Puberty Fall 2019

The Puberty Issue

you’re gonna hate the way you look

comment The slamming of lockers. Kissing your crush in someone’s basement closet during a spicy game of truth or dare. People laughing at diagrams in health class. The smell of body odor, bad cologne, and hormones. Getting your period all over your seat in Algebra 1.

Taking a single sip of beer and acting like you were drunk. Getting a boner right as you go up to present in class. You’re gross and angry with everybody, including yourself, and looking back at it years later, you can’t help but feel a sense of nostalgia — coupled with an extreme amount of shame. Buckle up, kid. You’re about to hit puberty.

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News & Views

Current events, local news & quasi-educated opinions.

Upfront

Selected dis-education of the month.

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Ministry of Cool

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Short fiction, personal essay and other assorted lies.

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Arts, entertainment and other things cooler than us.

Prose & Cons Sawdust

Threatening the magazine’s credibility since 1856.

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news & views

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Thank You For Suffering with Us Part-time jobs or exploitation of labor? // by Sara Borsari, Contributing Writer

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started working when I was 14 years old, and landed where most 14-year-olds do: the part-time job. My job was a series of highs and lows that were at best unpredictable, and at worst miserable. From handling customers who poop on the floor and spray Febreze in people’s eyes, to going into the produce cooler to keep warm in the wintertime, to coworkers who have committed anything from sexual harassment to stabbings, it is not hard not to consider quitting in the search of greener pastures. Still, no matter how far I searched, I couldn’t seem to find anything better.

In 2018, it was found that 50% of all youth aged 1624 were employed in either full or part-time job situations.

Out of this group, it was calculated that 20% of students enrolled in high school were also working part-time jobs. The current federal minimum wage sits at $7.25 per hour, with tipped wages falling as low as $2.13 per hour. According to the Department of Labor, teens 14-15 can only work 3 hours on school nights, and only 18 hours in a school week, making their jobs relatively low-commitment and manageable.

However, once a teenager turns 16, these restrictions no longer apply, leaving them at the mercy of their employer and their state regulations.

So why hire teens? Why not try and seek out adults who would be more available and more equipped to work these jobs? The first thought that comes to mind would be that most teens don’t know any better. When I began my job, I considered myself lucky just to be there, and didn’t even stop to think about the way I was being treated. I never considered how strange it was that I couldn’t take breaks but a man 20 years my senior could take 8 because he needed a smoke. There’s no handbook that tells you the way jobs are supposed to be. Even as I got older, figured out I deserved better employment, and started seeking jobs, my window of opportunity for hiring was essentially closed, as I was college-bound and it wasn’t worth their time to train someone who would eventually leave.

Limited availability of jobs and lack of regulation on teen working hours means that it becomes easy for employers to take advantage of their younger employees, who also operate as full-time students, unlike many of their older counterparts. Along with the burden of school, many teens have the added stress of homework, extracurriculars and maintaining healthy social and physical habits. While the argument could be made that students could easily supplement their extracurricular and schoolwork time for their jobs, for many students interested in succeeding in high school and moving onto higher education, that isn’t much of an option anymore.

My average day in high school looked like this: the average seven hours of school, three hours of extracurriculars, three hours of schoolwork, two hours of exercise/family time, and, ideally, eight hours of sleep.

That leaves only one hour of extra time, which was often consumed by schoolwork or other commitments. In order to fit in the time for a job, I often would need to sacrifice an important component, usually sleep, which can be damaging in many ways. For anyone, removing social time and chances to exercise can result in descent into unhealthy mental and physical habits, making it harder for them to contribute positively to their community and succeed at their goals. By eliminating extracurriculars and schoolwork, students are put at a disadvantage when applying to future endeavors, as they do not have the credentials that can help them stand out. Along with this, extracurriculars are often hobbies or passions for students, and have been linked to positive mental health.

So why has nothing been done about this problem?

The teen part-time job has been a source of anxiety and stress for students for years, and it doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon. I have had adults share their experiences with me of their jobs growing up, boasting about how they had it way worse than I do. Why has that become a point of pride among people who have shared this experience? I think this is mainly due to the fact that many people don’t have positive experiences to link to their time working, and therefore have bad experiences as an only source of community. Mainly it boils down to who young people are when enduring these jobs. By using people who are impressionable and often don’t know when to stand up for themselves, these jobs not only set the precedent for what work should be like, but also cause severe mental and emotional strain.

For young teens, the world is often moving in a million different directions; between education and the development of learning habits to social growth, adding another significant stressor can damage them. While I cannot say that my experiences working part-time have been all bad, they have definitely left much to be desired. Parttime jobs offer opportunities for students to engage with others from similar and different backgrounds, learn a good work ethic, and interact with a range of people from their community. However they also include long hours, frustrating encounters, and have left me wondering when the situation will get better.

Sarah Borsari is a first year Cinema and Photography major who will not pick up that extra shift for you.

They can be reached at sborsari@ithaca.edu.

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You Can’t Sit

With

Us

The psychology of high school cliques // by Julia Batista, Web and Social Media Manager

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alking through the typical middle school hallway, you pointedly avoid the jocks and question the emos’ fashion style while the wealthy white girls in their petticoats scoff at you. The kids within these groups undoubtedly belong, utilizing a certain type of lingo to communicate or dressing a specific way to finally earn their sense of belonging. Essentially, if you are not finding yourself associating with any cliques, unable to find your niche within the high school hierarchy, you’re facing social suicide.

Cliques are small, exclusive, often stereotypical groups of people joined by common interests.

They are groups of friends that do not allow others to join. A ring leader or two will take charge and decide who is a part of the clique or not. In a study conducted by the Stage of Life, 40.81% of students attending junior high through college have specifically gone out of their way to make someone feel inferior. Many kids that become a part of a clique show changes in their own behavior after initially joining too. This includes but isn’t limited to drinking, smoking and sexual behavior.

There are a few theories that address the question of why young people choose to form cliques. Students who share similar identities, interests, and cultural backgrounds seek out the kinds of groups to which they feel a sense of belonging. This can be explained by the Cultural Identity Theory, a study formed and first conducted by Myron Lustig on how people arrange themselves into groups according to their preferences and personal experiences. Associations and dynamics within groups and the way an individual refers to oneself evolve in reference to the current social and political atmosphere. Within the microsystem of the school, this can be observed by the way student cliques share mutual experiences and identities in order to form these exclusive groups.

The Social Dominance Theory should also be taken into consideration, as it studies the unspoken hierarchies present within groups based on different traits. These internal rankings within groups are based on gender, race, age, economic status, and other characteristics. Some

students may even feel inclined to move up socially by forcing themselves to do things they normally wouldn’t. This may include sidling up to the clique “leader” or acting rude and discriminatingly to peers. These two theories explain the intricate dynamic that occurs within these school cliques that allows kids to hail influence over their peers. They also explain the reason why a number of kids are left out of some groups.

About one tenth of students are left to the bottom of this social hierarchy, leaving feelings of loneliness to fester and contributing to lower senses of self-esteem, feelings of rejection from others their age, or the fear that they have nothing valuable to offer. These feelings lead to a sense of disconnection from the world, causing alienated students to possibly isolate themselves further from others. Eventually, as this feeling persists into the rest of primary school, outcasts may experience bullying by those within cliques.

But being the head of a clique and being the “most popular” in your class heeds its own set of consequences.

Popularity is considered to be equivalent to gaining respect from peers, but this is not necessarily true. It’s found that only nine percent of popular kids are liked by the rest of their peers, proving that popularity can lead to resentment. The pressure of social acceptance can also lead to some feeling competitive, depressed, anxious and disconnected from others.

All of the negative feelings that cliques cause not only for others but also for their own members prove that these segmentations within the high school scene are inconvenient and dreadful. They are formidable and negatively impact the identities and decision-making capabilities of the kids involved. Future actions and social interactions of kids in cliques will be based on their misconceptions of others that were not similar to them in primary school. Kids will find personal ways to navigate the social environment within school, but it is doubtful that the clique will ever dissipate from primary school hallways.

Julia Batista is a second-year IMC Major who worked hard for her seat at the Cool Kids Table. They can be reached at jbatista@ithaca.edu

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Stay in School, Kids The legacy of Betsy Devos // by George Christopher, Contributing Writer; art by Adam Dee, Art Editor

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etsyDeVos entered the department of education in 2017 under immediate scrutiny. DeVos has been a proponent of school vouchers, which subsize parents choosing to send their kids to private or charter schools, a measure she helped finance in her home state of Michigan. She was widely seen as an opponent of public education with many liberal politicians such as Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren calling DeVos the “worst Secretary of Education” ever. This reputation wasn’t helped by her confirmation hearings which featured odd quotes such as DeVos claiming schools could have shotguns on hand to handle potential grizzly bear attacks. But since this time, DeVos has been lampooned not only for what she has done, but also, what she hasn’t in that position. So let’s take a look at DeVos’s time in office, what if any changes need to be made, and if it’s lived up to the hype or the fear.

One of the most prominent changes was DeVos’ altering of how Title IX was enforced on college campuses. Many of the changes were derided by liberal groups, among them the right of the accused to have the accuser cross-examined by legal counsel.

This was attacked as potentially causing victims to be less willing to come forward. To be fair, not all the changes made were that bad.

The department announced that schools can choose the standard of evidence to either be “preponderance of evidence” the lowest standard or “clear and convincing evidence” which wasn’t available previously. Though many would be inclined to support the victim’s word, one should be careful not to remove due process from the system.

Some even more controversial changes were regulations regarding for-profit colleges, not unlike the one ran by the president before his election. One of these regulatory changes was a tightening on those who could receive loan forgiveness. The Trump administration also announced that 500 million dollars would be taken away from programs meant to forgive the loans of defrauded students. The Department inflicted deadlines requiring students to apply within a certain amount of time. One rule which has been removed: the Gainful Employment Rule. This piece regulation required for-profit colleges to publish debt-to-earnings ratios of former students. If the schools weren’t up to the federal government’s standards, they could lose their funding. Over 800 programs failed to meet these standards.

Loan forgiveness, in general, has been a controversy in DeVos’s time. The federal government had spent time creating programs to relieve the massive student debt mounted on today’s college students. One program, the Public Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF) allowed students to receive debt relief after ten years of public service. This was augmented by the Temporary Expanded Public Service Loan Forgiveness (TEPSLF) program.

Congress had explicitly informed the Department of Education that they shouldn’t make the application process confusing and allocated 700 million dollars to the program.

Unfortunately, the department failed to keep it simple as Congress had asked. Of the 54,000 applications which have been submitted to the Department of Education for TEPSLF, a staggering 99% have been rejected. This has largely been blamed on the fact

that the department required applicants to apply for both the TEPSLF AND the PSLF. This meant students were expected to apply for a program they weren’t eligible for. This has resulted in only 27 million of the 700 million dollars to be used by the DeVos’s Department of Education to forgive the loans of students who spent time in public service with the expectation that their work would pay off with a just compensation from the federal government.

This isn’t even the worst of it. DeVos has been sued multiple times over the department’s massive backlog of student loan forgiveness applications. In June of 2019, there was a backlog of over 150,000 applications. The department must tighten its ship on these issues. Student debt has become a massive problem for many Americans. 44 million borrowers in the United States today owe 1.5 trillion dollars in student loan debt. This will ripple throughout the American economy as students and former students become very wary to participate in the economy. It is an issue which must be confronted by the Department of Education and its secretary.

George Christopher is a first-year journalism major making the most of his student loan debt. They can be reached at gchristopher@ithaca.edu.

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Give Your Lungs a Break

The unseen dangers of THC cartridges //

by Patrick Kuehl, Contributing Writer, art by Adam Dee, Art Editor

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itting in the dining hall on a Monday afternoon is hardly nefarious. However, upon closer inspection, a smiling kid with an entire pie in front of him pulls out a dab pen from within the folds of his hoodie and begins to rip it without a care in the world. No one seems to notice, or if they do, no one seems to care. Small, sleek, and with a scent that’s virtually undetectable, the device doesn’t bother any of the surrounding students. So what’s the problem?

The advent of disposable THC cartridges, or dab carts for short, seems like the coming of a new age of cannabis consumption. The portability and ease of use allows people to get high in places and at times which would have been normally out of the question with more traditional ways of smoking weed. However, these cartridges are getting people sick and, in some cases, killing them. So for the love of God stop buying, and certainly stop smoking, dab carts.

So far across the United States there have been 805 reported illnesses and 12 deaths linked to THC cartridges.

One of the primary causes of sickness with these devices can be traced to the presence of vitamin E in off-brand, or bootleg, THC oils. Although the packaging of these oils may appear to be suspicious, there is virtually no way to tell whether or not a dab cart has potentially dangerous chemicals inside—unless the oil is tested in a lab.

In a typical cart, oil is heated to between 350 and 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Vitamin E oil, however, is not meant to be heated at the temperature required for smoking and causes the release of carcinogens. These coat the inside of the lungs and may cause trouble breathing, or in extreme cases, the inability to breathe.

Recently, NBC News ran tests on black market THC cartridges and found that 13 out of the 15 tested contained vitamin E acetate. In addition, ten of the cartridges were tested further for pesticides and other more complex chemicals. All ten contained pesticides and they also “contained myclobutanil, a fungicide that can transform into hydrogen cyanide when burned.”

One of the big problems with current legislation regarding cartridges is that they don’t focus on THC cartridges at all.

“People are dying from vaping,” President Trump stated in a recent press conference. While this is technically true, it is incredibly misleading.

Nowhere in the press conference does he talk about the fact that a large majority of the deaths have been directly linked to counterfeit carts and not nicotine vaporizers.

This is not isolated either, New York state just banned all flavored nicotine vapes following comments that 81 people were hospitalized. All cases were directly related to a “cannabis-containing vape.”

It’s easy for unreliable dealers to cut dab carts with harmful chemicals, and selling them is even easier. For $25 on Amazon, you can buy fake cart packaging that virtually mimics the real thing. For $44.67 on eBay, you can buy a 50 pack of refillable oil cartridges. From there it is up to your local drug dealer to decide if he wants to disclose what’s in the actual product.

While dispensary carts might be just fine to rip with the boys with no fear of the RA being suspicious, fake carts are much too insidious to take the chance.

Patrick Kuehl is a first-year journalism major who just wants you to make good choices. They can be reached at pkuehl@ithaca.edu.

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Times of Trouble The resurgence of the Irish Republican Army // by Leo Baumbach, Contributing Writer

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hese are strange times to be an Irish citizen. The fate of the country and its sovereignty has been under question since their first engagements with the British Empire centuries ago. Now, after decades of political violence, the plot thickens once more.

