‘Nothing left’: Madagascar’s devastating drought

Southern Madagascar is on the brink of being in the world’s 1st climate changedriven famine in modern history. This devastating drought is affecting smallholder farmers, villagers, children, plants, animals and saldy most of the individuals within the communities. The word “Kere,” meaning hunger, echoes around Madagascar, and for the past four years, this lack of food has become constant.

In Madagascar, there are two different seasons. There is the summer, with a large amount of rain, and there is the winter, which is extremely dry. But there is not much difference between these two seasons anymore. The severe lack of rain, depleting food sources, dried up rivers and sand storms render farmable land infertile. In the hardesthit communities, people have been forced to eat wild cactus leaves and tubers to survive.

In the article “S. Madagascar on the verge of climate change-induced famine: How to help,” Patrick Vercamme, the World Programme’s emergency coordinator says, “Having sandstorms in this kind of landscape is not something usual and having the effects of sandstorms shows that nature is changing, the environment is changing, and that climate change is affecting this area.”

The situation has also led to widespread malnutrition affecting over 1 million people being classified as “catastrophic” by the United Nations. According to the World Food Programme and UNICEF, at least half a million kids are acutely malnourished and already are in severe condition, having irreversible damage to their growth. Madagascar has only produced 0.01 percent of the world’s annual carbon emissions for the past eight decades yet is suffering the worst effects.

“It is not fair...these people have not contributed to climate change because they do not have electricity, they do not have cars etc., and they’re paying probably the highest price in terms of the consequences of climate change,” country director of the World Food Programme in Madagascar Arduino Mangoni said.

As the climate warms, Madagascar is expected to grow even hotter causing more frequent drought, only worsening the situation. David Beasley, executive director of the World Food Program, told The Associated Press in an interview that what’s happening in Madagascar is “the beginning of what we can expect” to see as the effects of global warming become more pronounced.

“Madagascar was heartbreaking,” Beasley said. “It’s just desperate.” People have been reduced to selling their household pots and pans to try to buy food. We are urged to consider this really big problem, and how it could bring a fast impact to any population. Donating is an immediate solution, but longer term, there needs to be understanding on how to mitigate climate change. “In many ways this can be seen as a very powerful argument for people to change their ways,” said Dr Rondro Barimalala, a Madagascan scientist working at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Currently, The World Food Programme is working together with the Malagasy government to alleviate some of the needs in this region by preventing and treating children experiencing malnutrition. This is one step towards many that are being taken in order to help and prevent climate change issues around the world.

Cat Ohle

photo by Jules Bosco

It has become popular for people today to be using online “trading” as ways to shop. Facebook Marketplace, Craig’s List and Bedlist are all similar sites that are used to purchase items locally and meet face-toface with the seller. However, meeting with strangers to purchase items has sadly become life threatening.

On Nov. 1, Chicago (CBS) reported “A man was robbed at gunpoint after he thought he was meeting a buyer through Facebook Marketplace, and it was all caught on camera.” Mohammed Addil attempted to sell his phone over Facebook Marketplace in a public spot, but when he made contact over the phone with the seller, the “women” guilt tripped Addil by saying she is disabled and cannot drive. She then asked him to meet her near her house. Addil fell for the trick and went near her house to do the swap. A man showed up where he was told to come, then suddenly the gun was pulled on him. The man was threatening Addil to give him the phone. He stood there frozen not knowing what to do. Because it was captured on security cameras, police were able to arrest the culprit.

“I was interacting with that person – somebody else came from my back and pointed a gun towards my head,” Mohammed Addil says.

Unfortunately, Chicago CBS reports, “It would not be the first time. At least six people selling items through social media have been robbed since September – all within a oneblock radius in South Chicago.” This is why it is crucial to have extra precautions while meeting with strangers to purchase things. Fox News reported another story about a similar incident and also some helpful guidelines from police about trading safety. “Only bring enough cash for purchase, come with a friend, do not give your personal information and trust your gut.” They also state, “If the person you’re doing business with does not want to meet in a safe location, such as a police station, that is a red flag that maybe you should not be doing business with them at all.”

