Portland State Vanguard Volume 76 Issue 15

VOLUME 76 • ISSUE 15 • JULY 20, 2021

TOTAL RECALL PDX CLAIMS TED WHEELER BROKE CAMPAIGN FINANCE LAWS LAST ELECTION.

NOW THEY WANT HIM

OUT OF OFFICE INTERNATIONAL What’s happening in Cuba P. 5

SPORTS You should pay attention to these Olympic athletes P. 7

ARTS & CULTURE Emilly Prado’s winding journey to publication P. 8

CONTENTS

COVER BY SHANNON STEED, COVER PHOTO BY GILLIAN FLACCUS/AP IMAGES

NEWS HILL TO HALL JULY 12–16

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THE EFFORT TO RECALL TED WHEELER INTERNATIONAL CUBAN GOVERNMENT FACES LARGEST PROTESTS IN DECADES

STAFF EDIT ORI A L EDITOR IN CHIEF Nick Gatlin MANAGING EDITOR Morgan Troper NEWS EDITORS Conor Carroll Danny O’Brien INTERNATIONAL EDITOR Karisa Yuasa SPORTS EDITOR Eric Shelby SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR Ryan McConnell

ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR Béla Kurzenhauser OPINION EDITOR Rachel Owen ONLINE EDITOR Lily Hennings COPY CHIEF Mackenzie Streissguth CONTRIBUTORS Karina Agbisit Catherine Kane Benjamin Kirkpatrick

SCIENCE & TECH REVIL AND THE RISE OF RANSOMWARE

P. 6

P. 4

SPORTS NOTABLE PLAYERS TO WATCH IN THE TOKYO OLYMPICS

P. 7

P. 5

ARTS & CULTURE EMILLY PRADO DISCUSSES EDUCATION, TRAUMA AND WRITING OUT OF PASSION

PHO T O A ND MULTIMEDI A MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Olivia Lee

A DV ISING & ACCOUN TING COORDINATOR OF STUDENT MEDIA Reaz Mahmood

PRODUC TION & DE SIGN CREATIVE DIRECTOR Shannon Steed

STUDENT MEDIA ACCOUNTANT Sheri Pitcher

DESIGNER Kelsey Stewart T ECHNOL OGY & W EB SIT E TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANTS Juliana Bigelow Kahela Fickle George Olson

STUDENT MEDIA TECHNOLOGY ADVISOR Corrine Nightingale To contact Portland State Vanguard, email editor@psuvanguard.com

MIS SION S TAT EMEN T Vanguard ’s mission is to serve the Portland State community with timely, accurate, comprehensive and critical content while upholding high journalistic standards. In the process, we aim to enrich our staff with quality, hands-on journalism education and a number of skills highly valued in today’s job market.

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A BOU T Vanguard, established in 1946, is published weekly as an independent student newspaper governed by the PSU Student Media Board. Views and editorial content expressed herein are those of the staff, contributors and readers and do not necessarily represent the PSU student body, faculty, staff or administration. Find us in print Tuesdays and online 24/7 at psuvanguard.com.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @psuvanguard for multimedia content and breaking news.

JULY 12–16 CONOR CARROLL

JULY 12: O REGON OFFICIAL IN CHARGE OF HARASSMENT COMPLAINTS AT CAPITOL RESIGNS, WITH GRIEVANCE LETTER

Nate Monson, former acting Oregon State Legislative Equity Officer (LEO), resigned on June 16, after less than two months on the job. In a letter to lawmakers, Monson describes an office in disorder and a position with many complications. “When I started, there were no case files, electronic documents, trainings scheduled, and bills that were unpaid resulting in investigations lasting on average 10 months over this past year,” Monson stated. His derisive conclusions indicate alarming problems within the office of the LEO, created in 2019, after “longstanding sexual harassment by a former state senator rocked the Capitol,” an OPB report stated. After the scandal, Oregon legislators created Rule 27, the official policy for addressing allegations of negative behavior like sexual harassment or retaliatory practices. According to Monson, the office had been ineffectual and frustrating, leading to his recent resignation. “I came nearly 2,000 miles to do good work,” Monson stated. “For the sake of the next person, take some time to consider the office, the role, and how to be strategic in its functions.”

