many do not know the true definition and think the word “feminism” only benefits females.

“Feminism is basically a group of women who believe that they deserve equal rights as men and that America as a whole is unfair to women as the populace in both salaries, occupations and life standards,” said Conor George, a 15-yearold student at Lane Technical Prep High School.

George said he believes only females can be feminists.

Many teenagers do not know that sexism targets all genders in America.

“Growing up with the idea that guys are the more manly ones and girls are the dainty ones, you get brainwashed, basically in your society, that a girl can’t handle a hand drill or a guy can’t read poetry, because that makes him ‘something else.’

It is so common to have that ideal split between genders,” said Slote.

As of 2015, the definition of feminism in the Merriam-Webster dictionary is “the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social and economic equality to men.”

Feminism is an indirect word for “equality,” but most teenagers do not know that.

“If you say ‘equalist,’ people are like ‘Yeah, I am for it,’ but if you say ‘feminist,’ they’re like ‘Oh no!’ They consider it insulting, another word for ‘bitch,’ ” Slote said. “I became a captain of the younger kids in Robowarriors . . . I was being ‘bossy’ and a little boy called me ‘bitchy.’

The other leader was twice as strict as I was and everyone called him a ‘boss.’ So ‘bitchy’ associates with females and ‘boss’ associates with males.”

Percival believes there are several reason women are underrepresented. “One [is] being the media. On one side, it has portrayed engineers as hackers in a basement and being antisocial. This definitely discourages girls, who don’t aspire to be that,” Percival said.

Taking charge and being “bossy” is discouraged amongst girls. However, girls have to make a tough decision: whether they want to be considered “pretty” or “smart.”

In the TV show “The Big Bang Theory,”

two female characters are portrayed as being a smart but awkward scientist and an attractive but uneducated blond. The blond is an aspiring actress and the scientist works in a lab. “‘The Big Bang Theory’ is a sitcom, of course, and therefore every character is a caricature . . . but what remotely young woman would want to imagine herself as dowdy, socially clueless Amy rather than stylish, bouncy, math-and-science-illiterate Penny?”

In elementary school, there is not much difference in a girl and boy’s education.

However, in high school, the distinctions begin. “It starts when it starts to get a little harder. They [girls] aren’t aware they are absorbing the messages, the stereotypes that are deeply embedded into their consciousness,” Pollack said.

In 1984, 37 percent of computer-science degrees were awarded to women. In 2014, only 12 percent of computer science graduates are women, a decrease of 25 percent in 30 years.

“There was a training class given in a facility and I happened to be the only female who signed up for it. And there was an informational email sent out beforehand saying what they were going to talk about and it was addressed ‘Gentlemen.’

They don’t think about these things as a slight, so I went to my parents’ house, I borrowed a really old silk-smoking jacket and a bubble wand pipe and I walked into the training. And then they got the message that I wasn’t a gentleman and that they needed to take that into account,” said Jennifer Snyder, a chemistry teacher

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at Lane Tech High School.

“What we see is women leaving their careers and it’s going to be just as important to keep women in their careers and become more successful as it is to get more girls into tech. We need women role models to advocate for them,” said Percival.

Sometimes comments can be a turnoff.

“I had a little trouble in one of the chemical engineering classes and the professor told me that maybe I should ask my mom what I should do. Why would he think I should ask my mother and specifically my mother, and not my parents, I do not know. And then I started realizing how differently I was going to be treated,” said Snyder.

Some women turn to careers in teaching, as Snyder did.

“I had six supervisors in five years . . . the problem was that every time I got a new supervisor, it was ‘Oh, you’re young and female, you must not know what you’re doing.’ And I sold multimilliondollar equipment to CEOs but my new supervisor came and said, ‘I think you need to learn how to speak in public.’ I wanted to say, ‘What do you think I’ve been doing for the past four years?’ I finally said I am not dealing with this anymore,” Snyder said.

In her article, Pollack tells the short story of a college student, who in high school was the only female in her AP Physics classroom. “Her classmates teased her mercilessly: ‘You’re a girl.

Girls can’t do physics.’ She expected the teacher to put an end to the teasing, but he didn’t,” Pollack said.

Pollack said females can definitely succeed, though it takes more courage. “You have to really love the science and keep connected to it . . . you have to create a thick skin for criticism,” Pollack said.

Interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) has increased by more than 20 percent since the graduating class of 2004. As of 2011, female students show interest in STEM fields at 14.5 percent. This is a third of the number of male students who expressed interest.

“Develop your passion and research the opportunities there. Don’t settle for something, your passion is there for you to pursue,” Slote said.

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To whip or not to whip?

Some parents are for it and others say 'no spanks'

By Amber Fry Lindblom Math and Science Academy

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ikayla Freeman, 17, recalls being spanked as a child.

“If I wasn’t spanked, I would say anything I want to anybody,” said the Lindblom Math and Science Academy junior. “It is good to be able to speak your mind but sometimes things you say can be a little disrespectful and hurtful to others.

I’m glad my parents spanked me because I would’ve never learned that.”

Spanking has been a hot topic in the media since NFL star Adrian Peterson received probation for child abuse. In November Peterson was suspended from the Minnesota Vikings for the rest of the 2014 season for child abuse. His defense was that he was only trying to discipline his child, like most parents.

Peterson told CNN at the time: "My goal is always to teach my son right from wrong and that's what I tried to do that day, I accept the fact that people feel very strongly about this issue and what they think about my conduct. Regardless of

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Elizabeth Gershoff, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin, has studied spanking and is against it. "It is also confusing to children when people they love, their parents, hurt them on purpose. It erodes trust in and connection with their parents, two consequences that make it harder for parents to discipline their children overall."

what others think, however, I love my son very much and I will continue to try to become a better father and person."

Peterson has expressed to everyone that he is not a perfect parent but he is not a child abuser.

There is one question that everyone has always asked: “Is spanking beneficial in correcting children's behavior?”

Elizabeth Gershoff, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin, conducted a study on spanking and ethnicity. Gershoff found that 89 percent of black parents said they had spanked their children, compared to 80 percent of Hispanic parents, 79 percent of white parents and 73 percent of Asian parents.

Gershoff said children should not be spanked. “Spanking is a form of hitting, plain and simple. We use the euphemism ‘spanking’ because it makes us feel better about what we’re doing, but it is still a form of assault/violence,” she explained.

Gershoff is a mother of three and has never spanked her children.

During an interview, Gershoff added: “It is also confusing to children when people they love, their parents, hurt them on purpose. It erodes trust in and connection with their parents, two consequences that make it harder for parents to discipline their children overall.”

Gershoff continued: “The majority of physical child abuse cases start off as discipline. Parents did not mean to harm their children but got carried away and hit their children too hard or too long.”

Diamond Williams, 17, also a junior at Lindblom, has never been spanked. “I was not spanked but I don’t think I ever deserved it. If I was spanked, I would be a better person but I do not think that it would have changed my personality,” she said. Williams said she was usually put in “time out” or simply yelled at when she did something wrong.

Noted Chicago motivational speaker Dwayne Bryant has mentored more than 10,000 public school students and held

workshops with parents and their children on building character and improving academics through his organization, Inner Vision.

"Spanking should not be the first recourse, but it should be an option,” Bryant said. “Kids are different. They are motivated by different levels of discipline. With some kids, you can just look at them and they will stop whatever they are doing. With other kids, you have to raise your voice to make your point. And with some kids, you've got to lay hands on them, but in a loving way. As good Christian folks would say, 'Spare the rod and spoil the child.’ ” Bryant noted that "kids should know what the expectations are. For example, if I told you I want you to turn the television off and do your homework, that's what I mean. But if I didn't have that conversation with you, then it is wrong for me to discipline you. You have to have the conversation and then reinforce it."

Jack Johnson, a computer technician in Chicago, is a married father of five (ranging in ages from 6-21) and likes to keep structure in his household.

“Spanking is not beneficial to all children because some children don’t respond well to hitting. They respond better if you sit down and talk to them or take things away that they like. But also, some children are naturally defiant and will not listen to you just talking to them.”

Johnson said there is certainly a wrong time to spank your child.

“When you are angry, you should never hit your child out of anger because when you act out of anger, you aren't spanking them to correct their behavior, you are spanking out of emotions. Anytime you are working out your emotions, you tend to lose control and that is when spanking can turn to abuse.”

Kimberly Page, a guidance counselor at Vanderpoel Elementary Magnet School, is the mother of two boys and said she does not spank her children.

“I don’t think spanking is bad. I feel you will have better behaved children if they know their expectation and parents are consistent with discipline. You should not have to spank your children because children naturally like to please their parents and if you are firm and give them the attention that they need, they will want to please their parents.”

Coloring outside the box

Self-identity can be a challenge for biracial teens

By Alondra Lopez Lindblom Math and Science Academy

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ments, biracial teens say they also frequently face a confounding question from strangers: What are you?

Is it an inappropriate question?

“It depends who's asking and how it’s asked,” said Heather Dalmage, professor and sociology director, Mansfield Institute for Social Justice and Transformation at Roosevelt University in Chicago.

If the question is asked to seek perspective about a biracial person’s experiences, that’s one thing, she suggested. But there are less noble reasons for the question.

“I think it’s very different than ‘What are you?’ in trying to get someone into a category so that someone knows how to interact with them.

It’s a different quality of experience. One is you're trying to understand the person and their experience, and the other one is ‘I need to figure out what category I need to put you in.’ I think that one is inappropriate.”

It can be difficult to determine the reason for such a question, however.

“A lot of people ask what I am,” Kiela said.

“It’s almost always the second thing to leave their mouth.

Though I’m usually just chill about it, sometimes it makes me wonder, ‘Do I not look normal?’ ” A group of biracial teens at Chicago’s Miranda Stamps, 18: “When I’m with a group of black people, they auLindblom Math and tomatically assume I’m Mexican, and they don’t acknowledge the fact Science Academy first that I’m black, too. It’s the same with Mexicans. They think I’m all black, recognized when they but just light-skinned.” Photo courtesy Miranda Stamps

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iela Moreno often questions whether she will fit people’s expectations when she first meets someone.

Kiela, a 16-year-old who lives in Chicago’s Beverly neighborhood, is AfricanAmerican and Mexican.

“Most people assume that if I’m Mexican, I should know Spanish,” she said.

“Also, being Mexican and Black—both minorities—girls always are stuck on this idea of ‘good hair.’ ‘Mixed girls always have good hair,’ I would hear. And I would wonder what the heck was classified as ‘good.’ It made me feel awkward and like I had to live up to people’s standards.”

Even growing up in multicultural Chicago, which has the third largest population in the country of people claiming two or more races, can leave biracial teenagers feeling uncategorized, misconceived and flat-out different.

According to the U.S. 2010 Census, more than 9 million biracial people live in the United States. Since 2000, the biracial population has increased by 50 percent—along with the misconceptions.

Biracial teens interviewed for this article struggle to manage expectations in relation to their mixed-race status. They are stumped when filling out applications or documents that ask them to identify their race. Usually faced with one choice, some of them are torn.

“I usually pick ‘other,’ but I used to have trouble because I felt like I had to be categorized and identify with one race,” Kiela said. “I used to hate picking ‘other’ because ‘other’ didn’t say what I was.

Because of that, I couldn’t be categorized as everyone else. Being categorized used to be something that I wanted.”

Aside from limiting forms and docu-

were in grade school that some people saw them as different. Their identities are a mashup of African-American, Caucasian and Mexican-American.

“There’s going to be a variety of reasons they're going to be viewed differently, and it’s going to depend on who the viewer is,” Dalmage said. “To some people it wouldn’t matter.”

Still, being singled out is no fun.

“When I went to elementary school at Saucedo, I was pretty much the only black person in my classroom,” said Miranda Stamps, who is 18 and half African-American and half Mexican.

Maria Saucedo Scholastic Academy is located in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood, which is 83 percent Hispanic, according to the Encyclopedia of Chicago.

The start of Miranda's struggles fitting in began while in school there. She was sometimes excluded by peers because of her biracial status.

“They would tell me I couldn’t eat a certain food because I’m black and would exclude me from their groups,” she said.

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For biracial people, self-identity issues can be especially predominant during adolescence.

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Exclusion often comes from both halves of her racial makeup.

“When I’m with a group of black people, they automatically assume I’m Mexican, and they don’t acknowledge that I’m black, too,” she said. “It’s the same with Mexicans. They think I’m all black, but just light-skinned.”

Joshua Johnson, a half African-American and half Caucasian 18-year-old, had a similar experience of isolation attending a majority African-American elementary school.

“At the end of the first grade, I moved from Washington, D.C., to Chicago,” he said. “When I started school, I started in a completely black neighborhood. Being teased and made fun of because of my skin [color] marked the age where I first realized that I didn't fit in.”

Being biracial and descending from two minority races is challenging, but being a mixture of a minority race and white, the majority race, is perhaps all the more daunting, suggested Dalmage.

“When a person is black and white, the power imbalance is dramatic,” she said.

Joshua’s experiences reflect such complexity. “A lot of times I'm not quite black

enough to fit in with the blacks and not quite white enough to fit in with the whites,” he said.

For biracial people, self-identity issues can be especially predominant during adolescence, said Kathryn Hollerbach, who teaches sociology at Lindblom Math and Science Academy. She sees biracial students go through these things daily.

“From a psychological perspective, adolescence is a time that involves identity exploration as the frontal lobes of the brain—responsible for personality, among other things—are still being developed,” Hollerbach said. “According to developmental psychologist Erik Erikson, this fifth stage of social development involves the conflict of identity confusion, when adolescents are often trying to experiment with new identities and discover who they truly are. Biracial students might feel especially torn between two racial identities, and might feel pressure if they don't fit neatly into one check box or the other.”

Choosing sides can become an issue for these teens. Joshua found that the only way to manage expectations is identifying himself as one race, depending on the

situation and the audience.

“I wish I had an identity that I was proud of no matter who I was with, but that isn't the case,” Joshua said. “When talking with my minority friends, I refuse to acknowledge my white side and insist that I am 100 percent black. Vice versa, I try to abandon my black culture when I'm talking to my white family members and friends.”

Said Hollerbach: “One way for students to potentially overcome this struggle is to have opportunities to explore the various aspects of their identity. For this reason, it is important for teachers to provide opportunities for students to express themselves and make connections between their own lives and what they are learning.”

Kiela is confident that she can find the road to equality, even though it can be a battle at times honoring both sides of her family.

“I do classify as both races equally because I am what I am,” she said. “Am I ashamed? No. People often classify to exploit their best ethnicity, but it isn’t that way for me. I’m proud of my cultures.”

Modesty over misconceptions

'Judge me by what's in my head, not on my head'

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By Sofiya Affey Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center

According to a study conducted by the Pew Research Center, there are currently about 1 million Muslim women in America; 43 percent of them wear headscarves all the time. Still, misconceptions exist and misunderstanding can be a challenge for teens who wear them.

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move out of the line and she patted me down invasively. She hadn’t done it to anyone else in the line. I knew it was something about my scarf, so I went along with it and didn’t ask any questions,” Nuur explains. “I regret to this day that I didn’t stand up for myself and my religion.”

Omey, from the Muslim Community Center, says it is wrong to religiously profile women with their heads covered and that many are wrong about their beliefs about how Muslims feel about terrorists in general.

“Islamic terrorists are horrible, horrible, people, who have a stupid way of expressing their freedom of speech and religion to the world,” Omey says. “What people need to understand is that Islam condemns all forms of terrorism, no matter what your purpose is. If you want people to accept your religion, you have to learn to do that peacefully, because using violence will only cause uprisings.

If it comes down to hurting innocent people, you will not prove your point.”

Misconceptions made about Muslims are blinding people from the fact that they are just like everyone else. Muslim teen girls are normal teen girls. They go through the same things as every other teen girl in the world.

“Muslim women and men are some of the most dedicated activists, philanthropists and humanitarians in the world.

The world ‘Islam’ in Arabic means peace.

That should be something that people should think about next time they see a Muslim woman,” Omey says. “Islam is not a political stance.”

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ou’ve definitely seen them around: scarves around their heads and necks, only their faces showing.

You probably wonder why they are all covered up? What are they hiding?

As humans, we start to make assumptions: That they were forced to wear it, they’re shy, or that they’re just insecure.

According to a study conducted by the Pew Research Center, there are currently about 1 million Muslim women in America; 43 percent of them wear headscarves all the time. As the number of American Muslim women increases and American misconceptions about Islam continue, even more pressures will impact women’s choices of whether or not to wear the Muslim headscarf—the hijab.

“Whispers and stares when I’m on the bus or train I have become accustomed to,” says Amran Omey, women’s educator at Muslim Community Center in Chicago, in her native Somali language. “I’ve been wearing my hijab my whole life. I hope to see young Muslim girls wearing their hijab, but as this judgment continues, the less we see of young Muslim girls taking pride in their religion.”

