DVC Inquirer 5/1/2014 by DVC Inquirer

Inside dancing at DVC:

Students hope to showcase work for community. See Page 6.

Swim team goes to State: Men’s and women’s team break records and brings home awards. See Page 12.

Editorial board weighs in: Student safety should be a

bigger priority on college campuses. See Page 7.

The

INQUIRER S tudent V oi ce

D iablo Val le y C ol le g e

Volume 85 No. 5 Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014 www.TheInquirerOnline.com

Gaining ground

Kill switch dies in Senate AMRITA KAUR Copy editor

Legislators failed to pass a cell phone kill switch legislation, by two votes. The bill was introduced by Sen. Mark Leno, Democrat of San Francisco, on Feb. 6, which would require all smart-phone manufacturers to equip their products with the ability for theft victims to disable the phone inoperable remotely. The hope is that the technology would deter robbers from stealing the electronic devices. On April 24, Senate Bill 962, couldn’t make it passed the State Senate, by a vote of 19-17 in the 40 member house. The bill needed 21 votes to pass. According to a report by the BENJAMIN DAVIDSON / The Inquirer

Pati MacDonald greets John Gibson, one of the new prospects for DVC’s Veteran’s Alliance club, in their newly announced meeting room, located in the lower room of the Student Union.

Veterans Alliance club finds solace in new Student Union space AMRITA KAUR Copy editor

a good fit to accommodate the growing club, which is the only source of assistance for veterans on campus. fter a long road of having to share “The room will be used mainly for peer-tospace and facilities peer assistance, as we are with other clubs, getting bigger,” Kelley the Veterans Alliance club said. “Its nice and quiet in “I am pleased, so can finally move into their there, we can hold presenown home in the Student pleased, as it will serve tations by outside speakUnion Building Room 202. ers and by clubs like the, the club’s needs” Ryan Kelley, mechani‘Blue Ribbon Mothers.’” cal engineering student and According to Brian Var~DAVID VELA president of the Veterans Algas, outreach coordinator Veteran’s Alliance club adviser liance club presented their and club treasurer, Kelley plight to ASDVC for a vote has been instrumental in and the verdict came quickly. getting the room allocaAll parties agreed that the quiet room in the tion and taking it upon himself to make sure Student Union Building’s basement would be he talked to the right people and making it

happen. Previously the club used to meet in SU 101, but it became a challenge to share the space with other clubs. David Vela, club adviser and English professor, expressed his joy for the allocated space. “I am pleased, so pleased, as it will serve the club’s needs,” he said. “It will be good to use for small presentations and brown-bags.” Kelly said, “Veterans needs are different from other students, so it’s nice to have a room where people can go. Who ever needs a moment, can have a moment in there.” The room will be available for veterans as of the first day of the fall 2014 semester. Contact AMRITA KAUR at akaur@TheInquirerOnline.com

SWITCH Page 9

Union workers protest BENJAMIN DAVIDSON Managing editor

With informational picket signs in hand, the Concord crowd looked on as the speakers expressed their emotions through personal work stories. The annual Worker’s Memorial Day gathering is a time for mourning, and yet, it was able to bring together all those who wanted to address something that would hopefully better the whole – a change in safety, health and justice UNION, Page 9

• News 1, 10, 11 • Opinions 7, 8 • Sports 12 • Editorial 7 • Arts & Features 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 • Campus Buzz 7 • Calendar 10 • Police Beat 10 • Staff Information 10 • Copyright © 2014 The Inquirer - Diablo Valley College

arts & features 2 Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Late-night Southern Hospitality

An editor’s guide to nightlife explores soulful food options after dark BENJAMIN DAVIDSON Managing editor

