Volume XXXII Issue 7 22 March 2024

Paranoia and Distrust:

Scripps Professor Reflects After Police Stop

By Ellen Wang ’25 and Alyssa Wend ’24 Editors-in-Chief

The Claremont Police detained a Scripps professor and seized their property without a warrant near campus on Nov. 27, 2023. The professor, henceforth referred to as Jaden Doe to remain anonymous, was pulled over on S. College Ave and 1st Street on their way to work.

Police officers asked them to throw their keys and phone out of the window, to which Doe initially refused and asked for an explanation. “At one point, I looked behind me, and they all had their guns pointed at me,” Doe said.

After getting out of their car, Doe said they were handcuffed and held in the back of a police car for about an hour while their car was towed.

“I was trying to record [the police] and also ask them, ‘What’s going on? Do you have a warrant?’” Doe said. “They were like, ‘We don’t really know, but your license plate was put into our system.’”

IN THIS ISSUE

The police refused to return their belongings and left with their phone, computer, wallet, and keys. After being released, Doe walked the rest of the way to campus. Once on campus, they faced the challenge of teaching classes without their belongings.

“I couldn't get into anything because I didn't have my phone or my computer,” Doe said. Finally, a staff member assisted Doe in contacting their students and canceling class for the day.

Doe had been attending protests in solidarity with Palestine in Los Angeles during the weeks prior. Following the events in Claremont, Doe stopped attending protests for fear of administrative and further legal retaliation. “I felt like a liability … on my phone are the numbers of everyone I organized with,” Doe said.

Doe contacted the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which confirmed the detainment was illegal. Later, the ACLU informed Doe that they did not have the capacity to take on the case.

“I was eventually able to talk to

people and connect with some really amazing lawyers because I figured out that [the incident] was connected to Palestine Solidarity protests,” they said.

A month after the stop, the police allowed Doe to retrieve their personal belongings from the Beverly Hills Police Department, other than their phone. The police still have custody of Doe’s phone.

Doe reached out anonymously to Claremont Faculty for Justice in Palestine about their experience. However, they hesitated to speak out more after seeing how the 5C administrations responded to campus protests.

“I didn't want to tell [the department] because I'm like, they'll just fire me … And the [arrest of] the other professor had just happened too,” Doe said. “It's just the tough thing about being a contingent faculty member, you're always trying to figure out how to keep your job or not lose your job. And I don't know if there's anything more that could have been done unless the entire institution of academia was different.”

Doe recently chose to inform the head of their department. “[They’ve] been really supportive,” Doe said.

In their own experience in graduate school, Doe was disappointed in how faculty avoided difficult conversations. “Part of why I am an educator is because I value an opportunity to talk about really difficult and politicized stuff with students,” Doe said. “I wish I had had more teachers and mentors that were like, ‘Hey, this thing is going on right now. It's political and we are going to talk about it because it's important.’”

Having difficult conversations is not new to Doe, and this particular topic is especially personal to them. “It's been a big part of my life differentiating myself and trying to understand myself as an anti-Zionist Jew,” Doe said.

Doe also recognized the role their privilege played in the interaction in their reflection.

“When I finally got out of the car … All of their body language changed. They still had their guns on me, but I could tell that they were kind of laughing,” Doe said. “There's other gendered stuff going on, but I'm privileged to live in this body when something like that happens because it could have gone down really differently.”

Although their phone is still in custody, Doe is grateful that they are currently not facing other legal repercussions.

“If that's all that happens, I feel like that would be the best-case scenario,” Doe said.

Despite this experience, Doe recognized the importance of continuing to take action.

“There's certain things I regret in terms of safety and my phone, but there's no protest or anything I did that I regret because I think it's really important to me to be engaged in doing something,” Doe said. “It's the tiniest drop in the ocean, but I'm just so consumed by anger and sadness at seeing hundreds of people being killed every day … If I have to go through that again, if it maybe helps one child access one piece of food, it’s worth it.”

“Underdressed

Uncompromising commitment to inclusivity and justice.

Ellen Hu ’24 • The Scripps Voice

Title VI Training: How Student Leaders Learned to Protect Their Voice

By Belén Yudess ’25 Copy Editor Intern

OnFeb. 29 representatives from Scripps Associated Students (SAS), the Office of Student Engagement (OSE), Scripps Communities of Resources and Empowerment (SCORE), and the LASPA Center for Leadership attended a Free Speech and Title VI training hosted by the Equity and Justice Leadership team. The team included Vice President Denise Nelson Nash, Associate Dean of Faculty for Racial Equality Mary Hatcher-Skeers, and former Assistant Dean of SCORE Marissiko Wheaton. This session allowed student leaders and administration to come together to discuss issues regarding free speech on college campuses.

Title VI was established in 1964 and, “prohibits discrimination and harassment based on race, color, or national origin in any federally funded educational program” (DEI Title VI presentation) including protection for students of Arab Muslim, Sikh, and Jewish backgrounds. Throughout the training, students learned about the background of Title VI and free speech, the kinds of speech protected under the mandate, and the difference between academic and free speech. By the end, students were able to apply their understanding of these concepts to case studies surrounding Title VI issues and the display of certain political posters in public spaces.

According to Vice President Nash, the purpose of the training was to assist students in, “learn[ing] more about the fundamental principles and educational aspects tied to federal and state regulations governing free speech and Title VI.” This was

supported by Dean Wheaton’s preface to the training, which addressed the importance of Title VI considering today’s political climate.

This intention was also reflected in the sentiment of student attendees who were previously unfamiliar with the federal law. “I personally didn’t know anything about Title VI before this,” said SAS Community Building Chair Geeta Karlcut ’26. “Especially with the recent protests on campus, knowing at least the basics of what free speech is protected on campus is incredibly important.”

This session occurred amidst ongoing tension between students and administration regarding the potential investigations into Scripps students’ involved in the protests in solidarity with Palestine. Scripps’ compliance with Pomona’s investigation, as well as the administration’s recent crackdown on the Motley’s poster policy, has led many students to wonder whether their ability to protest and speak freely remains protected.

Many of these concerns were discussed during the training, thus clarifying a few misconceptions or gaps in knowledge. Primarily, speech cannot be banned or punished when its main repercussion is making someone uncomfortable. Although harassment is not protected speech and is a violation of institutional policies, hate speech is technically protected. In regards to academic freedom, freedom of speech is protected for educators until it interferes with their ability to provide students with a holistic and hostile-free learning environment. Finally, Title VI cases are handled in a similar fashion as Title IX investigations.

In relation to the 5C demonstra-

tion policy, protests in response to someone’s race or ethnicity that physically blockade people can violate the demonstration policy and the code of conduct. Additionally, political or ideological posters or messages posted on an individual’s door are not subject to breaking the policy, but are when placed in other public areas without approval.

Although Title VI may not be as well-known, it is beneficial for Scripps students to be aware of its mandates due to the political activity of the student body. “Some school campuses in other states don’t have the same protections that we do under Title VI, so it’s important to know what we can do and how we can protest under Title VI and what we do that is not protected under Title VI,” said Karlcut. “Especially now, with the continued protests standing with Palestine that may be in opposition to what admin stands for or believes in, Title VI is incredibly important in protecting students and our right to free speech.”

Title VI has been safeguarding stu-

dents for decades. For example, the Supreme Court case Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) was just one ruling that demonstrated how free speech and Title VI positively impacted student activists. As Scripps students continue to use their voices to advocate against injustices, it is integral that Title VI conversations continue to ensure student safety and protection.

“[Though] the protests [in regards to] freeing Palestine are the most visible right now, protests and demonstrations have been and will continue to be the ways that students show their support or opposition to political issues,” Karlcut said. “Freedom of speech is not only a new issue, but will continue to affect all students in California throughout the years, so all students knowing their rights is important. I believe that the school should release a statement with FAQs about what is protected under Title VI, because it isn’t just the student leaders who need to know what Title VI is—every student should know their rights and protections.”