Many people don’t understand the reasoning behind wearing the hijab and what its purpose is, so the natural instinct is to make assumptions. The problem is these assumptions are usually negative and derogatory. They make Muslim women feel belittled and unimportant which makes it more difficult for them to step out in the hijab. It’s frustrating to hear that when a modest woman wants to step outside and observe her religion, she’s scared that the world will judge her.

The definition of hijab in Arabic is “cover.” There are several reasons women wear it: for modesty according to religious teachings, to visibly express their Muslim identity and their faith and

for cultural identity or country of origin.

Wearing a hijab as an adult seems tough, but wearing a hijab as a teen can be a real challenge. Adolescence is the time in a young person’s life when they are most vulnerable and insecure. Their insecurities are usually about things like puberty or grades, but teen girls who wear the hijab have another worry—a scarf on their head, a distinct thing that makes them stand out from others. Barni Nuur, a Whitney Young Magnet School sophomore, talks about her struggles being a teen that wears the hijab.

"I started wearing the hijab in kindergarten. I thought they looked cool, and my mom was proud that I wanted to cover up at a very young age," Nuur says.

"The first time I felt ashamed of my hijab was this one time in music school. My hair was in a bun under my hijab and this boy asked me if I had a tumor. They were saying things like, `What's that lump sticking out of your head?' and `What's it like having a tumor?'" Nuur says. "I laugh at it now, but in first grade, I cried myself to sleep that night."

Nuur says many teen girls wearing hijabs feel this way on a daily basis just walking through the halls at their school.

“The school I go to is very diverse, but sometimes when I’m sitting in class and the topic of Islamic extremists and terrorism is brought up, I feel unnecessarily uncomfortable,” she adds. “I know I shouldn’t feel judged because obviously I’m not a terrorist and I have nothing to do with terrorists, but I start to feel uncomfortable for no reason.”

Another very common misconception, Nuur says, is that people think that all Muslims are affiliated with terrorism and wearing a hijab telegraphs the fact that you are Muslim.

“There was this one time I was in an airport in Switzerland, and I was one of the only Muslim girls in the airport with my hijab on. When I was going through security checks, the lady asked me to

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Fitting the description

Black teens must cope with racial profiling in Chicago

By Brandon Spencer Urban Prep Academy, West Campus

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enneth Brewton, 17, a junior at Urban Prep Academy, has had several unexpected encounters with police while living on Chicago's South Side. One in particular continues to give him pause.

One day Brewton was standing outside with a female friend when the two were abruptly stopped by Chicago police officers.

"They jumped out the squad car with the billy clubs out, and was like 'Put y'all hands on the car,' " Brewton said. "The girl I was with was scared and I was trying to calm her down."

When he asked the officer if there was a problem, Brewton says the officer "told me to 'shut the [explicit] up' " before searching him and his friend for weapons. After he finished searching the teens, the officer explained he was looking for a young female in a pink jacket, despite the fact that Brewton's friend wore black.

Brewton says the experience "made me feel as though I have to always be on alert, even from those who are supposed to protect [me]. I try to handle most situations by myself instead of going to them."

Those like Brewton who experience racial profiling—a police-initiated action that relies on the race or ethnicity of an individual rather than the behav-

ior or information, according to the U.S. Department of Justice—pay the price emotionally and mentally.

Although some black teens escape unscathed from an altercation with the police, the psychological harm to teens is palpable. According to a report from the Ontario Human Rights Commission, some effects of racial profiling include loss of educational opportunities, negative psychological impact and promotion of anti-social behaviors.

Racial profiling is also a national epidemic and has been an issue since the Rodney King riots in the late 1990s.

However, profiling has been a troubling problem within our society longer than many realize.

"More than 240 years of slavery and 90 years of legalized racial segregation have led to systematic profiling of blacks in traffic and at pedestrian stops," according to a report from the American Civil Liberties Union's Campaign Against Racial Profiling.

"And if you're not aware of this phenomena, you will not know how to handle it." said Carl C. Bell, M.D., a staff psychiatrist at Jackson Park Hospital Family Medicine Clinic. "The results of

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Kenneth Brewton, 17, an Urban Prep Academy junior, has faced racial profiling: "I have to always be alert, even from those who are supposed to protect [me]." Photo by Brandon Spencer

constantly being harassed or provoked by police officers can [lead to] serious, irreparable psychological [consequences]."

Bell recalls being personally profiled when he was an adolescent, saying how the police "stereotypically assumed" he was up to no good. These type of incidents could have damaged his self-confidence. Instead of reacting negatively, Bell used theses instances to push him to be the opposite of what he was assumed to be.

Unfortunately, Bell says, a lot of young black men who are steadily profiled don't know how to cope with these circumstances. One way teens can deal with racial profiling is by creating "an adult protection shield for black teens," a collection of adult caretakers that provides

supervision, discipline and a caring presence. Bell says these kinds of precautions foster a sense of safety and security for teens.

Howard Lindsey, a retired Chicago police officer of 26 years, worked at Englewood High School and recalls the bad elements of the job. “The students trusted me more than the other security guards," he said, because he handled disciplinary issues personally, permitting students to stay in school rather than being expelled.

But incidents like the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., and the strangulation death of Eric Garner in New York cast a pall and remind us that not only does racial profiling exist, but that law enforcement agencies need to find better ways to interact with black

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Howard A. Lindsey, retired Chicago police officer who served for 26 years, worked at Englewood High School: "The students trusted me more than the other security guards" because he handled disciplinary issues personally, permitting students to stay in school rather than being expelled.

Photo courtesy of Howard A. Lindsey

teenagers.

"Those police departments where those incidents occurred had a lack of training, which made those officers cynical," Lindsey said.

In other words, those officers approach every situation the same, instead of following the proper procedure when encountering a minor.

"The law states that if you're under the age of 18, you must be patted down but not searched," Lindsey said, "and if you have a book bag, I have the right to look inside."

Lindsey's idea of curtailing racial profiling is simple, if a little far-fetched.

White officers should patrol white neighborhoods and black officers should patrol black neighborhoods. "White equal whites, and blacks equals black," added Lindsey.

Kenneth Brewton has an even simpler solution, one that illustrates how far both sides have to go toward finding a permanent solution: stay away from the police. Brewton says he doesn't think of the police as a resource in times of trouble. He'd rather go to his family or friends than trust the police to help him.

"I'd rather not deal with police," he said.

Unfortunately, Bell says, a lot of young black men who are steadily profiled don't know how to cope with these circumstances. One way teens can deal with racial profiling is by creating "an adult protection shield for black teens," a collection of adult caretakers that provides supervision, discipline and a caring presence. Bell says these precautions foster a sense of safety and security for teens.

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Bam! Pow! WHOA! Damsels in distress to superheroes:

Comics illustrate women's empowering lives

By Jeremy Swift Evanston Township High School

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he portrayals of women in comic books have evolved over the years, ranging from the damsel in distress to the total kick-butt villain.

Lois Lane was the iconic "damsel" in the Superman comics. Through time, she evolved and became more of an informant to Superman, providing him with information on the whereabouts of evildoers. She no longer clung to the ledges of buildings waiting to be rescued.

Tim Jackson, a Chicago-based editorial cartoonist whose work has appeared in newspapers nationwide, said women in comics nowadays are often empowered with the ability to fight for themselves.

"They are no longer seen as the helpless damsel in distress," he said.

In other words, women have come a long way in their social roles. But so has their physical depiction in all things comics.

When cartoons and comics were a mainstay of newspapers, cartoonists couldn’t even draw belly buttons on women.

“There used to be a Comics Code saying what you can and can’t do,” Jackson said. “They had editors to fix, or change, what the writers wrote.”

For decades, the Comics Code governed the way women were drawn. In place from 1954-2001, the code enforced restrictions on the use of violence and graphic illustrations of the female body, among other things.

With the code defunct, the illustration of women has heated up. Aside from more graphic illustrations, the depiction

of women in comics has changed in other significant ways. For a long time women have been written in comic books as virtual trophies, or sexual possessions, and their depictions still reflect that attitude—despite some status empowerment.

Contemporary depictions of the villainous burglar Catwoman empower her with the ability to fend for herself.

But even with all her abilities, her main motive is to win the Dark Knight's heart.

Even though she has become more of an independent person, her motives still suggest that no matter what women do, it’s all to either please men, or to gain their approval.

Catwoman’s hyper-sexual outfits reinforce this underlying motive. While going through her challenges, she wears a slim-fit catsuit with a zipper that highlights her cleavage. Even though she is able to fend for herself, she is still presented as a sex object.

Poison Ivy is another well-known female villain cast in this light. Early in the Batman comics, she wore a one-piece swimsuit. Her outfit evolved to become more revealing—so revealing that she's pretty much naked.

“Poison Ivy at some point in the comics had a costume, but later on she had nothing, and just had vines growing all around her,” Jackson said.

But who is responsible for improving the image of women in comic books?

Jackson would hold comic books publishers responsible.

“The only ones that can do something would be the people who run the companies,” he said. “As an individual you can keep creating things, but if nobody ever publishes it to be seen, that’s where you have a problem.”

Len Strazewski, a veteran comic book

author based in Chicago who has worked on Starman, The Flash and Justice Society of America, has another perspective on the way women are illustrated in comics.

“Comics and cartoons are built on exaggerations,” he said. “All these characters are exaggerated. You know Prime, which is my character? There are no guys who look like that. You know that is an exaggerated male.”

But, still, there are notable differences between gender exaggerations, Strazewski allowed, with illustrators often saddling women with breasts that are out of proportion, other impossible bodily ratios and sexually suggestive physical contortions. Such dynamics even affect notably strong female characters, such as Wonder Woman.

“Wonder Woman is seen as an idealized woman,” Strazewski said. “She’s a hero, so I don’t think she is seen in a negative way. In fact, there are many feminists who actually see Wonder Woman as a very positive character. But there have been controversies over the years about how she has been depicted, how she is drawn.”

The controversy stems from Wonder Woman—and other women in comics— being illustrated in a manner in which “their breasts are the size of their heads,”

Tim Jackson, syndicated editorial cartoonist, says the governing Comics Code is defunct and the illustration of women has heated up. "You will see Catwoman portrayed as a sex object and the villainous Poison Ivy in anything from a bathing suit to something bordering on nudity."

Photo by Kevin Obomanu

Panels from the Prime comic book were on exhibit at Columbia College Chicago. The Prime comic book was written by Strazewski (left) and Gerard Jones and illustrated by John Stratema.

Len Strazewski, a veteran comic book author in Chicago, created the Prime character for Marvel in 1993 (pictured). “Wonder Woman is seen as an idealized woman. She’s a hero. Many feminists actually see Wonder Woman as a very positive character. But there have been controversies over the years about how she has been depicted, how she is drawn.” Photos by Jeremy Swift

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Strazewski said.

Strazewski said that for a person to become a good artist, he or she needs to know anatomy and how the female body actually looks. When women are drawn with impossible physical features, it often points to the artist’s limitations.

“It’s that artists aren’t very good,” Strazewski said. “They don’t know real anatomy. All the good artists I know say they have to continue to take life drawing classes.”

When the comics move from the 2-D nature of the printed page, other challenges arise related to women’s physiques, Strazewski said.

“The real issue that is controversial now is called cosplay, and that’s when people go to comics conventions and they dress up like the characters,” he said. “Because of the nature of the costumes, which are OK in print, when a real person wears these costumes, they could be overly exaggerated.”

Cosplayers dressed up as their favorite superhero or heroine sometimes face mistreatment and disrespect based on reactions to how their costumes fit. It’s such a problem that at a comics convention Strazewksi attended in Phoenix, Ariz., they handed out flyers urging people to respect the cosplayers.

Comic book renditions of women as superheroes..

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Is closing the literacy gap possible?

Studies show how wide the gap is — and what we can do to help

#civicsengage

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Eric Fenton, founder of the test-prep company Ignite Progress, discovered that he could fight resource paucity and illiteracy through affordable academic services. Photo by Kristen Rigsby

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By Kristen Rigsby Northside College Preparatory High School

everal reports concur: kids who have access to literature in their early years and continuous access throughout early adulthood tend to be more successful in their long-term schooling career. But with many kids reporting that they don’t own, don’t have access to, or can’t afford books at home, important literacy development stages may be skipped. How can kids receive the resources they need? Can the key to fixing these problems be found in hosting book drives, or is the solution something greater?

Nationally, this “literacy gap” has plagued policymakers for many years, especially because the stakes of their decisions have been so high. A 2012 Annie E. Casey Foundation study showed that there are three main factors that impact graduation rates: the reading level at the end of third grade; having lived in a high-poverty neighborhood; and experi-

Ibraheem Khan, 15, a freshman at Northside College Prep, strongly believes the literacy gap can and needs to be closed. Photo by Kristen Rigsby

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Drs. William H. Teale, Kathleen Paciga and Jessica Hoffman wrote in their 2007 Urban Literacy study: “Assessment processes contribute directly to the curriculum gap addressed here [because] sustained and strategic attention to comprehension is absent in far too many primary-grade urban classrooms… We believe such a perspective is, in the long term, a recipe for reading problems — especially for urban children.”

Those who are directly affected by the policies agree.

“I learned a little bit of reading comprehension at Lyons Elementary [part of the Chicago Public Schools system],” said Northside College Prep freshman Ilyssa Roman, 15. “But for the most part it was nothing big and definitely not the things that we needed to learn the most.

I had to learn a major portion of how to understand text on my own. I definitely think a curriculum change is necessary.”

While the government may need to undergo modifications, external forces

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encing family poverty. If students don’t have access to quality literature and literature education by the age of 9 and experienced poverty, their chances of graduating high school are significantly lowered — a 35 percent increase in the proportion of those not graduating and those graduating.

After careful planning, the U.S. government developed standards for school education that were implemented with the hope of closing the gap. The No Child Left Behind policy and the Reading First program were some of the first attempts in kindergarten-to-third grade classrooms to help. Focusing on reading instruction and word recognition curriculum, the programs targeted key reading strategies and improving chances at adult literacy.

However, many say these programs do not help children understand what they’re reading, resulting in loss of important writing instruction, comprehension instruction and core concepts.

need to step in and promote change as well, said Eric Fenton, founder and CEO of Ignite Progress, a Chicago-based test prep company that helps low-income children by providing affordable academic assistance.

“I think it’s a shared responsibility,” he said. “So it’s partly the government, but also the school, the parents, and the community.”

Schools can add more comprehension instruction as a supplement to the government-mandated curriculum.

According to Miami University research, reading comprehension skills separate the "passive" unskilled reader from the "active" readers because the active readers can interact with and understand the text.

Parents also play an important role.

In a study by the Reach Out and Read organization, parents reading aloud with their child greatly increases the child’s budding literacy ability and curiosity.

“During shared book reading, children learn to recognise (sic) letters, understand that print represents the spoken word, and learn how to hold a book, turn the page and start at the beginning,” the study stated. “All of these contribute to word recognition and reading comprehension.”

Finally, as a community member, one of the best ways to help is to make sure books are readily available, either at local libraries or community centers. According to the Urban Literacy Study report: “Good books are a key to creating good readers.”

But even with these adjustments, some question whether the literacy gap can ever be closed. Many believe so.

“I think that eventually, with a change in economic inequality and with time, we will be able to close the literacy gap,” said Fenton.

Added Ibraheem Khan, 15, a freshman at Northside College Prep: “The ability to read is so important because throughout the stages of your life reading will be a crucial theme, whether it’s through jobs, schools or universities, or just your daily life. I truly believe that starting to tackle the literacy gap now will pay off in the long run. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing a change.”

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Negative connotation

Service learning is important, studies say, but a change is needed

By Kristen Rigsby Northside College Preparatory High School

felt that way, she knows people who do.

“Some of my friends often think about service learning as a requirement rather than a learning opportunity,” she said. or many students in the Chicago “They never really engage in the entire Public School system, service experience.” learning is the dreaded 40-hour According to an Academic Developgraduation requirement—a job that can’t ment Institute study, service learning seem to be done soon enough. Many fear should be quite different than “just a the work will be too boring, too time-con- requirement.” Not only is it an outstandsuming or too hard, often causing teens to ing opportunity to become involved in shut themselves out of civic engagement one’s community, but it can also serve and ignore the benefits of being involved as a springboard for intellectual interest in the community. and potentially a future topic of activism.

Duyen Vo, 15, a freshman at Northside According to the study, there’s a direct College Prep, says while she has never relationship between service learning and subsequent civic engagement.

“Service learning is viewed as one form of engaged learning that can enhance the skills and motivation necessary for civic e n g a g e m e n t ,” the report stated.

“The strongest predisposing factor for participation in service is having been previously involved in service during high school.”

Quynh Nguyen, 15, a freshman at Northside College Prep, credits serDuyen Vo, 15, volunteered at Lurie Children’s Hospital for CPS service vice learning with learning hours and now continues her civic engagement as a hobby. Photo encouraging her

by Kristen Rigsby interest of civic

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engagement and volunteerism.

“I went to a food shelter in my neighborhood and was shocked to see how some generous people would willingly give their time and money to other people who needed it more, even if they didn't have much,” Nguyen said. “I became civically engaged and now regularly volunteer there, as I will continue to do in the future. It really changed me and my outlook on my community.”