As the waiter welcomed the lips, really makes the best out of customers into the lit-up waiting his late night shifts, by giving eararea of Walnut Creek’s Home of nest advice, pouring stiff drinks, Chicken and Waffles, located at and jokingly assisting customers 1653 Mt Diablo Blvd in Walnut with his favorite menu options. Creek, the to-be diners carried Every dish is named after a with them a smile, a wandering member of the owner’s family, eye and a sense of satisfaction – who gaze down on patrons from and all at 1 a.m. vibrant portraits on the bright yelLegitimate food options tend to low back wall that lines the booths diminish as the night progresses on the right side of the restaurant. – but for this small As if a warm meal Need to know restaurant in Wallate at night wasn’t nut Creek, it is just enough, Motown the opposite. grooves and funky On Fridays and For a dining exSaturdays they are open beats fill the dining perience that leaves until 4 a.m., which room, and continue you fulfilled with gives all you night-owls to play into the even more than a a place to soak up the night. full stomach, this Couple that with sauce after all the bars comfort-food diner the home style sides close at 2 a.m. is the only one of it’s such as grits, greens, Parking is close, and caliber for it’s hours and mac ‘n’ cheese the diner is only a short of operation, or at and you have the walk from the strucleast out of those in perfect recipe to ture. Additional parkWalnut Creek, and complement the ing may be found on surrounding areas. tender and crispy the street as well, and It is the Roscoe’s chicken. there is no need to pay of northern CaliThe restaurant is after 9 p.m. fornia, if you will. now approaching Built to reminisce the third anniveran upscale ‘60s-themed diner, a sary of opening, and they are still full bar with specialty cocktails are going strong. Their sister location now available for patrons until 1 in Oakland in a literal sense, as a.m. on Friday and Saturday and the owners are from the same famtill closing during the rest of the ily – is approaching their 10th anweek. niversary of opening, which is a The bar, which compliments milestone in and of itself. the menu of hearty comfort fare, The owner had voiced while gets the diners closer to the cooks. sitting at the bar, that as long as The feel of Southern hospital- people are in by 4 a.m. they will ity is more than present – not just be served a hot meal. So if you are in the food, but in the service as looking for a warm meal late into well – making for a very comfort- the night, make the short jaunt to able dining experience, despite the Walnut Creek, because the drive is time of night. more than worth it for the quality Four TV’s are also available for of food, all options considered. diners to watch, spread out in front of the bar stools. Contact BENJAMIN DAVIDSON at One of the waiters, Josh Philbdavidson@TheInquirerOnline.com

AMRITA KAUR / The Inquirer

Waiter Josh Phillips is working double-duty, as the busser, pass check, and food server at 1 a.m. on Saturday April 26, at the Home of Chicken and Waffles in Walnut Creek. Josh is one of many servers who make the diners feel like part of the family right when they walk in the door. Advertisement

arts & features 3 Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

First arts festival aims to draw in community

REALIZE YOUR DREAM AT MILLS COLLEGE.

REGINA ORTANEZ Art and features editor

The DVC Applied and Fine The festival will have outdoor Arts division will be hosting the entertainment including contests first annual “Arts Alive Festival” with prizes, face painting for any with the intent to showcase all that children in attendance and costhe department has to offer in just tumes from the drama department one day. on display. The inaugural event will welThe main stage will be held on come all those wishing to attend the Pleasant Hill campus by Parkon May 10, as it aims to target the ing Lot 8, near the Art Building. DVC community, as well as local Lisa Drummond, professor and middle and high schools to show- marketing director for the DVC case options for future potential Drama department said, “It won’t art students at DVC. just be ‘come and see the perforAccording to the DVC web- mances.’ It’s going to be ‘come and site, the Applied and Fine Arts wander and see what everything is Division includes the music, per- all about it.’” forming arts, art and photography Construction is scheduled to be departments and accordingly, will completed for that part of camfeature music concerts, drama pus by the date of the festival, so performances and art exhibits, as the stairs will be open, and areas promised by the promotional flyer for people to sit and eat in shaded for the festival. areas to get out of the sun will It is the aim be provided, of the division to “We know we have according to come togethDrummond. a wonderful fine arts er and target a “We want larger audience. to definitely division here, we have reach out the Back-to-back lots of students that community to performances are planned show what we move on to great from 1 p.m. to have to offer” success from all the she said. “We 6 p.m., and will feature both stuknow we have departments. ” dents and facula wonderful ty members. fine arts divi~LISA DRUMMOND The event will sion here, we Marketing director for DVC Drama culminate in a have lots of wine and cheese students that reception in the Performing Arts move on to great success from all Center lobby, which will lead into the departments. We want to share either a music concert or the dra- that and celebrate that with the ma performance of “Six Degrees community and become more of of Separation” in the arena at the- a community voice.” ater at 8 p.m. The choice is left up “It is our very first, our inauto the attendee. gural event, but our plan is that it Owen Lee, director of the DVC becomes something we do every Philharmonic Orchestra spoke of year and that we can continue to the music that will be present at grow and prosper with it,” Drumthe festival. mond continued. “So that’s the “In celebration of the arts at goal, that’s the hope is that it beDVC, the DVC Philharmonic Or- comes a yearly event here at DVC chestra with the combined choirs to celebrate what we have to offer at DVC, the concert corral, and the and it culminates especially bechamber singers will be perform- cause we’re moving into the 65th ing, in it’s entirety, Beethoven’s year anniversary of DVC, so we’re ‘Symphony No. 9.’ the whole trying to lead into that 65 year thing,” he said. “It’s going to be a celebration that will start and conwonderful event and “Full of Joy” tinue on.” is the last movement, it is based on For more information, contact Schiller’s “Ode to Joy,” a very, very Lisa Drummond at ldrummond@ famous and popular tune.” dvc.edu. The free event will include festivities that will last all day and Contact REGINA ORTANEZ at have food available. rortanez@TheInquirerOnline.com

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arts & features 4 Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Set boundaries when jealousy rears its head

