High Tide: Feb. 22, 2022

PHOTO BY KEARA ANTONELLI HEADLINE ART BY ZELIA LERCH

ht high tide

Redondo Union High School Redondo Beach, CA

Feb. 22, 2022 Vol. CII Edition 7

3 NEWS

8 FEATURES

The SAT will be shorter and convert to an online format in 2024

In honor of Black History month, teachers work to incorporate Black voices into their lessons

19 SPORTS All members of Boys Wrestling qualify for CIF playoffs

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news

Facing off for VICT

RY

The AYSO 8U Blue Dolphins won this year’s 7 on 7 flag football tournament

by CRISTINA COUCH

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hroughout the first week of February, eight teams consisting of students of all grade levels went faceto-face during lunch in a single elimination 7 on 7 flag football tournament.

In this year’s 7 on 7 tournament, the last two teams standing to face off in the finals were the AYSO 8U Blue Dolphins and the Super Gremlins. With one touchdown midway through, the Blue Dolphins took the game and the tournament with a single catch, ending the game with a final score of 6-0.

The tournament, put on by ASB, was mainly student-led. From setting up the tournament to refereeing the games, the event was made by students and for the students of RUHS. Unlike most sports at RUHS, the flag football tournament was a co-ed event, available to anyone who wanted to play together, regardless of gender. Students were given the ability to choose their teammates without restrictions of gender or grade level.

Students could often be found rallying up friends and potential teammates by text and in between passing periods in time to officially register their teams for the tournament. Most teams were composed of about 10 players and teams often had at least one to two female players.

“We decided to put on this event [again] because it’s always been so successful,” se-

nior and ASB Athletics Commissioner Miguel Mier said.

The flag football tournament has been a fan favorite for over four years now, but due to recent COVID-19 outbreaks and high number of COVID-19 cases, ASB had to push this year’s tournament back about a month, according to Mier.

Once held, ASB hoped the event would get more people to participate in school activities as well as spark interest in different types of groups of people at the school.

“It’s a good way to get people together because a lot of people here like football and like watching their friends play football,” Mier said.

The event brought dozens of students down to the athletic field to watch, and countless teams signed up for the chance to win the title of champion.

The first games started on Tuesday, Feb. 1. A few minutes after the lunch bell rang and the crowd started to pour in, a single whistle commenced each game of the four day tournament. Each team only had a little less than 30 minutes to claim a victory and a potential spot in the finals the following Friday, or be eliminated.

In addition to the competitiveness between friends, sports teammates and even siblings, the tournament was a way to have some “fun” during lunch, according to freshman Noah Elhardouzi, who played on the Super Gremlins team.

“It was fun to play against my brother in the finals,” Elhardouzi said. To Elhazrouzi, lunchtime can often feel repetitive, but the flag football tournament offered something different.

“I love doing activities like that and I was with a group of guys who I’d played [football] with before, so it was just a cool experience,” Elhardouzi said.

Although t h e tournament was made as an entertaining way for students to have some fun, participating teams would often be found preparing prior to their game in gear such as cleats and gloves.

“Some of the guys made plays and practiced a little before t h e games,” junior Ann i e Maden, who played on t h e winning team during the tournament, said.

After the final whistle blew at the end of the final, the champion title and bragging

rights for the Blue Dolphins were secured.

“Some of the guys were talking smack and everyone was just really excited [when our team won],” Maden said.

Win or lose, both Elhardouzi and Maden agreed on the same thing: they’d definitely do it again.

“The tournament reinforced the idea that not everything has to be so serious.

Sometimes it’s just nice to get out on the field with some friends and have fun at lunch,” Maden said.

FOOTBALL IMAGE BY CLIPART LIBRARY

Seniors Kaiden Hoelscher and Noah Williams run their routes downfield. PHOTO COURTESY OF MIGUEL MIER

RUHS competes in their first school-acknowledged esports tournament

by ERIN HARTMAN

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long with other CIF sports in season, the district is hosting an esports tournament in partnership with the Carrot Group, a company that helps with youth programs involving STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math). Funded by RBEF, this will be esports’ first school-acknowledged tournament, taking place from Feb. 10 to March 17. Seven teams from RUHS will compete to see who will advance to the final game against Mira Costa on April 6.

Benjamin Wakefield, who teaches geometry and AP Computer Science Principles (CSP), stands as the official esports coordinator. Wakefield helped push for this tournament to happen and is excited about the upcoming events. He explained the details of the tournament and how teams will advance and get eliminated.

“We’re putting together the tournament brackets, and it’s not going to be an elimination bracket right away. There’s going to be a point system and a record system.

Each team plays the other team, they play three maps, the score will be recorded for each map and then the winner is chosen.

And I think at the end of the six weeks, like any other sport, they’ll have a win and a loss ratio, and a winner will be chosen based on that,” Wakefield said.

The teams will play the game Overwatch [some teammates will play virtually and some in the school’s library], where the opposing teams will fight, using “fantastical” weapons [such as laser-beam shooting guns and expanding magical shields].

While in teams of six, each player will choose a character to play as and will battle with the opposite team while dodging

obstacles. Like other sports competitions, strategy will stand as a key player in deciding the winners of the matches, according to Wakefield.

“I imagine they’re going to have some kind of system in place where each team will have a chance to pick a map and also a chance to ban a map so no one can pick it. And I’m sure there will be a lot of strategy going into that. There’s a lot of scouting that goes on too. The teams are able to scout the opponents, and see what maps they like the most,” Wakefield said.

Along with using Overwatch and partnering with companies such as Carrot Group for the tournament, esports plans on using a website called highschool.gg to keep track of things such as the rankings on the roster and prizes, according to Wakefield.

Aside from these two companies, Discord, a site where people can talk using headsets, or chats, will assist with team communication. People often use Discord to connect with others through gaming, but also use it as a social platform. Since players can choose to play in person or from home, team members can still communicate via Discord.

“The company that’s helping us with

the tournament, they’ve set up a Discord server, where all the teams will have their own channels, and they’re also able to talk to representatives in case there are some technical issues. We have them using voice-comms over Discord, which is usually how most players nowadays communicate, so most of the players are familiar with that,” Wakefield said.

The final game between the winning team from RUHS and the winning team from Mira Costa will be held in our auditorium. It will have live Twitch streaming and broadcasting as well as Twitch comment a t o r s during the matches.

“It’ll be really fun and we’re hoping that this is an annual PHOTO COURTESY OF ISTOCK battle between Redondo and Costa,” Wakefield said.

Along with bragging rights, the winning team from RUHS will win prizes, according to Wakefield. The winning team between Mira Costa and RUHS will also win a trophy that will get passed on between the schools depending on the winners of each years’ tournaments.

“The prizes for the winning team are gamer-specific equipment, such as headsets, mice and keyboards. They also get a personalized championship ring with their name engraved on it, as well as a personal-

ized trophy,” Wakefield said.

Wakefield hopes that the tournament will inspire more students to be a part of esports, and hopes that it will gain more recognition. He explained how students can join esports in middle school, and how more students are becoming involved.

Senior Collin Fitzpatrick, the captain of one competing team named the “Grass Touchers,” has been part of esports for about a year and a half and is also president of the Valorant esports club. When looking for teammates for the upcoming tournament, knowing his teammates well played a big part in his decision.

“A lot of us know each other already, and we’ve already played together for Valorant so we know how each other acts and plays,” Fitzpatrick said.

Aside from the active role Fitzpatrick plays in esports, he also spoke to principal Anthony Bridi and the former principal Jens Brandt about making this year’s tournament happen. Currently, Fitzpatrick continues to look forward to the impact the tournament will have on the future of esports, which at the moment has three clubs: one for Overwatch, one for Valorant and one for League of Legends.

“This esports tournament with Overwatch will make it easier for [the clubs] to do [other events] because now it’s an official school thing. The same company that’s putting on this tournament [Carrot Group] said they’re also going to do a tournament for Valorant next year,” Fitzpatrick said. “[The tournament] just sets a precedent and makes it more likely that we’ll do different games and the school might do different events in the future.”

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

NEWS 3

SAT SATisfying the changing times The SAT will be shorter and convert to an online format starting in 2024

by BEN RINGEL

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or future SAT test-takers, the days of cramping hands, dull Number 2 pencils, Scantrons and an agonizing 3 week waiting period for test results are over. Intended to reassert the SAT’s prominent role and relevance in the college admissions process, the College Board recently announced numerous renovations to the exam that will take effect in the spring of 2024.

“With quarantine, colleges had no choice but to be test-optional in the meantime, and this prompted colleges with a conversation about if these tests are fair or reliable assessments for all demographics,” college and career counselor Shannon Rodriguez said.

Now an hour shorter, the test will be taken online and scores will be available within days. An online graphing calculator program will now be allowed on the entire math section, which is also going to include less wordy problems. The reading section will now include smaller passages with fewer questions per passage. Finally, each student will receive different questions (as op-

posed to the former model where only one version was administered each test date).

“In particular, I think the fact that it’s shorter and scores come back more quickly will make the experience less stressful and overwhelming,” Kaila Minei, a senior who took the exam three times, said.

The vice president of the College Board said “the digital SAT will be easier to take, easier to give, and more relevant,” as 80% of students in the pilot program found the new SAT to be less stressful, according to the College Board’s press statement.

However, to Rodriguez, these changes are a business move.

“In 2019, the College Board’s total fees from programs and services were at $1.05 billion, but in 2020 it was $760 million [according to the Wall Street Journal]. Some people are questioning whether this test will be worth administering, or if it’s just a marketing ploy. The ACT has shorter reading sections and more straightforward math, and the SAT has been losing market share to them for years,” Rodriguez said. “I tell all my kids that it’s all business. There’s

a ton of money involved in all of this.”

Although fee waivers are available, the SAT will still cost $55.00 for students, with an additional $16.00 fee for those who request the Question-and-Answer service.

Rodriguez is also unsure if these changes adequately address educational inequities.

In a 2013 study by Ezekiel J. Dixon-Roman and John J. Mcardle, it was found that wealthy students score higher on the SAT than their low-income peers and that this disparity between high- and low-income students was doubled among white and Black students.

“I worry about how fair this system is for different socioeconomic groups. There is a lot of inequity in preparation,” Rodriguez said. “SAT scores are valuable because they’re standardized and colleges don’t know what a 4.0 means at one school versus what it means at another. But it ends up being unfair because some kids in our community start test prep in middle school, and there are other communities with no test prep or rigorous coursework to help them get ready.”

Minei agrees that these changes won’t do much to make the exam more fair.

“I’m fortunate enough to have taken an SAT prep course, but that obviously doesn’t mean the kids who might score lower and didn’t get test prep are less intelligent,” Minei said. “In the application process, I think my essays, my AP scores and my GPA were way more relevant than this silly little standardized test we stress so much over.”

Despite evidence-based claims of the test’s inequities and growing questioning of its role in admissions, Rodriguez believes the test, in some shape or form, is here to stay for a while.

“If you look at the data from accepted kids in top schools, a significant number of them submitted very high test scores. They do still matter,” Rodriguez said. “This new test will take effect for our current freshman class, and very few colleges have yet to get rid of the exam as one of their criteria entirely. They’ll be using these next few years to look at data and watch the situation evolve to see what role the SAT should have in how they decide who they admit.”

OLD SAT

NEW SAT

3 HOURS LONG

2 HOURS LONG

ON PAPER

VS

ONLINE

LONGER READING SECTION

SHORTER READING SECTION

SCORES BACK IN 3 WEEKS

SCORES BACK WITHIN DAYS

RBUSD faces declining student enrollment mainly due to COVID-19

by STAVYAH NAVEEN

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or more than decade, the city of Redondo Beach has been widely recognized as “one of the most desirable areas to live in the country”, according to the Redondo Beach City Council. The city is widely celebrated for its sustainable environmental practices, its prized location at the coastal edge of Los Angeles county and its award-winning schools. However, according to staff members of the Redondo Beach Unified School District (RBUSD), not everyone is able to enjoy these privileges, resulting in one of the primary reasons behind a significant decline in student enrollment in RBUSD schools.

As of the 2016-2017 school year, RBUSD obtained a total student enrollment of 9,581 students, according to Annette Alpern, Deputy Superintendent of Administrative Services. The student population steadily increased since 2016, and by the 2019-2020 school year, RBUSD boasted a grand total of 9,974 students.

However, enrollment numbers in the district decreased as COVID-19 emerged.

Within the 2020-21 school year alone, the student population endured a 4% drop in enrollment. In other words, by the end of last year, RBUSD’s student population was even less than the initial population during 2016.

“COVID presented many challenges to

families, but at the same time, there were other opportunities that may not have been there if it weren’t for COVID,” Anthony Taranto, RBUSD Executive Director of Student Services, said. “What I mean by that [is] the opportunity to relocate or the opportunity to continue working remotely from home. Some families took advantage of that and decided to relocate to other parts of the country, where there might be a lower cost of living.”

Another contributing factor to the declining enrollment within our district was the lack of a full-day (in-person) childcare option, according to Taranto. During the pandemic, in particular, the kindergarten programs in our district were only half-day distance learning programs, but families of younger students yearned for a full-day, in-person childcare program. As a result, some families transferred to private schools — some of which were continuing in-person learning during the first few months of the pandemic. These findings correlate with Alpern’s conclusion that RBUSD’s middle schools and high schools endured less of a decline, compared to the trends observed within elementary schools.

RBUSD isn’t the only school district in the South Bay that is experiencing a decline in student enrollment. According to Alpern, the student decline within our district

is similar to if not better than the declines in other South Bay school districts, as well as in other parts of California.

RBUSD’s decline in student enrollment has resulted in a potential decrease of about $4 million in funding from the state of California, according to Alpern. However, seeing that the majority of school districts across the state are experiencing a similar decline, four bills are currently being negotiated by state lawmakers in an attempt to reduce the severity of the financial impact on school districts, such as RBUSD. “When we take financial hits to the overall budget, it impacts students and staff,” Alpern said. “About 85% of the school district’s budget goes toward staff, [including] people salaries, people’s health benefits and their retirement [funds]. We haven’t yet had a reduction in our budgets, but if we did, then you can assume that, at some point, it would have an impact on stuff.”

In an effort to gradually increase the mass of the student population in our district, RBUSD ratified a new legislation that intends to expand the enrollment and access to transitional kindergarten (TK). According to Alpern, this is especially crucial, seeing that the decline in enrollment is predominantly geared towards the newer enrollments at an elementary level. Previously, there was a three-month fall birthday

window that verified a student’s eligibility for enrollment in TK. Next year, the district plans to add a couple more months of eligibility.

“We expect our enrollment in TK to grow every year,” Alpern said. “We [plan to] keep adding more months of eligibility until anybody that is four years old can go to TK. So in essence, we’re adding a whole other grade level to the school district.”

Furthermore, the district plans to advertise the open enrollment date of March 1 in local newspapers and school tours. The open enrollment date is the date that marks when Redondo Beach families can begin enrolling their students in kindergarten for the upcoming school year.