Vo shared a story similar to Nguyen’s, volunteering for a dance marathon to raise money for Lurie Children's Hospital.

“I was inspired by the strength exhibited by the children and the families of the children and equally inspired by the compassion of strangers who donated their time and energy to raise money and dance for an entire day,” she said.

Since then, Vo has continued to volunteer at hospitals, providing comfort and an open ear to all who are ill.

“I certainly have become more civically engaged since then,” she said.

While it’s clear from numerous studies conducted and the people who shared their anecdotes that community service is beneficial, the main problem remains: What will get teens to become more involved in their communities?

Bruce O. Boston addressed the difficulty of this task in his 2005 study “Restoring the Balance Between Academics and Civic Engagement in Public Schools.”

“Creating academically proficient and civically engaged students seems a reasonable task on the surface, but in practice the idea reveals itself as an enormous challenge,” he said in the report. “As a new century unfolds, we find a disturbing imbalance in the mission of public education. America’s recent preoccupation with reshaping ‘academics’ and raising academic performance has all but overpowered a task of equally vital importance: Educating our young people to become engaged members of their communities.”

Despite the odds, Boston still believes there are solutions.

For one, schools can introduce more service learning options into their curriculum and stress their importance. While Chicago Public Schools offer the opportunity for classroom-integrated service learning projects to count toward servicelearning hours, some projects fail to interest students or allow the students to see their project’s effect on the community.

“If my service learning project did not reach the point of completion or interest me, I would be disappointed,” Nguyen said. “I feel like every child should have the opportunity to complete a project they feel engaged in and see its impact on others in the same way I did with volunteering at the food shelter.”

Another option could be as simple as reintroducing civic engagement and service learning as classes. As an extension of classroom projects, Taft High School and Academic Center offers a service learning class called Environmental And Spatial Technology (EAST) where students can use graphic design software to raise awareness of their service learnQuynh Nguyen, 15, is an avid advocate for CPS service ing project through posters, fliers learning reform so that every child can experience posi- or multimedia.

Amelia Keating, 15, a Taft Acative civic engagement. Photo by Kristen Rigsby

demic Center graduate, took the class last year. In two months, Keating created a book and toy drive to benefit Lurie Children’s Hospital for Valentine’s Day. “I really felt passionate about this drive because we achieved our goal: to get the whole Taft community engaged in service learning,” Keating said. “Overall, I really enjoyed this project and the projects I did in EAST because they helped me reach out to people who were in need.”

But even with the changes, will the negative connotation of service learning be shed once and for all?

Keating, Nguyen and Vo all think so.

“Service learning and civic engagement don’t have to be something big or time consuming,” Vo said. “The small and seemingly insignificant actions end up leaving the greatest impacts."

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The problem remains: What will get teens to become more involved in their communities.

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Commentary

My unequal education

By Cheyenne Ford Young Women's Leadership Charter School

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f there is anyone who knows the difference between public and private schools, it’s me. I’ve experienced both. There are important differences.

When I was in the middle of the 7th grade, I transferred from the University of Chicago Woodlawn campus, a public school, to St. Michael Catholic School, which was private. While going to the University of Chicago I got the best grades. I had no complaints. When I started attending St. Michael, things started to change. I felt like the public school I had just left for personal reasons had just been passing me along to the next grade for the previous two years.

My weakness was algebra. I could not wrap my brains around it. When I looked at those formulas, all I saw were confusing numbers and symbols. Going into 8th grade, I was completely lost, not knowing what to do as far as finding guidance. After graduating middle school, I attended Mother McAuley and that was the best thing that has ever happened to me in my education.

I felt at home and I didn’t feel different or out of place. With a mindset of an 8th grader I was thinking that by the time I start to attend Mother McAuley, I would be at the level I needed to be.

I was so behind and I didn’t realize it. I had been thinking I am so smart, but the whole time I was receiving good grades for other reasons, not because I actually knew what I was doing. I felt as if Mother McAuley was high on academics and I now know that there is a different academic level, now that I am in the 10th grade and attending Young Women’s Leadership Charter School.

So does another former student, Amani Walton, who started at Young Women's her sophomore year after attending Queen of Peace. Walton said she wasn’t applying herself to her fullest ability at Queen of Peace, a private school in Burbank, Illinois, but she was

a dedicated student when it came to her schoolwork.

“If I hadn't gone to Queen of Peace, I wouldn’t be the person I am today, ” she said.

Academically, Queen of Peace set the standards Walton needs to meet in order to be successful. Walton said that Young Women's gave her life lessons on diversity and interacting with different people. When Walton started at Young Women's, she said: “I was actually ahead compared to the other sophomores.”

Walton made it clear that things they were being taught sophomore year, she had already learned her freshman year at Queen of Peace. She also made clear that she sees both sides to an extent. She is an advocate for private schools when it comes to academics, but learning about life lessons and being introduced to diversity is one area where public schools are better.

For example, Walton became pregnant and recently gave birth to a son. She believes that she would not have received the support at Queen of Peace that she did at Young Women's. She believes she would have been strictly judged because of religious beliefs.

“As a student in a public [school] you have to work 10 times harder than someone in private school,” she said, explaining that as a public school student you may have to go out your way to receive the correct education, and that’s only if you are aware of the academic system.

Nancy Lynch, a recruiter at Mother McAuley, said her school has a higher level for academic achievement. Lynch said she is not that aware of the academic levels throughout all private schools, but boasts that McAuley is more strict and requires hard work and discipline.

“Mother McAuley has a 100 percent graduation rate as well as college acceptance,” she said.

“There is a huge difference between private and public schools,” said Asha Nash, 18, a senior at Young Women’s.

Her first year of private school was

an OK experience but she didn’t feel De La Salle Institute was right for her.

During Nash’s first year at the private school, she wasn’t extremely impressed.

She realizes the academic approach was different, but she doesn’t know if it was any better.

“I like De La Salle, but it did not shape me into the person I am today. The aca-

demics were wonderful and led me to be very hardworking, but it isn’t what I wanted,” Nash said.

She said public school was better suited for her. "Being in a private school, the work is given to you and you are expected to have it done. But in public school, you have more support from your teachers to make sure you do the best of your ability,” she said, explaining that in private school they can care less about you as an individual.

Christopher Lubienski, a former professor of education policy and director of the forum on the future of public education at University of Illinois, said those students getting an inferior education often don’t realize it.

Lubienski believes that a good education at an earlier age in either public or private school is a necessity.

“Most Americans are aware of the fact that kids at wealthy districts get good schooling and kids in poor districts get crappier schooling,” Lubienski said. ”This is not something that is trying to be hidden...people are aware, but aren’t making a difference to make sure children are getting the education they need in order to succeed.”

As someone who experienced both private and public schools, from my perspective, private schools are better at making sure those educational needs are met.

Do something about it!

Quabeeny Daniels, 20, knows what it means to be a youth activist

By Gianna Andujar Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center

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He has faced social injustices for most of his life growing up on the South Side of Chicago—from discrimination by the police to being held back in high school and not being allowed to take the ACT. Daniels said he and some of his peers were held back because his school felt they were not fit to take the ACT and feared losing money. This gave Daniels the perfect opportunity to advocate. With the will to fight, along with information and support, he was able to get himself and his classmates put back into the 11th grade.

Daniels says the challenge facing teens is “not getting up and doing anything. Quabeeny Daniels, 20, activist and mentor at Mikva Challenge, wants teens to advocate for themselves. The biggest challenge for teens, he says, That would be is “not doing anything.” Photo by Kevin Obomanu

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hicago activist Quabeeny Daniels wants teens to stop complaining and learn how to advocate for themselves if they really want change.

“An activist is someone who has passion for fighting injustices,” Daniels, 19, said. “An activist doesn't take any BS; a fighter...someone that’s actually willing to sit down and gather facts and know what they’re talking about before taking action.”

Daniels is a student leadership coordinator for Mikva Challenge. As a public ally, he facilitates the Peace and Leadership Council program at three CPS middle schools.

He began advocating for himself and his peers in the seventh grade as a member of the Southwest Youth Collaborative, where he participated in the organization’s juvenile justice and education rights campaigns.

the biggest challenge...all throughout high school I heard my friends just complain about this and that: prom is too expensive; ugh, the lunch food is nasty.

It just irritated me that they didn’t just do something about it.”

Daniels recently addressed Columbia Links students on youth activism. One student, Ciera Barnett, 14, observed: “He’s more focused on being a friend than a teacher. He makes everyday teens want to do extraordinary things due to his presence that is powerful and still normal.” Daniels’ friendliness along with his hunger for justice is what makes the idea of advocating for teens so appealing.

Daniels has worked with organizations like Mikva Challenge that give teens not only something productive to do, but an opportunity to shape their community and make real differences.

Daniels now works with middle schoolers, teaching students what he knows best—how to fight for change.

His “kids,” as Daniels likes to call them, are making changes to their lunchroom.

They’ve taken polls and pulled together statistics in an attempt to get healthier and tastier lunches. They are even trying to abolish the “Level Zero” rule, which forces students to be silent at lunch as punishment for talking too much during the free period.

The fearlessness that Daniels has passed on to his students exemplifies why he has become such a respected activist. Daniels proves if you shout loud enough, your voice will be heard.

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Housework vs. homework

Do chores develop or take away from school time?

By Messiah Young Kenwood Academy

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ithin the diverse city of Chicago, a multitude of children and teens participate in daily chores. Some complete them with ease and others dread coming home to their duties around the house.

At a young age, they are given tasks to fulfill. From mowing lawns to scrubbing toilets, the point is this: Free labor is something people do not look forward to doing. The blood, sweat and tears kids experience by doing simple tasks around the house have been a part of growing up for decades.

But does doing chores make you a better person or add to your life skills?

Danielle Parker, director of education for the Chicago Urban League, believes chores are essential to a child’s development.

“Chores help youth develop a sense of responsibility,” Parker said. “Chores help teens become more physically aware and involved."

However, many disagree with Park-

Mecca Taylor, 10, likes doing tasks around the house. Washing dishes is her favorite chore.

Photo by Messiah Young

er’s views. As technology advances, the demand for household chores has seemingly become obsolete. Research by Marty Rossmann, an associate professor of family education at the University of Minnesota, shows 82 percent of 1,001 adults grew up having to do chores but only 28 percent of these adults require their own children to do them.

Chicago Public Schools psychologist Serena Hill seemed to have a revelation when asked if her children had chores.

“OK, this is my very honest moment: My children have very limited chores, I do a lot of stuff for them that I realize now that they should have been doing from a young age,” Hill said. “I just grew up in a household where, I only had one chore, which was cleaning up my room. I didn’t even have to do my own laundry.”

Hill said. Her children are very dependent on her because she does so much of the household work for them. She regrets this, she said, but this is how she was raised so it reflects on her kids.

According to parenting expert Jim Fay, co-founder of the Love and Logic website, we all need to feel needed and to know that we're making a contribution, even kids.

“But they can't feel that way if they don't have chores and make contributions to the family," Fay said.

Despite what Fay said, many children don't want to have anything to do with chores. “I don’t have a lot of chores, I just clean my room and take care of myself,” said Asattah Franklin, 13-year-old student at Skinner West. “My parents do most of the work around the house.”

Not all children share Franklin’s views on chores. Mecca Taylor, 10, is one of them.

“It is important to do chores because I will know how to keep a clean house," Taylor said.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that people spend between one hour and 20 minutes and two hours and 15 minutes on household labor each day.

Danielle Parker, director of education for the Chicago Urban League: “Chores and volunteer work help youth develop their leadership capabilities and gives them a sense of pride when a job has been done well.”

can be a hassle, some teens enjoy helping their parents with chores.

“Cleaning puts me in a good mood. I feel relieved when everything is done and I feel better about myself,” said Davia Murray, 16-year-old student at Whitney Young. She believes chores are important because they discipline children. “They help me keep my priorities in order."

She added: “With all that goes on in teenagers' lives, parents use chores as punishment or ultimatums for teens.”

She also credited chores for having prepared her to become a stable, independent young woman who will know how to maintain a clean house.

Parker agrees. “Chores and volunteer work help youth develop their leadership capabilities and gives them a sense of pride when a job is done well,” Parker said. The more involved and independent a teen is, the stronger their behavior and leadership qualities become, she said.

“I definitely should have given them more chores,” said Hill. “I have friends that had chores when they were younger, and I go to their houses, and I see their kids on the floor cleaning the bathroom with toothbrushes. I would never.”

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pay. Amaris Buford is a 15-year-old student at Kenwood Academy who appreciates her household duties. “Chores are beneficial and prepare children and teens for adulthood,” said Buford.

However, Buford said chores can get in the way of some of her priorities.

“Chores cause teenagers to become tired and takes up time for homework.

High school is all about grades and chores do take up a large part of my night.”

Buford also does not believe that young people should be paid for chores because, to her, learning how to do a skill is enough.

However, psychologist Hill has a different stance on getting paid for chores.

“Getting an allowance for chores drives kids to do the chores, and even do a better job than they would if they were not getting an allowance,”Hill said. “Money gives kids a taste of the real world. If you work and do a good job, you get money. It’s that simple. Money is a great incentive.”

According to the WebMD website, 6 out of 10 parents give their children an allowance for chores. Parker, who has a 6-yearold, says her son earns an allowance and other incentives for a job well done. “He enjoys doing his chores and takes pride in knowing that he assists with ensuring that our household runs smoothly. He even requests additional ways to help out around the house.”

Jokingly, Parker said she prays her son keeps this positive attitude toward housework as he becomes older.

Others agree with Parker that chores are vital to raising well-balanced children.

"Housework is an inevitable part of life.

Just as we prepare our children for their adult lives by sending them to school, we need to prepare them to manage and maintain a home,” said Cynthia Ewer, author of “Complete Idiot’s Guide to Getting Organized.”

The easiest way to secure a child’s assistance around the house is to start training them while they are small, she said.

Though chores have become controversial, Hill believes there are no negative effects of chores. However, they could potentially affect other things. “There are no negative effects, but I think it can have a negative impact if the adults in the household make chores a priority over homework and a child’s personal time.

That is saying your academics are not as important as having a clean house.”

Although doing work around the house

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“While juggling school and other activities, chores and home life are usually the last thing on a teenager’s mental,” said Kennedy Hayes, a 16-year-old student at Whitney Young. “Chores can become an inconvenience if you have other obligations. I play golf and I am involved in a lot of clubs at my school. I’m also in Jack and Jill, and chores might delay my plans by an hour or two.”

Fred Provenzano, a nationally certified school psychologist, explained that the teenage years are about growth and development.

“They typically prefer to be out in the community, experimenting with their expanding reasoning abilities and behavioral freedoms, spending their time with peers who are also experiencing the excitement of these developments,” Provenzano said. “They often don't want to be at home, which can represent to them the limits and the mundane routine of childhood. Whether they have a history of performing chores since early childhood or not, teenagers may increase their questioning of the rationale, necessity and schedule of chores that tie them to home."

However, some kids recall starting chores at a very young age. Eric Richardson, a junior at De La Salle, has been doing chores since he was a toddler.

“Chores can cause one to feel the need to go against their parents in terms of being insubordinate,” Richardson said. “It can also bring drama into the household if the chores aren’t completed. Trust me, I go through it all the time.”

However, according to EmpoweringParents.Com, chores should not be used as a punishment, but as a way to pass time.

“I think household chores help students and children develop skills that they cannot learn in school,” Hill said. “They teach organization, time management and how to prioritize. It also helps develop a better appreciation for other people, and how to function in a community setting. For example, if one person doesn't clean the bathroom, it can have a ripple effect, not only on that person, but everyone else in the household.”

Based on a 2014 poll by the Los Angeles Times, public schoolteachers find that on average, high school students are assigned 3.5 hours of homework per day, or about 17 hours a week.

Still, some students are still managing to fit chores into their day for some extra

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Underage and out of work

For unemployed teens, the hardest job is finding a job

By Alexandra Macias DeVry University Advantage Academy

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here they go again slamming the snooze button on the alarm clock, hiding under the blankets so no one has to see the frown on their faces. Who are these people and what is wrong with them? Their names are Sayra Morales and Keith Williams II. They both live on the Far South Side of Chicago where teens have little access to employment opportunities.

Morales and Williams are not alone.

Teen unemployment in Chicago is at an astounding 73 percent. According to a 2015 report issued by the Drexel University and prepared for Chicago’s Alternative Schools Network, 18 percent of stu-

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Sayra Morales, a junior at Devry University Advantage Academy: “How are we going to get experience anywhere if we need to be 18?. . . Many adults believe we’re irresponsible, and unprofessional." Photo by Alexandra Macias

dents were not only disconnected from school but from work as well in 2014, which was about 6 percentage points higher than Illinois and the U.S. average.

The crisis is more acute for males, especially minority males. A newer study released in 2016 and commissioned by the Alternative Schools Network in Chicago revealed 88 percent black males ages 16-19 and 87 percent of Hispanic males were jobless in 2014. Of Chicago's white males in that age range, 75 percent were out of work, according to the study by the University of Illinois Chicago.