JULY 14: P ORTLAND CITY LEADERS BLOCK ATTEMPTS TO EXPAND THE PORTLAND STREET RESPONSE, AGAIN

For the second month in a row, Portland officials and leaders have blocked moves to expand the CAHOOTS-like program called the Portland Street Response (PSR), which is intended to reduce the times an armed police officer responds to a situation like a mental health crisis or a person experiencing houselessness. The emergency dispatcher, similar in usage to Eugene’s CAHOOTS program, would instead direct a team of two—a paramedic and a licensed mental health expert—to the scene. In spring, the PSR, along with City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, requested $3.6 million to expand the program across Portland.

The program currently only services the Lents neighborhood, in a limited capacity. When the expansion funding issue came before the City Council in May, the majority, including Mayor Ted Wheeler, rejected the idea. According to a Willamette Week report, the Chief Deputy Attorney Heidi Brown “alerted program staff that a longtime critic of PSR had denied the request: the Portland Police Association, the union that represents officers of the Portland Police Bureau.”

JULY 16: C OVID-19 CASES ARE RISING IN ALL 50 U.S. STATES FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE JAN.

New confirmed COVID-19 cases have been increasing across all 50 states for the first time since early Jan. 2021, according to a CNN analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University (JHU).

The United States recorded an average of 26,448 new COVID-19 cases each day over the past week—up 67% from the week before. According to JHU data, the last time new cases in all 50 states increased from the week before was on Jan. 5—during a time when the United States consistently topped 200,000 new cases per day. Moreover, COVID-19 case rates are highest in states containing lower vaccination rates. “There is a message that is crystal clear: this is becoming a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said at a White House press briefing on July 16. “If you are not vaccinated, you remain at risk.”

PSU Vanguard • JULY 20, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

NEWS

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VOLUNTEERS FOR TOTAL RECALL. COURTESY OF TOTAL RECALL PAC.

DANNY O’BRIEN Petitioners working on the Campaign to recall Ted Wheeler visited parks, grocery stores and MAX lines to gather signatures for their cause on July 1.

Total Recall PDX, founded by Portland lawyer Alan Kessler in Nov. 2020, is a political action committee intent on getting Wheeler out of office.

Total Recall’s reasoning for starting a campaign against Wheeler is based mainly on the mayor’s alleged political and fiscal malfeasance. Audrey Caines, an environmental and social activist who joined Total Recall PDX in May 2021, is heading the recall efforts as campaign manager.

In an interview with Portland State Vanguard, Caines said Wheeler had violated campaign finance law. “87% of Portlanders voted to get personal large donations out of elections,” she said. “And Ted Wheeler donated his own money to his election.”

This violation is in reference to the Nov. 2020 mayoral elections, when Wheeler donated $150,000 dollars of his own money to his reelection campaign. A donation this large goes against a 2018 city charter measure limiting donations to $500 per individual donor and $5,000 from candidates themselves.

Sarah Iannarone, who ran against Wheeler in the 2020 mayoral election, filed a lawsuit against the Friends of Ted Wheeler Political Candidate Committee seeking enforcement of the city’s campaign contribution limits.

Total Recall PDX founder Alan Kessler is legally representing Sarah Iannarone in this effort.

Wheeler’s Portland political career started in 2007, when he was elected Chair of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners, and he served in that post until 2010. At that point, Wheeler was appointed by the Governor to the State Treasurer’s office to fill a spot left vacant by the incumbent’s death.

Wheeler served as treasurer until winning the 2016 mayoral election, a position he has held since.

As mayor, Wheeler assigned himself responsibility over the Portland Police Bureau, the Housing Bureau and the Portland Development Commission. Vanguard contacted the office of the mayor to request an interview about the recall efforts, but the office did not respond.

Total Recall PDX maintains getting

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NEWS

Wheeler out of office as their sole political objective, and they do not claim to offer up an alternative candidate or promote any secondary agendas. They hold that, since Wheeler won with a plurality vote of 46% in the elections and broke laws that 87% of Portlanders approved of, he should be recalled from office.

Before the Nov. 2020 election, Wheeler held an unfavorable approval rating of 63%. In a report from Willamette Week, Total Recall’s argument to the city reads in part: "When we needed a leader to solve problems, Ted Wheeler’s inaction made our challenges worse.

