A fan of the late Kobe Bryant gathered outside of the Staples Center while his memorial was being held inside. Kobe Bryant played for the Los Angeles Lakers for 20 seasons from 1996-2016. Bryant passed away during a helicopter accident on Janurary 26, 2020 at the age of 41, along with his daughter Gianna Bryant who was 13 and 7 other passengers. In Los Angeles, California. February 24, 2020. (Fernando Duran/The Corsair)
We live in the Age of Information. Since the rise of the internet and smartphones, search engines and Siri, virtually all of the public knowledge in the world can be accessed in a matter of seconds. However, does quantity of information equate to quality? If we’re talking about dictionary entries or statistical evidence, maybe. But, when it comes to social media and all of the millions of accounts from around the world, I would err on the side of “maybe not.” Social media can be powerful. Digital platforms can spread information far quicker than word of mouth or printed newspapers. But, with great power comes great responsibility. When you think of the two billion people worldwide that use social media daily, a handful or two of them are bound to be irresponsible. And, it only takes one spark to start a wildfire. Media literacy - or the ability to critically evaluate media - has been a necessity for decades, and the connectivity and anonymity that comes with social media has only elevated the need for media comprehension. It only takes a few dollars and some decent graphic design skills to convince others of your journalistic integrity, and while we cannot stop people from speaking, we can improve our ability to gauge the reliability of their words. No amount of manipulation or fear-mongering by online media outlets - or Twitter users, for that matter - can excuse the lack of responsibility that we as consumers take on. At the end of the day, we are responsible for the media we choose to consume. Just two months into 2020, the internet is already overwhelmed with conspiracies, theories, fears, and everything in-between regarding the year’s most pressing news stories. Of the many breaking news stories that have encouraged Twitter and Facebook users alike to furiously type on their keyboards, the coronavirus outbreak has been a constant source of chaos online - and in the real world - since its beginnings on Dec. 31, 2019. Amidst the international health crisis, that has killed nearly 3,000 and infected roughly 77,000 people as of Feb. 23, the World Health Organization (WHO) has begun putting their efforts toward protecting the public from dangerous misinformation, which was being spread by the public. With an epidemic of this calibre quickly infecting thousands across Asia, health officials should be able to put their full attention toward the virus itself, and not the side effects of online fear-mongering. Likewise, it should come as no surprise that massive manipulation via social media would be particularly evident during an election year. With Super Tuesday next week and the November Presidential Election quickly approaching, opinionated citizens are wasting no time in publishing their hot new takes, entirely fabricated rumors, and subtle threats against potential candidates. We need some sort of immunization for misinformation, but the WHO seems to have their hands full right now with combating coronavirus. And censorship conducted by Facebook and other platforms can only eliminate so much content. It’s up to us citizens to fight off the infectious intrigue of headlines chock full of flashy adjectives and exaggerated statistics. People tend to overlook just how much a shift in power at the top can trickle down and impact the dayto-day lives of those in and outside of the United States. Considering our campus alone, funding for SMC’s professors, resources, even the maintenance of our campus are all in the hands of elected officials. So, instead of allowing the angriest, the loudest, or the ones with the most followers to dictate your news intake, try filtering through media before you take everything you read as truth. It’s really quite simple: double check your sources. Be wary of alarmist headlines. And if you identify with the demographic of people who find themselves particularly vulnerable to clickbait, maybe step away from your screens and go grab a copy of “The Corsair” newspaper instead.
NEWS
Super Tuesday Fast Approaches For Remaining Democrats Jack Hughes | Managing Editor One of the biggest days of the 2020 primary election looms over the remaining Democrats competing for the presidential nomination. On Tuesday, Mar. 3, 14 states will vote to select the Democratic nominee for the upcoming battle with President Donald Trump on Nov. 3. More delegates can be won next Tuesday than on any other single day of the campaign trail. Among the states holding their primary are Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and Virginia. More than 33% of the nationwide delegates will
be assigned. As it stands, Bernie Sanders is the frontrunner with 43 delegates, but Pete Buttigeig, Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren, and Amy Klobuchar are following behind with 26, 13, 8, and 7 respectively according to a Feb. 25 update from the Associated Press. 1,991 delegates are needed to win the nomination, and 1,344 will be allocated on Tuesday. A variety of polls from RealClearPolitics project Sanders to win the day, taking a majority of the votes in his home state of Vermont (23 delegates), and the two major juggernauts of Texas (251 delegates) and California (416 delegates) among others. Biden, Buttigeig and Mike Bloomberg are also expected to win delegates according to the Feb. 24 poll update.
Warren has also fought her way back into the spotlight with her aggressive statements against Bloomberg on the debate stage last Wednesday. She attacked his alleged history of misogyny, saying “I’d like to talk about who we’re running against, a billionaire who calls women ‘fat broads’ and ‘horse-faced lesbians.’ I’m not talking about Donald Trump. I’m talking about Mayor Bloomberg.” She has since boasted of a dramatic explosion in donations on twitter, raising 6 million in the 24 hours following the debate. Despite this, Warren currently does not poll above the 15% minimum threshold to win delegates. The current projections are expected to change slightly following the debate yesterday evening in South Carolina, which marked
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the last before the pivotal election day. South Carolina’s primary election will be held on Sunday, Feb. 29, where RealClearPolitics believes Sanders has recently gained an advantage over long-time state frontrunner Biden, although the margin remains small. Californians can vote at any of the thousands of polling centers around the state on or before Mar. 3. They can also vote by mail, as long as their ballot is postmarked before the deadline. Santa Monica College (SMC) will have a booth open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Feb. 29, Mar. 1, Mar. 2, and Mar. 3 for students and anybody else hoping to cast their ballot.
