IGH H
Redondo Union High School Redondo Beach, CA Sept. 18, 2015 Vol. XCVI Edition 2
TIDE
Inside
[on pg. 16]
PHOTO BY SANDER FINK
pg. 5
pg. 7
pg. 12
Column: Social media activism is often passive activism
Senior Veronika Vozna moved from Ukraine alone to continue her education
Athelete of the issue: Jacob Silvera, former Mira Costa quarterback
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News and Briefs
High Tide
news
Club Sign Up Day and Teen Court PHOTOS 1 AND 2 BY RAQUEL TAHVILDARE PHOTO 3 BY ANIA WEBB
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Getting Involved. 1. “Techtree Club provides STEM opportunities, such as internships with
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companies as well as in research, and hands-on tech workshops (e.g. building a computer, building a crystal radio, and coding apps) for students. I am hoping for students to be more prepared for STEM careers and to receive real experience in fields of their particular interests, which may guide what career path they decide to pursue,” Techtree Club President Giorgia Fujita said. 2. “The Muslim Student Association is founded on two main goals: to clear misconcepions about Islam and to unite both Muslims and non-Muslims under one community, “ Muslim Student Association President Yoseph Ghazal said. 3. The first Teen Court session of the year was held on Wednesday after school in the Bingo Room. The two cases involved two Carson teens who had shoplifted from a clothing store. “Teen Court is such a great program for students who are in trouble because it aims to rehabilitate rather than punish,” presiding judge Stuart Rice said.
AES applies for permit from CEC by Malek Chamas and Reema Saad For decades, a power plant has stood on 1100 N. Harbor Drive, obstructing Redondo Beach citizens’ view of the ocean. But by 2020, the power plant as we know it today will no longer be standing. The AES Redondo Beach power plant, a subject of controversy in Redondo Beach during recent years, relies on ocean water for cooling purposes, a practice which has recently been made illegal in the state of California. The AES Corporation will have to receive a permit from the California Energy Commission (CEC) to build a new plant with another cooling method or tear the plant down. However, due to citizens’ disdain for the plant, the city of Redondo Beach is trying to convince the CEC not to give AES the permit, and is currently acting as an intervener in AES’s court proceedings at the CEC. “That is a legal status that we have as an interested party. We get to submit evidence, we get to participate in the hearings that the CEC has as part of their review in deter-
mining whether or not to grant a permit for AES to build a new power plant,” City Manager Joe Hoefgen said. “So we are actively involved and engaged in that process, and really, we are on opposite sides at the table with AES. AES wants a new power plant; we are pointing out reasons why we don’t think it is compatible with the surrounding properties.” These reasons have been an inconvenience to Redondo Beach citizens since the original powerplant was built in the 1950s. “I’m being facetious, but longer than anybody has lived in this city, people have been upset about the power plant. It’s huge, blocks views, it’s polluting and it makes noise. And that property is better suited for something else, on the coast like that,” Mayor Steve Aspel said. On March third, the citizens of Redondo Beach voted against Measure B, a proposal to rezone the 56 acres the plant currently stands on. Afterwards, AES applied for a permit from the CEC. If AES is rejected, Redondo Beach will have a better negotiating position
when deciding how to use the land. “If the state of California gives them permission, they are going to build a new power plant, battery storage place, or whatever they want to build,” Aspel said. “If we win, then we can say, ‘Well, you didn’t get a permit for the power plant, so you have to do something, you are not going to let it sit there.’” There are plans to create a task force made up of Redondo Beach citizens, a Hermosa Beach representative, and an AES representative. This task force would brainstorm ideas about what to do with the power plant’s land if Redondo Beach wins the CEC court proceedings. However, not all Redondo Beach citizens are allowed to participate on the task force. “You cannot have been elected to any council or school board in any city,” Aspel said. “Hopefully, the task force will be comprised of people that are not the usual suspects that are always pounding their fists at the podium, or at council meetings and things. We are trying to get people that have
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fresh ideas.” After the task force comes up with one or more ideas in the next few months, it will present its ideas to AES, and if AES consents, the citizens of Redondo Beach will vote on the ideas. “That task force has not been formed yet, we are sort of just at the discussion phase at this point,” Hoefgen said. “They’re really looking for a way to see if there’s a plan that both AES and the residents would support. Part of it is economic analysis, to see what type of an income would be provided, both to AES and to the city.” Despite the opposing interests of AES and Redondo Beach, Aspel hopes for both sides to come to an agreement satisfying them both. “We want see them go away moderately happy and have the citizens of Redondo Beach be wonderfully happy,” Aspel said. “Our first goal is to make the citizens happy. Joe’s job as City Manager and my job as the Mayor, and our council’s, is to do things to help the citizens of Redondo Beach.”w
Sept. 18, 2015
page 3
news
Class sizes go up with greater enrollment by Kayla Nicholls Like the students themselves, the freshman class itself is experiencing “growing pains.” Enrollment has swelled to 2,700 students, but administration assures students that classroom sizes will remain the same. Legally, a contract between the administration and teachers requires that class sizes stay below 35 students. If any class does have a few extra students teachers are paid a stipend in compensation. “We understand that low 30’s are better for teachers and we don’t want them to max out,” Principal Nicole Wesley said. “We knew enrollment was increasing so we built the schedules with extra cushions this year.” Administration hired 22 new teachers as a result of the freshman class’s additional 100 students, for a total of about 771. “We take the hiring process very seriously here. And we are excited for the new teachers because they all are wonderful, well-qualified people with many great new ideas who will allow for growth in the coming years,” Wesley said. “Our staff is like a family here, and with the their help, we had the smoothest first day of school ever.” Despite all the precautions administration has taken, they are being vigilant about the enrollment rise and are limiting the number of permits granted to students who live out of Redondo Beach. “Last year we stopped giving out permits to anyone who didn’t have a sibling or parent in the district. We were thinking about cutting even those, but we chose the fairer
ILLUSTRATION BY LULU WEGMAN
thing to do,” Wesley said. To cope with the larger number of enrolled students the school will undergo some changes. “For the first time since I’ve been here we will have to have teachers sharing rooms, and every room on campus is occupied,” Wesley said. “Our custodial staff are a bit stretched to clean and disinfect all the desks and clean up the trash, but the classrooms and students are our priority.” The immediate effect of the larger size is most notable at school-wide events like ral-
lies and motivational speakers. “We will have to have three divisions for the motivational speaker this year because we just don’t have room in the auditorium,” Wesley said. “And rallies will have to be in the Sea Hawk Bowl. I always loved having them in the gym because you can really feel the excitement throughout the whole room and in the Bowl it just has a different feel.” Assistant Principal Jens Brandt feels confident that these changes will not cause any detriment to the school as a whole. “We should be okay with the increase.
Thankfully, we have amazing facilities, great support staff, and outstanding teachers, therefore, we can adjust and adapt,” Brandt said. “Obviously there will be some ‘growing pains,’ but overall, we will be just fine.” All of these “growing pains” do come with benefits, according to Wesley. “All the new students are all amazing, creative, energetic, and outgoing,” she said. “I love having them here because they make our campus more diverse and give our other students more people to interact with and learn from.”