It is crucial to follow these guidelines in order to make sure you’re safe. If you catch any red flags from the person, either cancel the trade or at least be sure to meet in a public area. It is very important that you tell a family

Is online trading worth the risk?

Claire McGrath

member or a friend where you are going before you go to ensure people know your whereabouts. Always trust your instincts and do not doubt your gut. Most of the time you have an idea if something feels unsafe or not right. If you’re ever unsure, go over the precautions and see if you followed all the safety guidelines.

above: example of a trade safety sign. These are located in areas with surviellance to ensure safety of both the buyer and seller. graphic by Claire McGrath

“When she heard me speak my language, she’d lift up her hands and bring the stick down on me. I’ve still got bumps and scars on my hands.” -Musqueam Nation former chief George Guerin, speaking about the Kuper Island School.

In the United States, November is officially known as Native American Heritage month--a designation only made long after the month has already become synonymous with Thanksgiving. It is a time to celebrate the innumerable accomplishments and resilience of Native Americans. But as 2021 nears a close, Indigenous people have been forced to undergo another chapter of grief. 2021 brought back into headlines one of the most egregious acts committed against Native Americans in the Americas: the Canadian residential school system. The system dates back to the 1880s. In 1879, the Canadian government commissioned research to be done on the already-in-existence residential schools in the United States. These schools pursued a goal of complete assimilation, to “Kill the Indian, Save the Man,” as said by Gen. Richard Henry Pratt, who resided over a residential school in Pennsylvania.

So, having been inspired by the efforts of assimilation in the United States, the Canadian residential school system was established beginning in the 1880s. By 1920, all First Nations and Inuit children were required to be enrolled in these schools. The focus of these schools was not on academics, but rather on erasing all traces of Indigneous culture in the children’s lives. Students were punished for speaking their Native language, physically abused and even barred from communicating with their siblings. The schools were poorly managed, with issues of overcrowding and neglect. In 1907, it was found that a staggering 24% of First Nations children at residential schools fell ill and died while in school, according to the First Nations studies program at The University of British Columbia.

The title of “school” can be considered misleading. Life in the residential schools was nothing like that of public school children. The teachings focused on practical skills rather than academic, and as a result, many children were years behind in their education. Children adhered to strict schedules that only included academic instruction half of the time. The other half was spent on unpaid labor. Due to the schools being so devastatingly underfunded, their upkeep depended on the labor of the children.

By the 1950s, residential schools began to be phased out as church and state officials were forced to acknowledge their detrimental effects. Regardless, the last residential school did not close its doors until 1996. This would mean there are survivors as young as 30.

Less than 30 years after the last residential school closed, the gravity of their existence is still being unpacked. In 2021, the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation conducted a survey of the grounds of a now-defunct residential school in Kamloops, British Columbia. Their findings? The unmarked remains of 215 children. What came next was a domino effect of similar discoveries across the nation. As of September, the number of these unmarked graves is said to surpass 6,509 (Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies).

It is notable to acknowledge that the Catholic Church was involved in running many of these schools, and Pope Francis has declined to issue an apology as of today, even after being approached by Prime Minister Justrin Trudeau in 2017. Canada’s Catholic Bishops officially apologized in 2021. The church has still not fulfilled a fund promised in 2007 for reconciliation and healing.

It was not until 2007 that Canada established its Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). From 2007 to 2015, the TRC gathered information and testimonies about the schools, culminating in a 2015 report detailing the abuse, ongoing effects and further action needed. The result was 94 calls to action by the commission. As of June 2021, 14 have been completed (BC Treaty Commission).

Although Indigenous activists and survivors have been demanding action for years, 2021 marked a turning point in how the country sees these tragedies.

Sept. 30 is a day known in Canada colloquially as “Orange Shirt Day.” Originating from a survivor-led event on the grounds of the St. Joseph Mission (SJM) School in BC in 2013, it has become an international movement. The day’s namesake comes from the experience of Phyllis Webstad, a survivor of SJM. For her first day at the residential school, her grandmother bought her a brand new orange shirt. For Webstad, a new outfit was a huge deal considering her family did not have much money. When she arrived at school, she was stripped of her clothes and never got them back. “The color orange has always reminded me of that and how my feelings didn’t matter, how no one cared and how I felt like I was worth nothing,” said Webstad at what would become the first Orange Shirt Day event.