Portlanders have lost confidence that their government will be there in times of need….A recall is an expression of democracy designed to remove politicians who aren’t serving effectively.

Portlanders are ready to recover and we can’t afford to waste the next threeand-a-half years….Ted Wheeler has repeatedly demonstrated to too many of us that he does not serve this city."

Regarding the efforts of the campaign, Caines says, “I think the recall will go well. We’re at the point where people are calling and asking to sign. We’ve gotten 30,000 signatures in the first month.”

A total of 47,788 signatures are required for the recall efforts to succeed. The group is starting up now, in July, because there is a mandatory sixmonth waiting period from when an official is placed in office before recall action is possible. The group will have a 90-day period in which they have to collect the necessary signatures.

While volunteers for Total Recall can be found in the parks, public spaces and transit lines of Portland, people wishing to sign can find the necessary forms, of which there are two, on the group’s website. The group stresses the importance of accuracy and legibility when signing these forms, as any mistake will result in the signature being thrown out. There is also the option to donate to their cause on the site.

According to its social media, Total Recall PDX is openly accepting volunteers for signature gathering during this three-month period.

The fight to recall Wheeler is not only being pursued by Total Recall PDX. A similar group, called Rose City Recall, with less of a public outreach agenda and seemingly right-wing or moderate views, exists with the intent to oust Wheeler as well.

THE EFFORT TO RECALL TED WHEELER A PORTLAND GROUP FIGHTS WITH FORMS IN HAND TO OUST THE EMBATTLED MAYOR

PSU Vanguard • JULY 20, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

CUBAN GOVERNMENT FACES LARGEST PROTESTS IN DECADES

PROTESTERS IN HAVANA, CUBA DEMONSTRATE ON JULY 11 AGAINST FOOD SHORTAGES, HIGH PRICES AND THE GOVERNMENT'S RESPONSE TO THE PANDEMIC. ISMAEL FRANCISCO/AP IMAGES

BENJAMIN KIRKPATRICK Thousands of people took to Cuba’s streets on Sunday, July 11, marking the start of some of the largest protests the country has seen in the past sixty years, according to Reuters.

Driven by what they describe as the government’s inadequate response to economic challenges—as evidenced by rising prices for common everyday items, shortages of essential goods like food and electricity, a reduction in wages for Cuban workers and complications with the U.S. embargo—Cubans took to the streets to protest their frustrations.

ECONOMIC ISSUES

In early 2021, the Cuban government ended its dual currency system, which ultimately led to the devaluation of the Cuban peso (CUP). As such, the convertible Cuban peso, or the CUC, has been in the process of being phased out.

Differences in exchange rates between the CUC and CUP have led to economic complications in Cuba. The CUP is used for purchasing everyday goods and services, whereas the CUC is used in transactions involving foreign currency, like tourism or purchasing imported goods.

Cuban citizens had until June 2021 to convert their CUCs to CUPs, but, with the exchange rate being 24:1, many individuals faced significant financial loss from doing so, especially those working in the tourism sector who were paid in CUCs. The Cuban government has responded to these economic concerns by announcing the currency unification plan, which, according to Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel, is neces-

sary for the “transformations [needed] to update our economic and social model.” This plan has imposed many challenges upon Cubans when they are already dealing with major shortages.

U.S. EMBARGO

The U.S. embargo, formally implemented in 1962, prohibits all trade from the island and has led to many goods such as food and medicine constantly being in short supply.

Although many Cubans blame the embargo for their economic woes, Díaz-Canel acknowledged that the Cuban government has also played a significant role in the unfolding of events.

“We have to gain experience from the disturbances,” Díaz-Canel said. “We also have to carry out a critical analysis of our problems in order to act and overcome and avoid their repetition.”

In 2011, then-President Raul Castro announced reforms aimed at “bringing more market-oriented policies into Cuba’s state-run economy.” More than a decade later, these economic reforms have yet to be implemented, which has led to much frustration among some Cubans.

Economic hardship, food and supply shortages and the ongoing U.S. embargo have led to the outbreak of protests among Cuban citizens, calling for an end to the socialist government and demanding freedom.

