Devils' Advocate November 2016

Traditions of DĂ­a de los Muertos P. 14

Students Celebrate Historic Moment for the Chicago Cubs P. 20

Hinsdale Central High School - Hinsdale, Ill. - Volume 89 - November 2016

What is Shop Small Saturday?

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Contents Features Día de los Muertos The ways that students celebrate

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Edited History How history lessons change as students age

18 Chicago Cubs World Series Parade 20 Shop Small Saturday Local shops participate in sales event

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Profiles Mr. Hinsdale Male pageant raises money for charity

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Man of the Hour Israel Rosales on being a male cheerleader

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Club Spotlight: Muslim Student Alliance

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Opinions Ask the Athlete: Blake Evertsen Battleground: Affirmative Action

Column: The Happiness Guide Being grateful for friends Editorial: Hype Videos Do they represent Central students?

Cheers & Jeers

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News

9 Infographic: Black Friday 24 Newsfeed

Trends What’s Trending Now

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Mission Statement

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Devils’ Advocate strives to provide fair and balanced reporting to its readers by working with students, teachers, and community members. It is a student-run monthly newsmagazine that wishes to inform the student body of Hinsdale Central High School.

20 Cover photo by Alex Choi Table of Contents photos by Abby Berberich, Alex Choi, and Nora Wood

Section Editors

Photo Editors

Editorial Board

Head Editors

Staff Letter from the Editor

In the November issue, we tried to put together a variety of topics that would interest the student body and community. We have worked hard to capture historic moments such as the Cubs victory as well Editor in Chief Managing Editor as the more local stories such as small businesses during this holiday Seetha Aribindi Sayali Amin season. I hope that you learn more about the culture and beliefs behind Día de Los Muertos and some of the students in our school who celebrate it. With the close of the fall sports season, we have profiled a special person on the field, male cheerleader Israel Rosales.

With this being our last issue before the holiday season, we tried to give a sense of the holidays with a special edition of our “Trending Now” page, featuring pies; this is personally one of my favorite Copy Editor Copy Editor photo spreads. Along with this holiday idea, we shed light on some Ray Shryock Maria Harrast of the altered ways history is told, often witholding negative facts about important historical figures. I hope you enjoy reading the Advocate this month. If there is anything that you wish to share with us, we encourage you to write us a letter to the editor by e-mailing Copy Editor Design Editor devilsadvocate@hinsdale86.org.

Sincerely, Celine Turkyilmaz Lancelot Lin Sayali Amin Contact Information @hcDevilsAdvo on Twitter & Instagram @devils_advo on Snapchat Adviser: Cherise Lopez: clopez@hinsdale86.org

Abby Berberich

Alex Choi

Nora Wood

Haley Anderson

Julia Baroni

Julia Chatterjee

Adam DeDobbelaere

Jayne Gelman

Minna Hassaballa

Bilal Khokhar

Cassie Kruse

Juliana Mayer

Sofia Rafiq

Charlotte Sudduth

Anya Uppal

Club Writers Aneesh Balusu Carolyn Chun Shubhankar Deo Amani Mryan Keshav Sanghani Maddie Studnicka

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Ask the Athlete

Q: What are your goals for your future as a runner?

A: Do as well as possible in state meet, really contribute to my team in college, get to the NCAA cross country meet and try to finish in top 10. Longterm I would really like to make Olympic Trials.

photo by Alex Choi

Q: How long have you been running?

A: I’ve been running since the eighth grade. I had been playing soccer, but I began to enjoy running more.

Q: What race was the most important in your season?

A: My first race. I closed the gap in the last mile on a big competitor and came out with the win.

Q: What is your favorite movie?

A: Braveheart

On Nov. 5, Blake Evertsen, senior, was all-state for the third year in a row. Evertsen recently committed to Harvard University.

Q: What has been the best part of senior year so far?

A: The maturity that I have seen in all my peers and my ability to be confident, and everyone in the class being someone that I feel like I can talk to.

46 Village Place Hinsdale, Illinois 630.537.1586 6300 Kingery Hwy #126, Willowbrook, Illinois 630.481.4944 www.cafelafortuna.com

Battleground

Opinions

by Shubankar Deo and Carolyn Chun

Affirmative Action Affirmative action has deviated from its original goal and negatively impacted the very applicants it intended to benefit: applicants who cannot access resources.

In the past, there was a direct correlation between race and access to resources; however, race can no longer be considered an accurate predictor of the resources available to an applicant. Instead, socioeconomic status has replaced race as the determining factor. Two minority applicants from different socioeconomic groups are not distinguished by the current process, and wealthy minorities, at times, receive an unfair advantage due to affirmative action.

According to Forbes Magazine, at elite schools like Yale and Harvard, 60 percent of incoming students tend to come from the top 10 percent of the socioeconomic spectrum, while only five percent come from the bottom half. In order to fairly assess applicants, colleges must realize that affirmative action is outdated and fails to help underprivileged students.

If anything, colleges should focus on socioeconomic status rather than race. A study done by the Urban Institute found that the average wealth for a white family is 12 times the wealth of black families and nearly 10 times the wealth of Latino families. A system based on socioeconomic class would then account for both racial and economic disparities and uphold the standard of racial diversity at colleges.

