Fall 2019 Issue 5

SF State’s student-run publication since 1927

Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019

CITY

SF protests migrant detention camps

STORY ON PAGE 5

Dolores Huerta Elementary students chant during the ‘Close the Camps’ protest on Monday, Sept. 16 in San Francisco, Calif.

(Photo by James Wyatt / Golden Gate Xpress)

CITY

CAMPUS

College celebrates SF emergency water inadequate for earthquakes Constitution and Citizenship

BY COREY BROWNING STAFF REPORTER

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major earthquake is due to strike San Francisco, and the western and southeastern neighborhoods lack seismically sound water pipes, leaving more than 300,000 residents vulnerable to the catastrophic fires that would follow.

That’s the message delivered in a report this July by San Francisco’s 2018-2019 Civil Grand Jury, an inves-

Sports Page 6 Women’s soccer suffers first loss in game against Cougars

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tigative panel calling on San Francisco to develop a plan by the end of 2020 to be well prepared to fight fires in all parts of the city in the event of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake.

City officials met with the jury Thursday at City Hall, where the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) suggested a one-year extension to that deadline, citing funding decisions and

other analyses that require completion first.

The jury’s report cites a U.S. Geological Survey estimate from 2014 that indicated a 72% chance of one or more earthquakes with a magnitude of 6.7 or greater hitting San Francisco between then and 2043.

The Outer Richmond, Outer Sunset and Bayview-Hunters Point are among the unprotected CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

BY NOOR BAIG

STAFF REPORTER

Over 1,400 students and community members attended the annual Constitution Day Conference last Monday and Tuesday, which featured discussions on an array of Constitutional debates and political topics.

New CSU History Requirement At one of the most attended sessions, a panel of professors addressed the packed hall about the potential deduction of the

U.S. history and government classes for the CSU general education requirements. All five professors were in favor of keeping the courses that are in question.

The idea behind reducing the history and politics requirement from six to three credits is to assist students in graduating sooner, particularly those who would not be taking these courses if they weren’t a general education requirement,

the panel said.

Political science professor Danvy Le from CSU East Bay spoke about how learning civic engagement in the required government class across CSUs is crucial to other parts of students’ lives.

“I think students come into college, into my class, thinking that they don’t have a voice, that their vote doesn’t matter,” Le said.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

A & E Page 4 Student work showcased in fine arts gallery inspired by Giorgio Morandi still life

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2•CAMPUS

TUESDAY, SEPT. 24, 2019 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Students rally for change

Isabela Montez, family and human services major at SF State, holds a sign she created for the Global Youth Climate Strike.

(Photo by Lance Tisuela / Golden Gate Xpress)

“I think it’s important because I want to have an actual future where I can travel around the world and not have everything be destroyed.

I want it to still be living past 50. I want to be able to have a family go experience the world before it ends,” Montez said.

BY LANCE TISUELA STAFF REPORTER

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he morning of Sept. 20, two dozen SF State students met on campus to join strikers in downtown San Francisco to participate in the global youth led climate strike.

Four million people took part in Climate Strikes across 185 countries, according to globalclimatestrike.net.

Students stood in Malcolm X Plaza looking toward Sophia Benzoni, the Sustainable Initiative Coordinator of the Environmental Resource Center.

Benzoni rallied the students and got everyone ready to catch the M train on 19th and Holloway and head toward the corner of Market and 7th streets.

Students were met with thousands of protesters when they exited the train cars and joined the enormous crowd outside Civic Center station.

Strikers shouted “Show me what democracy looks like!” and other strikers responded even louder with “This is what democracy looks like!” and “What do want? Climate justice! When do we want it? Now!” The strike was spurred by the activism of Greta Thunberg, a Swedish teenager who has garnered media attention with her climate activism and focus on school walkouts.

“Today we’re all out here at the climate strike, we’re heading down downtown San Francisco with signs and posters; we skipped school and didn’t go to our jobs today so we can be out here striking for climate change,” said Nicole Dodson, a child development and environmental science major at SF State.

Three days before the strike, 20 students gathered in the Cesar Chavez student center to create posters for the strike. They talked and laughed, while music played in the background. Each student has a piece of white poster paper in front of them.

They decorated the posters with illustrations of Earth with slogans such as “There is no planet B.” “I feel like there’s a lot of energy and excitement around this whole event,” said Amanda Bancroft, an environmental studies major, focusing on sustainability and social justice. “It’s sweet to be around people who are willing to go out there and make a splash in the calm waters.”

Bancroft’s poster, adorned by an il-

lustration of Earth and a green tree, read “Business as usual? = Human extinction.”

She said her sign is meant to point out how corporations are major contributors to the global climate issue and believes it is important to switch out the current economic system.

Strike participants chose a strategic route through downtown — targeting corporations and policy makers beginning at the Federal Building on Seventh Street, where Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s office is located and made stops at Black Rock, Bank of America, Amazon Go and PG&E. Youth vs. Apocalypse was one of the main organizing groups of this strike in San Francisco, and part of the grassroots movement 350BayArea which aims to reduce CO2 emissions from its current level of 400 parts per million to 350 parts per million by raising awareness and demanding action of legislators.