Solar panel follow-up: energy generation Current Generation
182.64 kW
Generated to Date
706,132.56 kWh
Environmental Benefits
Cars Taken Off Road
25,539.6 Cars
Energy Generation (kWh)
Current Generation
Total Energy Generation 2015-2016
40,000
20,000
0
Sept. Oct.
Nov. Dec. Jan.
Feb. March April May June July Aug.
Houses Powered
16,686.8 Houses Information compiled from http://rbusd.psomasfmg.com/school/#redondo-west
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Around Redondo Should RUHS monitor social media more actively?
Compiled by Megan Contreras Photos by Carmen Hamm
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No, that’s a personal thing. If they want to be involved it should be indirect. -Mahzaib Quraishi, 12
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They shouldn’t. That’s the students’ domain.
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-Samantha McVeigh, 10
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They shouldn’t be accessing our lives outside of school.
”
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-Bryce Clomera, 11
The school shouldn’t become the NSA.
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-Lawrence Kiamilev, 10
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I feel like students should have a certain amount of privacy from adults altogether. -Josh Childress, 12
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I think they should because many kids selfharm because of bullying on social media.
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-Taryll Campbell, 10
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No, because somebody’s private life shouldn’t be involved in school. -Liza Holmes, 9
”
High Tide
opinion
Social media supervision
Sprigeo is still the best way to monitor behavior Editorial With a signifi- cant increase in the use of social media, there is a need for greater responsibility. Sharing thoughts and posts has become easier, and so too has bullying others off campus, raising the question of just how active administration should be in monitoring social media interactions between students. RUHS is continuing to use Sprigeo to collect harassment and bullying reports, and the website receives about 100 reports each year. Out of these, in 2013, 31 were deemed valid; and in 2014, 44 were deemed valid. This increase can be attributed to students becoming accustomed to having Sprigeo as an option, while those who already use it find it effective and reliable. However, students can’t help but wonder if administration is monitoring websites like Twitter, and whether such policing breaches privacy. Administrators do not actively watch social media interactions and do not sit in their offices perusing through Twitter accounts seeking out students who target others. They care about the school environment and want to make sure all students are comfortable and that others are acting responsibly. Sprigeo, so far, has been sufficiently effective, and as such administration doesn’t snoop through people’s social media accounts. On the website, students who feel they are victims of bullying can report their offenders. It is within the school’s jurisdiction to investigate these reports as they directly affect students. Bullying makes students uncomfortable at the very least, and often threatens them to the point where they do not want to at-
ILLUSTRATION BY ALINA BIESCHKE
Editorial Board vote
Should student social media accounts stay private in administration’s campaign against cyberbullying?
agree
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tend school. When such cyberbullying incidents are reported and if students feel targeted in any way, administration has a right and duty to step in and resolve the conflict. Administration’s goal is not simply to call out students for misusing social media or to punish students for their online behavior;
disagree
0
their objective is to solve issues between students in the long-term, and to teach better social media habits to students. Through conflict resolution and encouragement of social media responsibility, administration looks to build a safer environment for students on and off campus.
Valid Sprigeo reports 50
Valid Reports
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40 30 20 2013-2014 2014-2015
Years
From 2013-2014 to 2014-2015, valid Sprigeo reports increased by 13
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Sept. 18, 2015
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High Tide
staff
Editors in Chief: Yasmeen El-Hasan; Stella Gianoukakis
Managing Editor: Vaidehi Gandhi News Editor: Malek Chamas Opinion Editor: Christopher Paludi Features Editors: Lizzie Fauver; Zach
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Writing Editors: Kayla Nicholls; Amanda
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Illustrators: Alina Bieschke; Luma Wegman
Staff Writers: Gianna Aquilina; Brittany Baker; Mia Berger; Ben Brill; Reem Chamas; Jasmine Dube; Micah Ezzes; Miriam Farah; Yasamin Fazeli; Jason Fong; Dina Ghanim; Kelly Harraka; Patrick Henry; Kayla Hiken; Shyanne Landers; Gerika Macalino; Eden Millan; Micky Munns; Davina Nguyen; Hayley O’Connor-Rigby; Luke Peterson; Samaya Rubio; Summer Saad; Simrun Ursani; Lulu Wegman; Tyler Wunderli; Kylie Yorke; Erika Zlatkin This is a wholly student-managed, designed, and written newspaper that focuses on school and community events. Signed commentaries and editorial cartoons represent the opinions of the staff writer or cartoonist and in no way reflect the opinions of the rest of the staff.
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opinion
PHOTOS BY TED CAVUS AND SAM BENDALL
Social media activism is often passive activism
Micah Ezzes In a world that tests the boundaries of personal privacy with social media, there is nothing more entertaining than a good, old-fashioned Twitter fight. It seems that there’s always someone saying something, be it big-name celebrities like Drake or people we see at school every day, duking it out in 140 characters or less. However, the line between an argument and a discussion worth having, has been blurred, as many have taken to Twitter to argue serious issues such as race, abortion, and presidential candidates. While I have absolutely no say over what anyone says and I accept that, I still think it’s worth pointing out how pointless of an endeavor it is to discuss serious issues on social media. Social media simply wasn’t designed for the sort of debates it too-often hosts. It is designed for clips, sound bites, quotes — things that satiate our short attention spans, not deep, meaningful discussion. This is especially true on Twitter. For example, I once saw someone share a picture of a black child, who they claimed was killed for getting his basketball out of a
white man’s yard, challenging me and claiming I “won’t retweet” this. Questioning the validity of the source, I searched the name of the boy in question and found nothing, except for a 17 year-old with the same name, who fatally shot a 13 year-old. Despite the fifteen seconds it took me to debunk their claim, the picture still had thousands of retweets and favorites. What could have been a topical discussion citing reputable sources simply became clickbait, something people would share just to feel like they did something good, without actually doing anything. This slacktivism is the main source of the problem. Beyond that, however, most people don’t go to Twitter to have such meaningful discussions; they go on Twitter to look at goofy things. And there’s nothing inherently wrong with that — in fact, that’s the core upon which social media has evolved. This becomes a problem, though, when serious issues are raised on social media and nobody wants to listen. Posting controversial opinions, however valid they may be, opens the floodgates of
ignorance on social media. As soon as you post something, everyone feels entitled to respond: feminists, misogynists, egalitarians, and racists alike. Once these various groups respond and ultimately react to each other’s’ presence, what could have been a worthwhile conversation eventually devolves into a mudslinging competition, punctuated by sheer ignorance. Perhaps this is an extension of the public’s natural distaste for addressing serious social issues. In any case, some of the stupidest things I have ever heard or seen have been on Twitter as a result of someone saying a controversial opinion. And maybe that was an opinion worth sharing. But I can guarantee that if you have a legitimate opinion to share or a question to ask, you won’t find your answers on social media. You want to promote a product, or invite people to a show? Twitter’s your place to be. You want to debate race relations in America, and the disappearance of the mobility of the middle class? That’s a discussion for the real world, not for those on Twitter, laughing at Meek Mill jokes.