“It’s not just about the current enrollment,” Taranto said. “I like to think forward. And so, when you have the incoming kindergarten class for next year, that [gets you] to think about how that impacts enrollment not just now, but for future years.”

Taranto reassures that even though the decline was accompanied by both challenges and opportunities, families should definitely continue to consider RBUSD as a district in which to enroll their children.

“We are a great district,” said Taranto.

“If you are looking for a place to live and have your children attend school, RBUSD should be at the top of your list.”

4 NEWS

FRESH

FLAVORS OF New members of the Sabor de Salsa club will be performing in the upcoming spring rally

FEB. 22, 2022 HIGH TIDE

Salsa

by SADIE SIMMONS

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n March 4, members of the Sabor de Salsa club, some with years of experience and some who will be stepping out in front of an audience for the first time, will perform for over 3000 students in the stands for Spring Rally.

Some people may expect the dancers with years of experience not to be nervous, but according to senior Isabella Elias, co-president of the Sabor de Salsa club, that is not the case.

“I think no matter how many times you perform, you’re always going to be nervous, but I think the only thing that goes up is your confidence,” Elias said. “I remember when I first started dancing, I was always super nervous because I had never been the type of person to go out and present myself in front of other people like that. I’ve definitely felt more comfortable with and more excited [for performances] as I got around to doing them more.”

However, unlike Elias, most of the members who joined this year don’t have much, if any, previous experience dancing Salsa or anything else, so they are not as confident as the returning members.

Many of them, including senior Billy Varela, fear missing a step or getting offbeat.

“To be honest [I am] pretty nervous, since you’re performing in front of the whole school and you have to do it perfectly,” Varela said.

“

Everybody’s kind of interconnected in a different way than it has been before.”

ISABELLA ELIAS SENIOR

Some members, like freshman Morgan Toth, are more worried about the stunts that they do in the routine and feel challenged by everything that goes into those stunts.

“Being able to trust my partner with stunt work has been a challenge. I trust him a lot, but I just don’t want to fall,” Toth said. “It’s about being able to just let myself go and do it and not think about it.”

Toth is not the only one who has been worried about the stunts—even co-pres-

1

ident senior Sofia Cielak recalls feeling very anxious about the stunts in her first salsa performance.

“I had just gotten down some of the stunts with my partIsabella Elias (left), 12, and alumnus Andre McFarlane (right) ner, so it was kind practice a spin in the dance room. PHOTO BY ZELIA LERCH of nerve-wracking, especially because it was my first time performing what I had been learning on gue. A lot of the choreographers and the stage. But it was really really cool, and it team have been really excited to do some was no pressure. We all just had a good of the “Montero” performances, so we are still able to choreograph to something time,” Cielak said.

For those who are not able to nail the that’s a little bit more traditional, but also stunts in time for the performance, there keep it mainstream.” Elias said. are supplementary moves that the pairs can do while the other performers are doing the stunt.

“We normally have backup stunts for people who just aren’t able to get the stunt with their partner and it’s completely fine.

It’s about being It’s not gonna keep anybody from perable to just let forming,” Cielak said. myself go and do The first routine of the year is typically easier than the other routines that are choit and not think reographed as the year goes on. This helps about it.” to ease newcomers into salsa and allow them to perfect the routine before the perMORGAN TOTH formance. In addition, the vice presidents FRESHMAN of the club will be hosting Salsa tutoring sessions after school for those who want extra practice.

Due to the amount of time spent on This is not the only type of change that zoom over the past few years, some of the foundations of how the routines for has come about due to COVID-19. While performances are choreographed have on Zoom during the pandemic, the Sabor changed. Traditionally, higher-ups would de Salsa club shrunk compared to previchoreograph routines with moves they ous years. Because of this, many of the learned from the members who taught members who joined this year heard about it from their friends and knew, in some cathem in previous years.

“It’s always like this snowball of collec- pacity, the other people who joined.

“A lot of the new members are friends tive knowledge but the members will also watch something on YouTube, and then of friends. So I would say that the community is closer than in past years want to try it,” Elias said. because instead of a stranger meetWithout in-person learning, Sabor de ing a stranger, it’s usually a friend Salsa club leaders had to work hardmeeting a friend of a friend. So er to learn new moves, such as reeverybody’s kind of interconnected searching different steps. With all in a different way than it has been beits changes, the pandemic also fore,” Elias said. led to some changes in the The Sabor de Salsa club, according kind of songs they choose to to members like Elias, Cielak, Vareuse for performances. la, and Toth, has a relaxed and wel“I think we’ve been coming environment that helps new able to push boundarmembers feel more comfortable; ies and perform to in fact, this is both Cielak and songs that aren’t Elias’s favorite part of being on your usual the team. salsa, bach“Everybody is always suata and per welcoming. It’s kind of merena brotherhood, sisterhood thing. I’ve always been super warmly welcomed by my peers and everybody’s always been super encouraging,” Elias said.

“

2

1. During a Wednesday meeting, members of Sabor de Salsa club practice choreography with their partners.

2. Junior Jack Hagemeister and freshman Morgan Toth practice a dip.

PHOTOS BY ZELIA LERCH

Redondo Beach residents will vote on if cannabis dispensaries can open in the city

by ZOË ROSSI

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annabis retail is expanding across California and is now knocking at the door of Redondo Beach. The the issue of whether cannabis dispensaries will be able to open in Redondo Beach will be open to voting on the ballot in March of 2023.

Senior John Doe, who has chosen to remain anonymous, believes Redondo residents should have greater access to cannabis dispensaries.

“Dispensaries should be allowed to open in Redondo Beach because there are already some sales in the area. Dispensaries would allow for safer and more credible access,” said Doe. Doe is a medical marijuana card carrier and can legally buy cannabis to assist his lifestyle. A dispensary in Redondo Beach would provide patients like Doe with better access to cannabis.

“Cannabis helps me focus, which ultimately benefits me in school. It can help calm me and make me feel more centered throughout the day,” said Doe. “If there were dispensaries in Redondo, it would be easier for me to get the products I need to feel my best.”

The city council’s proposed structure limits two dispensaries in the city, one in north Redondo and one in south Redondo. Additionally, a five percent tax would be imposed on retail that would go back into the city.

The chief operating officer at MedMen, a leading cannabis retailer, Roz Lipsey offered her insight into what this could mean for dispensaries..

“Redondo Beach, and the entire South Bay, is a market of interest for all cannabis companies and one of the most underserved communities in LA County when it comes to having viable cannabis retail options,” Lipsey said. “There is a rich history of cannabis culture in the area and Redondo Beach has the opportunity to provide a unique voice and perspective.”

Lipsey believes the arrival of cannabis businesses can have real benefits to the citizens of the South Bay. “It’s important that patients have access to clean cannabis and retail options that are accessible and approachable,” said Lipsey. “Beyond that, there are tax benefits to having thriving cannabis companies operating in the city that will inevitably contribute to elevating schools, social programs, and the community as a whole.”

Many Redondo Beach residents support dispensaries coming to the city, evidenced by 6,600 signatures sent in by the Economic Development Reform Coalition of Southern California, but the feeling is not unanimous.

Junior Kai Deines is opposed to the opening of cannabis dispensaries in the South Bay and plans to vote on this bill in 2023, feeling there could be a negative impact on the community.

“I am concerned with the trends I have seen in other cities, such as increased crime, lack of regulations and community decline,” said Deines. “I believe that if the bill is passed, Redondo should institute strict regulations to help minimize any sort of negative impact.”

Ultimately the power lies with the people to determine if dispensaries will be added to the South Bay. “Dispensaries opening in the community would help benefit those who need medical cannabis as an option and would also be economically favorable,” said Doe. “I feel that dispensaries would help our city and its people thrive.”

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

NEWS 5

JUNETEENTH in April RBUSD will give classified employees who worked on June 18, 2021 a retroactive paid holiday in April 15, 2022 in honor of Juneteenth

by LAUREN STRAZZERI

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n June 19, 1865, over 2,000 federal troops in the US enforced the emancipation of slaves still in bondage. On April 15, 2022, 146 RBUSD classified employees who worked on June 18, 2021, will receive a paid holiday in honor of this day in history, Juneteenth.

President Biden deemed Juneteenth a federal holiday on June 17, 2021, but this did not leave enough time for RBUSD to change calendars to observe the holiday last year. The RBUSD Board of Education approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) so employees that should have had the day off last year would still receive a chance to commemorate the day. This does not affect teachers or students because school is already out by then.

“June 19th is liberation. I have always celebrated it, always acknowledged it, it is something that is important to American History,” assistant principal Jennifer Chatmon said.

“

Juneteenth is both a time of joy and a reminder of how much work we still have to do.”

SARAH ROBINSON RBTA PRESIDENT

Chatmon explains that granting employees a paid holiday on Juneteenth is “a step in the right direction,” yet more steps need to happen.

“Perspective has been detrimental to our progress as humans. Not Black, and not White, and not Brown, but as humans, we cannot all be our best if we don’t all know the story,” Chatmon said.

Juneteenth, as Chatmon sees it, is an

opportunity for people to learn that Juneteenth is not just about Black history, but also American history. The date June 19 carries significance, as it marks the day enslaved people finally heard the news that they were free.

“Change starts with conversation. It’s acknowledgment that we have not told the holistic story, and it’s not about blaming people or making people feel bad. It’s about acknowledging that some folks have been left out of the telling, and in leaving people and their contributions out of the telling, there is an impact on our psyche and the way we interact with people,” Chatmon said.

Chatmon explains how that “comes from all sides.” When society feeds people the same “telling,” they do not understand the other side of the story. Juneteenth, now standing as a paid holiday for employees, is a teachable moment—a time for people to learn history.

“If my son, as a young Black boy in a class, does not see himself, how does he know what he can be? If you, as not a young Black boy, don’t see Black people other than in chains, or other than minimal contribution to the world that you live in, how then do you understand the capacity for every human being to be great?” Chatmon said.

Redondo Beach Teachers Association (RBTA) negotiated with the district on whether classified employees would receive the holiday retroactively for those who worked on June 18 last yeat, according to RBTA president Sarah Robinson, who also teaches Spanish 2 and 4 at RUHS. They came to agree that the paid holiday would be April 15, 2022.

“This Juneteenth it will be a holiday for everyone in the district. The district was fixing something from last year, but now also moving forward, the paid holiday will

be established,” Robinson said.

Robinson honored Juneteenth last year by going to Leimert Park where music played and people took part in cultural arts and crafts. Robinson recognizes Juneteenth every year with her friends and family, and along the way she meets new people in the Black community.

Juneteenth

a holiday celebrating the emancipation of enslaved people in the US “[Juneteenth] is both a time of joy and a reminder of how much work we still have to do,” Robinson said. “Juneteenth is a celebration of freedom, but freedom deferred. It marks not only the end of slavery, but it also marks the fact that just signing the Emancipation Proclamation wasn’t enough. [Slavery] was so embedded in our system that it took that long for the enslaved people to find out the news that they were free because the enslavers were so unwilling to grant them their freedom,” Robinson said.

The question lies in what employees will do on their paid holiday, and many advocates for making Juneteenth a federal holiday, such as Chatmon, believe people should take the day to educate themselves.

“I encourage everyone, every person, not just Black people, to learn more about Juneteenth, because the more curious you are, the greater opportunity you have to expand what you can be,” Chatmon said.

RECOGNITION OF JUNETEENTH

1980

Texas recognized Juneteenth as a holiday, making itself the first state to do so.

2003

California began observing Juneteenth as a holiday, but did not give workers the day off.

2008

Nearly half of all US states recognized Juneteenth as a ceremonial observance.

2021

President Biden declared Juneteenth a federal holiday.

PHOTO FROM FREEPIK

RU Ready Night for the Class of 2026 took place on Zoom this year

by RIA LOPRESTO

S

econd semester has finally begun, and with it comes the preparation for the 2022-2023 school year. On Feb. 9, RUHS hosted RU Ready Night, an event in which incoming freshmen and their families learn about the expectations of high school and the courses offered for ninth graders.

Following last year’s event being virtual, this year’s RU Ready Night was also hosted online via Zoom. Assistant Principal Marvin Brown oversaw the event.

“I kind of get the ball rolling and get it started by communicating with Melissa Staab, Denise Holmes and Ivy Lee. Melissa Staab organized everything, and not only is she a phenomenal teacher, but she has this amazing way in mind of putting things together, so it made planning everything super smooth and easy,” Brown said.

The entire event was almost two hours long: the general presentation took up the first 40 minutes and after that, breakout rooms were scheduled for an hour, broken into three 15-minute sessions with breaks between each session.

Each room had a representative from an elective class who spoke about what that course offered. The families would pick a course they wanted to hear from then join that breakout room to hear what they had to say and ask questions at the end of the presentation. One thing special about having RU Ready Night virtually is that the entire presentation was recorded and posted online for students and parents to watch again if they missed any information.

According to Brown, the school is not sure as to whether or not they will keep the virtual format for future years, as there are advantages to hosting the night both online and in-person.

“When RU Ready Night is in person, a lot of people come to learn our campus and get used to walking around and knowing where everything is,” Brown said, “but online, I still think you get a pretty good idea of what RUHS is like because you see almost the entire campus virtually. And as for the breakout rooms, I think they are also a little bit easier for parents to get access to all three of those sessions virtually because

when you’re in person, the time spent walking to and from classrooms goes quickly.”

One part of RU Ready Night that had to be adjusted to match the virtual setting was the presentations given by students about their clubs or classes that they are in. On the recording of the night that is posted online, students shared their experiences in certain departments or pathways because the individual breakout rooms could not be posted. For the Project Lead The Way (PLTW) biomedical pathway, senior Carina Muñoz made a video with her classmate senior Carissa Le. “Because of the virtual approach, we were unable to do any demonstrations that would represent the curriculum of the courses. We briefly spoke about what the pathway entails, but if we had more time, we could have brought a more exciting demonstration and drawn more people’s interest,” Muñoz said.

Each individual recording could only be about a minute long, so the students covered “only the basics” and had to get “straight to the point,” according to Muñoz.

As a result, Muñoz feels that there will be less student interest in joining new clubs or electives next year.

“Overall, I just wish I could have told the incoming students that taking the biomed pathway was one of the best decisions I made during high school. It helped me develop my interest in the sciences and I wish I could have shared more of my experience with them,” Muñoz said.

Still, according to Brown, the virtual RU Ready Night was “very successful” and “ran smoothly.”

“RU Ready? night is one of my favorite nights that I’m involved in because we really get to see how talented our students are. I remember my first RU Ready? night and it was one of those moments where I thought, ‘Wow, I can’t believe that I’m part of a school that has these amazing students that are just so good at the things they do,’” Brown said. “After you participate in RU Ready?, you’re like, ‘I want to be a part of that.’ Or if you’re a parent, you’re thinking, ‘I want my kid to be doing that when they’re a junior or a senior.’”

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

NEWS 6

by JADE MONTOYA

T

This year, the physical fitness test (PFT) will have all the traditional tests—except one. The state of California suspended the BMI test, putting it under review indefinitely.