Asking for Answers

Dear Answers, I have been dating my girlfriend for a while now, and there are some things that are really starting to bother me. She always wants to come along when I hang out with my friends, and she gets upset if I can’t answer her calls. Last week I had to work late and I didn’t see she had texted me, when I explained she got all weird and suspicious. I love her and she has great qualities, but it’s driving me nuts that it seems like she doesn’t trust me. How do I get her to stop being jealous all the time? -Feeling torn Dear Torn, Your dilemma is a common Of course couples have shared one. social lives, but you also need to Jealousy rears its ugly head in be able to spend time with your many relationships and when it own friends as well. isn’t nipped in the bud early, it can No one should be expected be the beginning of the end. to be at beck and call 24 hours a It’s called the “Green Eyed day, and you should not feel guilty Monster” for a reason. when you’re unavailable, whether Normal jealousy is a reaction it be that you are with friends, to a real threat to a relationship family, working late or simply like cheating, obvious attraction stuck in traffic. to someone else, spending time Once you set these boundarwith an ex, or as a response to ies, it is essential that you stick to other difficulties that you are go- them. ing through in your relationship. If she is the right partner for What you you this can have described be an op“If she is the right sounds like portunity to partner for you this grow as a a whole different level of but can be an opportunity couple, jealousy, which if she cannot to grow as a couple, abide by your is much more possessive and boundaries or but if she cannot detrimental in if she continabide by your nature. ues to break With this jealthen boundaries or if she them, ousy, feelings you must accontinues to break and behaviors cept that your have nothing to is them, then you must relationship do with the cirnot headed in accept that your cumstances of a good directhe relationship, tion. relationship is not instead they are Relationheaded in a good created by inseships marked curities and low by jealousy direction.” self esteem. are sure to deMy advice is teriorate over to explain to her that you want time, often with lasting emotional to have a happy and healthy rela- damage. tionship and that means trusting Make your expectations clear. you to be the boyfriend she fell Things will either improve, in love with. or you will know that you must Let your girlfriend know you move on to allow yourself the love her and that you chose this opportunity to build a relationrelationship, and aren’t looking to ship based on trust and respect. be with anyone else. Other than reassuring her that she is the one you want, she must be the one to look within herself, Here to answer your pressing quesand work on her own issues. tions. Relationship issues? Family tenShe is responsible for her own sion? Wondering how to get involved on actions, just as you are respon- campus? If you ask, I will do my best sible for your’s, which means es- to answer. Submit questions to ABytablishing clear boundaries when rne@theinquireronline.com, with “Anit comes to jealous behaviors. swers” in the subject line.

WESLEY IHEZUE / The Inquirer

arts & features 5 Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

‘Six Degrees’ is a surreal surprise ALLAN KEW Staff member

Contact ALLAN KEW at akew@TheInquirerOnline.com

Allen Miller dazzles in his role as Paul, the con artist. Also pictured are Cassandra Grove, Séan Seviér (back to camera), and Andrew Jamshidi. Advertisement

YOUR SUCCESS STARTS HERE

What is it in an experience, that them with the hope that things will defines us? be alright. Such is the question in “Six DeSo striking are the roles played grees of Separation,” a play writ- that in some parts it is remarkably ten by John Guare and directed by difficult to know what is true and Will Springhorn. false. In this dramatic re-creation of a A choice must be made by the 1980’s piece, a posh group of ur- characters and the audience: how banites and New Yorkers are taken much of the story are we willing for a ride by an enchanting young to believe? con artist. The play’s direction is also At one point, claiming to be the strong. son of a famous actor and at anIt involved many notable ideas other, the illegitimate son of a pre- and concepts that highlight that vious victim, the young man, who time period’s lavish lifestyles, and may or may not other settings be named Paul, that blend “...in some parts maneuvers his to create the it is remarkably way from pershow’s set. son to person. is difficult to know what theNotset only The charexpanis true and false. acter of Paul, sive in its use porttrayed by of a “second A choice must the talented Alfloor,” but the be made by len Miller, plays nature of the off the desires set in itself also the characters and ideas of reflects the surand the audience: the other charreal living qualacters, which of the tale. how much of the story ityNot he has intia single are we willing mate knowlset change, not edge of and a single prop to believe?” ultimately uses addition, nor this knowledge the intermisfor disturbing reasons that are un- sion–included dead space. known. Each contains actors who progThe strongest suit in the play’s ress the tale with unwritten diaarsenal are the characters. logues and scenes, or with imagiIn that regard, it is the actors, native, moving set-actors who fill who successfully communicate to the stage with more scenery and each other their sheer lack of un- life at the same time. derstanding the experiences that It is a choice that successfully have transpired in each of their continues to add to the audience’s lives. experience. For some actors, the role they Indeed, by the end of this tale, play is too far out of reality for the you will question who you are sepaudience to fully connect to. arated from, and what those fleetThis allows for the play’s twists ing experiences you’ve shared with and turns to truly stun the audi- people, truly mean. ence when they react in unpredict“Six Degrees of Separation” able ways to the inflicting experi- runs from April 25 through May ences they share. 11. However, characters that do Tickets are available for purconnect to the audience face un- chase at the DVC ticket office at certain futures and even doom (925)969-2358. when encountering Tickets are also available to buy Paul, leaving the audience with in advance online at www.dvcdratragic foreknowledge and gripping ma.net.