This past September, the Canadian Government declared Sept. 30 a federal holiday, the official name being “the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.”

In the United States, national probes have only just begun. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, who is Indigenous, began the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative in June.

The most profound displays of grief could be found across Canada, where children’s shoes were placed on the steps of these schools and other public spaces.

“I have had to live with the tragedy of the residential school for all my life,” Donna Dubie, director of The Healing of The Seven Generations, said to CTV News. “Nothing has been done to help us through the grieving process.”

above: An interior view of the school in 1946 as students sit for class at the Brandon School in Manatoba, Canada.

photo by Library and Archives Canada

above: A rock is painted for Orange Shirt Day, “Every Child Matters” quickly became a rallying cry.

What’s your funniest Christmas memory?

“We got a real tree and it was about 12 feet tall and it did not fit in the house. We were able to get it in, but we weren’t able to put a star on it and it was drooping in the corner of my house.” -Chole Berten 9

“For a family Christmas picture we decided to take pictures with this big Christmas sweater. We were all in it and my little cousin didn’t like it and she tried to break free. She almost fell but we were able to catch her. We also ripped the sweater trying to catch her.” -Bertha Espinoza 10

“On Christmas 2018, I was playing a game called fashion frenzy on Roblox. This specific topic was “popular,” and my drip was immaculate. But then some girl stood right in front of me, looked at me for a while, and started changing her outfit. She changed her outfit just to look EXACTLY like me. She ended up being first on the runway making it seem like *I* was the one that copied her. And guess what? SHE ENDED UP WINNING AND I GOT LAST PLACE. Right after she left the game.” - Isabelle Leonard 11

“My family also celebrates Kwanzaa and all we do is play board games together. One time, we were playing Uno and I put a “draw 32 card” in the deck and my uncle found it and actually picked up 32 cards before I could say it was a joke.” -Asia Gandy 12

How to write an email

Keira Jarrett

Do you ever struggle to find the proper way to email a teacher? Many teachers within the McAuley community have stressed the importance of having a well constructed email to faculty members throughout the year. In the article How to Write a Clear, Polite Email to a Teacher, the author, Jennifer Gunner, provides tips on how to write a clear and concise email.

When first putting together a message, it is important to be clear, brief and polite. According to the article, when contacting a teacher, “Focus on exactly what you want to say and limit the length to 3-4 sentences maximum. Anything longer than that should probably be an in-person conversation.” Many teachers are flooded with hundreds of emails each day, so reading a three paragraph email about your missing assignments is most likely not at the top of their to-do list.

Starting with the proper greeting is a key component to contacting an adult or teacher. It is important to use the correct abbreviation pertaining to their marital status. Gunner says that you should not, “...use overly casual greetings like ‘Hey’ or ‘What’s up?” and “Don’t refer to the teacher by their first name unless they have indicated that they’d prefer that you do so.” While writing out your thoughts and concerns, make sure to keep everything formal. This email is being read by a teacher —not a friend or classmate.

Keep in mind that while contacting a teacher, they are taking the time out of their day to read your email, so keeping a respectful tone is important. The article mentions, “There’s a fine line between explaining yourself to a teacher and all your grievances. Complaining to a teacher via email puts them on the defensive--and makes it unlikely that you’ll get the solution you want.”

Proper punctuation and grammar is crucial in your message. Gunner expresses the importance of this by stating, “Writing a welledited email is a nice way to show teachers that you respect them. It also demonstrates how effective their teaching is.” Showing a teacher you put the time and effort into contacting them will most likely get a more effective response, rather than quickly sending them a message filled with slang and improper language.

When closing your email, make sure to always thank the teacher for taking the time out of their day to help you try and solve the issue. Everyone’s schedules are hectic around this time of year, so to make everyone’s lives easier, having a well constructed email is beneficial to everyone.

