The Trinity Voice - November 2021

THE

TRINITY VOICE

November 2O21 Volume 24 Issue 2 Trinity Preparatory School 57OO Trinity Prep Lane Winter Park, FL 32792

THE RETURN OF HOMECOMING Trinity reinstates traditions like Lunch on the Lawn after year off Photo Collage on Page 24

NEWS

Electric vehicles rise in popularity on campus and around the world.

Page 5

LIFESTYLES

Disney adds warnings to old films addressing outdated content.

Page 7

FOCUS

Memes and trends provide a cultural snapshot of the decade.

Pages 12-13

OPINIONS

Dress code guidelines should be gender-neutral.

Pages 16-17

SPORTS

Ray Sandidge continues coaching despite cancer diagnosis.

Pages 22-23

Table of Contents

November 2O21

TABLE OF CONTENTS News

Mass Wildlife Extinction O4 Electric Cars O5 Hall Passes O6

Lifestyles

Disney and Diversity O7 Curse Words O8

Focus

The Sneaker Economy O9 Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs) 1O Musical Stereotypes 11 Memes of the Decade 12-13

Opinions

Lead Ed 14-15 Nonbinary Dress Code 16-17 True Crime 18-19

Sports

rap

Weight Room Usage 21 Coach Ray’s Battle 22-23

Jaidyn Holt

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The Trinity Voice is produced by the newspaper/journalism class at Trinity Preparatory School of Florida. Editorials represent the opinion of The Trinity Voice writer and are not necessarily the views of the administration, faculty, or Board of Trustees of Trinity. The Voice welcomes letters to the editor and freelance articles or photography. All submissions become the property of The Voice. Please send all correspondence to 5700 Trinity Prep Lane, FL 32792. The Voice may also be contacted via phone at 407-671-4140 and via e-mail at voice@trinityprep.org. For information regarding the purchase of advertising within The Voice contact us by one of the methods mentioned above. The Voice is a monthly publication during the school year (with the exceptions of November and January).

VOICE@TRINITYPREP.ORG Sarah Lin

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Staff/Focus Topic

November 2O21

STAFF

Editors-in-Chief: Emma Kim, Deniz Bölöni-Turgut Managing Editor: Jack Ververis Copy Editor: Cate Williams Layout Editors: Amy-Ruth Gyang, Jaidyn Holt Online Editor: Cate Williams News Department: Ava Savino (Editor), David Bryskin, Iris Lei, Victoria Berube, Julian Sealy Opinions Department: Jack Ververis (Editor), Maddie Peckham, Abby Hernan, Ella Norman Focus Department: Marcos Membreno (Editor), Aetant Prakash, Sreekar Nagulapalli, Angel Zheng, Peyton Alch, Alec Diaz Lifestyles Department: Sarah Zehnder (Editor), Kaylee Ortega, Taylor Riley, Amy-Ruth Gyang Sports Department: Boaz Kim (Editor), David Hull, Carol Marques, David Steinberg, Cate Williams Graphics Department: Jaidyn Holt (Editor), Sarah Lin

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This Month’s Focus Topic:

Pop Culture Blurb by Marcos Membreno Graphics by Jaidyn Holt

Pop culture is ever changing with trends coming in and out of fashion. Its influence is seen in many aspects of consumerism and entertainment from the rise of digital markets and the “hype” economy to stereotypes in music. This month, the Focus department decided to explore these uncommon topics in Pop Culture and develop an understanding of what goes into trend-setting.

Podcast

Tune in this month to hear from Trevor Buettgen on his rise to fame on social media. Scan Below!

T HE T RINIT Y V OICE P RESENTS

Photo Department: Anuha Tatineni (Editor), Ella Craghill (Editor), Reese Taylor, Anna Miliotes Fact Checker: Julian Sealy Business Manager: Sarah Zehnder Adviser: Erin Miller PODCAST

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News

November 2O21

A Declining Future

s sixth mass extin t i s r cti E x tinction rate climbs as Earth e nte on

Article by Ava Savino Graphic by Jaidyn Holt and Sarah Lin Among the famous icons of American birds, the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker was recently declared extinct with 23 other species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. According to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, out of the estimated eight million species on Earth, at least 15,000 of them are threatened with extinction, and the extinction rate of today is thousands of times higher than one without human interference.

Science teacher Emily Massey-Burmeister said that this heightened rate of extinction is Earth entering another mass extinction.

“A mass extinction is talking about the fact that a large proportion of the species that are currently on Earth go extinct in a relatively short period of time, and we’ve had five as indicated by the fossil record,” Massey-Burmeister said.

She further explained that the first five mass extinctions were caused by natural events, such as the extinction of the dinosaurs, but this one is distinct because it is driven mostly by human activities.

Junior Lainey Wilemon is a self-proclaimed advocate for animals due to the fact that they cannot do this for themselves. She credits her passion to her science-loving parents, one of which previously taught AP Environmental Science. She said that the main cause of the increasing extinction rate is due to humans changing the environment with the use of fossil fuels. “[Carbon emissions] deteriorate our ozone layer in the atmosphere, which is protecting us from increasing temperature,” Wilemon said.

“So when we do increase in temperature, obviously not all animals are suited for certain temperatures.”

An example of a species directly impacted by this is the polar bear. Wilemon said that due to the rising temperatures, polar bears are being forced to migrate south. It may seem counterintuitive to go south instead of north to escape

rising temperatures, but since the temperatures melt all of the ice that these bears thrive on, they must completely change their way of life and move to solid ground instead. These bears are also starting to exhibit strange behavior when their populations dwindle, leading to inter-species breeding.

“Since the polar bears are migrating towards the south, they were interacting with grizzly bears, and now they have Grolars and Pizzlies,” Wilemon said.

Climate change not only affects the colder northern climates, but also the tropical climates in the oceans. Coral reefs, home to all sorts of diverse wildlife populations, are now subjected to bleaching from the stress of high ocean temperatures.

Humans also hurt wildlife populations with other destructive actions besides climate change, such as poaching. Wilemon said that the White Rhino population decline was due to the high demand for their extremely valuable horns.

According to Live Science, birds are the most commonly represented species of animal on recent extinction lists due to habitat loss, which can be seen prominently this year with the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker’s extinction.

Massey-Burmeister said that the loss of this woodpecker recently took a more personal meaning. While traveling in Michigan over the summer, her family was able to observe and feed a different species of woodpecker, which reminded her of the recent news of extinction of the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker.

English Teacher Steven Krueger has also been impacted by these extinctions due to his hobby of bird watching. He started watching after being inspired by a former student on the ninth grade High Rocks overnight hike.

“It kind of forces you to stop and pay attention to details,” Krueger said. “I know it’s cliché, but we’re in a very fast-paced world, and pausing to try to wait until you get a glimpse

of a tiny little bird…it’s kind of a nice little brain break.”

Krueger enjoys engaging in this past time around campus, listening for each specific call of the different bird species that find home on the campus. In the past 25 years he has been on campus, however, one bird’s recent absence stood out to him. The Northern Bobwhite is a bird uniquely named for the sound it makes resembling the word “bobwhite.” With the endangerment of this species, Kreuger said that he used to be able to see this bird right behind his classroom, but he has not been able to for some time.

“It’s kind of sad that [the Northern Bobwhite] is no longer on our campus in the way that it once was,” Krueger said.

Due to the fact that humans are at fault for this sixth mass extinction, there are initiatives that can be taken to help prevent the further endangerment of animals. Small changes like carpooling to school, eating local produce, and being conscious about fossil fuel usage can begin to alleviate some of the damage. But, Wilemon said that the planet may have already reached the point in time where some of these damages are irreversible.