With great power
With freedom of speech comes a responsibility to society Grace Zoerner Yelling “Freedom of speech!” does not protect you from criticism after saying something offensive, and responding that you have the “right to offend” doesn’t soften the impact of your words. Offensive speech can be defined as something that jokes at, trivializes, or normalizes an intolerant attitude: a racist statement, a joke about transgender people, a belittlement of rape. This can be intentional or inadvertent. You can follow a racist joke, for example, by saying that you’re just joking and you, clearly, are not a real racist. But if I punched you in the eye as a joke, would you still wake up with a bruise? Individual responsibility on a societal level is denied easily due to the enormity of the population. According to the most recent Census data, there are over 320 million Americans. One voice out of 320 million seems impossibly small, but intolerance
begets intolerance, and cultural standards aren’t anything more than the overwhelming voices of many, many individuals. These 320 million individuals are each gifted with freedom of speech and expression — a freedom that these individuals are quick to defend, rightly and for obvious reasons. In no way am I undermining the freedom of speech. I am asking you to recognize the value using this freedom responsibly. Calling out someone on the offensiveness of their speech does not equal censorship. It’s just asking that person to think about the cultural implications, usually stereotyped-based, of what they just said — a joke about a Muslim being a terrorist, for instance — and how this contributes to larger cultural phenomena of intolerance — like many Americans’ racist distrust of Muslims. Censorship keeps society stagnant, preserves cultural status quos and protects op-
pression. Telling someone that their speech is offensive has the opposite effect: It pushes society forward by asking individuals to rethink what they have said and reform their subconscious prejudices. What separates the tolerant from the intolerant is who responds to criticism constructively. Ignorance is not a crime, but there’s certainly something wrong with defending oppression that has just been pointed out to you. Let’s redefine the “right to offend.” It’s an important concept, but one that should not protect racists, transphobes and other people who are trying to undermine our progress towards a tolerant society. It should mean that we are all entitled to say something offensive, but we are not safeguarded from criticism; instead, offensive speech should be seen as an opportunity for growth, for education, for progression, and for revolutionizing old prejudices.
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High Tide
features March 2012 - The U.N. Security Council, along with China and Russia, eventually endorse a peace plan.
March 2011 - Pro-Democracy protests break out against President Bashar alAssad; many protesters are gunned down. June 2011 - Fighting spills over into Lebanon between Pro-Assad factions and the opposed militia groups.
January-February 2014 U.N.-brokered peace talks in Geneva fail largely because Syrian authorities under Assad refuse to discuss a transitional government.
February 2012 - Assad increases bombardment of cities aligned with the rebels and kills many civilians. April 2011 - Assad’s violent response ignites a large movement of protests across the country in outrage; hundreds are killed.
compiled by Jason Fong
December 2012 - US, Britain, France, Turkey and several of the Gulf states formally recognise the rebels (Syrian National Coalition) as the “legitimate representative” of the Syrian people and supply them with “nonlethal” military aid.
June 2014 - General elections occur, but many describe them as “a sham” tainted by corruption.
May 2014 - Hundreds of rebels are forcefully evacuated from their last stronghold in the central city of Homs by Assad’s regime, ending its three-year resistance
June 2015 - The United Nations asks other countries to each accept 10,000 refugees by the end of the year (4.25 million have been displaced by the war) and is met with lukewarm re-
2014-2015 - ISIS, or the Islamic State, declares Eastern Syria a “caliphate.” Back and forth fighting between ISIS and the National Coalition continues.
Information from http://www.bbc.com and http://news.vice.com
Seeking refuge from the Syrian crisis by Reema Saad It was not until nearly a year into the Syrian Civil War that junior Joseph Al-Hallak, then 12 years old, realized the danger and troubles that this conflict meant. After all, he did live in Damascus, the capital of Syria; and there, Al-Hallak believed he was “safe.” But on what was supposed to be a normal school day, all of that changed. On his way to school, Al-Hallak was only a few blocks away from the local police station and agency when all he felt was a sudden explosion. “There was a suicide bombing. I thought it was a minor earthquake, but then this huge smoke came by, and people were yelling. I ran back. And that’s when my mom applied for the Visa,” Al-Hallak said. According to Al-Hallak, it was not until this moment that his family became concerned about their safety in Damascus. They lived near what used to be a soccer stadium but is now filled with a large amount of artillery that is used against enemy cities. In and around Damascus, opposition forces and Syrian armed forces exist. Most of the fighting is found on the outskirts of the capital and along the borders of Syria (www.bbc. com). “It was the kind of thing you’d see in the movies; you didn’t actually feel it happening,” Al-Hallak said. “You would hear in the
news that yeah, we’re having a civil war, but until that explosion, until we felt it being near us, we didn’t really notice. We didn’t feel the effect of the war. There are occasional martyrs, but beyond that, the streets are kind of safe.” His encounter with the bomb was nearly fatal and if it were not for “luck,” he would be dead. “Cars that were half a mile away got flipped over from the explosion. It was a situation where I should have died. I have a friend who is a specialist in bombs; he said that I got lucky because some bombs have a blind spot,” Al-Hallak said. But his family is not the only one to leave their homeland to another country, for an estimated 9 million Syrians have left home since the war started in March 2011, many of whom are residing in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq (syrianrefugees.eu). Al-Hallak believes the great number of refugees is due to the fact that it is a civil war, and people do not feel as safe in their own country. “This is a civil war; the war is in front of our home, not on the borders, so it has forced a lot of people to leave everything. It’s kind of a tragedy,” Al-Hallak said. While adjusting to living in the U.S. was not difficult for Al-Hallak, he believes that the transition for his parents was more chal-
lenging. “For me and my sister, it wasn’t hard to leave, but for my parents; they were leaving their entire life, their entire family. And everything they’ve built just went straight to the dust because of the war. Even right now, they complain about many things in the U.S. and how hard life is,” Al-Hallak said. Al-Hallak described the people at the beginning of the war to be “optimistic,” since they did not realize that the war would continue on for several years. This eventually caused long-term consequences for the Syrian people. “They didn’t care. They thought it would last a week or two. But things started escalating and they got worried, so they started hiding,” Al-Hallak said. “Businesses went down, and people stopped working. After the second year, they realized that this thing is going to take a long time.” However, Al-Hallak stated that “faith” and “blind optimism” helped people continue to live their lives despite the war. “People still think we’re winning the war. They have it in their minds that this war is going to end with our victory. They live their lives normally because they think it will all be better soon,” Al-Hallak said. “They also rely on faith in a kind of ‘God, help us’ situation. It’s what made us last four years in the war. If everyone just looked at the reality, the war
would be over, and we would have lost.” Al-Hallak believes the diversity in religion across the country is preventing an end to this war. “Sectarian division is the issue. People stand for their ideologies and in the Middle East, that means carrying a gun for it. If they can’t get past this idea of ‘my religion is better’ or ‘my political system is better,’ then we’ll never have peace,” Al-Hallak said. “With Christians, Sunnis, Shias, Alawites, and Druze, it’s really diverse. Until they learn that religion has nothing to do with a person, it’s never going to get solved.” Whatever the outcome of the war might be, Al-Hallak is in support of peace for Syria. “There, your religion can mean life or death,” Al-Hallak said. “Whatever side wins, I don’t care. I want peace as long as it doesn’t involve more oppression. Too much bloodshed is going on.” Al-Hallak and his family avoid being political and have not sided with any single group. However, he believes Syrians should be loyal to the land rather than to a certain type of people. “We are Christians, so we’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. I mean there is corruption in the government, but what’s the alternative, ISIS? We haven’t really picked sides,” Al-Hallak said. “Especially at this point, all we want is peace.”
