10-08-20 Emerald Media - Weekend Guide

Emerald Media

‘THIS IS MY AMERICA’

OCT. 8, 2020

Weekend Guide

TELLS A TALE OF JUSTICE

COVER: ‘THIS IS MY AMERICA’ BOOK REVIEW P. 3

A&C: TIK TOK CREATORS AT UO P. 4

PRE- GAME. PRE- ROLL. PREPAR START RAISING THE BAR.

JUST JUSTDOOBI DOOBIE PRE- GAME. PRE-ROLL. PREPARE.

PRE- GAME. PRE-ROLL. PREPARE. 1553 Oak Street Eugene, Oregon 97401 • (541) 345-8904 • KeepEugeneGreen.org @thegreenersideeug @TheGreenerSide

JUST DOOBIE Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug. For use only by adults twenty-one years of age and older. Keep out of the reach of children.

1553 Oak Street Eugene,EVERYDAY Oregon 97401 • (541) -345-8904 10:00AM 9:00PM• KeepEuge @TheGreenerSide CALL@thegreenersideeug FOR DELIVERY OR CURB-SIDE PICK-UP EUGENE STORE ONLY

Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug. For use only by adults twenty-one years of age and older. Keep out of the reach of children.

Army Officers inspire strength in others. Make Army ROTC part of your college experience and be eligible for a full-tuition scholarship. Join the team that makes a difference.

To get started, contact Darren McMahon at (541) 346-7682 or mcmahond@uoregon.edu For more information visit goarmy.com/rotc/aikq

1553 Oak Street Eugene, Oregon 9701 (541) 345-8904 • KeepEugeneGreen.org

1553 Oak Street Eugene, Oregon 97401 • (541) 345-8904 • KeepEugeneGreen @thegreenersideeug @TheGreenerSide Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug. For use only by adults twenty-one years of age and older. Keep out of the reach of children.

Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug. For use only by adults twenty-one years of age and older. Keep out of the reach of children.

©2018. Paid for by the United States Army. All rights reserved.

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COVER

FINDING JUSTICE VOL. 122, ISSUE NO. 15

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EMERALD MEDIA GROUP 1395 UNIVERSITY ST., #302 EUGENE, OR 97403 541.346.5511

NEWSROOM EDITOR IN CHIEF

Ryan Nguyen MANAGING EDITOR

WHERE THERE IS NONE IN:

“THIS IS MY AMERICA”

Francis O’Leary SOCIAL MEDIA AND ENGAGEMENT EDITOR

Jordan McMinn NEWS EDITOR

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Sarah-Mae McCullough SPORTS EDITOR

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Maddie Knight

In her debut novel, Kim Johnson writes about racial injustice within the criminal system. This is my America was published on July 28, 2020. (Madi Mather/Emerald)

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ON THE COVER

In her debut novel, Kim Johnson writes about racial injustice within the criminal system. This is my America was published on July 28, 2020.

(Madi Mather/Emerald)

CONTACT US

To contact the Daily Emerald with tips or letters to the editor, email: editor@dailyemerald.com

What if your family member was accused of a crime they didn’t commit? All the evidence proves they’re innocent, but they still end up behind bars and sentenced to death because of the color of their skin. What then? “This Is My America,” a young-adult mystery by UO’s Assistant Vice Provost of Advising Kim Johnson, explores what happens next.

The novel follows Tracy, a 17-year-old high school student in Galveston, Texas, who writes to Innocence X, a racial justice organization, every week hoping to free her father from prison — and death row.

The whole family knows he’s innocent: The evidence from the case doesn’t add up, and if the justice system actually worked, he would have been freed. Her family has faced discrimination since they arrived in Galveston, and Tracy’s father being accused as a murderer is set in people’s minds. Because of this, when one of Tracy’s classmates, Angela, is murdered, her brother Jamal is the prime suspect, despite a lack of evidence.

Johnson chose the narrative of Tracy’s father because of how it could impact all readers. “I wanted a wrongful incarceration story,” she said, “because I think that there’s a broader way people can think about ‘What if this happened to me? I don’t do anything wrong, what if someone thought that I did something wrong? And how much my life would change.’”