After the Easter Rising of 1916 and Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1922, the former British colony of Ireland became a sovereign state. Tensions were already intensifying between the majority Catholic and minority Protestant Ireland, which made up just six of the 30 counties in the dominion.

Following this was a guerilla war of attrition accompanied by outright terrorism along the border among the Irish Republican Army (IRA), British military forces, and the police in Northern Ireland. This conflict formally ended in 1998 with the Good Friday Agreement. This civil strife was collectively known as “The Troubles� and some hardline IRA members still believe that the war isn’t over.

Since 1998, the Irish border has been open to anyone with a European passport. In fact, one could cross at a whim with no real active border control on either side. Recently, Brexit talks have sparked a debate about whether or not the border will close again. Reinstating a strict border between Ireland and Northern Ireland could have dire consequences for the economy and citizenship alike. Border control in Ireland has the potential to reignite The Troubles and undo the 20 years of relative peace and stability Ireland has seen.

Citizenship is a major issue for the people of Northern Ireland, as many of them have a British passport, which serves the same purpose as a generic European passport. After Brexit, the people of Northern Ireland will not experience the same benefits of European citizenship that Irish citizens will.

As it stands, the Irish government is backlogged with requests for Irish (European) passports by Northern Irish citizens. Much has changed since 1998, and the same things that divided the island no longer seem to apply. According to the BBC, the number of Protestants and Catholics living in Northern Ireland are about the same. The people born after the Good Friday agreement have formed a new version of Irish identity for themselves over the last 21 years.

IRA attacks on the border are another major issue the citizens of Northern Ireland are particularly worried about.

Civilian casualties of The Troubles number in the thousands, and many believe it will return full force if border control is established.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson does not intend to close the border but is looking to impose tariffs that would disrupt commerce across the Northern Ireland-Ireland border. Some have suggested an increase in border security inside Northern Ireland, while others have argued that this could once again be a cause of violence for the Irish people.

Brexit debates have previewed how the British government might never return the six counties to the Irish people, which would be a much more sensical solution for the current age we live in. The forces of imperialism march on, unconcerned and seemingly unbothered by the unsustainable choices made in its name.

Leo Baumbach is a second year English major always keeping up with the Brexit news. They can reached at lbaumbach@ithaca.edu.

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Do It And You’re Cool

How to Resist Negative Peer Pressure // by Lytiek Gethers, Contributing Writer

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e are all influenced by our peers, both negatively and positively, at any age. Negative peer influence can be hard to resist because you may feel compelled to do something you're uncomfortable with.

In a study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), teen volunteers played a driving video game, either alone or with friends watching. The researchers discovered the number of risks teens took in the driving game more than doubled when their friends were watching as compared to when the teens played the game alone. This outcome indicates that teens may find it more difficult to control impulsive or risky behaviors when their friends are around, or in situations that are emotionally charged.

Teens are likely to engage in risky behavior because they are trying to show off to their peers and make them think that they’re relevant and cool. Being human means seeking acceptance from others, but engaging in dangerous behavior should not impress people and potentially get into trouble because our friends may push us into doing illegal things just so we can stay a part of the group. We should focus on making ourselves happy, and staying out of trouble.

Bullying is another reason why we should be cautious of negative peer pressure. Seeing our friends bullying others, in person or online, can make us feel pressured to get involved. It might seem fun in the moment, but we can wind up feeling embarrassed, guilty, or ashamed. Also, we can be labeled as scapegoats if our friends get into trouble. We will have to take as much blame because we sat back and didn’t stop the abuse. If you see your friends harassing someone who isn’t cool with the criticism, don’t be a bystander and tell them to cut the crap.

Sitting back and letting your friends bully other people makes you guilty by association.

Importantly, negative peer pressure can also cause doubt. We will doubt ourselves because we think we are missing out. I have been through peer pressure myself. Back in high school, I had acquaintances who would tease me because I didn’t hook up or lose my virginity. I admit I doubted myself because I was conflicted with my morals. I always believed virginity was important, and seeing most of my peers hook up made me feel I was missing out. Peer pressure can cause us to make choices that we could regret later. Thankfully, I did not fall victim, because if I had, I would have been with myself.

It’s unusual that strangers and friends can dictate how we should live, eat, and fashion. Do we want people telling us what’s best for us when we know what’s best for us? If a person tells us what’s best for us and we accept it, we have given up dignity. Dignity is our self-respect. We control our thoughts and actions.

If we give up dignity, we sacrifice our morals for toxic relationships.

I overcame negative peer pressure by thinking independently, gaining confidence, and not being swayed by trends or criticism. I became an independent thinker because I was tired of impressing people who didn’t care for me. As a result, I stopped caring about what people wanted. If I see my peers wearing $200 shoes, I wear $60 shoes. I don’t care what anyone says about my lifestyle. If I can resist negative peer pressure, you can do it too.

Lytiek Gethers is a third-year politics major who will not tolerate your negativity.

They can be reached at lgethers@ithaca.edu.

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upfront

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Kratom Crackdown

Here’s how new legislation could impact the kratom community // by James Baratta, Upfront Editor and Christian Maitre, Contributing Writer; photography by James Baratta

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ratom is a supplement used to treat everything from opioid addiction to lupus, but what the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) calls a “drug of concern” has planted itself on the radar of state and federal agencies alike.

There has been pushback from the DEA and Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to better regulate the sale of kratom. Kratom legislation has been largely inadequate because groups like the American Kratom Association and Botanical Legal Defense have stood up for the plant’s healing abilities. The supplement, as labeled by its vendors, is illegal in Washington D.C. and six states.

Sites like Kratora and Kraken Kratom have made the purchase of kratom highly accessible. With just a few clicks, the psychoactive powder can find its way to your doorstep.

Adam Marcizewski,19, said that he purchased the substance from Kratora around the same time the DEA announced its intent to label kratom as a Schedule I drug, which would prohibit the sale of the supplement.

“I left them a little note, letting them know that I was in support during their time of almost being banned,” Marcizewski said. “I guess they really liked it, because they sent me about $80 worth of free product.”

In October 2017, the Department of Health and Human Services recommended the DEA label kratom as a Schedule I drug. Although this statute never became official, there was a huge increase in kratom purchases because customers feared they would not be able to acquire the supplement.

According to Addiction Resource, brewing kratom in tea is the most popular way to consume it because the hot water causes alkaloids—the plant’s psychoactive compounds—to break down faster. It is also available in capsules, pastes, pellets and leaves.

“It definitely had an aggressive flavor profile,” Marcizewski recalled. “It was extremely sour.”

The highly unregulated substance has earned its place on the shelves of smoke shops across the United States. Most legislators have feared that kratom could harm people in the same way vaping has because of its high addiction rates and harmful side effects. Kratom advocates have long criticized this label due to the extent of scientific research done on the substance’s positive uses.

New York State Senator Pamela Helming cosponsored a bill called S5531 that would raise the minimum age to purchase kratom from 18 to 21 and also kickstart further research into medicinal uses of the supplement. The bill passed the Senate last June, but hasn’t made its way to the Assembly—where it could finally become a law.

“I have heard growing concern over the potential risks of using kratom because of its similarities to heroin and

opioids,” Helming said in a July 2019 press release. “It is important that we regulate and control its sale to minors until we know more about its potential dangers.”

Like vaping, legislators don’t want to see this potentially addictive substance in the hands of minors and those close enough in age range. The same press release stated that kratom products are “attractively packaged and available for purchase in clothing stores popular with our tweens and teens.”

Downtown Ithaca establishment Loose Threads, like most head shops across the country, began to stock their shelves with kratom after they were sent samples of it in the mail by various manufacturers. The supplement was then made available at most head shops in the Ithaca Commons after positive feedback from customers. Shops in downtown Ithaca mainly sell kratom in both powder and capsule form.

Billy Pargh, a manager at Loose Threads, mentioned that a lot of his customers used kratom to enhance their physical performance in the gym for organized sports.

“I have a decent amount of Ithaca College students buying this,” Pargh said, “I know a few of them are taking it before they go play frisbee to get in the zone… I have heard that people take kratom for playing sports [and] weightlifting.”

Headdies, another smoke shop in downtown Ithaca, started selling kratom when it opened ten years ago.

Headdies manager Calvin Edith said that the company has carried their own brand of the substance for over six years.

Edith said that the product has sold exceptionally well.

“It does really well as a product and helps a lot of people,” Edith said. “I’ve seen it do so much good for recovering addicts that I hope they never make it illegal.”

The national opioid crisis has claimed the lives of many Americans. Kratom has been used as an option for many to quit and manage their opioid addiction. Head Shops that sell the supplement have customers who need it to improve their daily lives. The lack of awareness demonstrated by lawmakers and communities alike has damaged kratom’s reputation.

“It has become more popular in the West because of internet access,” explained clinical psychologist Dr. Marc T. Swogger in an interview with WWL Radio.

Dr. Swogger has done extensive research on the effects and legality of kratom. He is also an associate professor of psychiatry with the University of Rochester Medical Center.

“The risk profile is looking pretty good,” Dr. Swogger said in an interview on WWL Radio. “There is a withdrawal syndrome if people use it heavily—five grams or more for two weeks. It’s possible they’ll have some... symptoms like watering eyes, diarrhea and anxiety.”

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A majority of reported kratom deaths are linked with the use of other substances, which have caused kratom statistics to be deceiving. According to data on over 27,000 overdose deaths provided by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), 152 of them have been linked to kratom use. The same report said that kratom caused 91 of the 152 linkeddeaths, but went on to say that “additional substances cannot be ruled out.”

Although the substance is legal, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved its use to treat conditions like opioid addiction, chronic pain, blood pressure, anxiety, insomnia and depression.

According to The Recovery Village, the substance targets the same brain receptors as opioids in high doses— creating a sedative effect. Contrary to popular belief, the substance itself is not actually an opiate. The effects of kratom in these significant doses include “pain reduction, euphoria and cough suppression.” Those who use kratom to this extent have experienced adverse effects like constipation, nausea, symptoms of psychosis and thought alienation.

In low doses, the substance mimics the effects of amphetamines like Adderall and Ritalin. Kratom acts as a stimulant by providing increased energy, talkitiveness, alertness and sex drive. The side effects of kratom used in these amounts are similar to the ones caused by coffee, but individuals typically also experience impaired motor function.

This can mimic the intoxicating effect of alcohol, which may make it dangerous to get behind the wheel.

Regardless of dose, consumption of the supplement puts individuals who use kratom at risk for seizures and increased liver toxicity.

Kratom is still unregulated and has prompted mostly negative responses from government agencies. What remains faulty however, is the lack of government-sanctioned research into the positives and negatives of the Southeast Asian plant many of those who support the widespread use of kratom have asked for.

Until kratom becomes more popular, it will continue to walk a thin line of legality and face scrutiny from largely uninformed legislators. In New York State, new legislation may be a step in the right direction to benefit commercial, political and scientific communities engaged in the market.

James Baratta and Christian Maitre are both sophomore journalism majors who both get high off half an edible. They can be reached at jbaratta@ithaca.edu and cmaitre@ithaca.edu

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The

D.A.R.E.

Dilemma

When just saying “no” isn’t enough // by Matt Festa, Contributing Writer; art by Adam Dee, Art Editor

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here are just as many different highs as there are people seeking them. We’re familiar with the classics—weed, alcohol, nicotine—but there’s much more than meets the eye if you’re creative enough.

Household items (if you do exactly what the label asks you not to do) may satisfy these creative desires.

However, there are drugs—not the ones under your sink— that can make for a very therapeutic experience.

There are studies of certain hallucinogens helping with cases of severe anxiety and depression “In 2016, two studies involving a total of 80 patients found that a single dose of psilocybin could considerably reduce the depression and anxiety felt by patients who had terminal or advanced cancer, compared with those who took a placebo” (LiveScience). Psilocybin is the chemical in magic mushrooms, which, because of studies like these, have become a tool for many medicinal purposes. It was recently decriminalized in Denver.

This does not mean all drugs aren’t as bad as we say, because there are definitely substances that are demonized based on solid evidence. But what makes us curious about these substances in the first place?

According to the Center for Addiction, “9 out of 10 people who abuse or are addicted to nicotine, alcohol or other drugs began using these substances before they were 18.” In most cases, this curiosity starts at a young age.

Kids may be making choices when they don’t know the consequences. They may turn to substances that aren’t even meant to result in psychoactive effects, but there are too many for anyone not to notice—you can find many of them in your own home.

For example, there are reports of people ingesting nutmeg, and getting a hallucinogenic high that can last up to two days. Also, a person can find ethanol in cooking ingredients such as vanilla extract and food coloring.

Products like whipped cream cans, spray paint, paint thinner, air fresheners, butane, and others provide a high that resembles that of an inhalant.

Even in their efforts to combat potentially unhealthy habits, organizations like Drug Abuse Resistance Education, commonly known as D.A.R.E., oversimplify this minefield of drug possibility.

Adam, who preferred Buzzsaw not disclose his last name, is no stranger to drug use and to this day resents the anti-drug group D.A.R.E for making drug addiction seem so

black and white.

“I mean of course I knew what getting drunk was, but . . . I didn’t know what getting high was,” Adam said. “It was probably the people I was hanging out with because a lot of those influences rubbed off on me.”

According to the US National Library of Medicine, “Adolescents have a moderate to strong influence impact on their peers’ risk behavior.” Curiosity may stem from a popularity factor, or a sense of social influence, that young people tend to be sensitive to. When a peer starts doing something that others may find cool, they are likely to take part in such activities.

Clinical Psychologist Dr. Ellen Cooper, who maintains her own practice, has dealt with a plethora of addictive adolescent behaviors throughout her career.

“It can be a consequence of early sexual exposure, violence in the household, or exposure to things that are high risk in general,” Dr. Cooper said.

Reasons for drug use may stem from things that are out of an individual’s control, and drug addiction is often a coping mechanism. When a child is in a household saturated with substance abuse, they may become more susceptible to abusing drugs upon being exposed to them.

Cooper explained that the foundation of preventing drug addiction is accurately instructing others how to notice warning signs, and intervening is involving yourself into the scenario when necessary. Treating drug addiction is out of the bystander’s hands and the responsibility of the authorities.

Ryan, who also preferred Buzzsaw not use his last name, also has a history of drug use and condemns D.A.R.E.

“D.A.R.E.—they would tell you all this shit about certain drugs—but then you’d go out, see that drug and see the shit that it does to people,” Ryan said. “You’d be like ‘oh that’s completely different like that’s not what they told me.’”

On the organization’s website, the organization said that they want children to “understand the relationship between ‘Alcohol and other Drug use’ and being a good community member . . . understand that high school students who choose not to drink or do drugs are in the majority.”

D.A.R.E. deems drug users as inferior to non-users.