Who Is Ready to BeHeard: SAS Revives a Scripps Student Forum

By Lucy Jaffee CMC ’26 Staff Writer

On the evening of Feb. 29, Scripps students sipped bubble tea and entered a JellyCat raffle as they waited patiently for a unique Scripps Associated Students (SAS) presentation. When SAS members took The Motley Coffeehouse stage, students cheered to welcome the first BeHeard forum of the semester.

The SAS slideshow stated, “The purpose of the BeHeard forums is to offer Scripps students an opportunity to voice their concerns about their overall experience.” At BeHeard, students can offer their opinions on topics such as academics and campus social life, or express what aspects of Scripps they love and want to continue to see. “We want to hear students’ voices about anything and everything,” said Sabrina Kung ’26, member of SAS Senate.

Historically, SAS has hosted town hall-style forums, including BeHeard. During the 2014-15 academic year, according to SAS’s website, there were BeHeard forums titled “Fossil Fuel Divestment,” “Leed Certification,” and “Transgender Policy at Scripps.” A SAS Facebook post from 2012 invites students to discuss “Silencing and Tone Policing.”

However, BeHeard forums

stopped before any current students began attending Scripps. In Blessing Roland Magiji’s ’24 time as firstyear class president, they learned of BeHeard’s history from older SAS members. With Roland-Magaji heading as SAS Executive Vice President, the senate mobilized to re-introduce BeHeard to the community.

“It’s incredibly important for Scripps community members to exchange ideas, share perspectives, and help each other foster the tightknit and supportive community we are so proud of,” read one of SAS’ slides.

The senators projected a QR code that linked to an anonymous forum in which students could express their concerns. Answers trickled in, ranging from administrative feedback like “Why is Scripps the only 5C where only [the] student government can plan and host events?” to social requests like “bring back queggers.”

Students described Emotional Support Animals as under stress after a fire drill, which the Residential Life (ResLife) office had not notified the campus of. Others chimed in, expressing their discontent with the office. “ResLife hates students,” one submission said. “Why do they work against us instead of with us?”

In response, SAS suggested the next BeHeard forum focus spe-

cifically on addressing ResLife concerns. “It’s clear from today that people have different concerns best answered by admin[istration],” Roland-Magaji said.

SAS, as a liaison between students and administrators, proposed inviting a ResLife staff member to the next meeting. “I think it would be productive if students could voice their concerns directly at ResLife,” Caroline Sundal ’24 said.

Information collected at the BeHeard forum is jotted down by senate members to initiate conversation at regular meetings with the administration. However, SAS does not have jurisdiction to change campus policies directly. “Certain issues are swept under the rug because they aren’t under your purview,” RolandMagiji said.

SAS hosts weekly senate meetings in the Student Union on Sundays from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. that all Scripps students are allowed to attend. However, for several attendees, BeHeard was their first interaction with SAS since joining Scripps.

“I don’t feel like they have a lot of open meetings or ways to connect with SAS without becoming a part of the board,” Amanda Krausz ‘27 said. She believes hosting BeHeard forums more regularly, weekly or monthly, would be helpful for stu-

dents.

BeHeard was hosted in The Motley Coffeehouse where Scripps students frequently drink coffee while lounging, studying, and chatting with friends. Two students said that they attended the forum because they were already working inside The Motley and decided to participate. “This feels like a safe space for Scripps students and I hope other people feel that way too,” Sundal said.

Beyond gauging student input, reinstalling the BeHeard forum helps to inform future members of SAS. Information can be recorded about what topics were relevant during a given academic year if any resolutions were taken, or how issues have developed throughout Scripps’ history.

“There is a lot of institutional memory being lost by the cycle of students, and the forums give us the opportunity to archive student opinion on different parts of the Scripps experience,” Roland-Magiji said.

The forums can provide a safe space for Scripps students to voice their opinions on topical issues concerning the campus. With support from SAS representatives, hopefully BeHeard can facilitate meaningful change.

Belén Yudess ’25 • The Scripps Voice

The Associated Students of The Claremont Colleges Aspires For Intercollegiate Collaboration

By Belén Yudess ’25 and Ella Young ’24 Copy Editor Intern and Staff Writer

On Feb. 22, the Associated Students of the Claremont Colleges (ASCC) sent out their inaugural newsletter, marking the beginning of a collective effort amongst the 5C student governments to share community updates. ASCC is a product of the recent collaboration between the student body presidents from each of the colleges: Lily Dunkin ’24, Zane Yamamoto CMC ’24, Timi Adelakun PO ’24, Sanya Dhama PZ ’24, Henry Hammer HMC ’24 and Kayleah Tsai HMC ’24. The newsletter is one of the first of many initiatives that ASCC is planning to increase communication and relationships among the different campuses.

The January newsletter included updates, recognitions, and reviews of past activities that the respective governing student body wanted to highlight. Each page of the newsletter was designed with the aesthetic of its college in mind and promised an array of upcoming events to look forward to as the semester progresses. Features included recent acts passed by Pitzer’s student senate and the success of SAS’ “Enchanted Forest” party.

ASCC is a modified revival of a previous group, also known as the Associated Students of the Claremont Colleges, which acted separately from student governments and consisted of elected representatives from each college. This version of ASCC was replaced with an institutionalized collaboration, The Claremont Colleges Services (TCCS), post-pandemic shutdown.

Despite this change, Dunkin strives to maintain the values of ASCC’s predecessor alongside its other members. “What we’re trying to do this year is to institutionalize some element of connection between the individual governments of the five schools in some sort of shared governance model,” she said.

Dunkin notes that the idea to recreate ASCC was sparked as the different presidents began to establish meaningful relationships

with one another over shared weekly dinners. “It’s a wonderful community that we’ve been able to facilitate by regularly meeting … because we actually like each other,” she said.

What started as informal social meetings proved to have lasting definite effects on the respective student governments; this alerted Dunkin and the other presidents to the importance of having an intercollegiate organization like ASCC. “The reality is that at some point there will be presidents that don’t all just hit it off, yet it was so invaluable to have this kind of meeting,” she said. “So what we’re doing is we’re setting up dialogue and exchanges between the 5C’s that’s institutionalized.”

The structure of the new ASCC is founded on principles of trust, teamwork, and transparency between the student governments, their administration, and their student bodies. It was these very principles which led to the beginning of the newsletter.

“The way we institutionalize this is by making sure that there’s an administrator that’s calling the meeting,” Dunkin said. “The monthly newsletters were born out of that: to encourage 5C initiatives.” This attempt at collaboration was apparent in an additional staple of

the January newsletter: two surveys from Pitzer to gauge 5C interest in a Disability Studies minor and opinions regarding mental health at the 5Cs.

As the newsletters continue to roll out and ASCC develops further, Dunkin’s goal is to ensure that these systems are established for future generations of Scripps and 5C presidents.

“Right now we’re in the midst of elections at all of the colleges so we have this transition period where we have the new elected representative shadowing the person who is in the old position,” Dunkin said. “My hope is that as we shadow and transition new people into these roles, that we are able to show them what we’re building with these proposals, relationships, forums and newsletters really drive home just how important and how critical these relationships have been for us this year.”

For Dunkin, success in her role lies not only in a smooth transition, but also in building a support system for the next generation. “I had a wonderful predecessor and I know that she would’ve loved to have more support and I was lucky because I had her, but I want to make sure that the person who’s coming into my role next semester has even more support than I received,” she said.

“The way that I do that is by being a mentor, but also by establishing a network of support for that person before they’ve even stepped into the role; and if [that’s] my legacy … then I’ve done my job.”