Terms to Know: the Coronavirus Outbreak Drew Andersen | Staff Writer The glossary of the coronavirus provides basic terminology that helps define the dynamics of what may prove to be the 21st century’s first global pandemic of a disease for which to date there is no known cure. Airborne Transmission occurs when infectious agents are carried in the air. Direct contact is not necessary for spreading the disease. Infection may be transmitted by droplets spread across long distances by
coughing and sneezing. Asymptomatic refers to a person who doesn’t appear to have symptoms. This phenomenon increases the difficulty in the diagnosis, treatment, recovery and quarantine. New evidence demonstrates that many people who are infected are considered asymptomatic which makes tracking transmission more difficult as they appear to not have symptoms. Black Swan is an unpredictable event that is beyond what is normally expected of a situation and has potentially severe consequences. Events can cause catastrophic damage to an economy. Reliance on standard forecasting tools can both fail to predict and potentially increase vulnerability to black swans by propagating risk and offering false security. Bats are suspected to be viral hosts that infect animals like pangolins, suspected of coronavirus spillover transmission to human hosts. China’s open air markets have live wild and domestic animals exposed to viruses
transmitted by bats in areas where the wild or farm animals originated. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention aka CDC serves as the United State’s health protection agency that conducts research into disease outbreaks. Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a virus that broke out in China but has spread internationally, including to the United States. A protein—ACE-2 —is found on respiratory cells serves as an entry point for the COVID19 virus. “This virus has literally only existed on planet Earth in humans for maybe two months,” said Kenneth T. Cuccinelli, the acting deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Coronavirus symptoms include flu-like symptoms (head and muscle aches, sore throat, runny nose, coughing) and is capable of causing respiratory distress, pneumonia and potentially death. Symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as long as fourteen days after exposure. The viral infection enters the lungs, irritates alveoli, the tiny sacs that exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide molecules to and from the bloodstream. Alveoli reacts to the virus by filling with fluid causing the infected person to die of respiratory failure. Coronvirus Treatment currently does not exist to the public. There are no vaccines or antiviral drugs to prevent or treat human coronavirus infections (COVID-19).
Epidemic is a rapid spread of infectious disease to a large number of people in a given population within a short period of time, usually two weeks or less. Disease outbreak is concentrated in a limited region. Pandemic is the worldwide spread of a disease and affects an exceptionally high proportion of the population.The CDC is “preparing as if this is the next pandemic. If we take strong measures now, we may be able to blunt the impact of the coronavirus on the United States,” said Nancy Messonnier, MD. Director, CDC. Pagolins are the most heavily trafficked animals on Earth, for both their scales and their meat. Sold in Wuhan where the epidemic started. Panic is the psychological vulnerability of people to interpret new phenomena in a catastrophic way. Panic in social psychology is considered infectious since it can spread to a multitude of people and those affected are expected to act irrationally as a consequence. Quarantine separates and restricts the movement of people who were exposed to a contagious disease to see if they become sick. This is a restriction on the movement of people to prevent the spread of disease. People may be kept in confinement or isolated in an effort to prevent disease from spreading. Quarantine in People Republic of China (PRC): Chinese authorities moved to round up all who might be sick. Entire sections of Wuhan, China—the Coronavirus epicenter— are segregated by armed police perimeters.
People living there are isolated and sealed off from outside resources—food, medical aid— and expected to remain indoors pending being declared virus-free by Chinese authorities. World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that is concerned with world public health. WHO was given a broad mandate under its constitution to promote the attainment of “the highest possible level of health” by all peoples. They are active with their global resources to manage and contain the coronavirus in China. WHO renamed the coronavirus to COVID-19.
Illustration by Drew Andersen
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NEWS
Coronavirus Causes Travel Restrictions For SMC Students
Aleah Antonio | News Editor Prior to the start of the Spring semester, the International Education Center (IEC) of Santa Monica College (SMC) received approximately 169 emails from Chinese students whose recent travels to China inhibited them from returning in time for their classes. President Donald Trump enlisted a 14-day travel restriction to those who have traveled to the People’s Republic of China due to the heightening coronavirus CO-VID19. As of Feb. 20, approximately 30 of these students returned to the United States, but many have yet to come back, let alone give a response. “The last few weeks have been almost entirely focused on this one issue,” said Pressian Nikolav, Dean of International Education at SMC. “We’ve tried to smooth the administrative bumps that the students will encounter on their way back in.” The travel restrictions on China went into effect on Feb. 2, two weeks before the start of the Spring semester. Anyone who traveled from the United States to the Hubei province of China within two weeks prior to Feb. 2 is subject to a mandatory 14-day quarantine. Those who traveled to anywhere
else in Mainland China are subject to a selfquarantine of 14 days (including monitoring health and limiting interaction, according to the California Department of Public Health), including a health screening at various ports of entry. The IEC offered alternatives to students who are unable to travel back in time. These options include enrollment in online classes and late registration for 12-week or 8-week courses. The IEC also communicated with professors and counselors, encouraging flexibility for those students who return a few days late into the class schedule. Additionally, they are working on an expedited refunding process in which students are able to receive any tuition or insurance refunds as soon as possible. “There was a sizable number [of students] that didn’t respond… potentially they could be here, potentially they could not,” said Nikolav. “Of the known responses, most of them made a selection, they just didn’t tell us.” According to Catherine Weir, Director of International Development for the IEC, about 40 students decided to stay in China and take online classes, with the intention of returning for the Fall 2020 semester, and
around 50 students chose to start the semester late. About 30 students indicated they were attempting to travel back to the United States via another country, in which 27 of them were successful. “We’ve been communicating with the core 169 [students], that number has grown a little bit from the initial response but we’re kind of settled at that number,” said Nikolav. “We’re fairly certain that that’s the number that has been impacted, and that everyone else has already come back or was already here.” International students with the F-1 visa have a limit of the amount of credits they can earn through online classes. F-1 students must be enrolled as a full-time student and may only take one online class a semester, in which the rest of their classes must be on-ground. If F-1 students are unable to complete their programs by the date indicated on their I-20 form, they must apply for a program extension. The IEC is working with the Student and Exchange Visitor Education System (SEVIS), the electronic system of maintaining information on international students, for those who cannot remain enrolled full time for the semester. This would require deactivation
of their records through termination due to authorized early withdrawal, in which the student would no longer maintain their F-1 status. In the event that the government lifts travel restrictions between China and the United States, the IEC would work with SEVIS to reactivate their records. “[The students’] academic success is inherently tied to their mental health and physical health… There’s a lot of personal suffering involved with them and their families. When you layer that with immigration issues and missing classes, and many obviously have apartments that they still have to pay for, it’s a big burden on them,” said Nikolav. “It’s our job to ease their return as much as possible.” “We really want to protect these students,” said Weir. “I’m also Chinese and I speak the language. Other than what we do professionally… we’re looking at how students are being affected as a real human issue, not just taking care of immigration.” This is a part of an ongoing report on how coronavirus affects international students at SMC. The Corsair did not receive responses in attempts at contacting Chinese international students involved with this issue.