They show a reckless disregard for the mental health side of drug addiction. D.A.R.E. teaches kids how to avoid drugs, but at the same time, they implement pressures on those

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who may already have a problem. This methodology only deepens the divide between between those who can “just say no” and those who cannot.

“I feel like what we should stop doing is lying to kids,” Ryan said. “We hype it up, and make it worse than it is to scare people, instead of just telling them the truth of what it is, and actually informing people for them to make their own decisions.”

When organizations like D.A.R.E. treat these substances with such a black-and-white outlook, it makes for a conversation that is fueled by biases on both sides.

People who make “bad” decisions are not “bad” people— they are people who made a decision, have to deal with the consequences, and learn from them.

D.A.R.E. doesn’t provide sufficient prevention strategies to avoid scenarios that involve drugs. Just “saying no” fails to provide the concrete knowledge needed by those who struggle to avoid the already influential pressures in their respective environments. D.A.R.E. does not represent those who need this education the most, and are not mindful of the ripple effects their education perpetrates.

Matt Festa is a sophomore Writing for Film, TV and Emerging Media major who wore a D.A.R.E. t-shirt in middle school. They can be reached at mfesta@ithaca.edu.

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Growing Up Trans

Schools fall behind in their treatment of transgender students // by Lucas Griffin, Contributing Writer; art by Caitlin Breslin, Contributing Artist WE LOVE YOU. Trigger warning: mentions of suicide.

B

eing in high school is hard. Being transgender is also hard. Being both at once is, oftentimes, extremely difficult on an individual. According to NBC News, around two percent of high schoolers are transgender. Of this population, 27% of them feel unsafe at school, and 35% of them attempt suicide. These problems seem to start with high schools themselves.

Many high schools don’t do enough, if anything at all, to help support their transgender students. To gain more understanding of this situation, I sat down with a transgender college student who would like to be identified as “Oliver” for reasons of privacy. Oliver told me that, while he was lucky to have a helpful guidance counselor and very supportive friends and classmates, he still ran into problems.

For example, his name could not be officially changed on the school’s roster, and his deadname (the name he was assigned at birth, as opposed to his chosen name) appeared with his picture in his school’s yearbook. However, this was not his main problem at his high school.

“The worst part was having to still use the girls’ bathrooms… that was awful… I just didn’t go to the bathroom in school,” he explained.

Another trans student I spoke with, who would like to be referred to as “Abe” for privacy reasons, ran into similar problems. “Gym class was really hard because of the changing rooms,” he told me. Bathrooms were also an issue for him. Like Oliver’s school, Abe’s school had no gender neutral bathrooms, forcing him to choose “one or the other.”

This situation caused him additional worry because, as he told me, “if you go into the bathroom and somebody sees you….if they end up reporting you to administration, you would probably get in trouble for it.”

Bathrooms and changing rooms were not the only issue of gender separation that Abe ran into. “My high school was pretty gender-segregated for a lot of activities,” he told me. “Even some things like presentations were segregated by gender, and it wasn’t really necessary.”

Oliver and Abe are not the only one who dealt with issues like this in high school. According to a study done by the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), “nearly two thirds of transgender students avoid school bathrooms because of feeling unsafe or uncomfortable.” Some schools attempt to force students to use the bathroom that aligns with the sex they were assigned at birth, which can make trans students uncomfortable and dysphoric. In 2015, transgender high school student Lila Perry encountered protests and extreme backlash after using the girls’ bathroom at her high school. Her life and gender were politicized and put under heavy scrutiny for something as simple as going to the bathroom. Even though some schools allow transgender students to use staff bathrooms to avoid these situations, it is incredibly alienating to have to use a different bathroom than all of your peers. “With using the staff bathroom, I felt like I was being segregated off,” Perry told Fox 2 News. “I didn’t

like that... I wanted to blend in with all the other girls… I’m not a pervert; I’m a transgender woman. I’m a girl.” No matter which bathroom they enter, trans students without access to gender neutral bathrooms often face harassment, disciplinary action for using the “wrong” bathroom, and even violence in school bathrooms.

In addition to problems with school policies, many trans students also have problems with transphobic classmates. A lot of students have both conscious and unconscious biases against transgender people, perpetuated by transphobia seen at home and on TV. Friends is a prime example of a popular show that is filled with transphobia and transmisogyny, a specific type of transphobia targeted towards trans women and transfeminine people. One of the most transphobic storylines on Friends—in which Chandler’s father is revealed to be a transgender women and subsequently misgendered and ridiculed—was even denounced for its transphobia by Kathleen Turner, the actress who played her, in an interview with the Gay Times. Other transphobic storylines and comments, such as when Chandler is mocked for kissing a transgender woman who is then repeatedly misgendered by other characters, continue to add to the show’s harm to the trans community. Instances like these occur far too often in pop culture and portray transphobia and cissexism in such a way that makes it seem normal, accepted, and even funny. As Abe told me, “Younger teenagers are very impressionable and the things they see on TV… leave an impact and… a lasting impression. It definitely changes their opinions.” When students take these biases out on their transgender peers, it can be very damaging, especially when the school faculty does nothing to help. Oliver said that while he was lucky enough to not run into issues with transphobia from his peers, his schools’ administration probably would not have done anything about if it had been a problem. “They don’t... typically deal with bullying, ever,” he told me.

The internal issues that accompany being trans in high school are also significant. Puberty is hard for everyone, but it’s a lot harder when you’re going through the wrong puberty. “Being trans in high school just sucks,” Oliver told me. “You have a lot to figure out, and then you always have to worry about other people because that’s what people do in high school, you care about what other people think… being trans in high school is a lot. Being trans in general is a lot, and then you have to deal with other high school things on top of it.”

The issues that many transgender students face in high school can leave a major impact on their lives that lasts long after the school day ends. According to a 2015 study published by the Journal of Adolscolent Health, transgender youth are four times more likely to experience depression than their cisgender peers, and one third of trans youth have seriously considered suicide. Trans high schoolers are suffering, and something needs to be done.

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Oliver said it best: “Being trans in high school is just a bitch.” Schools need to do better. As Abe mentioned,”High school is a time of progression and finding yourself. People should be able to experiment and figure out what fits them and if that includes not conforming to the gender binary or even realizing, ‘Hey, I am trans, and my happiness would be so much better if I did come out,’ I think that the school administration and student body should make an atmosphere where that is possible.” To start creating a more trans-friendly atmosphere, they should change policies to be more accessible to trans people—for example, stopping the binaristic tradition of separating graduation cap and gown colors by gender, and allowing students to designate their pronouns on school rosters. Oliver suggested that schools should have a section in their rosters for students to designate a preferred name and have more gender neutral

bathrooms where students can also change for gym class.

Abe had similar suggestions and added that schools should “Make an understanding of ‘transgender’ clear to the student body either in sex ed or in health class, because that’s never talked about, ever.”

Because media is so influential to the minds of teenagers and so much of it is filled with transphobic stigmas and stereotypes, it’s important to counteract this with accurate and factual information regarding trans people.

Talks, presentations, and collaboration between school administration and transgender adults and advocacy groups could be a great start. Many of these suggestions mirror policies that some colleges are already starting to put into place, so clearly things do not have to be this hard for trans high schoolers. Things have gotten so much better for trans college students. High school can and should be next.

Lucas Griffin is a sophomore Communications Management and Design major who wants high schools to do better. You can reach them at lgriffin1@ithaca.edu. You can donate to GLSEN at https://www.glsen.org/support/giving.

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Bloody Hell

Aunt Flo’s in town and she didn’t bring brownies // by Lucy Calderon, Contributing Writer; art by Adam Dee, Art Editor

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he date was going really good when I suddenly got that feeling that something wasn’t right down there. I excused myself to go to the bathroom, and as soon as I got in the stall I knew. I got my period,” said 18-year-old Marlee Pelton-Fuentes.

“I bled through my underwear and my leggings—I was so nervous I didn’t know what to do—and didn’t know how I was going to be able to get him to bring me home so I could change and fix myself. As we were leaving I told him I needed to get something from my house before we hung out and he obliviously agreed. I clenched my legs together in what seemed like the longest drive home ever. I was terrified of getting blood on his car seats. I sprinted inside and changed as fast as humanly possible. Luckily he never knew and didn’t end up finding out until later into our relationship.”

Pelton-Fuentes’ story is not uncommon. In fact, it has a name: Period shaming.

Period shaming is when people feel like their menstrual cycle is something they need to hide. It comes from menstrual taboos in Western culture that stigmatize periods as gross, unclean, and something that should neither be discussed or nor visible.

In fifth grade, I would pray that when I wiped, I would not find red splotches on my toilet paper, but one cold February evening, as I rose from the toilet to pull up my pants, I noticed a red watercolor painting in the water. Low and behold, Aunt Flo had arrived. I remember crying and feeling so embarrassed that I didn’t tell anyone but my mom for two whole years. I grew up in a household that was very comfortable with dialogue pertaining to bodily functions. We embraced the words vagina and penis and never used pseudonyms like “vajayjay” or “peepee.” So why was I so embarrassed about my menstrual cycle?

Although research is slim, many organizations and companies, such as THINX, a brand of period-proof underwear, are trying to understand period shaming’s origins and eradicate the humiliation suffered at the hands of Aunt Flo. THINX employed OnePoll (a survey-led marketing research company) to conduct a survey for them in 2017 that sampled 1,500 US women and 500 US men on the topic of period shaming. The results are not surprising.

The survey found that 58% of women have experienced embarrassment for being on their period. 48% of women have experienced period shaming. One in five women have felt ashamed of their period because of comments made by a male friend.

A spokeswoman for THINX said to Menstrual Hygiene Day, “Period-shame is something a lot of women feel, starting with their very first cycle, which can occur as young as eight years old. Those feelings of embarrassment and self-hate are then reinforced by society, which tells women that their bodies should be clean and tidy, and if they aren’t, well that’s not something to be openly and honestly discussed. By anyone.”

“Oh man I get PTSD from just thinking about it!” recounts Anna Okum, a 16-year-old from Cincinnati, Ohio. “So basically, after getting the whole period chat from my momma, she basically said she was a late bloomer, so I had nothing to worry about for a while, since every woman in my family had gotten their period crazy late.”

Comfortable with her mother’s “talk,” Okum was not prepared at 12 years old for the common premenstrual symptoms—cramps, mood swings, nausea, etc.—that began much earlier than her mother predicted.

“So, I’m at school and a whole week goes by where I went from crying one second, to screaming the next, to wanting attention, going back to crying, the period usual,” joked Okum. “So, I was in English class and I was like, ‘Man, I’m not feeling too good!’ So, I go to the bathroom and my friend Abby was in there crying because she just got her period and had NO idea what to do. As I was trying to comfort her, I look down, and lo and behold, I got mine too. So, now we were both missing class, had no idea what a tampon was, and couldn’t think of anything to do. So instead of being proactive and asking someone, we both lay down on the bathroom floor and cried about it! Mind you, we were both out of class and our teachers had no idea where we were. There was a search party of teachers around the school looking for [us]. 20 minutes later the janitor knocks on the door and sees us on the floor crying with our clothes stained, so… our school janitor called over a teacher who taught us how to deal with periods, and I was too embarrassed to talk to that teacher ever again!”

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Alex Coburn, a senior at Ithaca College, shared a already ostracized by most of our classmates for being a little different type of period horror story. “Not because of a stain, odd, and this only served to exacerbate that. But of course, but because it smelled like period blood… you know that the thought of speaking up about my period was absolutely fun little feature of menstruation where period blood smells horrifying, so I allowed it to happen.” super strong?”

The fact that menstruation has a fishy, metallic, Blood doesn’t normally have a scent when we cut pungent smell contributes to the negative connotation of ourselves or get our finger pricked, so the fact that period periods, period shame, and period horror stories, because blood smells can be shocking to people. The truth is, it is the odor correlates with and supports most people’s completely normal. Menstruation smells because blood perception of them as gross, furthering period shame and mixes with vaginal bacteria, resulting in an odor. Christine period horror stories.

Greves, MD, an ob-gyn at the Center for Obstetrics and Toni Brannagan, an author at THINX, offers some Gynecology at Orlando Health in Florida, told Health earlier tips to combat the stigma associated with that time of the this year that vaginas are, “home to many different bacteria, month. “Be conscious of your subconscious behavior. You and when that bacteria mixes with blood, it produces an may think you aren’t embarrassed, but notice next time you odor. Simple as that.” do something such as hiding a tampon in your sleeve on the “It got so bad that my teacher noticed and made us way to the bathroom or feel uncomfortable asking a stranger all clean out our lockers, legitimately thinking that something for a hygiene product. Don’t act like it is something to hide.” had died, or someone had let food rot in one of them,” Acknowledge the bloody monster in the room and you will Coburn continued. “I stayed so silent and periodically ran take away its power. to the sink to spread hand sanitizer all over my skirt hoping it would disguise the smell. Thankfully for me, my teacher Lucy Calderon is a first-year Journalism major who got their period in a found food in a boy’s locker. I felt bad because he was Papa John’s bathroom. You can reach them at lcalderon1@ithaca.edu

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GothBoiClique Till My Lungs Collapse A deep sea dive (or deep dive) into emo hip hop // by Harper Shea, Contributing Writer; art by Adam Dee, Art Editor

G

othBoiClique is a collective of musicians that has been releasing music since 2013.

Created by artist Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, GothBoiClique has a roster of beatmakers, rappers and singers who’ve made significant contributions to the emorap genre. Members include Døves, Cold Hart, Horse Head, Mackned, YAWNS, JPDREAMTHUG, Lil Tracy and Lil Peep.

Each member has their own projects, but the sound of GothBoiClique was captured well in the group’s 2016 album Yeah It’s True, which featured the drowned-out and spacey melodies common in the genre—often accompanied by acoustic samples and hard-hitting percussion. The vocal performances follow suit; they often use singing to tell the tale of their woes over trap drums. This distances them further from traditional hip hop, where the emphasis is often placed on the rapper’s lyricism and less on how the voice sounds.

The lyrical content of the genre typically features themes of drug use and wealth, but the outstanding topics of interest for these artists—especially late singer, rapper, and songwriter Lil Peep, who helped forge the genre—are usually the struggles of heartbreak and issues of mental health. The argument against this music is that these artists are promoting their lifestyle to a susceptible audience. Peep explicitly talks about how he’s used drugs as an escape from personal heartache and depression. Nowhere in his lyrics does he encourage this behavior, but some feel that these ideas have the potential to rub off on young fans.

It’s hard to say whether or not an artist should take responsibility for what they release when they know how it may be received by certain audiences. The emo-rap genre has a hold on at least some young people.