According to the Youth vs. Apocalypse website, the strike intended to go to “different targets that are contributing to climate breakdown, leaving our mark to let these places know what we are fighting for.”

“A lot of people out here today can’t even vote yet, so how else are they supposed to get their voice out if they can’t come to the streets and strike,” said Nina Omomo, an environmental studies major with a concentration in Natural Resource Management and Conservation.

When the march approached its end at Justin Herman Plaza, there was no decline in fervor or enthusiasm. Protestors sang Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” as they walked into Sue Bierman Park on Drumm Street.

TO SEE AND HEAR FROM OTHER STRIKERS, GO TO GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG FOR THE FULL MULTIMEDIA PIECE BY LANCE TISUELA.

UPD investigates sexual assaults Three cases open since start of semester, one solved

BY JUAN CARLOS LARA STAFF REPORTER The University Police Department (UPD) received four reports of sexual violence on campus over the course of eight days surrounding the first day of the fall semester — three cases remain unsolved.

On Monday, Aug. 26, a student was allegedly raped at the Cesar Chavez Student Center. Within minutes, UPD arrested Santiago Gonzalez Gonzalez, according to UPD Deputy Chief of Police Wailun Shiu. The 24-year-old man, who is not a student, was found on the staircase leading to the Pub. He also matched a description given by the victim, according to Gonzalez’s case file.

Gonzalez has pleaded not guilty to

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multiple charges including false imprisonment with violence, sexual battery with restraint and sodomy against the victim’s will, according to Alex Bastian, Director of Communications for the San Francisco District Attorney.

At the time of the attack, Gonzalez was awaiting trial for a residential burglary he allegedly committed nine days prior within the Parkmerced community.

Little is known of the other three attacks as none have led to arrests, according to UPD. No timely warnings were issued for any of the crimes.

“If the university feels it’s important to keep it quiet they should exercise more safety,” said student Kenneth Chang when he first heard of the crimes.

Under the Clery Act, colleges and

universities are also obligated to post annual security reports. The most recent reports show that the total number of violent sexual incidents has gone up nearly every year since 2015.

In 2015, the university received 19 reports of sexual violence crimes. In 2016, the number went up to 24. In 2017, it went up to 27. 2018 saw a dramatic decrease to 17 reported crimes, but 2019 is expected to see another increase, according to Shiu.

UPD received the first of the four reports on Thursday, Aug. 22, a sexual battery at Mary Ward Hall. The crime allegedly occurred at 5:30 a.m. The investigation into the case is currently suspended and “pending further leads,” according to the UPD crime log.

The following night, Friday, Aug. 23,

UPD received a report of yet another sexual battery at the student center. The crime was reported 10 minutes after it occurred, according to the UPD crime log. The investigation is on-going.

“University Police takes these incidents very seriously,” said Deputy Chief Shiu. “We offer programs to help and educate individuals to stay safe.

Programs such as The Care Escort program and R.A.D. self-defense course are free programs and are offered yearround,” said Shiu when asked what is being done to address these crimes.

Shiu added that UPD has increased the number of patrols by Division of Campus Safety staff.

For more on this story visit: goldengatexpress.org.

9/25/19 11:10 AM

3•CAMPUS

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG | TUESDAY, SEPT. 24, 2019

Stargazers welcome at SF State Observatory

BY JUAN CARLOS LARA STAFF REPORTER

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tarting Sept. 23, the SF State Observatory is hosting public viewing nights for the remainder of the semester, allowing students and community members to gaze upon the stars, planets and beyond.

These nights are entirely student-run, according to Adrienne Cool, Ph.D, a professor of astronomy and director of the observatory. Cool said September and October are particularly opportune months to view Saturn and Jupiter.

“There are beautiful, multicolored binary stars — pairs of stars that are bound together by gravity and orbit one another,” Cool said.

Cool is only the second person to serve as director to the observatory and planetarium. Charles Hagar, a professor of astronomy from 1959 to 1994, witnessed the birth of Thornton Hall, where the observatory is located, and helped design the facilities in concert with the building’s construction.

Since the observatory first opened in 1973, it has been free of charge and regularly open to the public, according to Cool.

The observatory’s public open nights are entirely run by student docents. Docents commit one night a week to set up the telescopes, supervise their use and answer questions. Docents receive one credit per semester, but many say they do it because it’s what they love.

“I stay a docent because I like working with telescopes. I like showing the public the cool things in space that you don’t usually see,” said Andrew Garcia, an astrophysics student.

Adrienne Cool has served as director of both SF State’s observatory and planetarium for over two decades. Cool stands next to the Newtonian telescope Sept. 18. (Photo by Juan Carlos Lara / Golden Gate Xpress)

Garcia, who lives in Merced and commutes roughly four hours a day when he has class, has been involved with the observatory for five semesters. He said he chose SF State because it was the only school nearby that offered an astrophysics program.

“The students who are docents take on a lot of responsibility and they really do a lot,” Cool said.

Operating an observatory in San Francisco means many nights are too cloudy for star-gazing, causing Garcia to stay on campus hours later than necessary.