TSV Editorial Staff

2023-2024

Aanji Sin ’24

Editor-in-Chief

Ellen Hu ’24

Editor-in-Chief

Alyssa Wend ’24

Editor-in-Chief

Ellen Wang ’25

Editor-in-Chief

Isabel Suh ’24 Head Design Editor

Elita Kutateli ’26 Design Editor

Nawal Hassan ’27 Design Editor

Hannah Fawley ’27 Design Editor

Juliette Des Rosiers ’26 Copy Editor

Frances Walton ’26 Copy Editor

Belén Yudess ’25 Copy Editor Intern

Ashley Ta ’27 Copy Editor Intern

Carah Allen ’26 Webmaster

Anna Odell ’27 Social Media Manager

Photo Courtesy of Lily Dunkin ’24

Exploring the Breadth of the Senior Thesis Through the Class of 2024

By Aviva Vic Maxon ’24 Staff Writer

The required senior thesis is the culmination of our learning at Scripps. The thesis is written over one or two semesters and utilizes many skills a Scrippsie learned during their college experience. With so many theses produced every semester, many of them go unnoticed and underappreciated.

The following Q&As highlight four thesis projects from the class of 2024: Anaís Martínez Castañeda ’24, double majoring in anthropology and Chicanx/Latinx studies; Aidan Trulove ’24, majoring in English with a creative writing emphasis; Carolina GutierrezTunstad ’24, majoring in Russian and Eastern European studies; and Taylor Tsiamas ’24, majoring in theater.

The Scripps Voice (TSV): Tell me about your project.

Anaís Martínez Castañeda (AMC): For my anthropology topic, I’m exploring how young Latinx women experience their relationships with cultural foods and how that forms their connections with family and cultural identity, and how that’s been threatened by social media’s pressures of diet culture and thinness. It also affects their perception of cultural identities and their mental, emotional, and physical health in general as well. It’s a lot of the difficult experiences that young Latinx women endure, and I wanted to also have a little bit more of a positive reflection on why it’s so important to have these foods so connected to our cultural identity. For my Chicanx/ Latinx senior project, I’m leading a memory activity with a group of young Latinx women through art to allow them to be able to reflect on their own intimate experiences engaging with Latinx culinary practices. And then in April, I’m going to show a gallery based on the art activity that they’re doing and they’re also going to take some photographs. That’s going

to be showing in The Motley in collaboration with Café Con Leche.

“It’s a lot of the difficult experiences that young Latinx women endure, and I wanted to also have a little bit more of a positive reflection on why it’s so important to have these foods so connected to our cultural identity.”

Aidan Trulove (AT): I’m doing a short story collection of three different pieces. The first piece is told in first person, the second piece is told in the second person, the third in third person. They all kind of fall in with fantasy but they all have a very different vibe — like the first one is about the maid of an old vampire family. The second one is about a killer magazine quiz, and the third one is about a character who experiences disability and how that’s perceived by the people around them to be something more magical and strange than it actually is.

Carolina Gutierrez-Tunstad (CG): It’s a deep dive into identity and queer life in the post-Soviet world. And then I dedicated an entire chapter to the Ukrainian drag queen who competed in Eurovision in 2007 because I felt like she just needed that. I was basically just doing research by combing through archives and stuff like that.

Taylor Tsiamas (TT): It’s a yearlong project, and I’ve just been trying to formulate what I want it to look like, since it’s like being made from scratch. There’s a lot of just planning that has to go into it. You know, just planning logistics of where it’s going to be, what it’s going to look like and then also content. So these past couple semesters, I’ve developed an outline of everything I want to go first and then I’m gonna write the script.

TSV: How did you choose your topic?

AMC: This is something that’s kind of stemmed from personal experience with me, just navigating

the difficulties of the expectations of thinness on social media and balancing that with my cultural foods. I also wanted to explore how that fits into this idea of clean eating and healthy eating.

AT: I originally wanted to go with a much longer project, but I realized that I really just wanted to talk about my writing and what its strengths are. And the strongest thing about my writing is my narrator. Whether it’s in first person, second person, third person, the thing that people always take away from my work is that there’s someone talking to them. And whether they particularly like that person or not, they always find them very interesting.

CG: I basically just wanted to shoehorn my own interests into my thesis, which, let’s be real, that’s all academic research is — it’s just making things fun. At least that’s how I’ve approached it. And I decided, wouldn’t this be a great way to be able to cite RuPaul’s Drag Race in an actual published paper?

TT: Well, the other path I couldn’t really do because of accessibility reasons. Like I can’t do any of the mainstage productions, which is what most people do. So then I had to do a devised project. When I was doing that, I was like, oh, okay, well, since I wasn’t able to do the mainstage stuff because of accessibility reasons I will theme my thesis on accessibility. Also, I just wanted to think about how Western theater is constructed and how it’s very much like the audience sits in the dark in these rows of seats that are quiet while the performers take the stage and I wanted to kind of like deconstruct that.

“Since I wasn’t able to do the mainstage stuff because of accessibility reasons I will theme my thesis on accessibility.”

TSV: What is something you have learned through this process?

AMC: Before I really started researching this, I definitely considered academia as something

that you kind of have a distance from in terms of research. I felt like [you have to have] the smallest bias possible for it to be considered valuable or credible research. But I feel like since this kind of stems from personal experience, and also just such intimate experiences through interviews, I think I realized that it’s important to have these positionalities, not only be anticolonial in the sense of including these personal experiences of marginalized women, but I think it’s also very healing to have these stories and personal experiences in academia. That’s something that’s really transformed my view of research since entering college.

AT: I’ve learned that I am much more stubborn with my work than I thought I was. Once I kind of latch on to my idea, it’s very hard for me to switch directions. But the feedback I’ve gotten from my two readers has been very helpful so far, and I’m learning to be able to show my work to other people without being scared or nervous that they’re gonna hate it.

CG: It’s very important to have to find a good thesis advisor because admin is going to try to, you know … kneecap you at every available opportunity. So you have to really have a good professor who’s going to help you because nobody else will.

“It’s very important to have to find a good thesis advisor because admin is going to try to, you know … kneecap you at every available opportunity.”

TT: Do something that you like, do something that you actually feel passionate about because you’re gonna be stuck doing it every day for like, a whole semester or two semesters, so definitely something that piques your interest and not just something you feel like you could do.

Interviews were edited for length and clarity. Part two forthcoming.

Order in Seal Court: Spotlight on the Scripps Pre-Law Society

By Ella Young ’24 Staff Writer

Founded in 2020, the Scripps Pre-Law Society (SPLS) serves as both a professional and social resource for its members. The club, which is open to students of all majors, supports students interested in the legal field. It serves as a liaison between students’ current studies and their future careers as legal professionals due to the lack of a pre-law major.

One of the central ways the club provides support to its members is through professional opportunities.

Specifically, the club supports its senior members through the law school application process. In addition to general advising, the club provides social and peer support to current applicants.

At the center of the club’s administration stands president Mishaal Ijaz ’24 and vice president Nikki Godinez ’24. “This year, it's been fun because both [Ijaz] and I have applied to law school, so we have that personal experience,” Godinez said. “I could not have applied without the support of the Pre-Law Society; you want someone to be able to text when you're either confused about a question on the application or crying over the LSAT. It's nice to have young people around you who are ostensibly going through the same thing.”

The society bolsters this peer-to-

peer support with the help of CP&R and the Scripps alumni network as a resource for job opportunities and information for students interested in the legal field or policy. Additionally, it hosts events that feature a variety of speakers, including both Scripps alumni and external lawyers.

“We invite speakers to come and they tell us about their legal practice, their experiences in law school,” Ijaz noted. “We've had one Scripps alum who was a member of the Pre-Law Society, and we had someone who wrote a book about law school admissions. She came and she talked to us about how she prepared for law school and what she suggests for people.”

By providing both professional and social resources to its members, the club is better able to serve its mission:

to empower the Scripps community interested in law.