“You just have to do what you can when you can, [but] it’s never going to be 100% fixed because we’ve already messed it up so much,” Wilemon said. “The main thing we can do is try to put a bandaid on it or slow it.”

November 2O21

News

ELECTRIC VEHICLES GET THE GREEN LIGHT

Students and faculty on why they switched and what the future holds for electric cars Article by Julian Sealy Photo by Anuha Tatineni Since 2009, the Fremont Police Department (FPD) in Fremont, California has begun using hybrid powered vehicles in its patrol fleet and in 2019 added its first fully electric vehicle to the fleet. Now in 2021, the patrol fleet has over 40 vehicles that are either hybrid or fully electric powered. This rise in the use of electric and hybrid vehicles is seen around the country and also on the Trinity campus.

Junior Katie Corddry has been driving an electric car for six months and loves the convenience and the environmental pros.

“It’s environmentally conscious and there’s an immediate torque, which makes it fun to drive,” Corddry said. “It’s definitely convenient to not have to go to gas stations.”

English teacher Dr. Robert J. Boerth has had his Chevrolet Bolt for over two years now and enjoys his electric vehicle for many of the same reasons Corddry does.

“It is very low on maintenance and upkeep, and electric cars are fun to drive,” Boerth said.

“They have a lot of power right out of the start.”

Boerth did add that, despite the many positives, electric cars can present various challenges for longer travel.

“The biggest negative is that, if you’re taking long road trips, you have to plan ahead,” Boerth said. “If you’re needing a trip where you’re going to have to charge along the way, you have to do a little bit of research to find out where the fast charging stations are and make stops supporting that.”

Corddry added some additional concerns with going too long without charging the car and what happens when there’s no miles left on the car.

“You can’t go that far,” Corddry said.”

“There’s a limited range [which is about] 200 miles max. Unlike a gas car, if your car gets to zero miles, it’s called bricking and you can never drive the car again.”

Unlike in a gas powered car where it would just be towed, something called “bricking” happens in an electric car. The car will come to a halt and begin to beep and all the controls will lock up. The car doesn’t budge any further and is “an immobile bit of sculpture blinking its hazard lights on the highway,” according to a Tesla owner on the website Jalopnik.

As more electric cars come on the road, many consumers wonder when the U.S. will go fully

electric. “I think the fast charge technology is going to improve,” Boerth said. “I think another possibility is that they will develop the technology to possibly remove a depleted battery and put in a fully charged battery.”

The Chinese car company Geely in China is in fact planning to develop over 5,000 “battery swapping stations” in China by 2025 with the associated service E-Energee. According to Geely, the battery swapping stations enable the electric-car battery to be switched out for a fully charged one in 59 seconds, without the driver even having to exit the vehicle.

Boerth added what he loves most about driving an electric car.

“What I enjoy most is that it’s a nice car to drive,” Boerth said. “It’s quiet, it’s responsive and it’s nice when you’re driving around to know that you’re riding a more energy efficient and environmentally friendly vehicle.”

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November 2O21

News

BONDAY INTRODUCES HALL PASSES

Article by Victoria Berube Photo by Anna Miliotes

Recently, hall passes have been introduced Most students do not know why hall passes school means that those in middle school have on campus for the purpose of maximizing were placed in the school and feel as though more freedom. safety and having a more accurate attendance the independence expectation in a college pre“Upper school is supposed to have more record. As a higher number of students re- paratory school is revoked. independence than middle school so it makes turn to school from a year and a half of Hy“I feel like ever since like sixth grade, ev- me kind of upset about that,” Kilger said.

Flex learning, the concerns for security are ery year we’ve slowly had more independence, Mortimer shared a similar belief of the midgreater. Students are and then with the dle school having hall passes either alongside also required to have a hall passes, it kind of or instead of the upper school. hall pass when coming of just takes away “You would imagine that middle schoolers to a class late. that independence,” have been in more need of hall passes because “The passes sort of sophomore Grace they’re just out of elementary school,” Morserve as a visual remindtimer said.

Kilger said. er to the teacher that Currently the hall passes are in their “trainKilger has been they have to go back attending Trini- ing phase” as Bonday put it, where they are and update or change ty since 6th grade not sure if the passes are the right fit for the attendance status,” -Tracy Bonday, Head of Upper School and has multiple campus yet.

Head of Upper School “If we don’t see over time that it has made siblings who have Tracy Bonday said. graduated from here. She feels that the im- a difference, then we don’t keep them,” Despite Trinity being an open campus, plementation of hall passes only in the upper Bonday said.

Bonday and Head of Middle School Jason Dowdy made the decision to have the passes only for the upper school students. Bonday and Dowdy came to this decision because of the lack of concerns within the middle school.

The ideal use of the hall passes is for when a student is sent across campus for an extended period of time.

“If [a student] were gone for a longer period of time, and there was something that occurred [such as] an emergency, we need to be able to easily track or try to find the student,” Bonday said.

Bonday believes the hall passes will have the effect of teachers stopping students on campus to see where they are going.

“I think what’s happening is teachers who have seen the Starting in October, upper school students began using hall passes every time they left the students with a hall pass, are classroom. They are used for going everywhere except the bathroom. actually more inclined to say to them, ‘where are you going,’” Bonday said.

“If we don’t see over time that it has made a difference, then we don’t keep them.”

November 2O21

Lifestyles

7

DISNEY AND DIVERSITY

The company addresses its problematic past and promises a better future Article by Taylor Riley Graphic by Jaidyn Holt For so many people, Disney movies were an counterparts, and many fans share the opinion and unauthentic way and repeatedly refers to integral part of childhood. They would buy that the company ruined his character’s poten- them by a racial slur. “Dumbo,” released in the merchandise and act out the scenes with tial by pushing him to the side.

1941, shows faceless African slaves singing a their friends. However, many kids felt left out Despite these shortcomings, Disney is mak- song filled with racist lyrics that enforce harmof this because none of their favorite characters ing strides, not only to create more inclusive ful stereotypes. reflected what they saw in the mirror. content, but to address their problematic repThe reasoning behind adding the advisory “When you’re a little kid, you’re on the resentations of non-white characters in the message to these movies is explained on Displayground and you’re playing princesses, past. In late 2020, Disney added a warning ney’s website on a page titled “Stories Matter.” and you’re always assigned a part based on message that plays before several of their older The page was created to explain Disney’s comwhat you look like,” Film Fest Club President movies on their streaming platform, Disney +. mitment to inclusivity and their ongoing misand senior Isabel sion to tell uplifting Tongson said. and authentic stories.

“And when there’s “We can’t change nobody for you, the past, but we can then you’re just acknowledge it, learn left out of those from it and move games. And evenforward together to tually when you’re create a tomorrow older, you’re gothat today can only This program includes negative depictions and/or mistreating to be left out dream of,” the webment of people or cultures. These stereotypes were wrong of conversations site states. then and are wrong now. Rather than remove this about the stories Some criticized content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, you want to tell.”

Disney’s decision not learn from it and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together.

Tongson can atto entirely remove test to the struggle the content, but of lacking accurate psychology and fine representation and arts teacher Donna the importance Walker, who grew for kids to be able up watching some of to see themselves these movies, believes in film. they can be a tool for “I never grew up growth. with any sort of Disney Princess or “I think most decent people, if you Text above taken directly from Disney Plus Disney fairy, or any kind of media see things that are clearly objectionthat authentically represented me able, the response you have makes you as like a young Filipina girl,” Tongson said. “I The message states the following, “This upset,” Walker said. “In my mother’s case, she never saw myself in any TV shows or films.” program includes negative depictions and/or did her job, which was to educate me about The Walt Disney Company has long been mistreatment of people or cultures. These ste- why that wasn’t acceptable.” criticized for the lack of diversity in their films. reotypes were wrong then and are wrong now.