“I blame Karl a lot, I talk trash about him,” he said, referencing Karl the Fog. When Garcia first transferred to SF State from Merced College in the fall of 2017, he took an astronomy lab with Cool. This lab focuses on how to use astronomy equipment and typically serves as a prerequisite for most students who eventually become docents.

For particularly eager students like Garcia, who cannot wait to begin engaging with the telescopes, Cool allows a second path. Students have

the opportunity to serve as apprentice docents for a semester in lieu of the course, after which they can be official docents. Cool emphasized that any student on campus with an interest in astronomy and a willingness to learn can get involved.

The observatory is open Monday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings this semester, from 7:30-9:30 p.m.

Observation is free to the public.

“Charles Hagar believed in [free admission] very strongly and we want to continue that legacy of making science accessible to everyone,” Cool said.

Social sciences departments discuss GE requirements, civic engagement and Native land

Keynote speaker K. Tsianina Lomawaima speaks at the Constitution Day Conference at SF State Sept. 17. (Photo by Paige Acosta / Golden Gate Xpress)

“

Simple moral: Don’t give up the fight. Our parents didn’t, our grandparents didn’t, our great grandparents didn’t give up the fight.

- Tsianina Lomawaima

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”

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Part of the struggle of instilling lessons of civic engagement, Le said, is that many students come into college feeling disconnected from politics or not knowing how to get involved.

“This generation, they don’t see things in black and white. There’s more of that gray in-between, and that’s what I try to get them at,” Le said. “Just because you don’t identify as a Republican or a Democrat or as whatever ... that doesn’t make you meaningless.”

Le said she tries to approach teaching political classes by enlightening students on ways they can be civically engaged, like voting, working with interest groups, protesting and canvassing.

“One of the things I’d like to see is a cultural shift into having students feel empowered,” Le said.

Professors Bridget Ford, Nick Baham and Le from CSU East Bay, Andrew Wiese from San Diego State and Sarah Crabtree from SF State each presented about the importance of social science classes to students’ future. The CSU Senate has not made a decision yet about the requirements, Crabtree said in an email.

American Indian Citizenship The conference wrapped up Tuesday night with Tsianina Lomawaima’s keynote speech on American Indian citizenship, followed by a reception for anyone who wanted to meet the speakers personally.

“Simple moral: Don’t give up the fight. Our parents didn’t, our grandparents didn’t, our great grandparents didn’t give up the fight,” Lomawaima said. “In Native America, our communities have persisted, even thrived to the degree that we have been able to train our people in the arts of survival [and] resilience.”

Lomawaima, a professor of American Indian studies at Arizona State University, said it is important for American society to acknowledge that the U.S. was built on native land.

“I think the nation has to deal with that. It’s like a fundamental lie at the foundation of the country,” Lomawaima said. “You actually hear people talk about enslavement as the country’s original sin that has to be dealt with, well there’s some before that. We got to talk about the land first. I think these things are important for national integrity.”

Lomawaima said that although she doesn’t see large portions of native land being returned, she would like to respect for the right of native communities “to chart their way forward, to decide how they want to live, what language they want to teach their children.”

There were two sessions about women’s rights in honor of the upcoming 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in the U.S. in August 2020, which will be a big focus of next year’s conference, Stein said.

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4•ARTS&ENTERTAINMENT TUESDAY, SEPT. 24, 2019 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Copycat Exhibition showcases art

Giorgio Morandi’s original painting of ceramics served as a model for student work featured in the Copycat Exhibition. (Photo courtesy of MutualArt)

BY BRIANA BATTLE STAFF REPORTER

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any artists take several days or weeks or even years, to create a piece. But students who took Language of Observational Painting last semester were given just three hours to create paintings that are now on display in the Copycat Exhibition on campus.

The exhibition opened Saturday, and will remain open until Oct. 31. Admis-

sion is free, and the gallery is open Tuesday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. It is located in Fine Arts 238.

The students in one section of the course were instructed to recreate a Giorgio Morandi still life, using ceramic vases made to look like those in Morandi’s painting. Each of the students created paintings using the vases, all with their own personal touch..

According to the art department, the focus of the class is to develop students’ oil painting skills. Erin Walker’s

SF State student Nathalie O’Brien’s copycat rendition of Giorgio Morandi’s ceramic paintings.

preferred medium of art is drawing, so this painting assignment took her slightly out of her comfort zone.

“My mindset has to be right. You know, I love drawing things that I see,” Walker said. “I like to draw people, just any object I can look at. Just anything because, you know, everything we look at is art.”

Walker, who also sings and plays the saxophone, has always loved art. Her life goal is to have her own art galleries in the Bay Area and Paris.

Nathalie O’Brien’s painting is also

featured in the exhibit. O’Brien has been painting since she was 14, and one of her biggest inspirations is artist Monica Hernandez. According to O’Brien, the experience of creating the piece in three hours was fun.

“I usually like to do a lot of collaging, and putting things together from magazines and other things that I find around,” O’Brien said. “I do a lot of figurative work myself. And fashion has a lot of influence in my artwork as well, because that was what I was interested in originally.”