“At Scripps, I don't think historically we've had a large group of students interested in law, so it's really nice to have a group of predominantly young women come together at Scripps who are interested in the legal field who maybe aren't [traditionally represented],” Godinez said. “Especially as young people and young women, it can be an intimidating field to be in. So, I think it's fun to have our own ultra-small community. At the same time, we definitely are open to events with other colleges, and we collaborate. So that's not a strict guideline.”

“I think that's a difference between us and CP&R or even just your academic advisor,” Ijaz said. “We're really just trying to expose people to

as many law opportunities out there that we come across.”

Such law opportunities are not limited to the traditional “law school” pathway, but positions that require legal knowledge as well.

“A lot of people in the Pre-Law Society are even just interested in policy internships,” Ijaz said. “I know tons of people who have interned for the House of Representatives or their local politicians. We're also just helping people in legal adjacent fields; we're not just focused on sending people to law school.”

In the future, in line with these tenets of empowerment, the presidents hope to make the club even more accessible to Scripps students.

“If you are aiming towards a career in law and politics, it's for you,” Ijaz said. “You don't have to want to go to law school; if you're just looking for that supportive academic network, the Pre-Law Society is for you.”

Godinez echoed these sentiments. “You don't have to be dead set on wanting to go to law school itself,” she said. “There's so many legal adjacent things, but if that is something you have the smallest hint in your mind, join. Come to a meeting. Just come and get involved.”

Students interested in joining the Scripps Pre-Law Society can email scrippslawsociety@gmail. com, or DM their Instagram @ scrippslawsociety.

Last and Certainly Not Least: The Scripps Student-Athletes Club Aims to Increase Scripps Representation Within CMS

By Belén Yudess ’25 Copy Editor Intern

C

ardinal red for CMC and yellow for Mudd, yet athletes see no Scripps green when repping CMS. Although the color scheme for Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) may unintentionally be leaving Scripps out of the equation, it is emblematic of the real gap that exists within the joint athletic program.

Out of the approximately 260 Athena athletes, only about 45 students — less than 20% — hail from Scripps. This evident disproportion had made a handful of Scripps student-athletes feel less institutional support on their respective teams. It is this sentiment that women’s volleyball players Ashley Murashige ’25 and Izzy Stolzoff ’25 and women’s soccer player Ivy Doran ’26 hope to change with the establishment of their Scripps Student-Athlete Club. The idea for this club did not come to Murashige overnight. It formed as a result of the trend she noticed in the ratio between Scripps and Mudd/ CMC student athletes throughout her three years as part of CMS.

“I originally proposed this idea to Izzy and Ivy because I think Scripps athletes are very much in the minority of CMS athletics,” she

said. “I’m proud to represent, but I think at times it can feel very CMCcentric. I realized I didn't really have a lot of opportunities to get to know the other Scripps athletes and so I wanted a way to be able to integrate the Scripps community and the CMS community together a little bit more.”

Stolzoff also voiced her desire to help foster a stronger community amongst Scripps Athenas, especially after the recent Scripps Athenas Dinner hosted by Vice President of Student Affairs, Dr. Sha Bradley. “When Ashley posed this idea, I just thought it was a really cool opportunity to create a space to get to know the other Scripps athletes,” Stolzoff said. “We recently attended the dinner at Dr. Sha’s, and a lot of us mentioned that it was the first time that we were able to see all of us in the same room.”

Although they are still working on leadership and logistics, Murashige notes that the team is actively brainstorming events. “The first event we want to have is a CMS athlete team dinner,” said Murashige. “We were talking about doing a beach volleyball or a pickleball tournament because as varsity athletes it's hard to do a lot of the recreational sports. If we could all do that together, I feel like that can be a fun way to get to know each other.”

Aside from club-sponsored

activities, the group hopes to offer insight into how Scripps administration can further assist in supporting its athletes. “Not a lot of Scripps students know about the games that are going on or the CMS events that are happening, so it's hard for the two to overlap in a lot of ways,” Murashige said. “Advertising CMS athletics more at Tiernan or having an Instagram [or email] that shouts out the different teams and games going on that weekend that's not just from Chris Spells could really help.”

Additionally, Stolzoff explained how the addition of a CMS hall or living arrangement could prove beneficial. “[For] the past three years, I've lived with athletes and a lot of us share similar schedules and … [the] idea of identifying a dorm that could be where athletes can live, not exclusively athletes, but a place that was designated as an athlete [dorm, could be nice].”

Although Murashige and Stolzoff have enjoyed their time as CMS student-athletes thus far, planning for this club and attending the dinner at Dr. Sha’s have allowed them to reflect on where communal feelings of isolation arise in the program.

“I think a lot of the time CMS and CMC start to feel synonymous, and I understand why because a majority are CMC-ers and it's on

their campus, but I'm proud to go to Scripps,” Murashige said. “That's the reason for the club, so there are ways for [Scripps CMS athletes] to meet, come together, and be on the same team. I would like to think that this is the beginning of making our school more known for having athletes, especially being at a historically women's college, because we can be athletes too.”

Stolzoff also mentioned how the recruiting process for many teams inherently reinforces Scripps’ position in CMS. “They try to recruit you to CMC or Mudd and then they say but here's another option [referring to Scripps],” she said. “We don't want to be the other option. We want to be just as known and appreciated as the other two schools. And I think that's possible with some education and understanding of what we are and what we contribute to CMS.”

Murashige and Stolzoff hope that the Scripps student athlete club will become a welcoming and empowering environment for current athletes and future generations of Athenas. As the club continues to develop, Murashige and Stolzoff implore any Scripps CMS studentathletes interested in being a part of leadership or the club to reach out!

Photo Courtesy of Scripps Pre-Law Society

You Can’t Spell Scripps Without ‘C’ and ‘S.’ So Why Is There No CS?

By Ella Lehavi ’24 Illustrator

“That’s so cool that you do computer science. I could never — I’m not made for computer science.”

This is a response I have gotten from many of my peers at Scripps when I mentioned that I am majoring in computer science (CS). There seems to be this notion affecting even the smartest and most capable women and nonbinary people I know. Why do so many of us on this campus believe some people are not “made” for CS?

Why does there seem to be a wall of separation between Scrippsies and CS? Much of this stems from a lack of a CS department at Scripps.

I am writing this article as one of the two CS majors in my graduating class at Scripps and one of the four declared CS majors at Scripps.

As it stands, Scripps College does NOT have a CS major. All of us are majoring off-campus through Harvey Mudd’s CS department. To get into this program, Scripps students must go through a lottery for an extremely limited number of spots in the major. While many Scrippsies are interested in this path, the lottery prevents them from majoring in CS.

What options do Scrippsies interested in CS have outside of Harvey Mudd’s major? Many choose to major in data science or 3-2 Engineering. However, those majors are also offcampus and difficult to get into. Data science is done through Claremont McKenna, so many Scripps students struggle to get into the classes they need to complete the major. The 3-2 engineering program involves three years at Scripps and another two at another college with an engineering program. Because of the transfer requirement, this program of study requires a lot of planning and can be difficult to go through.

Scrippsies interested in CS can also pursue a math major. However, Scripps’s math department is underfunded. And while both data science and CS are offered as minors, few classes are offered on-campus for either minor.

Currently, there are no CS professors at Scripps. While there are faculty within math and media studies with computational interests, no faculty member at Scripps so far has been hired whose primary field of work is CS. This means that there are very few computational courses on campus and that many of these courses are tangentially computational. They might focus on another field and explore some computational aspects, but very, very few teach foundational CS skills and knowledge. And because no professor at Scripps focuses on CS, the courses that teach those skills are less robust than those offered by schools with CS departments.

Two of the five undergraduate Claremont Colleges have CS departments and offer CS majors: Pomona and Harvey Mudd. Pomona’s CS major is exclusive to its students. Students from Scripps, CMC, and Pitzer can major at Mudd if they pass the lottery. Furthermore, outside of a

few seats in elective courses and certain colloquium talks, Harvey Mudd and Pomona’s CS departments don’t interact much. The result is that even within the Claremont Colleges with CS majors, these majors are usually focused within their home campuses.