Courtesy of TARA MAGINNIS/DVC DRAMA

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arts & features 6 Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Students to show off their moves

GUSTAVO VASQUEZ / The Inquirer

Top, DVC dance students Katarina Klass and Khalil Lamnaouar practice their dance routine for technical director Scott Heiden, in preparation for â&#x20AC;&#x153;Stories unraveled.â&#x20AC;? Bottom, Klass demonstrates her solo dance routine for light and sound design in the kinesiology building.

Dance class preps for end of semester success REGINA ORTANEZ AND GUSTAVO VASQUEZ Arts & features editor and Photo chief

More than 16 dances will be performed, including solos, duets, trios and more. All pieces are original student works featuring original concepts. Katarina Klass, a 22-year-old DVC student, will be presenting her own work in the show. "I'm currently choreographing one dance that has no music in it, which is very challenging for me right now," she said. "We're using a lot of percussive body movements, experimenting with that and also using sign language and hand shapes in the dance." Klass went on to say that she plans on having her own deaf dance company in the future, hoping to start programs that fuse sign language and dance together. The choreographers, dancers and DVC dance instructor Kimberly Valmore have been working on this production since the very start of the semester. The process, as explained by Valmore, is very similar to that of a professional dance company. Students who wished to have their work featured in the show had to present a proposal introducing their idea along with a storyline to back it up. Once a proposal is accepted, students had to begin the audition process for casting their piece and start choreographing almost immediately. "It's a very fast paced class," Valmore said. "It's really exhausting." Zack Ramicone, 20, has been dancing at DVC for three years now. "I'm really excited to be a part of a production that's putting so much out there and giving people a lot to think about," he said. "[We're] presenting a lot of variety onstage and kind of setting a good example for

future students and current students as to what junior college life can be." Ramicone, along with Klass, went on to say how promotion for the show has been both difficult and frustrating, citing the lack of advertisement for the production on the DVC website and overall, lack of support for the dance department within the art community. Sharing similar sentiments to her students, Valmore spoke on how hard she and her students have been working to put together this production and how she hopes people will come to show their support for the department. "Most dance companies take six months to do a piece of full evening work, we're doing this in less than four, so it's a huge undertaking," she said. "The students take it very seriously. They work exhausted, under a compressed amount of time to put on a two hour show." Valmore continued to express why the community should care about her students' work. "I would love for the DVC community and the community at large to be here because this is original art and these students are pursuing higher education with an art emphasis basis and this evolution is something they need to see." "Stories Unraveled" will be in the Performing Arts Center from May 2-3 at 8 p.m., with an additional performance on May 4 at 2 p.m. Tickets can be bought in advance online at the DVC website or at the box office on the day of the show. Contact REGINA ORTANEZ at rortanez@TheInquirerOnline.com or GUSTAVO VASQUEZ at gvasquez@TheInquirerOnline.com

opinions 7

Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

The

Buzz

To what degree do college rankings inform your transfer decisions?

Editorial

Student safety, not student ratios

CHRIS HARRIS, 27 Engineering

“It’s what led me to find colleges and then I’d go look into them in person.”

JESSICA BRADLEY, 24 Undeclared

“Not really. It’s more location for me.”

RONAL RIBERA, 23 Business economics

“It helped me choose what schools had the best reputations and where I see myself in the future.”

CHRISTINE HINSE, 26 Linguistics

“I have never heard of [college rankings].”

COOPER ETTUS, 19 Mechanical engineering

“It didn’t help me make a decision, but it helped me choose the aspects I wanted from a college before visiting them.” Interviewed and photographed by: Collin James

WESLEY IHEZUE / The Inquirer

Crime rate should be calculated into college rankings Let’s be honest, most of us at DVC are here to transfer. We want to move onto some great school, get a degree and eventually get a good job. When it comes to deciding which college we want to go to, we may look at factors such as campus’ location, the kind of program for our major and the university’s prestige. Of course all those factors are based on each individual’s perception. A way to determine a university’s prestige is by national ranking, where an independent body determines which factors would be important for an educational institution to be considered top-ranking. However, various lawmakers have recently added a new criteria to the determine ranking. Namely, the school’s response and handling of sexual assaults. Lawmakers are urging the U.S. News & World Report, a leader in publishing news and consumer guides for rankings, to consider campus safety as a factor in judging colleges. According to an SFGate article from April 12, a dozen members of the House Representatives sent a letter to the U.S. News & World Report. In the letter, lawmakers urged that “institutions that fail to adequately respond to sexual violence should not receive accolades from your publication.” They continued on, to say that “nearly 20 percent of women are victims of attempted or actual sexual assault, along with 6 percent of men.”