Morales, a junior at DeVry University Advantage Academy, does not believe Chicago is working hard enough to make things better.

“The city of Chicago doesn’t seem to be doing much on the issue of unemployment for the youth,” Morales said. “They see us as a bunch of teenagers that are not responsible enough to handle an entry-level job.”

Nor does she have much faith in Chicago’s corporate community. Many businesses set a standard that their future employees must be 18 years old and experienced. But Morales asked: “How are we going to get experience anywhere if we need to be 18? It just makes it impossible for us teenagers to get jobs because many adults believe we’re irresponsible, and unprofessional.”

Williams, also a junior at DeVry, expressed his frustration with the city as well.

“It almost seems as though every business is judging us before we walk in the door. It’s frustrating because I feel like a lot of teens have better qualities than many of the applicants that are simply a few years older.”

This is the time when teenagers have to be willing to voice their opinions and work hard at improving the odds.

“Since the market started decreasing,

Christina Villa, executive director, Metro Achievement Center for Girls, said just volunteering allows inner-city teenagers to get experience and learn valuable working skills, regardless if they’re getting paid or not. Photo

by Alexandra Macias

it’s become really difficult for us to get close to even getting a job. When we have to compete with a 55-year-old to get a job at McDonald’s, you can clearly see there is an issue,” Williams said. “I don’t have anything against a 55-year-old working at McDonald’s, [but] I believe there should be more open positions in these entrylevel jobs that are mainly aimed toward us.”

Jack Wuest, executive director of Alternative Schools Network, said the city “cannot afford to provide every teen in the city with jobs,” especially with the budget that it has. He said Mayor Rahm Emanuel created One Summer Chicago to provide teens with jobs, but there are only 24,000 positions available.

That is where all the trouble begins.

Teenagers get frustrated by constantly applying for jobs and being let down.

Many decide they don’t want to apply anywhere at all. No job and no hope could turn into an unhappy ending. “Children get bored and start to fall into violent activity,” said Wuest.

Although many teenagers go down the wrong path, many are willing to go to the extreme to find a job, even if it is one that doesn’t pay. There are organizations to help them achieve their goals of not only getting a job, but also going back to school, such as Wuest’s Alternative Schools Network and the Metro Achievement Center

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Since working Although it may be difficult to obtain a job in Metro, Villa has in the city, the worst thing to do is give helped develop up because it gets “too tough.” There are many of the orga- many organizations and summer pronization's summer grams all over the city of Chicago that programs, which dedicate their time to help teenagers gain include the service experience for future employment. week for all high Many times, teens need connections in school students, order to get a job. One way to get expeand apprenticeships rience is to volunteer in nursing homes, for rising 10th-12th schools, and homeless shelters. This graders. The ser- allows teenagers to learn more about vice week program themselves and the type of work environallows the girls to ment they enjoy. After teenagers learn the spend one week vol- type of work atmosphere they most enjoy, unteering in food they start obtaining valuable assets. Some pantries, Chicago examples include responsibility, team oriKeith William II, a junior at DeVry University Advantage Academy: “When we have to compete with a 55-year-old to get a job at McDon- parks and nursing entation, dedication and good manners.

But even when well prepared, the teen ald’s, you can clearly see there is an issue.” Photo by Alexandra Macias homes. Although the girls who participate still has to find that job. That’s when the for Girls. Both of these non-profit orga- in the apprenticeships get a $400 stipend real work begins. “The hardest job is looknizations have empowered teenagers to at the end, it’s the skills they learn that are ing for a job,” Wuest said. reach their full potential. really the big payoff. Volunteering allows Wuest said the major difference inner-city teenagers to get experience and between an alternative school and a CPS learn valuable working skills, regardless if school is that “alternative schools are they’re getting paid or not, Villa said. smaller and the students often have more It’s really up to the teenager in the end. one-on-one experience with a teacher.”

He said the students and teachers at alternative schools are like a “family. It’s incredible how a school could be so much more than just a place where students learn, but also a place where they feel at home and develop a support system. It’s especially important for these students to have a strong support system because ultimately these people could be a “connection” for a future job, Wuest said.

A connection comes a long way, as Christina Villa, the executive director of Metro Achievement Center for Girls, knows. Villa has long been connected to Metro because her dad was the executive director of Midtown Educational Foundation for six years. She began her Metro career by starting off as a camp counselor, then she became an art teacher and later became the executive director of Metro.

When Villa was a camp counselor, she said she remembers “seeing the executive director at the time and saying ‘I never want to be her,’” never realizing that one day while she may not be exactly like her, she would end up having her job.

The Midtown Educational Foundation is a program for inner-city children that strengthens them in academics and char- Jack Wuest, executive director, Alternative Schools Network, said the city’s One Summer Chicago acter and puts them on a path to college program has only 24,000 jobs, not nearly enough to hire most of Chicago’s out-of-work teens.

Photo by Alexandra Macias and long-term success.

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Advice from survivors

When bad things happen in life, learn how to deal with it

By Karina Monrreal Westinghouse College Prep

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lex Green* of Chicago says he was 15 when he attempted to kill himself. He cut his wrists, arms and hands with his father’s razors and other sharp tools he found in his father’s toolbox.

"It was a way to distract me from bigger problems that I felt like there was no way out of or that I just didn’t care to find a way out of anymore,” Green revealed.

Every 13 minutes someone between ages of 15 and 25 commits suicide, according to a recent study conducted by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

What was going on in their lives that precipitated the idea that there was no way to get back up?

Green says it was his father’s constant beatings that led him to the path of selfdestruction.

“I felt like a failure all the time, ” he said.

How can one avoid getting caught up in life’s setbacks? How can one return to happiness after experiencing a such

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a challenge? Experts say the steps are simple. There is something you can do to bounce back from a failure or tragedy.

It is all in your attitude, how you view the setback, they say. One must first accept mistakes, stop trying to be perfect for it will always lead to disappointment, stop caring what others think about you, stay focused on what matters, ditch boredom.

But it is not always so simple. It depends on the setback.

In 2006 Karli Butler of Chicago was held at gunpoint by two women who then threw acid in her face. She was afraid she was going to die painfully at that moment with 30 percent of her body burned.

However, she went through six weeks of intensive care and several surgeries to reconstruct her face. Although she felt like she died on the inside then, today she carries herself with confidence.

Butler began her motivational speaker career and has received honors such as the Courage Award in 2010.

“My eyebrows were burned off because of the acid. Sometimes I put makeup on and sometimes I decide not to wear eyebrows. People look at me strangely but this is who I am. These scars are now part

Karli Butler, a 2010 Courage Award winner, survived an acid attack. "People look at me strangely but this is who I am. The scars are now part of me." Photo courtesy of Karli Butler

of me,” Butler said.

While questions like “what happened to your face?” hurt her at times, she bounces back because she accepts herself as she is and she loves herself.

“Every time I feel sad, I think about three things I am very grateful for,” Butler said. Those things are her son, being someone people look up to, and the fact that she is living.

Dwayne Bryant, a noted motivational speaker who helps teens at Chicago Public Schools discover their unlimited potential, suggests it is actually impossible to stop caring what others think of you. Of course, everyone wants to be liked. When one tells us nice things we feel good about ourselves, he said.

But one also needs to know how to feel if someone says something unflattering about us.

“You need to have a level of thick skin...

Michael Jordan has this advice when facing a challenge: "If you compare yourself to people who might not be doing so well, you may think you're doing great but in reality, you're doing mediocre." Jordan's biggest competitor? Himself.

however, you’ve got to make sure you are doing good by yourself. You got to have integrity...It’s better to be respected than to be liked because not everyone is going to like you,” Bryant said.

He says stop seeking perfection.

“While as humans we may fail at reach-

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student, it was a good reminder that he was able to succeed again.

Still, it is extremely difficult for some people to stay focused and think of their past victories because they’re so entangled in over-thinking the challenge they are in now.

Michael Jordan once said his biggest competitor is himself. “Comparison can be good but it can also be bad because you have your own path. You have your own things to accomplish and if you keep comparing yourself to other people, you're gonna get discouraged...if you compare yourself to people who might not be doing so well, you may then think you’re doing great but in reality you’re doing mediocre.”

In the end, the steps to overcome life’s challenges aren’t as simple as people paint them and it is clear that it takes much more than to follow a list step-bystep. Everyone is different, everyone has different problems and different ways to deal with them. But it is important to know that there is always a way to get through a tragedy or failure.

“Suicide is not the answer because there is so much to do in life and no matter what age we are there is no way we have done it all, so giving up is not an option,” Green said.

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Dwayne Bryant, a motivational speaker who helps teens, said survivors should stop caring about what others think. "It's better to be respected than to be liked because not everyone is going to like you." Photo courtesy Dwayne Bryant

ing goals, sometimes that doesn’t mean that this will happen all the time,” Bryant said.

Thomas Edison, inventor of the light bulb, once said: “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”

Bryant suggests four steps that have helped him overcome life’s challenges: Believe in yourself.

• Demonstrate a victory to yourself.

• Have people who believe in you.

• Learn what it is that you want to do and learn how to get there.

Legendary poet Maya Angelou, known for her words of inspiration, often said: “You alone are enough. You have nothing to prove to anybody.” And:“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.”

Success in life is actually subjective. You determine what success is, what success looks like. You define it yourself, experts say. While a success for one person may be getting accepted to Harvard, for another it may be getting accepted to any college.

Bryant points out that no matter what “failure” a person goes through, that person must remember that they have already done something positive in the past. Bryant shares that there were times in college when he felt that he was not cut out for the work it took but as he remembered his successes as a past

*Alex Green (name changed)

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WHAT WILL YOU MAKE? DARRYL HOLLIDAY (BA ’12) DERRICK MILTON (BA ’12)

Marketing Communications Worked as an account executive for Indeed. Consultant at American Express Global Business Travel.

Journalism Founded a multimedia production collective specializing in illustrated journalism. Independent journalist working on a full-length book.

CAREN OLIVER (BFA ’12) Fashion Design Won BET’s Lens on Talent fashion competition.

BLAIR MISHLEAU (BA ’12)

Digital Journalism Taught for Teach for America.

Technology specialist for a network of high-performing charter schools in Washington, D.C.

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Columbia College Chicago is a creative liberal arts college focused on rigorous academics, hands-on learning, collaboration and career preparation. Our inclusive learning environment is tailored for creative, motivated students preparing to be part of the world’s next generation of artists and innovators.

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PAIGE KLONE (BA ’11)

Television Edited and performed on First Night 2013 with Jamie Kennedy. Assistant to actor and screenwriter Jason Schwartzman.

TONY MEREVICK (BA ’12)

Journalism Reported on LGBT news for BuzzFeed.

Cities news editor at Thrillist.

PHOTO: JACOB BOLL (’12)

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Commentary

When being assaulted, Alejandro Ibarra was recorded—and everyone just watched

By Karina Monrreal Westinghouse College Prep

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Alejandro Ibarra was a victim of an egg assault. Someone posted it on Facebook. The author saw the attack as it was happening, as did others. They did nothing. The lesson is: If you see something, say something. Photo by Karina Monrreal

can do what he pleases to anyone because no one, not even you, will do anything.

You should call 911 or other authorities to report the incident, experts advise.

But what about those who have cell phones in hand when they see something? They are standing up and doing something.

There would be no protests or riots in Baltimore if it weren’t for the video taken of Freddie Gray. Police brutality has been going on for years. But today, more people are becoming aware of police brutality because of cell phone videos made by citizen journalism and the postings on social media. Thanks to video, people are able to identify the perpetrators and have justice served.

I recently met with Alejandro and apologized for not helping him.

“I don’t blame you,” he told me. In that moment, I finally felt better. Next time, I will know what to do.

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guy. I realized I was blaming the situation on everyone else, not realizing that I, too, was somewhat responsible. I didn’t throw an egg, nor did I hold a camera, but I watched it happen. I stood there as he was scared and alone and I didn’t do anything.

What happened was a diffusion of responsibility.

A theory by psychologists John Darley and Bibb Latane suggests people are less likely to intervene in a situation when there is a group of people around. When you are alone and witness someone in an emergency, the responsibility is all on you to do something . But what if there are 10 people around? Does that mean that you only have a 10 percent responsibility?

Like it or not, someone else’s problem becomes your responsibility. As you stand there and watch something happen, you are giving the perpetrator permission to continue harming someone else. You give them the power that makes him think he

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f you see something, say something.

Looking the other way and not speaking up should not be a choice.

Whenever I get out of school, I always walk down the street, paying close attention to my surroundings. I especially watch out for the group of young men who stand on the corner, smoking weed and yelling out to girls, “Hey, mami, where are you goin’?”

But there was something different about this day. Walking ahead of me I recognized a boy who went to my school.

Alejandro Ibarra was holding his head in pain as an egg yolk oozed down the side of his head. Then suddenly a series of eggs came raining down on him. The young men at the corner laughed and recorded a video as they attacked him.

They knew no one was going to do anything to help him. There were other students walking down the block and some joined in on the laugh. It took me a minute to take in what was happening. I mean, this young boy was about to break down in tears and people were taking videos. I didn’t have to think twice. I ran to him and asked him if he was OK. That same afternoon the video of Alejandro being egged was posted on Facebook. I couldn’t believe people were making fun of the incident and recording it instead of helping the victim. Why didn’t anyone help him out? What has made the teens of today so heartless?

I looked at myself, too. I didn’t do anything either because, well, I didn’t know what to do. I wasn’t the only one who saw it. I am only 4 feet 11 inches tall. I wasn’t about to scold these eight guys for doing what they did because I would be putting myself in danger.

I was so angry. I was hating on everyone for egging and humiliating that innocent

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Indefinite displacement

How homelessness makes learning nearly impossible

By Jihan Davis Thornwood High School

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s the most pleasant part of your day returning home after dealing with the responsibilities the world throws at you? For 22,000 youth that attend Chicago Public Schools, winding down at the end of the day isn’t an option. They are all trying to obtain an education without a stable living situation.

Some teens have a difficult time in high school, but it can become exponentially difficult when they are homeless. The questions that tug at their minds distract them from focusing on anything else.

“Teens are not able to concentrate on school because they don’t know if they will have a place to sleep, what they’ll eat, and aren’t sure about transportation. They often will stop going to school because of this [these factors],” states Dan’iel Kendricks, director of supportive services at Teen Living Programs, a nonprofit agency that focuses on 14-24-year-olds who are experiencing homelessness in Chicago.

According to the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, only 77 percent of homeless high school students enrolled in Chicago Public Schools actually attend.

The Chicago-based, non-profit organization has been helping Chicago homeless youth for 40 years. It has two locations that offer housing, job-training and other supportive services. “We usually serve the older teens now. I would say about 60 percent of the teens we service are dropouts.

It ebbs and flows,” Kendricks continues.

“We provide different options for teens…

If they don’t have a high school diploma or GED…it’s a part of the transition program for them pursue it.”

TLP still remains a valued resource for adults who required their services when they were teens. “I stayed in TLP for a year

and a half, and I still use their aftercare services,” says Kasey White, 25. White is featured in the 2014 documentary, “The Homestretch.” The film follows the lives of three homeless Chicago youth as they navigate through their life struggles while seeking employment and continuing their education.

There are several reasons some teens to become homeless. Many end up on the streets due to their families losing their homes. Some simply run away. Others are kicked out because their families can’t accept their sexual orientation.

“I mean, my mother, she always knew I was going to be a part of the LGBTQ community. She just wasn't ready for me to come out at that time,” says White about her decision for leaving home. “I just chose to stay away for my own personal reasons because I felt that there were also living conditions that I spoke out on...I chose not to live in those condi-

Kasey White, one of the youth in “The Homestretch” documentary: “When it comes to youth homelessness and education, it's very important for any youth . . . to find their selfinterest.” Photo courtesy of Kasey White

tions anymore.”

The trauma of her unsteady living arrangement and coming to terms with her sexuality caused Kasey to leave school just months shy of her graduation from Dunbar High School. “A lot of my friends were very disappointed that I didn’t graduate, and were saying if they would’ve known what was going on, they would’ve helped me through the [school] year,” she says in a Columbia Links phone interview.

Instead of wallowing in her feelings about dropping out and seeing her friends graduate, White got inspired. She didn’t let her homelessness deter her from continuing her education. “I decided to go back into a physical school setting [at TLP], rather than just taking [GED] classes. I had to be in an actual school setting to make it feel like I was actually doing it,” White says. “That’s what made me decide to go back [to school and get a high school diploma].”

White remains diligent about her educational pursuits. This fall, she will be enrolled at Kennedy-King College and majoring in broadcast communications.

“I feel that they [homeless youth] should know dropping out is not a good answer.

You waste more time that way. Staying in school is one of the best ideas and if you have already dropped out, getting back into school would be the best idea because you can’t really do anything out here, like get a job, without at least a high school diploma,” White says.