students.” Yearly, the SMC Foundation donates three to five hundred meals that are distributed to SMC’s food pantry on the main campus as well as CMD. Low-income students receive food vouchers from counselors that can be exchanged for these meals. SMC is partnered with Santa Monica Westside Legacy Fund, who accounts for ten thousand meals per year to help with the food pantries. In addition, SMC is also united with a campaign called “Feed Their Dream,” who raised 150,000 dollars to assist the food pantries for Santa Monica Students. The goal is to remove barriers for students. The Everytable lounge is a solution to a year-long struggle of finding vendors suitable for CMD’s campus. SMC’s College (Operational) Planning Committee originally planned for vendor selections in February 2018, but was never established. “Since we opened CMD we have been trying to provide food-service on campus for our students… something beyond the food trucks on the streets. We wanted... something affordable, nutritious, and easy for students to access… and Everytable lounge checks all those boxes because it’s fresh everyday,” said SMC superintendent Kathryn Jeffery. SMC’s partnership with various companies will contribute not only
to students, but to the surrounding Santa Monica area as well. “The students actually designed the space at the CMD campus while Everytable put the ideas into transformation and placed them into reality,” said Jeffery.
A Fresh Take on School Lunch At SMC’s Center for Media and Design
An Everytable associate helps students during the Everytable grand opening at Santa Monica College Center for Media and Deisgn on Tues., Febraury 25, 2020 in Santa Monica, California. (Valentin Contreras / The Corsair)
Jessica Harper and Kassandra Alvarez | Staff Writers The Everytable-SmartFridge lounge is officially open. This first location is at the Center for Media and Design (CMD) at Santa Monica College (SMC). Sam Polk is the creator of the Everytable company. The goal is to bring healthy accessible food for everyone that is open to the public. The prices range from two to eight dollars. Although this is the first store to directly impact students, Polk hopes to
make Everytable accessible to college campuses within the Los Angeles area. “The idea that students are trying to make a better life for themselves and figure out their careers and do the hard work without basic needs, support of fresh food, and housing: it’s too hard. We want to make a system to support people trying to make their lives better,” said Polk. Lizzy Moore, who works for SMC Foundation, and is the SMC Interim Dean of Institutional Advancement, says “I saw an opportunity with Everytable and for our
Students wait in line for free samples during the Everytable grand opening at Santa Monica College Center for Media and Design on Tues., February 25, 2020 in Santa Monica, California (Valentin Contreras / The Corsair)
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Fans of the late Kobe Bryant riding around in a custom bus that was dedicated to Kobe Bryant, his daughter, and the seven others who passed away in a helicopter accident. The fans rode around the area surrounding Staples Center while his memorial was being held inside in Los Angeles, California on Feb. 24, 2020. (Fernando Duran / The Corsair)
A City’s Thanks To Kobe
Cheryl Logan, a Laker fan since 1984, holds a prop frame wearing Kobe sports apparel across the street from the Staples Center. Logan said she couldn’t get tickets but drove two and a half hours anyway to be there. In Los Angeles, California on February 24, 2020. (Paris Wise / The Corsair)
Raul Celaya and Lioness Saxa watching a stream of the Kobe Bryant memorial service outside of LA Live in downtown LA. The service was not displayed outside on the big screens, but fans streamed it from mobile devices. (Maxim Elramsisy / The Corsair)
Fans packed the streets outside Staples Center, following the conclusion of Kobe and Gianna Bryant’s memorial. Los Angeles, California. February 24, 2020. (James Shippy / The Corsair)
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“We’re winning big. We’re winning, winning, winning.”
Donald Trump Jr. greets supporters of President Donald Trump before he speaks at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2020, in Phoenix, Ariz. (Yasamin Jafari Tehrani / The Corsair)
Attendees walk through the crowd at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2020, in Phoenix, Ariz. (Yasamin Jafari Tehr
Trump Rallys in Phoenix
“We will make America proud again. We will make America safe again, and we will make America great again.” Arizona Republican party chairwoman, Kelli Ward, meets supporters of President Donald Trump at a campaign event for his re-election, at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Arizona, on Wednesday, February 19th 2020. (Marco Pallotti / The Corsair)
President Donald T Ariz. (Yasamin Jafa
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Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2020, in Phoenix, ari Tehrani / The Corsair)
(Above) Supporters of President Donald Trump await his arrival at a campaign event for his reelection, at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Arizona, on Wednesday, February 19th 2020. (Marco Pallotti / The Corsair) (Below) Supporters of President Donald Trump pray as they await his arrival at a campaign event for his re-election, at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Arizona, on Wednesday, February 19th 2020. (Marco Pallotti / The Corsair)
“We’ve been killing terrorists, creating jobs, raising wages, enacting fair trade deals, securing our border, and lifting up citizens of every race, color, religion, and creed.”