As it stands, colleges don’t seem from complaints filed this past to be making their students’ safety February, where 31 former and nearly as much a priority as they current students said that this nado their prestige in other factors. tionally top ranked school violated Lawmakers may have a point: Title IX, a gender equity law that if we want to get colleges to be mandates schools to report sexual more proactive about safety, the assault cases. compromising of their rankings is These are only a few of the nulikely the most effective strategy. merous incidents where colleges In recent cases, some universi- mishandled sexual assaults on ties were found to be entirely dis- campus, inadvertently letting their missive in reporting sexual assault students down. incidents on campus. Lawmakers seem to have noAn article by ticed that the MSNBC from mishandling of “Since colleges April 24, reportthese cases is beed that a group want to keep their coming a prevaof 23 students issue across precious rankings, lent from Columbia college campusUniversity filed a calculating campus es, and we conmore-than-100with their apsafety into rankings cur page complaint peal to U.S. News citing, the Ivy would force them & World Report League school to include camto step up and had allowed sexpus safety as a ual assault percategory to judge be honest with petrators to stay colleges. their reports.” on campus and These rankthat survivors of ings are currently such incidents based on unwere discouraged from reporting dergraduate academics, retention assaults. rates, graduation rates, class size, Also individuals who protested admissions selectivity, wealth and against the school’s response faced alumni donations. retaliation. Whether or not rankings are a A similar case was brought up at significant factor in your transUC Berkeley. fer decisions, some colleges have According to The Huffington gone to great lengths to boost Post on April 21, the U.S. De- their rank for U.S. News. partment of Education’s Office A New York Times article from for Civil Rights is investigating Jan. 31, 2012 reported several inUC Berkeley for failing to report stances where colleges and universexual assaults on campus, which sities lied about their statistics in also lead to offenders staying on order to gain ground in the U.S. campus. News rankings. This investigation stemmed In 2008, Baylor University in

Texas gave financial rewards to admitted students who would retake the SAT in an effort to raise their average score. Lastly, Iona College in New York admitted to lying about test scores, graduation rates, studentfaculty ratio, freshman retention, acceptance rates and alumni giving in 2011. The Times article goes on to say that U.S. News ranked the college 30th in “regional universities,” but with correct information, would have dropped to 50th. That is 20 places above their deserved rank; that is 20 colleges that earned better benefits from their rank than they received. So what does this all mean? Since colleges want to keep their precious rankings, calculating campus safety into rankings would force them to step up and be honest with their reports. Reports that could include sexual assaults on campus could be a bad reflection on them, but that should only motivate colleges to act appropriately and protect their students. Too often do students look at prestige and choose colleges for their namesake, something that goes hand in hand with rankings. It’s important that students recognize that campus safety is a serious issue that could affect their college experience, as well as the outcomes for the rest of their lives. Choosing a university to transfer to, can be a difficult decision. But demanding transparency from a prospective college shouldn’t be.

opinions 8

Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Syria’s problems are everyone’s problems Syria and the Middle East are two major Iraq, Turkey and even Iran. topics that have been scarcely discussed in The Director of National Intelligence, both the American media and the American James Clapper, informed the United States public. Congress that “roughly 7,000 foreign fightFrankly put, world issues usually take the ers from 50 countries are in Syria--most of back burner in the United States. them linked with extremist militias.” Why should we concern ourselves with Clapper also acknowledged the presence other nation’s problems? of al Qaeda, deeming this a viable threat to Would it not be easier to stay and fix our the United States. own problems here in the United States? Syria is reaching the verge of destruction Since globalization has connected all of with their civil war, and odds are the extremthe industrialized countries together, both ists will not stop even when the country is economically and sometimes politically, it is destroyed. impossible to ignore topics such as Syria. The violence will continue into other We are part of not only regions, causing even more the country of the United global unrest. States of America, but also This could have devastata part of a world that relies ing effects on the United on one another for politiStates, if this issue is left uncal, financial and sometimes attended. military support. Another article from CNN On its surface, global ison April 3, discussed potensues may not affect DVC tial problems that may arise, students or the American if Syria were to fall into expopulation instantaneously, tremist hands. but they may in the near fuThe author, Simon Tisdall, ture. points out that Syria is in Syria is currently fighting the process of “becoming a for freedom from an oppresbridgehead to Europe for al sive government and many Qaeda and like-minded faJOSH BRADSHAW terrorist groups and guerrilla natics.” Staff member fighters have taken up arms In other words, Europe in this struggle. will be the target of the IsAccording to a CNN arlamic fundamentalists, opticle from Feb. 20, authored by Nader Hash- posing western values and ideas. emi, director of Center for Middle Eastern The article references another article pubStudies, the U.S. should care about the Syr- lished on Feb. 16 from the website of the ian struggle. British based newspaper, The Telegraph.’ The conflict has poured over the Syrian This article discusses the fear many Euroborder into surrounding countries such as peans have as many British extremists and