Even if a homeless youth does find a place to stay during the night, the tasks associated with school (projects, homework) take a backseat. For example, The Crib, a homeless youth shelter run by The Night Ministry and featured in “The Homestretch,” provides a bed and a hot meal, but limited homework help.

“We’re so bottom-level capacity of what we can do for people. We would love to help with everything,” says Devin Redmond, Crib coordinator. After serving meals, laying out supplies and setting up mats for the night, The Crib has room for little else such as helping with homework.

“We’re understaffed, but we do pitch in with help with homework when we can,” says Nomi Williams, youth work supervisor for The Crib. “I always let them [the youths] use my laptop for assignments and to research certain things.”

The Crib operates on a lottery system.

If a youth is not selected, they will be

directed to another shelter for the night.

So even if a teen received help one day, there is a chance that it won’t be consistent. “We need more transitional programs [programs that provide housing for teens for two years],” says Allison McCann-Stevenson, MSW, senior director of The Night Ministry. A semblance of steady housing, even if only for a couple years, can take away the uncertainty that plagues a homeless youth during the school year.

Teen Living Programs, The Crib and other agencies partner with each other in helping homeless youth maintain their lives. For instance, Broadway Youth Center, 615 West Wellington (at Broadway), offers health services (HIV and STD testing), tutoring, a GED program and even

Alliance to End Homelessness. In terms of assisting homeless youth, the Emanuel Administration has increased shelter beds by 33 percent. We have also established three regional drop-in centers which serve 1,400 homeless youth annually…”

The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness has also created a program called Opening Doors that is meant to end homelessness in America by 2020.

When Columbia Links reached out to Bill McCaffrey in Chicago Public Schools Media Department for an interview about the growing numbers of homeless youth that attend CPS, we were directed to the official CPS website and told to look under the “Students in Temporary Living Situations” section to get answers.

It states that STLS was designed to aid

Allison McCann-Stevenson, MSW, senior director of The Night Ministry: “We need more transitional programs [programs that provide housing for teens for two years].” Steady housing would allow a teen to concentrate on getting an education, she says. Photo by Kevin Obomanu

and protect homeless youth that attend Chicago Public Schools. As the city rolls out initiatives to combat youth homelessness and unemployment and boost efforts for them to continue their education, there is a looming threat. Teen Living Program will be taking a blow due to major cuts to social services that would be implemented in Gov. Bruce Rauner’s budget plan. This would make life more difficult for homeless youth. The cuts would prevent them from receiving hous-

columbialinks.org Devin Redmond, The Crib coordinator. "We would love to help with everything" beyond serving meals, laying out supplies and setting up mats for the night. Photo by Kevin Obomanu

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provides laundry service.

If these agencies don’t work with a homeless youth’s lifestyle, there’s also Night Ministry’s mobile outreach van that sits at the corner of Halsted and Belmont.

“We provide hot meals, hand out hygiene products and offer referrals to other services,” says Stacy Fox, youth outreach professional for the Night Ministry. “We’re there to create a safe space for people who live on the street.”

"It's a dual responsibility. The government is supposed to meet the needs of its citizens. Both federal and local governments play a part. However, when people fail to respond to problems in the community, there can be consequences,” says McCann-Stevenson.

There are still scores of Chicago teens without a place to sleep each night. In a statement sent to Columbia Links via email, Matt Smith, spokesperson for Chicago Department of Family and Support Services, states: “Mayor Emanuel has increased funding for homeless services by more than 10 percent and invested in new programs targeting veterans, youth, families and victims of domestic violence. With the support of the Mayor, DFSS continues its work with nonprofits, advocacy groups and service providers to establish funding priorities for homeless populations via the community-driven Plan to End Homelessness, spawned by the National

ing and other services. The plan proposes to cut 55 percent of the budget allotted for homeless youth. It would go from $5.6 million to $2.5 million. TLP stands to lose $160,000 if their contract isn’t renewed.

Although White is not homeless anymore, she contends that the hardships she’s experienced have made her stronger. “My past situation didn’t make me feel that things couldn’t get better…I had to realize they were stepping stones. I’m more aware. So, I just use those past experiences as a guideline to go about the rest of my life. I have a new consciousness of things,” she concludes.

White also thinks that “The Homestretch” documentary has impacted people’s view on homeless youth. “I've done a lot of screenings here [in Chicago] and in other states. And people, after seeing [the film], have a sense of empathy, instead of just sympathy.

“You can sympathize with somebody, but when you feel the empathy, you can relate to them,” White continues. “And a lot of people have taken action, and new programs have arisen from “The Homestretch ‘…more people are aware.”

White is on the frontline in steering youngsters to higher education. She is working with a program called Gear Up. It prepares kids grades 6 to 11 for college.

White is also a social activist and works with the organization ONE Northside.

The organization unites diverse communities and combats social injustice.

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Maggie Karlin, as a newsboy human statue, on Michigan Avenue: “It’s the best job I’ve ever had.” Photo by Allison Cho

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Street life

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Five easy acts to follow: Hanging out with Chicago performers

By Dyana Daniels Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School

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hicago is brimming with talented people, but few are motivated to pursue their dreams. Street performers are a rare breed who share their talents with the world. Some work in rain, sleet or snow while others get out occa-

sionally or when the weather is nice.

These artists who strive to do their best are faced with uncertainty when trying to entertain the public. They have their off days when barely anyone is willing to pay them attention, and they have their great days when they are swamped with people waiting to be thrilled. They can be found anywhere and everywhere in the city. From the Chicago Transit Authority's Jackson Red Line stop to the farmers

markets, they are everywhere and add a dash of zest to the city’s melting pot.

Joby Morey, a balloon twister, has been performing since 2006. He recently moved to Chicago and can been seen making masterpieces near the Art Institute and surrounding areas. He works for tips and believes “generous people outweigh the stingy people.” Street performers can only perform for tips, instead of soliciting, because they are not panhandlers.

Just a few blocks away, you can find Maggie Karlin, a human statue. She performs near the Art Institute when the weather is nice. She was inspired to become a human statue by a TED Talk called “The Art of Asking” and says, “It’s the best job [she’s] ever had.”

It may seem like Chicago’s grouping of downtown parks would be the best place for performers to gain exposure, due to the abundance of foot traffic, but some parks don’t allow street performances within their boundaries. According to Jamey Lundblad, director of marketing and communications for the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, these artists are allowed to perform along Michigan Avenue and outside of Millennium Park but not in the park itself. The Millennium Park rules state that any activity that disrupts a visitor’s peaceful enjoyment of a performance or amenity in the park is prohibited. There can also be an issue if a performance endangers public health or damages [Millennium] Park property.

If you proceed past Millennium Park toward Maggie Daley Park, you can find another balloon twister named Julianne B Frerichs. She began twisting balloons two years ago to make ends meet because she was going through a transitional period in her life. She originally started balloon twisting on Michigan Avenue, but recently started moving around. She likes to have something for both boys and girls, so she is branching out into making balloon characters that aren’t gender specific. Her ideal location is anywhere near food because she believes she'll get more tips. “Find yourself a food truck and follow it!” she says. She dreams of working at festivals to bring in more revenue.

Others have been street performers

Anatasia Skolnik performs under the name of Ana Hoops and can balance two to four hoops.

An interior design student at Columbia College Chicago, she likes to keep her hula hooping fun.

Photo by Allison Cho

Julianne B. Frerichs twists balloons across the street from Maggie Daley Park. To get more tips, she finds a food truck and follows it. Photo by Allison Cho

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set-list to include songs for children. “I’m still learning the ‘Wheels on the Bus,’ ” he says.

Anastasia Skolnik is a hula hooper who goes by the name Ana Hoops. She performs as an artistic release and “likes to keep it fun.” Ana Hoops has been hula hooping for six years now. She usually hula hoops with only two hoops, but has been working on a grand finale that involves four. She can be found anywhere around the city. If she hula hoops on Michigan Avenue, she makes sure to do tricks that she has already mastered so nothing goes wrong and she always makes sure that she feels safe within her surroundings. When she is not hooping, she can be found at Columbia College Chicago pursuing another dream: to be an interior designer. As for her permit,

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for decades, like George Banks. He is a musician who has been performing for 35 years. He originally started out as a drummer playing five nights a week with two bands. At one point in his career, he performed every day but now can only be seen three times a week in various places.

Banks was initially encouraged to become a musician through a close friend.

“I knew a girl who would sing and I asked if I could sing with her,” he says.

Other performers ask him to collaborate with them and he gladly obliges. His main influences are The Beatles and other bands from the 1960s and it resonates through his music.

His ideal setting is generally a Saturday when people can sit and listen to his sets.

He loves when the audience participates or when kids join in. He is expanding his

she says the process required to get one probably took about four hours.

While the life of a street performer may seem carefree, there are guidelines they must follow in order to be eligible to perform on Chicago sidewalks. A street performer has to meet certain requirements to get the permits that allow them to perform in public.

According to the office of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, a street performer is anyone who performs activities like acting, singing, playing a musical instrument, juggling, etc. A person must also be at least age 16 and have government-issued identification and current Chicago residency, according to the City of Chicago Small Business Center. Permits last for two years, generally costs $100 and must be visible to the public at all times while performing.

Street performing is entertaining to watch and if you see someone busking, stop and watch their performance. You might enjoy what you see. And be sure to tip them well. You might help someone who is down on their luck or aid them in the pursuit of their dream.

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Pets to the rescue

Therapy dogs may be the best medicine for what stresses you

By Marcus Tabb Jr. Gwendolyn Brooks College Prep

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herapy dogs are becoming a go-to method to relieve stress. Certain programs and organizations in the Chicago area are using dogs trained for recovery or rehabilitation to help people with stress or disabilities in hospitals, schools and assisted-living facilities.

Studies show that bonding with the dogs could benefit a person’s mental health, personality and outlook just by giving the pet a simple pat on the back.

“There is a chemical secreted when we are bonding,” said Dr. Jude Uy in an interview with ABC7 NY. “It’s called oxytocin.

It’s released in our brain when we pet a dog, and released in the dog’s brain.” Uy calls it the “cuddling chemical.”

There are many ways therapy dogs can be helpful.

“Some of them go in and visit people,

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make them feel better embracing companionship, friendship and comfort,” said Callie Cozzolino, executive director of the Canine Therapy Corps in Chicago.

Some therapy dogs are incorporated into interventions.

“They range from someone who is

recovering from a stroke or traumatic brain injury or might be working on regaining their ability to walk or working on range of motion or flexibility,” Cozzolino said. The dogs are very talented in helping. They may go on a walk with the person, go through an agility course, play fetch. Or feeding the dog a treat could help them.

There are many other reasons therapy dogs could be helpful to your mental and physical health.

“Petting the dog lowers your blood pressure, heart rate and reduces stress hormones,” said Susan Burrows, program coordinator of Rainbow Animal Assisted Therapy in Morton Grove.

The dogs also visit local libraries and do interventions with children. The children read to the dogs which has been proven to increase literacy.

“Kids that read to a dog over time gain a 30 percent increase in literacy,” Burrows said.

Living with a dog or any pet is healthy, she added. Because of this interaction with dogs, people live longer, are healthier and recover quicker.

In order to qualify as a therapy dog, the pet must have a mild temper, like people

service dogs vs. therapy dogs

A dog works with senior resident and a volunteer doing interactive sets. Photo courtesy of Canine Therapy Corps, Chicago

Therapy dogs and service dogs are two different things and have different responsibilities. Therapy dogs are mainly volunteering but a service dog is a 24-hour pet that stays with the person to help him or her with their disabilities. Therapy dogs may visit a person or an institution but still go home with their owners but service dogs live with the person they work for. — Marcus Tabb Jr.

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A therapy dog interacts with a firefighter. Photo courtesy of Rainbow Animal Assisted Therapy in Morton Grove

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and be trained to sit, stay and not jump on people. They call them “people-proof dogs” at Rainbow Animal Assisted Therapy, which means they have never met a person who they didn’t like and remain comfortable in all situations.

Burrows owns a therapy dog and has seen her dog do things she considers miraculous during their volunteer work.

“My dog has worked with a lot of children in hospitals,” Burrows said. “Twice a month we visit the Kohl Children’s Museum and give presentations on how to be safe around dogs. [Or how to] help kids avoid getting bit.”

Living with her dog is just as beneficial as someone interacting with a therapy dog. “It’s a rewarding way to volunteer,” Burrows said.

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Your voice matters

Issues, politics and the young voter: How can they meet at the ballot box?

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Chicago Votes campaigned for voter registration during the 2015 Taste of Chicago at the Bean. Photo by Jen Dean

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By Milan Williams Metea Valley High School

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oting. Some of us may hate it.

Some of us may love it. Regardless, a lot of us need to do a lot more

of it.

The upcoming 2016 presidential election and Chicago’s municipal elections are no different. These elections present opportunities for first-time voters — especially teens turning 18 — to either exercise their democratic right and cast their ballots or succumb to entrenched voter apathy often associated with this country’s political process and forgo visiting to the polls altogether.

In Illinois, however, the hope is for the former. And there are a lot opportunities

that give young people a chance to vote. In 2013, the Illinois general assembly passed a law allowing 17-year-olds to register to vote if they turn 18 by the time of the general election.

Although not geared toward teens, residents have the chance to early vote, absentee vote and participate in online voting. There is no reason for people not to vote in upcoming elections.

Because teens cannot vote, the bulk of young voters are people ages 18-29.

That demographic played a key role in electing President Barack Obama to the White House, according to Dick Simpson, a political science professor at University of Illinois at Chicago. Individuals ages 18-29 accounted for 40 percent of the votes cast in the 2012 general election, Simpson said.

In Chicago’s February 2012 municipal

election, 30 percent of registered voters over age 30 cast ballots; only 15 percent of those votes were cast by young people, Simpson noted. The election turnout was worse in suburban Cook County, where only 14 percent of the population and 7 percent of young people voted, he said.

The concern of increasing voter turnout has dogged political activists, even though there have been laws to increase voter turnout and to make voting more accessible.

Historically, voter turnout is higher in general elections than local elections. Yet, voter turnout is linked to three factors — the candidates themselves, importance of the issues and whether the issues directly affect voters, Simpson said.

Voters are more likely to cast ballots if candi-

Katie North, 16, a junior a Metea Valley High School, will be eligible to register to vote in the next presidential election because of Illinois’ new law. Photo by Milan Williams

Abraham Godson, 17, lives in Lisle and is unsure of how to be politically engaged in the voting process. Photo by Milan Williams

David Godson (left), 15, is not eligible to vote but James Zurita, 17, from Washington State says he does not feel motivated to do so. Photo

by Milan Williams

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young people to become politically active, especially among millennials.

The organization is the only one focusing on young people, including teens of voting age, said Jen Dean, an employee at the organization. Chicago Votes works with local high schools and colleges to inspire young people to get out and vote.

In the past year, they registered 22,000 young voters. This year, they are planning to surpass that number.

“We believe change is community

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dates speak to issues that strike close to their hearts, Simpson said, noting that Obama’s 2012 campaign slogan “Yes, We Can!” pulled in more voters. If the voters don’t care about the issues or if issues don’t appeal to voters, Election Day turnout will be low, he added.

Several organizations work to increase voter turnout and promote political engagement, including one aimed at young people. Chicago Votes is a nonpartisan organization that focuses on getting

driven . . . ,” Dean said.

“We invite young leaders who believe in democracy and progressive change to join us in that movement by r e g i s - tering voters, collecting comment cards, voting, encouraging others to vote and being present for forums, debate parties and direct actions. Leaders are young people who do not sit by. The key is getting them active!”

Katie North, 16, a junior at Metea Valley High School, will be old enough to vote for the 2016 general election. North is optimistic about voting and believes the process is designed for those who want to be politically active and care about the governmental decisions.

“In a democracy, it’s the voice of the people,” North said about voting. “Everyone’s voices goes into the choices that are made for the country. So if you only have a few select people that are going to vote, then you are only going to have a few voices that are really being heard.”

David Godson, 15, is not eligible to vote, but he had a similar response about why it’s important for young people to vote.

“It causes you to be aware of what’s going on politically, for one,” Godson said.

“Secondly, it also helps you to realize that your voice matters, which is very important in democracy.”

However, Godson’s brother, Abraham, 17, has a different view about voting when it comes to being politically active.

“Honestly, in my case I don’t know how to be politically active,” he said. “But in this case where maybe I was very wealthy.

I would donate, and I would get other people to support my cause.”

James Zurita, 17, offers a glimpse of what some young people feel about voting. He is apathetic to the voting process.

“I don’t really feel motivated or deterred. I just don’t care. I know I have a voice and it matters but I feel like the politicians will find a way to receive bribes or rig the system,” Zurita said.

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No fun and games

Community activists fight to keep Chicago parks safe from foul play

By Ayanna Hayes Lindblom Math and Science Academy

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hicago’s 580 public parks draw millions of visitors annually. A few cause major headaches by committing a range of crimes, from the petty to the very serious. But has criminal activity taken over some city parks to the point where people no longer feel safe to visit?

City of Chicago data reflects some 2,721 crimes reported on park property in 2013, the most recent year for which data is available. The crimes range from public peace violations to homicides.