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Sept. 18, 2015
Vozna moves from Ukraine seeking education by Yasamin Fazeli
ture, so I didn’t study hard,” Vozna said. “I think that with an education in America, I will have more opportunities here and around the whole world.” During the dangerous period of the war, school was cancelled for a couple of months. “When we finally went back to school, everything was different. There were guards in the streets and all over the school which scared me. I think that because the country was filled with confusion, many of the kids were disorganized and did not focus on school as much,” Vozna said. Although her educational experiences were different from what she is experiencing here, Vozna’s grandmother, Areta Fielstra, is confident that she will adapt to the new culture quickly. “She is disciplined and a nice girl. She has traveled to a lot of countries so she experiences new cultures,” Fieltra said. When she first heard about the growing tension between Ukraine and Russia, Vozna fell into a state of “disbelief” 1 and desperately Life in Ukraine 1. Vozna poses in front of a scenic view. 2. Vozna practices wished to move. “I was really gymnastics daily. “When I was training for the Ukrainian National Team, I didn’t have time to communicate with any friends. I practiced everyday at least five afraid of everyhours. The coaches were angry and yelled at us, and we cried a lot. I was sad thing going on when I had to quit, but I was finally able to feel like a normal person,” Vozna said.
She walks into the streets with fear dominating her thoughts. The streets are bare and quiet; no cars pass by and people stay indoors in fear of being hurt or possibly killed. She dreams of living in a world where she can “dance, study and just live.” Senior Veronika Vozna immigrated from Ukraine this summer to escape the crisis between Ukraine and Russia and expand her education. Ukraine’s education system only advances to the eleventh grade, but Vozna felt that she had so much left to learn. “In Ukraine, my school didn’t teach much information that would be useful in the fu-
compiled by Jason Fong
in Ukraine. When I first heard about it I was so confused about what was going on and I couldn’t imagine that this was happening. I heard about it on the news and on the TV,” Vozna said. “I was so afraid and I wanted to leave so I wouldn’t die because of the war. I prayed all the time.” Living in the center of of Ukraine’s capital, Kiev, was especially difficult during the height of protests and fighting. She tried to remain comforted by the fact that she was surrounded by her family and began to write poetry to take her mind off the war. “The months that we couldn’t study were the worst. One night I woke because of loud noises outside. I heard the explosions of grenades and gunshots and I was scared and cried because I heard it and knew that it was just outside of my house,” Vozna said. The war has made life financially difficult for her parents, who still are in Ukraine. They hope to move here with Vozna’s two younger brothers if the situation gets worse. “My mother sells clothing, shoes, and bags originally from Italy. She started to have problems with her business because no one bought things from her shop anymore because no one went outside. All the businesses began to collapse. We did not have much money and many people in Ukraine began to have depression,” Vozna said. Despite the “horrid” situation in her hometown, Vozna was still able to take part in and excel in in many activities, including rhythmic gymnastics, modeling, and singing. She won the national championships for rhythmic gymnastics in Ukraine three times in a row, made it on to the Ukrainian National Team, and performed a group routine at the world championships in 2013.
Information from http://csis.org and http://www.bbc.com
1921 - Newly independent Ukraine is incorporated into the Soviet Union, as Red Army troops conquer two August 24, 1991 - Newly thirds of the country. elected president Leonoid Kravchuk declares the Ukraine independent of the Soviet Union, which is on the verge of collapse.
July 2013 - Russia stops import of Ukrainian goods, which many believe is political retaliation for Ukraine’s efforts to integrate into the European Union.
October 2008 -Ukraine is plunged into financial crisis, as its currency loses strength. November 2013 - Russia stops import of Ukrainian 1954 - The Crimean pengoods, which many beinsula is “gifted” to the lieve is political retaliation Ukraine by the Soviet Union. for Ukraine’s efforts to integrate into the European Union.
December 2013 - Russia extends a financial lifeline to Ukraine, in loans and bonds purchases. The Ukrainian police finally break up a student protest camp in Kiev’s Independence Square that has occupied city hall for over 3 months.
February 20, 2014 - Protestors marching on the Ukrainian Parliament seek the restoration of the Ukrainian Constitution and for President Yanukovich to step down. They violently clash with police as more than 100 are wounded.
2 PHOTOS COURTESY OF VERONIKA VOZNA
Vozna is “extremely” thankful that she lives with her grandparents here and feels that they are the main reason her transition to America has not been too difficult. “To have my granddaughter live with me is a dream come true. I have missed her so much and now my husband and I feel like we finally have a family again,” Fielstra said. Though she misses her family and friends in Ukraine, Vozna keeps in mind that she can build the life she wants here. “I love Ukraine very much, but America is the country of opportunities and a country where you can have a future.”
February 23, 2014 - Viktor Yanukovych, president of Ukraine, is impeached. Oleksander Turchynov, speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament, is appointed as a temporary president.
July 31, 2014 - The EU employs punishing economic sanctions against Russia, claiming they “undermined the Ukraine’s sovereignty”.
February 28, 2014 - Russian gunmen seize several key buildings in the capital of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.
January 23, 2015 - After a ceasefire and failed attempts to reach an agreement, Alexander Zakharchenko, the Pro-Russian separatists’ leader, says that he will resume his attack. Roughly 6,000 people have been killed since the ceasefire.
page 6
High Tide
features
Does social media activism really work?
89%
Information from www.glasspockets.org and www.columnfivemedia.com
1 out of 2
have donated time to a cause
page 7
features
Social media activism: advocating for social issues on the internet, primarily using social media
National
7 out of 10 young Americans consider
Sept. 4, 2015
At RUHS
45%
have contributed time or money to a cause after reading about it on the Internet
think social media activism works
themselves to be social activists
58%
identify as social activists
1 out of 5 have participated in rallies or
petitioned to their local representitives
29%
have used social activismrelated hashtags
Spreading awareness
What social media websites do nonprofit foundations use?
65%
use Facebook
32%
use Youtube
40%
use Twitter
What we care about 1. 2. 3.
Racism (36%) Sexism (29%)
The most important social issues to RUHS students
4. 5.