Other tests such as the cardiovascular, flexibility, upper body strength, lower body strength, and trunk lift tests will remain.

According to gym coach Jennifer Desert, the change is to make it fairer for students who pass every other test but do not fit in a proper weight category.

“The reason why they took [the BMI test] out is because they want to make it more of a leveled playing field for passing the test,” Desert said. “Because, let’s say you got a big strong kid that can do every other test, but that’s the one they fail because their BMI doesn’t add up.” While the test was removed suddenly, Desert remains unbiased with the change. However, she believes that the physical fitness test in general needs to be updated.

“I’m kind of neutral about it,” Desert said. “I do feel like the whole thing needs to be revamped.”

On the other hand, gym teacher Marcelo Enriquez is satisfied with the change. The BMI test does not measure actual athletic ability, only where an individual fits in a spectrum of body mass.

He believes that students’ weight doesn’t directly associate with their physical health. He says students can be deceiving regarding weight.

Weighing in on

BMI California suspends the Body Mass Index evaluation in the Physical Fitness Test

“I’m happy that [the BMI test] got suspended,” Enriquez said. “I don’t think there is a direct correlation to your cardiovascular or your overall fitness health. I see that it at times being deceiving, just because I’ve had plenty of students and student athletes, who are in great physical shape and never actually fell into the proper BMI.” While the exact correlations between obesity and academic performance is unclear according to NIH, Enriquez also believes that the state suspended it because they understand the unfairness of the test since it’s long run, and the limited margin of proper BMI. Similarly to Desert, he hopes the state renovates it in the future for unique students.

“They recognize that there’s been some form of unfairness, and the way they’ve structured the height and weight category and what they think should fall into considered fitness,” Enriquez said. “I’m hoping that they either dissolve it all together or just come up with a whole new formula for that.”

Since some athletic students don’t fit in the height and weight test’s standard, Enriquez thinks that the suspension will benefit unique students who don’t fall into the standard weight. He also believes that it will positively impact students ultimately.

“You can eat incredibly healthy and still not fall into what the state calls their “proper standards of fitness for height and weight’,” Enriquez said. “I think It will benefit students in the long run. So I’m happy to see that it has been suspended for this time.”

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ADOBE STOCK

ASB works to run independently in the struggle to find an advisor

by LARA MAGDESIAN

A

SB is historically a student-led class, putting out events for RUHS students to enjoy, yet it might take some people by surprise to hear that right now they’re running 100% on their own without any help from an advisor.

According to ASB’s President, senior Sophia Oswald, there were complications with the last ASB advisor because of a “clash of ideas on what leadership was.”

They are currently waiting to be assigned a new advisor.

“I had to step into this new leadership role, not necessarily as a teacher, but to show the rest of the group that they have someone here for them. The rest of the Cabinet have really helped me a lot and gave me good support,” Oswald said.

According to Oswald, once a new advisor is picked, it doesn’t matter if they’ve already been a teacher at RUHS, only that they have the qualities of a good leader.

“We just want someone who is supportive, someone to help us reach our goals. ASB is already very independent and strong, so having someone to match that energy will be really helpful.”

After going through three different advisors in the last year, Senior PJ Scotting, Vice President of ASB, agreed with Oswald’s opinion on what they would like to see in their future advisor.

“We’re really hoping for someone to

come in with at least a little experience with how ASB works or have any type of familiarity with leadership,” Scotting explained.

“We’ve been at this school for four years

“

I had to step into this new leadership role, not necessarily as a teacher, but to show the rest of the group that they have someone here for them SOPHIA OSWALD SENIOR

now and we have a pretty strong grasp on how ASB runs. We need to be able to learn from the new advisor but they also need to learn from us and have a balanced relationship with us.”

With the loss of an advisor, the ASB

Cabinet is conflicted on how beneficial it would be at this time of the year to get one, especially with admin steadily assisting the group already.

“It’s a little confusing because, of course we would love to have someone there in the class so that they’re able to help out and support us, but also getting a new advisor this late into the school year would mean that we would have to teach them everything about the school and how ASB functions,” says Scotting. “So I would say yes and no. We have people who are already helping us, they just aren’t directly in the class.”

ASB’s treasurer and secretary Katy Cloutier added on to Scotting’s answer where she voiced her ending thoughts on the situation.

“We all work together really well and that’s what we’ve been doing this whole time is just having each other’s backs. If another job needs you, you just step in and help. That’s what our main philosophy has been this year.”

Similarly, Oswald thinks ASB would still be able to function without an advisor, yet it would be beneficial to get one.

“I think that it’s pretty clear that ASB is very independent on their own so it won’t be a bad thing if we end up not getting an advisor, but it would be nice to have someone come in and add to the group,” Oswald

PHOTO COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS

said.

Despite the worries and struggles of running the associated study body, Oswald said that ASB will continue to make the school a fun place for it’s students.

“Obviously we’ve had a setback with this situation, but we’re really excited to get back to how we were and start doing more events,” says Oswald. “Everyone should look forward to the exciting things we have planned.”

7

features GETTING IN

Izzie Caldwell tries on different identies through her hobby of cosplay and discusses the negatives aspects of the culture

by YARA EL-HASAN

A

bag of makeup and a pile of clothes is enough to transform a person’s entire identity. Sophomore Izzie Caldwell uses these materials, usually found around their house, to cosplay as their favorite TV show and movie characters.

“My favorite part of cosplaying is probably being able to dress up as the characters I want and seeing all the amazing cosplayers that put so much dedication into their costumes as well,” Caldwell said.

Caldwell began their cosplaying career when they were 13, shortly after discovering it on Musical.ly. They cosplay characters from their favorite shows, including Iroha Tamaki, Yakko and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.

“Cosplaying is nice because it can cost no money. You can make whatever you want out of materials you already have and that’s really cool. But pre-made cosplays can be expensive and making your own can get super expensive,” Caldwell said.

Although mentioning that some cosplayers can take hours to get ready, Caldwell spends around 20-40 minutes doing their makeup. Taking inspiration from other cosplayers on TikTok and Instagram, their outfits consist of articles from their closet and costume pieces from Amazon.

“It can be really time-consuming and if you’re a young female and you’re cosplaying a character that’s showing a little bit of skin, there are some perverts out there who sometimes go to conventions and follow people around,” they said.

When scrolling online, Caldwell occasionally finds posts that identify these people and warn other cosplayers about them, something that Caldwell finds to be helpful.

“It makes me really uncomfortable be-

CHARACTER

cause people are doing this to cosplayers who are just trying to enjoy their time,” Caldwell said. “And that small percentage of people can sometimes be the reflection of the entire community to some people and that’s just sad.”

Although Caldwell finds comfort in the cosplaying community, they also recognize the shame projected onto others.

“A lot of the time online, people like to shame newer cosplayers who are just getting into it because they don’t have much experience of doing makeup and things like that,” Caldwell said. “It makes no sense to me because they were just like that a couple of years ago.”

Just like cosplayers on social media, Caldwell also receives some judgment for cosplaying. Freshman Moa Brinck, a friend of Caldwell, faces the same issue.

“People have been judgemental to me during cosplaying,” Brinck said. “One time someone posted on their private story about me cosplaying and that was just really embarrassing because a lot of people saw it. But otherwise, all my friends are really happy about it and my family is also supportive so it doesn’t happen too often.”

Despite the bad experiences, both Brinck and Caldwell find joy when putting together a costume. Caldwell uses their weekly allowance to pay for their costumes and likes

PHOTO COURTESY OF IZZIE CALSWELL

to express themselves through makeup.

“I think it’s benefited me most emotionally because it gives me motivation. I have a really hard time with motivating myself to do things and being able to really get into a cosplay helps. It also just makes me super happy when I go to all the conventions,” Caldwell said.

Cosplaying provides social opportunities to both Caldwell and Brinck, allowing them to meet new people and make friends during conventions.

“Cosplaying makes me feel really happy because it brings characters to life and going to conventions and taking photos makes me feel great. Also doing makeup and costumes is really fun and interesting,” Brinck said.

Doing makeup and getting a costume ready for more complex cosplays can take Brinck around an hour, while the simpler ones take less time.

“I feel really happy most of the time when I’m cosplaying,” Caldwell said. “If I’m at a convention for the entire day then it can get sweaty and annoying but normally if I take breaks and sit down, I’m fine.”

Caldwell finds their costume’s discomfort worth it because of the enjoyment they get from conventions. The first convention they attended was Comic-Con LA in 2019, which encouraged them to go to more.

“My favorite one was probably Animanga. Even though it was really poorly handled, it was the only convention I’ve ever been to for the entire weekend so it was really fun being there and becoming friends with people,” Caldwell said.

The un-organization and extreme heat Caldwell dealt with at the convention was worth it in their eyes. They plan on continuing their passion for cosplaying, even after high school.

“I have faced judgment from others but I have to ignore them because cosplaying is really fun,” Caldwell said. “Overall the community is open and welcoming and it makes me happy to be a part of it.”

Amelia Paulson works behind the scenes at the 56th SuperBowl

by ANSEL REYES

W

hile one hundred million viewers watched on NBC, senior Amelia Paulson was in the tunnels of SoFi Stadium, unable to watch the Super Bowl.

Paulson worked behind the scenes during the Super Bowl halftime show in her quest to try new adventures throughout the city of Los Angeles.

“It was just surreal,” Paulson said. “I mean, it was interesting being in the stadium during the rehearsals when it was empty, but walking onto the field when there were thousands of people around was crazy and overwhelming, but also really cool.

During the half-time show, Paulson pushed a lighting cart on the sidelines and helped pull tarps after attending rehearsals for the show 2 weeks before the game.

“I thought it would be a lot of waiting around, and I

wasn’t sure what I was getting into in terms of what I would be actually doing for the halftime show,” Paulson said. “I kind of just did it to be part of the experience. It was like a ‘we’ll see what happens’ kind of

“

The world kind of opened up AMELIA PAULSON SENIOR

thing.”

Although there was no meet-and-greet for the Super Bowl halftime stars, Paulson was able to high-five Dr. Dre and Eminem.

“They drove by us in golf carts,” Paulson said. “Snoop Dogg had a boombox

that he would always carry around, but it really felt like they were focused on doing their own thing and we were focused on doing ours.”

Since playing a spy on a tv show at age 10, Paulson has felt connected to the city of LA. “I like the whole production aspect of LA,” Paulson said. “I think with performance, especially, it’s like nothing ever stays the same. There’s always something new happening and it’s just entertaining.”

After earning her driver’s license in December of last year, Paulson has been driving to downtown LA to watch concerts and theater productions in addition to engaging in cultural experiences.

“I think people have a lot of different interesting stories, especially because LA is a center point for people trying to achieve their dreams or do

different things,” Paulson said. “I think it’s interesting to see how people got to where they are and what their journey is.”

Paulson involves herself in activities around the city in an effort to get out of her comfort zone and try new things.

“The world kind of opened up,” Paulson said. “I’ve started driving around the city and seeing more of it. [Working at the Super Bowl] was my first step in doing more of that.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF AMELIA PAULSON AND SOFISTADIUM.COM

FEB. 22, 2022 HIGH TIDE

8 FEATURES

HISTORY WORTH

TEACHING

In honor of Black History Month, teachers work to incorporate Black voices into their lessons

by MIA DOWDELL

ILLUSTRATION

BY CECILIA APITZ

S

lavery. Segregation. These are things that almost every school in America covers when it comes to African-American history. But many agree that this is not enough.

In honoring Black History Month, AP English Literature teacher Kitaro Takesue chooses to give his students works of Black literature to research and study.

He prompts his students to discuss their preexisting knowledge on Black History Month, then introduces its origins through the works of author Dr. Carter G. Woodson.

“Across my classes, I want to be highlighting Black voices through reading poems, conducting research and sharing resources with each other,” Takesue said.

“They will also talk about learning goals and questions they’d like to answer throughout

the month on a class discussion board to further their understanding.”

Takesue taught his class various themes through Toni Morrison’s “Beloved.” In teaching the development of poetry and contemporary writing through the lens of Black writers, his students learn the intersection of ethnicity, gender and sexuality in Black culture. Discussion on “Invisible Man” by Ralph Ellison, a novel on visibility in society, closes off the unit.

“Poetry often expresses the complexity of multiple identities, which is something important for us to reflect upon,” Takesue said. “Our unit this month on “Beloved” is where we’ll analyze Black motherhood, generational trauma and the role of the Black community in healing through shared experiences.”

Senior Jada Dean, a student in Takesue’s AP English Literature class, expresses appreciation for class readings of books such as “Beloved.” Dean, who is Black, recognizes the story’s portrayal of the generational effects of racism as familiar to her life.

“If you ask any people of color from later generations, they would probably tell you that they never had stories that were actually about them,” Dean said. “It felt really cool, especially because his class feels so welcoming. I never feel ostracized or alien-

ated there.”

This isn’t just reserved for February, however. Takesue emphasizes that his class’s unit is a “celebration” of the work they complete year-round. Names such as Lucy Terry, Phillis Wheatley and Terrance Hayes come up in their readings both intended for the holiday and outside of it.

“I have to acknowledge that things like racism simply weren’t addressed sufficiently in the past. Today, we must look at them in meaningful ways,” Takesue said.

“

I want my Black students to feel represented. It is imperative for people to [...] acknowledge Black achievement.

SAMANTHA MARCON TEACHER

The changing of the times helped Takesue realize the value in teaching perspectives unlike his own to his classes. He works with faculty both in his department and around the school district to make lessons that tackle topics of race and ethnicity with care, accounting for many student requests

Freshman Natalie Jones accepted into a prestigious art program

by CHARLOTTE GOLDSTEIN

O

n the minds of most upperclassmen is the dying question: Will I be accepted into my dream school? Although just a freshman, Natalie Jones has also been hoping to see the words “congratulations, you have been accepted” spelled out on her computer screen. Luckily for her, Jones was accepted into the Ryman Arts program and very soon, will be starting weekly art lessons.

Ryman Arts is a non-profit organization that offers a wide range of resources for inspiring artists. It offers in-studio instruction, art supplies, college and career guidance and support to all students at no expense.

Jones first learned about the program through a friend who was also applying, and she decided to apply herself because of her long-term interest in art. Cultivating this passion for many years, Jones has dabbled in a large variety of forms and styles.

“I do graphite sketches, I paint, I draw and I also do digital art. My style is mostly realism but I also do cartoons and stuff like that,” Jones said.

Ryman Arts is a selective and prestigious art program with a 50% acceptance rate. In order to participate, applicants must submit two graphite pencil drawings, one required to be from observation and one may be from observation or imagination.

“I drew a portrait of my sister and I also did something from imagination,” Jones said.

Natalie’s twin sister, freshman Kaela Jones, has always been very supportive of her artwork throughout the years.

“I was very proud of her. The program is super hard to get into, and I was so proud that she found something that she loved to

do and that she got accepted into such an esteemed program,” Kaela said.

Kaela found that it has been “really cool to watch [Natalie] over the years” and said “it’s really amazing to see how much she’s progressed in such little time and how her style has changed.”