Student filmmakers document life in China

BY BRIANA BATTLE STAFF REPORTER

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ach summer since 2010, Professor Wiemen Zhang and a group of students spend three and a half weeks abroad, creating short documentaries about the locals. This past summer, 15 students went to China and created four different documentaries.

The trip is a study abroad course offered by the cinema department, but the

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During filming, fourth year student Stephanie Fields photographed Wang Xiang waxing his board, waiting for his fellow surfers to arrive on Kinmen Islands in Taiwan.

(Photo courtesy of Stephanie Fields)

students don’t spend time in a classroom. The first week of the trip is used for groups to conduct research.

The second is spent on production, and the final is post-production.

According to Zhang, the films usually address social issues afflicting the region that the course is being held in.

One of the documentaries students produced this year is about a group of

unknown surfers on Taiwan’s Kinmen Islands.

The class took place in China’s Fujian province this past summer. Xiamen University offered to host the students, providing language and cultural assistance over the course of the trip.

“I believe it is an invaluable experience for a student to have this cross-

culture experience,” said Zhang, the program’s organizer. “And through documentary filmmaking, to explore and examine different culture’s society.”

Fourth year student Stephanie Fields was one of the people who worked on this film. Fields has been traveling her entire life, but the trip to China was her first time visiting Asia. After she graduates, she wants to work on post-production sound and help filmmakers’ dreams come true.

“The inspiration of our documentary were the people that we filmed,” Fields said. “This group of surfers have such a supportive and happy culture. These surfers welcomed us with open arms and surf boards, happy to share their story with us.”

According to Fields, her favorite part of creating the documentary was her team. She recommends the course to other students, but warns that they should remember that the trip isn’t a vacation.

There will be a screening of the documentaries Sept. 24 at 6:30 p.m. in the Coppola Theater. The screening is free and open to the public.

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CITY•5

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG | TUESDAY, SEPT. 24, 2019

SF ill-prepared for post-quake fires CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 neighborhoods, the report states.

Potential plans to improve and extend the city’s post-earthquake firefighting infrastructure will cost $690 million or more, according to John Scarpulla, the SFPUC Policy & Government Affairs Manager. Some plans are still too far into the future to provide a cost estimate, Scarpulla stated.

The backbone of the current infrastructure is the SFPUC-owned Emergency Firefighting Water System (EFWS), formerly known as the Auxiliary Water Supply System (AWSS), built over a century ago in response to the 1906 earthquake and fire.

It covers primarily the northeastern portion of the city and relies on multiple storage tanks supplied by Hetch Hetchy water mains capable of withstanding a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. The system can draw from seawater pumps if necessary.

“When I saw the infrastructure of downtown, it looked like a spider’s web,” said District 1 Supervisor Sandra Lee Fewer, noting the dense network of pipes in the northeast compared to the handful of EFWS pipes that cover the entirety of the Richmond.

Fewer called the region’s vulnerability alarming.

District 4 Supervisor Gordon Mar said the issue has become a high priority for him and his constituents.

“The entire Sunset District is currently unprotected and vulnerable in the case of a major earthquake and major fire,” Mar said.

Neighborhoods outside the EFWS’s reach rely on the city’s low-pressure water system, which is not seismically secure and is “highly vulnerable to catastrophic failure,” according to the report. In addition, hundreds of cisterns (large underground water tanks not connected to another water supply, considered a last resort) exist throughout the city for firefighting — though the report notes districts with the least EFWS support also contain the least cisterns.

The SFPUC is contemplating a new addition to the system, the Westside Potable EFWS, to expand the northern emergency water mains to the western region of the city. It would utilize water from Lake Merced and similarly connect to the Hetch Hetchy supply, according to Scarpulla.

The westside project would be completed in two phases. Phase one would cost near $190 million with construction starting in 2022 and lasting two years, according to Scarpulla. Phase two would cost an estimated

Emergency water pipes would douse fires in northeastern San Francisco following a major earthquake, but the city’s western and southeastern neighborhoods largely lack that protection. (Photo courtesy of San Francisco Public Utilities Commission) EFWS expansion and up- idea will be considered.

$120 million, though funding may not be available for seven or more years, according to the jury’s report.

Funding for such projects comes from two Earthquake Safety and Emergency Response (ESER) general obligation bonds, which were passed by voters in 2010 and 2014 for a combined $820 million.

San Francisco is planning to place another ESER bond, increased to $628.5 million, on the March 2020 ballot.

Less than a fifth of the first two bonds was allocated for

grades, while the 2020 bond would set aside $153.5 million for the system. The rest of the bonds fund upgrading or replacing fire and police stations as well as other cityowned disaster response facilities.

A fourth ESER bond is planned for 2027. The SFPUC indicated additional funding would come from water rates.

The Civil Grand Jury report suggests a separate bond solely for the EFWS. A representative from the Capital Planning Committee indicated the

According to Retired Assistant Deputy Fire Chief Thomas Doudiet, the city’s actions represent a “disgraceful example of dereliction of duty.”

