Out in force: Snake migration draws visitors from Illinois and abroad
Kyle Taylor takes a close-up photograph of a cottonmouth while hiking Snake Road March 27, 2025 in Shawnee National Forest in Union County, Illinois. Enan Chediak | @enanchediak
Enan ChEdiak
LyLEE Gibbs
@EnanChEdiak
@LyLEEGibbsphoto
Why did the snake cross the road?
To slither to its summer home.
After a short period of cold weather, the snakes were out, crossing the road on a warm Thursday in spring. Thousands of snakes migrate across Forest Road 345 in Shawnee National Forest in the spring and fall, earning the road the name “Snake Road.”
A nearly 2.5-mile stretch of gravel road in Union County, Illinois divides the bluffs of LaRue Pine Hill from the LaRue Swamp, and a sign at the entrance reads in big bold letters, “You are about to enter a unique and fragile ecosystem,” next to a brown gate which closes the area off to only foot traffic.
Consulting biologist John Palis had been hiking the road for a bit, recording data in his small, pocket-sized notebook, keeping tabs on this unique phenomenon.
Agribusiness major and engineering major contend for USG president
CarLy Gist
@GistofthEstory
Election season is underway at Southern Illinois University, and the race for the next Undergraduate Student Government president is heating up. With incumbent
President Penny Bordewick announcing her decision to not seek reelection, two new candidates have stepped up to the line: Lydia Phelps and Phillip Hartke. The two students announced their
The road, so quiet the creaking of trees could be heard, was vastly empty aside from Palis. A small number of visitors crossed his path on Thursday evening, but the visitors who showed up came from all over, including Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.
According to a 2016 study by Palis, the swamp is “an abandoned meander channel of the Big Muddy River, from which it is now separated by an earthen levee” and that the
International SIU student has visa revoked, confirms university admin
Southern Illinois University administration confirmed on Friday, March 28 that an international SIU student has been notified that their student visa has been revoked. The SIU administration said that the federal government sent the notice to the student and that the student then informed the university of the situation. The SIU administration also told the Daily Egyptian that “universities do not have a role in the visa revocation process.”
It is unclear why the revocation took place, and there are no further details about the student nor their status at this time.
If a visa is revoked, it becomes invalid, meaning that it cannot be used to enter or re-enter the United States. A visa revocation can lead to severe consequences, including potential deportation or restrictions on future visa applications, depending on the type of visa.
The Illinois Governor’s Office told the DE that they had received notification about the situation on Thursday, March 27.
“The Governor’s senior staff has been in close touch with public and private university leadership across the state to ensure they are being vigilant about what’s happening on their respective campuses,” according to an email from the governor’s office.
“The Governor’s team has asked universities to communicate with international students about the general
resources available to them through the institution as they do this on a regular basis. In addition, we have suggested that they connect impacted students with legal resources that have been in place for several years,” the email read.
The office said that they will remain in close contact with university leadership regarding the situation.
When asked if SIU will be making accommodations regarding the completion of the student’s education, administrators said that they are “assessing options at this time.”
Despite no further details coming out about the situation from the university, the administration did send out an email to its international student body.
Carry your documents with you, exercise discretion at demonstrations and protests, watch the things you say on social media and be wary when traveling, wrote the administration in the email.
Signed by Tina Sickinger, Director of International Student and Scholar Services at SIU, the email was sent at 8:30 p.m. on Friday, March 28, hours after the university confirmed the revocation.
“We understand that recent news may be unsettling, and we want to reassure you that our office is here to support you,” the email read. “While we do not wish to cause alarm, we are sharing the following guidance to help you stay informed, prepared, and protected during this time.”
This time is one that is increasingly tumultuous for international students, one that has resulted in the revocation of
Lydia Phelps Photo provided by Lydia Phelps
Phillip Hartke Photo provided by Phillip Hartke
schmidt
Anti-abortion advocate speaks at Southern Illinois University campus
In a sparsely attended event on March 25 in Morris Library, Catherine Davis, a longtime anti-abortion activist and founder of the Restoration Project, argued that abortion is being used to systematically weaken the Black community. Hosted by Zachary Lochard, president of SIU’s chapter of Turning Point USA, the event framed abortion as a civil rights issue, tying it to constitutional protections and historical injustices.
While Lochard emphasized that the views presented were his own and not TPUSA’s official stance, he shared his personal anti-abortion convictions.
“I was born in Guatemala, a third-world country that does definitely have rampant abortion issues,” Lochard said. “This idea that only a certain class of people can be born into this world because they can afford it is ridiculous. I definitely don’t agree with it.”
Lochard, who has long aligned himself with conservative activism, talked about the importance of freedom of speech on campus and the need for open discussions.
“It’s really what Turning Point is all about. Having these opportunities is great, just in general, and then focusing more on the abortion issue,” he said. “It’s definitely one that I think everyone should have a voice and an opinion on, and we are just simply here to facilitate that conversation.”
TPUSA is a student group that promotes conservative politics on college campuses, often focusing on free speech, limited government and opposition to progressive policies. The SIU chapter has been active in bringing controversial speakers to campus, sparking protests from students and community members who oppose their views. While TPUSA leadership claims the events are organized by outside groups, their chapter has consistently played
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over 300 student visas and several high-profile detentions across the country since January.
SIU and other universities are now forced into the balancing act that is protecting their students while complying with increasingly restrictive immigration policies dealt by President Donald Trump’s administration.
As the spring semester blooms, the SIU student body, specifically international students, say they are now compelled to function under heightened stress, navigating uncertainty around their immigration status and their rights.
SIU’s email went on to emphasize the importance of international students carrying photocopies of immigration documents with them at all times, as well as proof of enrollment at SIU, records of all U.S. residences in which they have lived, and to make sure that their contact information is up to date.
Sickinger suggested that international students “use caution on social media,” remain “mindful of how posts may be perceived,” and encouraged students to “exercise discretion when participating in political demonstrations or protests.”
The university administration also acknowledged in the email that, while peaceful protest is a right, “such activity can sometimes be misinterpreted and may carry risks to your immigration status.”
The revocation at SIU, coupled with the Trump administration’s intensified action against students that protest and post in opposition of the U.S. or Israeli government, has caused concern among the international communities at SIU.
A protest held at Carbondale City Hall on Saturday had been scheduled long before the visa revocation incident, however the purpose for the protest was relevant to the developing situation at
a role in hosting and promoting speakers with antiLGBTQ+ and other exclusionary rhetoric.
Davis, who has been involved in anti-abortion advocacy since 1997, delivered a talk centered on the disproportionate impact abortion has had on Black Americans.
“Abortion has disproportionately affected the African American community. It’s hard to overstate the lasting effects, and it’s hard to find the truth behind that. The numbers are manipulated in so many ways,” Davis said.