Although her sister has always believed in her abilities, Natalie found herself uncertain on whether she had the confidence to apply.

“

[My uncle] said that it wouldn’t matter if I didn’t get in because at least I had tried. That was really inspirational for me.

NATALIE JONES FRESHMAN

“The due date was in early January. So I was getting ready in November, and I was at Thanksgiving dinner talking to my family about it. I was telling them how I didn’t want to do it anymore because I was afraid that I wasn’t gonna make it, but my uncle pushed me to try it anyway,” Natalie said.

Natalie found her uncle’s endearing words to be very motivating, and in the end he was the reason she decided to submit her application.

“He said that it wouldn’t matter if I didn’t get in because at least I had tried, and if I didn’t try, I would regret not doing it. That was just really inspirational for me,” Natalie said.

Once Natalie had submitted her application, she spent the next few weeks in anticipation, hoping that she would get an email with good news.

“I was really nervous that I wasn’t going to make it because only about 100 kids get in. I’m not certain about the numbers, but it’s pretty hard to get into, so I was so surprised when I got in.”

Natalie said there were many emotions running through her head when she got the congratulatory email.

“I was really surprised and also really happy. My friend who told me to do it was also applying, and so I was also nervous for her as well,” Natalie said.

Natalie said she is excited for the program but is also apprehensive because a lot of the details are unknown.

“I actually don’t know what it will be like, but it’ll probably be something on the lines of realism with a large emphasis on techniques. I’m not really sure what it is going to be about, but I’m just hoping for the best,” she said.

Natalie hopes the program will help her improve her skills by exposing her to a new environment and new opportunities. She also hopes that Ryman Arts will help her to reach the artistic goals she has set for herself.

“My biggest goal in my art career right now is to have a show someday,” Natalie said. “By the end of high school, I want to have a portfolio and have a final art show before I go to college. To meet that goal, I’m hoping to build and grow upon the skills I already have, and become a better artist.”

to see more diverse literature.

“I initially chose to be a teacher because I wanted to give back to a profession that gave me so much,” Takesue said. “But the longer I teach, the more I realize that there were gaps in my own education when I was in high school.”

U.S. and Modern World History teacher Samantha Marcon has a different approach.

Instead of literature, she teaches various nationalist movements between the 1920s and 1930s, centering two lessons on African movements in particular.

“I think it is necessary for all of my students to feel represented in my lessons in order for them to feel comfortable and remain engaged,” Marcon said.

Marcon came up with the idea after noticing the prevalent eurocentricity of the California history department and now seeks to expand her class’s curriculum with culturally relevant material.

“It is super important to me to incorporate Black history in my lessons because I want my Black students to feel represented,” Marcon said. “It is imperative for people to understand and acknowledge Black achievement.”

As both an educator and a citizen, Takesue understands it to be his duty to acknowledge the deeply ingrained, grim history of Black people in America.

“Black history is beautiful, inspiring and complex. Learning about Black history helps me better understand our country and the people in it–not just in the past, but in who we are today,” Takesue said.

1. Natalie Jones with painting 2. One of Natalie Jone’s past paintings PHOTOS COURTESY OF NATALIE JONES

1

22

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

Sophomore Lani Jones finds joy in her experiences moving between California and Switzerland

by ETHAN CHI

F

or most, moving back and forth between homes across the world would be an irritating—even exasperating—chore. But for sophomore Lani Jones, living in both Switzerland and California has given her “the best of both worlds.”

Jones’s father works in the entertainment industry, animating for movies including the live-action “Jungle Book” and “The Lion King.” Jobs like these require flexibility, and since Jones and her family want to stick together, they now move between Switzerland and California. Her mother, Maya Jones, noted that as Lani got older, it was up to her and her little brother to decide if they wanted to continue to move back and forth.

Lani’s good friends and family members in both countries made the decision very easy.

“I am very grateful that I have such close and understanding friends that always make me feel at home. When I move back to Switzerland or LA, they always bring me back into their friend groups,” Lani said.

Since Kindergarten, Lani lived in America but switched each year, spending one year in Switzerland and one year in America. She notes that moving between two places sometimes makes her homesick as she misses her friends, but she tries to stay optimistic.

“When I am here I miss Switzerland, but when I am in Switzerland I miss it here. But, I think it is better to enjoy where I am at the moment,” Lani said.

However, both places offer different things while still making Lani feel at home “In LA, there are so many opportunities to do anything you’d like, like join a yoga club or sport, and go to restaurants to get any food you could only imagine,” Lani said.

On the other hand, Switzerland brings a different feeling of home for Lani.

“In Switzerland, I have more freedom because fewer people means less crime; there is also a great public transportation system that I use every day. It does feel a bit safer.

There is a big community feeling, and you know almost everyone,” Lani said.

Switzerland taught Lani things that America couldn’t, and visa-versa. For example, she notes that in Switzerland not going to an expensive college and having an “everyday job” like being a plumber or an electrician is perfectly fine and respectable. On the other hand, Lani feels that in LA jobs like that are looked down upon. Then again, she says in LA people are good at telling the truth while also being nice about it, whereas, in Switzerland, people are very direct and at times mean. Although these places are vastly different, according to Lani, these different communities molded her into the person she is today.

“I hope both cultures have changed me for the better—that they taught me different values and manners that people who haven’t had this experience don’t have,” Lani said.

This was her parent’s intent when they suggested moving between Switzerland and America, given her mother is half Swiss and her father was raised in America.

“We feel very blessed that we’re able to do this. Of course, there were some times we had to work harder to catch up in one subject or another, but it’s really been so much fun,” Maya said.

Ultimately, Lani was able to experience both sides of her heritage: her American side and her Swiss side.

“We believe things have turned out well, because both kids are happy, which means we are happy. Lani and Kai [her little brother] are very flexible, tolerant, and understanding human beings. Not judging, but trying to see other people and their country’s point of view. It helped open up the world for them. People aren’t so different around the world after all,” Maya said.

Truly the best of both worlds.

FEATURES 9

FENCE TO THE

FINISH

Freshman Sophie Olko shares how fencing has shaped her current life and her future goals

by MARLEY VAN PELT

I

n the hustle of students trying to get to their next class, someone running by you in the hallway wouldn’t seem like much. But, after hours and hours of tracking quick movements on a fencing platform, with swift feet sliding across the ground and swords clashing in the air, everyday life can appear slow at times, to the point where you can see even the slightest motions of the people around you.

Freshman Sophie Olko does fencing outside of RUHS as her extracurricular sport, counting her hours towards independent PE. She actively pursues this sport as a way to express her emotions.

“

I really like that there’s a community even though it’s an indiviual sport. It gives you a sense of pride and determination.

SOPHIE OLKO FRESHMAN

“COVID was really hard on my family, which is when I joined fencing. The members of my family have pretty bad tempers, and I wanted a way to funnel mine into something other than art,” Olko said. “Using fencing as an outlet let me have this community where I could talk with people about life and focus on how we wanted to get further in the sport.”

With the potential to compete locally, nationally or internationally, Olko trains at South Bay Fencing Academy.

She practices four days a week with occasional tournaments on the weekends, ranging from a variety of locations.

“It’s more of an individual sport, but since we have the club, we have our team to root for,” Olko said.

COVID-19 prevented Olko from competing in several tournaments as they were canceled due to health concerns.

But, as the world started to open up again, so did Olko’s opportunity to compete; she now has a resume of competing in three tournaments. Up to 200 people each, these tournaments have individuals fence firstly in pools, then onto direct eliminations.

“It’s really, really different compared to when you practice because there is this high-stress environment,” Olko said. “There are rooms filled with yelling and screaming and loud coaches— there’s just a lot of noise.”

Olko “builds herself up” for each tournament, practicing the days preceding them while visualizing herself in her moment out on the fencing strip.

“We have a sports psychiatrist that comes in once a while to help us with our mentalities,” Olko said. “We have these

PHOTO BY KEARA ANTONELLI

journals for afterward, where we write out our performances.

But I make sure that I’m constantly thinking about it the day before and what I want to do, so I can build up and have a nice, smooth outcome.”

Preparation for tournaments is vital since it “gets easier over time” as Olko and her other teammates practice. To win a fencing match, known as a fencing bout, an individual has to score a certain number of points or have the highest number of points within a time limit.

To do this, the fencer must land a valid hit—typically on the head and the torso—using a series of footwork and sword-work techniques.

“

Seeing Sophie’s mental toughness and confidence grow[...] makes me proud as she realizes what she can become.

EDWARD OLKO PARENT

“It takes a lot of practice to use this side shuffle because we’re not just walking and holding our swords,” Olko said.

“You have to practice your footwork, and your blade has to be in the right position.

It’s difficult, but if you train, you get good at it and you get that muscle memory.”

Dedication makes up the foundation of a good fencer as “it’s really about how

much time you commit.”

Olko’s competitive spirit continuously grows as she works towards her goal of pursuing fencing later on in life.

“I’m going to try to keep fencing through college,” Olko said.

“It’s a unique sport, and I want to get better.

I want to be able to join the international and national teams.”

Fencing is one of those unique sports like gymnastics, swimming and ice skating in which athletes compete not just for themselves, but also for their team, and that’s part of what makes it exciting for the athletes.

“I really like that there’s a community even though it’s an individual sport, because you’re on the strip and you have people cheering for you,” Olko said.

“It gives you a sense of pride and determination.”

Olko’s father, Edward Olko lll, said that “seeing the passion she has for the sport and wanting to continually improve” makes him “a proud parent.”

“I have seen her grow from someone intrigued by the sport to someone who is passionate to excel at it,” Mr. Olko said.

Fencing may be somewhat of a mystery to those of us that see it only once every four years at the Olympics, but there’s no doubt that it takes a strong mind, body and work ethic to be successful.

“For us, it’s been the novelty of it, but also seeing Sophie’s mental toughness and confidence grow as she has gotten better each month,” Mr. Olko said. “As a parent, that makes me proud as she realizes where she is and what she can become.”

10 HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

IN-FO

some people up. It’s easy to be embarrassing,” Sam said.

After going overboard at a birthday party, eeling down? Bottoms up.

Jane has also been dissuaded from drinking Alcohol has become a coping strategy pears as if everyone is having a good time as much as she did before, especially since for teens—a form of escape from their sends a message to those who don’t drink she’s experienced firsthand the uncomfortvarious problems. For others, alcohol that alcohol is “necessary” to have fun. able side effects of doing so. is an accessory that adds to the fun of “I feel like a party has to include alcohol “I had a problem for a little bit. I was gosocial events and gatherings. for it to be a real party, espeing a little too hard and Junior Sam, who has opted to remain cially at this age, and a lot of partying every weekend. anonymous, has experienced drinking both other teenagers think that, And it definitely took a in her family life and in a social atmosphere— which is why they tend to go to toll on my mental health whether at parties or get-togethers with her more parties that have guaran- Schools and adults can because I was always parents and siblings. However, most of her teed alcohol. And I think that’s say, ‘You can’t drink if blacking out after every you’re under 21,’ but I drinking occurs at hang-outs with friends. because of how they see parties party. It impacted me a “I think drinking is an easy way to be on TV or on social media. Most think that only empow- lot,” Jane said. more secure about yourself, and teenagers of the time when people post a ers people to do it more Neither Sam nor Jane especially drink because they’re insecure, party on social media, it’s kind because it’s more exhave struggled with so in group settings it’s easier to be your- of a flex that they have alcohol,” citing when you’re not mounting pressure from allowed to. self and then blame [your actions] on being Sam said. their peers to drink in sodrunk, rather than just being yourself reguSince they entered their cial atmospheres. Rathlarly,” Sam said. teenage years, Sam’s parents JULIA BELL er, Sam believes that JUNIOR Senior Jane, who has also chosen to re- have frequently communicated teenagers drink because main anonymous, has faced similar expe- with her and her brother reof pressure from themriences, although typically at larger-scale garding alcohol to encourage an understand- selves to have fun in the way they see it porparties. Jane expressed “surprise” at how ing relationship between them and the sub- trayed in the media. younger underclassmen are stance, rather than adopting “Peer pressure is something that I see pulled into social gatherings a stricter attitude. more in movies than I see in real life, but I’m that give people the opportu“My first time drinking lucky in that sense. It’s more of a desire to nity to experiment with subwas a positive experience have fun, and in this time of my life, alcoI think drinking is an because I was around people stances like alcohol. hol helps me achieve that. It’s a pressure for “Alcohol causes people to easy way to be more that I was comfortable with, myself to have fun rather than pressure from act more grown up than they secure about yourself, and I wasn’t really stressed other people,” Sam said. actually are as high schoolers and teenagers espe- out about anything. I knew Rachel Andrews, a mental health counselwithout understanding the cially drink because that I’d be safe and my par- or at Redondo Union who works closely with circumstances they’re getting they’re insecure. ents were okay with it,” Sam many students in the Wellness Center, also themselves into,” Jane said. said. notices a connection between peer pressure, While junior Julia Bell has SAM However, even though mental health problems and teen drinking.

ANONYMOUS JUNIOR also found herself in teen parher parents are open to “A lot of times, we see some people have ties and social events with alher drinking, Sam usual- all the signs of depression, anxiety or some cohol, her first experience was ly doesn’t confide in them type of mental health issue, and when they more negative compared to about her activities with her use alcohol or drugs as a coping strategy Sam and Jane, as she felt like she “should friends because “the fact that [she’s] drunk that’s when it starts to get really serious. It be [drinking]” due to “the amount of people around people that [she] usually doesn’t tends to make the mental health issue far that were perpetrating the idea.” know would worry them.” Recent experienc- worse by messing with the chemicals in your Social media also plays a pressuring role es with drunk friends have soured the way brain,” Andrews said. in teenagers’ decisions to consume alcohol. she perceives alcohol.

She further acknowledged how for many According to Sam, those who openly post “It’s a way for people to open up, espe- teenagers, the issue of teen drinking boils about parties with substances where it ap- cially when you’re around people that you down to a lack of sense of self and healthy don’t know. But after seeing close friends get relationships. unhealthily drunk, it makes me not want to “A lot of times people are using [alcohol] do it myself because of how much it loosens because they don’t totally accept themselves, or they don’t feel completely accepted by others,” Andrews said. “When you have that

“

“

Adults 26+ who began drinking before age 15 are

more likely to report having alcohol use disorders in the past year as those who waited until age 21+ to begin drinking (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism)

teens die each year due to alcohol — more than all illegal drugs combined (MADD)

unconditional acceptanc and your relationships, p to go outside of that to s much funnier when I dri me more.’ They feel liked they have those close fri However, some stude teen drinking differently as Andrews. Bell finds th teen drinking is what ma “Schools and adults drink if you’re under 21 empowers people to do more exciting when you’ form of acting out, which said. “But, I think it’s im people can have fun wit volved. There’s so many do that are much safer a Both Andrews and B South Bay, teen drinkin normalized.