“The parks have become, in some cases, havens for gangs and drug dealers, unfortunately, when they don’t see active participation of concerned adults,” said Bamani Obadele, a community organizer and advocate.

Obadele, who has been a longtime resident of the Grand Boulevard area, lives in the community’s Bronzeville neighborhood. After a teen boy was shot to death in his neighborhood park in early July 2015, Obadele took the kind of stance he says other adults must take. The shooting occurred in Hadiya Pendleton Park, named for another teen murdered in 2013

in the Kenwood neighborhood in what became a high-profile case.

Hadiya Pendleton, 15, was murdered while standing with friends inside of Harsh Park, located at 44th and Oakenwald, a week after she performed with her high school majorette team at President Obama’s second inauguration in Washington, D.C. The murder placed a spotlight on park spaces and crimes. But people shouldn’t be afraid of their parks; criminals should be the ones in fear of the community, suggested Obadele.

“Me getting involved with the incident in the Hadiya Pendleton Park was more so out of response, one, as a resident of the community, and then secondly as a father,” Obadele said.

“My going there to the park and staying out there from start to close over the weekend was more so just to say to the residents that the park belongs to them,” Obadele said. “They should not be afraid to bring their children there—their children should play in the park.”

In honor of Hadiya Pendleton, a playlot was renamed after her less than a mile from the park where she was killed. Vonzell Banks, 17, was shot and killed July 3 while playing basketball at the redevel-

The renamed Hadiya Pendleton Park features a playlot where Vonzell Banks, 17, was killed while playing basketball. Photo by Ayanna Hayes

Community activist Angela Ford runs a recycled bike program. "Kids have got to be able to run and jump and play. We can't give up the green space to violence." Photo courtesy of Angela Ford

oped playlot named for Hadiya.

According to the American Planning Association, parks and open spaces help children to explore, discover and be sheltered from violence and other harm.

“I think that’s what parks are for,” Obadele said. “It’s for mental release, in my opinion. Parks are very essential to the growth and development of any child.”

Angela Ford, another community activist who lives in the area and is also a sustainability expert, agrees.

“Green space is essential for a vibrant neighborhood,” said Ford, founder of TAG Properties and TAG Foundation, which runs a recycled bike program for kids and families. “Kids have got to be able to run and jump and play. That has to happen.”

Taking back city parks plagued by criminal activity is vital to children. Activists say they have ideas on what to do. “We can’t give up the green space to violence,” Ford said. “We have to solve the violence.”

Chicago Park District programming aims to keep people engaged and interacting with their neighborhood parks. Their efforts include such programs as concerts, recitals, block parties, movie screenings

Bamani Obadele, Bronzeville community advocate, at a back-to-school event held at Fuller Park in 2015. After the murder in the Hadiya Pendleton Park playlot, Obadele camped out there in defiance of the criminal activity. He took action “one, as a resident of the community, and then secondly as a father.” Photo by Ayanna Hayes

shouldn’t and for you to just get up and leave, but there’s another responsibility I think we have. Address it. To just run away and leave the park is irresponsible as far as I’m concerned.”

Community activism is experiencing a resurgence, if campaigns such as “Black Lives Matter” are a reflection. Everyday citizens are demanding changes in policing and in other areas. Becoming civically engaged and fighting for change, including deterring crime in city parks, can start by seeking out locally elected officials, Obadele suggested.

Ford agrees. “Things are done in incremental steps, not all at once,” Ford said.

For details about crimes on park property, go to: https://data.cityofchicago.org/ Public-Safety/Crimes-2013/a95h-gwzm

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gested more surveillance cameras in the city parks, particularly on the South Side.

“State legislators should be writing the legislation that requires every new park have cameras on every pole,” she said.

“That way, they can convict the criminals as soon as they look at them. “We’ve got the technology to stop crime in the parks, but our community has to ask for it, agree with it and provide a solution for it.”

Obadele suggested full community participation in the parks, even to the extent of acting as public servants. “I think that able-bodied men and women who live in those communities certainly should participate in the parks,” he said.

“I think it’s our responsibility to be actively engaged in our local parks, even if we start advisory councils.”

Obadele voiced very strong concerns about the situation.

“It’s one thing to see young people and children doing things in the park that they

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and stargazing.

Jessica Maxey-Faulkner, director of communications for the Chicago Park District, said: “The Chicago Park District has seen a great deal of growth and participation in recent years. Among the programs we credit for that growth is our Night Out in the Parks series. The infusion of programming and participation by community residents promotes positive interaction.”

Aside from Chicago Park District programming efforts, how do community members save their parks from being taken over by crime?

“We have to, as a collective, propose a solution and narrow it down,” Ford said.

“That’s what Martin Luther King did.

That’s why he was effective. Because he knew where to pick at, who the legislators were, and what to ask for.”

Both Ford and Obadele proposed what they see as deterrents to crime. Ford sug-

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Making moves near you

Park district dance program performs in venues around the city

By Jane Mather-Glass Evanston Township High School

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aking arrangements to see a dance show is not always the easiest task. It can involve expensive tickets and dealing with traffic downtown, but Dance in the Parks is attempting to change that by bringing performances to local neighborhood parks. Dance in the Parks has been working to make dance shows more accessible to a wide variety of viewers since 2009. In an effort to do so, the group has been providing free performances to communities in their local parks.

Founding director of the organization Katie McCann said she was inspired to create the company because of a performance she participated in with a ballet company based in Lexington, Kentucky.

“I had done a show outside, and I just loved that the audience interacted with the show differently than they did when we were in the auditorium,” McCann said.

She added that when she first moved to Chicago, no one was really dancing during the summer.

“We have this huge dance community, and we have these gorgeous parks and an awesome park district—it was like, ‘Why is no one doing this?’” she said.

Members of the company include current professional dancers from the Chicago area. Some dancers return year after year and, according to McCann, the company also held an audition for the first time for the 2015 season to fill the remaining spots. However, the company does not perform solo. Dance in the Parks collaborates with youth companies throughout the city, including Visceral Studio Company, Gus Giordano Dance, Hyde Park School of Dance and others, based on which park the members will be performing in.

McCann said while audience members

do not always have a favorite dance style to watch, they often enjoy the pieces that make them think, such as pieces choreographed by Peter Carpenter. Carpenter is an associate professor in the Dance Department at Columbia College Chicago.

“Peter Carpenter, his stuff is always an audience favorite because people have to sit there and pay attention and think about something,” McCann said.

Carpenter has worked with Dance in the Parks since 2009 and has continued working with them since.

“Katie McCann asked me if I would set an existing work on the company,” Carpenter said. “I had a lot of fun with them.

They were great to work with, and I really liked the idea of free dance throughout the city of Chicago.”

Though his choreography, Carpenter has explored ideas of social justice including topics such as HIV and AIDS, and critiques of capitalism, which McCann said resonate well with park audiences.

An outdoor park performance is more flexible than a performance in a traditional setting, according to McCann, who noted that parks are an easier place to go

out and discover if you have an interest in something new.

McCann also added that she thinks it is easier for younger audiences to observe dance shows this way, because they do not necessarily have to stay seated and “behave.” She explained that the informality of the events held in park spaces creates an option for audiences that allows them to stay and watch the performance if they’re interested in it, and if they would rather leave, then there is nothing and no one pressuring them to stay.

Dance as an art form has historically been one that viewers have not always connected with as much, because it can require a lot of patience from the audience. Dance in the Parks is making an effort to transform dance into an art form that is more accessible to people who might not typically be interested in dance, or even for those who already are.

“You don’t have to dance to be a part of dance,” McCann said.

Maybe dance will come to a park near you.. To learn more about the program, visit Dance in the Parks site at DanceInTheParks.org

Looking under the ‘hood'

Gentrification may change values and culture of Humboldt Park

By Yael Reyes Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center

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ing eliminate crime in the neighborhood.

Skerrett said she remembers the neighborhood being more dangerous when she was younger.

“I was riding my bike back and forth down the block. There was a black car and it started to shoot around me,” Skerrett said. “I jumped off my bike and covered my head on the floor, and the car drove away. I was scared to move or look up because I didn't know what was happening. After a few minutes, I pulled enough courage to look up and saw the coast was clear so I went home and never rode my bike down the block again.”

Skerrett said the gentrification can be beneficial by bringing more opportunities to the neighborhood for people to get involved in good causes rather than committing crimes.

“It has become too dangerous for people to hang out in the park and barbecue and everything like we used to,” Skerrett said.

“Honestly, I think [the gentrification is] good. It’s making our neighborhood look better. The [Bloomingdale Trail]—before it was built—was just an abandoned place.

We need to get rid of the old and build new nice places to give people other things to do besides bad things.”

One organization against the gentrification of Humboldt Park neighborhood is the Puerto Rican Agenda, which seeks to influence policy benefitting Chicago’s Puerto Rican community. Ivis Garcia, project manager for the Puerto Rican Agenda, said the organization aims to maintain the neighborhood's Latino identity through affordable housing projects.

“Some of [the Latinos in Humboldt Park] are renters,” Garcia said. “What displaces people is money. Affordable housing is important to stopping the gentrification because a lot of Puerto Ricans are renters, and that's the reality. As long as those other people are willing to stay, I think it is possible to maintain the Latino identity.”

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here is a neighborhood on the West Side of Chicago called the Humboldt Park community. I have lived in this neighborhood for most of my life until I moved at age 10. It was not for a negative reason; it’s just that my family wanted to move. However, I wish that was the case for other residents who lived in Humboldt Park and had to move a little less unwillingly.

Kayla Rivera, a 17-year-old Puerto Rican girl, grew up in an apartment in the Humboldt Park area with her family. At the age of 15, her family lost the home she grew up in when the building was sold because of increasing property values in the area.

This separated her from the Humboldt Park community.

Rivera is not alone. She is one of many Puerto Ricans who have been displaced from the Humboldt Park neighborhood after losing their homes to the rising costs.

“The people who owned the building sold it and we had to move out,” Rivera said. “There's all these white people who are buying the apartments and making them condos and wanting [residents] to pay too much.”

According to John Betancur, an associate professor of Urban Planning & Policy

at the University of Illinois at Chicago, the Humboldt Park area is being gentrified, pushing lower-class residents, including some from the neighborhood’s large Latino population, out of the neighborhood and making room for middle- and upper-class residents. When the Latinos move, the culture leaves with them.

“The real estate industry is turning [the neighborhood] over to people of means,” Betancur said. “The [Latino residents] usually pay rent and are at the mercy of whether or not owners renew their leases.

If they own their home, either they cannot resist [selling it when] a hefty offer [is made] or they can be forced to sell when taxes go through the roof or when inspectors make a listing of repairs [they] cannot afford to make.”

There are many factors that are causing property values to rise in Humboldt Park, Betancur said, including landlords buying properties to sell it to gentrifiers, rising property taxes, landlords rehabbing properties or building new one ties to increase their value, the construction of new development, such as the Bloomingdale 606 Trail in the neighborhood.

According to Betancur, Latinos have not been the only ones affected by gentrification in Humboldt Park. The neighborhood has faced several cultural shifts since being named in the 1800s that have included Scandinavian, German, Italian American, Russian and Puerto Rican communities.

Although gentrification is pushing many families out of Humboldt Park, some believe it could benefit the neighborhood.

Deimani Skerrett, a Puerto Rican 16-yearold who has lived in Humboldt Park her whole life, said the gentrification is help-

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ADA celebrates 25 years

Chicago Park District expands accessibility, a throwback to disability rights activism

By Orla Levens Jones College Prep

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he celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 has sparked a new era of the disability rights movement.

It has prompted a worldwide change in the way people with disabilities are treated. The Chicago Park District has taken an active role in equipping parks to facilitate various Special Recreation programs and the Special Olympics.

“Chicago has made a strong commitment to continue to be a leader on how to make its city accessible for its residents and visitors with disabilities,” said Risa Jaz Rifkind, ADA 25 Chicago coordinator.

Half of Chicago Park District’s 70 fitness centers offer wheelchair accessible exercise equipment and are slated to revamp two additional centers—one on the South Side, one on the North Side—with the latest in accessible equipment. This upgrade provides a nearby fitness option for those with disabilities.

The ADA is celebrating an anniversary, but the fight to embrace and recognize the disabled began 50 years ago. In 1965, Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke became the full-time physical education instructor for the Special Recreation Program at West Pullman Park. The program was started with a single $10,000 donation from the Kennedy Foundation.

According to documents provided by the Chicago Park District, a 1967 report titled, “History for the Program for Mentally Retarded,” states: “…ten parks and ten instructors were chosen for strategic Youth in the Special Recreation program in 1965 work at arts and crafts and play outside. Photos courtesy of Julia Bachrach, Chicago Park District historian

locations throughout the city enabling as many families with handicapped children as possible to benefit from the same activities in which most individuals participated.”

Burke noticed that the casual observer would not be aware that intellectually disabled children were participating in recreational activities.

“We put it [an ad for disabled children] in the newspaper and I got one call from somebody, and that person told me, ‘Well, there’s another child—“retarded” is the word that they used—that lives two blocks away.’ And I would go there and try to get kids to come to my park,” Burke said in a phone interview with Columbia Links.

In 1968, Burke would enlist help from the Kennedy Foundation again to expand on her idea to bring more disabled children to Special Rec programs. She had found a kindred spirit in Eunice Kennedy Shriver as they both cared about the mainstream inclusivity of the intellectually disabled becoming involved in sports

activities and daily life. Kennedy had a close relationship with her intellectually disabled sister, Rosemary.

In their initial meeting, Burke proposed her idea about the Special Olympics to Shriver and left with $25,000 in funding for the event. She tried to secure additional local sponsorship, but to no avail. “I went to the McCormick and Tribune Foundation to get support, not even money. I was told, ‘Who do you think you are? You’re putting these children on display,’ ” Burke recalled about the negative reaction she received.

The inaugural ceremonies for the Special Olympics were held on July 28, 1968 at Soldier Field, which was a Chicago Park District property. There were more than 1,000 participants. She is still amazed by the Special Olympics’ global reach. “165 countries and 6,500 children participated in the [2015 Special Olympics Games] in Los Angeles. And I’m gratified by that,” Burke said.

Several Chicago Park District locations

Emma Burkhalter, 16, and her mother, Erin Folan, at the 2015 Chicago Special Olympics at Eckersall Stadium. Burkhalter mentors and is a global ambassador for the Special Olympics in Chicago.

Photo courtesy of Erin Folan

ADA 25 Chicago is organizing future initiatives for the disabled. In December 2015 they launched the Leadership Institute for People with Disabilities. It’s the first program in the nation to have a number of projects designed to not only leave a lasting impression, but establish a legacy.

“ADA 25 Chicago is designed to create lasting legacies that will improve the lives of people with disabilities for years to come,” Rifkind said.

Although Justice Anne Burke sits on the bench of the Illinois Supreme Court, she remains a diligent advocate for the disabled. She has been fighting for 47 years for long-term residential care for the disabled. She feels that legislation needs to be in place to support it.

“There has been no movement on the federal or governmental level. These [disabled] children live at home, and they go to school. What’s going to happen when Mom and Dad pass on? There are very few institutions for them to go to…and that’s the downside. There should be something for parents to rely on,” Burke said. “Every time somebody talks about these issues or writes about them, more people will be educated. That’s the bottom line.”

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tion with kids like her. She has friends to text and hang out with and feels a part of something,” Folan said. Burkhalter is also a global ambassador for the Special Olympics. She represents the Special Olympics at various Chicago media events. Folan says her daughter is doing some mentoring of her own and maintains an active presence at the park.

“She helps with the other kids and loves it. They listen to her.”

Awareness is the best defense for people who don’t understand the disabled. The National Institutes of Health says 2.2 million U.S. residents depend on a wheelchair, and that 1 in 5 Americans has a physical or intellectual disability.

“We [people without disabilities] have all these opportunities to do cool stuff,” said 15-year-old sophomore Carrie Lenza.

“Teens need to care about these [Special Recreation] programs because they are a way for the disabled to interact with their peers in a fun and respectful way.”

Lenza has two brothers with cerebral palsy and slight autism. Her brothers, Joey and Patrick, are participants in the Special Rec program at Mt. Greenwood Park.

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offer Special Recreation programs and have Special Olympic teams. Independence Park, located in the Irving Park neighborhood, is among the many sites that offer both programs. It carries the distinction of being one of the first Chicago parks to provide Special Recreation programs.

“Today we have over 100 participants with intellectual disabilities ages 2 and up,” said Independence Park Special Recreation coordinator Maureen Perez. "We [Independence Park staff ] can and will adapt an activity to a participant’s needs to be sure that the participant is successful.”

Many believe Special Recreation programs were specifically designed because children or adults with disabilities weren’t allowed to participate in regular programs. However, the Americans with Disabilities Act was established in 1990, a full 25 years after the programs began. The ADA provides legal protection against discrimination for people with disabilities.

“The ADA not only gives people the ability to be included in society, but also establishes civil rights for people with disabilities,” Rifkind said.