WESLEY IHEZUE / The Inquirer

jihadists who went to fight in Syria are now returning home. “Britain is facing a ‘significant and growing’ threat from up to 250 British-based jihadists, who went to train and fight in Syria.” Besides the United States, some European nations are the largest targets for extremists. James Brokenshire, the British Minister of State for Security and Immigration, informs the public that “Syria has become the number one jihadist destination in the world.” There have not been any recent attacks on European countries yet, but they are under threat as long as the crisis in Syria continues. How does all of this affect us, the student body of DVC? Well it is quite simple. If terrorists attack European countries,

Education is the key to ending racism

why would we not be a target as well? We have been the target of previous terrorist attacks, such as the one on September 11, 2001. Sure, there have not been any attacks on that scale in the United States since then, but that does not mean it will not happen again. The threat from Syria is putting the countries, which share common western beliefs, at risk. Innocent civilians in American and European countries are at risk from terrorist attacks. All of these threat scenarios are a possibility if the Syrian conflict is not resolved. Contact JOSH BRADSHAW at jbradshaw@TheInquirerOnline.com

As the musical “Avenue Q” puts it: “Everyone’s a little According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, there are In this format, we change the earth beneath our feet racist.” 939 active hate groups inside the United States. by rototilling the seeds for growth and chance of change. On April 13, three individuals were murdered in a hate That is 939 more than we should have. Weeds grow when the garden is not managed. crime, which targeted a Jewish retirement community. But to wage a war against these groups of people is wrong. The government must also work to counter these ideas. These grievous and heinous acts commitAll people are entitled to A more moderated and active message ted ring true that extreme racism still exists their ideas, regardless of sent out often than the occasional butting “... schools should of heads between law enforcement and in our society. how much rational people Thus the question arises, how do we sift may disagree with the hatspend more time dangerously armed individuals is by far a through the complex levels of freedom of ers. more legitimate use of power. educating students speech, mental health, gun regulation and a What could be proposed Disregard the “That Government is best billion other problems that surround this latis gentle moderation. about the ideas of which governs least” pathology, and realest hate crime? Isolationist thinking is ize that even in the least capacity to which racism; not simply the people wish their government to have The answer is this: there is not a comprewhat abandons hope from hensive answer, no fill-in-the-bubble option action. power, civil governance needs to take first to hate it, but to that can reverse these actions and the trag“We are we, and they are place for the betterment of society. understand it, edies to come. they” is not an idea that We do not need a backed-up Congress to It is easy to call for restrictions on the should exist. and learn to know foul things up. freedom of speech, but it isn’t legal to sift Though a large number We need an active Congress that can enit is a wrong idea.” gage in discussion rather than rhetoric. through every spoken word to find malconof people may ignore the tent in its most malicious form. racist messages that breach This is only a single issue that has ALLAN KEW We can call for legal action against groups our safe perimeters from breached the public’s gaze once again. Staff member that actively integrate hate into their identime to time, we must remove that perimeter There will be others, likewise in tragedy. tities and lives, but we are all offenders of and enter into the world. However, change starts at home. some form of prejudice. Education is often talked about as the tool Write your congressmen; voice yourself electronically; do There is no clear cut answer to this occasional reminder for enlightenment, and this might be the perfect chance for something! that within our society, there still exist serious flaws. it to live up to that reputation. Don’t wait around for the T.V. to tell you about the latest Marcus Aurelius famously dictated that, “Everything that Curriculum in primary and secondary schools should flaming bag of dog poop on the American porch. exists is in a manner the seed of that which will be.” spend more time educating students about the ideas of racThe things we see in our society are what we allow to exist ism; not simply to hate it, but to understand it, and learn to Contact ALLAN KEW at akew@TheInquirerOnline.com in our society. know it is a wrong idea.

news 10

Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

calendar Thursday, May 1 San Ramon graduation and transfer reception San Ramon Campus, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, May 1 to May 3 Swimming and DivingCCCAA State Championships Away, East Los Angeles Friday, May 2 Track and Field Nor-Cal Trials Away, De Anza College Wednesday, May 7 May Jazz Swing Performing Arts Center 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday, May 8 Advanced Piano/ Piano Ensemble Music 101, 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. Friday May 9 Horticulture plant sale DVC Greenhouse 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Live Bootleg: Into the Light Performing Arts Center, 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday, May 11 Spring guitar ensemble Performing Arts Center 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

police beat Thursday, April 17 DVC campus At 9:29 a.m., an unknown person called the DVC operator and told her there was a bomb on campus. It was a false report. DVC Gym Between 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., a suspicious male and female who were possibly under the influence of an unknown substance were contacted and found to be in possession of a controlled substance, drug paraphernalia, a folding knife and stolen property.