“The opposing motions of the North American and Pacific tectonic plates are not inhibited by the priorities nor political agenda of either the Capitol Planning Committee nor the Public Utilities Commission,” Doudiet said. “One fateful day, posterity will look back and wonder why nobody in city government accepted the responsibility.”

Hundreds march against family separation

BY WILSON GOMEZ STAFF WRITER

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ocal school children marched from San Francisco’s Mission neighborhood to City Hall alongside hundreds of demonstrators Sept. 16 to protest the imposed separation of migrant families at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The protesters traveled from 24th and Mission streets chanting, “Si, se puede!” (Yes, we can!) and “People Power!” They carried signs condemning the government’s detainment of child migrants apprehended at the border.

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A group of protesters march toward the steps of San Francisco City Hall during the “Close the Camps” protest Sept. 16.

(Photo by Wilson Gomez / Golden Gate Xpress)

Mayor London Breed spoke to the crowd at City Hall, affirming San Francisco’s support for immigrant rights and the Latino community as a whole.

The next day, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a resolution supporting the closure of the camps.

President Donald Trump’s “zero tolerance” policy for illegal border-crossing took effect under former Attorney General Jeff Sessions in May last year.

Since then, immigration agents have separated at least 2,654 immigrant

children from their parents and housed them in detention centers for attempting to enter the U.S., according to the American Civil Liberties Union.

The U.S. government acknowledged in May that six children died in custody of the Border Patrol or the Department of Health and Human Services, both of which help run the detention camps.

The most recent was Carlos Hernandez Vásquez, a 16-year-old from Guatemala, who died of influenza this May. The Trump administration announced August that immigrants held

at detention centers would no longer be vaccinated against the flu.

“Every single person that hears this — hears about our march, reads about it on the news — needs to understand that if they’re silent and if they just sit back and watch, then they’re actually complicit,” said Don Arana-Fogg, a member of Un Dia Sin Inmigrantes (A Day Without Immigrants) San Francisco, one of the groups that helped organize the protest.

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6•SPORTS

TUESDAY, SEPT. 24, 2019 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Gators first loss at home against Cougars

BY DIEGO FELIX STAFF REPORTER

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F State women’s soccer could not continue their two-game winning streak, receiving their first loss at home Sept. 21, against the Azusa Pacific Cougars, with a final score of 3-1.

In the 23rd minute, Gator sophomore Kylie Schneider gave her team momentum, scoring by moving the ball near mid-field and sprinting through the defense for a score.

Schneider blitzed two defenders with an assist from sophomore forward Katelyn Patterson to take the lead, making the score 1–0; This marks the fifth goal for Patterson this season.

The momentum quickly changed pace when Cougars midfielder, junior Randi Macadangdang, intercepted a pass from sophomore goalkeeper Sommer Harrington and kicked the ball past Harrington into the net, tying the game 1–1 before the end of the half.

Throughout the second half, the Gators struggled offensively on key passes and couldn’t execute shots when it mattered.

The Gators controlled time of possession in the second half, but were holding onto the ball too long with only five shots attempted.

“Not making silly mistakes, giving the ball away and holding onto the ball too long cost us the game,” said head coach Brittany Cameron.

Cougars senior forward Emmy Koflanovich darts a pass to teammate Jordan Hill, who outran the Gators defense and nailed a goal over Harrington’s head, giving the Cougars a 2–1 lead in the 60th minute.

The third goal from Azusa Pacific wouldn’t come until the 72nd minute when Cougars midfielder Amy Bishop intercepted the ball from the Gators’ offense and passed to an open Macadangdang. She easily scored and sealed the win for the Cougars, advancing the score to 3–1.

At the 85th minute, the Gators had the opportunity to make it a one-score game off a free kick, but senior Niko Baila’s

SF State player Kylie Schneider (7) attempts to control the ball with her right foot as Azusa player Brianna Haskins (22) squints her eyes to see the ball as the two teams face off at Cox Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 21 in San Francisco, Calif. Final score 3-1 Azusa Pacific. (Photo by Kameron Hall / Golden Gate Xpress)

shot was too high and went above the crossbar when it seemed Azusa Pacific’s sophomore goalkeeper Jennifer Kovisto was caught off guard.

Defensive miscues and mental errors are what ultimately plagued the

Gators in the second half.

“We have to be better, individually just has to be better, as a soccer team we were much better than them, three silly mistakes cost us,” Coach Cameron said.

The women’s soccer team has a re-

cord of 2–2–1 and hopes to bounce back next game against the Humboldt State Lumberjacks (1-2-2) on Wed., Sept. 25.

SF State Player, Glory Smith (23) kicks the ball which is blocked by Azusa Player Katie Prado (23) as the teams face off at Cox Stadium in San Francisco, Calif on Saturday, Sept 21. (Photo by Kameron Hall / Golden Gate Xpress)

Volleyball starts season 7-3, tied for best start in seven years

BY JIMMY DEROGATIS SPORTS EDITOR

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F State Women’s Volleyball team played a flawless game on Tuesday Sept. 17th at the main gym. Committing very few errors with strong communication throughout the contest, they thrashed the Holy Names Hawks by a final score of 25-12, 25-18, 25-12.