Overall, the decision to add the warnings Movies like “Moana” and “Shang-Chi and Rather than remove this content, we want to was well received, and Disney’s patrons arethe Legend of Ten Rings” have expanded the acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it happy that the company is owning up to its amount of stories being told, but in some in- and spark conversation to create a more inclu- past mistakes and attempting to do better by stances they are still falling short. sive future together.” creating more inclusive movies in the future.

Actor John Boyega, who played Finn in the The movies that now have the warning in“[Diverse representation] is very important latest Star Wars trilogy, feels his character was clude “Peter Pan,” “The Aristocats,” “The Jun- because it makes [viewers] feel seen. And it treated poorly solely because he was African gle Book,” “Aladdin” and “Dumbo.” The “Pe- also educates kids who are of the majority and American. He said Disney seemed reluctant ter Pan” movie, which was released in 1953, that these people in fact, exist, and they can to give him as much screen time as his white depicts Native American peoples in a racist exist peacefully,” Tongson said.

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Lifestyles

November 2O21

THE PROGRESSION OF PROFANITY Article by Kaylee Ortega Photo by Reese Taylor

Until the end of the 12th century, the word “silly” was not meant to describe the foolish manner in which a person acts, but instead, was meant to represent piety.

Like language, words evolve so frequently that many linguists consider them to be living things, and the progression of swear words is no exception.

Though now used to intensify language or express emotion, this was not always the case.

In the Middle Ages, oaths that violated the religious ideas present at the time were considered to be taboo, though as traditional religious values began to hold less weight, words applicable to the current taboos took their place.

According to English teacher Robert Boerth, the swear words that we use today mirror society’s fears at the time of their modification.

In one era, it was fear of God’s wrath, in another, sex, and presently derogatory language against racial and ethnic minority groups.

“New technologies, situations, and experiences require that words evolve to ensure their usage,” Boerth said.

Nowadays, the biggest influences on the development of language and swear words are popular culture and literature.

“Shakespeare gets credit for popularizing a lot of swear words since his theatre in some ways intended to mirror the regular speech that was happening,” Latin teacher Kyle McGimsey said. “We learn a lot of swear words and slang that we don’t necessarily get from reading Ovid.”

Much like Shakespeare’s theatre, mainstream media has influenced society to the point where certain words are becoming desensitized. Due to curse words’ naturally accelerating rate of use, it is likely that they will eventually lose their offensive punch and become irrelevant, as seen through words that were once taboo but have become benign over the centuries.

“It certainly seems possible that we’ll get to a point where certain words lose their vulgar associations,” McGimsey said. “Words that in

the past were more socially acceptable to say will come to replace current swear words as society decides they are not acceptable anymore.”

The continuing existence and evolution of swear words indicates certain benefits such as analgesia, an act that is instinctively performed by cursing to reduce pain.

Psychology Today proved this by having 92 participants hold their hands in ice water for as long as possible while repeating swear words or their inoffensive counterparts throughout four trials. It was concluded that offensive swear words were the most efficient at increasing the pain threshold and tolerance of the participants while inoffensive words were not effective. It has also been found that swear words alleviate the pain of being ostracized by elevating endorphins.

In spite of all the benefits, the negative effects of curse words must be considered as well, such as indicating a bad attitude, as well as immaturity when used too frequently.

This becomes even more problematic for teenagers when the consequences of being exposed to explicit language, especially on social media, such as depression, anxiety and trouble in school are taken into account.

Due to these contributing factors, sophomore Sophia Taylor has made the personal decision to not swear regularly, and instead save these words for dire situations.

“People use swearing as a release of emotion when they are upset, talking about school,

or just talking to friends to make themselves sound interesting,” Taylor said. “It’s a society thing, because everyone does it, it makes them feel mature, but it’s really a sign of immaturity when you can’t find another word to express your emotions.”

Though there are multiple factors that contribute to the rise of curse words among youth, studies have proven that parental influence outweighs that of peers, showing that the average child knows around 30 to 40 swear words by the time they start school.

Though prohibited by the Trinity Prep Student Handbook, offensive language has been ingrained into the culture of high school students, representing just one effect that popular culture has on language.

Out of the classroom, social media is one of the most problematic manners in which high school students communicate, which is due to the verbal abuse that can occur without any consequences.

“When people swear online, it definitely has a different connotation,” Taylor said. “I think it’s harsher than if you’re just swearing face to face since you could be laughing, but you can’t communicate that through a post or texting.”

Social media in its normal form has been proven to encourage social isolation, but when these effects are paired with verbal abuse, disastrous results occur.

“We’re much braver to say stuff on social media,” guidance counselor Rylan Smith said.

“However, what we forget about is that though people may walk away and forget what you said face to face, they’re not going to forget what you said online.”

November 2O21

Focus

9

COP OR DROP?

How teenagers capitalize on sneaker culture Article by Sreekar Nagulapalli Graphic by Jaidyn Holt Although everchanging, fashion has always been a statement. From double-breasted suits to bell bottom pants, and from motorcycle jackets to windbreakers, fashion has always changed because of the innate human desire to create.

This is especially true with sneakers, with new styles entering and leaving the market.

This relatively new emergence of the online sneaker market has also made reselling available for anyone, including teenagers.

One might think that teenagers would be the least qualified, but they actually have become the most successful in this market because they are most in touch with today’s style.

“Teenagers are interested in the hobby [of selling sneakers] because it is easy to implement and make some quick cash while filling their other responsibilities as they are obviously busy people,” said Junior Ameya Patel, a sneaker reseller who has been heavily involved in the sneaker market. “The modern generation is also more gravitated towards the current style, making them more in tune with the fashion of today and more fit to sell sneakers.”

The process is straightforward. Nike and Adidas, the most popular sneaker makers in the world, have their own respective applications where drops occur. Whether through Nike’s SNKRS app or Adidas’s CONFIRMED app, drops take place in a lottery system, where a random draw is used to decide who will get a certain sneaker. Of course, the winner will still have to pay retail price for the sneaker, but they will also have the ability to resell the sneaker for profit.

Mateo Membreno, a recent Trinity Alum, started his own sneaker business, TeoGotKicks, in December 2020 and was able to use this process along with buying from other sellers to grow his business.

“I started from reselling a pair of sneakers for 20 bucks to holding six to seven pairs of sneakers at a time and making deals on all of them,” Membreno said.

Membreno was also able to expand his

business due to phone apps like Instagram, Facebook Marketplace, OfferUp, Goat and StockX, all of which gave him wider access to his consumers and advertising. Even though there is still a large consumer base to sell too, making profit off of a sneaker is still a gamble.

Regardless, sneakers today have almost turned into a type of investment, just like stocks or real estate would be. In any investment, however, it is important to consider what could positively or negatively affect it.

For stocks it could be the news, for real estate it could be the specific geographical location, and for sneakers, it is largely pop culture.

“Hype is relative,” Nick Grant of Complex said in his article “How Hype Has Changed Since 2006.” “It solely revolves around what’s next. We are so fickle and crave the next best thing so badly that we are willing to completely uproot whatever we’ve previously established in order to recreate what we — or what we think others — consider hype.”

This hype influences sneakers in the same way: trends follow whatever the majority of the consumer base believes is the most limited and collectible sneaker. A major part of what is perceived as the most ‘in style’ is pop culture, particularly rap in the sneakers’ instance.

“Rap has been a huge influence on sneakers,” junior Jeffrey Wang, an avid sneaker collector, said. “A lot of kids nowadays listen to it and get convinced that they need to buy certain sneakers.”