Jo Gomez and Elena Fernandez

Jo: I’m here to tell you why Edward Cullen is caring, not creepy. Edward has, and will always be, the best option for Bella. Edward looked out for her from the start of the movies until the end. In the first Twilight movie, he put himself and his family at risk to rescue Bella from the car that almost hit her. Even though practically the whole school was in the parking lot watching, he risked exposing his vampire side by pushing the car away from her. He would stop by Bella’s room at night while she was asleep not to creepily watch her, but to protect her. Edward just always wanted to make sure she was okay. At the end of the first movie he entirely saved her by drinking her blood after the vampire James attacked her. Even though he did struggle to control his thirst at first, his love for her overpowered his desire for blood, and he stopped. Bella was a normal, teenage girl pitted against thousandyear old vampires who were constantly hunting her. Edward was extremely protective because he knew a young human girl could never outrun evil vampires on her own. Everything Edward did was for Bella’s benefit and out of love. As Edward once said, “No measure of time with you [Bella] will be long enough. But let’s start with forever.”

Elena: Sorry not sorry, Edward Cullen is a creepy stalker. When his relationship began with Bella, it was just loads and loads of creepiness and cringe scenes. In the first movie, it was a huge red flag when he was watching her sleep. The reason “I just like to watch you sleep” is not cute or romantic--it’s borderline stalkerish. That’s how it begins for stalkers. They look through your window, follow you everywhere you go to try and get to know you from a distance rather than just walking up and starting a conversation. Yet Bella took it as cute? NO WAY! The reason why the cops weren’t called and why he wasn’t exposed was because he was hot. He had his broodiness and mystery behind him that makes every girl want to know the deep depths of his soul that are nonexistent--you know, since he’s technically dead. This is called pretty privilege, and it’s not right because what he did was still wrong, but his behavior is just excused because he’s this attractive, glowing vampire. Are we also going to ignore the fact that he literally almost killed Bella in the first movie by doing EXACTLY what a vampire does? Yeah yeah, he was trying to save her life, but his vampire instincts kicked in and told him it was blood sucking time. Apparently that is considered a romantic gesture, almost killing the love of your life, but then again we are talking about Edward Cullen, the hunk of a vampire that teenage girls swoon over for just breathing. One last important thing to mention: his overprotectiveness was literally off the charts--not in a good way. His need to protect Bella basically tells girls that they need a man to be protected, especially when Bella was portrayed as this scared and weak young, teenage girl.

above: Elena Fernandez, hiding from creepy Edward. Hopefully he doesn’t spot her on the other side of the door. photo by Elena Fernandez and Jo Gomez above: “I know what you are.” Bella’s not the only one who knows what you are, Edward. Yeah, you’re a vampire, but it’s okay because I still love you.

photo by Jo Gomez

Nora Harvey

Lately, I’ve had to come to terms with my own delusion. As much as I hate to say it, I do care about what people think of me. As a society, we hold this quality of not caring about what anyone else thinks in such regard. To be free of any sort of human influence means the most respectable liberation, sending many people on a search for a liberation that does not exist. Indifference to what other people think will not result in the payoff we expect.

You could say the desire for being totally independent from what other people think has fueled--if not is--the backbone of all “ self-help” efforts. Like many, I sought to break from the chains of opinion. What I believed to be an honest effort to discover and understand myself led me to act like a dog chasing its tail. My greatest fault was ever thinking that the pearly gates of self-actualization was being able to say “I really don’t care what anyone thinks of me.” I would be a liar to say Sr. Nancy telling me she enjoyed my college essay didn’t send me on a months-long ego trip. For too long, I blamed my shortcomings in life on caring too much about what others’ opinions of me were, and I know I am not alone in that. With pride, I claimed to be free of caring about what other people think. It is generally seen as an accomplishment to reach this level of independence. That is where we are fooling ourselves. With envy, we watch people that we believe to not care, ignoring the near impossibility of that state.

True maturity and self-help comes from the acceptance of our own human desires. We will get nowhere denying our primal-like need for validation and affirmation. If you cannot accept natural instinct, how will you ever move on to accepting the more complicated parts of yourself? I got stuck on wanting to be that person other people envied, not realizing I was doing the opposite of not caring. I was caring the most.