Homophobia (15%) Transphobia (2%)
Mental illnesses/disabilities (18%)
High Tide
page 10
features
Back to the start
Klepper debuts new single at Whiskey A Go Go by Shaniya Markalanda
He steps onto the stage, nervous to begin his performance, but confident that he will do well. He begins to sing, and his nerves calm as people start to sing along. “It’s fun to be able to play live rather than just listen to a recording. I can really express myself with body language, as well. It’s just really fun to have a crowd and have a fun roar. Some of the songs I played were covers and it was just cool to see people sing lyrics along with the song,” Junior Tyler Klepper said. Klepper, under the stage name Tyler Colt, debuted his single ‘Back to the Start’ at Whiskey A Go Go over the summer. “It was amazing to perform at the Whiskey. It’s such a historic place where so many of my favorite bands have played. It’s crazy to see that we’ve been on the same stage at one point. It’s so awesome,” Klepper said. According to Klepper, the songwriting process could be difficult, but once he began writing, it gradually became easier. “Writing the song was an on and off process. When I wrote the song, I would come up with a few lyrics and I’d get going, I’d get the ball rolling, and then I would stop. I love that song, but it took like twenty hours to fully write before I was happy with it,” Klepper said. As a singer, Klepper feels it is important to make music that is relatable and uplifting. “I make music for myself because I love hearing what I can write, but I really make it for other people. I want to be able to write that kind of music for other people, so other people can feel the same way I do; it’ll make you want to get out of this rut that you’re in. I want to write music that allows people to get that feeling because I love that feeling when it comes to me,” Klepper said. Klepper feels that his new single is a song that people, especially teenagers, can connect to and feel better about themselves. “The song is really important to me because I wrote it about an experience I had in my lifetime. It was a very bad experience, so it was good to actually be able to express it and get it off my chest without naming names,” Klepper said. In addition to recording his song professionally, Klepper also made a music video featuring some of his friends. “It was really fun to film. I actually do a little bit of acting and I was used to being behind the camera and in that kind of world. It turned out really well,” Klepper said. Klepper is grateful that his mom was able to get the Whiskey for Klepper to perform. “I’m really thankful for my mom. She had gone out and asked the people if we could get the place for the day, because it’s a nightclub. I was so starstruck when she told me that’s where I’m playing because I was expecting to play at one of the local clubs
Showtime. 1. Klepper absorbs the energy of
the audience as he performs “First Date” by Blink 182. 2. A VIP pass given to fans at the show. 3. After the show, Klepper celebrates with friends. PHOTOS COURTESY OF TYLER KLEPPER
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over here,” Klepper said. Klepper’s mom, Denise Klepper, is “very proud” of Klepper’s achievements and is supportive of his dream to pursue music. “We support him a hundred percent with both his sound and the music that he likes. We’re trying to spread the word and get everybody on the same channel. I hope to see Tyler on a huge stage in Madison Square Garden having me right up front row so I can scream and see that I helped his dream come true,” Denise said. According to Denise, music helped Klepper handle various problems he encountered in his life. “I think music has impacted Tyler as a person and helped him come out of his shell. If he’s got issues or problems with girls, or homework or life sucks at the time that he can express himself through music,” Denise said. Despite ‘Back to the Start” being a pop
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3 song, Klepper prefers rock music, which his dad introduced to him. “My family is a very musical family. My dad brought so many different genres and different bands into my life. Without him, I probably wouldn’t know half the bands I know today, like Van Halen. I love Van Halen and all those older rock bands,” Klepper said.
Klepper hopes to continue to grow as a musician. “I would love to see myself as a musician in the future; it’s like a dream. Being on that stage, I could feel the presence of everyone , and it’s such an honor that I got to play there at such a young age and hopefully I’ll get to go back there soon.”
Sept. 18, 2015
features
page 11
Turek competes in a judo world championship by Zach Hatakeyama Her face is filled with determination as she walks onto the mat and shares glances with her opponent. Junior Thuylinh Turek is about to fight for a chance to be the world champion in judo. Over the summer, Turek traveled over 6,000 miles to Sarajevo, Bosnia to compete in the World Cadet Championships of Judo. “Once you get to the cadet level in judo, there are certain tournaments you can participate in. Based on how well you do in the tournaments, you can get chosen by USA Judo to go to the world championships,” she said. To qualify for Sarajevo, Turek had to compete in Youth and Scholastic, a national tournament in Irving, Texas. “Texas was tougher than I expected but it definitely helped prepare me for the [world championships]. I got first place after fighting a girl from Canada,” she said. Turek believes her years of hard work and training is what got her to her current position. “I’ve been doing [judo] since I was 7,” Turek said. “I had a close friend who was in judo already and wanted me to try it. I didn’t like it for the first few years but I started making new friends and getting the hang of it.” According to Turek, judo is not like the average sport. “Judo is fighting where you use some-
one’s power to get them off balance and throw them,” she said. “Judo is a hard sport to understand because it’s not just how athletic you are, it’s physics. You have to use someone’s momentum to move them if they attack you. You use their attack to attack back.” Along with physical training, Turek believes judo requires mental training as well. “My mom says that when I step on the mat, she knows whether I will win or lose just by the look I have on my face,” Turek said. “The way that you think is everything. You have to go out there and know you are going to fight your best.” Turek’s mother, Jan Nguyen, reflects on how a competitor thinks is just as important as how they fight. “Stance and body language reveal a player’s mental state. which plays a big role in whether or not she will ultimately prevail A determined competitor walks confidently onto the mat like she owns it,” Nguyen said. With intensive training already in her schedule, Turek finds it difficult to juggle school and judo in her daily life. “My mom says school is always first because in the long run that is what is going to matter,” Turek said. “I try to get everything done to be able to make it to practice because it’s a commitment I made.” Because of her involvement in school, Turek believes she is not able to train to her full
PHOTO COURTESY OF THUYLINH TUREK
Fighter. Turek (bottom right) bonds with her judo team through long practices and trips around the world as they represent the United States.
ability. “In judo, you’re either all in or you’re out,” she said. “[My competitors] don’t go to school because they focus on judo and their ultimate goal is to make it to the Olympics.” Despite not being able to train as much as the rest of the competitors, Turek was still able to compete at the World Cadet Championships. “The energy was insane. Everyone was there to fight. When you get on that mat, only one person gets off,” she said. “Even though I didn’t do so well in the competition itself, you still have to have respect for your competitors because they’re there for the same reason you are and they have worked
just as hard as you.” Turek took away many valuable memories while in Sarajevo, despite not winning the tournament. “A big part of the experience was also being able to make relationships with my teammates,” she said. “It’s good to be able to bond with people who are in the same boat with you because they understand you and know exactly what you’re going through.” Turek believes that discipline is the most important. “A lot of the time you don’t want to get on the mat because you know it will be a hard practice,” Turek said. “You have to push through for the end result.”
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sports
AOTI: Jacob Silvera
Silvera juggles a new school and the season
Water they doing? 1. Senior Jacob Silvera celebrates after scrambling out of the pocket for a 12 yard run for a touchdown early in thr first quarter against San Pedro to put the team up 7-0. 2. Silvera scrambles again for a 15 yard pick up and a fresh set of downs. “I think he is a great quarter back, who has great reads, great scrambling abilities and he’s just a great athlete. He’s brought us a more solid offense and he’s led the team as a quarterback which we haven’t had before,” Senior Justin Curtis said.