SIU, and added to the concerning climate.
The peaceful protest, organized by the Southern Illinois Immigrant Rights Project, advocated for the city of Carbondale to hold sanctuary status for immigrants in southern Illinois.
“We’re no longer having enough children to reproduce ourselves,” she said. “With our total fertility rate being at 1.4, it’s the best example I can give you of what happened to Native Americans. We can’t find them anymore because they’ve been so
Davis claimed that declining Black fertility rates mirror the disappearance of Native American communities, citing a total fertility rate of 1.4. Recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data places the Black fertility rate at 1.639 in
Protestors asked that the city provide resources to its immigrant population and amplified immigrant voices through speeches on the steps of city hall.
At the protest and elsewhere in international student spaces over the weekend, many SIU students expressed concern regarding the university’s position and place in the matter, anxiously awaiting any formal proclamation from SIU specific to the revocation of their peer’s visa.
While many international students are willing to speak out about these issues, none are willing to give on-the-record interviews in fear of jeopardizing their own visa status and subsequently their education.
Despite their own concerns, many students were much less worried about themselves and more focused on expressing empathy toward the unnamed student whose visa had already been revoked. The shared sentiment among many in the international community is that whatever it is that that student is going through, none of them wants to be the one going through it next.
Activist organizations around southern Illinois have begun to increase their efforts in addressing the worries of students, and have started to coordinate events that spread awareness about the rights of immigrants and those here on visa.
According to the email, the International Support Group at SIU will begin meeting weekly to provide assistance in a “safe and supportive space for international students to discuss challenges, concerns, and experiences with others.”
The end of the email sent to international students Friday provided an extensive list of additional
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Speaker Catherine Davis speaks to a small crowd about abortion, the constitution and slavery in Morris Library at an event hosted by Zachary Lochard, the Turning Point USA SIU chapter president on March 25, 2025 on SIU campus in Carbondale, Illinois. Libby Phelps | @libbyphelpsphotography
campaigns on Monday, March 31, and are set to participate in a presidential forum Wednesday, April 2 at 5 p.m. in the Student Center Mississippi Room. Voting will take place April 8 and 9 on D2L. Phelps currently serves as a senator-at-large for USG, and Hartke previously served as USG president.
The candidates spoke with the Daily Egyptian about their platforms over the weekend, discussing initiatives for expanding dining hours and options, resolving funding issues within USG and improving the student experience.
Lydia Phelps:
‘Lifting People. Leading Progress.’ Phelps is a senior from Marion, Illinois majoring in agriculture business with a minor in pre-law. She is involved in the Illinois Future Farmers of America, Sigma Alpha Sorority and the Agriculture Council Executive Board. She plans to graduate in May 2026 and attend law school after. Phelps has represented students through USG as a senator-at-large for the past two years, a positive experience that she said inspired her to take the next step in running for president.
“USG was really one of the only organizations that I was a part of that allowed me to branch out from my college,” she said. “The College of Ag is very tight-knit, so we go to class together, we work together, we hang out in our free time together, and I absolutely love that about the College of Ag, but USG allowed me to meet friends and really connect with students just across campus that were completely different from my interests, my background and then my future even, so I really liked that aspect of it.
“It also gave me a chance to give back to my community – SIU and our alumni, students, staff, administration; they’ve all afforded me so many opportunities. So just being able to give back through a student-led organization was really just an honor. And so, I want to do that on a larger scale. Senators, they vote, they make a really big impact, but ultimately, the administration in charge kind of leads that impact, and I felt like it was kind of my calling and my duty to see if I had that opportunity.”
Phelps said her platform consists of three main initiatives. The first is continuing and expanding a late night food program. Two weeks ago, USG started Late Nite Food Trucks, a program that brings food trucks to East and West Campus every Thursday from 8 to 10 p.m., after the dining halls close.
“This was something me and Alex Baughman (current senator for the School of Education) started as senators, not with the intent of running a campaign on it,” she said. “It was an issue we saw on campus. Students were getting out of late night classes, out of RSO meetings, out of work, and they were coming back to campus and their dining halls were closed. So we decided to try to find an equitable, cost effective, community-oriented solution to this, and that turned into having a schedule where food trucks come in from our local community…It’s not free food, but it is economically equitable for most students, and at the end of the day, it provides a resource that students currently do not have access to.”
Phelps’ second goal is to streamline the USG funding process, she said. Registered student organizations can request funding from USG, but Phelps said the process is not user-friendly, as the expectations can change when an administration does. She said the current setup can be confusing for RSO leaders, so she wants to change it to something more accessible.
“Instead of following the status quo of something along the lines of ‘we always give this group $1 thousand, so we’ll just give them $1 thousand now,’ we want to change the way we approach that to make sure we are funding programs and opportunities that serve our students,” she said. “We want to promote leadership growth, career success, personal growth. So setting up a system that bases funding requests completely on the merits of the request is really important to us. That way, everyone is having access to funding at an equitable, reasonable, fair manner.”
Phelps said her third primary point is to continue renovating the fourth floor of the Student Center. This was started by Bordewick and her current administration, and Phelps said she is working with the administration to continue the initiative. “The idea behind the fourth floor renovations
is that it is a space for students, led by students,” she said. “We have an interior design class that is completely designing what that fourth floor looks like, so they’re really modeling the fourth floor after the needs of students. We want to make sure that commuters have a space on this campus. We want to make sure that we don’t have space that is going unused that could be used to work for the student.”
Apart from her three main goals, Phelps said her team supports reestablishing Old Greek Road, which she wrote the resolution of support from USG for, as well as the IMAGiNE 2030 plan.
Phelps announced three vice presidents to the Daily Egyptian, a board she said is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. If elected, Cameron McCullough will serve as executive vice president, Nadia Ogiela will serve as vice president of finance and Abigail Tate will serve as vice president of student affairs. On Monday, she announced Alex Baughman will serve as Chief of Staff.
“All three of these members, including myself, are from different schools, different colleges, different umbrellas and RSOs,” she said. “So first, our campaign reaches across campus and understands the expansive reach of students here. We have the clientele on this team to serve and advocate but accurately represent our students.”
Phelps said she hopes the student body recognizes the authenticity of the campaign.
“None of my team members, including myself, are running for a resume builder,” she said. “None of them are running because they have something to prove. This is what they want to do, this is where they want to be, and this is how they want to serve.”
She said the campaign is centered around service, as well as lifting up the student body and leading progress.
“You can’t lead progress without lifting those around you, and that’s our entire goal, and I think that that is what the students of SIU need,” she said.
Phillip Hartke:
‘Let us get to work for you.’
Hartke is a junior from Sidney, Illinois, majoring in industrial management and applied engineering with plans to graduate in May 2026. On campus, he serves as vice president of Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He is also a volunteer firefighter and said he has experience running social media campaigns.