Rap has been a major factor in the sneaker market because artists have made sneakers more collectible and exclusive. Celebrities like Kanye West and Travis Scott can utter the name of a sneaker for one second in a song or even make collaborations with brands and turn a sneaker into a collectible item instantly.

Following these trends is key to having success in the reselling business, as it is key in finding outwhat sneakers are the best to buy for reselling.

“After doing it for a while, you understand conceptually which sneakers work [for resell-

ing] and which don’t,” Patel said. “Many people are so called ‘superfans’ for certain brands, so when mainstream shoe brands make collabs with these certain brands or celebrities, sneakers instantaneously become collectible, so those fans are willing to pay a lot.”

Not only do consumers buy a certain sneaker because it is endorsed by a celebrity or brand, but also because those consumers are fans of that celebrity or brand and having their shoe is part of their identification as a true fan.

That’s why pop culture has such a profound impact on sneakers, because not only does it act as an advertisement, but it creeps into the minds of consumers and changes exactly how they perceive what owning a sneaker means, something that has never happened to any sneaker before.

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Focus

November 2O21

NFTS: TECHNOLOGY OF THE FUTURE TODAY Article by Aetant Prakash Graphic by Sarah Lin Earlier this year, crypto-millionaire Vignesh Sundaresan bought an online picture, an NFT, for $69 million at a Christie’s auction. Yet for all the money spent, he will never be able to hold it in his hands.

According to Forbes magazine, a non-fungible token, or NFT, is a digital asset that represents real-world objects like art, music, in-game items and videos. They are one of a kind and have unique identifying codes. For example, the famous Nyan cat was made into an NFT and sold for $600,000 in February.

Although NFTs are being sold at high prices, they are not exclusively for the super-rich.

The rise of the digital market, fueled by cryptocurrencies, has lead the market to become more advanced and open to the common public. Through pop culture and the digital market, NFTs have even spread with high school students. Senior Jacob Aragon has bought four NFTs, all from the GEVOLs collection, through his involvement with cryptocurrency.

“I initially saw the hype in Bitcoin and decided to get in, and once I was in this crypto-space, I became extremely interested in NFTs,” Aragon said.

Aragon bought them in order to gain access to an exclusive community only open to GEVOLs owners. Other people have bought them for different reasons ranging from wanting a one-of-a-kind collectible to trying a modern form of art investing.

Although NFTs were created in 2014, the term is still unfamiliar to most people as they have only recently been gaining popularity.

“The entire digital market took off,” Assistant Professor of Finance at UCF, Buvaneshwaran Venugopal said. “People did not have a lot to purchase with cryptocurrency, and this [purchasing NFTs] is one way how they can spend money.”

To purchase an NFT, online markets such as OpenSea are the most common place to go to.

The market works like an auction. A creator makes the NFT and then potential buyers bid on it with Ethereum, a type of cryptocurrency.

Many are skeptical about the validity of “owning” a piece of the internet. Although taking a screenshot might seem like a way

around getting an expensive NFT, they don’t work this way. Just like physical art, there can only be one original.

Jose Ramon Riestra, President and CEO of Empire Management Group, is expanding the market by starting his own NFT marketplace called Heart NFT. It is focused on selling the art of artists in hard to reach areas and artists without the access to an online marketplace.

“I’m super excited to give hundreds, hopefully thousands, of artists from areas like Cuba, Ghana, or Central Africa access to be able to get their art out in the world,” Riestra said. “It’s my dream to disproportionately help people and communities in areas without the financial access.”

Through purchases of the artwork online and in a Miami gallery, and even through partial ownerships of NFTs, the artists will be paid. Their work will have exposure to a global market, generating revenue in crypto for themselves, and helping their community in the process.

“A sale of ten thousand dollars could drastically change lives of individual artists and their communities in a place like Ghana and South America,” Riestra said.

Pop culture portrays that NFTs cater to only the “crypto-millionares” and involve celebrities buying artwork from celebrity artists, but Heart NFT could change this market and make it a truly global and integral part of our world.

The NFT market has become increasingly popular, but there are still drawbacks to the new market. There is instability in the market that Price comes from security concerns and a lack of regulation in the market, like what the FDIC Creator provides for banks.

Recently a loophole was found, as a group managed to replicate the most expensive NFT ever sold, Beeple’s

“Everydays—The First 5000 Days”, and passed it off as the original.

“If people keep doing this, the trust in the market would fall,” Venugopal said. “So if the trust falls, the market is going to collapse.

But, if some sort of security patch was found, then the market may be secure enough to stay around for a long period of time.”

But even with these issues, NFTs show promise for the future.

“In five to ten years, NFTs will be the way you go to concerts, on airplanes, and will be used at the doctors office,” Forensics teacher and cryptocurrency connoisseur Benjamin Gaddis, said.

NFTs have made significant impacts very quickly in the online market. Who knows how soon Nike will put a run of Jordans on Ethereum or when you’ll be able to buy Harry Styles’ concert tickets in the form of an NFT.

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November 2O21

Focus

11

A B R O K E N RECORD The controversial cycle of music stereotypes Article by Peyton Alch Graphic By Jaidyn Holt Rap is too violent. Country is too hillbilly. Classical is too boring. Most music genres carry a stereotype. It’s easy to imagine ways in which these stereotypes can be wrong, but it’s not as easy to see how insidious their influence can be.

Many artists are working to break these stereotypes, and develop the music industry beyond people’s first, and often inaccurate, impressions. As a country fan, freshman Sarah Currie, agrees that these stereotypes can be very hurtful to the country music industry.

“I feel like when someone thinks of country fans, they think of farmers, uncultured people, and a lot of times Republicans,” Currie said. “I think it definitely makes people shy away from country music because there is a narrative in other people’s heads about the listeners that isn’t always true.”

With every stereotype, there’s always someone who will defy it. For country music, that person is Darius Rucker. As a former artist in the rock band Hootie and the Blowfish and a man of color, Rucker brings a more diverse audience into the country world, as well as breaking many mainstream stereotypes about country music.

“Country music has this stigma of rebel flags and racism, and that’s changing,” Rucker said in a September Fox News article. “I think it’s changing drastically. And I’m just glad. I hope I’m remembered as one of the people

that tried to fight that, and one of the reasons that changed.”

Another highly stereotyped genre is classical music. It is often thought of as boring and pretentious and is surrounded by the belief that people need an understanding of music theory or a sophisticated taste to get the full classical experience.

“Classical music can be harder to get into than other genres. It’s usually lyricless and can be daunting to listen to,” senior Aidan Liu said. “Music that’s popular today usually features guitars, drums, keys, synths, and vocals, only one of which has a huge presence in classical music, making it unfamiliar and inaccessible to people who don’t usually listen to it.”

Classical music is usually associated with artists like Mozart and Beethoven, but what some don’t realize is that many artists today use hints of classical music in their songs.

Pop artist Sarah Kinsley started her musical career in classical music training; her love for the complexity of the music genre and the way it can create and interpret emotions led her to include it in her music. Many of her songs, including “I Am Not A Mountain,” feature undertones of classical music in the composition.

“Like pop music however, classical music can be repetitive and or slow, but the lack of lyrics can make repeats even more jarring and boring to some,” Liu said.“I think classical music can be just as fun and emotional as any music we listen to today.”

rap

Freshman Anyiah Hayward-Scott is a rap artist as well as an avid fan of the genre. She agrees that there is a negative stereotype surrounding rap music, and that most of the time it is just trying to tell a story.