A new mental health crisis is emerging, and experts have linked it to the popular video content app, TikTok. Pediatric movement disorder centers have reported an increase in patients with tics this past year, especially in teenage girls.

Johns Hopkins University Tourette’s Center saw pediatric cases of tic behaviors increase from 2% to 3% in 2019 to 10% to 20% in 2021. Experts in movement disorders are currently debating the cause of this rise in tic disorder diagnoses.

John Piacentini, a clinical child and adolescent psychologist, is one of the experts that believe that TikTok could be a factor in the rise of tic disorders. He has recently copublished a series of research papers on the topic of tics. Piacentini believes that 18 year old Chailyn Thorne, who has recently been suffering from paralyzing tics, has TikTok to blame. Thorne was not born with her tics, and there is no apparent medical reason for them. There are many creators on the platform who have Tourette’s Syndrome and create videos highlighting their tics. Trending hashtags like #tourettes have almost 5 billion videos. Piacentini believes that Thorne and other users are seeing these videos all over their feed and mimicking the tics of the video creators. He says that mimicry is natural, but the scale of this phenomenon is a reason for concern.

“They see all these influencers who seem to have very strong and happy lives, and Tourette’s has become infectious in some ways,” Piacentini said.

Many experts and doctors disagree with Piacentini. Movement disorder researchers have found that Tourette’s often accompanies another mental illness like Attention- Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an increase in mental illnesses, with rates of mental health problems in children in the UK jumping from 10.8% to 16% this past year. Dr. Joseph McGuire, an associate professor in the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Johns Hopkins University, believes that the increase of mental health problems is linked to the increase in tic disorders. However, he and other experts have not ruled out TikTok as a cause entirely. They are considering the possibility that influencers with Tourette’s are spreading awareness about the illness and teenagers are realizing that they also experience those symptoms.

“There are some kids who watch social media and develop tics and some who don’t have any access to social media and develop tics,” Dr. McGuire said. “I think there are a lot of contributing factors, including anxiety, depression and stress.”

Despite all of the research, the question still remains: is TikTok a trigger for tics?

Imagine a person is lying in their bed scrolling through social media when they look in the top right hand corner of their screen. Instantaneously, tragedy strikes; their phone is on 1%. Finding a phone charger for a phone in this state is crucial. This person looks where their charger would usually be and it’s not there. In months prior, they would have to dig through every pile of clothes, shuffle through every drawer, and search every square inch of their house until they found the charger. Now, with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) RFusion robot, that lost phone charger can be found in minutes. The RFusion prototype is, in the simplest terms, a robotic arm that can find missing items. The arm is equipped with a camera to help spot the item and a radio frequency antenna to communicate with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags. RFID tags are a development of battery-less tags that are to be stuck to an item for the RFusion to detect. The RFusion sends a signal from the antenna to the RFID tag to communicate where the RFusion is located. The RFID tag responds to the antenna with a signal Lily O’Connor

above: Graphic represents the percent of people who have Tourette’s Syndrome and another pre-existing condition. graphic by Lily O’Connor

RFusion finds key to future

Moira Cosme

to communicate where the item is located in proximity to the RFusion. This response from the RFID tag helps the RFusion create a spherical area where the tag is located. After receiving the primary signals, the RFusion moves around, exchanging additional signals with the RFID tag from different spots to get a more precise location of the item. Once the robot pinpoints the exact location of the item, it begins to move items that may be covering the item of desire. Once the item is seen by the camera, the robotic hand grabs it and verifies that it is the correct item. “This idea of being able to find items in a chaotic world is an open problem that we’ve been working on for a few years,” said Fadel Adib, associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and director of the Signal Kinetics group at the MIT Media Lab. In today’s world, it is not only easy for items to get lost, but it is easy for people to get lost in their day-to-day life. The RFusion robot provides a relief from that chaos by giving users an easier and faster way to find their lost items.

above: QR Code for demonstration video of the RFusion robot finds lost keys graphic by Moira Cosme