“In the South Bay th vibe of ‘it’s fine.’ Becaus there’s surfer vibes, and this community is that [Drinking] is part of the that everybody’s parent things contributes to tha Andrews also attrib mindset of teen drinking the South Bay bubble we diversity in perspectives “I think [teen drinkin be a thing until people s al,” Andrews said. “Whe shell and walk through Tenderloin and Skid Ro have been devastated by alcoholism—you’re like, when you see. That’s wh According to Andrew gles that many students

of 12th grade ported binge during the pa (Monitoring th

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022 11

OCUS

ce in your friendships people don’t have say, ‘Oh, well I’m so ink and people like d already because iendships.” ents view the causes of y than counselors such hat the illegal aspect of akes it so enjoyable. s can say, ‘You can’t 1,’ but I think that only o it more because it’s ’re not allowed to. It’s a h can be thrilling,” Bell mportant to realize that thout alcohol being iny other things they can and legal.”

Bell believe that in the ng is mainstream and

here’s always been this se we’re by the beach, d a part of the image of it’s chill and relaxed. e culture, and the fact ts are also doing these at,” Andrews said. butes this normalized g in our community to e live in, and the lack of s. ng] is always going to start being more globen you get out of your communities like the ow— communities that y substance abuse and , ‘Whoa, okay.’ That’s hen you get it.” ws, the personal strugface behind closed

students redrinking ast two weeks he Future)

BACKGROUND ILLUSTRATION BY KATELYN PERRY

doors and in their own homes can play a large factor into their decisions of whether or not to drink.

“The kids with alcoholic parents usually don’t touch anything because they see how devastating it is on a daily basis,” Andrews said. “When you’re impacted by it, you’re so much less likely to do it.”

Alcohol and substance addiction can have horrible consequences, but Andrews understands that every student comes from a different background and has their fair share of problems.

“I think every person is unique, and everyone is walking their own path and making their own decisions. Nobody wakes up in the morning and says, ‘I want to become an alcoholic,’ or ‘I want to be hooked on drugs.’ People want to be successful in school, their hobbies, their relationships and in their lives,” Andrews said. “At the root of all of it—at the root of everything—it goes back to mental health and well being.”

ALCOHOL AND CUP ILLUSTRATIONS BY KATELYN PERRY SHARPIE VIA AMAZON

PHOTO BY KEARA ANTONELLI

drank alcohol binge drank of drivers drove after drinking alcohol rode with a driver who had been drinking alcohol (2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey)

12 FEATURES

FEB. 22, 2022 HIGH TIDE

Understaffed and overwhelmed Instructional aides who contract COVID-19 must leave behind students who depend on them for support

by ELLA SILBERLING

T

he entirety of RBUSD grapples with the lasting ramifications of Omicron. For instructional aides and their students, a new set of unavoidable challenges faces them as they continue to push through the massive surge of COVID cases.

Instructional aides assist teachers in Special Day Classes (SDC) and work one-on-one with students who need the extra support. Assistant principal Dr. Jennier Chatmon supervises the Special Education department at the high school, among many other jobs. Throughout the pandemic, she oversaw and assisted instructional aides with a number of problems.

“If an instructional aide is COVID positive, and they provide one on one support, myself and my assistant, Melissa, work to cover that person internally because chances are there’s already another staff member who has worked with or is familiar with that student. We don’t want to just pick someone out of the air to support that student because their originally assigned support could be out for five to ten days,” Chatmon said.

Chatmon explained that some classrooms couldn’t have the normal amount of aides because they focused on making sure that students who needed one-onone support had it. Many aides also had to take on new roles in attempts to cover for those who were out. However, Chatmon emphasized that the instructional aides were not alone in their struggles.

“It was challenging across all lev-

PHOTO FROM FREEPIK

els of the school organization including the aides. I mean, even myself, I had to substitute and cover teachers’ classes because we didn’t have enough substitutes.

I’m just glad that the surge is finally on the decline,” Chatmon said.

Instructional aide Vanessa Cicchini is new to the RUHS staff as of this school year and works to assist SDC teachers in their class majority of the time. She also explained that she gets to work one-onone with students as well, mostly to take

“

I had to substitute and cover teachers’ classes because we didn’t have enough substitutes.

JENNIFER CHATMON ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

over when students’ normal aides aren’t available.

“I support the students whenever I can in the classrooms; if they have questions or they need help with something I’m there. The same thing goes for when I’m working one on one with kids; whatever they need,” Cicchini said.

According to Cicchini, COVID precautions like social distancing and mask wearing have to be handled differently

in certain cases. Some students require physical contact with their aides or are unable to wear masks at all times and aides must adjust as well as they can to support students’ needs but still maintain safety standards.

“If you can wear a mask on, you should be wearing it, and if you can’t that’s another story,” Cicchini said. “Still, we do what we can by keeping things clean and having hand sanitizer everywhere. We are pretty good at keeping the distance where we can but certain jobs require closer contact.”

The instructional aides work with a schedule that entails their breaks, oneon-one work, classwork, covering for others, and more. Complicated by a large number of COVID cases, aides’ schedules change constantly and they must adapt quickly to maintain some sort of “normality” for students.

“The staff is used to working with their specific students; everyone has their own routine so I think with the surge and people being out or sick, we have to fill in where we can to make the students’ transition with this new in-person learning as smooth as possible. It’s really important that we try not to disrupt their learning with all these changes,” Cicchini said.

Despite the hardships she faced in her first year on staff, Cicchini is thankful to have her job and is “impressed” with the district’s handling of COVID. She says she is lucky to get to work with the students and the staff at RUHS. “Every day is different, which is something I love about this job and also just helping people. That’s why we’re here.

We’re here to help the students.” Cicchini said.

Teachers Anastasia Kapitonova-Sanchez and Victoria Vasquez speak on raising their children during the pandemic

by MARLIE CORNWELL

F

rom January 8 to 15 of 2022, COVID rates spiked, topping off at a startling daily average of 41,682 new cases. Many women pondered what this may mean for their children from the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic until now. Teachers Anastasia Kapitonova-Sanchez, who has a six-month-old son, and Victoria Vasquez, who has a 2½-year-old daughter and is due again in May weigh in on this topic. “[Having a baby in the pandemic is] challenging, more challenging than it would be without COVID, of course. Constantly having to think about my baby getting sick, not bringing my baby around large crowds, not having him meet everyone as soon as he was born -- those were some major things,” Kapitonova-Sanchez said.

Parenting always comes with worry for your child, it’s a given. But of course, with a pandemic nipping at everyone’s toes, parents feel more worried for their children than usual.

“The concern is that [my daughter] would get COVID and that it would be bad for her. Obviously, for younger children, they don’t usually have such severe symptoms, but there could be an exception,” Vasquez said.

And other than that, parents also worry about their kids’ social skills.

“Things weren’t and still aren’t as open as they normally are. And people aren’t as open to letting their kids roam around and talk to other kids.

That social aspect I worry about a little bit because she’s losing out on some of those social interactions,” Vasquez said.

Both teachers acknowledge that the help they’ve received from their partners and families has been essential - without it, parenting would be harder on all fronts. Even less than the already almost nonexistent time for themselves, more money spent on childcare, and not nearly as much support.

“I feel like I have it a little bit lucky because I don’t have to deal with childcare as much, and I know that’s a struggle with a lot of parents because daycares close and things like that,” Vasquez said. “ But luckily, I don’t have to deal with that too much because I have family that helps with taking care of her while I’m here,” Vasquez said.

Kapitonova-Sanchez agreed, saying that without her husband’s help, she doesn’t know where she would be.

“I’m excited about [my future]. I can say that,” Kapitonova said. “So far, it’s been very tough, but very fun and rewarding. And it’s just exciting to watch your child grow. So I’m looking forward to all the experiences to come.”

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

FEATURES 13

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more of a lighthearted thing,” Doe said. “I like to crochet, so this year I made a crochet plushie of a character from a show that [Maria] loves, and then we went to the LA Kings Ice Chalet and got milkshakes just like last year.”

Fortunately enough for Doe and Johnson, they both went to the same middle school, Parras Middle, and were able to become good friends, allowing them to develop a strong relationship even before dating.

“We had science together in eighth grade and became really good friends. It started out like a normal friendship, but in January, we started actually dating,” Johnson said. “Covid didn’t really have too much of an impact on us since we would go over to each other’s homes even in middle school, so my parents were fine with it and pretty used to it by then.”

Some may have a unique tradition like Doe and Johnson, while anonymous seniors Olivia Martinez and John Smith, who have been in a relationship for about six months, have a more nonchalant idea of a perfect Valentine’s Day .

“It seems almost overkill to me. I like

by SARAH BRONSTEIN

W

ith this year being the first Valentine’s Day back on campus, many students delight over the sweet aroma of chocolates and rose grams sent from significant others and friends around school. With COVID-19 creating a barrier for students, now couples who’ve been together and celebrated Valentine’s Day previously carry their past traditions with them into this year.

Starting as friends from middle school, anonymous sophomores Jane Doe and Maria Johnson have been in a relationship together for over a year. The two have unique Valentine’s Day traditions which they look forward to each year.

“Usually we give each other a present based on some kind of inside joke as

LOVE

is in the air

Couples discuss their Valentine’s Day traditions getting my girlfriend gifts and flowers and all that but I just feel like since that’s the entire point of the holiday, it makes it seem like getting gifts or doing small gestures on any other day is weird,” Smith said. “Our tradition is watching movies, eating chocolate and being with each other.”

Because of the pandemic and not being in school for so long, some students found it much more challenging to maintain healthy relationships. Some parents have stricter Covid protocols which pushed on that.

Anonymous senior Ellie Ford has parents who are very cautious about COVID-19 in their household. Despite their overprotectiveness, she has been in a long distance relationship, for almost a year and a half.

“It’s hard sometimes not being able to see the person who [you’re in a relationship with] whether it’s because of different schools, or because of things we can’t control like Covid.

Still though, we always spend

Valentine’s Day weekend together, get frozen yogurt from Menchies or Yogurtland, watch movies, and just have fun being with each other,” Ford said.

With a vast variety of couples, students enjoy this day with all different kinds of traditions, or create new ones.

“It doesn’t really matter what happens around us because we’ve both been through so much. There’s no better reminder of that than on Valentine’s Day,” Ford said.

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DATA FROM THE NATIONAL RETAIL FEDERATION

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solidarity

by AMINA RAÏSS

J

ust 3.78% of the student body in 2021, that’s 118 of the 3,117 students, were Black according to the California School Dashboard. The city of Redondo Beach is a predominantly white community, so sophomore Reiss Collier wanted to have a community for Black people at RUHS where they can feel connected with people from a similar cultural background.

“It’s very nice to see people that look like you. I wanted to have a safe space for people of color, a safe space to talk and feel like they have people that look like them at school.” Collier said.

Collier went to Adams Middle School, where she encountered several incidents of blatant racism and other uncomfortable experiences.

“I’ve been called the N-word by several people. That was a whole thing in middle school. I didn’t think about it too much, because it was just ignorant people that didn’t

understand where the word came from and how it originated. Also, it felt kind of weird when we talk about slavery and that kind of stuff in history classes and everyone turns their head to look at us,” Collier said.

Collier first joined the Black Student Union in ninth grade, but unfortunately due to the constraints of the pandemic, the meetings took place on Zoom. The club didn’t have the same atmosphere as it would have in person but was still a “fun and enjoyable experience” for Collier. This year no one initiated the club, so Collier took it upon herself to continue the BSU. “Someone has to start it. I was like, ‘You know what, we should start [this club] back up again. Hopefully, people understand [that] having a community of Black people is really [important],” Collier said.

After restarting the club, Collier had little difficulty persuading her friends and other Black students to join. “[It wasn’t a struggle] because I feel like

The Black Student Union resumes their club meetings most Black people are aware of each other at this school but they just haven’t exactly met other Black people in different grades,” Collier said. “It was pretty easy to reach out and tell people, ‘Hey, I’m starting a club. If you want to come, bring your friends.’”

Some of the ideas brought up at the first meeting as future discussion topics include colorism, policing issues and how to deal with racism. The club hopes that it will attract many different people, all of whom can contribute to the ongoing dialogue.

One is sophomore Layla Saldana.

Saldana comes from a Mexican and Puerto Rican background. She is Collier’s best friend and wanted to come to show her support. In fact, she plans to attend all of the future meetings.

“This is something that she’s really passionate about, and I feel that she’s going to remake the Black Student Union,” Saldana said.

Saldana hopes to learn about issues that face the Black community and how to show her support to students who might be dealing with them.

“I want [Black students] to feel like they’re supported by other students that go to our school. I know that it can be important to not feel [like you are] on your own,” Saldana said.

While at the first meeting, she got a

glimpse into some of the problems Black students and their community have struggled with.

“Like hair [difficulties] in a workplace, to me, I would never really think of that as an issue or a topic [that needed to be] talked about. I was surprised that there were so many topics that I was not familiar with and that Black students have to go through on a regular basis at our school [and in the real world],” Saldana said.

Although Saldana isn’t Black, as a fellow person of color she can relate to some of the struggles Black people might face in their lives.

“For me as [a] Latina, kids like to make little racist jokes that they think are okay.

They would call us Beaners and stuff like that and be really disrespectful. They’ll make jokes about what food we eat or our culture,” Saldana said.

Despite the club’s moniker “Black Student Union”, students of all races are welcome to attend meetings and join the club.

The BSU meets every other Thursday on top of the student union, the next meeting being on Feb. 17.

“It’s a great opportunity to meet Black students on campus, make friends, and learn new things. If you want to come and enjoy interesting [dialogue], come and join, it’s gonna be fun,” Collier said.

14

opinion Boycott

BEIJING 2022

Chinese Government abuses human rights amid Olympics

W

by SARA MIYAKE SINGER

e all love watching the Olympics.

From marveling at the opening ceremony where the host country showcases its culture, to crying when superhuman athletes from obscure sports realize their dreams, the Olympics have always been a monumental event in our living rooms. Even those of us who aren’t the biggest sports connaisseurs can have fun watching. After all, they are supposed to be a time of athletic glory, international cooperation, cultural appreciation and patriotism. But this time around, I couldn’t bring myself to show this same excitement for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics due to the Chinese government’s inexcusable human rights abuses.

How could we celebrate this event promoting “international cooperation” when we shouldn’t be showing any camaraderie to the host country’s government? How could we allow ourselves to gape at the Chinese government’s performance they put on to cover up their atrocities?

The answer is we shouldn’t have and still shouldn’t. We shouldn’t ignore the Chinese government’s detainment of former Olym-

pic tennis player Peng Shuai after she accused an inner party member of sexual assault. We shouldn’t ignore the Chinese government’s imprisonment of at least a million Muslim Uyghur, Kazakh and Kyrgyz ethnic minorities who are allegedly “reeducated”, raped, forcefully sterilized and even tortured to death at camps. We shouldn’t be okay with the Chinese government using their own athletes as political tools by having a Uyghur athlete light the cauldron or giving Peng Shuai a symbolic role at these Olympics. We shouldn’t be complacent in their sportswashing, or sanitizing their reputation through sport, and allow them to flaunt their power to perform unjustifiable acts like these.