U.S. FOREIGN POLICY

In response to the unrest in Cuba, U.S. President Joe Biden stated that the United States “stand[s] with the Cuban people and their clarion call for freedom and relief.” Biden then

PSU Vanguard • JULY 20, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

mentioned that the U.S. is prepared to send COVID-19 vaccines to aid in the outbreak of the pandemic, but does not plan on easing U.S. policies around sending remittances, which tightened under President Trump, nor lifting the embargo.

Lack of immediate response to the protests by Biden has stirred up some controversy.

“President Biden’s lack of comment [on July 11] made clear that he has no interest in standing with the Cuban people as they rise up against the authoritarian regime,” wrote Senator Marco Rubio.

Some U.S. politicians have placed blamed on the American embargo, such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who tweeted on Thursday, “The embargo is absurdly cruel and, like too many other U.S. policies targeting Latin Americans, the cruelty is the point. I outright reject the Biden Administration’s defense of the embargo.

It is never acceptable for us to use cruelty as a point of leverage against every day people.”

RESPONSE TO THE PROTESTS

As Cubans took to the streets to express their frustrations, police clashed with protesters, eventually leading to several arrests and injuries.

In response to police arrests of protesters, United Nations human rights chief Michelle Bachelet demanded that “all those detained for exercising their rights must be promptly released.”

Initial responses to protests placed the blame on the U.S. government, according to AP News.

This blame centered around the nearly sixtyyear U.S. embargo, the impact of the pandemic

and even social media.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated that “it would be a grievous mistake for the Cuban regime to interpret what is happening in dozens of towns and cities across the island as a result or product of anything the United States has done.” However, every year since 1992, the United Nations has passed a resolution demanding the end of the U.S. economic blockade on Cuba.

Social media has also played an enormous role in the unfolding of these protests, with the hashtag #SOSCuba trending on Twitter, calling for “humanitarian aid for fueling the protests.”

Authorities responded by restricting internet access in an “apparent effort to stop the flow of information” in and out of Cuba, according to AP News.

Cuban Cabinet ministers announced that they would implement new measures that would allow travelers to “import food and medicine without limits” and “allow people to use their ration books to obtain subsidized goods outside their hometowns.” These measures also included increasing employment opportunities with small businesses, and increasing the salary scale. However, officials have stated that they will not make changes to Cuba’s mode of government.

“The Cuban government has just shown that it could have allowed the entry of food and medicine without quantity limits or tariffs all along but chose not to do so for more than a year of the pandemic,” wrote José Jasan Nieves, director of the independent digital newspaper El Toque.

“People twisted their arms.”

INTERNATIONAL

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REVIL AND THE RISE OF RANSOMWARE

KELSEY STEWART

RYAN MCCONNELL Ransomware gang REvil’s websites mysteriously disappeared off the dark web during the week of July 13. This news comes just days after U.S. President Biden demanded Russian President Vladimir Putin shut down ransomware groups and collectives operating within Russia. Some speculate that this is a result of U.S. nation-state cyber defenses shutting down REvil’s website servers, however no evidence has yet to emerge on why the site has been shut down.

REvil is publicly—and notoriously—known as the hacker group responsible for the Kaseya cyberattack occurring July 2. The cyberattack compromised over 200 businesses, spreading ransomware across the company’s clients that were using Kaseya’s network assessment tools.

This was not, however, the first instance of an attack claimed by REvil. In fact, ransomware itself has been on the rise since the pandemic began.

Ransomware itself is a special form of computer malware, or virus, often deployed by hackers. This malware completely locks a computer through encryption, rendering it unusable unless a set amount of ransom is paid. It’s common for hackers in control of the malware to threaten to sell, leak or destroy information within the computer or network if the ransom is not paid. CD Projekt Red’s recent issues with data hacked from their studio exemplify the struggles between ransomware and technology companies.

These individuals do not always work alone either. These ransomware gangs are a part of organized cybercrime syndicates, which is a fancy way to explain organized crime through computer hacking. DarkSide is another example of another infamous ransomware gang, having decimated Colonial Pipeline’s supply chain in May. Using the term “gang” alongside any hacker synonym may not properly paint the picture of the individuals involved in these acts.