In the novel, Tracy follows a paper trail to root out the racist history of her town and discovers more than she bargained for – that the KKK is present in Galveston and her friend’s grandfather was a member, and a murderer. Grappling with the betrayal of her friend, and the white supremacy rooted in the town police force, Tracy discovers Angela’s true murderer and shines a light on the dark and corrupt corners of her town.

In an interview Johnson said her

inspiration stemmed from her experience as a UO student fighting for social justice.

She wanted to “give voice to an issue that I felt like wasn’t really paid attention to in the way that I felt that it needed to be.” She also found herself “really wanting to make sense of issues around Black lives matter and our criminal justice system beyond just thinking about police brutality.”

According to the NAACP’s website, “one out of every three Black boys born today can expect to be sentenced to prison” and of 1,900 exonerations of the wrongfully accused, 47% of them were African Americans, as of October 2016. “This Is My America” puts the wrongs of the criminal justice system at the forefront, and brings

In her debut novel, Kim Johnson writes about racial injustice within the criminal system. This is my America was published on July 28, 2020. (Madi Mather/Emerald)

social justice issues to the reader’s attention.

The book makes it very clear that no one should be discriminated against, and Johnson hopes to leave readers with that message.

“I hope that [people] find a sense of empathy and understanding,” she said, “either in more awareness on an issue, a call to action on an issue or maybe seeing their role that they play in their own community.”

Not many books can so effortlessly comment on social injustice while telling a captivating story, but “This Is My America” does just that. In the form of a mystery revolving around Tracy’s brother, the book sets the reader up for a thrilling tale of finding justice for the innocent.

Short chapters jump from one plotline to the next, keeping the reader on their toes and eager to discover the next piece of evidence. This fast pace combined with emotional scenes of betrayal, joy and romance rounds out the plot. Instead of a straight-up mystery, Johnson weaves in Tracy’s heartfelt connections with friends and family to tell a plausible story of a teenage investigator.

Young love also makes an appearance in the novel, but to Johnson’s credit it doesn’t overwhelm the reader. It’s clear the book isn’t about romance. Small scenes here and there round out Tracy’s character and show that while she acts tough and determined, she is human.

The mystery and nuanced characters will keep you hooked, but the book’s greatest accomplishment is the light it shines on racial injustice. I recommend “This Is My America” to anyone interested in learning more about the faults of the American justice system in the form of a fast-paced mystery. No book is a replacement for lived experience, but this one offers a slice of the experience that one Black family faces in a world of racism.

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A&C

WHAT UO’S TIKTOK CREATORS

REVEAL ABOUT OURSELVES

BY JENNAH PENDLETON • TWITTER @JENNAHPEN Though controversial politically and socially, university president Michael Schill and his handling do in Eugene, advocating for other US cities to adopt TikTok is quickly becoming a platform that churns of the pandemic. similar social programs. out cultural trends at breakneck speeds. There is Like the community itself, the content about UO Lastly, the absolute funniest TikTok found in any no doubt that TikTok is a huge community and is and Eugene is diverse and hard to generalize. A UO-related hashtag comes from freshman Patrick incredibly influential on young adults. closer look at some popular content related to our Walker, AKA @officialnoodleboy on TikTok. In the As a college town, Eugene is a city with a community reveals the humor and creativity of video which has almost 390,000 views, Walker perpetually young population. According to Ad Age, those within it. shows off a pamphlet he received from UO 42% of TikTok users are 18 to 24 years old, which Cassie Ott, a junior studying depicting the history of the university’s means there are bound to be some TikTok content communication disorders and mascot. The camera pans over 1923’s creators on the University of Oregon campus. sciences, is a student creator who mascot of an actual stolen duck Easily the most popular TikToker on campus likes to “make content that is named Puddles, 1932’s sad, sackis softball player Haley Cruse. She has amassed relatable” while sometimes like duck costume, and into the 650,000 followers and over 16 million likes with her making fun of herself along latter half of century with the bubbly content that features snippets of her life as a the way. Her underrated gem more cartoonish looking duck college softball star — with a lot of dance challenges. is a sweet and funny rating of mascots we have come to Cruse’s presence on TikTok represents the most the places she has cried on know. idyllic version of a UO student: talented, wholesome campus. She rates the EMU Then he gets to 2002, and spirited. However, just as university sports don’t as a 4/10 because there are revealing a monstrous looking represent all that Eugene has to offer, there is a lot “lots of people around” but anthropomorphic duck man more to be explored on the app in terms of how the she can also order Chipotle that looks like the mixture of creators of UO and Eugene reflect their community. from her phone — something a cheesy superhero and the Sifting through the hashtags #uoregon, most UO students can probably stuff of your worst nightmares. #universityoforegon, #oregonducks and relate to.