In an age where countless platforms enable expression of music and public image, not only are fanbases easily cultivated, but entire cultures devoted to and inspired by the personalities behind the work.

“People’s lives aren’t always happy so the music includes this raw reality,” said fan Darshan Snow, 17. “It’s healing. Lil Peep’s music hits the heart.”

He went on to say that it’s the outside-of-the-box artists like these that shape the culture of youth.

Despite this, some argue that there are young fans who cannot relate their experiences to the lifestyles shared by GothBoiClique members. Nonetheless, young fans try to adopt this persona and develop their identities around the music. Deviance in music taste or behavior is not unusual in teens, but there are young people who pick up the self-destructive behavior and mindsets portrayed

by GothBoiClique and other artists of the genre, who purposefully mimic the activities glorified in the music.

Nevertheless, the genre continues expanding.

There are many other artists of similar come-ups and sound encompassing an entire culture of “sad rap” followers and creators. Other artists of this internet-spawned craze include $UICIDEBOY$, Ghostemane, BONES, Pouya, and many

others, growing in number over the past few years.

Fans might also share a taste for artists like Yung Lean and the “Sad Boys,” who are now veterans of this type of internet rap, their sound blending hip hop and vaporwave.

For hardcore fans of this music, they are invested in the image of the “sad boy,” or “goth boy.” Many can relate to what the music is about already because of prior life experience, making it a helpful and positive influence. They understand the emotion and can resonate with the themes presented.

SoundCloud rapper Lil Banjo of Island Park, New York, was one of these fans. Peep and Banjo both attended Long Beach High School in Lido Beach, New York. Although Banjo did not attend the school at the same time as Peep, the artist’s presence in the community has inspired him to create music of his own.

Now he is looking to transition from making emo rap to a more old school style after speaking with rap legend Funkmaster FLEX. He plans to distinguish himself in this style and pursue the art of hip hop.

“Once I get a good enough fanbase, I’ll do my marketing strategy, and shock people by somehow doing a different style completely,” Banjo said.

Banjo said that he understands how artists in the industry gain fame today. After seeing firsthand how Peep gained traction in the emo-rap community, the Banjo plans on strategically building his career with a similar methodology.

“When Peep died, everyone started riding that wave,” Banjo said. “I started getting into his music… it sounded good so I wanted to try to do that.”

Peep’s tragic overdose and death in 2017 left national media in a frenzy. The storm of coverage made it seem like the size of his fanbase was much larger than it really was. But his fanbase expanded after his death when the rapper’s legacy truly was unveiled to the world.

For Peep fans, it was a time of heartbreak and great loss. Eli Adams, 17, attended a Lil Tracy concert after Peep’s death.

“Tracy did a song by Peep as a tribute, and he broke down on the stage,” Adams said. “When he died, his fanbase wasn’t huge, but it was full of people who genuinely cared.”

Adams said that Peep left an ever-fixed mark on many people to whom his music spoke.

“In my lifetime I haven’t really experienced a whole lot of noteworthy events,” Adams said. “I vividly remember where I was when Peep died.”

Harper Shea is a first-year Exploratory student who had their face tattoos lasered off. They can be reached at hshea@ithaca.edu.

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ministry of 22

cool

My

iPod Shuffle

Tracklist

Remember Ed Sheeran’s “The A-Team?” // by Kathryn Ksiazek, Contributing Writer; art by Adam Dee, Art Editor

W

hile music has a way of connecting people, it often times finds a way to divide people. As humans, we tend to group ourselves into categories, and music genre is just one more way to do that, whether we realize it or not. If you like country music, you’re probably southern; if you like My Chemical Romance or Lana Del Rey, you’re probably a naive middle schooler going through their “I’m different and nobody understands me” phase.

If I could go back and look at my middle school music library on my old, broken iPhone 5S, I don’t doubt that I’d spend the majority of the time cringing. I suppose there’s a reason I never redownloaded most of those songs. However, there’s one band that I’ve listened to for as long as I can remember, and I don’t think there will ever come a day when I buy a new phone and choose not to redownload every single one of their songs. I remember sitting on the big yellow bus on my way to my middle school, one earbud in my right ear, the left bud in my friend’s, and I remember hearing, for the very first time, “Shake It Out” by Florence + the Machine. I don’t exactly know what changed in my young, impressionable, pre-teen brain, but looking back now, hearing Florence + the Machine on that bus-ride must have been the start of my “I’m different and nobody understands me” phase.

At one point or another, everybody goes through a phase in their life in which they start to believe that the only possible way to be important in life is to be sad and misunderstood. Some grow out of that phase quickly and go back to dressing like an older version of their previous selves. Others slowly phase out the music and clothes which defined their precious elementary school experience so well and grow into a whole new person altogether. There is no shame in either, the shame comes when thinking back to that terrible phase in the middle. I consider myself lucky to be one of the two people amongst my friends who did not go through an “emo-phase” or “goth-phase” back in middle school. One of my most vivid memories from school is sitting at the lunch table, surrounded by a fog of black jeans and Fall Out Boy t-shirts while I sat in striped, rainbow jeans and a bright blue jacket. Somehow, I made it through middle school never having worn an “emo” band t-shirt. Nonetheless, my choice of colorful pants does not erase the poor musical choices I made at the age of thirteen.

Colorful taste in clothes does not necessarily guarantee a colorful taste in music.

There’s no denying that style does often correlate with music choice; however, it may not always be as evident as it seems. We like to categorize ourselves and associate mainly with those who fall into the same category as we do. But if that’s the case, why do we do this in middle school, way before our sense of style is established? Our seventh-grade selves saw the twelve-year-old girls in Uggs and Forever 21 leggings standing next to the twelve-year-old boys in Nike sneakers and neon socks, listening to Drake in the hallways and decided that that’s what being popular must be. And then, we looked at the kids in combat boots and flannels, drawing on their arms in pen while listening to “I Write Sins Not Tragedies”, and decided that that is what being “emo” is. Why is this “emo” look so infamous? We all go through an awkward, sad phase in our lives, some just choose to wear it proudly while others prefer to keep it private. Either way, we shouldn’t instinctively associate the way a person dresses with being depressed or “emo.” Almost every middle-schooler goes through a “mis-fit” phase and the stereotypes that surround some kids while avoiding others can only be harmful. Unlike most of my friends, I was able to avoid these cutting stereotypes. Just as you’d expect from a young girl with rainbow pants, I avoided the rock section of iTunes and found myself listening to artists much more discreet in their sadness.

Like any alternative-loving teenage girl, I spent most of middle school listening to Lana Del Rey, Lorde, and, of course, Florence + the Machine. I suppose that’s a step up from the stereotypes that surround those that listen to LINKIN PARK and Sleeping With Sirens, but I am not afraid to admit that, though I still listen to all three of the artists I spent my middle school years listening to, I most definitely listened to them for the wrong reason. I didn’t listen to them because I enjoyed their music but because I liked the idea of being an outcast and being sad. We all have a strange desire to be misunderstood. It’s something so unnatural it’s almost masochistic. Everyone wants to be pitied from time to time, however, very few would ever admit it. We’ve inexplicably linked sadness to profoundness and when we reach our middle school years,

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we all strive to be the most fucked-up, the most intelligent. We want to be liked, but only by some; we want to be cool, but not popular; we want to be mysterious, but not socially challenged. What’s the best way to accomplish all of this without committing to a change in lifestyle? Music.

There’s no way to tell how much a person will change throughout middle school. You put cute, excited, prepubescent children in one end and three years later, awkward, disproportionately shaped, anxious teenagers come out, on their way to wreak havoc in high school as naive freshmen. While more change is on its way, the middle school years have already laid the groundwork. The young teens have most likely changed their style a dozen times over the past few years and settled on one to show off their “true selves” in high school. With the most confusing years of puberty behind them, they enter high school with a fresh perspective.

Kathryn Ksiazek is a first year Journalism major who says “Turn this up!” when “The Dog Days are Over” plays.

You can reach them at kksiazek@ithaca.edu.

Puberty was rough, although I Gotta Feeling there are 7 Things and more that you’ll Raise Your Glass to—so tune in, grab your Best Friend’s Brother, Party Rock with our Playlist, then Call Me Maybe?

Follow us on Spotify!

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RAW BOOKS AND MUSIC SAW FROM THE

NFR! - Lana Del Ray

By Gigi Grady, Contributing Writer

Back in 2012, the ever-classy singer/songwriter Lana Del Rey referred to herself as a “gangster Nancy Sinatra” and was thought to have given one of the worst musical performances in Saturday Night Live history. But seven years have passed, and her newest album Norman Fucking Rockwell! seems to be a moment of redemption.

NFR! is her most mature work yet, weaving in references to the music scene of 1960s and 70s Laurel Canyon and experimenting with raw sounds throughout 14 bittersweet tracks.

In her sixth studio album, the 34-year-old singer is striving to create a better, more ideal life for herself, which is something she has been searching for since her first album, Born to Die. From chasing older men to doing hard drugs, Del Rey has been singing about wanting, but never having. In NFR! something changes, and she is trying to move on from the past and look forward to the future.

The title track perfectly sets the stage for the rest of the album, introducing piano and isolated vocals, the most prominent sounds throughout the work. It is here that she also introduces the character Norman Rockwell, who was an American author and painter. His most famous paintings portray a typical, ideal American life of freedom, family and love.

“Mariner’s Apartment Complex,” the first single released in late 2018, is the most sonically complex song Del Rey has produced to date, both lyrically and instrumentally. Each verse is intimate and personal, a large contrast to an artist whose private life who has remained elusive throughout the course of her career.

The almost ten-minute “Venice Bitch” is a callback to classic rock with its extended instrumental break. The guitar and synth-dominated track is proof of the heavy influence 1960s and 70s California rock had on the album’s creation, with direct references to artists such as the Eagles, The Beach Boys, and Crosby, Stills and Nash. In “Give me Hallmark; one dream, one life, one lover,” Del Ray reflects on American Hallmark movies with sentimental stories about family and love. This is one of the only times Lana Del Rey directly sings about what she wants, showing she knows the American dream can exist.

She admits she wants this dream not only for herself, but for America as well.

In rock ballad “The Greatest,” the singer uses the last verse as a description of the world’s unusual state by referencing the false nuclear missile alert Hawaii received in 2018, the California wildfires, Kanye West’s loyalty to President Trump, and the possibility of having to inhabit another planet using David Bowie’s “Life on Mars?.” She then continues with the line, “I hope the livestream’s almost on,” portraying how distracted we are by social media and other inconsequential topics of the modern world, all in the midst of political issues and climate change.

The emotional and intimate album is evidently Lana Del Rey beginning a new chapter and recognizing the place that she and the world occupy right now. She alludes to America losing what made it a dream, but remains hopeful for the future.

Hate Inc. - Matt Taibbi

By Harrison Malkin, Contributing Writer

People in the old Soviet Union watched state-run television containing propaganda. In the United States, we like to think the story is different. For decades people have watched CBS News or CNN, channels hardly distinguishable from formalized state TV, and taken it prima facie with the belief that it’s independent.

Or as gonzo Rolling Stone columnist Matt Taibbi put it in his latest book, Hate Inc. “Most Russians at least had the decency to not believe this stuff in private. But Americans swallow similar absurdities on a regular basis.” The unique case of the propagating and manipulating US corporate media and its submissive viewers dominate the pages of Hate Inc. With Hate Inc., Matt Taibbi has written what he set out to write: a sequel to Manufacturing Consent (1988), the classic exposé of our modern media state. But Taibbi leaves the theories to Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman in favor of his raging prose, biting analysis, and magazine reporting. Hate Inc. started as The Fairway and was originally published in segments on Substack. In October, Hate Inc. will be in bookstores, and while the mainstream might ignore its success, it will be rightly seen by some crowds as a must-read.

Taibbi defends his choice in the epilogue to have “liberal” MSNBC host Rachel Maddow on the cover with Fox News’ Sean Hannity. “The two characters do exactly the same work,” he writes. “The Rachel Maddow Show and The Sean Hannity Show have become Crossfire for the new generation. In this updated version of fake political combat sold as theater, the pugilists never meet in the ring.”

Chomsky himself points out that although newspapers, for example, are full of facts, these facts don’t change the nature of corporate media. “They’re all doing it within an ideological framework, which reflects the dominant hegemonic common sense,” Chomsky explains. Hate, the underlying theme of this book because of its relevance in our media and

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discourse, is one of these ideological trappings.

There’s a realization in Hate Inc. that we don’t need to manufacture consent in today’s world. The media executives have already done that work. Taibbi writes: “Today we bomb people basically nonstop and it never makes the news. The average American had no idea that we were at war in seven countries last year.”

Because “now more than ever, most journalists work for great, nihilistic corporations whose editorial decisions are skewered by a toxic mix of financial and political considerations,” Taibbi reminisces and advocates for a time when there was a freer press, less censorship, fewer monopolies, and no sale of hatred, or “reality” TV, a time when there were more reporters on the beat who were committed to the people’s stories and the ethics of investigative journalism.

What readers or news junkies pick up while consuming the news are the toxic pieces we have left behind—and they’re almost always the stories the one percent want us to tell. News junkies follow the news because it’s hard not to. It’s an addictive product, seducing and selling hate to viewers. As Taibbi says, “Hatred is the partner of ignorance.”

But according to Taibbi, consuming the news doesn’t make us experts. How can you blame us? The world is complex and the media is set up so that we don’t understand these complexities.

While the media sells hate, this book doesn’t. It won’t make you feel warm or optimistic, but it has more than punchlines and progressive critique. It will push and console one’s political soul. It’s a fun read and a learning experience.

Eventually, Taibbi reflects on how the post-Vietnam War period was rife with debates over journalism and not war.

I hope we don’t make the same mistake. This book should be thoughtfully critiqued, but it shouldn’t bring the attention to Taibbi and his book. It should turn our collective ammunition toward the corporate media and the troubling world around us.

Lush - Snail Mail

By Brennan Carney, Contributing Writer; art by Guinevere Fullerton, Contributing Artist

At only 20 years old, Lindsey Jordan is making a big name for herself in the band Snail Mail. They released the Habit EP in 2016 and most recently released their cover of “2nd Most Beautiful Girl in the World” in February 2019. Snail Mail finally released their first full-length LP in 2018 entitled Lush. The 10 songs flow seamlessly together to share the melancholy and angst associated with being a teenager in love.

Much of Lush is telling the story of someone still waiting for answers and filled with uncertainty. At the same time, the main character has to come to terms with the idea that love is not black and white.

Jordan manages to achieve a very difficult task on this album: she is able to capture the emotionally-driven thoughts of a teenager in love without it being cliché or whiny. Jordan incorporates a self-deprecating element to her lyrics, similar to that of Fiona Apple or Courtney Barnett. She articulates the feelings with a perfect mix of humility and being unapologetically herself. The lyrics tackle the confidence issues of teenagers (“Don’t you like me for me”) and how unpredictability turns into heartbreak (“I’m feeling low/ I’m not into sometimes.”)