1 PHOTO BY TED CAVUS
by Amanda Shaw Switching to a new school is typically a challenging task on its own, but moving from Mira Costa to its biggest rival is on a whole new level. Senior Jacob Silvera did just that this year and is happy about his decision thus far. “I like it a lot so far honestly. I like the block schedule and how long the passing periods are. My teachers are really nice and they relate a lot to the students,” Silvera said. Silvera had been living within 3 blocks of Redondo since March or April, and decided to switch from Costa to Redondo out of convenience and because of our school’s “good football program.” Silvera is currently our starting quarterback, and feels that his new teammates have been very helpful in showing him around the campus, making the transition “easy” for him. “I like the football team a lot. I think it’s a great group of guys and we have some great coaches that help us out, not just in football, but overall in life,” Silvera said. Head football coach Matt Ballard sees Silvera as an asset to the team, and it seems like he has “been here for years,” having spent his youth playing Pop Warner with many of Redondo’s players. “Relatively speaking, for much of the team has been together for years now, he’s still new but I think he’s done his part in trying to acclimate,” Ballard said. “He’s more of a true throwing quarterback. He throws the ball really well, he’s been working on that
most of his life. Preston was more of a hybrid quarterback that we had to have there just because we didn’t have anybody. He’s a true quarterback.” Silvera has confidence that if the team continues to work hard at practice and listen to the coaches, “everything will take care of itself.” He is hoping for a winning season, a Bay League championship, and a CIF title. “I think a lot of our strength is in our speed and how many athletes we have. We
“
I think it’s a great group of guys and we have some great coaches that help us out, not just in football, but overall in life. -Jacob Silvera
Most of Silvera’s teammates and friends understand his decision to leave, and he does not see himself having any difficulty staying unbiased in the Costa game. “I try not to think of it as Costa vs Redondo, and that I went there. It’s just another team that we’re playing,” Silvera said. Aiming for a successful season, Ballard sees a future for Silvera in football beyond high school. “Hopefully we have a good year. Hopefully he has a good season and we do real well. I know he’s interested in playing on so we’ll get his recruit information out there and just see where it falls. It’s out of our hands right now. We just need to focus on football, recruiters will talk to him, and we’ll see where it goes,” Ballard said. Silvera has similar thoughts. “I think this team has the capability to win league and CIF depending on how hard we work each week. And we will go this far becasue of the coaching and tlent we have,” Silvera said. Hoping to go to college on the west coast for football, Silvera is ready to put his training to the test this season. “The whole summer I had to learn the offense, and right now I got it down. That’s helping a lot. I can help guys out to learn the plays,” Silvera said. “I just need to keep making good reads on the plays.”
”
just have a lot of great players out there,” Silvera said. In comparison to Costa’s football team, which is focused on “fundamental” skills, Silvera believes Redondo is more “hard-hitting.” “The environment’s a lot different. Redondo tackles harder and hits people every play. During the games, they run around and fly around and hit people more. I think that helps any football team a lot to have that style. I think Costa’s strength is the amount of people they have out there, so they have a lot of depth and good size,” Silvera said.
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High Tide
Serving up a new season
Boys beach volleyball is ramping up for the upcoming tournament after previous success from last season by Jason Fong Beach volleyball will face off against Bay League rival Mira Costa High School for the second time after a four game winning streak in a best of three format at one PM on Saturday at Dockweiler State Beach. RUHS has swept both Alemany High School and Palos Verdes High School 12-0. They will also play Notre Dame High School this Saturday. “We have beaten everyone else so far, but Costa is the best. If we beat them, I’m confident that we will have a great season. We will not let them get in our heads,” Junior Logan Glave said. According to both Glave and senior Lucas Lossone, the team has been preparing rigorously for this tournament that will indicate their success in the Bay League Division and further on in the season. “I believe our hard work will definitely pay off.” Glave said. “We’ve had several professional players come in to help us prepare. We know how Mira Costa will play so we know what to expect.” According to Lossone, the team has been watching recordings of Mira Costa’s tournaments. “We’ve been studying Mira Costa’s plays and scouting several of their players specifically, so we know what we’re up against and how they play,” Lossone said. “More specifically, we’ve been working a lot on our defense and our transitions from play to play.” Hoping for the team to improve on last year’s third place finish at state. This is a showing that they attribute to the large number of less experienced freshman and sophomores in their previous line up. Lossone is confident in the team’s ability to perform well this year. “I definitely believe that we will go all the way at the state tournament this year because we have great players,” Lossone said.
Sept. 18, 2015
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sports
Blocking the competition
Girls’ volleyball gets ready for the game against Maramount by Davina Nguyen
Play-by-play.
PHOTOS BY MATT YONEMURA
1. Freshman Kyla Doig taps the ball over the net to get a point against Mater Dei. Redondo won the both sets and won their second game in their season.
The girls volleyball team has won multiple games by developing their team chemistry, and they plan on continuing their successful streak against Marymount high school this upcoming Tuesday on September 22nd. “I think that the more reps we get and the more time we spend together, our chemistry improves. We trust each other more on the court, and by recognizing our weaknesses and what we need to work on, it makes us stronger and brings us closer together knowing that the small things we have to focus on will improve our chemistry and our game overall,” senior Liana Marin said. After testing their strength against powerhouse schools like Lakewood High School and Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, the girls agree that as the season continues, they are becoming a more “capable” team, both offensively and defensively. “Our offense has been on fire and our defense has improved in the sense that we keep the ball in play. Whereas before, if it was a bad pass, it was unlikely to score during that play. But now we are more scrappy, and can keep the ball up to give us a better chance to score, which is why I also think
our offense just keeps getting better,” Marin said. Senior Norene Iosia agrees that the improvement of their defense has helped them perform well overall. “Our defense has gotten way better, and we’re making more moves, which helped us get in a good rhythm, so our team has been performing very, very well these past few games.” At the beginning of the season, the team was wary of their upcoming performances due to the gaps left by last year’s graduating key players. But according to Iosia they have adjusted to their departure, which she feels contributes to their current victories. “A lot of girls have been stepping up and making huge impacts to the team,” said Iosia. “I think the team hasn’t really changed much from last year, which is a great thing.” Despite the team’s assurance in each other’s abilities, they concentrate on every game seriously, no matter which team they play against. “It doesn’t matter who’s on the other side of the net, we just try to play our best and basically show no mercy toward our opponent,” said Iosia.