All of that is really messed up, right? “But Scripps is a liberal arts college! We don’t need a CS major at Scripps!” Except we definitely do need a CS department, and by all means, we should have one.

For one, there is a HUGE demand from Scrippsies for a CS major or at least more CS course offerings. As a leader of Scripps Code, I’ve met many students across graduating classes and backgrounds who are interested in majoring in CS or learning to code while in college but aren’t able to do so because of limited opportunities.

There’s a cycle stemming from majoring in CS as a Scrippsie being near impossible. As a result, few Scrippsies are CS majors. Then, there is no perceived demand for a CS major because so few students are majoring in it. We need to look past those numbers and understand that many students on this campus would major and take classes in CS if it wasn’t so hard to do so.

As a historically women’s college, a lack of STEM offerings sends a certain message about what our school expects its student body to be interested in and capable of. CS is a male-dominated field. Giving

non-male students the opportunity to engage with the field at an HWC will bolster their confidence and give them role models who defy traditional expectations of what CS students look like.

“But Scripps is a liberal arts school! We should focus on liberal arts!” And we can! But there is space to study STEM at a liberal arts college. In fact, STEM professionals benefit greatly from a liberal arts background, and the world as a whole benefits from bringing liberal arts thinking into STEM.

Scripps College students are taught to consider not just how to make money, but how to make a difference. They are required to take Gender Studies and Race and Ethnic Studies courses. Even outside of the classroom, the student body at Scripps is firmly committed to social justice. We stand at a point in time when technology produced by CS is often used to harm, oppress, and widen existing inequalities. Having CS professionals who are critical thinkers and committed to building ethical technology is essential, and a liberal arts education will bring about more professionals like this.

Additionally, opening a CS major at Scripps would provide more opportunities for existing CS majors at the 5Cs to become more intercollegiate. More CS faculty across the 5Cs means a wider variety of research interests and more elective offerings in

a wider variety of fields. There would also be more networking and social opportunities for students within the major.

One of Scripps College’s strongest draws is that it offers an interdisciplinary education. However, it often feels as if “interdisciplinary” means within the humanities and stops short at STEM.

Now, I am by no means saying that a history major should need to take Differential Equations to get their degree. But in an era where computers are everywhere, students need a basic understanding of how they work so they can safely interact with that technology. How do you protect your data online? How do you maintain the computer you own? How do you use basic word processing and editing software? These are skills anyone who interacts with technology could benefit from, yet most of us have to learn them on our own, assuming we do learn them at all.

Beyond that, CS is built on logical thinking skills that can be applied across subject areas and fields. Representing data as bits, loops and recursions, and translating an idea in your head into instructions for a computer aren’t just basic CS skills but mental exercises that strengthen us as thinkers.

What should Scripps do? In the long term, I strongly believe that Scripps

Continued on page 7

Ella Lehavi ’24 • The Scripps Voice

On-Campus Housing Is a Right, Not a Luxury

By Machelle Kabir ’26 Staff Writer

As a Scripps student, one of my favorite parts about campus life is the on-campus residence halls. Not only do I get to freely interact with my peers, but I also have easy access to my own space for rest and relaxation based on my needs. In turn, when hearing about the subpar offcampus housing situation, I became concerned that Scripps is rerouting students without their consent to the Claremont Collegiate Apartments (CCA). Scripps prides itself on its on-campus housing and the beauty of its facilities, yet the administration has forced students off our campus, becoming an active obstacle to Scrippsies.

I would like to share some personal struggles with living off-campus in college. First, off-campus housing does not work for students with disabilities. Walking or taking the bus back and forth is unreasonable for a student like me, for example, because of my health issues. Migraines prevent me from moving steadily, so I cannot walk long distances. I acknowledge that Scripps has a private shuttle to take students back and forth. How-

ever, when I have a migraine, I need to immediately lie in a dark room to prevent the pain from going any further. Being in a moving motor vehicle would cause me physical pain.

Although professors at Scripps are very accommodating to my medical needs, as a 4.0 GPA student, I do not like missing class. For context, I also plan on taking six classes next year and returning to my job as an on-campus employee. My hours will be long and treacherous, so getting a migraine is inevitable in most situations. If I or other students with health issues lived on campus, we could lie down, take medication, and begin recovering and rehabilitating quickly.

I know firsthand how hurtful offcampus living can be from my experiences at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), which I previously attended. I transferred to Scripps because I knew my surroundings, was comfortable with the environment, and felt fulfilled in the community I widely appreciated.

Living off-campus at UCSB, I experienced significant anxiety about getting to classes on time and returning home at a reasonable hour. I am not alone, as the distinct difference in the happiness of students who live off

campus versus those who do not is tremendous. First-year students living on campus have reported higher quality interaction with other students when compared with off-campus students. On-campus housing does not only benefit first-year students, as seniors who live on campus were also found to be more engaged with advisors and faculty members than their off-campus counterparts.

Study after study shows that students connected with their campus have better GPAs. However, pushing GPAs to the side, as grades can often be a social construct, we need to consider happiness. Samura (2016) found “Students who live in residence halls become socially integrated, this also serves as an indicator of student persistence.” If the studies shown are not proof enough, then I am physical proof that off-campus housing is preposterous, especially for students who do not want it.

Being relegated from peers I cherish and want to spend time studying, walking, eating, talking, and building community with means that on-campus housing is best for me. I sometimes like to study with my peers at the library till 11 p.m. or 12 a.m. These study sessions bring me joy and allow

me to be productive in my endeavors. Although the private shuttles run until 11 p.m., which is very accommodating, I prefer late study sessions and would feel uncomfortable waiting for the shuttle in the dark. Campus Security does its job well, but it would not be fair to any party involved or other 5C students who need these officers for a better purpose for them to assist students requesting escort services every night Monday through Sunday.

One of the reasons I chose Scripps was the small class size. I always thought that meant Scripps could adequately care for that small group of people. However, that belief will be lost if there are no strides to abolish off-campus housing. The community on campus is a primary factor in why I love Scripps and believe life here could not get any better. If relegated to off-campus housing, I, and other students, would lose the sense of community and excitement in planting our feet on campus every day. No one deserves to be subjected to housing they were not aware was an option and do not consent to live in. We as students deserve a place where we can facilitate community and social interaction, which is inhibited by forced off-campus housing.

So Why Is There No CS?

Continued from page 6

College needs a CS department. The school would benefit greatly from faculty hired from CS backgrounds to teach CS. By extension, these faculty should be committed to supporting female and nonbinary students in CS and fostering a learning environment that elevates students from underrepresented demographics. Ideally, a CS major at Scripps would draw on the school’s liberal arts philosophy by integrating CS ethics into the major and teaching students to think critically

about the impacts of the technology they build.

In the short term, Scripps should better support departments with CS course offerings. Two visiting professors in the media studies department, Xin Xin and Oscar Moralde, are teaching courses that touch on CS topics. Having more tenured professors in media studies with computational interests would create more opportunities for Scrippsies to learn CS on campus. Similarly, Scripps could provide more funding to the math

department.

Additionally, Scripps could provide more support for students studying CS and related fields off-campus. As an off-campus CS major, I’ve often found myself running around like a headless chicken trying to find specifications and requirements for graduation, thesis, major declaration, etc. More communication between our registrar and the departments where Scrippsies major in CS would make being a CS major easier.

And, of course, offering CS courses

at Scripps and making them accessible to Scripps students will help break down the idea that some of us are “made” for CS and some of us aren’t. Everyone is capable of learning CS!

As computers have become a bigger part of our academic and everyday lives, the need for CS education continues to grow. We as a college have the opportunity to provide that education to a demographic of students who are usually pushed away from the field. Let’s take full advantage of it.

Machelle Kabir ’26 • The Scripps Voice

Take a Hike, But Bring a Priceless Pets Dog!

