The Highlander
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, RIVERSIDE
For the week of Monday, November 30, 2020
VOL. 69, ISSUE 09
est. 1954
UCR professor named in lawsuit alleging fraud, copyright infringement and emotional distress
NEWS
UCR ALUMNI SUES FORMER PROFESSOR AND BUSINESS PARTNER OVER WORK ON GUARDIAN PRINCESS ALLIANCE.
LAURA ANAYA-MORGA News Editor
Ashanti McMillon, 29, UCR alumni and co-founder of the Guardian Princess Alliance, is suing the Regents of the University of California for emotional distress and negligence, alleging that her former professor, Setsu Shigematsu, used her songs, stories and likeness for her own personal and capital gain. In Spring 2013, McMillon was enrolled in Shigetmatsu’s Media and Cultural Studies 190 (MCS190) Special Studies course where she assisted in the development of the Guardian Princess Alliance, an educational media company whose mission was to transform the cultural meaning of the female hero. The Guardian Princess Alliance has released several books depicting stories
of racially and culturally diverse super heroines, the first two of which McMillon is listed as a primary author. In the lawsuit, however, McMillon claims that she was shut out from the business in 2015 and has failed to receive proper compensation for her work on the project. McMillon’s attorneys filed the initial lawsuit on her behalf on Aug. 13, seeking punitive damages, paid medical and professional expenses and compensation for loss of earnings and opportunity. The UC Regents, Professor Shigematsu, her husband and colleague Dylan Rodriguez and the couples’ non-profit organization, S.T.R.O.N.G. Edutainment — previously renamed from Guardian Princess Alliance — are all defendants named in the case. ► SEE LAWSUIT PAGE 3
RADAR
RYAN POON / THE HIGHLANDER
BRETMAN ROCK, A SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER AND BEAUTY GURU, ANSWERS QUESTIONS FROM STUDENT FANS IN A VIRTUAL LECTURE.
The good, bad and the snubs of the 2021 Grammy nominations THE GRAMMYS CONTINUES TO FAIL TO NOMINATE AND AWARD DESERVING ARTISTS. COURTESY OF NETFLIX AMANI MAHMOUD Editor-in-Chief
Every year, the announcement of the annual Grammy nominations provokes criticism, and this year is no different. This year, in an effort to diversify, the Grammys changed the urban contemporary category to progressive R&B, best rap/ sung performance to best melodic rap performance and world music to global music. Despite these hollow gestures, too much remains the same, again calling into question the relevance of the award show. This year, Beyoncé leads with nine nominations, and Taylor Swift, Dua Lipa and
Roddy Rich all tied with six nominations. Before nominations were announced, The Weeknd was expected to sweep the nominations with his smash hit “Blinding Lights” and his chart-topping album “After Hours.” While the record and album were both submitted and eligible for nomination, The Weeknd was surprisingly missing from the entire catalog of categories. In another shocking move by the Grammys, Fiona Apple’s “Fetch the Bolt Cutters” only gained nominations for best alternative music album and best rock song and performance for “Shameika.” ► SEE GRAMMY PAGE 10
FEATURES
ALEXANDRIA ESTEBAN / THE HIGHLANDER
Guest lecturer: Bretman Rock glows with confidence ALEXANDRIA ESTEBAN Assistant Features Editor
On Tuesday, Nov. 25, ASPB held a Q&A session with Bretman Rock. The event was co-sponsored by the Asian Pacific Student Programs and the LGBT Resource Center. Rock is a Filipino-American influencer who has received worldwide attention for his YouTube videos, most notably known for his makeup tutorials and vlogs. Since his
career began, he has gained over 7 million subscribers on Youtube and over 15 million followers on Instagram. The event ran from 7 p.m to 8 p.m. Kim Vo and Lena Mousa were the co-hosts for the evening. At the start of the event, they encouraged students in the chat to submit their questions in the Q&A feature on Zoom. Those whose questions were selected received one-on-one time with Rock, where they could turn on
their cameras and mics to ask him their question. Many of the people in the chat were eager to meet and talk with their idol. Mia Lux Alabad wrote that she has “been watching [Rock] since [she] was 12.” Mya Maddox stated that she loves “how Bretman be minding his own business. He don’t be trynna get in the drama. He be thriving on his own love like that.” Rock dialed into the Zoom ► SEE BRETMAN PAGE 8
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