Ready to serve
Girls’ tennis prepares for their match against El Sugendo on Monday by Angie Tait The girls’ tennis team is getting ready to paint some lines on the court this Monday against El Segundo. With an 18-0 score against Bishop Montgomery on September 16th, the team has a positive mindset for going into this season. “Our team has been doing great so far. We did well when we played Bishop, North, and Cerritos, and are confident in our upcoming matches,” sophomore Alena Smith said. Smith also believes that the previous season will tell a lot about what this season will bring for the team’s success. “I do believe [our team is prepared]. With our experience from last year, we definitely have what it takes to not only perform well this season, but make it to Bay League,” said Smith. Even with their losses in the past, the team has a general confidence in reaching
and placing in Bay League. “I think we are playing really well, but there is always room for improvement. If we want to do well in League we have to be focused on training hard,” senior Emily Zargham said. Zargham also added that, “[they] are a very solid, deep team [that] is very determined on doing well and working hard.” Even with determination and rigorous practice, the team still has some weaknesses to be addressed. “We could work on strengthening other doubles teams and maybe poaching (a move in doubles where the player at the net moves to hit a shot going to their partner),” senior Isabella Guzman said. Smith had different thoughts. “I’m not sure [about weaknesses] yet, since we haven’t had a true challenge to test our team yet.” On another note, the team agrees that
their skills have improved, and their bonds with each other provide good support and motivation to win. “Some strengths include our bond on the team and how everyone is super supportive of each other; we all have really positive mindsets,” Zargham said. Similarly to Zargham, Smith believes that, “Our bonding and teamwork is a strength; I see it as individuals working towards a greater common goal.” With the latest common goal being beating El Segundo, the team agrees that they have enough skill and preparation to sweep yet another win. “I feel confident and excited to play against El Segundo; I know the whole team is, too. I am going to treat this like any other match and play my best so that we can hopefully pull out the win,” said Guzman. “I think we’ve beat them in past years, but it doesn’t matter… because we have gotten
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PHOTO BY LAUE’AE SCHWEITEZER
Up in the air. 1 Emily Zarghamis returing a
serve from Bishop. The team i looking forward to the match against El Sugendo. “Our team is definitely 100% dependent on each other; for instance, if one girl is out, we have to rethink our whole lineup,” Alena Smith said.
Sept. 18, 2015
sports
West up next, easy out
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Following a win against El Dorado, boys water polo prepares for their upcoming season and next game versus West Torrance by Justin Pioletti After leaving El Dorado and Chadwick in the dust, Boys water polo prepares for the match against West Torrance next Tuesday. “We’ve only had a few games so far and they have all been pretty good. We beat Chadwick and El Dorado at home, we hope to carry on the momentum during our upcoming games,” senior Mikey Montelongo said. Based on previous years, West is considered “one of the most notoriously easy games of the season,” so the team plans on using this opportunity to better their skills and pinpoint necessary improvements for approaching games. “For upcoming games, we’ve been practicing finishing our shots and defensive fluidity,” Bruno said. “Other than that, we’ve just kept progressing with our normal training block and conditioning.” Last week’s matches revealed necessary areas of improvements. “One thing we really need to improve on is doing plays during games on the fly. If we don’t do plays, we waste time on the clock and it’ll end up being a turnover,” Montelongo said. “We’ve been directing our practices towards our counter attacks and plays.” Along with their offensive tactics, RUHS looks to improve their defense. “Servite had a good team. They executed well and played a good defense,” senior Spencer Malone-White said. “[We] are really trying to step up our defense. We feel confident. We just need to play our style and we’ll
Saving hope. Senior Spencer Malone-White blocks a shot against Chadwick last week. “Our
goalie and team captain, Spencer Malone-White, is one of our biggest advantages. He is an astounding goalie and can pretty much block any shot that comes his way,” senior Mikey Montelongo said. The seahawks went on to a 9-4 win to open up their season.
be fine. That’s how we’ll win league games.” With hopes of a Bay League championship, they have intensified their trainings. “We have been practicing very hard to prepare for the upcoming games in the league. We sometimes have practices two times a day to improve our stamina,” sophomore Blake Vogelsang said. “We haven’t been playing long this season, but because of the work we put in over the summer, we are meshing pretty well as a team.” Along with rigorous practices, the team
has had to revise their lineup on account of graduated seniors. “Our starting lineup has pretty much been the same but we lost two of our seniors, so now we have two more seniors stepping it up this year with the previous starters,” Montelongo said. According to Malone-White, the recent changes within the lineup have allowed vast development. “[The team looks] a lot better. It seems like we all know our roles on the team. I like
Cross country by Lizzie Fauver Boys and girls cross country have set their standards high and remain optimistic about the upcoming year. “I have high hopes for this season, and believe it is going to go really well,” senior Harrison Fox said. “We are looking to win our first league meet to really set the tone for the rest of the season.” According to Fox, the key to a successful year will involve hard work during practice and dedication to the program. “We all have been really together on the workouts, and have been pushing ourselves more than I can recall from any other year,” Fox said. Coming out of a successful preseason, the team hopes to continue to grow and develop in order to increase their chances of winning in the future.
“In order to improve, the coaches have been running tough workouts to better our times in upcoming meets,” junior Trinity Leonard said. “We also will need to take into account the feedback our coaches give to us after races. Hopefully if we do these things we will progress throughout the season.” According to Fox, in order to achieve their goal of going to State, the team will need to strive both as individuals, as well as work together as a group. With such successful preseason races, the team is now working to transfer the momentum and skill shown in the previous races onto league. “Although we did start off very well, we hope to continue to perform to the best of our abilities throughout the season,” Fox said. “This is definitely one of the best teams we have had in awhile.”
PHOTO BY NICK GUERRERO
our overall chemistry,” Malone-White said. “We’ve done pretty well so far. I think that we started off slower than we should have but I believe that we are coming together nicely.” On September 30th, Bay League will begin with a game against Peninsula High School at home. As usual, RUHS hopes to beat our local rivals. “Later in the season we hope to beat Palos Verdes, Peninsula, and our top rival Mira Costa,” Montelongo said.
Girls Golf by Mia Burger
PHOTOS BY YASMINE GHAZVINI
Pep in his step. Senior Nick Elias runs at the October 16 cross country meet at Palos Verdes last year.
The white glove grips tightly to the leather handle of the club. It only takes swing to win, or lose. “Golf is mentally challenging. If you walk on with a bad mindset, then it can negatively affect your game,” sophomore Marie-Victoria Baker said. RUHS beat Santa Monica 257-244 yesterday. On September 22 the team will be playing away at Peninsula High School. According to Laing, last time the two met there was “arguing and unfair scoring.” “Some schools care more about defeating other schools than just playing the game,” Liang said. “Our newer teammates have no experience against them so I just want them to enjoy the course. We all need to just [concentrate] on the golf rather than thinking about the other team.”