“I think a lot of people believe that rap music is about artists that are involved in a bad life, like drugs, violence, things like that,” Hayward-Scott said. “But it honestly just depends on the artist, and what they want to accomplish with their music and how they view the world.”

Many artists including Kendrick Lamar, Tyler, the Creator and Lil Nas X have broken these stereotypes. Lil Nas X is an openly gay rapper in a traditionally homophobic genre.

The popular musician has broken cultural and musical barriers with his untraditional approach to rap music.

“I love these artists because they tell the unwanted truth that people don’t want to hear, but have to,” Hayward-Scott said.

These three music genres are all very different, but have one big thing in common, stereotypes. These stereotypes affect the way the music in this genre is perceived. Many artists are changing the way people view music and its stereotypes. Oftentimes artists will hold back, and decide not to explore different music since they are often associated with a certain genre.

“I think that some of these stereotypes can be accurate, but a lot of the time it doesn’t fit the majority of the industry,” Sarah Currie said. “Because of this, these stereotypes can hurt the artist and industry as a whole.”

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Focus

November 2O21

A TRIP DOWN “MEME”RY LANE Internet memes and trends through the past decade Infographic by Jaidyn Holt and Sarah Lin

NYAN CAT

DOB: April 2, 2011 BY: Chris Torres ON: LOL-COMICS

DOUBLE RAINBOW

SAD KEANU

Man’s reaction to a double rainbow in Yosemitebear Mountain DOB: Jan 8, 2010 BY: Paul Vasquez

PLANKING

DOB:: May 2010 BY:: Paparazzi Ron Asadorian

DUMB WAYS TO DIE

ORIGIN: Nov 14, 2012, Metro Trains Melbourne’s rail safety PSA posted; reached iTunes top 10 chart within days; first game app reached #1 in 22 countries.

POP CULTURE:: Most awarded game in history of Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity: 28 Lions, including 5 Grand Prix

FRIDAY

DOB: Mar 14, 2011 BY: Rebecca Black

ORIGIN 1997, Taunton, England, kids ORIGIN: Gary Clarkson & Christian Langdon’s "lying down game," 2007, Daniel Hoppin’s Facebook page for it; 2008, Adelaide, Australia, Sam Weckert, Darcy McCann, & Kym Berry termed “Planking” CULTURE: Sept 2009, Great Western POP CULTURE Hospital employees suspended for planking on duty; May 2011, Australian Acton Beale fell and died planking on balcony CONTROVERSY: Some argue it is related to The Middle Passage

DOGE

GANGNAM STYLE

DOB: Feb 13, 2010 (photo of Atsuko Sato’s dog Kabosu posted), Sept 2012 (reposted) BY: Shiba Confession

DOB: July 15, 2012 BY: PSY

THE CINNAMON CHALLENGE

ORIGIN: Dec 21, 2002, first on web by Michael Buffington & Erik Goodlad; April 2, 2006, oldest YouTube video POP CULTURE: 12th series of Big Brother UK; NBA players Nick Young & JaVale McGee; GloZell Green’s soup ladle got 50 million+ views; 2012, Discovery Channel’s MythBusters cast; 2015 Fox's Family Guy DANGER: Risk of choking, burning, vomiting, pneumonia, liver & kidney poisoning, and lung collapse/damage; 100+ calls to American poison control centers Jan-Mar 2012

THE ICE BUCKET CHALLENGE

ORIGIN: Pro golfer Chris Kennedy challenged Jeanette Senerchia who posted on Facebook; spread to Pat Quin & Pete Frates; July 2014, first media attention when pro golfer Greg Norman challenged NBC Today’s Matt Lauer.

POP CULTURE: Aug 7, Copley Square Boston, hundreds publicly challenge New York and Los Angeles; Aug 18, Tonight Show’s Jimmy Falon; Aug 25, Leonardo DiCaprio; Aug 29, donations to ALS Association reach �100 million.

DANGER: Cases of injury; at least one indirectly related death.

FLAPPY BIRD

DOB: May 24, 2013 BY: Dong Nguyen

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November 2O21

Focus

SOURCES: knowyourmeme.com, NPR, USA Today, BBC News, Bustle, The Washington Post, Wikipedia, culture.fandom.com, Daily Dot, dumbwaystodie.com, Forbes, ALS Association, Los Angeles Times, The Verge

DOB: Oct 28, 2018 BY: Innersloth

AMONG US

COFFIN DANCE

DOB Mar 2020 DOB: BY: Tony Igy BY

BIG CHUNGUS

BERNIE

DOB: Nov 19, 2016 BY: gayreinhardt

BONGO CAT

“I am once again asking” DOB: Jan 15, 2020 BY: 3RunRickyRun4

DOB: May 7, 2018 BY: StrayRogue

T-POSE

VSCO GIRLS

DOB: Jan 17, 2006

DOB:: Began with the VSCO photo editing app; now a teen culture: care-free preppy/beachy vibe and specific clothing and accessories (scrunchies, Hydroflasks, Kanken bags, etc); Jan 30, 2019, first how-to YouTube video by Greer Jones POP CULTURE: 5 months after Jones’ video, #vscogirl was used in 916,200+ Instagram posts CONTROVERSY: Emphasizes (typically expensive) branded products and conformist behavior

WHAT ARE THOSE

Man asks police officer about his work boots DOB: May 24, 2013 DOB BY: Brandon Moore

BACKPACK KID/FLOSSING

DOB: May 20, 2017 BY: Russell Horning ON: SNL

TIDE POD CHALLENGE

ORIGIN: 2012, Tide Pods launched; 2015, first public mention of eating them in The Onion; mid 2017, first video joke by CollegeHumor; Jan 7, 2018, first video of challenge by YouTuber TheAaronSwan669.

POP CULTURE: Jan 2018, TV host Jimmy Kimmel used meme to poke fun at President Donald Trump.

DANGER: 2017, American Association of Poison Control Centers reports 12,000+ calls to U.S. poison control centers due to eating detergent

DAB

DOB: Oct 18, 2015 BY: NFL player Cam Newton

MANNEQUIN CHALLENGE

DOB: Oct 26, 2016 BY: FL high school Twitter user @pvrity___

BOTTLE FLIPPING

DOB: May 24, 2016 BY: Mike Senatore, Twitter user @ScottieFinanger

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November 2O21

Opinions

A DREAM Graphic by Jaidyn Holt

The hidden bias behind

College is a numbers game.

SAT scores. Extracurriculars. APs. College is a numbers game.

It’s a statement that almost every high school student hears at least once. It’s tempting to boil the college application process down to a science. According to nonprofit group EDUCAUSE, over 75% of colleges already have.

These colleges use algorithms to manage the herd of potential students, taking a comprehensive look at a student’s portfolio and running incredibly complex systems to see exactly how they stack up against the competition. It is, to many, the future of education. There’s just one issue.

The game’s broken.

In attempting to take bias out of the application process, colleges have instead hidden it behind walls of proprietary info, math, and contractors, replacing flawed people with flawed programs. While these models are incredibly efficient at doing what they do, that’s exactly the problem. A faster decision is not a fairer one.

The history of acceptance algorithms — and their biases — begins in 1979. Forced to go through thousands of applications, a doctor at the St. George’s Hospital Medical School in London wrote code to automate the grueling and often inconsistent process. By 1982, this algorithm, which looked at both prospective and previous students to make its recommendations, was universally used by the college.

It wasn’t until a few years later that people started to catch on. As tech journal the IEEE Spectrum reports, in attempting to mimic human behavior the algorithm had codified bias.

A commission found that having a non-European name could take up to 15 points off an applicant, and female applicants were docked an average of three points based solely on their gender. The commission also found that many staff viewed the algorithm as absolute and unquestionable. If a student was denied? Well, they just should have had better numbers.