They hold an impressive overall record of 7-2 on the year as they begin play on Friday. This laments their best overall record to begin a season when seven seasons ago in 2012 the women’s volleyball team began their season with the very same record of 7-2.

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Gators Junior outside hitter Jessica Haynie and freshman middle blocker Trinity Barr each charged up the Gators with eight kills, while junior libero and defensive specialist Taylor Garcia had 18 digs and a season-high four aces. Sophomore setter Payton Jensen had 19 assists alongside junior setter Cassandra Fong, who completed the game with her tenth assist of the bout.

With the win, the Gators recorded their longest winning streak in a decade when the team won an impressive six games in a row in 2009. This year’s team, however, completed their sixth-consecutive win much like they

have done all year long, sweeping their opponents in dominating fashion.

The Gators step it up when they play the Hawks of Holy Names, housing a perfect 7-0 record since the start of 2014 with every victory coming via a sweep. With the victory, the Gators now have four sweeps on the very young 2019 campaign.

Sophomore middle blocker Marlena Billings resembles a quarterback on the volleyball court, always surveying the alignment of the opposing team as well as getting her teammates in the right position. Billings is constantly communicating and adjusting

throughout the entirety of the game to give her team the best possible chance to win.

Along with yet another Gators statement win on the season, SF State held the Hawks of Holy Names to a .012 hitting percentage, the lowest in 27 matches dating back to last season.

The nose diving Hawks of Holy Names recorded only 16 kills in the game, which are the fewest by an opponent since 2014, when the Hawks recorded just 14 kills.

The Gators next matchup is this Friday at 7 p.m. against Stanislaus State at SF State’s main gym located at the Don Nasser Family Plaza.

9/25/19 11:10 AM

GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG | TUESDAY, SEPT. 24, 2019

SPORTS OPINIONS•7

GOLDEN Niners are ready to contend for Super Bowl title GATE XPRESS

BY ROBERT JUAREZ SPORTS EDITOR

EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Carly Wipf cwipf@mail.sfsu.edu

PRINT MANAGING EDITOR

Frank Sumrall fsumrall@mail.sfsu.edu

ONLINE MANAGING AND SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR Sahar Swaleh sswaleh@mail.sfsu.edu

ART DIRECTOR Paisley Trent

ptrent@mail.sfsu.edu

CITY NEWS EDITOR

David Mamaril Horowitz dhorowitz@mail.sfsu.edu

CAMPUS NEWS EDITORS

MJ Johnson mjohnson23@mail.sfsu.edu Paisley Trent ptrent@mail.sfsu.edu

OPINION EDITOR Andrew R. Leal aleal@mail.sfsu.edu

It’s late September, headed into week four of the NFL’s regular season and the San Francisco 49ers are undefeated.

This franchise hasn’t been able to say that since 1998.

The last time the 49ers started a season with consecutive victories was 2012. Since then the team fired a general manager, had four different head coaches and used seven different starting quarterbacks.

They have also relocated into a new stadium. The 49ers have a challenging road ahead to get back to where their 2012 season ended: The Super Bowl.

Before the season started, CBS Sports’ John Breech predicted a 6-10 record for the Niners. Bleacher Report and Fox News both predicted 8-8, not terrible but also not true. Neither of these records will afford a playoff spot, which is where the team will find itself come January.

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draft pick Nick Bosa, were attempts by the front office to make the defense better and it’s paying off early.

A strong defensive line that can put pressure on the opposing team’s quarterback is essential in the modern NFL. Head coach Kyle Shanahan is finally starting to his potential, using his playbook to its full capacity.

Two teams are in the 49ers’ division that are proven Super Bowl contenders: The Los Angeles Rams and the Seattle Seahawks.

The Seahawks have been running the NFC West division for a long time now, and the Rams were one win away from being Super Bowl champions last year.

Sports media has yet to accept the 49ers as legitimate competition for the Rams and the New England Patriots, but by the time they notice, it’ll be too late.

I’m writing what everyone else is thinking: The 49ers are done retooling.

The time is now to claim their prize come Feb. 2, 2020 in Miami.

UPCOMING HOME GAMES (Week of Sept. 24-Oct. 1) Women’s Volleyball vs. Stanislaus State at SF State’s main gym on Friday Sept. 27 at 7 p.m.

Women’s Volleyball vs. Chico State at SF State’s main gym on Saturday Sept. 28 at 7 p.m.

San Francisco will eventually be in the Major League Soccer

BY ALONSO FRIAS STAFF REPORTER

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very year, for the past three years, there has been a new team added to SPORTS EDITORS Major League Soccer (MLS) Jimmy DeRogatis in the U.S. San Francisco jderogatis@mail.sfsu.edu has the qualities, culture and capability of having a team Robert Juarez within the league. rjuarez1@mail.sfsu.edu To be eligible for an MLS franchise, a club must abide PHOTO EDITOR by four requirements: assemWilliam Wendelman ble an ownership group, find wwendelman@mail.sfsu.edu a stadium, obtain city approval and pay the franchise fee.

Owners of the team must have a plan or else they will PRINT ADVISER eventually lose the homeGary Moskowitz grown image and money, gmoskowitz@sfsu.edu and be forced to sell the franchise to business owners who MULTIMEDIA ADVISER know how to handle a team.