Hartke said he approaches life with a desire to create positive change, which ultimately led him to pursue his mission in USG.
“In high school, I did a lot of stuff, but I didn’t really care about much. I wasn’t the most involved person. I wasn’t super invested in the world around me. I just kind of took what life had to give me,” he said. “But when my girlfriend at the time, Katey Moore, passed away, it changed my outlook on the world, and I kind of realized that if I wanted the world around me to be good and for the right things to happen, the right people have to make sure that they get done. So when I’ve looked at SIU in the past, it’s always been like, what do we need to improve on, where can we make things better for the people that go here, and who’s in the right position to do that.”
This is Hartke’s third time running for USG President. He served as president for the 2023-2024 school year, but was defeated by Bordewick for the 2024-2025 term.
“I ran and lost last year, and I wasn’t sure if I’d ever really try again or if I really cared to go through it, because it’s tough,” he said. “It’s not fun. It sucks. It’s taxing on your mind, on your body. But the people on my board, they urged me to give it another try.”
Hartke said he is happier with his board now that he’s ever been. He told the Daily Egyptian that if elected, Adam Loker will serve as executive vice president, Allison Dilallo will serve as vice president of finance, Zuzanna Gaik will serve as vice president of student affairs, King Haynes will serve as chief of staff and Caroline Smith will serve as secretary. He announced three directors to the DE as well – Morgan Evans as director of academic affairs, Henry Smith as director of student wellness and DJ Lovejoy as director of diversity, equity and inclusion.
“I think that every single person on my slate is qualified to run for USG president,” he said. “They are not just experts in their field, they are not a niche pick. All of these people I look up to personally, and I trust
USG PRESIDENT | 4
Split-second decisions and life-long experiences, a Rock Roulette reflection
Dominique martinez-Powell Dmartinez-Powell@DailyegyPtian com
I always wondered how artists forgot the lyrics they wrote when performing. I mean, they wrote them. How could they forget?
Among all the commotion at the Rock Roulette showcase, performance after performance, I was doing quiet vocal warmups and obsessively trying to make sure I remembered the song my band started writing less than three weeks before. I mean, how could I not fully remember them? My own hand wrote them down several times, so I should know them.
The theater kid in me was freaked and more than a little panicked that I wasn’t “off book” yet. This, on top of the fact that I had to remember how to play the electric guitar that I had only really picked up maybe two weeks before. To make this worse I had been fighting a sore throat for a week before by chugging copious amounts of vitamin C. And yet I couldn’t be more excited to get onstage. Being the last band, we had to wait a while, though.
Rock Roulette is a six-week program where women, trans and gender non-conforming
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resources that directed international students to websites aimed at helping them navigate the complexities of immigration law.
For more information about the rights of international students and for further support from SIU, visit https://siu.edu/ community-of-care/.
The Center for International Education at SIU also has a useful links page that provides further information about the legality surrounding the revocation of student visas, citizenship status or anything related to international student affairs at SIU.
The DE will continue monitoring this situation and asks that if anyone has information regarding the visa
USG PRESIDENT CONTINUED FROM 3
them to make the right calls when I’m not involved.”
Mental health is a large focus of Hartke’s platform. During Hartke’s last term as USG president, a resolution was passed supporting mental health days for college students. He also worked with student governments from several Illinois schools to push the initiative as a state government mandate. The bill made it to the state Senate, and Hartke said he was certain it would pass, but it still remains under consideration.
“That’s gonna be a big focus whenever we go back to Springfield next year, to put back the pressure that we had already applied and get all that straightened out,” he said.
Access to dining is another key campaign point. Hartke said he will approach the issue by focusing on extending the dining hall hours, as well as the hours of the
revocation incident or any other cases of immigration-related challenges faced by SIU students, please email jbrandhorst@ dailyegyptian.com.
National Outlook
The action on Friday at SIU comes amid a recent push by the Trump administration that has intensified action against international students involved in anti-war activism, specifically those outspoken against the humanitarian crises ongoing in the Middle East as well as those that openly criticize the involvement of the U.S. and Israeli government in said crises.
These actions by the Trump team have sparked significant debate concerning free speech and the potential misuse of governmental power.
food court in the Student Center, which is only open until 3 p.m.
He said he is also focused on reinventing UNIV 101, the Saluki Success course, which is required for all freshmen to help them transition into college.
“When I took it, it was an easy
A and I don’t remember doing anything, like genuinely, but it’s got a lot of potential,” he said.
“There’s a lot of work already underway with this, but we see a future where it brings energy and engagement to new students. It gets them out of the classroom and it gets them to come out to RSO events. It gets them to get familiar with the amenities on campus. It gets them, like, an extension of the New Students Program’s mission.
Because the data shows that students that are engaged, that are participating in campus RSOs and extracurriculars, they stay in school at a way higher rate than others.”
His last main focus points are
In January, Trump issued Executive Order 14188, authorizing the revocation of student visas and deportation of individuals deemed “sympathizers of Hamas.” This directive targets international students participating in pro-Palestinian protests, which the administration alleges are antisemitic and linked to terrorist organizations.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated on Thursday that these actions are part of a broader effort to penalize government critics and assert control over higher education institutions, stating that his department is “looking every day” for other visas to pull.
The American Civil Liberties Union and other advocacy groups are preparing legal challenges, asserting that the administration’s actions constitute an
amending several USG policies. To be eligible to run for president, executive vice president or vice president of finance, it is currently required that candidates must have served in USG for at least one semester or an RSO with over 50 members, according to the 2024-2025 Election Handbook. Hartke said he disagrees with the current requirements and has an open elections standpoint.
“When the Senate gets to decide who can run, they also then by extent, get to decide who can win, and I don’t think that should be the Senate’s decision,” he said. “I think that should be a campuswide decision of, you know, how the election goes…I think that USG should be open to just about anybody being able to be elected. If you can win an election, you should be able to serve, that kind of thing.”
Additionally, Hartke said his administration would set standards for RSOs requesting funding.
unprecedented attack on political speech.
Suits from the ACLU against the administration have already caused the courts to deny some of the administration’s attempted actions.
On Wednesday, the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., denied the administration’s request to lift a temporary restraining order on The Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which is an old wartime authority allowing the president to – after a public proclamation – apprehend, restrain and remove citizens of a foreign country that are engaged in a “declared war” or “invasion or predatory incursion” against the United States.
The administration’s attempt at using this wartime authority for immigration enforcement coupled with their crackdown and revocation of
“There’s not enough money there for everybody to get $5 thousand per hearing, but there is enough money to have a set expectation for if you’re going to have this event for this number of people, and you’ve had it before, people will know what to expect when they walk in, and there won’t be any bias in that system,” he said.
“It will be made very clear, very reliable, and a consistent force.”