UNION From Page 1

for Union workers. With important attendees such as the vice mayor of Concord, Ron Leone and Sen. Mark DeSaulnier, the turnout was enough to grab the attention of anyone in the downtown Concord area on April 28. The gathering was put on by an advocacy organization titled Worksafe – who is pushing for some new bills that would make the state safer for workers, according to Valeria Velazquez, an attendee. “This is organized by Worksafe, which is an organization that advocates for responsible workplace health and safety legislation policy,” Velazquez said. “They talked about a few bills for example, that would make the state safer for workers.” As a worker for the labor, occupational and health program, which is part of UC Berkeley, Velazquez is conscious of the type of awareness that needs to be spread. The right to work in a safe and healthy place of employment and to return home uninjured at the end of each workday is what the main focus of the gathering was centered around. Yet, every year over 66,000 American workers are injured, or die from preventable workplace hazards or exposure to toxic chemicals, according to the Worksafe website. Dan Jameyson, a member of the Service Employees National Union (SEIU), explained that he was there to support not only himself, but all of his co-workers who are dealing with the limited coverage and high risk of union jobs. “Well both my own experience with occupational safety, and of course for my co-workers who I advocate for, who have disability, and just the day to day ability to do your job and come home to your family,” Jameyson said. “People take that for granted.” Jameyson and Velazquez tended to share the same views on the matter. “Some are responsible employers, there are others that are incredibly irresponsible and really, nearly 100 percent of all of these deaths are totally preventable. That’s the really disturbing thing,” Velazquez said.

BENJAMIN DAVIDSON / The Inquirer

Sen. Mark DeSaulier speaks out on the issues that Union workers face in Todos Santos Plaza in Concord on Workers Memorial day on April 28. The reason that the meeting was held publicly in Concord this year – complete with microphones and cameras – was that there was a want to get out of the niche area of people who have heard the same spiel several times already. Ron Leone, vice mayor of concord, said that the fact that Concord is central to Contra Costa County and is the largest city may be why they chose it as the location this year. He also mentioned that the death at the Concord BART as well as work related injuries was likely a contributing factor. “It’s good to see,” explained Leone as he was

talking about the Mt. Diablo Unified School District employees, city workers, and friends and family in attendance. “It’s bringing people together,” he said. “The labor is demonstrating the fact that there are safety concerns that they have in different organizations and different companies, and I think to dramatize that, it’s needed.”

Contact BENJAMIN DAVIDSON at bdavidson@ TheInquirerOnline.com

SWITCH From Page 1

Huffington Post on April 25, Sen. Jean Fuller, Republican from Bakersfield voted against the bill because she believed it would undermine consumer choice. She also questioned whether it could be a first step to mandating similar technology in other products, such as having, “a kill switch in your car.” Cody Soong, 20, questioned the failed proposal. “I don’t understand why any lawmaker would vote against this bill,” he said. “I think it would be great to have this technology on our phones. It’s better to have it, than to not have it, right?” Half of all robberies in committed in San Francisco involve smartphones — the number is one out of three nationwide. At a press conference on Feb. 7 Leno said, “this is a crime of convenience, if we remove the convenience, we remove the crime.” Leno highlighted at the press conference that 67 percent of all theft in San Francisco and 75 percent in Oakland involve smartphones. Eveline Mbugua, a public health major, “Lawmakers don’t realize how

THE INQUIRER Diablo Valley College 321 Golf Club Road, H-102 Pleasant Hill, CA 94523 The Inquirer is published Thursdays during the school year by the Diablo Valley College journalism students. Unsigned articles appearing on the opinions page are editorials and reflect a two-thirds majority opinion of the editorial staff. Signed columns and cartoons are the opinions of the writer or artist and not necessarily those of The Inquirer, Diablo Valley College or Contra Costa Community College District.

hard student life can be and that we have to worry about our safety. I want this law to pass so that it would prevent thieves from making us a target.” Students, like Kayla Rojas, 20, who have had their wallets stolen in the past, wish that a device like this would exist for their phones, to deter thefts of their smart-phones and electronic pads. Megan Boken, a 23 year-old St. Louis University student, was shot and killed in 2012 during a mobile phone robbery, while sitting in her car. Boken’s father Paul Boken, San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón and Leno are continuing their efforts to pass the bill.