It begs the question that Walker #eugeneoregon on TikTok gives a broader Though @ asks for us, “What the fuck were we perspective of the content made by and for the worldeconomicforum is not doing in 2002?” people of the greater Eugene community. a Eugene local user, one Walker says that this video was It’s sweet to see the ways UO TikTokers TikTok they created about a diversion from his usual TikToks “LIKE THE use popular trends to depict their love Eugene’s methods of which blend comedy and political TikTok, a video-sharing social media app, for their school. A lot of videos are COMMUNITY ITSELF, alternative policing is an is popular among teens and young adults. commentary, but now that he is staying montages of their experience at UO, interesting reflection of at the dorms, he could see himself (Maddie Knight/Emerald) THE CONTENT ABOUT how Eugene’s values are with clips of their friends, football “making more duck-themed content.” games and parties with the likes of This wry review of UO’s mascots over the years UO AND EUGENE IS seen from the outside. The NowThis“Paradise” by Coldplay as background style video shows CAHOOTS workers, shows the quirks of the UO community in a way that DIVERSE AND HARD who music, depicting their time at UO as do crisis intervention, responding is funny and accessible. As TikTok becomes further TO GENERALIZE.” to low-risk 911 calls. The overlaying text a coming-of-age film. There is also no synonymous with youth culture, students like Walker shortage of content about Ducks sports explains how these mental health workers and Ott stand to represent the personality of the teams and athletes. help the most vulnerable population of the greater UO community to the outside world. Scrolling Other videos are less wholesome, depicting city while being a safer and cheaper option through these hashtags on TikTok will provide you a users’ lives as frustrated, busy students. You can than police. The comments from Eugene locals little perspective on who we are as a community and even find a few users expressing their angst toward are all supportive of CAHOOTS and the work they where we are going through the lens of pop culture.

Emerald Recommends 1987’S BIGGEST ALBUM Lately I cannot get enough of U2’s iconic album, “The Joshua Tree.” The New York Times wrote that the album “pondered 1980s America as both myth and presence.” The mythical soundscape of each and every song resonates both lyrically and sonically.

Many of our worlds have shrunk due to the ongoing pandemic, and this album just sounds big. I have been taking refuge in its cavernous tracks, at the loudest volume my neighbors can tolerate.

-Audrey Kalman

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YOUTUBER LINDSAY ELLIS Lindsay Ellis is easily my favorite creator on YouTube. Her video essays on films are unrivaled in their quality, humor and perspective. I recommend her video on the 2019 film “Cats,” an hourlong piece in which she seeks to explain the phenomenon of the stage musical and why the translation to the silver screen was such an incredible failure. Her thorough research and sharp sense of humor is the key to what makes her videos such a treat for movie nerds.

-Jennah Pendleton

“HARLEY QUINN” ON HBO MAX With an HBO Max subscription, I haven’t had much to complain about. There are quite a few hidden gems, and if comic books are to your liking, the animated show “Harley Quinn” might be for you. The show gives Harley a chance to become the hero as opposed to the Joker’s sidekick. It can be gory and crass, but it allows a typical anti-hero to have some character growth.

-Lucas Warner