Although affirmative action may have succeeded in the past, it now provides an advantage to wealthier applicants of the same race. As a result, low-income applicants lose the chance of a lifetime to attend prestigious universities and work to help their families to break financial barriers.

College education is renowned for its ability to foster creativity and produce students that change the world, and students who will make the most of what they are given deserve this experience.

Affirmative action is, by all means, a sticky subject. The movement started back in the 1960s as a series of executive orders mandating government employers to take active steps to realize “equal employment opportunities”— essentially, to promote compliance with the Civil Rights Act. The phrase has since broadened, moving from the land of bureaucrats to that of college-bound teenagers. And amid cries of reinforced discrimination and ineffective results, race-awareness processes are hardly uncontroversial.

Yet here’s the thing: affirmative action is not a blanket rule. It is not a quota system. It is the ability on the part of the university to factor in—as it does with many other intangible, unquantifiable qualities, like leadership and character, creativity and ingenuity, diversity of opinions—another aspect of the whole applicant. In the quest to form a challenging and rich learning community, the data set of test scores and grade point averages falls flat; even the most hardened critics of affirmative action see the flaws in standardized testing.

See, the burden placed on colleges is that they must search, not only for students, but also for members of a community. There is a distinct educational goal here: to create the sort of environment that fosters intellectual growth and exploration. Race is part of that equation.

There are flaws, sure, but they are not intrinsic to the system. And, beyond that, there are many, many good things. Getting minorities into better schools makes it more likely for them to graduate (73 percent vesus 40 percent for Latinos with above-average scores, according to The Atlantic), grants better social mobility (96 percent of the top one percent is white, according to Huffington Post, and only one percent of Fortune 500 CEOs are black, according to Forbes Magazine), and works at breaking stereotypes and barriers at the highest levels of elite American culture. Affirmative action isn’t the death of education; it’s progress.

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Opinions

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happiness guide

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ovember is known for being a month about gratitude. A month of giving thanks and giving back to the people we love.

But, to be honest, we’re worried that these messages can be muddled because of the busyness of our lives.

With just a week to go before Thanksgiving break, we’re all knee-deep in completing history packets and trying to salvage our science grades. We’re struggling with the fact that it’s dark outside at 5 p.m. We’re furiously texting that one member of our group project who won’t contribute to the Google Doc. The cumulation of all these activities can add up to a lot of stress and pressure in our lives. And that leads to us subconsciously saying a ton of negative things throughout the day. Think about how many times have you complained about lack of sleep, or cold coffee, or too much homework lately?

Of course, it’s natural to complain. Everyone hasrough days. Everyone needs to vent sometimes. But, recently, both of us have tried to do no-negativity days. These are days when we go 24 hours without spewing any kind of negativity from our mouths.

After these days, something clicked for us: when we complain less, we tend to be more grateful. Sure, school is stressful, but we’re fortunate to have access to such a good education. The weather might be colder, but we’re grateful that we have a fireplace and a warm blanket to come home to. We might be craving Chipotle, but we’re appreciative of the meal our parents prepared. We can recognize that life isn’t perfect, but it’s still pretty beautiful.

Gratitude is the gateway to happiness. It isn’t ignoring the bad parts of life; it’s accepting where we are right now, and finding joy in the little things. So, this Thanksgiving season, we’re challenging you to minimize negativity and maximize positivity through showing gratitude.

Make an effort to hug your parents. Offer compliments to strangers. Give your time and compassion to a charity. Try going 24 hours without saying anything negative. Have a Friendsgiving celebration with your favorite people to laugh and devour copious amounts of food with. You’ll be happier if you do!

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Opinions

Hype Video Controversy

drawing by Julia Baroni

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he frame opens with a crimson 1967 Chevy Chevelle speeding through the wealthiest streets of Hinsdale. The song “3500” by Travis Scott blasts in the background as the car drives by multi-million dollar houses with grand windows and multiple levels. The video is meant to excite students about the upcoming football game, and yet football is not mentioned or hinted at. Hype videos build interest among the student body about upcoming sporting events, but they also help build the reputation of Central.

“The first purpose of the videos is to get other schools to envy us, to dislike us more,” said Jake Youngman, senior and co-chair of Red Devil Nation Club’s Multi-Media Committee.

Youngman is not the only one with this mindset. We are known for demeaning other schools about their test scores at sporting events, and even throwing fake money at other fans.

There is a difference between hyping up sporting events and flaunting the Hinsdale name. By constantly having to mention money in the videos, explicitly or implicitly, it builds a reputation that Red Devils are all rich, which is simply not true.

Hype videos from the 2016-2017 school year have more than 15,000 views. With that large of an audience, the hype videos have a responsibility to deliver a true representation of the student population. Central’s reputation at neighboring schools has a bad

connotation, one that includes phrases such as “Daddy’s Money”. “[Central students] are stereotypical country club kids,” said Jacqueline Osborne, a senior at Glenbard West.

When making anything with Central’s name on it, the perception others will take away from it about our high school is important, and hype videos are no exception.

“They already call us that school that has a bunch of rich kids, so why not play into that,” Youngman said.