Contact AMRITA KAUR at akaur@TheInquirerOnline.com

Editorial Board EDITOR-IN-CHIEF MANAGING EDITOR ONLINE EDITOR NEWS EDITOR OPINIONS EDITOR ARTS & FEATURES EDITOR PHOTO CHIEF COPY EDITOR

Rachel Ann Reyes Benjamin Davidson Tyler Elmore Collin James Sasan Kasravi Regina Ortanez Gustavo Vasquez Amrita Kaur

Staff STAFF MEMBERS Andrew Barber, Josh Bradshaw, Aurora Byrne, Malachi Harris, Wesley Ihezue, Allan Kew, Ayaka Matsuno, Vivian Natalia, Tara Tashayod INSTRUCTIONAL LAB COORDINATOR Julius Rea ADVISER Mary Mazzocco

• Phone: 925.969.2543 • Email: inquirer@dvc.edu • Website: www.TheInquirerOnline.com • Printed six times per semester •

news 11

Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Ceramic students showcase their best art work in Davis TARA TASHAYOD Staff member

Diablo Valley College art students were successful in both showcasing and selling the best of their work at this year’s ceramic sculpture event in downtown Davis. Only ten of the most serious and talented students at DVC were invited to participate in this show. The California Conference for the Advancement of Ceramic Art (CCACA) was held from Friday, April 25 to Sunday, April 27. The event is held annually to show off high quality ceramic sculptures from colleges and universities all over the area. Demonstration, shows and lectures were all part of the event. This year, the work of over 40 different colleges, both universities and community colleges, were featured in shows as well as in local gallery exhibitions. Within a short distance of CCACA, the John Natsoulas Gallery’s Annual 30 Ceramic Sculptors, the Artery’s California Clay Competition, the Davis Art Center, and the Pence Gallery also displayed artwork. Other schools in attendance included UC

GUSTAVO VASQUEZ / The Inquirer

Set of handmade cups made by ceramics students to be given out to the forst 50 people who attended DVC’s showcase ar the Caifornia Conference for the advancement of ceramic art. Photographed on Wednesday, April. 23 prior to the CCACA conference in Davis, Calif. Davis, CSU Fullerton, UC Berkeley, Academy of Art University and San Francisco State University. CCACA provided many

an opportunity for aspiring artists to interact with top artists, display their work in a professional and realistic environment, and

prepare them for a future in art. DVC ceramics instructor Mark Messenger said, “CCACA is a great opportunity for dedicated students to use the skills they have learned, and apply them in real world art.” Messenger mentioned that DVC students had put in a collective group effort to revamp the run down room with only sixteen hours to spare. They repainted and redesigned the entire room as a team to display their masterpieces in a beautiful, presentable environment. Painting and drawing instructor Jane Fisher mentioned, “The importance of the show is to give exposure for the students in the art program, while being able to compare our work to other regional schools. It’s a great learning experience.” Featured DVC artist Mingjie Zhang was able to display her art work this year’ CCACA 2014. Zhang stated, “Today’s exhibition was very successful for DVC, those who were invited had very high quality work that represented DVC very well.” Contact TARA TASHAYOD ttashayod@TheInquirerOnline.com

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sports 12

Thursday, May 1 - Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Swim team torpedoes its way to state TYLER ELMORE Online editor

With a powerhouse team and great coaching staff, the DVC Vikings swam through Conference and are headed straight for State — making for one of the best seasons the school has ever had. The 2014 Big 8 Championships were held on April 17-20. The women did well but got second overall. “The women didn’t have any divers on their team so that definitely handicapped them,” said Rick Millington, head coach of the swim team. The men’s team clinched first place in the Big 8, having being seeded second in conference going into the competition. Steven Gordon, a political science major at DVC, set a couple personal records for himself at the meet. “I PR’d in my 50 meter freestyle and my 100 meter backstroke,” Gordon said. Aside from a multitude of personal records being set, a few DVC swimmers took some of the biggest awards home.

Kelsey Leonard and Allison Gargalikis both tied for most Outstanding Swimmer of the Conference. They also were in the 200-medley relay that won Outstanding Performance of the Meet which was also a state record. Both Leonard and Gargalikis tied for Female Swimmer of the Meet as well. Dominic Baldwin of the men’s team, earned Male Swimmer of the Meet helping to lead the men’s team to overall victory of the meet. Shaila Yoder, a past DVC swimmer and record holder, expressed her how well they’ve done. “We’ve got a lot of star swimmers, but not as much depth as we had last year,” she said. “It’s a tradeoff that we’ve been dealing with.” Overall, the team set four state records and five conference records along with winning both outstanding male and female athletes of the conference. Twelve men and nine women are moving on to the state competition in Los Angeles which will be taking place May 1-3. Millington says, “The women

will be battling for the team title, the top four teams are all within 11 points of the title.” “The men’s team will probably be battling for the second place spot since the team in first place right now has such a significant lead,” he said. The Vikings go into the competition and high hopes that they will perform as well as they have all season. A live broadcast of the meet can also be viewed by tuning into www. cccaasports.org.

Dominic Baldwin, top, won Male Swimmer of the Meet. Kelsey Leonard, above, and Allison Gargalikis, left, tied for Most Outstanding Swimmer of the Conference. The men’s team clinched first place in the Big 8.

Managing editor Benjamin Davidson contributed to this story. Contact TYLER ELMORE at telmore@TheInquirerOnline.com

Photos by

GUSTAVO VASQUEZ / The Inquirer