While the school was eventually found guilty

of discrimination in admissions, the growth of algorithms was too big to stop. According to a recent Pew Research Center study, from 2002 to 2017, the amount of high school undergraduate applications more than doubled.

In addition, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found that overall state funding for public universities fell over $6.6 billion from 2008 to 2018. As a result of these logistical challenges, algorithms have largely replaced humans as the initial test for applications.

“You want to be able to select students who have demonstrated in high school that they have the ability to be successful on your campus, and that that varies from college to college,” Dr. Gordon Chavis, the Associate Vice President for Enrollment Services at UCF said.

Chavis helps manage over 60,000 applications and the over $600 million in financial aid the school gives out each year.

“We tend to use phrases like, ‘Do we have the resources? And do we have the programming to support a student as she he or she attempts to become successful and graduate from university?’” he said.

Most of the time, this selection involves predictive modeling. In an effort to wade through the pile of applications, the vast majority of schools outsource this job to consulting companies. These companies compile data and recommendations, researching things like academic reports or intended majors.

However, this data can sometimes go … further. As Slate Magazine found earlier this year, companies often use browsing histories, student profiles, an opaque “affinity index” and — of particular interest to many schools — ethnic identity and household income.

This data, most of the time collected without knowledge or consent, is used by colleges for the stated goal of figuring out if a student is likely to attend, and then comparing increases in offered scholarships to increased chance of enrollment.

This process is nothing new. However, in recent years colleges have turned to algorithms

Opinions

November 2O21

WAITLISTED

college admissions algorithms for class optimization. By running thousands of models, algorithms are able to figure out “how to invest the minimum amount of aid necessary” and still get proper class sizes. At least, that’s how Othot, an analytics company serving 30 colleges, advertises it.

To colleges, this is just numbers. But for students, these models only worsen existing problems. Think tank New America reports that the financial need met by colleges has fallen steadily since 2001, and a study by UCLA found that while a $1,000 increase in aid increases a student’s chance to graduate by 1%, a $1,000 decrease lowers that chance by over 5%. Enrollment algorithms consider how to make a student enroll, but not how to make them succeed. With students backed into a corner by the student debt crisis and lowering acceptance rates, algorithms have become the perfect predator.

Not every student is being affected equally though. As Brookings Institution points out, if an algorithm decides that Black applicants would require too much aid, it will simply cut them out of the class. Colleges already leave students out— as investigative journalism group The Hechinger Report found earlier this year, 15 state flagship universities had at least a 10-point gap between the percent of high school graduating Black and Latino students and students who enrolled that fall.

When combined with these models, these discrepancies can create a self-fueling cycle, as algorithms look at past decisions to build failed judgements off failed judgements.

The problems don’t stop when students get into college either. Analytics group EAB has licensed its predictive model Navigate to over 500 schools across the nation. However, in a study by tech newspaper The Markup that led to universities like Texas A&M dropping the program, public records showed that the EAB algorithm labeled Black and Latino students as “high-risk” much more often than white students, even if all other factors were identical.

For example, at the University of Massachu-

setts Amherst Black men were 3.9 times more likely to be flagged than white men. This type of data can push students out of more difficult courses and influence advisors, all because of a student’s skin color.

Discrimination in education is nothing new.

But now, it’s a science. Allowing colleges to reject poor or minority students simply because it’s not the most profitable choice is a betrayal of the standards of education, not to mention a violation of civil rights law.

Colleges can start making changes by removing class optimization through scholarships. How much aid a student gets should be based on their merit and necessity, not a magic number that has been designed specifically to entrap them. Colleges should also focus on removing race and other factors from algorithmic consideration of a student, as has been the case in Florida since 2008.

However, the most important thing that colleges — and governments — must do is demand more transparency. The vast majority of colleges buy algorithms from vendors rather than developing in house. Under the claim of proprietary information these vendors obscure and hide their models, and colleges are more than happy to not ask questions as long as they make a nice profit. Pressure on these companies, both to disclose their models and to perform regular bias audits, could clear concerns about how these models are being used.

“Any student, whether they are an ethnic minority, or don’t have the ability to go to college or to afford college, as long as the processes are equitable and fair are going to get a fair shot in terms of support to attend college,” Chavis said. “I’ve had a career for about 22 years and in the business, I don’t know of an institution who isn’t willing to support students.”

Algorithms will never be completely fair, but ignoring that fact is only going to make them worse.

Turns out, college is a numbers game. And when the house wins, everyone loses.

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Opinions

November 2O21

BEYOND THE BINARY Article by Maddie Peckham Graphic by Jaidyn Holt

students. Gender diverse people make up a significant amount of the population. According Although many students are in favor of to a study by the Williams Institute in June abolishing the dress code or heavily amending 2021, 1.2 million Americans identify as nonit, the administration has made it clear that it binary. Within that same study, 53% report is not going anywhere. If the dress code is here being bullied, and an overwhelming 94% of to stay, it needs to work for every student at non-binary adults have considered suicide, Trinity, including nonbinary students. and 39% have attempted suicide.

With the current gender-specific dress code, According to Physicians Postgraduate Press, there are certain rules that apply to one side. Inc., suicide rates are higher in gender diverse In the boys’ dress code, for example, students people compared to the rest of the populaare required to wear belts and tuck in shirts. tion. Gender diverse students face a number For students who may be male but prefer of challenges already, including gender disnonbinary pronouns and clothing, this pres- crimination, family rejection, and internalized ents a challenge. Can they have longer hair? transphobia.

Are they allowed to wear earrings? With one The school dress code shouldn’t be one of general dress code, these. Every Trinity stuall of these questions “If you’re not comfortable, dent should feel safe and could be answered efaccepted on campus. fectively in one place. that is what is going to impede Physical safety is well The dress code has your learning, not a ‘distract- protected at Trinity, but general guidelines fostudents’ emotional safety cused on cleanliness ing outfit.’” seems to be on the backand hygiene, but past -Austen Guber, burner. The current dress this it breaks into President of Diversity Club code is leaving them out in gendered rules. the cold.

When a faculty “If you’re not commember confronts a student about an un- fortable, that is what is going to impede tucked shirt or a missing belt, a nonbinary your learning,” said Austen Guber, the student is often put in a precarious situation president of Diversity Club, “not a — either take the violation or out themselves. ‘distracting outfit.’”

Not every student is comfortable openly sharTrinity could instead enforce one ing their identity, and they shouldn’t be put in that position. Feeling the pressure to conform or out themselves can create gender dysphoria.

According to National Health Service, U.K. gender dysphoria is defined as “…a term that describes a sense of unease that a person may have because of a mismatch between their biological sex and their gender identity. This sense of unease or dissatisfaction may be so intense it can lead to depression and anxiety and have a harmful impact on daily life.”

This also doesn’t just apply to one or two

across-the-board dress code, a unanimous list of “all students should/should not” as opposed to “girls” and “boys.” This allows room for all students to adhere to the dress code, and creates gender euphoria for any gender-fluid or nonbinary students.

“I just feel like [a gendered dress code is] unnecessary,” an anonymous nonbinary student said. “I don’t think that clothes have gender.”

November 2O21

17

Opinions

Our current dress code harms nonbinary students Recently, the on-campus Diversity Club has put forth a new, reformed, gender-neutral dress code that’s meant to do just that.

“The reform is about making a more inclusive, guided dress code policy,” Guber said.

“Because it affects everyone on campus...It should just be more relatable.”

Both students and faculty alike should be pushing for equality on our campus. Reforming our dress code for all students is an easy first step for just that.