According to Youngman, exaggerating the stereotype of Central rather than changing it makes for more entertaining content.

The way our school is seen by others is important to the student body, staff, and parents. A positive image is always desired, but more often than not, hype videos impede that. The idea of hype videos is great, but when they stray from simply Wexciting students and turn into a way to flaunt our money, they become problematic.

So far in the 2016-2017 school year, there have been no incidents of outright name-calling or rudeness in the hype videos. “[Hype videos] aren’t doing anything to upstage another school or demean students that attend that school,” Principal Walsh said.

But while this is a great step towards building a positive reputation of Central, more must be done. Rather than flaunt our money, we should flaunt our character.

This editorial is the consensus of the Devils’ Advocate Board

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Newsfeed Bringing Positivity to Students “Positive” is a book for anyone who has ever been bullied, teased, or shamed for simply being themselves. On Nov. 3, Paige Rawl spoke to Central students about her story of hope and positivity in the face of constant torment and abuse after sharing with a friend in middle school that she’d been born HIV positive. “‘Positive’ has a lot of value as [Rawl’s] story is one that many girls and boys in Central find absolutely relatable, as many of the students here have experienced something throughout their life similar to her struggle with bullying,” said Mrs. Kerrin Riley, library department chair.

Rawl wrote her memoir, “Positive”, to chronicle how her life changed after telling a friend about her HIV positive status.

What ensued was ostracization and harassment from her peers about her condition. After struggling with constant bullying for the rest of her time in middle school, Rawl left public school and was homeschooled for a year.

“I love that [Rawl] took something awful, being bullied, and turned it into something positive: a book and a movement,” said Margaret Keller, junior.

Today, Rawl is an advocate for youth with HIV and AIDS, as well as anti-bullying. She became the youngest Red Cross speaker about HIV and AIDS, as well as Miss Indiana Teen Essence and Miss Indiana High School America. Her message has reached media outlets such as People, Seventeen, Nick News with Linda Ellerbee, and Huffington Post.

photo by Maddie Studnicka

by Aneesh Bulusu and Maddie Studnicka

Paige Rawl’s moving memoir “Positive” chronicles her fight with HIV and struggle against bullying.

Playing the Part: “Rashomon”

photo by Joseph Miscimarra

by Keshav Sanghani and Sanchu Raghuvir

Based on the famous Japanese film, the school’s production of “Rashomon” will be performed Nov. 17-19.

This year’s annual fall play is “Rashomon”, and it runs from Nov. 17 to 19 in the auditorium. The play is a re-creation of a Japanese murder film released in 1950 and explores the subjectivity of truth. “[It will be] a very dramatic, energetic, and lively play,” said main lead Raunak Malhotra, senior.

English teacher Mr. Christopher Kostro is the director, and the cast includes Nicholas Speziale, Raunak Malhotra, Ella Heider, Declan Casey, Lily Chrones, Jennifer Stavreva, Katie Connelly, Sam Rasmussen, and Anna Lowery.

“The play is very physical…. and there are many fights, like sword and hand-to-hand,” Mr. Kostro said.

With scenes including sword and hand-to-hand combat, the theater program has made large efforts to ensure the actors’ safety. “[We contracted] a fight choreographer who’s also worked with the lead girl in ‘Hamilton’,” Malhotra said.

School plays offer an opportunity to sit back, relax, and enjoy the work that many students have put into the performance.

“I will definitely be in the audience supporting my peers in the performing arts,” said Mickey Horstman, sophomore.

For more news, visit www.hcdevilsadvocate.com 9

Profiles

Teen Boys & Tiaras

A Look into Central’s All Male Pageant

by Sofia Rafiq and Charlotte Sudduth

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en boys. A pageant. Six different categories.

Welcome to Mr. Hinsdale, a charity male pageant where upperclassmen compete to raise money for the Amazing Grace Foundation. Founded by an alumni, the Amazing Grace Foundation is an organization for young cancer patients, which is also supported by other school events, such as the Powderpuff football game and the National Honor Society bake sale.

Mr. Hinsdale is the product of the J. Kyle Braid cohort’s idea to increase the school’s contribution to charity. Inspired

by Naperville Central’s charity initiatives, Central’s JKB club organized and hosted Mr. Hinsdale from 2012 to 2014. In 2015, Student Council took over the pageant.

Mr. Hinsdale is a beauty pageant, where male students can get nominated by attending the informational meeting or by Student Council members. Once the students are nominated, the Student Council interviews each contestant to get a better sense of their likes and dislikes. Students Nora Moran, Grace Hafner, Joey Sullivan, and Lauren Hughes interviewed nominees with lighthearted questions, such as ‘what is your ideal date’ and ‘what is your spirit animal?’

“We came up with [simple questions] that we feel will give a fair representation of their personalities,” said Grace Hafner, junior.

The initial pool of nominations included 44 students. After the interviews, the pool was narrowed down to the top ten candidates.

These male students will then compete in several components of

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photo by Abby Berberich

the pageant including a casual dress, a spirit wear, a formal wear, a talent portion, a skit, and a questionnaire. Three teachers will then judge the contestants based on the specific criteria. In the end, one boy will win the pageant and the proceeds from ticket sales will go to the Amazing Grace Foundation.