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ENTERTAINMENT
A Warrior Who Fought With Her Words: Toni Morrison
Tatiana Louder | Culture Editor A collage is used to show the metamorphosis of the late Toni Morrison’s physical self, from refined young, striking beauty to gorgeous, giggling gray-haired matriarch. The way her collage-like Black Book s erved as a shocking, artfully true compilation of American blackness,the documentary The Pieces I Am is just as true for the writer’s life. Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison is famed for telling truths in classics such as Beloved and Sula, utilizing her experience navigating through life as a black woman. The documentary screened Thursday, February 20, in the Santa Monica College (SMC) Student Services Orientation Hall in Santa Monica. It was presented by California poets Bridgette Robinson and Will Doucet. “It is a privilege and an honor to be asked to be here and share thoughts on Toni Morrison,” said Doucet in introduction to the film. “For me, Toni Morrison, the richness of her imagery, the depth of the storytelling. She just really seemed to capture my life, the lives of people I knew. There is such a
love for language in the work, and a love for black people in the work. That- in high school, Shakespeare was my favorite writer. I thought there is the pinnacle of the English language. But I have not thought that since reading Toni Morrison, who I still see as the pinnacle of English language literature.” Those interviewed in the film, from Oprah Winfrey to Angela Davis, shared a similar allegiance in their voices for Morrison. She ruled Oprah’s book club. “I chose four of her books,” Oprah can be quoted saying in the film. “I wanted the world, as many people who could hear my voice, to understand the importance of her work.” Poet Sonia Sanchez adds, “You should re-read Toni Morrison every 10 or 15 years because… we have to reimagine ourselves on this American landscape. You won’t survive if you don’t do that.” In the documentary, interviews with the writer span decades, and she is transparent about everything: “being loose” in college, the true difficulties of single motherhood, and even the profound loss of her father and how it inspired her third novel, S ong of Solomon. The two and a half hours of the film felt like chatting with a good old friend.
Morrison humbly tells the story of growing up in Lorain, Ohio, discovering the power of words and herself, all while blackness found its power in America. Far ahead of her time, Morrison was often the only woman or only person of color in her workplaces. Morrison doesn’t deny being marginalized, but she hardly waved a flag of triumph for the feat. She remarked, “Navigating a white male world wasn’t threatening. It wasn’t even interesting.” While Morrison was proud to be a black writer, the film notes, she was often accused of writing only for blacks. She answers this accusation when she reads from Song of Solomonin the film, and, as Milkman, shouts, “you want me? Huh? You want my life? Life, life, life, life.” Remaining true to the writer, the film shows that Morrison wrote for life,not race, but she didn’t shy away from race either. The Bluest Eye, Morrison’s first novel, has faced bans in US school districts recently. Buncombe County, North Carolina and North Hills, Michigan both threatened to remove it from the syllabus in the last three years. The novel spotlights three black little girls and the lifestyles they carry as
soon-to-be black women in Depression-era America. The documentary states it was the first novel to address racism from the perspective of the internal pain it inflicts on children. Morrison’s death in 2019 struck readers, super-fans, and close friends alike.“It seemed very poetic that this really great work would be released by some of her most intimate friends in tribute to her shortly before she passes,” said Robinson. Morrison’s influence often stretched deeply into her readers. Robinson added “I attended Howard university because of Toni Morrison. I read her books in high school and college, that changed who I was as a writer. So, I think that we are all owing a debt to the legacy of Toni Morrison.... and what she ushered into the literary space.” In honor of Black History Month, the Black Collegians will also be presenting AND iDANCED on Wednesday, February 26 and T rue Justice: Bryan Stevenson’s Fight for Equalityon Thursday, February 27 in the Student Services Orientation Hall. For more information on the upcoming screenings, visit smc.edu/StudentServices/BlackCollegians/.
Michelangelo: Mind of the Master Exhibition at the Getty Center Marco Pallotti | Photo Editor Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564), was an influential artist during the Italian Renaissance, and a new exhibition at the Getty Center -- “Michelangelo: Mind of the Master” -- brings together over 28 of his drawings, many of which have never been seen outside of Europe.
Attendees at the Getty’s “Michelangelo: Mind of the Master Exhibition” examine one of the drawings on show. Los Angeles, Calif., Feb. 24, 2020. (Marco Pallotti / The Corsair) (Marco Pallotti / The Corsair)
A new exhibition at the Getty Center, “Michelangelo: Mind of the Master”, opened on Tuesday, Feb. 24. It was organized by the Getty in conjunction with the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Teylers Museum based in Haarlem, Netherlands. Upon entering the exhibition, the lit pedestal displays illuminated the drawings in an otherwise dark room. Many of the double-sided displays are placed above freestanding pedestals throughout the room, effectively showcasing the beauty and genius of Michelangelo’s work. The exhibition cohesively captured Michelangelo’s essence, however there were a few pieces in particular that really stood out. The intricately composed The Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist, reveals the artist’s devotion to his craft. Additionally, an architectural drawing of a section through the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica shows the quality of the master’s draughtsmanship, even when not rendering the human form. In the last room, wall-sized copies of the Creation of Adam and The Last Judgment, originally from the Sistine Chapel, demonstrate Michelangelo’s command of his craft on a large scale. The sheer majesty of these large images communicates to the viewer what words could not. It’s believed Michelangelo drew pro-
Attendees at the Getty’s “Michelangelo: Mind of the Master Exhibition” examine one of the drawings on show. Los Angeles, Calif., Feb. 24, 2020. (Marco Pallotti / The Corsair)
lifically, however, he burned many of his drawings throughout his life. Analysis included at the Getty exhibit poses the possibility that he did this because he was distrustful of his rivals and colleagues, and didn’t want his ideas stolen. When he died, only a few drawings were found in his home, locked in a wooden chest, protected by wax seals. More were found
at his other home in Florence but the number of drawings that survived are but a fraction of his original output. Seeing so many of his drawings in one place, and displayed so creatively, is a truly unique experience. The exhibition will be open to the public through June 7 at the Getty Center.