“Pristine” was the first single released off the album and it sets the scene for its content, both lyrically and instrumentally.

Clean guitars and bass provide warmth to lyrics that are a little darker and cold. Jordan’s years of classical guitar training are shown off, especially in songs like “Let’s Find an Out.” Transparency is a common theme between the lyrics and the instruments, with both being very straightforward, clear and raw. This rawness makes it easy for the listener to connect with the songs. Many have compared Snail Mail’s music style to that of Pavement, Cat Power, Elliot Smith and Sonic Youth. The subtle hints of these heavier grunge tones inspired by those artists mix with sincere lyrics and simple melodies to create Lush.

On a larger scale, Snail Mail is part of a bigger group of new musicians in the indie rock world. Female artists like Frankie Cosmos, boygenius and Soccer Mommy are all aged 25 or younger and are gaining a significant following in an industry where their age and gender are often obstacles. They are tackling the issues of confidence and learning to love yourself, regardless of what other people or society says. These new female groups are leading the way for a new wave of rock musicians bringing in a young, female perspective that is not often found in today’s music industry.

Snail Mail’s album explores the hurt of unrequited love with a mature perspective and clear instruments to match the straightforward vibe. All of this is even more impressive when you factor in that lead singer Lindsey Jordan was only 18 when she began releasing music.

Snail Mail’s ability to capture feelings in lyrics and music as a young female rock group elevates their music from other DIY and indie bands in the industry today.

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Influence and the Golden Age of Television

The small screen leaves a big impact // by Scott Kauffman, Contributing Writer

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ith older brothers, weekday evenings went like this: 6:30 - The Wild Thornberrys into 7pm - Hey Arnold! and 7:30 - Rugrats. When I came home from school, before homework began, Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide was on TV. Who can forget the Saturday morning all-star block of Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Beyblade over on WB Kids? Television had a huge effect on our generation even today, prompting the best ice-breaker question: favorite SpongeBob moment? It was entertaining, sure, but the creators of these shows used their platform for more than just colorful storytelling. The television we watched as kids taught us more about mature themes than we realize.

From Robin and Starfire to Danny Fenton and Sam Manson, child programming is no stranger to cute couples.

Halloween is right around the corner, so you’re welcome for the costume ideas. However, there are a few shows that do more than just show the male and female protagonists holding hands. They actually explore the theme of love from mature angles. Adventure Time, for example, was on the surface about a human boy in a fantasy world trying to vanquish monsters and do good deeds. In its relationships, however, the writers expressed the awkwardness of growing up. Finn, 12 years old, has a crush on Princess Bubblegum, who takes an 18-year-old form. Normally, she rolls her eyes at his advances, but from time to time, she gives him a kiss on the cheek. At the beginning of the series, Finn genuinely believes that the two of them are destined to be together, but to Princess Bubblegum, Finn is just a kind boy who needs protection. Her maternal and platonic feelings mixed with Finn’s young idealism create a false expectation of love for Finn. Watching him figure this out for himself is what the story is all about.

Throughout the series, hints are dropped about Princess Bubblegum and Marceline’s close friendship.

The writers continuously push them apart and bring them together, creating a strange tension. In the finale, they confess their feelings, kiss, and decide to “hang out with each other forever.” The writers establish Princess Bubblegum and Marceline as individuals, with personal conflicts and backstories, and then they develop a healthy same-sex relationship. It’s mutually beneficial, it’s organic, and it’s beautiful.

Another topic you may not remember is illness and no, not SpongeBob and the suds. Arthur tackled this topic in a season thirteen episode titled “The Great McGrady.”

In this episode, Mrs. McGrady the school lunch lady is diagnosed with cancer. Everyone reacts differently to the news. Arthur and D.W. go to Mrs. McGrady with soup and stuffed animals. Francy tries to pretend like nothing changed at all and Francine goes into shock, too afraid to see Mrs.

McGrady. Much like in real life, children especially don’t know how to react to serious news like that. In exploring the varied reactions, this episode of Arthur teaches that when it comes to disease, it is okay to not understand and okay to be vulnerable, and that your emotions are valid.

An incredibly important episode of Captain Planet and the Planeteers entitled “A Formula for Hate,” discusses the HIV virus. A rumor spreads that Todd Andrews, voiced by Neil Patrick Harris, has AIDS. The whole town turns against Todd, afraid that they will catch the disease if they interact with him. Captain Planet and Todd’s coach team up to tell everyone that one, Todd is only HIV-positive and does not have AIDS, and two, you cannot catch it by casual contact.

It’s sad that a colorful superhero had to teach the lesson, but even worse when you learn that “A Formula for Hate,” is based on the real-life case of Ryan White, a teenage boy from Indiana in 1984, who was ostracized and harassed by his community when news spread of him contracting the virus. In the words of Gaia, the Spirit of Earth, herself: “AIDS is a terrible epidemic plaguing our world, but two things make it even worse: ignorance and fear.”

That’s So Raven was a Disney Channel sitcom about your everyday teenage girl who also sees visions of the future. What made the show unique was its POC leads, but what made it important is that the writers did not shy away from discussions about racial discrimination. In season three episode ten, titled “True Colors,” Raven and her best friend Chelsea apply for the same job at a clothing store. Raven aces the interview and Chelsea fails it, but it is Chelsea who gets the job regardless. Why? Raven sees the employer in a vision stating, “The truth is, I don’t hire black people.”

“I always knew about racism,” Raven replies,” but I never knew how much it could hurt.” This episode teaches young audiences about the world they are entering without pulling any punches. The real sad part is that Raven herself didn’t learn that very lesson. Years later on an episode of The View, Raven-Symoné stated that she would not hire someone with a “black-sounding” name. Oh, snap.

In the ninth episode of Static Shock, Virgil, too, encounters racial discrimination. Both Doug and Lizzie McGuire discuss eating disorders. Sesame Street deals with the heavy topics of grief and divorce. The point is that we were right to keep watching these silly shows about a little boy and his stretchy dog or a teenage girl who sees the future because the substance within them cannot be ignored.

The question now is where to go from here? Our generation needs to follow, because kids can handle more than we realize if the information is presented in the right way. Thank you, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, and Disney Channel for the memories, stories, and for being a positive outside influence.

Scott Kauffman is a third year Writing for Film, TV, & Emerging Media major who hasn’t forgiven M. Night for The Last Airbender. You can reach them skauffman@ithaca.edu

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Why Can’t We Let

Girls Be Girls?

Predators don’t get a pass // by Rachael Chalachan, Contributing Writer

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et’s make one thing clear: underage girls have always been sexualized to a disturbing degree. With Jeffery Epstein’s predatory crimes at the forefront of the public’s consciousness, it is time to re-examine how our culture perpetuates problematic ideas about the sexuality of teenage girls. Just look back to artists like Iggy Pop, who boasted about his sexual exploits with then thirteen-year-old baby groupie Sable Starr in the opening line of the song “Look Away”. It can be easy to write off those actions as simply being, “from a different time”—but have things really changed? Of course, the public responds with revulsion when presented with the details of Epstein soliciting sex from underage girls. However, we don’t always take issue with the portrayal of teenage girls in movies, and often turn the other cheek when gross comments are made under their Instagram posts. It could be that we have become desensitized to the way in which we sexualize teenage girls. Teenagers having sex with other teenagers is normal, but when we allow men to lust after underage girls it’s not. It is time to shift away from promoting these predatory actions, and finally allow girls to simply be girls.

One need not look far to find films that present a teenage girl as the love interest for a tortured male protagonist. American Beauty is a cinematic staple, perhaps less so in the wake of Kevin Spacey’s alleged misconduct, that holds an 88% on Rotten Tomatoes and an Academy Award for Best Picture. It is a beautifully made film, which can make the subject matter seem romantic, when in reality it is deeply flawed. The film follows a bored middle-aged man named Lester as he attempts to reinvigorate his life and essentially find his youth again. He becomes infatuated with his teenage daughter’s friend, Angela, whom we never really get to know fully. The film makes her appearance what defines her character and refuses to dig deeper and present her as a nuanced and complete person. Viewers are privy to Lester’s sexually charged fantasies of Angela, with the image of her covered in rose petals even making the film’s cover.

She is reduced to a physical form for Lester to project his desires on—and nobody seems to mind. Angela is collateral damage along Lester’s self destructive path, her personal struggles simply background noise. This characterization feeds into the idea that teenage girls are more objects than people. It is nearly impossible to view a situation objectively when you are only looking at a small part of it. For Lester, he only sees Angela’s body and seemingly vapid personality. He is not viewing a girl with passions, struggles, talents, and a

lack of lived experience—but simply a girl with beauty. This allows him to lust after her without being reminded of things that may force him to recognize that this lust is inappropriate.

Angela’s characterization is not unique. Films that reduce teen girls to their bodies send a strong message about the relationship between sexuality and the body. Teen girls are often seem as sexually mature once they undergo puberty and are thrust into a world of sexualization that they are not emotionally or intellectually ready for.

Woody Allen’s Manhattan is another critically acclaimed film which follows a forty-two -year-old man named Issac, played by Allen, as he navigates relationship struggles and love triangles, all while dating a high school student named Tracy. Tracy is seventeen, but the film presents her relationship with Issac as legitimate, never truly acknowledging the power imbalance that exists between them. Tracy seems to find her own path after Issac leaves her, but the film ends with Issac making one final attempt to rekindle his relationship with her. Even this scene plays out like a very normal conversation between ex-lovers going in different directions, not as a conversation between a middleaged man and the teenage girl that he groomed. This film was nominated for multiple Academy Awards, including Best Screenplay, a sign that we have deemed relationships between underage girls and middle-aged men as somewhat acceptable. It doesn’t matter if Tracy was genuinely attracted to Issac; it should’ve been his responsibility to recognize that attraction to a minor cannot be realized into a physical relationship. For Issac to treat this as a mature and normal relationship is inherently wrong.

Even more unsettling is the fact that Mariel Hemingway, the actress who plays Tracy, was pursued by Allen after filming. She was just sixteen, yet Allen invited her to go to Paris with him alone. Her parents even encouraged her to go, although she ultimately refused. Allen is still making films today and receiving award nominations, with many in Hollywood eager to work on his films. People can try to discredit Dylan Farrow’s account of being molested by her father, but through analyzing his body of work and his own actions, like marrying adopted daughter Soon-Yi Previn, it is apparent that Allen views young girls as sexual beings and not children who cannot consent. The acclaim that both he and his films continue to receive is evidence that we need to be more conscious of the media we consume, and analyze the ideas transmitted through it. American Beauty and Manhattan attempt to create a world in which sexual maturity

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and youthful purity can coexist, but much like Lester’s depictions of Angela, such a world is simply fantasy.

These films deny teenage female characters their voice, focusing the narrative around their bodies and illicit sexuality. When we do this, we put girls in uncomfortable positions which can have lasting effects. Sexualization of young girls can cause a lot of problems with body image and identity. Girls can feel that they don’t measure up to the body ideals presented to them and can even become ashamed of their bodies after being subjected to sexual comments or catcalls. This is not to mention the lasting effects of abuse by men in power like Jeffery Epstein. Epstein trafficked vulnerable girls who were seeking financial or personal assistance and used his assets to lure them into his trap. He lies at one end of the spectrum in terms of power, but one could argue than most older men hold power over underage girls. Epstein used his power to receive an incredibly light charge and sentence in 2008 and evade

capture until earlier this year, but many other predators with significantly less power walk free today.

This problem isn’t just a result of the Jeffery Epsteins of the world: it is a result of every older man who has preyed upon a teenager. When we allow the media to sexualize young girls we validate the lustful thoughts older men may have about them— and too often those thoughts become actions. Girls deserve to grow up in a world where sexuality is not forced upon them, where they can wear whatever clothes they like in school, where they can feel comfortable passing older men on the street, where they can simply live and grow at their own pace. We need to hold the media accountable by thinking critically about the way teenage girls are represented in popular movies and television shows and make our voices heard when these works are flawed. This is imperative if we are to truly protect girls and give them the freedom to simply be girls.

Rachael Chalachan is a second year Psychology major who thinks that Annie Hall should not justify Woody Allen literally marrying his daughter.

You can reach them at rchalachan@ithaca.edu.

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RAW TV AND MOVIES SAW FROM THE

The Nightingale

By Tom Lawson, Contributing Writer

“I’m not England. I’m Ireland,” insists Clare, sitting exhausted beside a smoldering fire in the middle of a Tasmanian forest. She’s talking to Billy, a Letteremairrener tracker, and he’s having none of it. “You’re England,” he replies. Identity sits at the crux of The Nightingale, a visceral and impactful revenge tale of two individuals who’ve faced the brunt of British colonialism, rebelling against a system that has done all it can to strip them of their nationality. Clare is an Irish convict, the victim of unspeakable violence by Hawkins, the repulsive officer in charge of a desolate penal colony. Billy, an Aboriginal Tasmanian, has also suffered at the hands of white men, his family murdered by invaders to Australia. Together, they chase Hawkins and his band through the rugged hills and woodlands, hell-bent on retribution.

As with her 2014 breakout hit The Babadook, director Jennifer Kent has created a harrowing experience. While exhibiting a few similar stylistic flourishes as her psychological drama (Clare’s ghost-ridden, magic realist nightmares are particularly hair-raising), the horrors of The Nightingale remain grounded in a daunting reality, and the film is all the more grueling for it. This isn’t the 19th century of a period costume drama; interiors are dark and uninviting, uniforms ripped and stained by churned mud, faces scratched and bloody. Dealing with such serious subject matter, it’s only right that the film stays away from sensationalism. Camera movements are kept to a minimum and the soundtrack is never overbearing. 1825 Australia isn’t a setting made for entertainment, and Kent takes care never to exploit it. Her 4:3 aspect ratio is a window into a place and time dominated by genocide and brutality.

Aisling Franciosi and Baykali Ganambarr play Clare and Billy, respectively, and their stellar performances carry us through the film’s admittedly extensive runtime. Initially the two characters are foes; Clare’s happy to keep her gun trained on Billy at all times. He hates her just as much as he hates the English, only helping her for the money. But as Clare learns about the injustices Billy’s faced and as he realizes she shares his hatred, they become allies united by a common enemy. Sam Clafin delivers an appropriately unvarnished turn as the vile Hawkins, the polar opposite of Franciosi and Ganambarr’s empathetic presences, and along with his gang of goons he makes us root all the more for vengeance.