In the past, boys have shown off a variety of talents like singing, performing stand-up comedy, and even folding laundry.

Both parents and students have attended the pageant to show support for the contestants and the cause.

“Everyone seemed to enjoy the show. We have really talented and funny students at our school, and they delivered,” said Mr. Wilbur, JKB sponsor.

This year’s contestants include: Thomson Randell, Max Thompson, Kevin Qin, Marshall Demirjian, Matt McCann, Jake Youngman, Jorell Wilson, Austin Shelton, Peter Marcus and Marshall Dockery.

Contestant Marshall Demirjian, junior, is enthusiastic about his nomination and looks forward to competing in the pageant.

“I’m really excited for the lip-syncing, dancing portion. I think no matter what anybody does it’s going to be hilarious. And I’m glad my 16 years of singing in the shower is going to finally come to use,” Demirjian said.

To witness your male classmates rival each other in an intense pageant, the Student Council urges students and parents to come to the Mr. Hinsdale Pageant on Dec. 8 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5 and will be sold during all lunches the week of the pageant and at the door.

Cheers & Jeers

- Cheers to Thanksgiving break – we’ve been waiting.

- Cheers to the food babies. #16andpregnant - Cheers to the Cubs – we ain’t afraid of no goat.

- Cheers to the Obama-Biden memes - they’re “Baracking” my world. (; - Cheers to the freakin’ weekend... do people even read these?

- Jeers to the death of Vine – how will I keep my routine of starting homework at 10 going?

- Jeers to my racist uncle.

You really had to invite him to Thanksgiving, Mom? - Jeers to 93.9 FM playing Christmas music... #I’mJewish - Jeers to my first quarter grades.

Are you sure you can’t round my 75 percent up to an A?

Profiles

R U O HE H

T F O MAN

Cheerleader talks about being the only male on the team

by Bilal Khokhar and Anya Uppal

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t’s a cold Friday night on Dickinson Field. The crowd stands in the bleachers, huddled up in blankets, cheering for the football team. As the cheerleaders begin performing their routine, a roar goes through the student section. A male cheerleader, the only boy on the team, tumbles down the track, performing cheerleading stunts.

With his adrenaline pumping, he hears the crowd cheering behind him, and he prepares to do one of his biggest tumbling passes. Setting his nerves aside, he runs, launching himself into a roundoff and three back handsprings to a layout. He sticks the landing.

Israel Rosales, junior, has been cheering for the Varsity Cheer team for one season. Rosales began tumbling at the age of eight, taking classes at the Flying High gymnastics gym. Since, he has joined a competitive cheer team, continuing to practice his tumbling skills while cheering. He was on a competitive cheer team for two years outside of high school, but switched to Central’s cheer team this year.

“Competitive cheer is only for trophies, but high school cheer is being involved in the game and having a lot of school spirit,” Rosales said.

Although he is the only male cheerleader, that has not stopped him from doing what he loves. Rosales explains that being a male cheerleader can be uncomfortable at times, but he is always confident in himself and tries to perform his best.

“I get a lot of looks, but then when I perform my tumbling pass, everyone is shocked,” Rosales said.

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Brittany Butler, varsity cheer coach, is impressed with Rosales’ tumbling skills. He performs a series of intense tumbling passes that instantly gets the crowd hyped up whenever he performs.

“Having Israel on the team takes our tumbling level from impressive to extreme,” Ms. Butler said. “Israel contributes advanced tumbling, skills, strength, and energy to the team. His jumps are outstanding and he is always front and center during our jump sequences.”

During pep assemblies and football games, the crowd gasps and is instantly taken aback by Rosales’ ability to tumble. Katya Antipov, junior, is a part of the team with Rosales, and is also impressed with his tumbling skills.

“Israel is so fun and full of life, and he definitely makes games and pep-rallies more hype. The crowd goes crazy for him,” Antipov said.

Rosales adds a unique touch to the team and makes the crowd more interested in watching his performance. Males are encouraged to tryout for high school cheerleading, and Rosales’ presence adds to the team’s performance.

“Having a male cheerleader makes our team more dynamic. As cheerleading revamps, more and more male athletes are becoming more involved in the sport,” Ms. Butler said.

According to Ms. Butler, Rosales is a great asset to the cheer squad and adds hype to the crowd during the cheer performance. “With Israel’s exceptional skills, technique, and spirit, the crowd really comes alive at games and performances.”

photo by Alex Choi

Muslim Student Association

by Amani Mryan and Adam DeDobbelaere ince the beginning of its inception, the Muslim Student Association, or MSA, is a student-centered club dedicated to improving the lives of the school community. It is a club open to any student and seeks to provide a safe and welcoming environment for both Muslim and non-Muslim students.

“The MSA is an open club to all, and a space where students meet to discuss how they want to help others,” said Ms. Sofia Rahman, the MSA sponsor. Ms. Rahman has been teaching at Central for five years, and she has been the MSA sponsor for the last four.

Students view the club as an opportunity to bond with and meet new people.

“I love meeting my Muslim brothers and sisters that I don’t see on a regular basis. I love connecting with anyone in any grade,” said Samone Khalil, junior. “Just knowing that we follow the same faith is beautiful.”