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Vanity’s Fairest At Their Finest Tatiana Louder | Staff Writer Whoopi Goldberg is bathing in milk right next to late comedian Richard Pryor, the priest. A little to the right is actress Ali Wong as Marie Antoinette. Welcome to Vanity Fair: Hollywood Calling – The Stars, the Parties, and the Powerbrokers. Beginning Feb. 8, the photography exhibition is hosted by the Annenberg Space for Photography in Century City. Vanity Fair: Hollywood Calling is curated by David Friend, creative development editor for Vanity Fair, and Susan White, former director Susan White. In the jazz era, Vanity Fair made the switch from using art illustrations for its magazine covers to using contemporary photography. With the constant threat of print becoming as obsolete as payphones, Annenberg Space Education Coordinator Kimberly Forbes notes the importance of collectible hard copies of art photography to make American entertainment culture tangible.
Attendees examine a historic archive of Vanity Fair’s previous issues during the “Vanity Fair: Hollywood Calling” exhibition at the Annenberg Space For Photography (Anthony Mayen / The Corsair)
“It’s a marriage of everything...It’s almost romantic in a way. It’s as if somebody wrote you a handwritten note. You just go oh my god, you actually took the time to do that? There’s something so nostalgic and romantic about it.” Forbes said. The documentary-portion at the exhibition chronicles celebrity photography from the time of prohibition-era Hollywood glamour shots to the 2020 Academy Award panorama photo that graced the cover of Vanity Fair this Oscars season. Like a blockbuster film release, timing was crucial. “The end all to be all is to be seen, and to be known, at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party,” Forbes says. “Everybody waits for the pictures from this party, basically. To see what are they wearing, who are they with, the winners on the red carpet with their actual Oscars. What the Met gala is to the fashion world, the Vanity Fair Oscar Party is to the entertainment industry.” The publication has shaped American arts culture and cover story photography for nearly a century for Angelenos; it all happened a dart’s throw away. This year’s Hollywood issue featured a panorama of famous faces as various characters in an avant-garde desert road trip. Their destination is, of course, Hollywood. Willem Defoe was a Wiley tractor driver, Laura Dern portrayed a Beverly Hills mom who crashed her Escalade into an electricity pole. The artists of the piece channeled people not poses. Photography phenomenon Ethan James Green captured the piece. The exhibition features iconic moments from Vanity Fair’s past and present, such as a nude, pregnant Demi Moore that changed the way America viewed expecting women. As for the tub of Goldberg and milk, photographed by Annie Leibovitz in 1984, “Whoopi Goldberg’s photo is based on her character [from her broadway show] of a little girl that wants so desperately to be white that she starts to put bleach on her skin,” Forbes said.” It’s taking you through this little brown
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girl that’s living in a white world.” Always one to make statements, the magazine changed history with its spread of the Black Panther Cast in time for the 2019 Oscar season. Its inclusion of artists of color in recent years has been key in supporting the diversity that’s been taking the big screen. As an art collection, the exhibition achieves what magazine photos sometimes cannot: intimacy. “Seeing a picture of a celebrity in a magazine is one thing,” says Jayse Rednour, a guest services agent of the museum. “In the space...the photos are blown up...you’re face to face with them, and you connect on a deeper level.” Rednour is the photographer for the guest experience that allows visitors to the space to pose a la Vanity Fair themselves. No pressure. After taking the photo, users are given the option to email it to themselves or share it to social media. Andy Warhol’s “famous for 15 minutes” future is here as promised.
Attendees examine photographic highlights of Vanity Fair’s previous issues during the “Vanity Fair: Hollywood Calling” exhibition at the Annenberg Space For Photography (Anthony Mayen / The Corsair)
By Black Feminists, For Black Feminists Tyesa Harvey | Staff Writer In an old building in downtown Los Angeles, California on February 21, 2020 members of the PSL (Party for Socialism and Liberation) gathered together and chattered before the beginning of the black history workshop. There are pictures set up around the room of iconic black figures: Assata Shakur, Claudia Jones, Nina Simone, Audrey Lorde, and Malcolm X. Suddenly, the room is silenced by the loud banging of drums. Nina Simone’s voice bleeds over the quiet with her “Strange Fruit”. The attention of the room is now on the assembly. “Do you know who this is?” A voice from behind the room shouts. This was the first time the question was asked that evening, but it wasn’t the last. As a picture of each woman fills a projection screen the room is left in a short reflection of the description of each activist, and the audience is left on the edge of their seats. The night continued with a timeline of the impact of black feminism in the United States and internationally. Kayla Hewitt, keynote speaker of the evening, educated audiences on abolitionist Sojourner Truth
and her journey as she fought for freedom, women’s rights and black liberation. Working her way through the timeline, Hewitt also discussed the disconnect of black women from their bodies throughout time as they were often used as “factories” to make labor and reproduce more free labor. The timeline also touched on the intersectionality that affects black women in their search of their identity and place in society. For example, in the late 1800’s, white women fought to work outside of the home as black women fought to work less for more, since they had already been working hard for nothing. Hewitt closed with a little-known fact about Rosa Parks’ fight for liberation: Claudette Colvin, who was 15 years old and
9-months pregnant in 1955 when refused to give up her seat to a white person, performed her act of civil disobedience before Parks. Her story remained untold because the NAACP didn’t feel as though an unwed teenage mother would be suitable for their part of the movement. Hewitt also broke down the broadness of the phrase black feminism. “Black feminism has encompassed a variety of perspectives. A large number of them utilize class consciousness and socialist threads to analyze the place of black feminism both as identity and as workers, and while this specific intersection of class, race, and gender shape and affect the lives of black women and their place in society.” Though it is a term that casts a wide net, many historical figures fall