What we should have done and still should do is take a stand against China and send them a clear message that their actions will not be tolerated.

The United States, Britain, Canada and Australia have subtly acted upon this message by “diplomatically boycotting” these games. As the name implies, this, according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki, means that the US did not send an official delegation to the games. In the same press conference when this was announced, Psaki also explained that athletes were sent as “not to penalize them.”

While this is better than the 98 other International Olympic Committee (IOC) members’ doing nothing and shows some action against China’s policies, it’s not enough. Rather than sending China a clear message of rebuttal by refusing to cooperate with them, this diplomatic

boycott was more like a slap on the wrist.

We still allowed the athletes, the stars of the games, to represent our countries and essentially go along with this show of cooperation. In the end, nothing different really happened minus a few missing dignitaries.

But, if we did launch a complete boycott, it can be said that it would have been unfair to the athletes since they have nothing to do with politics. In a way, I agree.

It’s unfair to compromise their dreams because of China’s atrocities. But really, they already are being compromised.

The second China used their own Olympic athletes, including the Uyghur athlete and Peng Shuai, as political symbols, all of the athletes became political symbols and a part of China’s sportswashing. It’s unfair to the athletes that their performances got overshadowed by this.

These athletes deserved to be treated decently at an Olympics that isn’t marred in controversy over genocide. The Olympics should be about sports but with the Chinese government’s actions, they never were meant to be that way.

But, there is some hope. During the opening ceremonies, NBC commentators spoke of the Uyghur genocide with figure skaters Evan Bates and Nathan Chen also speaking out. These athletes and commentators bravely took a stance and spoke out even when it was risky. The United States should have done so too.

HIGH TIDE

STAFF EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Nadia Bidarian Chrissa Olson Meghan Jacob NEWS EDITORS Elise Haulund Erika Glass Sara Miyake-Singer FEATURES EDITORS Katarina (Haven) Beches Mia Dowdell Ruby Crosthwait OPINION EDITORS Allie D’Amato Emilie Takahashi ENTERTAINMENT EDITORS Heather Lee Zelia Lerch SPORTS EDITORS Ty Soria Jess Alvear WRITING EDITORS Simra Zargar Mia Schrift COPY EDITORS Romi Riss ONLINE EDITORS Ben Ringel Ria Lopresto Ansel Reyes Troy Nevil ADVISOR Kerri Eastham

STAFF WRITERS Kat Otey Micah McFadden Marlie Cornwell Stavyah Naveen Ethan Chi Sadie Simmons Marley Van Pelt Sydney Lamich Hadeel Azzam Lara Magdesian Lucy Davis Rome Kanouse Strachan Ambrosi Michael Aprahamian Ava Warman Ella Silberling Lauren Greene

Zoe Rossi Sarah Bronstein Ryan Parhizi Andrew McKenna Madison Kurihara Lauren Choy Laura Strazerri Rena Felde Erin Hartman Jade Montoya Nicolas Tomsio Yara El-Hasan Ethan Lerner Sydney Palmer Cristina Couch Scarlett Mische Charlotte Goldstein

PHOTOGRAPHERS Meagan Ching Pete Paguyo Spencer Rogers Celina Moreno Sascha Perdue Rider SulikowCollin Cruz ski Elizabeth Petrey IMAGE VIA GETTY IMAGES. OLYMPIC RINGS VIA FREEPIK

LETTER TO THE

EDITOR

by MICHAEL LEE-CHANG

I

agree that our school administrators deserve to be treated with respect, but my main criticism lies within the article’s conclusion.

It seems wrong to discourage any other future student walkouts simply because of the failures of the January 12 Covid-19 walkout. Neither “shouting in the face of an administrator” nor “forming a mosh pit with a Nicki Minaj flag” were planned to happen.

And all other “effective ways” of

ILLUSTRATORS Carly Carter Cecilia Aptiz

Katelyn Perry Heather Lee

Re “The Easy Enemy,” published on Jan. 28 addressing student concerns led nowhere.

I interviewed the two seniors, Ruari Root and Gisselle Frisby (spelled with two S’s), who were mentioned in the article.

After meeting with Principal Bridi, Root felt that the principal “dodged” and “dismissed” all of her questions. “It was hard to present [school being an unsafe environment] because he likes to deflect things a lot,” Root said.

As for Frisby, she felt offended by the district’s “invasive” and “harassing” behavior. “The next day [of speaking at the RBUSD board meeting], I was called up to the office during first period, and they asked me if I was okay, and if I needed

someone to talk to, and it was offensive because I don’t think I said anything that would have given the idea that I need mental help,” Frisby said.

Also, the superintendent and board president would not have met with me had the walkout not happened. Furthermore, I was the one who recommended Principal Bridi do a broadcast segment to answer frequently asked questions about Covid-19 policies. And to the article’s last point, I’m working with ProtectUS and connecting with policymakers around the state who, like me, are worried about keeping schools open but safe. (Jan. 31, 2022)

LETTERS TO THE

EDITOR The High Tide encourages greater input of opinions from both students and staff. If you have an opinion about one of the articles, letters can be sent to the editor at: hightideonline@gmail.com We reserve the right to edit for content, grammar and space constraints. Letters must be signed and are not guaranteed to be printed. Please keep letters to a maximum of 250 words. Longer guest opinions are also accepted.

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

OPINION 15

FILTERED REALITY “Instagram Face” and social media Filters affect people’s perception of themselves

by RUBY CROSTHWAIT

W

hether you’re on Tiktok, Snapchat or Instagram, chances are you’ve dabbled with the current most popular form of augmented reality–filters. Many of them can be used for innocent fun, like the ones that turn you into a Pixar character or decide which Harry Potter house is the one for you. And then there are the ones that give you poreless skin and high cheekbones, followed by catlike eyes and long, cartoonish eyelashes.

The image these kinds of filters project onto your own face have combined into a single, beautiful, addicting and entirely artificial, cyborgian face—as coined by writer Jia Tolentino, the “Instagram Face.”

When warped-reality face filters first appeared on social media (and became immensely popular with the launch of Snapchat in 2011), they were tacky, foolish gimmicks. Today, however, a growing number of people—especially teenage girls—are using filters as a tool to “beautify” their appearance. With ease, millions have, and will continue to, adjust their image to fit what they consider “the perfect face,” sharpening, shrinking, enhancing and recoloring their appearance into a

cross between Kim KarIMAGES VIA FREEPIK dashian, Madison Beer, Kylie Jenner and more. The environment created on social media by these artificial makeovers is incredibly toxic, an extreme ideal that fuels a cesspool of unhealthy mentalities and dangerous societal precedents beginning in today’s youth, reaching to unhealthy encouragement of physical altercations. And there is no respite to it, even for the ones who think they’re safe from brainwashing.

Beauty filters on apps such as Instagram are notorious for highlighting “Euro-centric” beauty features like lighter eyes and skin, a smaller nose and flushed cheeks, according to InStyle magazine.

This focus on the Caucasian ideal is hard to miss, yet there are mixes of features that make the “Instagram Face” ambiguously ethnic. Colby Smith, a celebrity makeup artist interviewed by The New Yorker, notes a “South-Asian influence with the brows and eye-shape, an African-American influence with lips, a Caucasian influence with the nose, and a cheek structure that is predominantly Native American and Middle Eastern.” The “Instagram Face” picks pieces of different ethnicities and meshes them together into a perfect ideal—an image almost certainly impossible to replicate naturally through makeup.

Experts say there is a “direct link between social media filters and lower self-esteem, self-confidence and higher cases of body dysmorphia.” Psychiatrist Josie Howard noted that, after using these beauty filters, “people begin to expect themselves to look like their filtered self and can become obsessed with achieving that in the real world, which leaves them depressed, anxious, lonely and disappointed.” For young women still navigating between their physical and digital worlds, the dangers surrounding degrading mental health from filtered expectations can be incredibly dangerous. MIT Technology Review also referenced a study by researcher Claire Pescott that found that while children today are “now often taught about online behavior,” they receive “very little education” about filters since their training more surrounds the “overt physical dangers of social media, not the emotional, more nuanced side.” Awareness and research surrounding the effects of filters on young women are disappointingly sparse, despite the way this toxic virtual reality has taken the world by storm.

However, I can easily admit, not all filters are bad. There are many fun, harmless and entertaining filters out there, and many of them are popular. However, they are utterly dwarfed by the amount of ones mimicking “beauty.” Caroline Rocha, a makeup artist and photographer inter-

viewed by MIT Technology Review, says that she sees many women on social media using filters religiously, as “they refuse to be seen without [them], because in their mind they think they look like that.” And even labeling photos that include artificial altercations doesn’t seem to make a difference, as Pescott thinks “it’s the fact that we’re seeing it, even though we know it’s not real” that is the problem.

So how do we minimize the damage as best we can? Sometimes, it can be as easy as shifting our attention to other content.

Since social media apps are echo chambers, designed to feed us the perspectives of the world based on you who follow and what you like, you can begin by following more people focused on body-positivity.

However, for a lot of social media users, this change of scene can be challenging since Instagram, besides being an echo chamber, is also a greedy corporation that wants the scrollers to keep on scrolling.

Social media moguls want you to invest more time on their apps, feeding on your insecurities and therefore tightening the filter chokehold on your self-esteem. Until companies like Instagram destroy their addictive foundations, or, on a smaller and more realistic scale, invest in policies that support mental health and deterrence from damaging beauty filters, it may be best to delete the app. Surround yourself with messages that accept the human body and face for what they are, before you end up taking a photo of Kim to a plastic surgeon.

Joe Rogan’s podcast is under fire for discussing controversial topics

T

by HEATHER LEE

he problem isn’t Joe Rogan.

Or rather, it’s not completely Joe Rogan’s fault. It’s not really his fault even if he doesn’t realize that in this post-industrial age – where the developed world has morphed into an amphitheater of people screaming about anything from 7 percent inflation rates to the validity of “My Little Pony” to the socioeconomic implications of grave robbing – averaging 11 million listeners per podcast episode means that he has successfully landed himself with the sweet burden of thinking before he speaks.

“The Joe Rogan Experience” sells “realness” and “what the mainstream media won’t tell you” in a conversational format, blurring the lines between a podcaster’s confusing role as an influencer and a relaxed, famous friend you’ll never meet.

This “realness” of course refers to Rogan’s gratuitous use of sexist, homophobic and racist language as well as the anti-vaccine rhetoric that has recently landed both Rogan and Spotify in hot water.

First, it was horse pills. Rogan never implicitly stated that ivermectin, an anti-parasitic medicine, had cured him (he actually said he’d “thrown a kitchen sink at [the virus]”) but a series of videos after the

comedian tested positive for COVID-19 led to FDA reports of hospitalizations due to misuse of the anti-parasitic medicine.

Then it was Dr. Robert Malone. Rogan invited the medical doctor and infectious-disease researcher onto his podcast in December 2021, creating three hours of medical falsehoods. Malone has grown a following of anti-vacciners and anti-maskers; that should tell you all you need to know about what he has to say regarding the COVID-19 vaccine.

270 outraged doctors and researchers wrote an open letter to CEO Daniel Ek that called for Spotify to strengthen its policies against misinformation. This came after Malone had been booted off Twitter for spreading misinformation and Rogan’s podcast had long been cemented as a pit of American “manliness.”

Immediately after, Canadian rockstar Neil Young announced that he’d be leaving Spotify as long as Ek kept Rogan around. A few other recognizable artists also left the platform, citing Rogan’s vaccine misinformation as the reason. Then Young began to lambast Ek himself: “Daniel Ek is your big problem – not Joe Rogan.” He went on to encourage all other artists and Spotify staffers to leave the company “before it eats up your soul.”

This reopened a conversation that had occasionally drifted its way into the mainstream consciousness every few years: Spotify is a stingy, stingy company. Artists everywhere, big and small, have wanted to flee for years. Joni Mitchell,

Crosby, Stills and Nash have pulled their music. There are rumors that Taylor Swift plans on leaving Spotify, too.

Spotify is uniquely positioned to trap artists. It has a massive user base and is a major music streaming service. According to Will Butler, a member of Arcade Fires, Young was only able to duck out of the contract by asking his label for a personal favor. For most other artists, they have to wait for their contracts to be up.

There were already too many issues tangled together to tease apart meaningfully: whether podcasters were content creators, artists, free to explore and say whatever they wanted, or held journalistic responsibility to at least check that what they were saying was true. Why Spotify had such weak misinformation policies when they were making an aggressive foray into podcasts (this was a problem waiting to happen!).

Why on earth

Rogan, who supported vaccines in 2020, would invite Malone onto his show. Why Ek hadn’t thought to find a way to prevent his precious nest egg purchase of the “Joe Rogan Experience,” a show notorious for controversy, from falling into controversy again. How artists are starting to look for streaming services alternative to Spotify, and if Spotify can win them back by apologizing while smiling winningly.

Taking advantage of the confusion to defend Rogan by accusing critics of violating the First Amendment was smart, for a moment, except that it made things much worse and took the drama over Rogan’s questionable guest list from a matter of adjusting policies to a struggle between the music industry and the artists being exploited in it.

It’s a PR nightmare of his own creation.

E IMAG

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IA UARD

HE G VIA T

entertainment Not a proper murder story

16

“Death on the Nile” doesn’t deliver what its predecessor, “Murder on the Orient Express,” promises

by RYAN PARHIZI

E

ver since seeing the exhilarating trailer, I’ve been anticipating Death on the Nile for a few months now.

I was hyped to watch the sequel to “Murder on the Orient Express”. I expected packed theaters on the release date but was welcomed by rows of empty seats. Still filled with optimism, I intently watched the beginning before my excitement for the film quickly faded.

Kenneth Branagh’s film adaptation of the 1937 Agatha Christie book “Death on the Nile” was a mildly entertaining dull film that lacked the suspense and depth of a proper murder mystery.

The film takes place in 1937 and follows the destination honeymoon of Linnet Ridgeway Doyle, a rich European woman played by actress Gal Gadot. Taking place on a Nile cruise, Linnet’s honeymoon is accompanied by a host of wildly contrasting characters, one of those being Simon Doyle, her newlywed husband that she quickly rushed into marriage with, having no regard for his lowly status.

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, PHOTOS FROM BBC AND IMDB

The Doyles find themselves in Egypt preparing to board a Nile cruise while Simon Boyle’s ex-fiance and Linnet Doyles’s former close friend find herself following them on every part of their honeymoon.

While boarding the cruise, Jacqueline de Bellefort, Simon’s ex-fiance joins the rest of the guests on board the cruise. Her presence adds an uneasy dynamic to the honeymoon and she stands out as the most suitable culprit for the unenviable series of deaths on board. This series of events lay the groundwork for the story’s plot.

Kenneth Branagh, the director of the movie, also played Hercule Poirot, an expert detective on board the Nile cruise.

Placed aboard the cruise in a seeming series of coincidences, Poirot uses a keen sense of problem-solving ability with a masterful sense of inductive and conductive reasoning when placing suspension upon individuals. Branagh’s role as Poirots is well-acted, even though the conclusions that he drew often left out the chance for viewer engagement. A proper murder mys-

tery should be filled with slight hints that reveal things about all the characters that would gradually draw suspicion to them.