“That’s what I would love to see: a simple, easy to follow, easy to enforce dress code that everybody feels like they can follow,” Dean of students Kelly Aull said.

To respect our nonbinary students, we need to offer them the same representation as every other student on campus. Trinity’s mission statement claims that the mission is to develop individuals that lead in a changing society, and that’s exactly what Diversity Club is aiming to do with a reformed

dress code. But with the current gender-conforming dress code, that mission statement is being tainted with an archaic, close-minded set of rules.

“This is how we express ourselves — through what we wear, how we put our hair, and how we dress,” Guber said.

Schools are meant to foster personal and academic growth in students, but the dress code impedes that. School policies should facilitate growth, and students can’t grow if they’re hiding their identity. The Trinity family is supposed to be the on-campus support system for the whole student body, not just the students who fit into the binary. Bottom line, there’s a lot more we could do to make students feel safe and accepted in all areas.

Suicide Rates Cisgender Adolescents Compared to Gender-Diverse Adolescents 40.9 40

35

30

25

20

15

13.7

10

5

0 Cisgender Adolescents

Gender Diverse Adolescents

Avg. Suicide Rates

Source: American Pediatrics Publications

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Opinions

Article by Abby Hernan Graphic by Sarah Lin

TRUE

Since Gabby Petito’s disappearance on Sept. 11, Twitter feeds, TikTok “For You” pages, and headlines have been flooded by the news of her murder.

However, unlike previous murder cases, it is not just the police and the FBI searching for Petito’s killer. Instead, it is everyone with internet access and some extra free time. Now, everyone can go online and “play police” for a couple of hours just by looking through the thousands of pieces of evidence available at their fingertips.

However, people’s fascination with crime doesn’t just end with the Petito case. There is a whole genre that capitalizes on this interest: true crime. From documentaries like “Tiger King” and “Making a Murder” to podcasts like “Crime Junkie” and “Serial,” anything labeled true crime is bound to have viewers flocking to it.

The allure of true crime is that it tells a story that pulls a viewer in. It roams down a path of tense conflicts, unimaginable plotlines and feelings of urgency which will all, hopefully, culminate in the mystery being solved.

“I think the storytelling for me is kind of why I like it,” senior and avid

November 2O21

CRI

true-crime listener Jordan Alch said. “The storytelling has elements that make a good story, like tension and antagonists.”

A perfect piece of true-crime media that is ready to captivate audiences requires one essential element: a real, but simultaneously entertaining story. However, this balancing act of truth and entertainment often tips the scale towards collapsing in one direction.

A typical documentary features a bloodthirsty serial killer attacking attractive white girls until eventually the police come and save the day. This same storyline is marketed over and over again as “true” crime when, in actuality, this feel-good narrative of the evil villain losing is far from what real crime looks like.

E

In reality, serial killers are extremely rare and attacks usually come from someone the victim has a close relationship with.

Victims are usually poor, people of color and/or trans. Also, according to FBI’s Uniformed Crime Report data, there are currently 250,000 unsolved murder cases in the United States. The facade created by the true-crime genre is marketed over and over again as real life, deceiving viewers into thinking they are learning while they stray further from the truth.

The obvious solution to this would be to focus on a wider array of real cases. However, that raises a new obstacle of making sure the program is made ethically instead of using someone’s trauma as a quick cash grab. True crime has to balance making good, shocking content with making sure others’ entertainment does not come at the cost of hurting the victim or their family. Unfortunately, the appeal of a jolting story usually prevails over morals.

One after another, a new and explosive limited series on Netflix invite thousands of people to add their questionable opinions and theories to the story. But while viewers can move on, the victim and their family do not get this same luxury.

Recently, Netflix released a true-crime documentary titled “Sophie: A Murder in West Cork.” The documentary details the 1996 murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier while she was vacationing in West Cork, Ireland. The documentary interviewed an array of people including her parents, friends, son, residents of West Cork and a man named Ian Bailey.

Ian Bailey was able to provide much insight into Sophie’s murder, such as information about who the main suspects were, how the police handled the investigation, and the effect the murder had on the small town of West Cork. However, later in the documentary, viewers were shocked to find out that Bailey was no ordinary witness, but the killer himself.

November 2O21

Opinions

19

Tampers with the Truth Giving the murderer an exclusive interview and having him explain and narrate not only many events of the case but also of Sophie’s life seems unnecessarily traumatizing for the victim’s family. So, while the shock factor of the documentary might result in a lot of clicks on a Netflix page, it is also giving a man who beat a woman to death his dream of 15 minutes of fame.

This exploitation, however, is not a onetime occurrence. The controversial Duane Chapman, notable for his eight-season show titled “Dog the Bounty Hunter,” has decided he will be the one to find Gabby Petito’s suspected killer, Brian Laundrie. While Chapman insists that he is a hero who is selflessly dedicating all his time to finding Laundrie, he fails to mention the TV interviews, Twitter followers and monetary attention that he receives from his “selfless” task.

It doesn’t help that many people are accusing the police of doing too little or that people like Dog the Bounty Hunter are the ones “actually” solving the case. People have flocked to the Petito case expecting it to be solved within a 40-minute podcast. The police and the FBI purposefully don’t reveal every piece of evidence they have because they have to build a case to eventually arrest and convict the killer. Revealing too much information only allows Laundrie to get away faster. The police aren’t here to make the case a fast-paced, enjoyable documentary for the public to consume.

While true crime invites the exploitation and lies of many murder cases, it does have its benefits. Besides providing entertainment, when true crime is made with proper intentions, it can help increase awareness and educate listeners.

“It makes me more aware about situations that I wouldn’t have known much about before,” Alch said. “There [are] a lot of them that deal with human trafficking, which I don’t know a ton about. It’s just more exposure to the world and the bad things that could happen.”

There is nothing wrong with listening to a true-crime podcast or watching a new Netflix documentary. However, it is important that the people producing the content and the viewer consuming it make sure it is ethically made.

“[The creator] shouldn’t be spreading false information,” Alch said. “If I were to create a true-crime podcast, I should not knowingly spread information that is false or disrespectful to the victims. But, also, it is kind of up to the listener to decide if it is all right. If I was listening to something and I thought that if something was off and the people doing the podcast were disrespecting victims then that is on me to be like, okay, I should not be supporting these people.”

When a new tragedy pops up in a Twitter timeline, it is important to remember that it isn’t just an opportunity to talk about it into a microphone for an hour, but a real person needing justice.

2O

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November 2O21

November 2O21

Sports

TIME TO ADD MORE WEIGHT

Students and faculty push for the opening of the weight room throughout the school day Article by Ana Carolina Marques Photo by Ella Craghill

On a normal day at a school like Lake High- said. “All of that is being discussed. It actually it looks good that you’re taking care of your land Prep, students have access to the campus is a big discussion going into next year.” physical body and mental health.” weight room to work out sometime during Langdon, Starling, and Sukup all agreed that Even if staff were available, Sukup and their school day. At these schools, a trainer is Starling brought up the possibility that inter- a trainer is necessary to have, not only because available whenever the room is open; however, est could wane over time, making it not cost of safety precautions, but to help students with this is not the case at Trinity Prep. effective to hire a trainer to staff a space that training.

The weight room at school is closed through- is empty half the day. To address that, they “We would rather see somebody that’s hired out the day, and some students and teachers both suggested that an elective would be most that could help you if you came into the weight hope to change this. room,” Starling said. cost-efficient.