The Nightingale is by no means an easy watch—an early scene had me tearing up over its graphic nature—but it is no doubt a film worth watching. The gratuitous violence that so often plagues cinema isn’t ground that Kent wishes to tread here. Her approach is tactful, and nonetheless provoking, exploring issues of PTSD, abuse, and the blight of colonialism with a deft touch and appropriate sensitivity. While it may feel needlessly long and repetitive at times (Clare’s dream sequences, for example, make the same point over and over), there’s a clear direction to the plot and a heft to the story that makes The Nightingale incredibly complex. Moments of beauty are rare, but not entirely dismissed. Clare’s singing of a Gaelic melody or the sunset over the Southern Ocean are reminders that even in the darkest of times, hope is still possible.

Dear White People: Season 3

By Brianna Diaz, Contributing Writer

Dear White People is back and season three is better than ever. Compared to previous seasons, this season goes into more depth with the main characters: Sam White (Logan Browning), Gabe (John Patrick Amedori), Joelle Brooks (Ashley Blaine Featherson), Reggie Green (Marque Richardson), Colandrea “Coco” Conners (Antoinette Robertson), and Lionel Higgins (DeRon Horton).

The season frames its situational narratives around the characters growing up and changing. These situations open doors to larger issues such as white privilege, idolship, and so much more. Picking up where last season left off, Sam and Lionel investigate a secret society regarding Winchester’s past “secret” group called “The Order of X,” which involved the most influential and important black students at Winchester years ago. The two become so frustrated with the endless struggles of activism and tracking down the Order that they give up and resolve to change. Sam quits her eponymous “Dear White People” and Lionel quits The New Independent, the grassroots publication that he was so anxious to start.

Simultaneously, the arrival of Professor Moses Brown, who was an alumnus of Winchester University, creates a thread that weaves throughout the season. Reggie, a previous victim of police brutality, forms a bond with Professor Brown. Even though Brown is the main character that this season is developed around, we also get introduced to another new character: Coco’s alter ego—played by actress and model Ryan Destiny—who manifests when Coco is at her most anxious and insecure while she attempts to gain a fellowship. Kurt finds himself tokenized on the writing staff of the controversial comedy

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magazine Pastiche and Gabe struggles to balance work and school life when he needs to come up with large sums of money to shoot his thesis film.

Overall, this show is important for everyone and anyone, of any race, ethnicity, background, sexual orientation, identity and etc, to take the time to watch. Many people don’t get to see the perspective of people of color within a predominately-white institution, or PWI. Having a show that exemplifies that particular situation is revelatory; most of the time, college campuses act as smaller societies that are sort of isolated from the real world. This show is a representation of what I have experienced, heard and witnessed so far here at IC. With these, people of color acknowledging and witnessing a reality at an Ivy League and a PWI is the same way that I once more, experience and witness here at IC.

The Farewell

By Tom Lawson, Contributing Writer

In Changchun, China, a wedding is happening. Nai Nai, the family’s diligent and kind-hearted matriarch, is organizing a luxurious banquet. Friends and relatives are flying in from around the world. In New York, Nai Nai’s son Haiyan and his wife Jian are packing to leave. Their daughter Billi desperately wants to come with them, but they won’t let her.

Because this isn’t really a wedding. It’s a farewell.

Nai Nai has stage four lung cancer. With her three-month prognosis looming, her loved ones are gathering to see her for the last time. Except there’s one crucial detail: Nai Nai isn’t aware of her illness. The family thinks it best to keep her blissfully ignorant, and they’re worried that Billi, overflowing with concern for her beloved grandmother, will let the secret slip.

But there’s no stopping her from showing up anyway; she’d never miss the chance to say goodbye.

From the slouch of her neck to her persistently sorrowful expressions, Billi’s sadness and discomfort are brilliantly expressed through Awkwafina’s perfect physical performance. We feel the weight of the emotional burden she has to carry as if it’s resting on our slumped shoulders, too. It’s obvious Billi’s hiding something, but not to Nai Nai, played with astonishing naturalism by Zhao Shuzhen. Adorable, kind, and funny, she is Billi’s rock, and it’s delightful to watch them chatting and teasing one another side-by-side.

Crucially, director Lulu Wang finds humor in the darkness of the situation. The Farewell is a surprisingly funny ride, peppered with moments of laugh-out-loud comedy that almost ironically accentuate the weight of the more hard-hitting scenes. This delicate dance of levity and gravity is so expertly done that it rarely feels like we’re watching a scripted drama.

The Farewell is, incredibly, based on a true story and the wealth of human nuances in Wang’s characters shows this.

Staged for the most part in meticulously-framed tableau shots, The Farewell is a visual treat. In an age dominated by handheld, close-up heavy cinema, it’s always refreshing to see a director let simple blocking tell the story. Whether it’s an opulent banquet hall or Nai Nai’s dinner table, Wang lets her characters inhabit these spaces, transporting us right there with them. When the close-ups do arrive, they pack a punch; a milky, shallow focus underscores the cast’s vividly emotional faces, sometimes paired with intense slow-motion.

Connecting all of this is Alex Weston’s dreamlike score, a collection of melodic Bach-inspired lullabies that take center-stage and drift gracefully into the background as necessary. Paired with the ethereal vocals of singer Mykal Kilgore, the music builds an atmosphere that oscillates between airy and somber, conveying Billi’s rippling emotions with sonic elegance.

As always, there’s room for hilarious interludes; a particularly touching sequence has Billi and her father karaoke to the Fugees’ cover of “Killing Me Softly.”

The cultural differences between East and West dominate most of the film’s drama. Having lived in America since the age of six, Billi struggles painfully with the divide between what she and her family each feel is necessary. During a hospital visit, Billi asks the doctor, “Isn’t it wrong to lie?”“It’s a good lie,” he says. Keeping a loved one in the dark about their condition is a practice not uncommon in China. Is it a good lie? That’s up to you. But there’s no denying The Farewell is a good film, a brilliant, moving experience that sticks with you.

Euphoria: Season 3

By Ian Hopper, Contributing Writer; art by Adam Dee, Art Editor Over the summer, director and producer Sam Levinson brought his loose adaptation of the Israeli teen drama Euphoria to HBO. The show stars Zendaya as Rue Bennett, who narrates the daily lives of her moral-bending schoolmates while tripping down house party hallways on whatever substance she can find. Levinson’s unique yet shocking writing along with Zendaya’s campy and raw performance make for a gorgeously constructed first installment of eight episodes. Levinson coats the series in neon lighting, surreal Coachella-like makeup, and a carnival of cinematography feats. Euphoria is not geared only to teens, but to a spectrum of audiences, including worried parents.

The cast is stellar, showcasing a mix of experienced actors and naturally talented newcomers. Hunter Schafer, in her debut acting role, plays Jules Vaughn, a transgender girl shaken by her parent’s recent divorce. As one of the most

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provocative of Levinson’s collection of characters, Jules has a knack for self-sabotage but also manages to make her actions seem grand and flawless. Episode four reveals Jules’ past of self-harm and parental neglect. Her gender identity is not a focus of her anguished backstory. It is rare for sexuality and gender identity in cinema and television to be conveyed as a mere character trait rather than a central plotline. Jules is an LGBT+ character that is defined by more than her gender. Episode one shows Jules in front of her bedroom mirror, injecting hormones as nonchalantly as if she is making an outfit change. Her gender is not dramatized, but rather another piece of her multi-faceted personality.

From a visual standpoint, Euphoria is stunning. In every episode, each scene drifts between a gloomy storm cloud of reality and the extremist nostalgia of ‘90s MTV pop music videos. In episode one, main character Rue takes an unknown substance at a high school rager, and her mind quickly begins to unravel. The hallway literally begins to spin, with Rue unable to hold her balance as the ceiling falls under her feet and party goers stand upside down above her head. For the scene to be accomplished, a spinning hallway had to be constructed, with an entrance for the camera to follow Rue down the hallway and partygoer extras strapped to the spinning floor. The scene seemed like something out of Christopher Nolan’s Inception.

Sam Levinson concocted a cinematographic masterpiece with an everyday grounded tale about what teenagers get up to after dark. Euphoria is shocking, voyeuristic, and controversial, but it’s one of the rare instances where teens having sex and dropping molly on screen seems less taboo and more of a psychological autopsy of the modern teen generation.

Levinson is not pushing an obligation of fear onto the audience but allows viewers to form their own opinions. Yes, viewers should be shocked and disgusted. This is not a lighthearted show. It encourages examination, critique, and conversation.

Euphoria is a balance between an intellectual conversation on modern culture and a pleasing example of the ever-evolving subgenre of teen dramas. Euphoria is a comedy, a romance, a coming-of-age tale, and at moments a horror show. It shouldn’t be taken too lightly or too seriously. Euphoria should be taken as it is: a seemingly simple yet complex array of individual stories and perspectives.

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The Puberty Cinematic Universe

You love to hate to see it! // by Surina Belk-Gupta and Chloe Gibson, Contributing Writers

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rowing up, movies and TV shows were the older siblings we never had. When the words and wisdom of parents failed to guide us through the painful awkwardness of middle school, we instead turned to shows like Glee and Gossip Girl for answers. In a way, these shows helped us navigate the troubled waters of puberty, openly portraying everything from sex and drugs to bullying. But such topics were always explored at surface level. One of the failures of bullying as portrayed on Glee, for example, was that conflicts were often resolved through an elaborate dance routine or heartfelt ballad, neither of which felt directly applicable to my life.

Moreover, the actors portraying these characters were older than the characters they were playing, with a third of the core cast hitting their 30s before “graduating high school.” And never once did a character have a pimple.

More importantly, the media that middle schoolers are consuming today rarely portrays puberty as something socially awkward introverts experience; stories about people of color and LGBTQ+ kids are even rarer. Essentially, viewers didn’t see themselves in the shows they watched during puberty. Real kids are awkward, riddled with acne, and plastered with braces. Real kids are diverse and different from what is onscreen. Other issues, such as the trauma of sex and love, battling our own mental health, and debunking misconceptions about puberty, aren’t being discussed enough.

But good news! There are a few shows and movies out there that meet the mark when it comes to accurately representing puberty. Bo Burnham’s Eighth Grade is cringy to the extent of being hard to look at, but then again, so are eighth graders. The world of a modern day eighth grader is revealed to audiences through the eyes of Kayla, a shy and awkward fourteen-year-old girl trying desperately to find her voice in a very loud world. The film opens with a Youtube vlog in which Kayla offers “subscribers” (she has none) advice on self confidence, her words mimicking the tone of the same Youtube videos I remember intently watching at her age.

Though Kayla insists she is just as outgoing as her peers outside of school, she is awarded “most quiet” at school superlative day, much to her dismay. She is not so much bullied as ignored by her peers, floating through typical middle school interactions such as a painfully familiar end-of-the-year pool party practically unnoticed. Her social anxieties and desperate attempts to shake them away are both heartbreaking and relatable. We wish we had known there were other shy middle school girls out there during our own times as fourteen-year-olds.

Eighth Grade is an honest portrayal of puberty through and through, bringing us along for difficult conversations with Kayla’s dad, the horrifying realities of being a confused girl taken advantage of by a male peer, and the intertwining realities of social media. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and most certainly, you’ll cringe.

Big Mouth, too, rings true to the middle school experience. It is one of the bravest TV shows Netflix has ever done. Rather than focusing on a beautified and wholesome fictitious middle school reality, Big Mouth is an animated series that focuses very specifically on each and every awkward phase of puberty. The title sequence alone proves more visually gritty and educational than anything we ever learned in Sex Ed. Puberty is exposed as the horrific, confusing, magical, satanic, and disgusting process that it is.

Nothing is too personal, too real, or too graphic.

Using the medium of animation enables the show to go places and exaggerate experiences in a way that live action cannot. In one episode, Andrew, the protagonist, gets a boner, bringing with it a literal Armageddon that caves in the gym floor. It is this perfect balance of intense honesty and cartoon exaggeration that makes the show. Big Mouth works for the minds of both a terrified pubescent teen and an adult who has already gone through the horrors. While doing so, it provides unblinkingly funny humor that can only be found from shared trauma. It covers every variation of the puberty experience using a large cast of characters.

If Big Mouth is weird, then Pen15 is in a league of its own. This brilliantly bizarre Hulu show depicts two middle school girls, but here’s the twist: they are portrayed by full grown adults actors while the rest of the cast are actual middle schoolers.

In the same way that Big Mouth uses animation to be as graphic as necessary, Pen15 uses adults. This unique twist reminds viewers of the absurdity that is puberty. To expect an adult to undergo what 12 year olds have to endure seems preposterous. Yet, you will find yourself forgetting the age of the cast because the situations often reduce the full grown women to confused preteens. The show is similar to Eighth Grade in that it perfectly portrays middle school from the perspective of two introverted females. It also features one main character that is a person of color, allowing the show to capture the differences in puberty for a person of color in a predominantly white culture, something that can also be found in Big Mouth.

The show touches on so many intense and taboo topics while being absurd and hilarious beyond belief.

Watching it brings on the pit-in-the-stomach cringe that most of us felt all through middle school. Somehow while being such a ridiculous show it feels real enough at times to be a documentary, often hitting a little too close to home.

We feel it’s important to note what is lacking in our picks. Very few of our choices focus on people of color or tell LGBTQ+ stories. There is a noticeable lack of diversity in a lot of what we have chosen. The shows we have found are not necessarily diverse, and we feel fall flat in other areas. This observation is a combination of our need to continue the search for good puberty tales and our need for Hollywood to create them.

Surina Belk-Gupta and Chloe Gibson are first year Film, Photography & Visual Arts and Documentary Studies and Production majors, respectively, who were #NotMyRodrick stans. You can reach Surina and Chloe at sbelkgupta@ithaca.edu and cgibson@ithaca.edu respectively.

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buzzblowjobs (a braided essay) If you haven’t thrown neck in a high school bathroom, did you go to high school? It was junior year, and my actor boyfriend had to stay after school for rehearsal. In between the 2:20 p.m. bell and his 3:00 p.m. call, we saw ample opportunity for a brief and unfulfilling hookup. I met him backstage and we skirted off to the women’s bathroom (after I checked that it was empty of course). We shut the door of the stall and started going to town, only to be interrupted by someone looking to use the bathroom for the OTHER most common illicit reason: smoking weed. “Shit, is someone in the big stall?” the intruder asked her friend. I stayed silent knowing that my knees on the ground besides two oxfords were a dead giveaway that I was neither sobbing nor shitting.

It was a LONG day– and I was h*rny. I texted a guy I knew from a previous hookup on Snapchat and within minutes I was letting him into my dorm for a quick blowjob exchange before my favorite show came on at nine. We got right to it – just like the time before, and within seconds I was on my knees. And a couple minutes later we were making out on my bed. He laid gentle yet firm kisses on my neck and kissed me down my naked body until he got to my dick. He started giving me head, and I lay back enjoying it with a smile on my face. Now, THIS, was the type of letting go that I needed after a very long day.