By Charlotte Korer ’27 Staff Writer

As part of the Destress Thursdays event series, Tiernan Field House (TFH) hosted a dog-walking event on Feb. 29. The participants met at TFH and took a short walk to the Priceless Pets Rescue, also known as The Orphanage, on East Foothill Boulevard.

Priceless Pets is a nonprofit, nokill shelter that focuses on finding forever homes for pets. Once we arrived, volunteers were instructed on some of the dos and don’ts. Firstly, a lot of poop bags are a must. Honestly, the more poop bags, the merrier. Having a tight grip on the leash is crucial, especially when walking larger, stronger dogs. It is important to stay away from the areas known for complaining about the dogs, such as the apartment complex next door. The dogs are not supposed to interact with each other on volunteer walks because it is unclear how they will react. The same goes for strangers and other dogs since Priceless Pets prioritizes keeping their dogs and those of the Claremont community safe and friendly.

The first pup I walked was Jasper, a three-year-old and eight-month-old dog brought to the shelter in January. Jasper had a lot of personality and not a lot of enthusiasm for walking, at least on the afternoon I met him. When the staff first passed Jasper on to me, he was very interested in the bushes around him. When I gave him a gentle tug to get him walking, Jasper promptly went stiff and

flopped onto his back, legs in the air. I swiftly gave in and let him lead the rest of our stroll. The dogs are well cared for and trust the shelter staff, which is evident in their friendliness. Jasper had no qualms about being held and petted. If you’re looking for a leisurely walk, Jasper is the dog for you!

When Jasper grew tired of me, the staff passed Mia over to me. Mia is two years and four months old and had only been at the shelter for three days when I met her. Mia had the sweetest eyes and was very curious about the world around her, possibly due to her newness to the area. She was eager to walk but willing to go wherever I led, even if that meant circling the parking lot a few times to get a sense of her strength. My experience with Mia reinforced the importance of strength and poop bags when walking the big dogs! Mia was very playful when another participant started jumping around with her. Walking through the neighborhood, she was eager to go at a speed I was not quite capable of matching, often looking over her shoulder to check I was still with her. She was happy to be passed onto another participant who could take her on a brief run. Mia is a very sweet girl who would love more walking and even running if any athletes are willing to help out!

Priceless Pets is always looking for more volunteers, especially for the pups’ morning walks. If you have any time throughout your day, make sure

to go check The Orphanage out and let them know you’re willing to help during their open hours. The shelter is very low-commitment and looking for all the help they can get. Even just an hour a week is great for the dog’s physical and mental well-being!

Keep your eyes peeled for other opportunities from TFH. They are great for opening doors in Claremont and connecting with the Scripps

community. TFH makes all of their engagement fun and fulfilling — they even brought donuts on our dog walk! Without TFH, establishments like Priceless Pets, so close to The Claremont Colleges, would go unnoticed and underappreciated. I will definitely be returning to volunteer after spring break, and everyone should join!

Scripps Sophomores Search for a Sweetheart in 5C Dating Game

By Juliette Des Rosiers ’26 Copy Editor

OnMar. 1, sophomores from across the 5Cs settled into the velvet seats of CMC’s Pickford Auditorium. Hits from the 2010s blasted over the audience as they chatted in excitement for the first 5C Dating Game.

As the curtains pulled back, host Hannah Conte CMC ’26 took the stage to smattering applause and cheers. As the CMC sophomore class president Ryu Nakase CMC ’26 gathered the first round of contestants, Conte explained the structure of the game. During each round, a student searching for love would ask three unique questions to four or five contestants competing for the student’s heart. The catch: the love-seeker and contestants were separated by a partition, so the loveseeker’s appearance was hidden from the contestants and vice versa, à la Love Is Blind

Celine Aoki ’26, the Scripps sophomore class president, explained that Nakase introduced the idea for a 5C-wide sophomore Dating Game during a weekly 5C class president meeting.

“He brought up how much of a success the Dating Game was at CMC and that he and his cabinet wanted to make it a 5C Dating Game,” Aoki said. “From there, the class presidents did more promotion of the event and the CMC sophomore

cabinet did more of the logistical planning, like making the matches and the questions for the interview. Every school president was in charge of making sure that at least five people from their school signed up and other people were there.”

Before each round, the Askers introduced themselves by name and school and riffed off Conte’s prompts for fun facts and what they were looking for out of the game. The contestants on both sides were pulled from all five colleges, though CMC was definitively the most represented.

When asked which was her favorite round, Aoiki smiled and had a definitive answer. “The second round with Martie as the question asker was extremely funny,” Aoki said. “The contestants did a really good job of bouncing off each other. I think that one was the most playful one and I truly think the best way to do this game was to just have fun with it.”

Martie Fairchild ’26 immediately charmed the audience with her openness and funny introduction. Additionally, her questions allowed the contestants’ personalities to shine through, and her reactions were genuine and matched their energy.

“I signed up on a whim and was kind of nervous to go on stage because there were more people than I expected, but I had a lot of fun,” Fairchild said. “My favorite question was ‘Tell me the story of your first

kiss.’ I feel like I got good answers out of people and I also did not take the dating game seriously, so I think the responses that I got were more for my enjoyment rather than finding a potential match.”

After considering all the answers, Fairchild looked past the CMC and Pomona boys and chose fellow Scrippsie Hannah McKie ’26 as her winner. During the final reveal, McKie and Fairchild jumped up and down with excitement as they embraced, ending their round as light-hearted as it began.

The Scrippsie power round was a success, but not all rounds were exempt from awkward moments. For example, the first round had good questions covering contestants’ dream blunt rotation and which fictional character they would romantically pursue, but the question on which sex position they would get rid of fell flat. Some contestants took it in stride, while others seemed surprised and uneasy. The final contestant passed on answering due to discomfort.

Aoki agreed that the question was uncomfortable. Thankfully, the audience remained respectful and applauded the final Askee instead of booing him. “It probably would have been my answer too,” she said. “In my mind, I wouldn’t have minded being like ‘I’m not answering that’ because I kind of know the game I’m stepping into. But I think maybe next time we can do a little more advertising and

make it more clear that if you want to participate in this you may be asked some weird stuff. But overall, I think the answer was valid.”

Additionally, the final round, a failed attempt at asking for volunteer contestants, was extremely troublesome. Responses to a Scripps student’s questions crossing the line from playfully raunchy to uncomfortably sexual. This experience could dissuade the possibility of allowing for volunteer rounds in the future and act as an incentive to add a disclaimer to the sign-up form or pre-screen potential questions. At the end of the day, a disrespectful experience isn’t a fun experience.

Although the game had some cringeworthy and awkward moments, the contestants and organizers felt the experience was an overall positive one.

“I think it was a success,” said Aoki. “There were a lot of people in the audience, which I really liked. As the game continued, people felt more comfortable being up there and contestants said they were really glad they did it.”

Fairchild echoed Aoki’s sentiment about embracing the fun in the game. “I had surprisingly more fun than I expected,” she said. “Again, I think that most college events are fun if you go into them with the mindset that they’re going to be silly and if you lean into the silliness you end up having a good time.”

Charlotte Korer ‘27 • The Scripps Voice

Live Action Remakes: The Art of Missing the Point

By Amy Jayasuriya ’26 Staff Writer

From the re-emergence of popular intellectual property such as Barbie to the numerous podcasts created by classic sitcom actors and former child stars attempting to relive their glory days, it’s clear we live in a time obsessed with the past. And nowhere is this more prevalent than in the recent renaissance of live action remakes.

The recent obsession with live action remakes has generally been accredited to Disney, which has been repopulating local movie theaters with remakes of their classic animated movies. Ranging from Lady and the Tramp to their iconic Best Picture nominated classic Beauty and the Beast , the company has released 28 remakes and greenlit countless others. The initial response to these movies was favorable, with legions of Disney adults, as well as many members of the general public, excited at the prospect of reliving their favorite childhood classics. Early remakes, such as 2017’s Beauty and the Beast and 2019’s Aladdin , performed favorably and grossed over one billion dollars in total.