The club hosts various events throughout the year, especially during the springtime, according to Imaan Qadir, senior president. The MSA hopes that through their work, they can raise awareness about Islam not only in the school, but in the community as well.

“We do many annual events, such as the Henna event, basketball tournaments, bake sales, and more. Most of our events take place during Islamic Awareness week, and

Professional writer and alumni Tayyaba Syed gives a writing workshop to MSA members and students on Oct. 12. photo courtesy of Omar Sheikh

Club Spotlight photo courtesy of Omar Sheikh

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Profiles

that is in a few months,” Qadir said.

Not only does the MSA host events within the school, they also strive to improve the Muslim community by raising money for countries in need, especially during holidays, such as Eid, a Muslim religious holiday marking the end of the fast of Ramadan.

“The MSA sponsored low-income families for Eid, and the students [handed] out gifts to children of those families,” Ms. Rahman said. “That experience impacted both the MSA students and [the] children in a positive manner that was powerful to watch.”

Each year, the MSA chooses one or two groups to donate their fundraising money to. This year, the students want to support Qalam School, located in Pakistan and established in 2010. Money raised during school events will help educate these students.

“No matter if you are Muslim or not, you should come to at least one MSA meeting to learn about the unity and diversity of our religion,” Khalil said.

If intersted, MSA holds its meetings after school every other Wednesday in room 310.

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° photo by Abby Berberich

Features

Spanish Club hosts PiĂąata Day to celebrate the beginning of the festivities for the Day of the Dead.

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pictured: Isabel Tamas and Ana Snyder

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for

photo by Abby Berberich

° h Dia de los Muertos

by Jayne Gelman and Minna Hasaballa

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T

he sounds of celebration emanate through the neighborhood as countless people gather infinite quantities of bright and colorful makeup to decorate their faces. In one corner of the street, one child’s face is being painted white, while in another, a family is gathering flowers to place upon their altars or ofrendas.

Portraits holding the smiling faces of loved ones can be seen everywhere, as more and more families crowd into the streets, eagerly awaiting the start of the parade. Accompanying all of these sounds is a myriad of musical instruments, echoing down the streets and into the ears of all who occupy the worn pavement.

Día de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead, is an annual holiday celebrated from Oct. 30 to Nov. 2 in Latin American countries around the world. The holiday derives its roots from the ancient Aztec tradition of honoring the goddess, Mictecacihuatl, Queen of the Underworld, in what is today Mexico. The Aztecs held celebrations honoring the lives of their deceased loved ones, as they believed that the deceased preferred to be celebrated for their lives instead of mourned for their deaths.

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Bella Tamas, junior, celebrates the Day of the Dead in the tradition of Mexican culture. Tamas highly values the holiday and passionately celebrates it every year. She admires how unique Día de los Muertos is, as there is no holiday like it in America.

“While we have days that honor important people in our history, such as MLK and Christopher Columbus, there is no specific date for honoring the dead of families and loved ones,” Tamas said.

The holiday lasts three days. The first day of the celebration, Oct. 30, is dedicated to celebrating the lives of children who have passed away.

On Nov. 2, families and friends remember the lives of the adults who have passed away.

To celebrate the lives of loved ones, family members who have lost someone close to them create altars or ofrendas, decorated in cemeteries or homes. Many things are found on these altars, from the person’s favorite food and drink, to even their favorite toys (if they passed on as a child).

In addition, marigolds, candles and, calcas or skeletons, are also placed onto the ofrendas to symbolize various meaning to families and the souls of those who have passed away.

Similar to Tamas, Frida Barajas,

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senior, also celebrates the Day of the Dead. Though Barajas has not had anyone close to her pass away, she still participates in building altars for her deceased relatives.

“The whole family gets together and we make food. We make the food that they like together, and then we eat it and then we just go out and celebrate,” Barajas said. “You take whatever they liked and eat it, and you try to remember the person to their fullest extent.”

In addition to building ofrendas, many people celebrate the holiday by making and decorating sugar skulls.

These sugar skulls are sometimes used to decorate altars or graves of lost loved ones.

“You take sugar and you color coat it. [Then] you paint what you would usually see on your face, onto the skull,” Barajas said.

To some participants of the holiday in Latin American countries, the different aspects of the decoration of the skulls signify different things.

“Usually in Mexico, skulls are decorated to represent the person who has died. When I went to Mexico during Spring Break, a few years ago, they had created skull figurines

of famous people, like Elvis Presley and Micheal Jackson, that had guitars and microphones,” Tamas said.

Although the holiday originated in Mexico, several other Latin American countries around the world have since adopted it, adding their own spin on the celebration.

Catherine Collins, freshman, is of Panamanian descent and observes the holiday a little differently than the traditional celebrations of other Latin American countries. Collins celebrates the holiday in part by enjoying a traditional meal of empanadas, which are corn meal patties stuffed with meat and sofrito, a sauce base used in many Latin American dishes.

“The Day of the Dead is a more sober holiday [in Panama] compared to other Latin American countries. The day after Día de los Muertos is a bigger holiday because we celebrate the Panamanian Independence from Columbia,” Collins said.