People with disabilities can join mainstream recreation programs but opt for Special Rec programs because they are specifically designed for them. “[Chicago Park District coordinators] have programs for people with physical disabilities that may have to use wheelchairs or different mobile devices,” said Colleen Shinn, COTA/L, Training Specialist/Manager of the Autism Program Service Centers for Easter Seals. “They even have programs for the intellectually disabled, and that’s specifically what [the] Special Olympics targets.”

Ask 16-year-old Emma Burkhalter about anything and she’ll mention her time at Independence Park. She participates in the park’s Special Rec and Special Olympics programs. Her disability labels include moderate cognitive impairment, autism spectrum disorder and oppositional defiance disorder. She says she participates in activities like “basketball, gymnastics, tennis, bowling, swimming, and track and field.”

Burkhalter’s mother, Erin Folan, signed Emma up for the program five years ago when seeking out programs to accommodate her daughter. “I loved it and we wanted Emma to have more socializa-

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Youth endangered

How sex traffickers lure teens from parks and urban environments

By Allison Cho Walter Payton College Prep

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uman trafficking is quickly becoming one of the largest industries in the world, and Chicago is one of the largest trafficking centers in the nation. Although many Americans may not be aware of this growing national issue, the reality is that the growing demand from sex purchasers is causing teens to be lured away from their homes and neighborhood parks everyday.

In 2001, the Center for Impact Research conducted a study that revealed at least 16,600 young teen females were involved in prostitution in Chicago, and the numbers have only grown. Though many victims are female, there is a steady number of males being forced into sex trafficking as well. Most of these victims begin to be trafficked between ages 12 and 16 but there have been instances in which chil-

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Caleb Probst, educator for the Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation. says teens can help anti-human trafficking efforts by “educating themselves about it and learning to recognize red flags.” Photo courtesy of Caleb Probst

dren as young as 8 have been trafficked.

Human trafficking is defined as the “modern-day form of slavery involving the illegal trade of people for exploitation or commercial gain,” according to the Department of Homeland Security.

People may imagine teens being taken off the streets and forced into vans when reading this definition, but that is hardly the case. In fact, many these teens are emotionally forced into prostitution.

Many attribute it to teens not feeling safe or loved in their homes, which causes them to latch onto any positive attention they receive, usually from a pimp.

“That’s why they’re out there, because they’re not cared for,” says Renee Shepherd, the Kennicott Park supervisor who works to spread awareness about sex trafficking in parks. Shepherd has realized that teens are disappearing from parks all over the city and has decided to educate people on the issue.

Runaways, homeless teens or displaced LGBTQ+ youth are many of the teens that become susceptible to being “forced.”

According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 1 in 6 runaways reported in 2014 is most likely a victim of sex trafficking and 68 percent of those likely victims who ran away were in the care of social services or foster care when they ran.

“If a girl ran away and she’s in a park, now within 48 hours the pimp is going to follow up on her. She’s just completely vulnerable,” says Mary Bonnett, the artistic director of Her Story Theater, an organization that spreads awareness and promotes social justice for women.

Bonnett also talked about an anti-human trafficking committee that is seeking a student-and-teacher pair representative from each school.

Pimps seek out teens who are emotionally vulnerable because they can easily manipulate them into doing whatever they want. “[The recruiters] take [the victims] to what they call breaking grounds where

the pimps are waiting . . . and if you’re a virgin, they’re going to fight over who gets to break you,” Shepherd says.

Often a pimp will target a teen and become the boyfriend or girlfriend for a while to gain the trust of the target, to more easily force them into prostitution.

The victims become dependent and trusting of the pimp despite all the abuse they’ve suffered.

“The bond trauma that these girls have, that they’ll fight for those pimps . . . That trauma bond is really hard to break...

Stockholm syndrome, it’s very similar to that,” Bonnett says.

But according to Shepherd, not all victims are from broken homes.

“Not all prostitutes are from terrible backgrounds. A lot of them are snatched off the streets,” Shepherd says.

Although teens from what are considered “happy homes” are less susceptible to being pulled into human trafficking, they are far from safe.

Sometimes pimps will target a girl they want and learn all the information about her: her address, family members and friends. They might use the same trick of becoming the boyfriend or girlfriend first before coercing them. However, there have been instances in which the pimps watch the target for an amount of time before literally snatching them off the street.

Afterwards, the traffickers threaten to harm the teen’s family or friends if he/she doesn’t comply. Shepherd talks about an 8th grader who was snatched after being watched by the traffickers and who was forced to sell sex for fear that the pimps would hurt her brother.

“As a sister who loves her little brother, she didn’t have a choice,” Shepherd says.

Despite researchers finding a clear correlation between most sex trafficking victims and unhappy homes, the same cannot be said for the sex purchasers. According to a 2008 study of 113 purchasers by the Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation called “Deconstructing the Demand,”

Renee Shepherd, the Kennicott Park supervisor, spreads awareness about human trafficking in Chicago parks. Photo by Kevin Obomanu

male, a portion of them are women. In short, these purchasers—often called “Johns”—can be anyone.

But that’s not all. The growing use of the Internet is helping the progress of technology, but it’s also adding to the

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purchasers come from very diverse backgrounds with various levels of education. In the study, ages ranged from 20 to 71. Sixty-two percent claimed to also be dating someone or married. Although a majority of pimps and purchasers are

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A view of Grant Park. An initiative to educate teens about the dangers of sex trafficking was begun in 2014 by a Chicago park supervisor. Photo by Allison Cho

growth of the human trafficking business.

A 2014 Thorn Survivor Survey showed 75 percent of the minors being trafficked are sold online through websites such as Backpage.com. Teens who allow strangers to see the personal information they upload online are putting themselves at risk.

“If I’m a pimp and you accept me [on social media], you open up a door for me,” Shepherd says. “Last year there was a couple that used social media to pimp girls because it’s that easy.”

This national crime is slowly being brought to light, but many Americans still aren’t aware of how close to home the issue is. The Dreamcatcher Foundation, founded in 2008 by Brenda Myers-Powell and Stephanie Daniels-Wilson, fights trafficking in Chicago. The organization's goal is to spread awareness, offer shelter and give resources (i.e. condoms) to victims on the streets.

When asked about what teens can do to fight trafficking, CAASE educator Caleb Probst replies: “Just by educating themselves about it and learning to recognize red flags.”

According to the Sun Gate Foundation, another survivor-led organization based in Alexandrai, Virginia, red flags include trying to speed up the relationship with the victim, isolating the victim from their family, or having a job that can’t be tracked down easily. “[Signs are] If they [the victims] start talking about chat lines, about sex in a way they never have before . . . because they do act out,” Mary Bonnett says. “Because they don’t know what to do, they act out, they get violent and their behavior gets violent. That’s a sign that something’s very very wrong if they weren’t [violent] before.”

Teens are encouraged to educate themselves and their peers to make sure that they can identify trafficking if it’s happening and preventing it from happening to them. Also, teens who feel unhappy at home should talk about it with peers or adults (such as counselors) to find solutions instead of becoming emotionally dependent on someone who is trying to take advantage of them.

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Hopes and fears

Young immigrants tell how U. S. reform should help – not hinder or harass – families seeking a better life

By Julian Pujols Quall Whitney Young Magnet High School

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police could lead to them being deported.

And while many Americans may feel such problems are immigrants’ alone, fears about deportation can threaten public safety for everyone, Carrasco said. “[If ] you know that if you call the police because a crime was committed in your community … you can be caught by immigration, [then] you prefer not to call the police,” Carrasco said. “Who does this problem affect? The whole community.”

Nightmares about bad encounters with police are all too real for Karina Monrreal, a 17-year-old Oak Lawn resident. Monrreal, who is Mexican, says her family tries to bypass towns where they fear police may stop her parents because they “look Mexican.”

Still, such experiences do not leave immigrants without hope that lawmakers will extend to them more relief from often burdensome immigration guidelines. Here are three young immigrants who offer some solutions.

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artin Unzueta and Rosi Carrasco are immigrationand workers-rights activists in Chicago. They organize meetings in the Pilsen neighborhood with other community activists to inform the public and make change in immigrants’ lives.

The struggles immigrants face in a new country are very familiar to this couple.

Yet they also understand—despite the challenges immigrants may face when they get here—why millions still take risks to come to the United States.

“We were thinking there would be more opportunities for our daughters,” Unzueta said. Or “that there would be better living conditions than in Mexico […].”

Unzueta and Carrasco’s story is like some other immigrants’ – Martin was offered a job in the United States in 1994, seek-

ing opportunities for a better life, and for the last 18 years they have called Chicago their home.

Immigrants pursuing the American Dream often flee violence, gangs and crime in their native countries, and most aspire to create better lives for themselves and their families. Finding a decent job is a key reason immigrants see the United States as a land of opportunity. But the complexities of family can add to the woes of being an immigrant.

“Many families are mixed families,” Carrasco said. “Some have documents while others don’t.”

Though starting anew in a different country can seem insurmountable to any immigrant, for undocumented immigrants the lack of legal status as residents can erect a roadblock to success. Strict enforcement of detention and deportation rules often spark nightmares among these immigrants, who cite fear that minor or, some say, unwarranted encounters with

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Mexican immigrants Martin Unzueta and Rosi Carrasco, attending a workers’ rights meeting at Cultura in Pilsen, came to the United States to seek opportunities for their daughters. Photo by Julian Pujols Quall

Arianna Salgado, 23, Mexican

What do you think people should understand about immigrants?

That the act of coming here is one of survival, and a lot of us come from countries or from homes where it's not really possible for us to survive there because we don't have access to employment.

Do you think coming to the U.S. has benefited you and your family?

It has definitely opened up opportunities for my family. I came with my mother and brother precisely because my mother [wanted] another source of income and employment that she could not find in our home country [Mexico]. Now that my brother and I are of age, we've been able to support ourselves.

What reforms or laws could be passed in this country that could benefit you or all immigrants?

Having an end to detention and deportation centers are things I work for.

How could this help the U.S. and immigrants also?

It would definitely continue to allow us to work here, to be able to develop our lives here and help the development of this country.

President Obama did the Deferred Action [for Childhood Arrivals]. [...]

That’s what I’m in now. [...] That’s how I’m able to get a job.

How do you think the government could help undocumented immigrants work?

Doing DAPA [Deferred Action for Parental Accountability]. It's like DACA, but it’s for the parents … they can't be deported for a minor infraction. [Congress] doesn't want to do [a full immigration] reform, [but] they should let us work in peace and have peace in the community. It allows people to go out freely and not be afraid, like, “Oh no, if I get my license, I’m going to get deported.”

Do you think undocumented immigrants trust the police?

No! For example, I live near the [Southwest suburbs]. My parents — especially my dad — doesn’t like to drive through [certain neighborhoods] because there was once a time where the police just stopped him. There was no reason for them to stop him. No lie, it’s because he looks Mexican.

Would some immigration reform create peace within families also?

Yes, so it wouldn’t be unstable. For example, I can go out but my parents can’t, you get

Dennis Valera, 23, Filipino

Do you know any undocumented immigrants? How has community been important to them?

Huge […] One of my good friends, his story is a bit more complicated because he’s also queer, so in a sense, he was in the closet for two things. He told me when he found someone he knew was like him, that’s when he was at peace. Finding someone who is going through the same thing as you are is critical. That’s why I hated my early grade-school years, because I felt so by myself […] A lot of the schools I went to when I was younger, I was one of the few people of color, if not the only Asian in the student population

How could the government help you and other immigrants adjust to living in the United States?

I feel there still needs to be a diversity training in a couple of professions, like education. My name isn’t that difficult to pronounce, but I know a lot of other people with more complicated names that are harder to spell. That’s a very embarrassing moment to have. … There needs to be sensitivity, especially if they are fresh into the country because that was the biggest alienation point for me.

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This is usually a process that's very dehumanizing and it's very hurtful.

[Immigrants] are usually removed and detained from their families. You're in the middle of nowhere, don't have access to legal representation and are subject to abuse in the centers. It’s definitely something we need to end.

What law would prevent someone from just calling the police and deporting you?

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Why are you an activist for stopping deportation and detention centers?

Karina Monrreal, 17, Mexican

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The little club that could

Jurassic Park rocks it out in a small venue in Little Village

By Teddy Menna Lincoln Park High School

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hile Chicago is predominantly known for hosting large crowd-drawing concerts like Lollapalooza and Pitchfork, there is an underground music scene just waiting to be unearthed. Although the underground “DIY” music scene in Chicago is thriving, many would never know unless they really searched for it.

Most concertgoers tend to opt for more mainstream, sometimes brankruptingly expensive shows that feature one to two acts where the attendee stands miles away from the stage, hoping to get a glimpse of the action. In the DIY scene, a show would cost anywhere from $3 to $10 and feature eight or more local bands who are no more than 20 feet away. One of the most popular clubs that hosts these shows is a small venue located in Little Village called Jurassic Park, which was recently re-opened by Josue Romero, who has recently become manager.

“We usually host shows here about once a week now,” Romero said. “We have a Facebook. We have a lot of friends that come here and play and we usually get 80

people tops, or more.”

Jurassic Park has seen its fair share of hard times. The club closed down in November 2015 because of concerns about a past raid and gang affiliation interfering with several shows.

“Gang members are like sharks,” Romero said. “They would mess with [kids at shows], try and mean mug them or try to take their money. The rockers put up the heavy metal sign that looks a lot like the Latin Kings gang sign. The gang members would come into the shows and there would be moshing and they would get confused as to why they were being pushed. They didn't get that it was part of the music. It got to the point where we got raided a few times, there were shootings, they actually shot punks. It got real bad and we had to shut down for a couple of months.”

Although Jurassic Park has taken some hits, Romero is determined to keep the scene alive.

“So far we haven't had any complaints, the neighbors are happy, everyone’s just having a good time,” Romero said. ”It’s for the kids who you know feel like they wanna commit suicide or are depressed.

[They] come over here, have a good time, hang out with friends and just have fun.

Fans entertain themselves outside Jurassic Park. Photo by Fey Moon

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Music lovers wait for the next band to go on.

The capacity of Jurassic Park is around 80.

Photo by Yeshi Regalado

It’s a cool place. Gang members don’t come in here at all. Everyone stays inside and everyone has a good time.”

Jurassic Park offers kids a safe place to take out their anger and frustration in a healthy way as opposed to going out in the world with an overall sense of apathy. Had a bad week? Do you resent the people around you? Is the every day routine of being a slave to society so unbearably consuming that you feel the need to break away? Then Jurassic Park is the place to be. Featuring the cathartic sounds of heavy metal and hardcore punk bands alike, there is no better release than going to a show and letting the music take over you.

“Going to shows at Jurassic is like my weekly therapy, ya know? There is so much that goes on in my life that gets to me,” said an avid concertgoer. “It’s hard to finish the day sometimes and having that thing to look forward to every weekend is really relieving. It's a complete and total release of negative energy.”

The sense of community at the venue is also a major part of the scene.

“Absolutely, I think there's a lot of good that comes from these shows. You meet a lot of people that you would never normally meet if it weren't for the shows that go on at Jurassic Park. There's a great amount of diversity there,” said musician and Jurassic Park performer Alex Villagomez.

So the next time you’re in Chicago and want to see some great live music for little to no price, stop by Jurassic Park and catch a show. You would be amazed at the kind of talent you will find there.

Note: This reporter is the vocalist for the band Colors, a regular act at Jurassic Park.

Say her name

The movement by the parks to recognize women has begun

By Eryn McCallum Jones College Prep

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Lillian Hardin Armstrong Park: Armstrong (c.

1898 – 1971) was a jazz musician, composer and bandleader. A member of the Chicago band known as the New Orleans Creole Band in the 1920s, she met and married trumpeter Louis Armstrong in 1924. Photo By Eryn McCallum

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workplace with fair chances and opportunities,” Jackson said.

“Bessie Coleman flew the plane, right?” she asked. “She'd always wanted to be a pilot and fly planes and it was hard for her to do a lot because she was black and she was a female trying to become a pilot during a time when it wasn't popular.”

While women have made notable contributions to society, historically those contributions have not garnered the attention they deserve. In Chicago, nearly 19 percent of city parks are named after women. And while there is an abundance of statues of historically significant men scattered all over the city, the city has no statues honoring women, according to a report on WBEZ. Amy Guth, writer, publisher and author of the novel “Three Fallen Women” (2006) that deals with feminist themes, believes there’s still a lot of work to be done to get women recognized more.

“The voices and contributions by women and people of color have not been recognized nearly as often,” she said, noting that the absence of recognition perpetuates stereotypes of women and limits them to “traditional gender roles.”

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omen account for more than half the U. S. population and every one of them has helped shape this country, whether they be mothers, educators, entrepreneurs, doctors, politicians or activists.

Chicago has found a special way to honor women by naming community parks and playlots after women who have made great contributions to society. Of 350 city parks named after individuals, the Chicago Park District has 66 parks named after women.

“The Chicago Park District made a conscious effort to name parks after women….