Hartke said he wants to leave SIU a better place than he found it.
“It’s important to me to fight for what I care about. I care about SIU, that’s the fact at the end of the day,” he said. “I want this to be a legacy that we leave for a long time and people can look back and say positive progress was made and we can still feel it. I’d like people to be grateful and have something to be proud of with their time here, and that’s how the rest of my board feels as well. We’d like to do something to be proud of.”
international student visas is part of what the administration is calling “Measures To Combat Antisemitism.”
Trump previewed these actions at an October 2023 rally where he told the crowd, “Under the Trump administration, we will revoke the student visas of radical, anti-American and antisemitic foreigners at our colleges and universities, and we will send them straight back home.”
Rubio pledged Thursday that more of these arrests would follow, saying student activists pose a threat to U.S. national security, blanketly accusing them of causing damage to university property.
“Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visa,” said Rubio.
Staff reporter Jackson Brandhorst can be reached at jbrandhorst@dailyegyptian.com.
The election for the 2025-26 USG president will run from 6 a.m. on Tuesday, April 8 through 4 p.m. on Wednesday, April 9. News editor Carly Gist can be reached at cgist@ dailyegyptian.com.
The two students announced their campaigns on Monday, March 31, and are set to participate in a debate on Thursday, April 3. Voting will take place April 8 and 9 on D2L. Phelps currently serves as a senator-at-large for USG, and Hartke previously served as USG president.
The candidates spoke with the Daily Egyptian about their platforms over the weekend, discussing initiatives for expanding dining hours and options, resolving funding issues within USG and improving the student experience.
News editor Carly Gist can be reached at cgist@dailyegyptian.com.
The crowd watches as the band The Hiccups perform at the end of the Rock Roulette showcase March 29, 2025 at Slabz Skatepark in Carbondale, Illinois. Deangelo Handley | @_deevisuals4 ROCK ROULETTE 12
2022, lower than the replacement level of 2.1 but not as low as Davis suggested. Additionally, the decline of Native American populations was historically driven by disease, displacement and violence, not solely by low birth rates.
She likened abortion policies to the Dred Scott decision, arguing that just as the Supreme Court once ruled Black Americans were not persons under the law, today’s legal framework does the same to the unborn.
The Dred Scott v. Sandford decision, issued by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1857, ruled that Black Americans, whether free or enslaved, were not considered citizens and had no legal rights under the Constitution. The ruling reinforced slavery and denied personhood to an entire group of people based on race.
“In the Dred Scott decision, the courts ruled that Black people were not persons under the law. Today, the same reasoning is being applied to the unborn,” Davis said.
She said that both situations reflect a denial of personhood and equal protection, which, in her view, undermines the basic principles of human rights and justice.
Brittany Leach, an assistant professor of political science and sociology at SIU, who was not present at the event but commented on the broader pattern of this rhetoric in anti-abortion discourse, said the link between abortion and racial justice is frequently exploited within “pro-life rhetoric.” One of the key arguments often used is that abortion disproportionately targets communities of color, portraying the practice as a tool for racial extermination.
Arguments and imagery representing abortion as an attack on communities of color are employed somewhat commonly by the American anti-abortion movement, and can be found everywhere from billboards to legal opinions.
Leach said that an example of this can be found in Box v. Planned Parenthood, where Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurrence “portrays abortion as a tool of anti-Black eugenics.”
In this court case, Thomas’ concurrence argued that abortion laws disproportionately affected Black communities. He suggested that abortion was used as a tool to reduce the Black population, reflecting concerns about eugenics practices historically targeting marginalized groups. This interpretation sparked further debate about the racial implications of abortion laws.
Leach added that “one of the historians cited heavily in the concurrence rejected Thomas’ interpretation, as did many other historians, and even wrote an article in The Atlantic refuting the Justice’s opinion.”
Leach also highlighted a billboard campaign by the groups Life Always and The Radiance Foundation, which ran in 2011 and compared abortion to slavery. These billboards included statements like, “the most dangerous place for an African American is in the womb” and “black children are an endangered species.”
Leach said that, according to Professor Lisa Guenther who wrote the anti-abortion billboards, “these superficial claims that associate abortion with racism are themselves part of a racist political narrative that downplays the horrors of slavery and exploits Black trauma to recruit African Americans
to the pro-life cause, while pushing a policy platform that devalues the lives of Black women and Black children once they are born by seeking to cut social welfare spending and, I would add, by opposing diversity, equity and inclusion programs.”
Leach’s research also touches on how claims about abortion’s impact on racial justice have been used to support anti-abortion laws.
“Claims about abortion’s dangers for Black and Latino children are used to push anti-abortion laws that prohibit race-selective abortions, even though claims that race-selective abortions are a problem are based on stereotyping and fear mongering,” Leach said.
While anti-abortion arguments often focus on the supposed racial injustice of abortion, Leach emphasizes that these claims do not align with reproductive justice, a framework developed by Black feminists.
She said that reproductive justice includes “three rights: the right to have children, the right not to have children and the right to raise your children in a safe and healthy environment.”
The core idea of reproductive justice is linking reproductive rights to broader struggles for social justice, and the reproductive justice framework often includes the right to abortion.
“In order to interpret abortion as a form of racial injustice, the pro-life argument is premised on the assumption that women of color are not capable of deciding what is best for themselves or their families,” Leach said. “If abortion of Black and Latino women’s pregnancies is a form of systemic racism or even genocide, that implies Black and Latino women are dupes or complicit in collaborating with a racist agenda. In my view, believing that women of color are incapable of judiciously exercising their reproductive autonomy is itself a form of racialized misogyny.”
Davis also linked abortion to a public health crisis, particularly among Black women.
“We’ve created an environment to make abortion friendly, rather than dealing with the true impact that abortion has had on women,” she said. “There’s an epidemic of breast cancer in the Black community that’s linked to abortion, but no one is talking about it.”
The American Cancer Society, National Cancer Institute and other major medical organizations state that there is no proven connection between abortion and an increased risk of breast cancer. Studies have found no causal relationship between abortion (whether induced or spontaneous) and breast cancer development.
Davis went further, blaming modern feminist movements for what she sees as the destruction of traditional family structures.
“To be the men that they were created to be, the protectors, the priests of their household. If we can bring that back, we can turn the tide in our culture. But I don’t blame men. I blame women. I especially blame the National Organization of Women and the whole #MeToo movement, because they trained women to be permissive…to break up the family,” Davis said.
Davis outlined two key initiatives her organization is pushing: a federal push to recognize personhood for the unborn and a demand for Congress to cut all funding to Planned Parenthood for allegedly violating civil rights laws.
“The only way we can end abortion in America is through recognizing the personhood of children in the womb,” Davis said. “It’s not going to happen
legislatively, so we have to go back to the Declaration (of Independence), back to the Constitution as it was originally written.”