AP Spanish teacher, Seño O’Connor, celebrated Día de los Muertos in Guatemala, another Latin American country that has unique

traditions for celebrating the Day of the Dead.

“On Nov. 1, we put flowers on the tombs of my friends’ family members, and then we went to the plaza to watch the Festival of Barriletes (kites)," Seño O'Connor siad. "Guatemalans make decorative kites in different sizes, which then stand in the plaza for people to see."

Over the past few years, the Day of the Dead has become a more popular holiday in the United States. According to a nationwide survey done by the Pew Hispanic Center, 28 percent of Hispanic adults surveyed said that they celebrate Día de los Muertos. Of the people surveyed, 25 percent of them celebrate the holiday by either making or buying Pan de Muerto, bread of the dead. It is a baked good that symbolizes the holiday, similar to how candy canes represent Christmas. Others visit a cemetery or make an altar.

Five years ago, Central began celebrating Día de los Muertos in its own way, as well. On Nov. 1, multiple ofrendas are built in the language hallway. Students taking Spanish are encouraged to participate in the tradition by helping to decorate the altar by

bringing in pictures of their loved ones to place on the altars.

“We wanted to make Día de los Muertos alive,” said Señora Holland, Spanish teacher who helped begin the tradition. “You watch a lot of videos, you read a lot of articles [about the holiday] and so a couple teachers were talking in the office about how we can make it more personal and have that sort of immediate connection.”

According to fellow Spanish teacher, Señora Conroy, this tradition began as a way to immerse students in the unique way a different culture addresses a certain subject, such as death. She believes that many students at Central have a sad perception of the holiday, and she wished to change that.

Students who actively participate in this holiday agree. Many acknowledge how the holiday is a celebration and not a mourning.

“I love this holiday so much because death is embraced and seen in a positive light, in comparison to the dark, depressing way that people in America usually see [death],” Tamas said.

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edited History.-

Students and teachers discuss how history is changed by perspective

by Julia Baroni and Juliana Mayer

Columbus

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try to build a deeper understanding of events through handson activities. Slavery, a topic with many horrors attached, is one that she believes would be too burdensome simply through the presentation of cold facts.

“It’s about building blocks...so when you get to high school, it’s not the first time you’re hearing it,” Ms. Considine said.

Some students, such as Guido, find activities like presentations and skits more exciting than simply reading from a textbook.

In some respects, this manner of teaching for younger students changes as a matter of increasing difficulty for high schoolers.

However, Central history students can’t help but wonder how this editing has changed the story.

According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, only 13 percent of the nation’s high school seniors showed proficiency in their knowledge of American history. Though this number is not directly indicative of teaching at Central, it casts doubt upon the manner in which history is approached throughout a student’s education.

Lilja Carden, junior and co-president of history club, enjoys her history classes at Central, but describes the history classes she took during elementary and middle school as redundant, lacking the addition of further depth on controversial issues or issues that were not within the Western sphere of dominance.

“I remember how a lot of it was American history. I reviewed American history in all of my elementary and middle school

slavery

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oldiers march solemnly across the battlefield, counting their steps as they go. The soft and rhythmic chant of left-rightleft can be heard as the Southerners approach. Following the orders of their general, George Pickett, they are ready to attack.

Soon rifles point and fire into the air and Northern enemies begin to fall.

The bell rings. Instead of solemn faces, many “soldiers” laugh on the ground as they play dead. Though this was only a reenactment of Pickett’s Charge at Elm School, teachers try to explain to their student soldiers the severity and meaning of the infantry assault.

Elementary history curriculum has always differed in content based on students’ maturity. It is only when students go on to high school that classes begin to include the larger context and varying perspectives of complex events. But with this discrepancy between elementary and high school students, whether the material has been edited for the two audiences is called into question.

Phoebe Guido, sixth-grader and graduate of Madison School, said that she remembers the Civil War unit, one riddled with contrasting accounts of the events told, clearly.

“We got to learn about slaves and act out parts of how they lived in a play,” Guido said.

According to Ms. Jeana Considine, Elm School principal, students’ age must be considered. In elementary school, teachers

the Trail of Tears

Eurocentrism illustrations by Julia Baroni

years, and rarely got into anything else,” she said. “What I This exploration of alternate perspectives is what Carden remember the most was not that we reviewed the same content, finds intriguing about her history classes in high school. She but we reviewed the same perspective.” appreciates that by considering every lesson, the material becomes Carden thinks that this simplification of the content narrows more comprehensive and real. students’ worldviews and leaves only an American lens behind, Though less textbook interpretations are used in elementary in essence creating many groups that all think alike without teaching, complications can still arise regarding a student’s overall consideration of others. understanding. According to Ms. Considine, historical activities “American history was repeated to us in the same fashion as in such as Pickett’s charge or the mock Lewis and Clark expedition the previous year, defining heroes and villains and making events they hold at Elm school help expose students to the idea of very black and white,” Carden said. conflict.