This film only provided an extremely small handful of hints for some characters and much of the suspicion was only drawn to individuals after Poirot revealed facts about the characters that the audience would have never known. When watching a murder mystery I want to feel like I am in the same reality as the film but while watching this film I felt extremely disconnected from the investigation.

This failure stemmed from the film’s lack of character development. Being a sequel to “Murder on the Orient Express,” I expected greatly put together character building as well as fluid character dynamics that balanced a level of intimacy as well as personal greed. The film expressed some levels of potential greed among the characters but only at the final stages of the climax. Not only were these details introduced late, but they were also given with little backstory and explanation. The lack

of intimacy between the characters took away from the story’s depth and made the relations between the characters feel shallow.

However, the film excelled in cinematography and it proved to be the carrying factor of audience engagement. Often I would be drawn back to the film during CGI scenes that depicted grand ancient Egyptian monuments through amazing B roll. Not only did the cinematography add to the captivation of the film it helped place the setting and add a sense of realism.

But no matter how great the cinematography was, it wasn’t good enough to carry the entire film into greatness.

Overall, the accusations in the film were completely unpredictable and the eventual murderers seemed to be obvious from the beginning. I would give the film a 2.5/5; the film still proved to be somewhat entertaining for its two-hour and seven-minute run time but lacks the depth and suspense of a murder mystery for me to consider it a good film.

A show that doesn’t go down well with your sandwich

by SYDNEY LAMICH

A

fter shielding my eyes repeatedly, hovering over the mute button and finding myself huddled in the corner of my couch, you could guess I was pretty uneasy.

Given that I watched one hour of vicious, gut-wrenching cannibalism (literally) and people eating each other’s faces off — which was very graphic — I didn’t feel safe in the comfort of my own home.

The new popular Netflix show, “All of Us Are Dead,” is a South Korean thrill ride where it literally puts meat back on the bone. Any zombie-related story is relevant in a mid-pandemic world, and this one tops the shelves. Revolving around one teacher’s experiment gone wrong — which continues to infect the whole city — the series title says it all.

Trapped in their high school, a group of students, who used to talk about the typical high school crushes and homework assignments, try to outrun an ongoing zombie-virus outbreak. Childhood best friends Cheong-San (Yoon Chan-young) and Onjo (Park Ji-Hu) are the main members of the (now dwindling) group. However, to add to the strain, the two friends are stuck with Su-hyeok, On-jo’s crush, and his crush Nam-ra (Cho Yi-hyun). The only thing worse than a raging zombie apocalypse is experiencing it with your crush who doesn’t like you back — even on your deathbed.

When I first saw the brief description

under the title on Netflix, I thought it was another Squid Game. With 13 hours, 12 episodes, and 1 season of constant running, terror and vivid visuals, however, I was completely wrong. While it does resemble the fear of humanity seen in Squid Game, I did not expect the flesh-eating, zombified students chasing their former friends in a small high school, snarling for a bite.

Honestly, I couldn’t finish the first episode without pausing to take a breath. The graphics were too visual for my taste. While it wasn’t as visually appealing as I wanted it to be, the storyline itself was far from boring.

Most TV shows have that one filler episode where it’s downright painful to sit through but “All of Us Are Dead” tackles that stereotype with its effortless plot. Cinematographer Park Se-seung captures every struggling battle against getting eaten alive and chase scenes, bringing tension to the front of this viewing experience and leaving the boredom behind.

In the walls of the now infested high school, the zombified students don’t distinguish between popular and nerd, rich and poor, bully or victim, but as all viable meat.

This observation leads to the show’s most compelling relational conflicts.

In the midst of all this, teen drama still goes

on. The rivalries, occasional romance and friendships humanize the series and give the characters a will to live and fight while also givi n g t h e audi-

ence reasons to root for them.

PHOTO FROM VARIETY

Even though “All of Us Are Dead” modernizes the hugely entertaining, imaginative and thought-provoking undead armageddon, other zombie tv shows like the decade-old “The Walking Dead” and its parallel “Fear The Walking Dead” brings this compelling genre back to life. The adult aspect with two rivalry groups in “The Walking Dead” captured my interest more than teens fighting for societal acceptance. It felt more mature in “The Walking Dead” with an ongoing plot and more humor than the serious — almost too intense — “All of Us Are Dead.”

Although it doesn’t live up to my personal expectations, “All of Us Are Dead” surely seizes the zombified reality that viewers crave.

Let’s just say that I wouldn’t eat while watching this if I were you.

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

ENTERTAINMENT 17

Parked just around the corner

Jus’ Poke is a reliably delicious South Bay staple

by RENA FELDE

PCH can get a bit uncomfortable, but just turn your back and you’ll forget they’re even there; you’ll just have to ignore the noise too.

Unlike most other poke restaurants, they only serve ahi (tuna) poke instead of salmon and the flavor of the sauce is not customizable.

The array of poke flavors they have, sure to fit anybody’s preferences Photo courtesy of Rena Felde though, makes it so that you don’t even miss the customizability other places provide. hana-owned Jus’ Poke has resided The shoyu (soy sauce) poke stands as on the corner of PCH and Beryl for one of my favorites. I always find the shoyu close to eight years. It is a well-ratpoke perfectly marinated and chilled. I ed, local favorite.

Jus’ Poke is a small place with sunlight really love the salty shoyu taste that takes and fresh air all throughout. One of the over your mouth and also the bits of crunch walls consists strictly of windows fronting and flavor you get from the ogo (lace-like PCH and both doors stay open to allow bet- reddish-brown seaweed), as well as the ter airflow and provide customers with the chopped green onion and sweet onion.

The original poke upholds all the flaconvenience of entering in one door and exvors you’d expect, stripped down to the iting straight across. essentials, exempting shoyu–green onions, As I walked outside with my well-porsweet onions and choke ogo (translates to tioned, heavy servings of poke and sides, I noticed that my outdoor seating options lots of ogo.) When I tried the original poke, were somewhat limited. I was greeted I noticed a somewhat suspicious liquid, with a bench and two circular tables, each which I then realized was sesame oil. The stocked with a giant bottle of hand sanitizer sesame oil added a sophisticated flavor and and a package of anti-bacterial hand-wipes. tasted quite good. A solid base, but a bit too Umbrellas block out the sun, but the giant basic for me.

The Spicy Poke reminded me a lot of trees overhead already complete part of the flavor of a spicy tuna roll. The sauce that job. Overpowering the shop’s island music are the honks, revs and engines of was creamy, but still had an edge from the the cars rolling down PCH right on the oth- Jus’ Poke Spicy Sauce, which has a Sriracha type of flavor and heat. This poke caught er side of the sidewalk.

The frequent stops and curious stares me off guard with its tenderness. I associate from the passengers in cars driving down poke with firmness and a cool temperature, but the spicy poke I received that day felt

O

very soft and melt-in-your-mouth for some reason.

My all-time favorite flavor is the Cali Roll Poke. It has got the perfect mix of crunchy cucumbers, salty bursts from the tobiko (flying fish roe,) flavorful imitation crab, smooth avocado and creamy sauce.

I’d describe it overall as creamy, salty, and mellow. Spice is limited, besides the occasional green onion.

Both the spicy and regular edamame taste and feel pretty mediocre. The spicy edamame’s flavor reminded me of a sweet version of Korean kimchi and the signs of chili peppers in the sauce were very noticeable, which was nice, but the inside of the pods stood very bland. Both the regular and spicy edamame lacked salt and seemed a bit underdone, but luckily there are other delicious sides available.

Aunty’s Pickled Cucumbers have such noteworthy components. Right as you bite into the crisp spear of pickle, you get great flavor from the brine, specifically ginger and sweet onion. The cucumbers are cut into big spears too so each bite is fulfilling and full of the right blend of pickled and sweet.

As I was eating the varieties of poke, I was flustered when I found a piece of tomato. I soon realized the tomato came with the Tofu Poke. The Tofu Poke is not my favorite. To say the least, I found it quite plain.

The tofu texture was pretty good, more on the less firm side and not similar to poke texture, which is understandable though.

I do like that Jus’ Poke makes an effort to provide entrees for people that can’t eat Tuna, but the flavor of the Tofu Poke wasn’t mesmerizing enough that I would get the tofu instead of the real deal. The marinade reminded me of the one used for the Shoyu Poke. It felt like the marinade didn’t really penetrate the tofu well, just sort of hung out on the outside so the inside was a bit bland, but it might’ve just been a faulty batch.

In both the Local’s Wasabi Poke and

Wasabi Poke, the wasabi flavor was very apparent, especially in the Wasabi Poke. I noticed that there was tobiko in this one as well, but I don’t really think it fit with the wasabi flavor profile. Anyways, just one piece of that one and my eyes were tearing up and I felt the heat heavily in my nose.

I was struggling to keep my composure in front of everyone outside sitting at the benches; this poke flavor was too hot for me to enjoy it.

The Local’s Wasabi Poke wasn’t as noseon-fire hot. This poke is made with their Jus’ Poke Wasabi Sauce and with my first bite, the first flavor I tasted was wasabi, but it was mixed with other flavors too, unlike the prior poke, which felt like straight-up wasabi smeared on poke. I feel that it was much more balanced with salt and whatever else gets put into the sauce than the regular Wasabi Poke sauce was.

To soothe the burn from the wasabi, I took periodic bites of their Coconut Pineapple Ice Cream. For about five bucks, you get a pretty solid two-cup serving of firm, but creamy coconut goodness. There are noticeable chunks of pineapple and coconut and the pineapple flavor angelically cuts through the rich indulgence of the base.

The ice cream feels quite light with hints of coconut in the base itself. I was pretty bummed when I was told it wasn’t made by them, but regardless, I still enjoyed it to the fullest. This ice cream is totally craving-worthy.

Alongside the Coconut Pineapple Ice Cream, the dessert menu also includes many flavors of mochi ice cream. The flavors that they have vary from day to day.

I’ve eaten here a few times and my absolute favorite order continues to be the Cali Roll Poke, Shoyu Poke, Aunty’s Pickled Cucumbers, seaweed salad and white rice.

If you’re walking to the plaza after school for some lunch, walk an extra point 2 miles to enjoy a satisfyingly balanced meal and give Jus’ Poke a try.

The new Ghostbusters reboot still falls short

by SCARLETT MISCHE

“

If there’s something strange in your neighborhood, who ya gonna call?”

I’m not really sure who I’d call anymore. These new “Ghostbusters” don’t seem very reliable.

These are the things you should know going into this movie: “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” starts off with Callie Spangler, a single mom and daughter of original ghostbuster, Egon Spangler, and her two children receiving an eviction notice. Unable to pay rent, the family moves into a (spoilers ahead) deceased Egon’s home in a small Oklahoma town.The protagonists of this movie are Spangler’s grandchildren who discover the secrets behind their grandfather’s legacy and face an eerily similar battle to the one that the original Ghostbusters faced all those years ago.

This movie is a direct continuation of the first two “Ghostbusters” movies, getting rid of the female “Ghostbusters” movie that came out in 2016. The concept for this movie was great, and overall I felt that the actors certainly did their part in contributing to it.

This movie was, in one word: captivating. My attention was constantly being drawn into the movie and even if I was being drawn in for the wrong reasons, I was still motivated to continue watching. I wouldn’t say that it was always bad, more just that there were some very noticeably bad parts throughout it that distracted me from the parts that were good.

I liked the original “Ghostbusters” and would watch it on occasion, but my opinion

had never been very strong. I did like the comical aspects of it and I thought that the script was very cleverly written. But, overall it was always sort of just in the middle of the pack for me. It wasn’t amazing but it was in no way terrible. It was just there.

The two sequels that followed it on the other hand fell short of the original. They were both lame in comparison to the first one and I always have a hard time making it through longer than 30 minutes of either movie.

Slightly better than the previous sequels, this film scored points with audiences by bringing the old ¨Ghostbusters¨ cast back, and the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man (a giant marshmallow man who in the original movie was supposed to be the “destructor of worlds”) returned in the form of tiny marshmallows, something that I personally found to be adorable. Overall this movie was a relatively nice addition to the classic Halloween series.

On the downside, its plot is the same as the original’s albeit with new elements, characters and settings. On top of that, there are some questions that you are left wondering throughout the movie that it doesn’t seem we will be getting an answer to anytime soon, such as (minor spoilers ahead): “Who was the mother of Egon Spangler’s daughter?” and “Chronologically, Spangler’s daughter should be in her 40’s which would overlap with the timelines of the previous Ghostbusters, so why is it that she was never mentioned?”. There was also a bunch of awkward romance sub-

plots, including but not limited to a attempt at recreatweird demon sex scene. ing the original The older pairing in movie. the movie (Played I may have

by Paul Rudd and appreciated it if Carrie Coon) was there had been trying to mirror more diversithe romance in the ty between original ¨Ghostthe origbusters¨ too hard i n a l and the younger pairmovie ing (Finn Wolfhard a n d and Celeste O´Conthis one. nor) was desperate to A few entertain a younger scenes refaudience. Both of the erencing the couples had a nice coold cast would medic chemistry, but have been nice, PHOTO BY ENTERTAINMENT ACCESS that didn’t translate but there weren’t into a convincing romantic just a few scenes, the relationship. references were endless throughout the The next thing that bothered me was movie. Even though I found it annoying that some parts of this movie seemed out of that this new movie didn’t seem to be goplace and were trying too hard to cater to- ing for its own identity, it was a movie that wards too many different types of people. It grabbed my attention and I would watch is desperate to bring in a younger audience it again. The mini stay puft marshmallow while still appealing to its older followers, men were my most favorite part of the movwhich makes it seem very back and forth. ie and they alone could make any movie This movie was desperate for the feel of the amazing (seriously they were so cute). original yet having combined with newer Overall, the positive aspects of this elements, it just missed the mark at reach- movie outweigh the negatives. The weak ing its intended vibe. parts of this movie were an annoyance in Strong acting made this movie exciting comparison to the worthwhile parts which to watch but it would’ve been better to have is what made this movie ultimately an enmore originality included. The plot, a lot joyable experience. I would recommend of the important dialogue, and the general this to anyone who is looking for a nostalgic vibes of the movie seemed to be a desperate experience.

18 DOWN TO THE WIRE sports

Softball starts off the season strong with two close games against Aliso Niguel and Beckman

by TY SORIA

B

oth of the RUHS Girls Softball games came down to the wire on Saturday, Feb. 12 in the Savannah Tournament. The first game went their way, as they beat Aliso Niguel 3-2, but lost to Beckman 3-4.

Catcher and outfielder Kayla Roe, sophomore, scored the go-ahead two runs on a double against Aliso Niguel in the final inning. With two outs and the game on the line when she stepped up to the batter’s box, Roe envisioned her success and stayed calm enough to make a clutch hit for her teammates.

“I had a lot of adrenaline. When I stepped in it was a really tight game I just thought to myself, ‘This is your time to go, and you’ve got to do it now,’” Roe said.