She also shared a personal story about her own abortions and how they led her to activism.
“I had two abortions myself,” Davis said. “I was like Scarlett O’Hara, I’ll think about that tomorrow, and so I didn’t think about it. But then I moved to Richmond, Virginia, and joined the church… I walked in, and they announced the topic was abortion, and I froze like a deer in the headlights.”
She recalled how members of her church prayed over her, pressing her down until they felt assured she would be okay. When they finished, one handed her a copy of “Grand Delusions: The Legacy of Planned Parenthood” and told her to read it and take action— an experience she says set her on the path of antiabortion activism.
Leach notes that reproductive justice movements are already addressing the ways in which women of color are coerced into making decisions about abortion.
“If it is an intimate partner pressuring her, then that is a form of abuse, and reproductive justice is opposed to abuse. If it is her economic circumstances coercing her, then we need to fix the economic inequalities that create a coercive situation for her.
If it is racism making her afraid to bring children of color into this world, that racism is the problem and it needs to be addressed. If it is lack of access to birth control forcing her to rely on abortion as a final backup method, then we need to make sure all women have access to affordable contraception and other forms of healthcare,” she said.
Leach said that reproductive justice does not shy away from these difficult issues but works to identify and address the root causes of reproductive injustice in order to empower marginalized communities.
“Reproductive justice as a framework is particularly difficult for the political Right to co-opt,” she says, “because reproductive justice requires addressing all forms of injustice that affect women, people of color, LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, poor
and working-class people, or any other marginalized group.”
Davis also expressed a desire for a nationwide shift in perspective.
“I trust that abortion will end in the United States in 2025,” she said. “Once we recognize the personhood of the child in the womb, abortion ends. That’s where we are headed. People are beginning to realize the moral implications, and that gives me hope.”
She urged for a strong legislative stance against abortion, emphasizing that the United States must reaffirm the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution as foundational laws.
“We just need for Congress to affirm the Declaration and the Constitution are the foundational laws of our land. Once they do that, abortion has to stop, because it does recognize children in the womb are persons, and that’s what I’m pushing for,” she said.
She continued, expressing her hope to directly address President Donald Trump about her concerns: “I covet your prayers that I’ll be able to get to President Trump and just ask him one question. Are you okay with the abortion industry using abortion to target one group of people based on the color of their skin? I want to play the race card, because it’s real discrimination.”
Davis stressed that the root of the issue goes beyond the legality of abortion and is deeply tied to racial justice.
“Whether or not we have the guts to do it, is the question, and that’s what I want to ask President Trump, do you have the guts to end the racial divide in this country by recognizing this?” she said.
Lochard echoed Davis’ concerns.
“I hope people just realize that abortion is not all that it’s cracked up to be. It harms women, it harms communities, and it harms men in irreparable ways,” he said.
Staff reporter Annalise Schmidt can be reached at ashmidt@dailyegyptian.com
swamp is fed with cold water from springs at the base of the bluffs. The snakes live in the swamp in the summer and in the bluffs in the winter. In a 2018 study, Palis said that the snakes seek shelter under the bluffs below the frost line to avoid “freezing and desiccation.”
The swamp is appealing for the snakes because it contains an abundance of food sources. Palis said that the snakes will eat a variety of animals including amphibians like frogs and salamanders, fish and even other snakes.
Because of the migration, Shawnee National Forest closes the road in the spring and fall to protect the snakes. “Because it’s a road, it’s dangerous for a snake if it’s not closed,” Palis said. “People will drive up and down the road, and they’ll run them over.”
The chance to see species native to southern Illinois sent
Kyle Taylor and Adrian BaraPopa on a 13-hour drive from Philadelphia to Snake Road for a glimpse into the unique and fragile habitat. Both Taylor and Bara-Popa quickly connected with Palis and his two friends
Bill Rodgers and Hugh Gilbert, exchanging stories of snake encounters and wildlife stories as they walked down the gravel road in search of more snakes –a hodge-podge group of people all with a similar interest.
Taylor is a hobbyist and wildlife photographer who has spent his life working in conservation and wildlife, including the Philadelphia Zoo and the Academy of Natural Sciences. His interests have taken him around the country and places like Puerto Rico looking to see a variety of new species, but he is in stage 5 renal failure and awaiting a new kidney. He can no longer leave the country while on dialysis, and his hobby
has become an outlet, he said.
As soon as he can get a new kidney, he plans on going to Ecuador to see an anaconda.
“America’s huge, this country is insanely large, and in different parts there are species you just can’t find anywhere else,” Taylor said. “A good example is at this site, the cottonmouth. We don’t have cottonmouths where we are.”
Five to six years ago, Taylor rediscovered a passion from his childhood – photography.
He began photographing hummingbirds and eventually all forms of wildlife, which brought him to southern Illinois where he laid flat on the gravel road, his camera just inches away from cottonmouth and other snakes.
“It really quells all of the bad thoughts, all of the anxiety, all the stress,” Taylor said. “I mean, the world right now is a crazy place, but you don’t feel that here. All you feel is the mosquitos biting you.”
Taylor counted double digits in species he had never seen before in the wild as he hiked along the gravel road, something hobbyists call “lifers.”
Snake Road also boasts a variety of species. Of the 22 species that live there, Palis recorded eight species in one day, including 21 cottonmouths, four plain-bellied water snakes, two gray ratsnakes, a ring-necked snake, a DeKay’s brownsnake, a red-bellied snake, an eastern garter snake and a Western ribbon snake.
The majority of the snakes were cottonmouths, which Palis says is normal for Snake Road.
The two most common snakes at the road are cottonmouths and plain-bellied water snakes, cottonmouths making up the majority, he said.
For reptile enthusiasts or even beginners interested in learning more about snakes, Snake
Road topography makes it an ideal place for snake viewing.
“I think Snake Road’s a great opportunity to come out and see snakes,” Palis said. “In the spring, the road is clear. You can see them from a distance.”
But Snake Road isn’t just a place to come and see snakes.
It’s also a great place to see other swamp species. “There’s a lot of other things to see,” Palis said.
“It’s not just snakes. It’s birds, it’s wildflowers, it’s butterflies.”
The community can also get engaged with research at Snake Road through the Snake Road Sentinel Program.
Volunteers can record data on snakes as well as information on the road’s foot traffic, visitors and other information.
According to Shawnee National Forest wildlife biologist Mark Vukovich, the volunteer program was started in 2022 after the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The objective
of the program was to get volunteers to engage in science on our national forest, specifically at Snake Road, where they could collect data for us on snakes, on visitor numbers and cars and also kind of keep an eye on the place at the same time,” Vukovich said.