Carden recalls the way in which she learned about World War “When teaching the kids we can become so deadened to the II in middle school. number, the number of folks that were killed at a battle. So I “We talked about all the would try to personalize it, “American history was repeated horrors seen in a concentration that those 20,000 people had camp and were made aware parents…to make it not just a to us in the same fashion as in the of how awful it was to be one number that you can place on previous year, defining heroes and of those victims,” she said. a chart,” she said. villains and making events very “While in many ways this is Ms. Considine admits that an accurate portrayal, we were sometimes the omission of black and white,” never taught about how in facts that are later presented Lilja Carden America at the same time we to high schoolers can result had Japanese internment camps that uprooted families from their in the omission of critical perspectives and thinking. Her goal is to strike a balance between appropriately mature lessons and homes and put them into isolated facilities.” in depth accounts of events. Mr. Otahal views this process, Mr. Dan Otahal, AP United States History and Global Issues though imperfect, as a generally effective way to build historical teacher, explained that to some extent, a bias will always be knowledge. prevalent within textbooks and other student materials, even for “I would advise that schools and students explore beyond high school.

American history and research different perspectives,” said “The key is not to find a truly objective historian—that might Carden. “As we learn more at the high school level, you begin to be really hard—but to look at different historians, and different see how that even what we though was the full story is sometimes sources, and different interpretations.” Mr. Otahal said.

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glorified figures

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gender inequality

the Holocaust

gun violence

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CUBS WORLD SERIES PARADE Many students called in sick with ‘Cubs Fever’ on Friday Nov. 4 in order to experience history in Chicago’s Grant Park at the Cubs Parade. The Cubs won the World Series on Nov. 2 in Cleveland against the Indians. photo by Abby Berberich

Features

YES, WE’RE

OPEN

by Julia Chatterjee and Adam DeDobbelaere

phot

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nwavering shoppers dart aimlessly around the swarming store. It is 3 a.m., but the night is just getting started. Lists of gifts, and sometimes pepper spray, are clutched in fists. Thoughts of thankfulness from mere hours before have vanished and are replaced with nightmares of empty shelves. Deals are advertised on colossal posters, and employees point towards potential holiday gifts. The propaganda is easily dismissed as customers on a mission aim themselves at the newest televisions.

The struggle between giving or getting and gratefulness or greed conglomerate to

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the frenzy that is deemed Black Friday.

Only 24 hours later, the local shops of communities across the country will be participating in their own Black Friday.

This year, cushioned between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, falls Small Business Saturday on Nov. 26.

Small Business Saturday was founded

by American Express in 2010 with the intent of getting shoppers to their local stores for their holiday shopping instead of online stores and big-box retailers. The event has since grown to have a worth of $16.2 billion dollars, according to New York Business Journal, and it is expected to increase yearly. As the day gains more popularity each year, it becomes one of the biggest for sales for small businesses.

Elyce Rembos is the owner of The Green Goddess in downtown Hinsdale, a small shop that specializes in clothing, jewelry, and home products.

“Shopping small benefits the community because a vibrant downtown area is good for the entire community,” Rembos said.

“It brings a lot of interest to the area for restaurants and services, not only boutiques.”

According to “An Assessment of the Marginal Impact of Urban Amenities on Residential Pricing,” a study done by

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photo courtesy of Omar Sheikh

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“I love the atmosphere of local shops, all of the vendors are so enthusiastic about what they sell.”

Sanjanaa Shanmugan

Jonathan Gardner in the Portland area, property values within a community increase when local shopping is strong.

“The results of the study indicate that the proximate availability of a range of urban amenities have a substantive impact on achievable residential pricing,” Gardner said in his study.

Rembos said local shopping is not only beneficial to the community as a whole, but can benefit community members as individual consumers by offering uncommon products. The Green Goddess makes it a goal to retail products that customers would not be able to find at larger chain stores, especially during the holiday season.

“We seek out unique brands,” Rembos said. “We specifically look for products that are made in the U.S., have a charitable give back, or are made from recycled material, like recycled metal, and are eco-friendly.”

Junior Sanjanaa Shanmugam is looking forward to window-shopping the handmade items stores are offering, and purchasing little trinkets this Small Business Saturday.

“I love the atmosphere of local shops,” Shanmugam said. “All of the vendors are so enthusiastic about what they sell.”

Clarendon Hills Chamber of Commerce President Laura Marquardt and Vice President Mark Rediehs agree that the individuality and quaintness of local stores in Clarendon Hills is what makes shopping small special.

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Marquardt said the Chamber promotes Small Business Saturday, but their support for small businesses is year round, and they maintain conditions to see small businesses flourish.

“The rent is reasonable in Clarendon Hills, and we don’t have many closures,” Marquardt said. “As a matter of fact, except for one space, we are currently full.”

According to Time, a study by the New Economic Foundations found that twice the money stayed in a community when people bought their groceries at the farmers market versus the supermarket.

“That means those purchases are twice as efficient in terms of keeping the local economy alive,” NEF researcher David Boyle said in the study.

Stores in Hinsdale have been flourishing as well. Tigers and Tulips, another boutique in Hinsdale, has been open for nine years and sells products ranging from women’s shoes to Japanese erasers.

According to Hinsdale Patch, storeowner of Tigers and Tulips Tiffany Shriver takes pride in offering affordable products to her customers. The store currently only has two staff members, but Shriver likes knowing that customers have a routine in her store and know their retailers.

“When people come to a boutique, they want service,” Shriver said in an interview with Hinsdale Patch.