under it. This includes Claudia Jones, a Tranidadian activist who was the leading member of the Communist Party of the United States of America and whose core values were the liberation of black people and women alike. Civil rights activist and legendary pianist Nina Simone, who used her music to create a legacy of black empowerment, liberation and passion serves as her own branch of black female liberation. Lorde, the selfproclaimed feminist, poet, socialist and mother who fought tirelessly through her teaching and organizing of oppressed peoples is her own definition of feminism for black women. These women show the civil work that has been done in the past and inspire the work for feminist leaders ahead. PSL will be concluding their black history workshops with Black Radical History: Liberation is a Global Struggle on February 28 at 2936 W. 8th St, Los Angeles, CA. The workshop is free to the public. A speaker discussing about the historical roots of capitalism, feminism and racial discrimination and how it affects us in contemporary times. Held in downtown Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California. February 21, 2020. (Photo Courtesy of Franki Jester)
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SPECIAL REPORT
Honoring Our Black Athletes During Black History Month
the game, how much IQ matters they’re always trying to get their players better,” Parham does his best when he steps on the floor to honor, and emulate his idols with the way he Today’s black athletes carry a big responsibility, believe it or not. They are much more plays, and also his team first mentality. Guard Knight grew up a fan of Kobe. “I feel like he was an icon, he set the standard than someone who shoots a basketball, who catches or throws a football, or is even able for me… like fighting through adversity, getting up every day to hit a 90 plus mile-per-hour fastball into the stands. They and taking care of your business regardless”, he further explained, carry the legacies of Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul-Jabar, and talked about the infamous ‘mamba mentality.’ “That’s kind Muhammed Ali, Jackie Robinsons, Laila Ali, Doug Williams, of what I go off of, like little injuries I just play through because Lisa Leslie, and so many more to not only grace their respecthat’s just the mentality that he set, and that’s what I follow by tive sports, but become positive influences in the commuuntil this day.” Like Parham, Knight also does his best to honor, nity. These prominent athletes embraced what they meant, and emulate the late, great Kobe through his fierce play, and not just to their fans, but they understood what they meant leaving everything on the court. to the entire African-American community. Some people even idolize athletes because of their unique Which brings us to today. There are the modern day style, for example Richardson’s idol growing up was Jalen Rose, athletes with the likes of Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwayne most famous for being a member of one of the greatest college Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Candace Parker, and basketball teams ever assembled, called the “Fab 5”. Richardson Colin Kaepernick. stated, “I was actually a very big Jalen Rose fan, because he was Whether it was in 2016, when former Super Bowl starta lefty like myself, and he was a part of the new fashion moveing Quarterback Colin Kaepernick decided to take a knee ment and style of basketball when he came out in college basduring the national anthem before a game along with his Santa Monica College Guard Teddy Parham(behind, left side of LeBron), ketball.” Rose was a pioneer of this new trend, making it look teammate Eric Reid; or when All-stars, and future Hall of and his Notre Dame High School teammates gather for a team photo cool to play with some swag. Famers Lebron, Wade, Carmelo, and Paul took a moment at after a team practice with NBA superstar LeBron James. (Photo CourWe have to cherish, and honor these athletes because they the 2016 ESPYs to speak about the injustices, racial profiling, tesy of Teddy Parham Sr.) not only pave the way for other athletes in sports, but also for and police brutality that the world was taking notice of. These people who don’t play sports. Next time we see someone raising athletes have decided to use their platform to put the world their fist at a sporting event, think of Tommie Smith and John Carlos raising their fists in on notice. If it weren’t for the African-American athletes before them who used their solidarity to bring awareness to the way African-Americans were being treated. Next time platform to showcase their voices and bring problems that plague the black community we see someone taking a knee, or choosing to sit instead of standing for the national to the forefront, who knows if their efforts would be effective? anthem, think about how Colin Kaepernick was “black balled” out of a job in the NFL for SMC Athletes Teddy Parham, and LeAndrew Knight from the men’s basketball team, taking a knee for his protest. Let’s honor them, cherish them, hold them on a higher and Assistant Coach Devon Richardson spoke about their idols, and how they’re inspired pedestal and thank them for what they are doing for the entire African-American comby them. Sophomore Parham is a Guard for the Corsairs, his idols growing up playing munity. basketball were Michael Jordan, Kobe, and Lebron. He says “I can see their dedication to Deshawn Pouper | Sports Editor
A Letter to Kobe
Izzy Colindres | Staff Writer Dear Kobe, Some kids had their capes, Some kids had their princess dresses, Some kids had their toy guns, But me I had my Kobe Bryant jersey. And every time I put on that jersey I was invincible. I could do anything I wanted to without fear, Without a doubt in my mind that I could and would do it. Because I knew You could do anything and ev erything You wanted to. When times were hard at home I knew I could put on My Kobe jersey Turn on the Lakers game, Watch You, And escape. I knew everything would be better with You. Because You were My Hero. You were My happiness and beyond.
You were the Black Mamba. The Black Mamba with the Mamba Mentality. At first, I thought the Mamba Mentality was just toward the game But, You taught me that it’s a Lifestyle Toward everything you did. On and off the court. So, I became comfortable taking off My Kobe jersey Because I knew if I had that Mamba Mentaity toward life, I had You with me. Now that you’re gone It shatters my Heart, Spirit, and Soul But, I know I still have You And even though I need My Kobe jersey to get me through this I know if I use Your Mamba Mentality toward all that I do I still have You. Thank you Kobe, you will always and forever live in my heart and in my mentality.