“It’s grown every year,” Vukovich said. When the program was first started, he said volunteers recorded their findings on hard-copy data sheets, but now the program offers the additional option of an app, Survey123. “I think we’ve been successful in engaging a lot of citizens and science on our national forest at Snake Road.”
The app is also accessible for
Cow lilies and duck weed grow in LaRue Swamp at the bottom of the bluffs at Snake Road March 27, 2025 in Shawnee National Forest in Union County, Illinois. Enan Chediak | @enanchediak
visitors who are not familiar with snakes. “In the digital app, you can take pictures of the snake as well to confirm the ID,” Vukovich said. The app also gives users the option of denoting species as an unknown snake.
The volunteer data is then used by Shawnee National Forest to monitor the road during migration season, telling biologists like Vukovich whether the road closure dates need to be adjusted to protect the snakes.
The road closure dates are March 15th through May 15th and September 1st to the beginning of duck season in mid-November. According to Vukovich, the fall dates have been extended from the previous end date of Oct. 31.
The Snake Road Sentinel Program also helps biologists record key information about the snakes like size and location, according to Vukovich.
Volunteers can record size categories, whether the snake is adult or juvenile and whether the snake is injured or diseased.
Vukovich also said that the program is looking for diseases
like snake fungal disease. “It’s a fungus that infects snakes,” he said. “And they’ll have symptoms of the disease of some growth around their face and their eyes.”
The data also tells biologists at the Shawnee National Forest about the forest’s usage. “We get thousands of people there,” Vukovich said. “Non-consumptive use of our national forest is pretty high.”
“A lot of people say, ‘Well, the hunting is the big revenue on the Shawnee.’ I have data that suggests Snake Road is pretty high up there economically based on the numbers I see,” Vukovich said. He said that people come from around the world to see the snake migration, including people from Colorado, Canada and Germany.
Photo editor Enan Chediak can be reached through email at echediak@dailyegyptian.com or on Instagram @enanchediak. Editor-in-chief Lylee Gibbs can be reached through email at lgibbs@dailyegyptian.com or on Instagram @lyleegibbsphoto.
John Palis looks through his binoculars up at a snake hiding up in rocks March 27, 2025 at Snake Road in Union County, Illinois. Lylee Gibbs | @lyleegibbsphoto
A plain-bellied water snake sits in the leaves just off the main road March 27, 2025 at Snake Road in Union County, Illinois. Lylee Gibbs | @lyleegibbsphoto
A cottonmouth sticks its head out of the water in the LaRue Swamp March 27, 2025 at Snake Road in Union County, Illinois. Lylee Gibbs @lyleegibbsphoto
A western ribbon snake pokes its head out of the underbrush after crossing Snake Road March 27, 2025 in Shawnee National Forest in Union County, Illinois. Enan Chediak @enanchediak
An eastern garter snake sits in the underbrush off the trail at Snake Road March 27, 2025 in Shawnee National Forest in Union County, Illinois. Enan Chediak | @enanchediak
A bronze frog sits on the end of a log March 27, 2025 at Snake Road in Union County, Illinois. Lylee Gibbs @lyleegibbsphoto
Adrian Bara-Popa takes a photograph of a cottonmouth snake with his phone while hiking Snake Road March 27, 2025 in Shawnee National Forest in Union County, Illinois. Enan Chediak @enanchediak
A plain-bellied water snake hides under the brush off the trail at Snake Road March 27, 2025 in Shawnee National Forest in Union County, Illinois. Enan Chediak | @enanchediak
A cottonmouth slithers through the brush and logs at Snake Road March 27, 2025 in the Shawnee National Forest in Union County, Illinois. Lylee Gibbs @lyleegibbsphoto
Dawgs bring out the brooms against Bradley
Riding a four game win streak, the SIU baseball team traveled up to Peoria on March 28 and 29 for a three game series with the Bradley Braves where the Dawgs ended up sweeping the set for their second Missouri Valley Conference series win. SIU is now 5-1 in the MVC and alone in first place.
Jackson Payne got the ball to start the weekend and delivered 4 2/3 innings of work before getting chased during a 5-run fifth inning.
Tanner Gerdes, Cole Koonce, Gavan Wernsing and Matt Irvine all got some mop up work with Wernsing getting the win with his 3 innings of relief.
At the dish, John Lemm and Kaleb Hall led SIU, each tallying 5 runs driven in. Hall drove in 4 of his RBI with a grand slam in the fifth, and all of Lemm’s RBI came as part of a 11-run ninth that put the game well out of reach. Six other Salukis had a multi-RBI night for the 25-11 win in the series opener.
Matt Schark and Mason Schwalbach took responsibility for most of the damage in the 13-4 win. Schark drove in 5, including 4 on a grand slam in seventh and Scwalbach went 4-5 with 3 runs driven in and 3 runs scored.
For the series finale, Meade Johnson was on the bump to begin the game for SIU and surrendered 2 while getting 10 outs. Petrey and Sam Frizzi each tossed 2 2/3. Petrey got the win for his efforts, and Griffin Catto picked up the final out to seal the sweep of the Braves.
Game 3 was another productive game for both Schark and Schwalbach. Schark picked up another 5 RBI including leaving the yard twice, which brought his home run count on the season to 11, matching his 2023 figure in half as many games. Schwalbach had another 3 RBI performance in another 13-4 win for the Dawgs.
With the sweep of Bradley, the Salukis improved to a season record of 20-7 and a conference record of 5-1, good to rank at the top of the Missouri Valley through two weekends.
Sports Reporter Nick Pfannkuche can be reached at npfankuche@dailyegyptian.com.
Alec Nigut was the Game 2 starter and delivered a 5 inning, 3-run performance that earned him the win. Irvine, Dylan Petrey and Andrew Yusypchuk combined to pick up the last 4 innings with Irvine surrendering one run down the stretch.
Matt Schark in a photo provided by Saluki Athletics.
Saluki softball takes 2 of 3 at Belmont, gains control of the Valley
Ryan GRieseR RGRieseR@dailyeGyptian com
Saluki softball did exactly what they needed to during their March 28 and 29 road series against the Belmont Bruins.
The Dawgs won two of three games to move to 18-15 overall and more importantly, 10-1 in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Salukis are the only team with a single loss, with UNI sitting in second at 7-2.
SIU kicked off the first game of the series and the top of a doubleheader on Friday afternoon, with Emma Gipson getting the start.
Gipson went 3 2/3 innings and gave up only 3 hits and 2 runs, 1 of which was earned, before giving way to Mckenzie Newcomb for 1 1/3 innings. Kaytee Dahlstrom came in and ultimately earned the win, pitching the final two innings of the game and giving up 2 hits and 1 earned run with 4 strikeouts.
Elite offensive firepower once again showed up for the Salukis. They piled up 10 runs in their 10-3 win despite leaving 9 batters on base, with Erin Lee being stranded four times.