Sachi Cunningham When a soccer team hemsachic@sfsu.edu orrhages money, they must sell players who are essential PHOTO ADVISER to team success and are unKim Komenich able to replace these players komenich@sfsu.edu with those of the same caliber or even better.

Several logistical obstacles would have to be hashed out, including land permits and the amount of money needed.

Securing land would be one @ggxnews @ggxnews of the hardest parts; the Warriors struggled to reach a deadline on the land requirement

XPRESS ADVISERS

Yet there is still hope that the Niners will be back in the playoffs The squad is healthy including, most importantly, starting quarterback Jimmy Garappolo.

Non-believers of this year’s 49ers will lean on the fact that Garappolo has yet to prove himself as a franchise quarterback. He had a rocky start in the debut game of this year’s season against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but had a much more positive performance against the Cincinnati Bengals, throwing three touchdown passes in a 41-17 blowout.

The current three-headed running attack including Matt Breida, Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson Jr., combined for 259 rushing yards.

The 49ers also have a defensive line that can rush the passer. They were able to put the Bengals’ starting quarterback, Andy Dalton, on the ground, and keep him uncomfortable for the rest of the game.

The offseason additions of all-pro defensive end Dee Ford and first-round

for the recently opened Chase Center in San Francisco.

A San Francisco team could pick up support from fans of semi-professional soccer teams already established locally.

These teams include the 58-year-old San Francisco Glens and the 18-year-old San Francisco City Football Club, who participate in the United Soccer League.

The San Francisco Deltas had a short stint at Kezar Stadium, and only lasted one season in the long gone North American Soccer League (NASL).

The Deltas were NASL champions in 2017, and both the team and league disappeared in the same year.

The United Soccer League (USL) is unofficially considered the second, or lower, division of the MLS. The San Francisco Glens recently hired former San Francisco State soccer coach Javier Ayala-Hil early last year.

A future MLS San Francisco team could benefit from these USL teams, as the MLS permits direct loans between the USL and MLS. San Francisco State and the University of San Francisco can also serve as prospective houses of homegrown talent.

If needed, tryouts can be held to attract athletes from

academy with a strong fan base, this should pose no problem. The city of Los Angeles currently has two teams, the Los Angeles Football Club and the Los Angeles Galaxy, in playoff contention.

When the San Francisco team is established, it will be up to the management and club directors to sign wellknown players from around the world to attract tourists to support the franchise.

The MLS may not share the same limelight as the NBA, NFL or MLB, but its Golden Gate Xpress popularity among players fans is increasing, with social media ran and higher competitiveness on a poll where a the field and heightened staggering 88% viewership off the field.

A study conducted by the of people voted in CIES Football Observatofavor of wanting a ry notes that from 2013 to professional MLS 2018, the MLS had an average attendance of 21,358 San Francisco fans, which ranks them eighth in the world. soccer team.

The MLS has already announced the arrival of four The closest city with an new additions to the league MLS team is the San Jose over the next three to four Earthquakes. One could ar- years, which will accompany gue that having two teams the existing 24 teams. so close together in the same San Francisco has what it league would lower game at- takes to eventually be playtendance or jersey sales. ing at the same level of comBut for a well-established petition. all over the Bay Area and Northern California, including those who already play at local Crocker Amazon Playfields seven days a week.

Children from every soccer league in San Francisco and the San Mateo County metro area are eager to represent their city and add another team to the professional ranks.

Diversity is an important topic today, and children from almost every country in the world who live in San Francisco play soccer.

9/25/19 11:10 AM

8•OPINION

TUESDAY, SEPT. 24, 2019 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Fraternities and sororities are appropriating Greek culture

BY KERASA DIMITRIOS TSOKAS STAFF REPORTER

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n article published on Sept. 5 by USA Today discussing fraternity deaths mentioned the word “Greek” 14 times.

When hazing gets mentioned in the news, somewhere further down the sentence there is bound to be the word “Greek” associated with it.

As a Greek-American, it is disheartening to see my country’s language mixing with — and often becoming lost in — the names and actions of fraternity and sorority organizations.

There is a misconception that Greek culture is reflected in these organizations. It is not. This is cultural appropriation and it needs to change now.

In 2016, UC Merced recognized that Greek culture is appropriated by fraternities and sororities and issued a change in the terms the organizations used. “Greek Life” became “Fraternity and Sorority Life.”

Some didn’t understand why using Greek in Greek life was offensive.

“Who are we offending? Greek people? Our traditions have continued for over 200 years. Greek Life is part of our own American university culture,” Harry Duran, a student at UC Merced, said, during the term change, to The College Fix, a right-minded news organization.

Greek culture has been diluted into ignorance, as college students hijack a culture they know nothing about.

These “Greek Life” organizations are infamously known for their initiations, parties and hazing. While not every

fraternity or sorority has incidents of hazing, it happens far too often to not mention it.

Hank Nuwer, a professor at Franklin College in Indiana, took it upon himself for 40 years to write down every hazing-related death. “The USA had at least one death every year except 1958 from 1953 to 2019,” Nuwer said on his website.