OPINION
The Remasking of Hong Kong Drew Anderson | Staff Writer In October 2019, a face mask ban was enacted by Hong Kong’s authorities without legislative approval, authorities in Hong Kong who reflect the interests of mainland China’s government. These emergency measures were designed to intimidate the prodemocracy activists demonstrating daily in the Hong Kong street in often violent clashes with riot police. “Mask ban is totally for the police to arrest and identify protesters,” said Doong Hoi Lam, a 24-year-old biology major from Hong Kong University, with friends at Santa Monica College. “I think people are getting more angry about it, and more people are joining the protest force, even some people who were indifferent to it. People are not
getting afraid of the ban.” Pro-democracy demonstrators wear masks in part to hide their identity from facial recognition software linked to cameras installed around the city and in part, to reduce exposure to contaminants like drifting clouds of tear gas. Now with the outbreak of the Wuhanbased coronavirus epidemic, few in Hong Kong appear in public without a mask. At the time of the Chinese New Year on Jan. 25, the most common masks are the blue masks, which were readily available in drug stores. With the coronavirus identified as a highly contagious and fatal respiratory disease spreading fast throughout mainland China, the demand for masks has outgrown supply. By Feb. 12, Hong Kong citizens by the thousands lined up at local pharmacies,
waiting for hours to purchase a variety of masks that may be available over the counter. The threat of coronavirus takes place as strife in Hong Kong between riot police and pro-democracy demonstrators has subsided temporarily. Hong Kong remains semi-autonomous, and tension with the mainland is very strong. The coronavirus epidemic adds a larger threat to Hong Kong’s population of 7.5 million people, despite Hong Kong’s modern healthcare system. Today’s Wuhan-originated coronavirus has killed over 2500 in two short months. The number reported infected and dropping dead during the epidemic is growing by both the World Health Organization’s verification and Beijing’s own admission. Taiwan sealed its borders with mainland China within days of the outbreak of coro-
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navirus. Flights in and out of Hong Kong have dropped 90 percent. Oversea air travel in China is almost at a standstill. Hong Kongers are resilient and have shown incredible ingenuity in the face of the crackdown of pro-democracy demonstrations, and now an epidemic, one that may spiral out of control as a worldwide pandemic. When the mask supply began to run out in Hong Kong, some creative citizens began posting instructional videos about how to make face masks using toilet paper. Within a week, stores in Hong Kong reported shelves empty of toilet paper. The question remains, can one save face and their butt at the same time?
Straightwashing: An Epidemic Tatiana Louder | Culture Editor The first time I watched “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, I thought it was a bore apart from Audrey Hepburn’s performance as Holly Golightly. And the cat. The second time I watched it, I got it. Reading the book by Truman Capote only made me love the story and the characters more. I remember being enchanted by Holly Golightly’s take on minimalism, “I don’t wanna own anything until I find a place where me and things go together.” I admired, too, how she thought lovers were great and all, but what she really needed was a friend, and the top candidate was the writer downstairs because he looked most like her brother. Truman Capote, who writes the narrator of the book after himself, was gay before gay was trendy. He writes Holly and the artsy gigolo-writer as platonic foils who love, fight, and love all over again. The Motion Pictures Production Code, aka the Hays Code, began being enforced in 1934 and controlled what could be seen in American cinema until 1968. This is why an innocent eye could easily watch the film without picking up that Holly and Paul (played by George Peppard) are selling sex for money. The Hays Code is also responsible for the fact that in the book, the narrator (who Paul in the film is modeled off of) had male and female clients. Because of the restrictions that cast a shadow over the time, one of the most nuanced relationships in the original story, and the true uniqueness of the characters, is missed. Rather than create their own obscure relationship in the world of the normal, these characters did the opposite: they created their own normal in a world where they are both spurned off as hopelessly obscure. The Hays Code was often responsible for straightwashing. The Tennessee Williams classic “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” includes themes around homosexuality. In the play,
Brick Pollit (Paul Newman) is married to the beautiful Maggie “the cat” (Elizabeth Taylor). Tensions rise and break over the family like waves one evening as they celebrate the family Patriarch, Big Daddy’s, birthday. Skipper, who we never meet in the film, was one of Brick’s closest friends. So close, in fact, that Maggie suspects Brick and Skipper to be lovers. To prove her accusation false, Skipper tries to sleep with Maggie. Unable to do so, he fears her claim may be true and confesses his feelings to Brick, who rejects him. After the suicide of Skipper, Brick and Maggie’s sexual life dies. In the 1958 film, Skipper’s suicide is portrayed as being the result of an aging football hero’s identity crisis, the same way Brick’s drinking is blamed for his being an ex-football star. More screen time in the film is given to the frustrations of a marital dead-bedroom than what the original story presents as the obvious root cause of the issue. Even though the film erased some of the story’s most intricate human themes, it is still incredibly acted and won Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, among others. In a post-Hays world, straightwashing is still as common as ever. It isn’t about solely telling the “gay story” though that is important on it’s own. Identifying with characters in stories means being a able to empathize with the characters struggles and
choices. In “Little Women”, protagonist Jo (played by Saoirse Ronan in the 2019 film adaptation) loves Laurie (Timothée Chalamet) but doesn’t want to get married. Her lack of romantic love for him makes her resonate deeply with the aromantic community. Aromantic and asexual (not experiencing romantic and/or sexual attraction, respectively) podcast, “Sounds Fake But Okay” lends a recent episode to the topic. “I had never really felt true representation about my aro-ness,” says Sara Costello, the podcasts aromantic-asexual cohost, in the episode. “I was like okay. I don’t need to be represented in [media] to figure this out... But now, I understand...because I watched Little Women and I fucking cried for an hour straight.” Having characters to empathize with stretches beyond being the A in LGBTQIA+. While more and more on-screen queerness has been dominating the societal dialogue, many queer characters were written long ago, and still get straightwashed in a post-Hays world. According to Advocate. com Ayo (Florence Kasumba) from Black Panther (2018), Achilles (Brad Pitt) from Troy (2004) , Idgie (Mary Stuart Masterson) and Ruth (Mary-Louise Parker) from Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), Jughead (Cole Sprouse) in Riverdale (2017) and Pussy Galore (Honor Blackman) from Goldfinger were all denied their sexuality on screen.