Several Salukis went yard, starting with Lee’s 3-run shot in the top of the fourth. Emily Williams, the reigning MVC Newcomer of the Week, cracked another after hitting four the previous weekend and Addi Baker directly followed up Williams to make it backto-back homers in the top of the sixth.
Amanda Knutson got a solo shot of her own in the same inning, helping break the game open and give SIU a 9-2 lead.
The Dawgs were back on the diamond only 30 minutes later for their second game of the day, though playing under the lights didn’t treat them nearly as well in a 5-0 loss.
Belmont’s Maya Johnson, who leads the MVC with a microscopic 0.67 ERA and 206 strikeouts, blanked the Salukis across the full seven innings. Compare that to Newcomb, who is third in ERA and second in strikeouts and has a 1.95 ERA and 89 strikeouts.
SIU sent only 23 batters to the box, and 13 struck out against only two hits. Anna Carder and Charley Pursley were the only batters who collected a hit. Jackie Lis and Mikaela Coburn were also stranded on base.
Kiana McDowell started for the Salukis and was charged with her fifth loss of the year, giving up 7 hits and 5 earned runs against 3 strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings. Dahlstrom finished the final 1 2/3 innings and gave up 2 hits and zero runs.
The Salukis were able to get right on Saturday despite facing Johnson again.
Gipson started and faced the first six batters before Newcomb entered. Newcomb, who had pitched only one inning in the weekend so far, benefitted from the rest and was able to silence Belmont’s lineup, giving up only 2 hits
and 2 walks with 2 strikeouts. She also took only 64 pitches to get through 5 1/3 innings and 20 batters to pick up her 11th win of the year.
Head coach Jen Sewell turned in a much different looking batting order. Instead of Austin leading off, followed by Lis and Lee, Lis led off and was followed by Carder, Williams, Lee, and Baker before reaching Austin.
This new order was able to get after Johnson much more effectively. The top of the third was where SIU got on the board after Carder’s second hit brought Lis home. Williams, the next batter, hit a single to score Carder and give SIU a 2-0 lead.
An insurance run came in the top of the seventh after Baker reached on a fielding error and scored after a Knutson triple and left SIU up 3-0 and Belmont with one more chance.
Newcomb denied them the opportunity after giving up a hit; she struck out a batter, and the final two outs swung early in the count and fouled and flew out, respectively.
The Salukis (18-15, 10-1), who are now in sole control of first place in the MVC, will return home to Charlotte West Stadium to face off against the Indiana State Sycamores (11-22, 6-3 MVC) on April 4-6. Friday’s game will start at 5 p.m.
Sports reporter Ryan Grieser can be reached at rgrieser@dailyegyptian.com.
Sports Consultant: Ryan Grieser rgrieser@dailyegyptian.com
Digital Editor: Bhayva Sri-Billuri bsri-billuri@dailyegyptian.com
About Us
We distribute 7,000 printed copies every Wednesday across the SIU campus and surrounding communities, including Carbondale, Murphysboro, Carterville, and Marion. We have expanded with limited distribution to surrounding towns and in Springfield.
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The Daily Egyptian, the student-run news organization of Southern Illinois University Carbondale, is committed to being a trusted source of news, information, commentary and public discourse, while helping readers understand the issues affecting their lives.
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The Daily Egyptian is published by the students of Southern Illinois University Carbondale and functions as a laboratory for the School of Journalism in exchange for the room and utilities in the Communications Building. The Daily Egyptian is a non-profit organization that survives primarily off of its advertising revenue. Offices are in the Communications Building, room 1259, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Carbondale, Ill., 62901.
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Letters and guest columns must be submitted with author’s contact information, preferably via email. Phone numbers are required to verify authorship, but will not be published. Students must include their year and major. Faculty must include rank and department. Others include hometown. Submissions should be sent to editor@dailyegyptian.com
Amanda Knutson in a photo provided by Saluki Athletics.
Boobys (21+) - Karaoke Night, 18+ to sing, 21+ to drink, 8:30 p.m., Free PKs (21+) - The McDaniels Band, 6 p.m., Free
FRIDAY (4/4)
Boobys (21+) - Taylor Steele and Kasey Lee Rogers $5 PKs (21+) - The McDaniels Band, 6 p.m., Free Tres Hombres (21+) - Ethan Stephenson, 6 p.m., Free Varsity Center - LIVE: Belinda: an April folly in three acts, continues April 5-6, April 10-13, Weekdays 7:30 p.m., Sundays 2 p.m. ,$15 adults, $10 students, $7 Thursdays FILMS: School of Rock, 7 p.m. , $8
SATURDAY (4/5)
Boobys (21+) - Ace Wav And Friends, $5 PKs (21+) - The Golden Rods / The
Entertainment Calendar
Apri l, 2025
Cattails, 8 p.m., Free
SUNDAY (4/6)
Varsity - LIVE Belinda, April 4-6, 1013; $15 adults $10 students, $7 Thursdays 7:30pm, 2pm on Sundays
WEDNESDAY (4/9)
Boobys (21+) - Local Band Benefit Night, $5 PKs (21+) - Trivia Night, 8 p.m., Free
THURSDAY (4/10)
Boobys (21+) - Karaoke Night, 18+ to sing, 21+ to drink, 8:30 p.m., Free
FRIDAY (4/11)
Boobys (21+) - Little Baby Tendencies and Daisy Ladies, $5 PKs (21+) - Wes Hoffman (STL) / Wayside / Isabella, 10 p.m. Tres Hombres (21+) - Justin Grant, 6 p.m., Lucas Wayne & the Cottonmouths, 8 p.m., Free Varsity Center - LIVE: Rocky Horror Picture Show Shadow Cast Event, Midnight $12, $10 students FILMS: Clueless, 7 p.m., $8
Saturday (4/12)
PKs (21+) - Tawl Paul & Slappin' Henry Blue, 8 p.m., Free Tres Hombres (21+) - Cash & Co., 6 p.m., Free Varsity Center - LIVE: Union County Sal with Squadfathers, Guests, 7 p.m., $15
PKs (21+) - Aaron's bday music video party, 10 p.m., Free Tres Hombres (21+) -The McDaniels, 6 p.m., Free Varsity Center - LIVE: After Credits Comedy, $10 in advance $15 night of show FILMS: The Social Network, 7 p.m., $8
SATURDAY (4/19)
PKs (21+) - Cats of Carbondale fundraiser with Katt Holiday & Lizabilly, 8 p.m., Free
SIU USG project brings food trucks to campus after hours
Enan ChEdiak @EnanChEdiak
The SIU Undergraduate Student Government announced on March 17 that they had put together a project to offer more food options at the university. While the dining halls close at 7:30 at Lentz and Trueblood, several local food trucks will offer students an after-hour option on Thursdays from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. for the rest of the spring semester.