Being forced to participate in demeaning challenges for a group’s acceptance is not what I want my culture to be associated with.

In 1923, five years before Greek Life was established at SF State, an estimated one million Greeks were slaughtered by the Ottoman Empire.

This was done in an effort to “eradicate the Christian Greek minority” in current-day Turkey, according to the Greek Genocide Resource Center.

While my ancestors are no longer be-

ing slaughtered by outsiders, outsiders within “Greek Life” are slaughtering my language without one mention of their knowledge of Greece’s past.

Furthermore, they are completely dismissing the issues happening in Greece. The country has been in economic distress since 2009 yet no proceeds from any fraternities or sororities were given towards that. In 2018 a series of wildfires started in Attica, killing around 102 people, yet no proceeds went to rebuilding the houses and families that were lost.

To be blunt, seeing people wear my country’s letters infuriates me. But, the fact that there are currently no clubs on campus for those of Greek descent, to learn about Greek culture or to honor the history of Greece drives a knife through my heart.

War powers are for Congress not Presidents

BY ANDREW R. LEAL OPINION EDITOR

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.S. air forces are deploying to Saudi Arabia days after Iran allegedly carried out an attack on their oil fields, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said on Friday.

Esper said the military response, “will be defensive in nature.”

The Saudi oil ordeal first raised concerns about whether or not President Trump would start a military conflict against Iran due to the U.S.-Saudi Arabia relationship which has been in place since WWII. A military response in Iran from Trump would be wrong.

Congress, look at the last 18 years of conflict in the Middle East and do not let the president make Saudi Arabia’s problem an American one. Rein in the war powers you’ve been delegating to the executive branch before more unnecessary conflict happens.

Article 1 Section 8 of the Constitution gives Congress the power “to declare war” and “provide for the common defense” by collecting taxes.

So how could President Trump and former executives order military forces abroad without congressional approval?

“The Constitution also says that the president is commander in chief of the armed forces,” Rebecca Eissler, assistant professor of political science at SF State said. “Explicitly the text says ‘when asked to,’ but tradition and … I guess extra constitutional factors has resulted in the president being commander in chief of the armed forces at all times.”

And since the Constitution’s adoption, there have been times when the two branches have steered away from the scope of their war powers, primarily after WWII, which was the last time Congress declared war.

The next fifty years of military conflicts, including the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, left Congress delegating their war powers to presidents.

The U.S. involved itself, without a congressional declaration, in the Vietnam War among other conflicts in the 20th century.

In response to the Vietnam War, Congress passed the War Powers Act of 1973, which was a check on the executive branch requiring 48-hour notice of military use and 60 days to remove armed forces if there is not an approval by the legislative branch after taking action.

But Congress then delegated its war powers to President George W. Bush

Graphic by Alondra Gallardo.

through the authorization of the use of military force (AUMF) for Afghanistan in Sept. 2001 and Iraq in Oct. 2002 .

“That Iraq war AUMF, its mission and this is not a direct quote from it, but its mission was to fight a war on terrorism,” Eissler said. “It has been used by presidents in a very broad application in

pursuit of that stated original mission.”

So the Iraq AUMF has been the blank check given to presidents to keep the U.S. in the region for almost 20 years with no end in sight.

Additional U.S. involvement in the Middle East will exacerbate an already persistent 18-year conflict in the region.

Students pay campus amenties fees regardless of use

BY ALONDRA GALLARDO STAFF REPORTER

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tudents enrolled at SF State and living off-campus for the 2019-2020 school year can expect to pay $1,587 of their tuition costs on transportation, according to the Office of Student Financial Aid. Students who commute on their own need to have a way to opt-out of the transportation and campus fees included in their tuition because the money is not being used for it.

Rather than having to pay for campus amenities that are not used by ev-

GGX_FALL_2019_Issue 5.indd 8

eryone, a better option is having that money funneled toward other bills students face during college.

SF State students automatically get charged with gym, health center and public transportation fees as part of their tuition, despite not always getting to use these facilities.

Of the 50 students who participated in a randomized poll, 48 of them said they believe students should have the option of whether or not these fees should be included in their tuition.

SF State is a commuter school. The majority of the student body strictly attends classes then leave immediately for the day.

“We are already struggling to pay for classes and now we have to also pay for these resources even if we do not use them,” Broadcast and Electronic Communication Arts (BECA) major Caurraine Titus said.

Since a high percentage of students commute and only spend time on campus to attend class, their lives take place outside of San Francisco, leaving them no time to take advantage of the gym, health center or other campus-wide activities.

“I think students should have an option or at least redistribute those fees into stuff like parking permits or gas cards for people who drive because I

use none of the other facilities,” English major Erica Salas said.

Only 4% of the students who participated in the poll disagreed on students having a choice.

“I don’t really think the students should have an option,” marketing major Sarah Keiper said. “The fees are not that bad and if we are already being charged for them, might as well use them.”

College students have a hard enough time surviving financially to make ends meet. So to pay for unused campus facilities is a waste, considering that many students do not use them.

9/25/19 11:10 AM