Late game rallies helped RUHS stay in both games because they scored two runs to tie Beckman in the top of the 7th inning, as well. By stringing together hits and walks, the offense has a better output of runs and it gives the next batters more confidence.

“Our coaches have been telling us how we need to keep working on making strings of hits, and that’s what we did this weekend,” Roe said. “We got a lot of hits back to back, and that’s how we gained momentum to get runs.”

In the game against Beckman, the two run rally was not enough to get the game to extra innings. In the bottom of the 7th, Beckman won on a walk-off squeeze bunt as the runner on third beat out the throw

to home.

While the strong offense helped RUHS catch up to the other teams, the pitching kept the games competitive. As a catcher, Roe believes that Sea Hawk pitching styles mix together well during games, as they have different speeds and different movements on their pitches.

“The way that the pitchers all work together controls the flow of the game and throws off the other teams naturally,” Roe said.

Although all the pitchers on the team are relatively young this year, they are adjusting to varsity level quickly, according to senior Sydney Inana, a middle infielder and captain.

“We have a lot of young pitchers on our team, but I think they are really good.

We were playing against Division I and II teams, and they are definitely hanging in there well with them,” Inana said.

As they competed against high level teams in this tournament, Inana feels confident in their chances at winning Bay League this year, with Culver City serving as what she believes as their largest obstacle.

“Last year we went undefeated in the Bay League, so this year we’ve been placed with very high expectations,” Inana said.

“I know that Culver City is a really strong team this year, they are gonna be our biggest competitor for the title, but I think we’re gonna do really well.”

Sophomore Sarah Shurtleff starts the game pitching against North Torrance.

PHOTO BY KEARA ANTONELLI

Sophomore Catherine Wong scores the go ahead run against North Torrance.

PHOTO BY KEARA ANTONELLI

Track competes against Long Beach Wilson in Paarlauf Relays

by LAUREN GREENE

R

UHS Track competed against Long Beach Wilson High School in a Paarlauf Relays on Feb. 5. In the first heat, the single Wilson team came in first, while the four RUHS teams who participated took places two through four. The team who came in second finished with a time of 21 minutes and 42 seconds.

The Paarlauf Relays consisted of several heats of four teams total with five people each. Each person ran eight 200s, or half a lap, and the teams were timed based on the baton moving around the track.

“For us this race is kind of like a workout; we don’t really peak in this [type of] race,” co-captain and senior Julia Butler said. “So I think for where we are right now in the season, it went really well. We’re not usually sprinters, but I think we pulled our own pretty good. I think we will get faster throughout the season.”

According to sophomore Ruby Forshey, the Paarlauf Relays were more of a preseason meet to “get everyone in shape.” Thus, everyone had to participate in the meet, meaning different specialists (boys and girls) all were included in this race, “even people who don’t do sprinting” (cross country runners, high jump or long jump individuals, etc). However, now that they “are in real season,” everyone is starting to divide a little more and practice their own specialty.

As this was the first track meet that the whole team ran together this year (the previous one canceled due to COVID-19), the runners noted both their achievements and areas where there was room for progress. “[To improve our speed], we need to just

focus more and keep pushing ourselves and not give up when we get tired,” Magdesian said.

Butler agreed that “speed is one thing” they can work on, in addition to baton handoff. But overall, she noted that their “endurance was good.”

Forshey, who recently switched from softball to track, and thus competed for the first time in this meet, noted that for her,

“

We just pushed through, and by time we were done, it felt really rewarding.”

RUBY FORSHEY SOPHOMORE

the hardest part was the lack of rest time the runners receive in this specific type of race. As soon as the runners “get the baton, [they] just have to go.”

“Since it’s so hard during the race, it feels so rewarding once it’s done,” Forshey said. “We just pushed through, and by the time we were done, even though it was hard, it felt really worth it.”

Forshey added that “something that

stood out” to her in track is that “everyone is super encouraging.” While the races are challenging, Forshey finds it motivating when her teammates are running alongside her, making the team spirit one thing she values within the sport.

Magdesian also said that to prepare for the rest of the season, the training they are doing currently includes alternating long runs with workouts on the track every other day, but individuals also specialize and train in different events.

“We usually have two groups, the 1600 aspiring runners and 800 aspiring runners,” Butler said. “The 800 people usually do 400s or 200s- quicker work; and the 1600s groups usually do longer intervals that focus more on distance.”

Forshey added that each workout is customized to the specific events of each group within the track team, such as training in the weight room on Mondays and Wednesdays and “everyone splits into their own groups. For her specifically, Forshey does “sprint work and drills” while groups like pole vaulters and discus train in ways specific to their needs and skills. The track team competed again on Feb. 19. against Torrance High, and their following meet will be on Feb. 26 at Brea High School.

While the track team did well at the Paarlauf Relays, according to Butler, she believes the team will perform even stronger at their upcoming meets.

“The training that we are doing right now will probably prepare us pretty well for the next meets,” Butler said. “We will be running mid distance, which is what we’re

all a little more equipped for. So that’ll probably be catered better toward us.”

Freshman Adam Divinity runs 200 meters before passing the baton to a teammate.

PHOTO BY HARRY LONSDALE

Senior Chris Waligorski, a long distance runner, sprints at Paarlauf Relays.

PHOTO BY HARRY LONSDALE

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

SPORTS 19

Locked In All 12 members of Boys Wrestling qualify for CIF playoffs after Bay League Tournament, eight of them finishing first

by JESS ALVEAR

O

that really shows when we On Saturday get to tournaments," Ikeda Feb. 5, Boys said.

Wrestling comLast week, the boys lost peted in an individual Bay the Division IV Southern League tournament at Section team dual meet, Mira Costa, with all twelve where the guys competmembers of the team ed against 14 opponents advancing to playoffs. in their individual weight Wrestling is bracket style, class. Moving forward to meaning competitors have playoffs, Blair believes goto climb up the bracket ing back to "simple techand keep winning in order nique" is going to be cruto get first place. In order cial. for the boys to continue to "We are working on CIF playoffs, they needed neutral positions in practo place top three in their tice. Both people start on bracket, according to seThe team celebrates on the mats of Mira Costa after the end of the tournatheir feet, and when one ment. PHOTO COURTESY OF BREVIN BLAIR nior Brevin Blair. person takes another per"This is my first time Kaplan, Mario Ikeda, Jacob Heaslet and making playoffs and my last season wres- Tate Lowry all placed first in their weight son down, the person on the bottom needs to try to escape and get back up on their tling. There's only a couple weeks left of the class. season, so I feel especially motivated to do "Watching Connor Kaplan and Brock feet,” Blair said. “Any technique that helps us get out of those situations and help us well, and that's really pushing me through win a match are all worth practicing," Blair the close matches," Blair said. said.

Individuals compete in their weight On Feb 11. and 12, the boys competed class against opponents like Santa Monica, in the first round of CIF playoffs, a two day Beverly Hill and Mira Costa. According to tournament. Ten wrestlers advanced to senior Mario Ikeda, observing their oppoWe just have to continthe second day of the tournament. Five of nents prior to going against them was key ue pushing and working the twelve wrestlers advanced to Masters, to winning matches. which took place at Sonora High School "We looked at what other teams did, hard especially because last Friday. Blair, who placed the highest at and we either took the techniques we could no match from here on CIF in Redondo in four years, believes that from them or learned what we shouldn't do out is going to be an the guys' hard work ethic is the most imbased on how they performed,” Ikeda said. portant thing moving forward.

“We always reflect on how the whole team easy one."

"I'm just super proud of all the guys. We does, and I think that's really effective so had a couple freshmen and sophomores we can learn and make adjustments," IkeBREVIN BLAIR that have never done it before, and they did da said.

SENIOR really well. Now, we just have to continue The boys entered 12 people in the tournament. Every individual placed at least Morishige wrestle no matter what they pushing and working hard especially bethird, qualifying for CIF. Brevin Blair, Jus- place, I feel like they are just different. They cause no match from here on out is going to tin Ky, Diego Flores, Collin Cruz, Connor are always putting in work and practice and be an easy one," Blair said.

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Rugby wins three games and goes undefeated in their home tournament

by STRACHAN AMBROSI

O

On Friday, Feb. 4, Redondo Union Rugby hosted their second home tournament of the season playing against Mira Costa, Murrieta Valley and LA International Academy.

The team brought their overall record up to 13-1 after sweeping in their home tournament 3-0. With 2 weeks left of the regular season, junior Adam Elhardouzi knows that it is a team goal to win the Division I championship.

“I was on the JV team my freshman year, and we ended up finishing in first place for Division 3, and that same year varsity lost

“

We actually worked as a team being able to spread out, hit our gaps, and make tackles. Overall, we all just came together as a team.”

DEVIN MCDONOUGH SENIOR in the finals for Division 1, and now a lot of people from that JV team are up on varsity ,and we have a lot of chemistry,” Elhardouzi said.

Senior Devin McDonough earned “Man of the Match” for his phenomenal six tries in the three game tournament.

“My teammates were able to set me up for these tries. They had great spacing, and I was able to get through the open gap,” McDonough said.

Redondo was able to face off against school rival Mira Costa in this tournament despite Mira Costa being a 15’s team and Redondo being a seven’s team.

“Going into this tournament, I just wanted to beat Costa, and I would say my teammates had Senior Nathan Linares advances the ball against LA International. the same goal. We weren’t PHOTO BY ELIZABETH PETREY actually supposed to be “They’re coached really well, they had playing them since they're a 15’s team but they came down to play us for guys who know how to play the game and fun, and all I really wanted to do was beat they had a good record coming into this.

But we played probably our best game of Costa,” McDonough said.

Redondo started off slow at the begin- the year,” McDonough said. “Their team is ning of the tournament but was able to get really good, I don’t think we were even suppast it with their efficient offense and de- posed to beat them” Elhardouzi said.

Improvements can always be made, and fense.

“I think we did well in this tournament there is something that every team can get overall, but we played the first game pret- better at. Both Elhardouzi and McDonough ty sloppy, and the other two games we did think that the team can get better at tackpretty well. I feel like we actually worked as ling.

“You can always improve on everything a team being able to spread out, hit our gaps and make tackles. Overall, we all just came and personally I have to get faster, but as a team I think we just need to work on together as a team,” McDonough said.

Redondo faced off against Murrieta Val- spreading out, hitting our gaps, and most ley, who both McDonough and Elhardouzi importantly tackling. And all of that would believed to be their toughest opponent all help us get our goal of winning the Division 1 championship,” Elhardouzi said. year.

UPCOMING GAMES Baseball

Feb. 25 vs. Loyola Feb. 26 @ West Torrance Feb. 28 vs. Banning

Boys Golf

Mar. 1 @ Torrance Mar. 4 vs. Bishop Montgomery

Girls Lacrosse Feb. 24 vs. El Segundo Feb. 26 vs. Agoura

Boys Lacrosse Feb. 25 @ Notre Dame Mar. 2 @ Huntington Beach

Softball

Mar. 2-5 TNT Tournament

Boys Swimming Mar. 5 Relays (home)

Girls Swimming Mar. 5 Relays (home)

Boys Tennis Feb. 24 vs. Long Beach Poly

Track

Feb. 26 @ Brea Olinda Mar. 5 @ Los Alamitos

Rugby

Mar. 5 @ Los Alamitos

Boys Wrestling

Feb. 24-26 @ Bakersfield (state)

HIGH TIDE FEB. 22, 2022

IN-FO-

THROWING AWAY YOUR

SH T

RUHS students and college counselor Ryanne Martucci discuss posting underage alcohol use on social media

by ROMI RISS

C

lick, flash, and a moment of think if social media weren’t a thing, blindness. We think it’ll dis- there would be less teen drinking beappear after 24 hours, but it cause they wouldn’t feel the need to never does. Whether it’s on Snapchat post or show off because they wouldn’t or Instagram, pictures of underage see their peers constantly doing the drinking are everywhere on social same,” Jane said. media.

Jacob, a junior who also wishes to Students frequently come across remain anonymous, posts his alcohol their friends and other classmates use on his private social media pages. posting about alcohol use on public He says he does this under the idea or private social media pages. Ac- that his posts only reach and influence cording to sophomore Jane, who re- smaller and closer groups of friends. quested to remain “I only post the anonymous, posts alcohol itself, and featuring underI limit who can age drinking consee it, friends who stantly flood her I know wouldn’t I trust my friends and social media feed. screenshot it,” Ja“It’s so com- I know that they have cob said. mon I don’t even Jacob’s friends think twice about my back, but there is all participate in those posts. I that thought in thte the same activities think I see about and aren’t negafive or six a day,” back of my mind betively influenced Jane said. “When cause you never know or feel pressure I see people post according to him.

I’m glad they’re who else will see it.

However, as an having fun, but I athlete begindon’t think it’s a JACOB ning college good idea to post ANONYMOUS JUNIOR applicaabout it.” tions, Jane engages in social drinking there is always an underbut abstains from posting because of lying worry for Jacob. the “bad” implications it may cause.

“I trust my friends and “I don’t want my friends or class- I know they have my back, mates to think you need to drink to but there is that thought have fun,” Jane said. “I would feel in the back of my mind behorrible if a photo with me holding cause you never know who a drink would influence someone to they show or send it to. I can also drink. I’ve had friends try drinking never know what photos I may be in because they saw people post about the background of,” Jacob said. it who made it out to seem cool. It Social media and the online world makes me sad because too many stu- are permanent. Snapchat’s twentydents believe they need alcohol or four-hour private stories are easily other substances to have fun or be ‘cool’.”

According to “Influence of Social Media on Alcohol Use in Adolescents and Young Adults” published under Alcohol Research Current Reviews, observation of peers participating in dangerous activities, whether it is online or offline, impacts adolescents’ interest in alcohol consumption. The study also claims that adolescents who interpret alcohol use as normal through media exposure, traditional or social, are more likely to engage in alcohol use.

“There definitely is a lot more pressure from social media. People are posting to show off. I

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spread with one screenshot and private accounts on Instagram can always be shown to others. But, the threat of public profiles and public posting is much more significant.

Redondo Union College Resource Counselor and former admissions counselor at Loyola Marymount University, Ryanne Martucci says that she worries that “bright” students’ actions may come back to “haunt them.”

“As private as Snapchat might be, all it takes is one screenshot to ruin your reputation. Anything that’s public, colleges are able to see. At certain times when we would Google a student, we would find their social media and we had the right to look at it if the page is public” Martucci said.

With colleges and future employers

having the ability to find social media accounts, being responsible and avoiding posting illegal activities is crucial according to Martucci.

“I’ve seen it happen in the past, not just for college admissions but in college in general,” she said. “Students who might want to be class president or a student who might want to engage in ASB can have their reputations ruined by one screenshot.”

Martucci knows that underage drinking is inevitable, but hopes that students will be “smart” if pressured by peers.

“You have to make your own decisions, and although you might feel the pressure, it is up to you what to do and what’s right for you,” Martucci said. “This is the prime time in your life to surround yourself with people who agree with your values, who value and believe in the same things.”

ILLUSTRATION BY CARLY CARTER