However, in recent years, there has been a sense of live action fatigue, with Disney’s movies significantly falling flat in the box office. The best example of this is the 2023 remake of The Little Mermaid , which was projected to make over a billion dollars after its release but barely cracked 500 million. With an extremely high budget of 250 million dollars, the movie yielded middling results. This turn in profit mirrors the critical response to these movies which critiqued the nostalgia bait and the simplification of the beautifully complex stories that made their original counterparts so beloved.

While Disney is a larger culprit in this shift to live action, it is not the only Hollywood studio that relies on this tactic. The recent release of the Netflix live action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender as well as the early production of How to Train Your Dragon are just two other examples of this epidemic plaguing Hollywood. These projects beg the question: why are studios so obsessed with the live action remake?

The obvious answer to this which is question would be the desire for profit, what ultimately drives the existence of movie

studios to this day. The live action remake of the 1994 classic The Lion King clearly exemplifies the greed of Disney executives. The decision to call this movie a live action remake is confusing, as it replaces the animated lions from the original with photoreal CGI characters — CGI being more attractive for movie executives partly because visual effects workers are not unionized like other entertainment professions. The movie relies on its ability to distract the audience, making them marvel at its photorealistic characters and fabricated VR set. However, what Disney advertises as impressive technical feats is nothing more than a shot-by-shot remake of the original movie with little changes made to the script or plot. The genuine emotion on Simba’s face as he watches his father die is replaced with the blank stare of a CGI lion in the live action version, sacrificing the emotional richness of the scene with a visual one. Every excuse that Disney uses to justify the existence of these movies — their hyperrealism, for example — is nothing more than a distracting incentive for audiences to continue forking over money.

Live action remakes are a distraction that extends not only to how a movie is shot and produced but also to how the characters are written and who portrays them.

The recent adaptation of The Little Mermaid was met with an intense amount of scrutiny due to the film’s casting of Halle Bailey, a Black actress, as Ariel. While the attacks against Bailey due to her casting were abhorrent and obviously

rooted in racism, it’s interesting to dissect how the actress herself was often forced to bear the brunt of the backlash alone and was given little help from Disney, who rarely made an effort to defend her against online trolls. Wanting all of the glory of diverse casting but none of the criticism, the company often scapegoats the young BIPOC actors and actresses they hire in their films to face the horrific backlash alone. The ongoing backlash to Rachel Zegler’s casting as Snow White in the upcoming film is another example. The company rarely takes the time to write original stories centered around women of color and their multifaceted experiences; instead, it only allows for diversity when it benefits them.

These issues are prevalent in how female characters are written in live action remakes as well. In the 2020 live action Mulan remake, Mulan changes from the strongwilled, charismatic character in her animated form to a stoic, dull iteration of the character in the live action. While the animated movie highlights that Mulan might not have the brute strength of her male counterparts, she is exceptionally resourceful and demonstrates how other types of strength and ingenuity are equally important but overlooked in society. The movie finds its emotional heart in Mulan’s consistent perseverance and dedication, so both the movie characters and the audience become invested in her story. In the live action, however, Mulan’s entire character arc is erased and replaced with a character who possesses a natural gift and power

due to her abundance of chi. Rather than have her go through a journey of learning to rely on her instinct and wit, Mulan is paradoxically dumbed down in the live action rendition. In an effort to make the movie outwardly feminist, the live action loses the nuance that made Mulan such a complex, well-written, and loved character to begin with.

Whether it be The Lion King’s technical achievement, The Little Mermaid’s manufactured diversity, or the failed attempt at a pop feminist movie in Mulan , Disney advertises each remake to disguise the real reason why live action movies exist. However, while studios intensely fixate on profit, there is hope for a better future for movies. As seen with the lackluster performances of the past few live action remakes, audiences are beginning to break free from the nostalgia-tinted gaze that has been infecting our society for the past few months and yearn for more original content. The massive box-office achievement in Spiderman: Across the SpiderVerse may demonstrate to studios the importance of animation and its continued value as a medium. Similarly, experimental and indie movie studios such as A24, which have captured audiences’ attention, may force larger companies to move on from the predictably boring live action remakes they hold so dear. Ultimately, what made Disney’s animated movies so special and beloved was not only their originality but their heart, which the studio desperately needs to revive.

Image courtesy of Business Insider

“Underdressed at the Symphony” Is Faye Webster’s Love Letter to Existence

By Ishita Jayadev ’26 Staff Writer

I listened to Faye Webster’s new album Underdressed at the Symphony over spring break, at home, where it was raining for the most part. I would wake up every day, take a shower, take out the dishes, feed my dog, and take her out on a walk. The rest of the day always passed by quickly, even though I could never quite pinpoint what exactly I was doing. The week passed in a haze of monotony until I realized it was already Friday, that there were only two days left of break, and that I had successfully existed through almost ten entire days at home. Although in some ways disappointing, the observation mostly formed the shape of an achievement.

Faye Webster provided the perfect soundtrack to my monotony, although calling Underdressed at the Symphony background music would be a disservice. The vocoder-laden “Feeling Good Today” encapsulated

the triumphs of mundanity I lived through every morning as I fed and walked my dog. “Tttttime” enveloped the weird taffy-stretch of time as well as the short staccato moments that seemed to pepper it as I passed through each day. I’ve never played Animal Crossing, but it felt like I was a little video game character bobbing around the house doing tasks timed to the wooden frog noises that play out on “eBay Purchase History.”

Webster repeats the same phrases over and over again on a lot of these songs until they often lose meaning completely, becoming an accessory to the beautiful instrumentals her band creates beside her. This deceptive calmness lulled me more often than not. I had to go back and seek “Wanna Quit All the Time” because I somehow zoned out through it on almost all of my preliminary listens of the album. This was a mistake on my part. “Wanna Quit All the Time” is now one of my favorite songs on the album as the chorus repeats, “I think I’ll figure it out,” in response to Webster

languidly singing about overthinking her tendencies in the verses.

That isn’t to say there aren’t more upbeat moments on the album. “Lego Ring” is a fun, autotuned romp that perfectly encapsulates Webster's childhood friendship with Lil Yachty, who is featured on the track. His last verse is one of my favorites as he sings, “Me and you the dream team / Always together like string beans / Your left hand up in every pic / Cause your Lego ring is sick.” It never fails to make me smile. “He Loves Me Yeah!” is another track I gravitated more to at the beginning, a discordant song in more ways than one. Webster outlines an uneven relationship where her partner does everything for her, “We take a walk and then he brush my hair” with a chorus of “I think we’re perfect” and “He loves me yeah,” blanketing the observations until the instrumentals seem to throw a fit, not allowing the song to proceed in its comforting percussive normalcy to the end.

This use of sparse lyricism combined with instrumentals to

tell a full story is used frequently on the album. The first time I heard the orchestral break in the title song right after Webster sings, “I’m underdressed at the symphony,” it gave me shivers, the rest of the track feeling as underdressed as Webster herself paired next to the few seconds long grand musical cacophony. And of course, the first single that Webster released of the album, “But Not Kiss,” relies heavily on its discordant instrumentals to convey its message of being, as Webster herself calls it, an “antiromantic love song.” She sings in between a long pause, “I wanna sleep in your arms / But not kiss,” restructuring what many would think of a traditional romantic relationship.

While I feel that the album in its entirety won’t appeal to casual listeners or even all of Webster’s fans, Underdressed at the Symphony has grown an inexplicable fondness in me over the last ten days. At the very least, I want to thank it for keeping me company all of spring break.