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SCIENCE & TECH

These hackers, often anonymous, can come from anywhere in the world, including nation-state backed individuals. Other syndicates may instead choose to sell ransomware packages online via the dark web, allowing anyone with enough money and access to deploy a malware that can attack any computer network, so long as the person claims their success was done by the gang itself.

Ransom attacks have increased 150% in 2020, with over a 300% increase in payments to those ransoms, with the numbers expected to grow even further this year. There are many factors that could indicate why cyber threats have increased exponentially since the pandemic, starting with the fundamental shift to remote work and computer usage caused by the global catastrophe. There are other key aspects which could help explain why ransomware is so frequent in the wild.

One reason has to do with quick profitability. The first ransomware attack was known as the 1989 AIDS trojan, found inside 20,000 floppy disks given to healthcare industry professionals where $189 was requested in order to unlock the computers. Fast forward to 2021, where Colonial Pipeline paid a hefty $5 million in ransom. It is simple and instantaneous, albeit illegal to deploy a ransom attack to make money. With the rise in remote work, most companies panic, and feel as if they have little option but to pay, in order to prevent further disaster. It should be noted the FBI explicitly warns companies and individuals not to pay ransoms, as such actions may be constituted as an act of terrorism under U.S. law.

The other reason is due to anonymity. The adoption of cryptocurrency allows for more frequent and completely anonymous transactions impossible through other methods, such as a wire transfer.

Anonymity is baked into the decentralized nature of the cryptoworld, allowing cybercriminals easy methods to conduct transactions without anything being traced back to them.

The final reason has to do with the ever-impending threat of other nation-states and their interference within critical U.S. infrastructures. Targets like Colonial Pipeline and JBS both show

the fragility of our nation’s supply chains, something that foreign adversaries could exploit.

Making money while causing mayhem is a sad yet real motivation behind the rise in ransomware attacks. Health care systems are at most risk, with a 125% increase in attacks in 2021, and over a 470% increase since 2019. This particular infrastructure holds highly sensitive data, and solving these issues must be done significantly faster than other industries, otherwise patients may very likely die without access to healthcare technology.

It’s understandable that even some of the best minds in cybersecurity may not fully be able to prevent ransomware from happening, if these attacks are done by government-supported teams.

Realistically speaking, however, there are still many ways to prevent every type of security threat a company, individual or even a university may face.

Companies and universities can read through CISA’s ransomware guides and services, which provides tools for threat detection and detailed instructions on how to spot and prevent threat actors from succeeding in breaking through defenses. Beyond any other measure, entities should treat cyber security as seriously as possible. Budgeting an expense for defenses and hiring cyber security teams are vital, if current computer networks hold data regarding developing technologies, sensitive materials or critical infrastructure information.

Individuals do not need to hire their own independent teams, but understanding cyber hygiene will help prevent any potential hacking attempts inside home networks or devices. For the average consumer, this involves immediate software updates when available (no matter how annoying they can pop up), changing passwords, using a VPN in public or on widely-shared WiFi networks, using two-factor authentication (or push notifications for PSU students) and never opening emails from addresses you don’t recognize. Additionally, any victims of cybercrime may contact the local FBI field office, and file a report with the FBI’s IC3.

PSU Vanguard • JULY 20, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

NOTABLE PLAYERS TO WATCH IN THE TOKYO OLYMPICS

ERIC SHELBY The 2020 Olympics—though hosted in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic—begin Friday, July 23 and will last until Sunday, Aug. 8. Held in Tokyo, Japan, the games will have a total of 46 sports, including new sports like skateboarding, and, for the first time in 12 years, baseball and softball. Something different about this Olympics is that there will be no fans in attendance, as Japan is still experiencing the lasting effects of COVID-19, having declared a state of emergency. Recent concerns of the ongoing Delta variant are also a factor.

This is the fourth-ever time the Olympics have been postponed. The first three times were because of war: Berlin 1916, Tokyo 1940 and London 1944. The Olympics come around every four years with it last being hosted in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2016.

The United States dominates the summer Olympics with 1,022 gold medals and 2,523 medals in total. Germany comes in second with 428 gold and 1,346 in total. The Soviet Union, now Russia, comes in third with 440 gold and 1,122 medals in total. As you tune in to watch the games, here are some notable players and teams you should look forward to seeing compete.