Rembos agrees that better customer service and better product offerings are what keep small businesses competitive with big-box retailers and online stores.

This Small Business Saturday, The Green Goddess will offer 20 percent off of Alex and Ani bracelets, a product that is rarely discounted.

Shoppers can shops deals like these in their community, and find unique gifts this holiday season by shopping small on Nov. 26.

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Black Friday

by Lancelot Lin

During this time, the adjective “black”was used to describe calamities. In this case, “Black Friday” references the Panic of 1869, where two speculators cornered the gold market by hoarding gold, driving prices up and stocks down.

Earliest known use of “Black Friday” to describe the day after Thanksgiving.

It refers to workers ditching the day after Thanksgiving to get a longer weekend. Around this time, however, the term began to be used by Philidelphia and Rochester police to address the crowds and congestion resulting from the commencement of the holiday shopping season.

The New York Times uses Black Friday to describe what was the busiest day in Philidelphia in terms of shopping and traffic. It is the earliest mention of the term in its contemporary definition.

In the 1980s, the term began to gain attention, and merchants started to adopt it in reference to one of the major shopping days of the year. The term is used because retailers sustain losses for most of the year, and the holiday shopping season provides an opportunity for merchants to make enough revenue to end up “in the black”, or profit.

The first “Buy Nothing Day” is celebrated in Canada.

In 1997, it was moved so it would coincide with Black Friday. Today, more than 65 nations celebrate it as protest against consumerism.

2013

1992

1980

1975

1951

1869

Origins

Amount of deaths and injuries resulting from Black Fridays, 2006-2014 from news aggregator site blackfridaydeathcount.com

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An Internet rumor suggested that the term originated in the pre-Civil War South, where slave owners would sell their slaves the day after Thanksgiving. The rumor was debunked in 2015.

Information via Wikipedia

Deaths: 7

Injuries: 98

Canadians used to cross the border to conduct Black Friday shopping in the U.S.

“Black Friday” used to refer to the day before Christmas, when British police and healthcare would have contingency measures in place due to large amounts of pubgoers.

Due to the rising popularity of online shopping, India has an event known as the “Great Online Shopping Fest”, which takes place in December.

Close equivalent: “El Buen Fin”, or “The Good Weekend” in Spanish, taking place the weekend before the celebration of Mexican Independence Day.

Countries that participate in Black Friday or a similar event Information via Wikipedia

Amount spent on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday 2015

Thanksgiving Day: $1.8 billion

data from Adobe and ShopperTrak

Black Friday: $10.4 billion

In store: $12.1 billion

Online: $4.45 billion

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]

$16.55 billion combined

Thanksgiving Day: $1.73 billion

Black Friday: $2.72 billion

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photo by Alex Choi

What’s

Bakers Square

The Bakers Square pie is the most elaborate pie out of the three, with two distinct layers, caramel, nuts, and a whipped cream topping. As a pie, it’s great— it’s creamy, dense, sugary, and has a nice flaky and buttery crust. However, it falls seriously short as a pumpkin pie. There is little to no indication that it is a pumpkin pie given its lack of pumpkin flavor, spices and inclusion of ultimately distracting toppings. If it’s a pumpkin pie you’re looking for, your time will be better spent elsewhere.

7409 Kingery Highway, Willowbrook, Ill.

Toni Sweets Toni Sweets, the quaint little bakery in the heart of Hinsdale, has undoubtedly one of the most unique pumpkin pies to offer.

It’s pumpkin filling is light, fluffy, and moist, all coupled with a satisfyingly crumbly crust. However, it is light on the spices, and has a relatively strong pumpkin flavor in a way that reminds you pumpkin is a vegetable. This is the pie to buy if you’re not a fan of traditional, sugar-loaded pies.

51 S. Washington St. Hinsdale, Ill.

Standard Market Looking for a delicious combination of cinnamon and pumpkin? Try the pumpkin pie from Standard Market! With its creamy filling and thick crust, it provides a tasty flavor palette— the perfect dessert to complement any dinner. It is the most “traditional” pumpkin pie of the three and belongs right beside the turkey and sweet potatoes at the Thanksgiving dinner table.

333 E. Ogden Ave. Westmont, Ill.

Bakers Square

Toni Sweets

Standard Markard

5/10 6/10 8/10

*reviews are consensus of the Advocate staff

26

s Trending Now

by Ray Shryock

e,

posters from Paramount, Disney, and Warner Bros.

a a n

r.

nd ou n of

Arrival starring Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner Sci-fi Released Nov. 11

Doctor Strange starring Mads Mikkelsen and Benedict Cumberbatch Superhero/Fantasy Released Nov. 4

Fantastic Beasts starring Eddie Redmayne and Colin Farrell Fantasy Released Nov. 18

Music Mania

of the Month Woman by Justice, the French electronic sensation’s new album released Nov. 18.

This House Is Not For Sale by Bon Jovi, the rock band’s album dropped Nov. 4. photos from Ed Banger Records and Island Records

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STUDENT ARTWORK FEATURE Stop by Room 216 to see this collage painting by senior Anish Bajaj and junior Parth Kachru. Other student artwork is also currently on display in the gallery.

photo by Nora Wood