“If the weight room were to be open throughMany students are happy to just have access “So there’s the advantage of having it as an out the day, it would really help me manage elective,” Starling said. “If they’re going to to the weight room whether it is during a study my time,” senior weightlifter Alexia Steinberg fund it, they need to know that it will be used period or elective. According to Langdon, the said. “I would be able to get more school work consistently.” possibility of opening the weight room either done after school, and also it would give me a Langdon agreed with Starling and said that as an elective or during a free period is being break from a stressful school day.” a lifting elective could be very beneficial for looked over for possibly next year.

Physical education teacher Dee Starling health and would give high schoolers another “I have been waiting for the weight room to strongly agrees with Steinberg and has person- chance to take a PE class. open up since I knew I was going to have free ally seen how exercise can be used to decom“I think there’s more stability with being an periods in my schedule,” senior weightlifter press and relax. elective,” Langdon said. “The problem with Philip Rubin said. “Even though I will not be “I did corporate fitness years ago, and I having an elective is it takes away from the here next year, I am still excited for the possimanaged a corporate facility with 3,200 em- so-called academic classes, and I know that we bility of the weight room opening. I believe it ployees, and instead of going outside to take always hear that people are so concerned about would bring many advantages to student atha smoke break, they would come to the fitness their academic resume, who don’t realize that letes and my peers on the weightlifting team.” center and walk on the treadmill,” Starling said. “It was really just to manage your stress and take a break from the day.”

Physical education department chair Scott Sukup also believes lifting throughout the day will give an upper-hand to student-athletes. “[Student-Athletes] could get pre-season conditioning and lift prior to the season which they wouldn’t be able to do due to [other teams’] practice,” Sukup said. “They could get stronger before the season starts, but then they could go home at 3:30 and do schoolwork, and not feel like they need to get their strength and condition done.”

Allowing students into the weight room is not just a matter of opening the doors, as staffing the space with an adult is required.

“We currently don’t have staff availability, and there has to be someone in Senior weightlifter Alexia Steinberg lifts after school. However, if the weight room were open throughthere,” athletic director David Langdon out the day, she would be able to come during the school day or off season.

Sports

November 2O21

PLAYING FOR RAY Article by Boaz Kim

Ray Sandidge, head coach of the boys varsity had this idea to spread awareness and provide Ray’s battle.” soccer team and a local coach at Florida Kraze support for his fight because he means so much Players such as junior Ryan Avallone, who is Krush soccer club, was recently diagnosed with to us,” Brown said. “So we created shirts that also on the boys varsity soccer team and plays stage four colon cancer. According to Cancer. say ‘Play for Ray’ because that was the trend for Florida Kraze Krush, said that he was takNet Sandidge is one of 150,000 adults diag- we started to help spread awareness, and we en aback at receiving the news of Sandidge’s nosed with colon cancer each year. Sandidge is made shirts for all the players and coaches to diagnosis. currently going through chemotherapy treat- wear and also made shirts for everyone to buy “We were all at training when we were inment three days a week, every other week. that wants to support Ray’s fight.” formed by my dad who was coaching our Sandidge has played team, and it was soccer at UCF and for very devastating and the Olympic team in shocking to hear,” 1978. He stumbled Ryan said. “[Sanupon coaching at a didge] was actually young age and grew right there with us to find a passion for and he talked to us, coaching. telling us that everySandidge said that thing would be okay when he was 16, and that he was gohe decided to start ing to get through coaching while still this.” playing for his club A GoFundMe team in Miami. Afstarted by Florida ter a couple of years, Kraze Krush soca couple of parents cer club coach Joe from his club paid for Avallone has also him to get his nationbeen a huge sucal coaching license. cess in Sandidge’s “I played for a long fight against cantime, tried to make a cer. As of now they little bit in the pros have already raised and didn’t quite make about $40,000 of it,” Sandidge said. “I Anna Miliotes their $50,000 goal always liked coaching, Ray Sandidge, coach for boys varsity soccer, talks to his team before starting practice. He has from 245 different and I had the aptitude strong bonds with his players and they show him support through this hard time. donors. Joe said for it, so I began dothat for the month ing that.” of October, Florida As Sandidge fights through his diagnoJunior Mason Dowdy also contributed to Kraze Krush teams will be wearing pink jersis, his players and other coaches have been spreading awareness by passing out bracelets seys that say ‘Play for Ray’ on them to support coming together to help his cause and spread with words of encouragement for Sandidge Sandidge. awareness. Junior Henry Brown who plays on “I wanted to do something to spread awareAs Director of Soccer for the Florida Kraze the boys varsity soccer team and for Florida ness for coach Ray so I purchased bracelets Krush, I knew how I felt about our coach Kraze Krush has been organizing shirts to sell online that had words of support for him,” Ray,” Joe said. “Coach Ray has been coaching and plans to donate the proceeds to Sandidge’s Dowdy said. “I passed them out around school in Central Florida for over 40 years and our family for his medical expenses. to pretty much whoever wanted them and coaches, players and families all love the man.

“My mom and I and a couple other moms wanted to help spread awareness about coach As coaches we have to give back to our com-

November 2O21

Sports

Players and coaches rally together to support coach Ray Sandidge as he battles against cancer Sandidge is known for his things you can control and things you can’t motto “Once you are one of control.

“Well I’m not going to quit, and I guess that my boys, you are always one of my boys.” He continues comes from the sports background, but we got to preach this motto to his to go at it and face the cancer head on,” Sandidge said. “I know there’s going to be some players.

“What that means is that challenging days when I am going through it does not matter wheth- chemo, but I’ve got a great coaching staff who er you play at a different has my back.”

Ryan said he has been taking Sandidge’s school.I just have an affinity for all of my club play- diagnosis as motivation to continue working ers, and no matter what, I harder and playing for their coach.

“The whole ‘Play for Ray’ thing I think will always help them, just like how right now a lot of just gives us more motivation if anything,” them are helping me,” San- Ryan said. “It gives the team motivation didge said. “It’s just how we to go out and win every game, to get betAnna Miliotes do things. I don’t know any ter and fight everyday just like how Coach Members of the soccer team gather in support for Sandidge by other way.”

Ray is fighting right now. It gives us a why.” wearing cancer awareness bracelets. The players gave these out to Despite Sandidge going their peers and fellow teammates. through his battle against cancer, he has still been munities, so when one of our own isn’t well, coaching his club team and making sure they we support each other. The entire soccer comare improving.

One of his club players, freshmunity is behind coach Ray.” man Caden Clifton, was moved by Sandidge’s Brown said decision to conthat Sandidge has been a “He is almost like a sec- tinue coaching.

“Obviously I key factor in ond father to me now, and was heartbroken his life for as and stunned he has just taught me so long as he has when I heard known him. much about the game of he had cancer, “Coach Ray soccer, and he has taught but it was really has impacted my life a lot in us important life lessons inspiring to see the sense that and values that I still hold that he loves our team so much he has been that he still to the highest standard.” my coach and comes out to my mentor our practices to for the past - Junior, Henry Brown coach,” Clifton three years,” said.

Brown said.

Sandidge said that his “He is almost like a second father to me now, decision to coach was and he has just taught me so much about the based on his life apKristen Wright game of soccer, and he has taught us important proach that he preaches Junior Henry Brown and his Florida Kraze Krush team spread life lessons and values that I still hold to the to his players: there are awareness by wearing pink jerseys in support of Sandidge. highest standard”

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Photos

November 2O21

PHOTOGRAPHY EXPOSITION HOMECOMING

Ella Craghill

Anna Miliotes

Cheerleaders perform a dance routine during the annual homecoming pep rally.

Sophomores play a game of spike ball in the quad during lunch on the lawn.

Anuha Tatineni Football team and cheerleaders welcome Saints to school with the “Honk for Hoco” car parade.

Anuha Tatineni

Drumline plays in a morning performance to make some noise for the Saints during homecoming.