The Olympics will see its first openly transgender athlete, Laurel Hubbard, representing New Zealand in weightlifting. The 43-year-old won gold in the 2019 Pacific Games in Apia, Samoa and silver in the 2017 World Weightlifting Championships in Anaheim, California.

On June 21 of this year, the New Zealand Olympic Committee selected Hubbard to be on the Olympic Team. She will be competing in the 87

kilogram category. With controversy from this situation, Hubbard chooses to tune it out and continue to lift—with hope she will bring home a medal for her country.

On the other side of the age spectrum, an Olympian to watch for in a new event is a 13-year-old skater, Sky Brown. Brown is the youngest pro-skater in the world, and is representing Great Britain. Learning tricks just from YouTube, Brown finished bronze in the 2019 World Skateboarding Championship in São Paulo, Brazil.

X Games athlete and skating legend Nyjah Houston will be an Olympian representing the United States. Houston, who is the highest paid skateboarder in the world, has 12 gold medals under his belt with four silver and two bronze from the summer X games, and is ready to compete for Olympic gold.

Swimmer Simone Manuel won two gold and two silver in the 2016 Rio Olympics and she’s back to acquire more medals. In 2017, the Stanford alum broke the American record—the entire continents of North and South America—in the 50 meter freestyle with a time of 23.97 seconds. She and her team have won numerous gold medals in the 4 x 100 and the 4 x 50. Manuel currently has 13 gold, 11 silver and four bronze medals in her swimming career. Another Stanford alum swimmer, Katie Ledecky, also searches for more Olympic medals.

She is decorated with five gold and two silver medals from the Olympics, but has 28 gold, five silver and one bronze from her swimming career, obtaining most of them from the World Championships.

Noah Lyles, a sprinter and relay runner, won two gold medals in the 200 meter and 4 x 400 meter in the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar.

He has a personal best of 9.86 seconds in the 100 meter. Now, he’s looking

for gold in the 200 meter.

Fellow runner Allyson Felix is about to be a five-time Olympian, after making her Olympic debut in 2004. The 35-year-old runs the 400 and 4 x 400 relay, and carries six gold and three silver medals from the Olympics and 26 gold medals from her career. On top of all of this, she’s a mother, running again a year after giving birth to her daughter via C-section.

In 2018, Kenyan long-distance runner Eliud Kipchoge made a world record with a marathon time of 2:01:39. He looks for his 18th medal in this year’s Olympics.

Simone Biles won four gold medals and a bronze on the vault and floor in the 2016 Rio Olympics, having a total of 35 medals from her career. Biles’ skill in gymnastics is evident, in that she has four moves named after her. She is a favorite to win gold again this tournament.

To no one’s surprise, the U.S. women’s national soccer team (USWNT)—or football if you live literally anywhere else in the world— is competing in the Olympics. The USWNT is placed in “Group G” along with Sweden, Australia and New Zealand. In order to advance to the knockout stage, the U.S. will need to finish the group in first or second place. The number-one-ranked USWNT begins play on July 21 against number-five-ranked Sweden.

Pacific Northwest teams Portland Thorns and OL Reign from Tacoma, Washington have six players on the stacked Olympic team roster: Adrianna Franch, Crystal Dunn, Becky Sauerbrunn and Lindsey Horan from the Thorns; Megan Rapinoe and Rose Lavelle represent the OL Reign.

The 2020 Tokyo Olympics this summer will have many new and returning Olympians making it to the big stage with 200 nations and over 11,000 athletes representing their countries, going for gold and inspiring generations to come.

AFTER THE 2020 OLYMPICS WERE POSTPONED, ATHLETES ARE EAGER TO GET BACK ON STAGE IN 2021

SHANNON STEED

PSU Vanguard • JULY 20, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

SPORTS

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EMILLY PRADO DISCUSSES EDUCATION, TRAUMA AND WRITING OUT OF PASSION

THE PORTLAND STATE ALUM EXAMINES THE ORIGINS OF HER NOVEL, FUNERAL FOR FLACA

KARINA AGBISIT

AUTHOR EMILLY PRADO. JOSUÉ RIVAS/ COURTESY OF EMILLY PRADO

On the front cover, a light pink coffin is decorated with yellow and orange flowers. Flames lick at the coffin, which is set against a dark background. On the back cover, a table is covered in a pink cloth, adorned with candles, photographs and food and framed by vases of marigolds—an ofrenda, the traditional altar for Day of the Dead. “[The cover] was like a blending of different rights of grief or passing. I like fire for its sense of cleansing,” said Emilly Prado, author of Funeral for Flaca. “And on top of that, I felt like my experience is not exactly a traditional Mexican experience; it’s a Mexican-American experience. So why not twist this tradition a little bit and create this burning coffin that’s pink?”