With my eyes closed and a content half-sigh half-moan at the back of my throat, I heard a sound I wasn’t anticipating with someone sucking my dick; achoo! I looked down, and he was giving me the same look dogs give you when they pee in the house and they know they’ve fucked up.

It was a dark and stormy night except it wasn’t stormy and it was just dark. I was in the back of a car with a guy who was desperately trying to be my boyfriend. Things were going as well as a car hookup is able to go when my fellatio was interrupted by a flash of high-beams into our back window. I implored my FWB to throw the car into gear and drive away, but we were both h*rny and decided to stop along a different side street. Lo and behold, the same car rolled up and flashed its high beams. When it stopped behind us, we were fully convinced that our lovers lane escapade would end in a murder. I held my breath as the passengers in the lurking car got out, walked by our car, and opened the Pokemon Go app. They were literally just catching Pokemon at 2 a.m., and I was already crying because I wasn’t going to be murdered in my favorite outfit.

Cornell. Where nothing good happens. I had driven up for a late night rendezvous with a man I had spoken too, not met on a dating app. We hugged outside of his dorm, we scurried in, it was late– like 3:00 a.m.–and we knew what we were doing.

We got to it quickly, and after he licked my mouth instead of kissing me, we started giving each other head. Sucking his dick was no challenge, it was fairly average sized. He insisted that I finish first and after some pushback I accepted. When it was all said and done, as with all blowjobs that you give after you finish first– the sooner the better. However, in my post-coital ecstasy, my gag reflex had unbeknownst returned to the back of my mouth. What had seemed like quick work earlier, had become a belabored task and suddenly I was gagging while giving head. It’s fine! I thought. I was doing this earlier, no gag, no problem. However, after a few warning shots from my gag reflex, my stomach insisted that it was not playing games and with him still inside my mouth a bit of stomach acid rose to the back of my mouth. I could feel myself tense with shock and I quickly slurped it back down as I rose off him to take a minute to digest what had technically already been digested. I made sure he finished, but after learning my lesson– the gag reflex does not fuck around.

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Eat Your [Paper] Heart Out by: Chloe Gibson southern baptist cult school, third grade, 2009 you are submissive.

We had a guest speaker at chapel. The man (the speakers at chapel were always men) stood before us, an audience of ever trusting eight years olds, and asked for a female volunteer. A dozen fingertips reached up towards the sky in eager hopes of being called upon. Alas, a girl from the front row was selected and whisked up to stage, much to the envy of me and my female peers.

The speaker handed the girl a delicate paper heart, rigidly cut from a sheet of pink construction paper. He then instructed her to tear off a small piece of the heart and give it away to one of the boys in the audience. The girl continued handing out pieces to boys in the audience until the once delicate heart eventually amounted to nothing more than a scrap of paper. A male student was then plucked from the audience and designated the girl’s husband. In one final gesture of sexism disguised as a lesson in abstinence, the speaker instructed the girl to give her new husband the meager remains of the paper and tell him, “I love you with all my heart.” transfer student at cedar bluff, seventh grade, 2013 you are an object.

Making friends at a new school was hard. Early on, however, a male classmate befriended me, helping make the transition a bit easier. He showed me around the school, sat with me at lunch, and introduced me to teachers and students.

In the end, he was not my friend. I would later come to find that he was exploiting me day after day, sticking a phone in his shoe and strategically placing his feet beneath my legs to take pictures up my skirt. Rumors of the pictures later circulated upon their eventual discovery in high school two years later. My parents went to the school seeking justice, but alas, he was never reprimanded. He made an honest mistake; there was no need to destroy his future. a street in hardin valley, twelfth grade, 2019 you are a woman.

The end of my childhood was defined by one final betrayal of trust when a boy from work I had considered a friend of mine for several years reached out and grabbed my chest at a party. No one else in the room seemed to notice. Or at least, pretended not to notice. Embarrassed, helpless, I asked him to stop. He grabbed me by the waist and pulled me closer, refusing to let go. The world around me moved forward in a blur, leaving me behind. Unnoticed. Isolated. Utterly alone. I laughed it off. here’s what I know: I was born into a world that refuses to take me seriously simply because of my gender.

A world where my puberty was sexualized by society. A world where people justified a strict dress code as early as elementary school. A world where the man deserved a second chance, and I deserved no chance.

A world where I am a woman.

37

Missing

I was the captain of my ship.

I promised nothing to no one but the sea, kept my heart in my chest and my chest in my eternal grave.

You were a siren.

Your song captivating me until I could not read the stars above.

You cast me overboard with my crew while tempest waves crashed under a dead North Star.

Splintered the bow and tore my sails, you sunk my ship faster than I could drown.

My lungs filled with water just as the sun rose, but I could see nothing and feel nothing.

Now I am an anchor at the bottom of the sea, tied to nothing but an empty tomb in an endless trench.

by: Sarah Moon

38

I somehow appeared in a room some would call a Section 8 Hobbit Hole. It was compact, contained, cramped and, well...small. No matter how many times I’m there, it still manages to be peculiar. The room was so small you could fit a soda can between my head and the ceiling. If I stretched my arms out, they would touch the walls. Other than a small hole in the ceiling with dripping water from God knows where and landing on the floor in a strange, rhythmic fashion, there was something else off about the room. There was—I cannot stress enough how off-putting that this was in there—a TV on the wall.

To take my mind off my predicament, I decided to sit on the floor and watch the TV. As soon as the button on my back pocket tapped the floor. Snap. The TV turned on. I had no semblance of control nor understanding of what was happening, so I figured I might as well not think about it. However, things got radically odder once I saw what was on the screen.

It was me. I was sitting with my friends, talking, laughing, and chatting. I thought to myself: Look at that

idiot. What am I doing? What’s wrong with me? Why am I doing that?

I started to feel like Siskel and Ebert critiquing a shitty film performance by an atrocious actor.

“Look at this performer’s execution. It reeks of desperation, insecurity, and attention grabbing with nothing worthy of such actions. I absolutely agree, Roger, and that’s why we give this performance two thumbs down and two middle fingers up.”

And then Siskel and Ebert got a run for their money because as soon as I left the screen, the shot stayed on my friends and they said things like, “What an idiot. Why’s he like that?” and “What’s wrong with him?”

I couldn’t handle any more of my friend’s Statler and Waldorf schtick, so I took the remote right beside me and tried to change the channel. To be honest, a small part of me wanted to see if I could get Netflix to watch “The Crown.” I grabbed the remote and changed the channel but no Netflix. It was me again in a completely different scenario but still the same dissection and judgment of me. What was odd was that I had never heard of these conversations before now. It was as if they were rewrites to a script.

New lines for actors to try out to pack a punch for the audience.

I grew nauseated from watching my own foolishness and people’s view of my foolishness, so I tried to turn the TV off, but it didn’t work and I could still see those images of myself and hear the voices on a constant loop. I rose and ran to the door. I banged on it, yelling “GET ME OUT OF HERE.” Their voices and my thoughts grew louder and louder. “What’s wrong with him? What’s wrong with me? What an idiot.”

Then as the critiques gained volume, the dripping water from the ceiling turned into a rushing stream that flooded the entire room. The rising water captured my ankles then my legs. I still banged at the door hoping someone will let me out of this watery hellhole. The water reached high enough to traverse through my nasal passage. The air slowly, but surely, left the room and, more painfully, my body.

My breathing became more strained with every breath. I slowly closed my eyes and ultimately failed at keeping the water out of my lungs until I heard:

“Hey, Hey!”

“Yeah, what’s up?” The flooding water going in my nose transforms into the sweet aroma of my latte and croissant. I looked aroun. The baristas and the patrons went about their business.

“You okay? I was walking by and I saw you just sitting here doing nothing.”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I was just in my head. That’s all.”

“Ok. So I’ll see you at Lisa’s grad party in a few hours, right?”

“Yeah, I’ll be there.”

“Alright. Well, I gotta go get ready. See ya there.”

“Yea, See ya.”

Then I was back in that room.

Section 8 Hobbit Hole

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by: K.G. Frempah

The Girl From the Future

Like all good stories, mine began with a flash of light. I was sitting in my garage like usual, right? I was underneath a car, messing with it when it happened. The world disappeared, and all I could see was light. White took over my vision, flooding my eyes until I couldn’t see anything else. Wait, no, that’s not right. There were numbers. But I didn’t understand any of them. They ran through my vision like runners in a race, coming and going in an instant. 25, 42, 3.452212… As much as I tried to follow them, I couldn’t.

My chest hurt, a squeezing sensation; I couldn’t breathe. Time and space were being ripped apart for that brief second. I remember blinking, closing my eyes because my god—the combination of it all was too much.

And just like that, the car was above me once again.

“What the hell?” I whispered. I pushed myself out from under the vehicle and rose quickly to my feet. At first, nothing seemed out of place. I saw my cars, lined up like sentinels near the farthest wall. There were my tools and snacks for when I worked too long.

Now that I think about it, I shouldn’t have taken so long to notice the girl.

When I did see her, I screamed a little. She knelt on one knee like a superhero, in the center of a circle of glowing symbols I couldn’t read. She wore a skintight maroon suit with lining as purple as her short, straight hair.

“Hello?” I called. “Um, are you okay?”

I should have known something was wrong when she shot to her feet, eyes wide, her bronze skin shining with sweat. The circle around her feet disappeared. Her gaze landed on me as she ran toward me.

“What year is it?” she asked, panting.

“U-um, 2019.”

She let out a long breath. “Oh, thank all the stars.” She bowed her head, putting a hand on my shoulder. “You’re going to thank me later.”

“I’m sorry, am I allowed to ask any questions here?” I asked. “I feel like I just entered a sci-fi novel, and I’m not sure if—”

She stepped back. “Oh, sorry. Time Agent 1-Beta-Archive-17 at your service.” She stuck out her hand for me to shake it, like the babble she just spouted meant something.

“Brian,” I said dubiously, shaking her hand. “Um, where did you come from?”

She blinked, then said without hesitation, “That’s classified.”

I frowned. “By who?”

“The Sirius Agency. Wait, you don’t have them yet, do you?”

“No. How the hell did you get in the middle of my garage?” I asked louder and pointed to the spot on the floor where she appeared.

“Oh geez, that’s complicated.” She wiped a hand over her face and groaned. “Stars, I wasn’t supposed to get any witnesses.”

“Witnesses to what?”

“Never mind.” She walked toward the door. “What month is it?”

“September?”

She turned and smiled at me. Even then, it sent a shiver down my spine. I was so caught up in it. I almost didn’t hear her when she said, “If I played my cards right, I might just be able to save the world.”

That was the first time I ever met Andromeda.

by: KK Langford 40

A List of Things I’d Make My Bed For Grocery store aisles Squeaky clean idiots looking for some answers Weed and Pokemon Go A game that tears throats out Cinnamon sugar pita chips Conversations in between chewing According to you I hate my own hair Eye drops I’ll buy You look away Just a list A list of memories I’d set on fire And smother in bedsheets Imagining This relationship Was just me Making my bed

by: Ian Muollo 41

Love, Where are you going?

Stay a little longer Your nightgown flutters at your ankles like weak, broken-winged, white butterflies The blue roses on your gown’s collar prick with their thorns Your tousled chestnut hair bounces with ambivalence As the moon reflects its light against your lacquered nails, I see your hands quivering, just about to clutch the doorknob Right when you’re almost across the threshold, into the night’s vastness, you turn to face me A small smile, with a glimpse of hope in your eyes Love, you don’t have to tell me where you’re going, but at least promise me you’ll be back.

Love, Where Are You Going?

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by: Dariene Seifert

It’s a vicious cycle of wanting to fit in...wanting to stand out. Those arbitrary “rules of society” may try to force conformity, but you are a warrior. Just because you are shy about raising your hand in class doesn’t mean you don’t have ideas worthy of sharing. Your individuality may be temporarily stunned, but the spark is ignited. Your authenticity will shine through.

The notion of being “cool” may be tempting but the perception of what makes someone “cool” during middle and high school is overrated. Checking off an assignment on your to-do list days before it’s due is way cooler than stressing last minute. The television and other distractions can wait. Not your education.

All those years of studying will be worth it. Your diligence will be recognized.

You have earned every A+ because you worked for it. The sleep-deprived days filled with school, extracurriculars and homework challenged you, but ultimately taught you time-management and the importance of prioritizing sleep. Perseverance is trend-setting. Hard work is trend-setting. Dedication is trend-setting.

Appreciate the positive in each day. It might be overwhelming right now but be grateful for the opportunity to be busy. You are becoming stronger. You’re not supposed to know all the answers right now. Life is a constant learning experience. Stay focused on creating a fulfilling life but remember to live.

Younger by: Gabrielle Topping

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t

Fashion Cult Uncovered in

Local Mall

Stores across the country exposed while consumers seem unconcerned // by Christian Maitre, Contributing Writer

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haos has erupted in high fashion department stores across the country. Once revered fashion labels like Abercrombie and Fitch, Supreme and Nordstrom now run rampant with narcissistic, shopping addicted cult-like consumers that want nothing more than to parasitically worship these stores as their almighty father.

Abercrombie and Fitch appears to have been hit the hardest. What was once a revered member of the fashion industry, is now a Bridget-infested dumpster fire ruled fiercely by its cult leader Brittany Buys-A-Lot. Buzzsaw Magazine caught up with Buys-A-Lot to check in on the current status of the store.

“We are in the process of a consumer-friendly cleansing,” Buys-A-Lot said, who has started the new practice of eliminating employees she deems disloyal to the brand.

Numerous reports of employees being stripped of their jobs and brutally punished have surfaced following Brittany’s rise to power. Brittany was elected in a landslide victory with surprisingly zero opposition.

A common punishment for defectors is a process known as “body shaming.” This horrifying and cruel punishment is done by placing defectors in “the chamber of plus size”. This fabled chamber includes garments that were deemed too large to be put on shelves. Employees are stripped of their clothes and forced to wear plus size garments until they pledge their allegiance to Buys-A-Lot.

Buzzsaw reached out to Abercrombie and Fitch for a comment on why plus size garments were seemingly nonexistent on their shelves. They declined to comment.

Although disturbing, body shaming is not the cruelest form of punishment that can be inflicted upon employees.

Buzzsaw reached out to Tanner-Spraytan who was one of Brittany’s former cult members and employee that was banished for wearing socks and sandals.

“They like almost ripped my designer jeans,” Tanner Spraytan said, a former employee from Abercrombie and Fitch that was attacked by a crazed customer.