These characters are written the way they are for a reason. You can’t tell the right story if you aren’t telling the truth, and the truth of these characters is that they aren’t society’s “default”. According to Topix. com, American Psycho (2000) and The Thin Red Line (1998) feature male protagonists who have significant homosexual experiences in the book-version of the work, neither of which were included in the film versions. The LGBTQIA+ community and its allies are forever educating the rest of the world on the fluidity of human sexuality. Topix also mentioned the 2015 film about the Stonewall Riots, an uproar from the gay community lead by black drag queens and trans women. The movie, Stonewall: Where Pride Began, boasts a conventionally hot, white gay dude named Danny (Jeremy Irvine) throwing the brick that caught human history on fire. Danny’s brick, however, is being tossed right in the face of many gay people of color who worked hard to be heard, like self-identified drag queen and black activist, Marsha P. Johnson. Considering writers like Truman Capote and Tennessee Williams are some of the greatest of our time, they could very well write straight characters if they’d meant to. When they didn’t write straight characters, it was on purpose, and it was to tell the story of one who struggles up certain Everests that a straight person in a heterosexualfriendly society would never even have to think about. Misrepresentation of human behavior holds us back from being ourselves and knowing ourselves. Loving is seeing, and if we can’t know our whole selves through our stories, how can we, as a society love ourselves? And, as RuPaul says at the end of each episode of Drag Race, “If you can’t love yourself, how the hell you gonna love somebody else?”
Illustration by Aleah Antonio
12 THEǀCORSAIR
SPORTS
Table Tennis Olympic Trials to be Held at Santa Monica College
Deshawn Pouper | Sports Editor
The Santa Monica College (SMC) campus will be hosting the Olympic Trials for Table Tennis event from Feb. 27 through March 1 in the Corsair Gym starting at 11 a.m. Over 100 male and female athletes from the United States will compete head-to-head for a spot on the Olympic team in the Summer 2020 games in Tokyo, Japan. This marks the second time SMC has hosted an intercollegiate event. Last year the school hosted the Pan Ameri-
can Trials games. The event will feature some of the top table-tennis players in the U.S., and the top eight-males who are already seeded will bypass the first day and play Friday. Elaine Roque, the Chairman for the Kinesiology and Athletics department, helped bring the event to SMC. “These trials are to select our men’s, and women’s team members,” said Roque. “My understanding is that the top rate male and female are already on the team, and this
event will select the other two men and women.” SMC’s Table Tennis team has had a history of successes, defeating several teams -- including USC, UCLA, Cal State Northridge, Stanford -- and winning the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association (NCTTA) Southern California West Team Division. They are also the only college team inducted into the California Table Tennis Hall of Fame, and this reputation was a factor in leading SMC to hold the Olympic Trials for
the Table Tennis event. Santa Monica College students are able to attend the event for free with their valid SMC I.D., and be a part of what Roque would describe as the athletes’ “Road to Tokyo”. The first match will begin Thurs., Feb. 27 starting off with the Men’s Preliminary qualifying round of 32 at 11 a.m., followed by the Women’s stage Round 1 at 11:30 a.m.
Corsair Women’s Basketball Loses Final Game Izzy Colindres | Staff Writer On a highly emotional sophomore night, Santa Monica College (SMC) women’s basketball team came into the final game of the season with a record of (11-16). The Corsairs were faced against West LA College (WLAC) (10-17), who gave SMC trouble in their last match, which resulted in a loss for SMC. To start sophomore night, SMC recognized five players who were set to play in their last game as a Corsair before transferring to a University. The student-athletes recognized were: Chassen Gutierrez, 1, forward; Camryn McMahan, 4, guard; Danielle Roberts, 14, forward; Ariana Quintana, 21, guard; and Nina Gazo, 34, center. The five student-athletes were celebrated by the fans when they were given the opportunity to walk across the court accompanied by their family, friends, and loved-ones. Heart-felt cheers and chants were repeated throughout the crowd. In the first quarter SMC had the size advantage, giving them the ability to outrebound WLAC; allowing SMC to create extra scoring opportunities. Gazo (C), who stands at 6’3”, forced WLAC to get rid of any thoughts about driving inside the lane or having any opportunity to score anywhere close. In this game, SMC relied heavily on the
rebounding production of Gazo and the offensive scoring put forth from Gutierrez (F). These two were able to keep SMC ahead early in the game, creating opportunities for Quintana (G), who was persistent in her pursuit to score.
SMC #21, Ariana Quintana, a 5’5” sophomore guard from Woodland Hills and Taft High School drives past WLA #20, Tricia Delph, a sophomore guard from Los Angeles and Fairfax High School on Friday, Feb. 21, 2020 at the Santa Monica College Gymnasium. The Corsairs trailed their opponent West Los Angeles College in the 2nd half but rallied to within 1 point before finally losing the game 83-76. (Glenn Zucman/The Corsair)
Though SMC seemed to outplay WLAC through the first-half, WLAC made-up for their mishaps with their fast-paced play and ability to continuously make their three-ball. By the end of the first-half it was a close game (42-38, WLAC) and seemed to look like a coin-flip to figure out who would win this game. The second-half turned into a slow but steady bleed for SMC. The Corsairs didn’t make any lineup adjustments, which in turn resulted in a 15-0 run for WLAC, giving them the clear upper hand throughout the third quarter and boosted them to a lead of (57-38). Despite falling to a nearly 20-point deficit, the Corsairs rallied together and were able to crawl back into this game late in the fourthquarter. Led by Gutierrez (F), SMC revived themselves and got within reach of WLAC with a score of (70-61) with five minutes left in the game. SMC’s ability to play hard defense and put relentless pressure on WLAC got them back into this game with three-minutes left in the fourth at a score of (72-66). SMC’s Kennedy Martin, 21, (F) played a major-role late and was able to contribute 21-points along with major points late in the game, which brought SMC back within one point (73-72) with one minute left in regulation. Emotions began to run high with everything being laid-out on the table from the
SMC #1, Chassen Gutierrez, a 5’9” freshman forward from Marina Del Rey and Fairfax High School drives through traffic and shoots on Friday, Feb. 21, 2020 at the Santa Monica College Gymnasium. The Corsairs trailed their opponent West Los Angeles College in the 2nd half but rallied to within 1 point before finally losing the game 83-76. (Glenn Zucman/The Corsair)
Corsairs, but in the end they were unable to successfully complete the comeback. Losing against WLAC with a score of (83-76). Although the team was unable to pull a victory out, the Corsairs were relentless in their efforts and teamwork to fight back. SMC women’s basketball ends the season with a record of (11-17).
Illustration by Deshawn Pouper