Press for Funeral for Flaca says it’s an exploration of things lost and found—love, identity and family—and the traumas that transcend bodies, borders, cultures and generations. The collection, published by Future Tense Books, spans Prado’s life from childhood to the days of the COVID-19 pandemic, from the San Francisco Bay area to Portland, Oregon.

During her time at Portland State, Prado pursued a bachelor’s degree in Child and Family Studies and was aiming to become a teacher.

“I’m really grateful to have done that degree because I do think that it gave me the systems analytical lens that informs my work now,” Prado said. “I did really want to study writing, and it just didn’t feel practical at the time to do that.”

After graduation, Prado went on to become an award-winning multimedia journalist, with her writing and photographs appearing in over 30 publications. Funeral for Flaca was initially self-published as part of Prado’s completion of a certification in Prose and Book Making from the Independent Publishing Resource Center. She co-founded the artistry organization Portland in Color and the Latinx DJ collective Noche Libre, with which she performs as DJ Mami Miami. Although her career path did not take her into the role of teacher, Prado still positively impacts today’s youth as the Director of Youth Programs at Literary Arts.

With Funeral for Flaca, Prado hopes to reach girls like herself: “I wrote the book for a very specific audience, basically brown girls, especially 13-year-old me.” Recognizing trauma and the (often long) healing process are crucial themes Prado hopes readers take away from the collection—not just on an individual level but also on an institutional level.

“The biggest thing that I would like an institutional aspect to receive from [the book] is that, once students are struggling—often,

if not always—it’s because things are happening at home, their needs aren’t being met, they could be experiencing trauma,” Prado said.

“Have empathy, but also maybe check in with students more and see what’s going on, get to know them, because that was my experience.”

Funeral for Flaca will be used as part of the curriculum for the PSU class Working with Latinx Youth, taught this summer by Professor Cynthia Gomez.

“In my class, students work with justice-impacted youth,” Gomez said. “I often tell my students, the majority of which are Latinx, that these youth often don’t have the opportunity to see ‘successful’ people that look like them.”

Gomez said it is “a gift to be present in youth’s lives” for this purpose.

“They are role models for these youth,” Gomez continued. “Similarly, PSU Latinx students lack mentors and role models that look like them.

Emilly is an example of a Latinx leader who is following her dream and finding an audience.”

When asked what advice she would give her undergrad self, Prado emphasizes not trying to force one’s path to follow a straight line.

“Most people’s paths are not linear, whether that’s with healing or your career,” Prado said.

“It’s okay to change course; it’s important to listen to your intuition. I feel like all of the things that I’ve done in the time since have all informed and benefited what I do now.”

There is a long-standing myth that “real” writers have to be professionally trained. But, like Prado’s path to publication shows, college classes are not the only way to strengthen one’s writing skills.

“There are plenty of free workshops, community workshops, now with workshops on Zoom,” Prado explained. “There’s way more access. So if finances are a constraint, I’d suggest that people look online for other options. You don’t have to learn writing through an institution.”

For emerging writers in particular, Prado advises one main thing: write.

“If you are interested in writing, or think you might have a story to tell, definitely write and definitely listen to your intuition,” she said. “I think it’s something that took me a while to come back to. I had grown up journaling, and then I sort of lost that. But writing is just super healing. You can be a writer and not also want to publish, those are different things.”

“And be sure to surround yourself and find a community that’s supportive of you,” Prado said. “It’s just important to find people who are going to respect your vision, want to read your story and are ready to amplify what you’re doing and support it.”

THE COVER OF EMILLY PRADO’S BOOK FUNERAL FOR FLACA. FRANCISCO MORALES/COURTESY OF EMILLY PRADO

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ARTS & CULTURE

PSU Vanguard • JULY 20, 2021 • psuvanguard.com