Students can expect to find the food trucks outside the softball field by the Towers and outside of Lentz hall.
The food trucks will include Haute Wheels, Dave’s Bagels, Winston’s Bagels by B-Rad and Taqueria Jiminez.
Photo Editor Enan Chediak can be reached at echediak@dailyegyptian.com.
Not their first rodeo: McCoy Rodeo tour stops in Du Quoin
The energy in the stadium was electric as the bulls raged out of the chute into the arena, throwing the riders off in mere seconds. Nobody seemed to stand a chance against the bulls.
On the first of two evenings at the Southern Illinois Center in DuQuoin, Illinois, the stands were filled with visitors coming for the rodeo, mutton busting, other stunt performers and the country singer Drew Baldridge who performed after the rodeo.
Dual horse rider Dusti Crain-Dickerson also rode her two horses Rummy and Rebel at the same time around the arena, performing stunts such as riding backwards and jumping over fire.
The Extreme Bull Bash is part of a series of rodeos put on by the McCoy rodeo who are on tour throughout the United States. Their next rodeo will be on April 3 in Ada, Oklahoma.
In addition to bull riding, there were a number of other performances at the event. A number of children took part in the mutton busting, in which they attempted to stay on a sheep the longest while they ran around the arena.
Photo Editor Enan Chediak can be reached at echediak@dailyegyptian.com.
Michelle Fraley-Jines delivers food for students March 20, 2025 at Thompson Point in Carbondale, Illinois. Daylin Williams | @photosbydaylin
Enan ChEdiak @EnanChEdiak
Multiple students stand in line for Dave’s Bagels March 20, 2025 at Mae Smith Hall in Carbondale, Illinois. Daylin Williams | @photosbydaylin
Dual horse rider Dusti Crain-Dickerson rides her horses Rummy and Rebel around the arena at the Du Quoin Bull Bash March 28, 2025 at the Du Quoin State Fairgrounds in Du Quoin, Illinois. Enan Chediak | @enanchediak
individuals gather to create music together and fundraise for Y’all Rock Carbondale’s one-week kids summer camp. In the span of a week, kids come together to learn how to write a song and play instruments. At the end of the week the kids have their own showcase to show the music they have worked on to friends and family.
When I first heard about Rock Roulette, it was during our weekly story meeting at the Daily Egyptian. Initially, I wanted to photograph the event and follow the story. After a minute of quick research and reading, I decided that I absolutely would not cover the event. I wanted to participate. Within the first 10 minutes of discovering what Rock Roulette was, I was signed up and got my confirmation email.
Ever since I was little, I have always wanted to be a singer. My first song was a knockoff of “All I Want for Christmas is You” that I wrote on pink construction paper with a Crayola marker when I was about seven or eight. I continued to write whenever the inspiration came. I usually used songwriting to regulate my young and erratic feelings. I had a songwriting notebook I used as a diary, and I used to write songs weekly if not daily. At one point, it felt like my everything. I was an artsy and musical kid.
Despite this, I always had trouble sharing my art, whether it be visual or literary. I held all of it close to my chest. All the art-related things I did, I did for me.
So you can imagine the way I felt when I brought my songwriting notebook to our first Rock Roulette practice. I handed off the heart and musings of a roughly healing teen to 20-something-year-old me into the hands of four strangers whom I had met maybe a week before. I don’t think I’ve ever had a stronger compulsion to crawl into my own skin than that day. I am not a wear-my-heart-on-my-sleeve person. I would rather gently lay it down on paper where nobody but I could see.
Despite all my lyrical writing practice over the years, I had never learned how to do the instrumental process on my own. I had only ever written music with someone else once before and I don’t know how well that process went, but I wasn’t happy with the product. I am a stickler for process when it comes to certain things. Rock Roulette forced me to step out of my comfort zone and approach songwriting at a different angle. I couldn’t have found a better group of people to do that with.
The band we formed is named The Hiccups! and we based it on one of our band members’ infant having hiccups during the initial kick-off meeting. A very spurof-the-moment type of pick. The first few practices were as awkward as you could imagine it would be when putting five strangers in a room. I think our first few practices were jam sessions so we could get familiar with each other and what we could do.
Like every band, we had ups and downs and lastminute changes. We were a little too close for comfort
when finalizing the two originals we decided on. However, we came together in the end and really pulled through. By the end of the fifth week, we felt like we were golden aside from a few tweaks. A much different feeling than where we were at the beginning of week four.
The fundraising was interesting on its own. We did some fundraising at Booby’s and the Lost Cross house, which gave the insight of what it’s like to grind for yourself in the Carbondale music scene. We made our own merch and went into the community to put ourselves out there for a good cause. I’m not sure I would have done it in any other circumstances.
The next thing I know, I’m on stage with some of the hottest lights I’ve ever been under (and I’ve been under a few) staring out at the biggest crowd I ever thought I would be playing any original music to. Meanwhile, I’m trying to make sure I have the song lyrics of our song so I can uphold my end of the band bargain, vocals. All this, and the sweat was burning my eyes so bad that I couldn’t even see the fret markers on the side of my fretboard.
But despite that, I looked around me to the people in my band who helped me even touch the dream of that little girl scribbling on a piece of cheap construction paper, and I had a strange sense of peace. I have never felt that calm before a performance in my life.
Now I could talk about every mistake I made up there. I am a perfectionist and I’m sure one day in the future it will keep me up at night. There are videos. I know where to find them. However, that’s not what
Rock Roulette is about. No one expected perfection out of me, just good vibes and some banging songs.
I think The Hiccups! delivered along with all the other bands that put their all into their sets for the showcase.
So, I want to say thank you to Y’all Rock Carbondale. This was a really fun and crazy opportunity in which I got to grow as a person and push myself to do something I have always wanted to do and never had the chance or resources to.
Thank you to everyone who helped us fundraise the crazy amount that we did. Especially my parents. I had to get my competitive streak from somewhere, and they were the product of music programs themselves.
@_deevisuals4
I’m sure when I was younger, I would have been one of those kids at camp had I lived in Carbondale. And finally, I want to say thank you to my bandmates and band manager, from me and my inner child. This whole thing has probably made me sound dramatic, but this was honestly one of the coolest things I’ve done, and I’m glad it was with all of you. Who knows how long we’ll ride this high, but Carbondale has not seen the last of The Hiccups! if any of us has anything to do with it.
Student Managing Editor Dominique MartinezPowell can be reached at dmartinez-powell@dailyegyptian.com.
A phone records the band The Hiccups during their Rock Roulette performance March 29, 2025 in Carbondale, Illinois. Deangelo Handley | @_deevisuals4
Attendees cheer on a band during the Rock Roulette Showcase March 29, 2025 in Carbondale, Illinois. Deangelo Handley |