We wanted to honor the achievements of women,” said Jessica Maxey-Faulkner, CPD’s director of communications.

Some of Chicago’s parks have been named for nurses like Clara Dorothy Schafer, a nurse and administrator at South Chicago Hospital (now Advocate Trinity Hospital), jazz singers such as Dinah Washington, and five-time Olympic track and field star Willye White.

“These women have been chosen at the request of the community or the [park] advisory council because they have made an impact,” Faulkner said.

Last year, the Chicago Park District worked with Lakeview residents, Ald. Thomas M. Tunney (44th) and the Chicago Cubs to name a park for Margaret Donahue, the first female executive in major league baseball. Similarly, in 2012, residents of Humboldt Park and Logan Square worked with the CPD to rename a park for poet and feminist activist Julia de Burgos.

Rose Park, located in the South Lawndale community, was renamed Guadalupe Reyes Park in 2004. Reyes was an activist and leader who worked to help the city’s Latino residents. When the time the park was renamed for her, the park district’s

Board of Commissioners was just starting to make an effort to recognize the hard work of Chicago women.

“The parks are traditionally named for individuals who lived or worked in the area, and have impacted their community,” Faulkner said.

Women are getting their rewards elsewhere. There is a movement to replace Alexander Hamilton, first secretary of the U.S. Treasury, on the $10 bill with that of Harriet Tubman. Tubman guided nearly 70 slaves to freedom in the North, risking her own life in the process.

In early 2013, President Barack Obama issued a proclamation establishing a national park monument for Tubman.

According to the Conservation Fund, the Harriet Tubman national monument could become a national park if approved

by Congress.

Even the Navy began honoring women.

Not only does the Naval History and Heritage Command have an entire section of its website dedicated to women who played a significant role in naval history, but it has also named 13 ships after women, according to the website.

While the park district continues to name parks after women who have influenced their communities and to inspire young people, many don’t know who these women are.

“Wow, I just realized I don’t know anything about women activists,” said Yu Jing Chen, 15, a student at Walter Payton, when asked about a park named for Burgos.

“This goes to show that [high schoolers] don’t really know much. I think Social Studies class could focus more on the history in Chicago,” she added.

However, Myah Jackson, 15, a Jones College Prep student, knew about parks named after social activist Jane Addams and black aviator Bessie Coleman.

“Jane Addams was the lady who organized the Hull House and supported many immigrants with housing which allowed them to excel and grow in the

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Obama museum due in 2020

South Side intrigue behind public parks and a library

By Natalie Braye Francis W. Parker School

I

parks & recreation

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n honor of the 44th president, Barack Obama, a presidential library and museum is to be built on the South Side of Chicago, the community he used to call home. The library, now referred to as the Barack Obama Presidential Center, is set to be completed in 2020 but has received pushback from organizations like Friends of the Parks for its proposed location in two of the city’s historical parks, Washington Park and Jackson Park, located on the city’s South Side.

Word of a new presidential library and museum began in early 2014, but proposals and bids for a Chicago location began long before that. Alice McLean, assistant director of Special Projects at the Uni-

versity of Chicago, was part of the twowoman team along with Susan Sher, a senior adviser to the president of University of Chicago, who worked to coordinate all of the individuals and organizations involved in making the bid for the library.

The Obama Foundation released a request for qualification on March 20, 2014, according to its website.

“We had already been working on the project before that, and doing our research...learning what is a presidential library, what do they hold, what do they do,” McLean said.

After submitting the initial request in June 2014, the foundation started narrowing down its options. The foundation then requested proposals and in September 2014, 13 finalists made the first round, according to the Obama Library Foundation. Another round left four finalists: the University of Chicago, University of Illi-

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Alice McLean, assistant director of Special Projects at the University of Chicago. Photo by Natalie Braye

nois at Chicago, University of Hawaii and Columbia University in New York.

The announcement came in May 2015 that Chicago would be the home of the new presidential library, and the celebration began. The news was broken by a 30-minute press conference and a twoand-a-half-minute video of the President and First Lady Michelle Obama sharing the news and displaying images portraying the community’s support of the library.

Despite the positive community feedback, not everyone was pleased with the library being built in the current location of a public park. Lauren Moltz, Friends of the Parks’ interim executive director, said she thinks there are other places the library could be built without compromising the historical Olmsted parks.

“Public parks are a non-renewable asset,” Moltz said. “Once buildings are built [on park land], the open land for the public’s use is gone. There is much vacant land in this city that is not in parks that can be used for this and other types of development.”

FOTP initially suggested that an 11-acre site across from Washington Park be used for the library space after Washington and Jackson Park were proposed as possible sites. This site was owned by the City of Chicago, the Chicago Transit Authority and U of C. Members of FOTP expressed that it could be just as good a site and create as much economic and cultural traction as a larger site could. U of C rejected the site and opted for a 20-acre site in both Jackson Park and Washington Park for the proposal, according to FOTP. U of C officials claim the plan for the library will be very “park positive.” On the foundation's website, officials released new details about the scope of the presidential center, saying it would include community gardens and "quiet spots for reflection," places to convene "activists, thinkers, and leaders," a "healthy dining" spot and "labs" where people can showcase innovative ideas. The core features of the center will include presidential archives, a museum and offices for the foundation.

“We believe by bringing attention to the parks, where millions of people will come to this building, that will help the parks,” McLean said in regards to the pushback against building the library in a public park. “Chicago Park District will enhance and put more money into these parks. We

James Smith has lived on the South Side his entire life. News that the Obamas had chosen his side of Chicago to build was uplifting. "The kids will be able to look up to President Obama for being a president who took a stand for the nation, specifically their community," Smith said. Photo by Natalie Braye; inset photo by James Foster / Columbia Chronicle

At of press time, the Obama Foundation, headed by chairman and Chicago businessman Martin Nesbitt, reported it was in search of an architect, seeking designers in this country and overseas. According to reports, at least 90 percent of the invited firms are American, the officials said, and of that group, Chicago architects are heavily represented.

For the most part, the community is enthusiastic about the library joining the city’s South Side. Many residents are hopeful it will be the first step toward improving the area.

“It’s a plus for the community,” Smith said. “The kids will be able to look up to President Obama for being a president who took a stand for the nation, specifically their community.”

parks & recreation

As for the cost of building the center, it will be completely funded by the Obama Foundation according to McLean.

“The money for [presidential libraries] is raised completely privately,” McLean said.

The George W. Bush Library, the most recent presidential library, cost about $300 million to build, and the latest is expected to cost about the same, although some put the estimated cost for the Obama Museum Center at $500 million.

Initially, Congress was paying to maintain the libraries, but as the number of presidential libraries rises to 14, the cost has become a financial burden.

“Congress had said that in addition to raising the money for the library, you have to raise a certain percentage to cover the operating cost,” McLean said.

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truly believe it will benefit the parks.”

Despite FOTP's efforts against the library site being located on park land, there is strong community support for the library. James E. Smith is a licensed funeral director and has lived in the South Shore neighborhood all his life.

“I first heard news of the library maybe two years ago,” Smith said. “I thought it was a very good idea. I’m really hoping this will create jobs and bring the property tax back up.”

After months of surveying, U of C has concluded that the library’s construction alone will create $600 million in economic activity, specifically by offering jobs. After the library opens and is fully staffed, it is also expected to bring in an annual revenue of $220 million, according to a study commissioned by U of C.

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'The Homestretch'

By Briana Williams

Directed and produced

by Anne de Mare and Kirsten Kelly

H

reviews

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ome. As I sit here typing this review in my home and you read it from your home, we all know what it is like to have a home. When asked what home is, some may answer, “Home is where I lay my head to fall asleep every night, wake every morning, and eat most of my meals” and we may even add “with my family.”

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What happens when the place you lay your head at night is unknown? What happens when you have no place to eat?

What happens when your family is OK with you living this way? The average person wouldn’t know how to answer those questions. But that’s exactly why these teens are extraordinary.

In "The Homestretch," filmmakers Kristen Kelly and Anne De Mare follow three homeless teens in their quest to be better and achieve more than they have been given. These teens take the phrase “home is where the heart is” to a new level.

Opening with a beautiful sunrise, the film engages the viewer instantly. The settled tone matches the personality of the first person introduced in the film, Roque, a Hispanic 17-year-old boy whose parents have not been very active in his life. His father had problems with immigration and his mother has never been there for

A collaboration with RogerEbert.com him in the ways a mother should. His teacher, Maria Rivera, noticed Roque’s inconsistency in a place to sleep when she started dropping him off at home after school. Rivera reveals a little bit of her back story. She explains how when she was younger, her mother was not the best, and she often found herself sleeping at someone else’s home; even in those situations, she was still treated poorly. Rivera takes Roque under her wing and allows him to live with her and her family, while also motivating him to graduate and attend college.

Roque’s story is very inspiring in a way that emphasizes the impact of teachers and schools on students' lives.

Another person followed in this film is Kasey, who was rejected by her mother because she is a lesbian and was verbally abused when she moved in with her grandmother. She resides in a homeless shelter for teens who are trying to build their lives and live on their own. Kasey’s lively attitude and smiling face is a façade. As the documentary progresses, the damage of being homeless and rejected by her family is more evident as her behavior becomes more self-destructive. Kasey mentions multiple times that she wants to go to college after graduation but never takes any real steps toward achieving those goals. In the film,

it is difficult for Kasey to recover from the traumas that made her homeless.

Finally, there's Anthony. His attitude is inspiring and heart-warming. Aware of his goals and very determined to achieve them, Anthony’s back story of an abusive family and foster care homes does not derail him for long. I personally have never seen a person with such extreme circumstances have such an optimistic view on life and the determination to make things better. He fights hard and long, working two jobs, studying to get his GED, paying rent for his own apartment, fighting to get his son out of the foster care system, and joining a one-year program to help people transition into college. Anthony’s story of perseverance is the most inspiring of them all.

This documentary was not only informative because of the staggering facts about teen homelessness in Chicago and the too-few institutions that support them, but it was also motivational.

Roque, Kasey and Anthony share a unique story, and within each story I learned something new. Home is not about where you physically are; it’s a mental state. These teens find their home within themselves. We can all learn something from their experiences.

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'SMILE'

By Brandon Towns

Directed by Marquis Daisy

“S

mile” is a tough watch. This emotional documentary throws you into the lives of the Newtons, a Chicago family living in the inner city as they reflect on a tragic moment in their family’s history. The film’s uncompromising story will bring tears

to your eyes and make you want to call your siblings. A strong sense of family is present throughout this journey as we travel into the Newtons' world.

In the beginning of “Smile,” we’re introduced to this family as they go through their daily lives on the violent streets of Chicago’s South Side, often referred to as “Chiraq.” Director Marquis Daisy widens our gaze as he explores beyond the Newton family into the community.

The environment and conditions of the neighborhood become evident during each interview with its residents. With great imagery, the audience can envision the struggling livelihood in the community as its residents are engulfed by violence. The image of gunshot wounds overlaid with voiceovers from interviews with residents such as Mary Whitehorn, who was an innocent bystander shot while going to the grocery store, or Laniel Richardson, who compares Chicago to Al-Qaeda. Director Daisy transitions between the family and community effortlessly through seamless editing.

an issue for a few moments of this film, although there is brilliance in the editing, once again proving Daisy’s cleverness.

Brief black breaks create an ease from the tension or a safe haven. These breaks also become a transition between emotions as we watch this family break down in front of us. The shift back and forth builds a sense of unease. This contributes to the story because the viewer becomes entangled in the lives of the Newtons, as well as those in the community. You are no longer the distanced observer, watching this film about strangers. You become a participant, a family member.

This film is powerful because you experience the growth of the Newtons. You laugh with them through the good times and cry with them during the bad times.

Daisy uses close-up of old family Polaroid pictures to represent the passage of time and to further develop the Newtons.

This small visual aid provides a greater emotional response when the plot unfolds and we slowly discover their loss.

However, this film isn’t without its flaws.

The voiceover feels out of place and takes “Smile” is a thought-provoking docuaway from the tone of the film. There mentary with a strong message are several frames repeated as well as a about family strength and endurfew back focusing issues. Audio was also ance. This film is timeless.

Scenes from "Smile"

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'AFRAID OF DARK'

By Olivia Okocha Tom Burrell makes important observations about the definition of "black" in the dictionary and how that corresponds to how black men are treated in reality.

Directed by Mya B.

"A

A lot of creativity went into the movie. It includes segments in which people talk about being a black man in America. The filmmaker cleverly includes Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This adds content and gives the movie a different feel, especially as Dr. King made such a great contribution to black men in America's history. In these segments, Dr. King

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fraid of Dark" establishes the history behind the stereotypes that distort what it means to be a black man in today's society. The audience can definitely see that filmmaker Mya Baker, from Brooklyn, N.Y., did a significant amount of research in this film to show the world the problems of being a black man in America.

A scene from "Afraid of Dark" 58

The film explores the history of being a black man in America, from the days of slavery, to the civil rights movement and, lastly, to the present. By giving examples of the stereotypes throughout history, the audience sees how beliefs change but that change occurs slowly.

In the first half of the movie, Baker includes disturbing images and footage from the slavery/Jim Crow era. This part of the movie is important because it reminds us all about the painful history and obstacles black men, as well as the nation, have had to overcome.

Kenya K. Stevens, a relationship and self-help coach and founder of the JujuMama website, gives examples of various roles of the “black man� in the family: the planner, the leader, the warrior and the negotiator. Although these are roles she claims a black man should assume to run the family, they sometimes cannot fulfill them.

Educator Cornel West, advertising pioneer Tom Burrell and rapper Sadat X add to the discussion about being a black man in the United States, including negative aspects such as sagging pants, having many children but not being a father, going to prison and being intimidating to others who dare to do something as simple as reading the newspaper. These segments inform the audience about the struggles black men go through every day.

Overall, "Afraid of Dark" is an entertaining and inspiring movie that gives the audience insight into the black male experiences in America. Instead of seeing them, or other people in general, as human beings identified with the stereotypes and characteristics that society gives them, the audience learns about the struggle of creating a separate, personal identity and pushing away from the stereotypes. As Dr. King reminds us: We should judge people by the content of their character rather than skin color, race or gender. Also, Baker’s editing of photos and historical and contemporary film footage make this documentary a great visual experience.

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Chris Rock

'THE N-WORD'

By Briana Williams

Samuel L. Jackson Directed by Todd Williams

N

o matter how many times it’s heard or in what context, the N-word makes people uncomfortable. Many have pondered its meaning.

Where did it originate? How was turned into a derogatory term? What movement made the word “cool”? But most importantly, who is allowed to use it?

reviews

Ostentatious language is used in its best form throughout the film. Instead of

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Filmmaker Todd Williams’ cutting-edge documentary “The N Word” explores the evolution and controversy surrounding the acceptance of the word in the African-American community. The use of the N-word affects everyone differently. This documentary not only dives into the etymology of the word and how those interpretations shape its acceptance, but it also explores the generational differences in how the word is understood. An integration of interviews from a broad range of ages, careers and social status permits the viewer to have a rounded view of how people feel about it. Chris Rock, Nia Long, Samuel Jackson, Harvard law professor Randall Kennedy and director Brett Ratner are examples of the different points-of-view that come together to create this brilliant mash-up of ideas about society and the shifts in culture around one word.

the 17th Century and believe it is derived sugarcoating what seems to be a topic from the Latin word for black which is most people wouldn’t have the nerve “niger.” Each definition is broken down to speak freely about, the interviewees and explained. The first contemporary spoke truthfully and with no restrictions. definition of the word is a term used by To truly engage the viewer, Williams did non-blacks to indicate that a black peran amazing job of incorporating clips from films and even full prose and poetry son is of inferior caste. The second definition is a word used as an affectionate levpieces in-between segments of the eler, which can be seen as true because documentary to evoke a more emotional and insightful view on the struggles black of the revamp of the word. The third people have overcome. These pieces definition raises the issue of teens who really put into perspective the way this are not black using the word to be “cool.” word has stuck with the culture past everything else and made a statement.

Hip-hop made the word mainstream and it gained acceptance. As the word inteThe documentary begins with people grated into rap music, it also migrated to recalling the first time they had ever other cultures and in a way gave them been called the N-word. Some feel it permission to use the word as long as it was used venomously, while others was not in a derogatory form. Williams had first heard it from another black interviews people on the streets and ask person, which desensitized them to their opinion of the public’s use of the the derogatory nature of the word. A word. The response was mixed. Some montage of the N-word is whispered people thought it was okay to use the in the background several times durword and others felt it was still insulting ing the film which gives the viewer a to the African-American community. sense of comfort with the word. Black people have begun to own the word and The overall consensus of “The N-Word” take away its negative connotation by documentary is that the word is here giving it a new image and definition. to stay. There is no way it will go away.

Removing the N-word is like erasing a But, before giving it a new definition, they part of history. It isn’t the word that is had to figure out the origins of the word. bad; it’s the connotation and the meanThe shattering truth is that no one really ing people associate with the word. knows. Linguists traced the word back to

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Photo: Shane Welch (BFA ’10)