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High Tide
sports
Undefeated
Football anticipates win against West Torrance, breaking decade-long streak
Breaking ankles. Sophomore running back Jamar Jefferson evades tackles in Redondo’s 25-14 win over San Pedro. by Romy Moreno Two years. Two losses. One last chance. When facing West Torrance high school RUHS has been unable to come out victorious within the past two seasons. “Revenge is the key this week,” senior Preston Feacher said. “You can’t go through your high school career and not beat a team at least once.” Since none of the returning players were on the team during the 2012 season, being able to defeat West will add to their sense of unity. “Going into this as a senior adds a bit of pressure,” senior Jay Jackson said. “We all want to finally get this win against West, so especially for this game us seniors are planning to really step up for one another.” The team agrees that West does have a good overall team—offense, defense and special teams wise; however, does not have
any players in specific that they are keeping an eye out for. “West doesn’t have anyone to us that’s really outstanding,” Feacher said. “They are a very high tempo, disciplined team that tries to get us confused. We just have to be really smart in our game plan because if we don’t do our job then we’re playing into their hands.” According to the boys, they plan to try and leave the past in the past and “go in as if it’s any other team,” Jackson said. “Last year was last year and I’m trying not to bring that into this game,” senior Cedric Muzik said. “They’re a different team this year but so are we.” A major difference the boys are facing this year is the fact that they are currently 3-0. “Having more and more wins without any loses really helps our confidence because we know what we’re capable of do-
ing,” Faecher said. “But a record just reflects [a team’s] confidence and that doesn’t take away from what we need to do which is to get better and better every week.” The team agrees that this momentum will help them finally beat West. “We’re on a good roll right now, practicing well, playing well,” Muzik said. “We also have a well rounded core group of guys who work hard in practice and do [their] jobs and I think it’ll all come together during the game.” Some of the specifics the team has been focusing on include watching films, scouting players and working on certain skill sets based on the position. “For my position [cornerback], we have been putting the majority of our attention on outrunning others, catching balls, and being able to read plays,” Jackson said. However, when it comes to the idea of West having a home field advantage the team agrees that the best way to go about it
PHOTO BY MATTHEW YONEMURA
is to zone out all distractions. “When it comes to an away game they have the fans on their side and when something good happens for us there’s not as much noise and excitement going on besides what’s happening on the sideline,” Faecher said. “But, the majority of what happens on the field, happens on the field and we try not to pay attention to anything outside of it.” If the team is able to beat West in today’s game at seven they will be 4-0 which has not happened in over a decade. “We have some expectations right now that we have to live up to,” Faecher said. “I mean we always have high goals it’s just that this year so far we’re living up to them.” Overall, as a whole, the team is confident that they will be able to come out on top. “Being 4-0 will be a big confidence booster but we’ll have to keep our heads in it and stay on our roll to have a good season,” Muzik said.
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High Tide
features
Loud and proud “These chinks can take it, they need the money,” a white woman said while throwing coins at a ten year old Jason Fong and his traditional Chinese line dancing group while performing at an “Oriental Party” in a highend country club. From a young age, junior Fong has experienced racism against the Asian American community and notes its misrepresentation in various industries across America. “When I was younger I did traditional Chinese line dancing and we had to perform in very upper class white communities,” Fong said. “We were at a wedding at a country club and I went up to a man while wearing traditional Chinese clothing and asked him where the bathroom was. I specifically remember his expression of disgust that a person of what he thought was lower class would dare to talk to him.” This experience made Fong interested in how his culture is viewed in America. “I wanted to learn about my culture but I couldn’t find anything in the history book,” he said. “My mom was an Asian American Studies major in college and she gave me a book called Strangers from a Different Shore and that’s what really got me focused on my history and how we are misrepresented.” Since then, Fong has been an advocate for the Asian American community and has recently gotten national attention for starting the hashtag #MyAsianAmericanStory. “Ever since I started high school, I’ve done a lot of community advocacy work. It is a really big part of my life,” Fong said. “My idea of #MyAsianAmerican story came in response to Jeb Bush’s comments about anchor babies and illegal immigrants. I just felt
that Asian Americans really aren’t included in the national political discourse and in the conversation about race in general.” An anchor baby is any child born to a noncitizen mother in a country that has birthright in order for the child to become a legal resident of that country. When Bush made the comments on anchor babies, Fong noticed that most minority groups had representation in opposition to his views except for the Asian community. “There definitely aren’t many advocates for Asian American rights in the public eye. I actually can’t think of any. This goes back to the topic of discrimination. We are not visible in the public eye and it’s sad since we’re the fastest growing minority,” Fong said. As a result of his frustration, Fong used his hashtag to advocate for other Asian Americans to share their experiences. “I think #MyAsianAmericanStory is more than just a hashtag. It’s a platform for people to tell their stories. It’s becoming a news source and I love seeing that,” he said. “It’s a sad reflection on how people felt like it was an act of courage to just tell their story since people view the American narrative as the rich white American and don’t include the other people of color.” Since tweeting the first #MyAsianAmericanStory tweet in late August, the hashtag has been used over 13,000 times and has caught the attention of major news sources. “Articles on [the hashtag] have been written on CNN, the Los Angeles Times and NBC. I was really excited that so many people took to Twitter to get involved with the hashtag. I remember the feeling of shock when I first realized how big it had gotten. It seemed surreal until I realized that I was on CNN. Af-
Hispanic Black or African Americans
5%
by Zach Hatakeyama
Other 4%
Junior Jason Fong began a hashtag in response to Jeb Bush calling immigrants “anchor babies”
Asian
14%
8%
69%
White U.S. Racial Demographics ter that I remember shouting and running around my house,” Fong said. Fong’s mother, Helen Choi, was also excited about the success of the hashtag. “I was really proud when I found out about the hashtag. I was pretty surprised, given that [he] didn’t tell me. I just came across it on the LA Times when I was reading the news,” Choi said. “He’s really passionate about Asian American issues and politics. He has been doing community work and organizing for a while, but even I was surprised that the hashtag would really grow.” Along with the support of the Asian American community, Fong believes that the power of social media is responsible for the hashtag’s success. “Social media was the platform that made this possible. Without it, I wouldn’t have been able to do this. It’s really important,” Fong said. “Social media is really powerful since so many people are on it daily. It’s a great tool to educate and reach younger people instead of other forms of media.” To Fong, #MyAsianAmericanStory is only a portion of the progression of the Asian American community. “I see the Asian American community progressing in many different avenues. Politically, I just wish there was a lot more rep-
resentation and we as a community need to do a better job of going out there, getting our voices heard, and voting. I also wish that there were more Asians in the entertainment industry and popular media because there really aren’t any. I hope the general public will consider our opinions and needs as a community,” he said. Fong believes that racial stereotypes and appropriation of Asian cultures inhibit the Asian communities from progressing. “Stereotypically, white America sees Asians as good students, poor English speakers, passive, and soft spoken,” Fong said. “I think appropriation is really disgusting and one of the reasons why a lot of Asian people think it’s okay that they aren’t represented in the media. Every time we are in it, it’s stereotypical and racist.” Despite setbacks in the Asian American community, Fong is confident in it’s progression and plans on advocating further. “I hope non people of color learn more about the specific struggles we face and what our lives are like as Asians in America,” he said. “We need to keep speaking out and making our voice heard. If we aren’t out there presenting ourselves, how are people going to hear our stories?”
Asian Pacific Americans in the U.S. INFORMATION COURTESY OF US CENSUS
50%
They are the fastest growing population and according to the US Census, grew 50% in the last decade
5% of the country’s population is Asian
5%
9 House 2 Senate
11 Asian Americans in Congress
43 states
2%
have never elected an Asian Pacific American to represent They only have them
2%
representation in Congress