At the time of the interview, Tanner Spraytan was donning cargo pants and a lightly used Blink-182 tank top from the discount store as a symbol of the mortal sin he committed in the presence of his leader. To attempt to win back the favor of his former leader, Spraytan tattooed the words “Abercrombie and Fitch” on his chest.

Events like these aren’t exclusive to the Abercrombie and Fitch stores. As consumers’ insatiable lust to conform to societal norms and purchase new items rises, religious crusades of high-fashion brands only increase in their influence.

Although hope for high fashion seems bleak, this hasn’t stopped citizens across the country from coming up with solutions to the problem.

“Just consume less.” Bob Mc-Knows-A-Lot said, a social psychologist who has been working against the ravenous cult-members since the first incident of cult-like activity at a local H&M. Mc-Knows-A-Lot said that he believes the recent takeovers are a result of “The Rapture”: the inevitable destruction of the human race by God’s hand.

As numerous reports of violent uprisings in malls and outlet stores continue to pop up across the country, the future of consumerism in America continues to flourish.

Christian Maitre is a second year Journalism Major who wears better-looking cult merch than you do.

You can reach them at cmaitre@ithaca.edu.

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Marching Band Athletes Need Steroids Too

Transcribed speech from First Chair Trombonist to School Board by Sarah Borsari, Contributing Writer Parents, students, and members of the school board, I know the baseball team is here tonight to discuss the new field lights so I will try to keep it brief, but since you have stopped answering my emails and petitions, I am here to ask again. When are you going to name band a varsity sport?

Oh my muscles? Thank you for noticing. Yes they are natural, I guess I just lifted a lot of boxes at my summer job at the ice cream stand. Cones are heavy, you know. Plus, all of you are clearly underestimating how much work we do in the band. Okay, if you really want to know, I had a bit of assistance with these bad boys. I did a bit of doping on a family trip to the Jersey shore, but to be fair, its New Jersey, they practically pump it into the water supply. I also have been juicing consistently for the past couple months but I promise, its for the good of the band.

Think of how long I can hold out the notes on my trombone with guns like these. I’m going to be able to switch notes so fast the breeze is going to push the sheet music off the stands.

The guard girls should probably start doing it too. Then they could catch their triple spins, and we’d have less trumpet players out with concussions. Plus, you can’t deny the band the varsity jurisdiction we deserve after you see how shredded I am. I can’t wait to see how jealous all the football players will be after they see me in the field during halftime, with my muscles bulging out of my uniform. I wonder if my uniform is still going to fit now that I’m so jacked. The volunteer Moms are definitely going to have to size a new jacket for me.

They’re going to be so impressed with my muscles, even if Suzy from the flute section isn’t.

Who am I kidding? Suzy is going to love my muscles. She and I got really close when we took precalculus together last year. I would have made a move, but I was just waiting for the right time, y’know? Plus she was dating Luis, the french horn player from the track team.

Maybe I should join track, and get even more ripped. Probably not, that’ll take away too much of my Minecraft time. Maybe I will just switch to the tuba. That’s definitely a lot more work, and I would finally get a leg day in, since my arms are the only thing that’s getting a workout right now. Plus the only person that plays the tuba is Jenna, and she’s four feet tall, weighs less than her instrument, and passes out during every practice. Plus if I switched, I would be closer to Suzy’s section, and I could finally compliment her on how she matches her braces color to the season.

Plus I am easily the best looking guy in band. Johnny the saxophonist has gotten heavier, Andrew the clarinetist is breaking out so badly he’s practically oozing pus, and Marty the trumpet player, my main competitor, looks like he and his barber are in some kind of fight, which means I’m ready to claim my title as best looking band kid.

There have been some drawbacks to my new situation. It turns out that 30 year old uniforms and my now heavy sweating situation don’t mix very well. I had my Mom try to wash the smell out, but it won’t go away. I just hope Suzy doesn’t notice at practice today, otherwise I’ll miss my shot for good.

What’s that? Band is approved to be a varsity sport! Thank you so much. We’re getting new uniforms, a spot during the pep rally, and the best practice time in the field! Wow! The volunteer moms are going to be baking me cookies for months because of this! I’m sorry what else? We all have to perform mandatory varsity drug tests?

Crap.

Sarah Borsari is a first year Cinema and Photography major who advocates coating your mouthpieces and reeds with protein powder. You can reach them at sxaborsari@ithaca.edu.

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New Health Class Lesson Mandates Kids Witness the Death of a Terminally Ill Smoker Over Christmas Break Cancer-shaming reaches a new high // by Peter Tkaczyk, Contributing Writer

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his week, an exciting opportunity is emerging for our community’s young people. Students at Savannah Middle School will be participating in an ambitious project over winter break. As part of their Health class’ unit on the dangers of substance abuse, the school’s 6th grade student body will be witnessing the passing of a life prematurely ended by tobacco products.

Five candidates, who will be removed from life support or otherwise expected to die over the course of the last two weeks of December, have been selected from three hospitals in the region, and it is believed that they will meet the unique schedule and transportation availability of every student.

A child’s presence at one of the preapproved deaths can be verified with a simple sign-in, but if they know of another terminally ill smoker who might be more convenient or hold more sentimental value, they can use them by taking a picture with the smoker, either before or after death, and bringing a copy of the death certificate into class. Verification by an adult is not possible, as the visits are intended to be unsupervised, a move that has drawn some controversy.

“We believe that these students are fully capable of processing death on their own terms,” said Tod Newell, principal of Savannah Middle. “People underestimate kids. They don’t need an adult looking over their shoulder and pointing out every sign of the body shutting down, and we’re not going to patronize them. This exercise is about letting them draw their own conclusions.” In response to accusations that the assignment could be considered somewhat voyeuristic, Newell said, “You have to understand that these patients aren’t like those inspirational cancer patients you see in movies and occasionally donate money to. They have bad cancers, like lung or throat cancer, not good cancers, like breast or brain cancer. Their conditions were fully preventable, and if any of them were still fully cognizant, I’m sure they would recognize that using their deaths to help keep children from going down their paths is more than a worthwhile goal. We know that not all of our selected patients have a known history with tobacco products, but it is no longer possible to verify that with them.”

The Health teacher, Anne Stevenson, is very optimistic about the program. “I really can’t think of a better way to hammer home the messages of our drug unit,” she said. She expects it to be a significant improvement on last year’s program, when a homeless drug addict was brought into class in an attempt to convey a similar message. Unfortunately, this was considered a failure, as she was, quote, “too cool.” “As it turns out, Miss Skies was a little too charismatic and full of simple but far-reaching wisdom. I don’t think anyone could’ve predicted her forming a mentor bond with several students and helping them repair their messed-up home lives as part of a grand personal journey for all ages. Luckily, there shouldn’t be any risk of that happening this year.”

Of course, the assignment does not end with the vitation. When the students return in January, they are expected to bring a two-page paper in with them. Those from religious families are to speak with their parents about how their patients’ torment continues even after they passed on, and what form that hideous afterlife will take according to the tenets of their faith. Nonreligious students or students who would otherwise prefer not to discuss their spiritualities, can instead study their patient’s past and write their report on how and why all their friends and families inevitably abandoned them over the years.

“The important part,” Newell said, “is that they understand that not only will smoking destroy them, it will also destroy anything they could have left behind, however they choose to interpret that.”

Principal Newell stresses that the intention behind this assignment is not to instruct students on how to live their lives. “This is a school,” he said, “and this is an educational endeavor. Our goal is not to tell students what they can and can’t do; our goal is to give them all the facts. And the facts of the matter are that if they smoke, they will die, it will be their fault, and nobody will miss them after they’re gone.”

Peter Tkaczyk is a third year writing major who volunteers his time teaching youth how to ostracize and abandon their peers for smoking.

You can reach them at ptkaczyk@ithaca.edu.

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Groundbreaking Study on Adolescent Male Homo Sapiens Found field journals depict bizarre social behaviors // by Conor Cadigan, Contributing Writer In a strange coincidence with the submission cycle for the Puberty issue, Buzzsaw has come into the possession of a series of anthropological field journals. The location of their discovery has remained somewhat ambiguous, though it seems the author was conducting studies on early adolescent male bonding behaviors. Without wanting to misframe any more relevant information, we at Buzzsaw are happy to present the notable passages offered in these journals: Week One of the Study Seeking to further research any understanding of the adolescent male homo sapiens, I have decided the best course of action is a naturalistic study. For this study, I have scouted out a location known for its secrecy, a place long-theorized to be the ancestral temple of the adolescent: the locker room. After infiltrating such a place under cover of night, I have set up camp where I believe I will be hidden to prevent any interference during the study. This place also has the advantage of a clear line of sight to my subjects of study, despite some limited visibility due to the metal grating that comprises the door to my shelter.

Now hidden among them, I have been able to more closely observe their behaviors in a natural setting, something never before witnessed by any member of the scientific community. Though often willing to freely interact across their scouted territories, members of the adolescent homo sapiens display several curious territorial activities, such as scent marking by way of what appears to be an aerosol body spray. The traditional scent used to denote territory remains untranslated from their language but is best phonetically transcribed as “Aks.” Other territorial behavior can border on the hostile, including the shocking use of makeshift weaponry in the form of a wet towel, fashioned into a whip. This is a common tool used by the adolescent homo sapiens to assert dominance when two males come into territorial conflict.

Week Two of the Study As I approach week two of my study, I am starting to notice a fascinating hierarchical division among the members of the tribe. There seems to be a ritualistic distinction, perhaps some sort of show of physical prowess that determines hierarchy. From what I can tell, they make plentiful references to some form of foliage, which I have deciphered to be in some way involved with the ritual.

I believe, after a few more days of study, that this ritual is taking place beyond the limits of my hidden location. The ritual, I have determined, seems to take place in the showers, which are beyond my eyeline. However, I have decided to abandon my cover and attempt to blend in to their society in order to determine what this “bush ritual” is. I believe that I am correct in assuming that it is a rite of passage as well as the primary form of hierarchical determination.

Wish me luck.

Week Three of the Study I have seen things no one should be beholden to. I am concluding the study early for I’ve come to a different conclusion than originally anticipated: some habits of the early teen male should remain a secret.

Conor Cadigan is a freshman Film, Photography, and Visual Arts major who steals diaries from middle school locker rooms. You can reach them at ccadigan@ithaca.edu.

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Teachers and Students Agree:

Rusty, Unused Gym Class Showers

are a Great Place to Cry

There’s even a drain for the tears // by Sarah Moon, Contributing Writer

H

all monitors at Ithaca High School discovered why a suspicious number of students were lingering past the bell after gym class – they were crying in the showers.

The showers were originally installed for students to use after gym class and sports practices. However, student athletes choose to go home to shower. Students believe that a little deodorant and body spray will suffice after the “vigorous” activity of walking at a brisk pace after a ball for 40 minutes. So, the showers are not commonly used for their original purpose.

“Since we’ve run out of toilet paper, the corner of the shower curtain not covered in mold acts a great tissue,” said junior Sam Parke.

Initially, administration assumed the students were vaping, or using e-cigarettes, a common trend among the nation’s youth. But upon peeling back the shower curtain, they were shocked to find not just students, but even some teachers utilizing the stall as a private space. The administration was reportedly called to the men’s locker room first. Tensions were high as they had expected enough drug use to constitute a federal crime; instead, they found three students sitting in one stall together—holding hands and crying. In the adjacent stall was a lone crier in a fetal position, and next to him was an unnamed art teacher who was using his tears for a watercolor painting. Surprise quickly turned into disgust as the administration noticed the painful proximity of student faces to the grimy, unwashed shower floors.

I visited Ithaca High last Friday to get an in-depth look at this epidemic. Apparently, the busiest times of day for the showers are at 7:30 a.m. right before class begins, and then from noon to 1 p.m.. Teachers tend to utilize the showers around 10 a.m., particularly on Wednesdays, before their weekly staff meetings. At these busy times there is normally a line. Students try to enforce a three-minute rule during peak use.

“It helps me focus during the day,” said freshman Nick Baron. “I heard about the showers through a senior in my study hall and I thought it was just a joke, but then I saw them. The showers, I mean. They’re magnificent. There’s something about watching my tears moving through the cracks in the linoleum that just gets me. I just need a good cry to start my day.”

“It’s cheaper than therapy,” said calculus teacher Aaron Jackkson. “There’s something calming about the mildew smell. It reminds me of my grandma’s wardrobe where I used to hide as a kid.”

When asked about this issue, the principal of Ithaca High School declined to comment further than, “Gym class? Did you mean physical education?”

The hall monitors have their own plans to stop the shower usage. They have been posting signs inside the showers claiming the presence of various strains of flesh-eating bacteria and attempting to Duct Tape the shower curtains shut. After the first day of this, however, the hall monitors found that their tactics had the opposite of their desired effect. They found the tape had been cut through and even more students occupied the stalls. They found one stall in the women’s locker room with five girls crammed inside holding a prayer circle for “the flesh-eating bacteria to claim them” so they didn’t have to go to class. The signs were removed the following day.

It seems the administration is unequipped to handle such an issue at this time. It is unclear if the showers themselves will need to be removed, and if doing so will push the students to find new places o inhabit.

Sarah Moon is a second year writing major who whispers secrets to the clown in her shower drain instead of seeking therapy. You can reach them at smoon1@ithaca.edu.

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buzzsaw asks why... we’re born hairless and useless unlike all the other animals?

Listen, I’m not here to blame the mothers. Switching to two-legged birth did nothing to make it easier on them. But genuinely, have you ever considered how much easier it would have been if we had popped out of the womb post-puberty?

Already hairy, sentient, smelly, and ready to go? It would’ve saved me a lot of therapy, and probably you too.

Whether you’re the sort of schmuck who likes to blame god or evolution, it doesn’t matter. We were still born stupid and crying and we still have to live with the consequences.

We wouldn’t have even needed to be born ready to enter ninth grade, just eighth. By the time we could actually form coherent memories, we’d be 14 years old. We’d be closer to being able to vote. We’d be closer to being recognized as autonomous humans with rights of our own. Horribly long gestation period for mothers, but consider: we could exclusively produce offspring via test tube.

We’d miss childhood, which for all you Peter-Panners might be a rough trip. Still, fuck childhood. If we get rid of that period in our lives where we contributed nothing to media literacy, we might actually rebel against the capitalist system faster and more efficiently, replacing the US with a landmass of freshly post-adolescent tube-babies ready to rebuild.

Send me the name of a scientist willing to fuck up humanity and I’ll see that you get your own personal Walmart to raid in our country’s looming period of apocalyptic government collapse.

Your Editor in Advocating for Government Takedown, Isabel Murray

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love, Buzzsaw

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