Hillerska Will Continue to Endure (Metaphorically): A Review of “Young Royals” Season Three

By Belén Yudess ’25

Copy Editor Intern

Contains spoilers for Young Royals

Hillerska has shut its doors (literally) for the last time. So long, daily dinners always served with a side of sautéed sass. Farewell, choir room where Simon sang of his desires and then gave into them atop the grand piano. And, of course, best wishes to the random fields where countless characters threw up in the hedges (really giving back to the school). Although everything might be fake, the heartbreak and ecstasy of Young Royals season 3 was very much real.

Season 3 of Young Royals premiered in two parts on March 11 and March 18. The series follows Wilhelm’s (Edvin Ryding) struggles with his sexuality, identity, and positionality once he finds himself as the heir to the Swedish throne following the sudden death of his older brother, Erik. The storyline focuses on Wilhelm’s life at the high-end boarding school Hillerska, which consists of his budding romance with Simon (Omar Rudberg), friendship with Felice (Nikita Uggla), and oftentimes tense relationship with his older cousin August (Malte Gårdinger).

At the end of season two, Wilhelm finally admits that it was him in the sex tape with Simon, coming out to Hillerska and the world. Additionally, Simon’s sister Sara’s (Frida Argento) relationships with Felice and Simon have been decimated following their realization that Sara and August have been dating behind their backs. The fallout causes Sara to report August to the police for releasing the sex tape in the first place. Season three picks up with the aftermath, forcing fans to answer whether Wilmon will ignite a revolution or fizzle out in a blaze of glory.

Season three kicks off with a classic cliche make-out scene. Wilhelm and Simon are finally free to express their love and don’t hesitate to show it. Although they must now confront the blowback from Wilhelm’s confirmation of his participation in the

tape, the young couple seems ready to bask in the glow of their established relationship. But alas, their bliss is fleeting as these two teenagers in their first relationship begin to realize that love requires listening.

Molly Booth ’25 and I had been waiting for the day when we could jump for joy over a united Wilmon. Leading up to season three, we passed our time in the Hoch pasta bar line discussing our hopes for their happily ever after. Yet, this season left us questioning whether that expectation was better left as a fantasy.

Throughout the season, Wilhelm and Simon struggle to communicate on the most basic levels. Simon was trying to navigate his newfound fame as the official boyfriend of the crown prince and the subsequent cyberbullying and hate crimes that he began to experience. Meanwhile, Wilhelm was attempting to cope with his mother’s deteriorating mental stability due to unresolved grief from Erik’s death, sudden news that revealed Erik’s involvement in an initiation activity meant to shame gay male students, and the burden of the royal crown looming soon. Yet, a partner should be there to help lighten the load, even if that just entails listening and being a shoulder to lean on rather than immediately trying to fix the problem. Simon and Wilhelm do none of these things, or should I say Simon specifically.

Rather than empathizing with Wilhelm, Simon continuously redirects the conversation to his struggles. When Wilhelm asks Simon to stop posting content on his Instagram to ease the burden placed upon the royal court and Wilhelm’s mother due to the media coverage of Simon’s online actions, Simon refuses to try to understand where Wilhelm is coming from. Instead, Simon berates Wilhelm for siding with the royal family rather than him and does not consider how an absence from social media may also maintain his safety. Following Wilhem’s breakdown at his birthday dinner over his parents’ refusal to address their family's issues, Simon decides that the drama is too much

for him and breaks up with Wilhelm. Simon often lashes out, playing the victim and ignoring his impact on Wilhelm.

Although Simon makes many valid points regarding the socioeconomic differences between him and Wilhelm — noting that Wilhelm does not understand the power and privilege his role provides to be a role model for queer youth — these arguments are presented as scapegoats. Simon is seemingly placed on a moral high ground, causing him to invalidate most of Wilhelm’s issues since they are representative of his upper-class position. Simon should be able to post freely without censorship from the monarchy or fear of homophobic retaliation. Yet, if Wilhelm, Simon’s boyfriend, is asking him to stop posting for his well-being, Simon should at least hear him out instead of immediately cutting him off. Though frustrating at times, Simon and Wilhelm’s immaturity is emblematic of the complications that come with young romances and first loves.

Regarding first loves, August stole my heart, making him the first character whose plot line I absolutely loved watching develop this season (that’s what I meant). August, the charming antagonist since season one, released the sex tape, bribed Simon for drugs, and conducted semi-manipulative relationships with Felice and Sara. Sure, he has his flaws, but this season revealed so much insight into August’s background that certainly doesn't excuse his wrongdoings but demonstrates how he is actively trying to do and be better.

There are several comments and scenes sprinkled throughout the six episodes, insinuating that August is possibly suffering from an eating disorder, anxiety, and ADHD. He is shunned by Wilhelm, brushed aside by the royal family, and ignored by Sara (whom he still loves). His beloved Hillerska is shut down due to harassment charges filed against the school by alumni in response to their harmful initiation experiences. It is later learned that August was part of the group that Erik’s class

initiated that targeted gay men. August is constantly reeling from the pain caused by these incidents or conditions and becomes more aware of how alone and hurt he is.

August starts to reflect and own up to his mistakes. He constantly tries to mend his relationship with Wilhelm. He succeeds in my favorite scene of the series when he promises Wilhelm that Erik would have loved him regardless of his romance with Simon, reaffirming Wilhelm’s queer identity. He realizes his toxic views of masculinity — including a fear of crying or showing any genuine emotion — and vows to be more upfront and honest about his feelings. When everyone else is bickering about menial grievances, August is the voice of reason (shocking) and reminds everyone to ground themselves in reality and handle one thing at a time. August’s development from an egotistical, power-hungry playboy to a broken, reflective, and nuanced young adult shows that the key to character growth is a willingness to change.

Ultimately, Young Royals fulfills fans with a wholesome Wilmon montage and the confirmation that they ride off into the sunset together (literally). Regardless of the potential red flags of their relationship, Booth, the entire fanbase, and I would have been devastated if they didn’t end up together. They’re so cute and gay, can you blame us? Young Royals may be over, but just like Wilhelm and Simon’s longing gazes, the show’s legacy will live on in fan accounts for years.

How to Stop Being Texan in ONE Easy Step (NOT CLICKBAIT) (100% TRUE)

By Carah Allen ’26 Webmaster

BREAKING NEWS : Dallas native Carah Allen is DISOWNED from family upon finding indisputable evidence of their daughter eating AND ENJOYING California-founded burger joint In-N-Out. Here’s the (unnecessarily long-winded) testimony from the former Texan herself:

“There is no reason for me to deny the allegations. The pictures are there for everyone to see. I, a Southern woman, have disgraced my family, my culture, and my state by not only eating In-N-Out once but enjoying it enough to eat it again and again.

My fellow Texans, I’m sorry that I have failed you. I tried my best to be a hater against these Californians, but god forbid I have folded. Trust me when I say I have spent the last two years with a steadfast hold on my Texan roots, but as more time passes by, the strings connecting me to my statehood have been snipped by the Fates,” the teen proclaimed dramatically, one hand against her heart and the other wiping stray tears from her face.

If anyone knows Scripps College sophomore Carah Allen, they will know that being from Texas is (annoyingly) the most interesting part of the student’s personality. There hasn’t been a day that’s gone by where her home state has not been brought up in conversation. The events that recently transpired come as a surprise to everyone around her.

Her roommate, Lu Nimmo ’26, misty-eyed and in utter disbelief, states, “I was in complete shock. My

fellow Southerner,” she dramatically pauses to pull out a handkerchief and wipe her eyes from the stray tears that have fallen, “betrayed me. Betrayed her family. Betrayed her home,” she whispers the last part before yelling, “She is a FRAUD!”

Nimmo now mentioned the tension in their dorm room, recalling the awkward air as the two roommates watched their favorite show, Bob’s Burgers. “I can’t even enjoy the show anymore because every time I see Bob Belcher cook up a delicious burger, I’m reminded how she let a burger ruin her identity and get in between relationships with the people she said she loved the most,” Nimmo said.

Allen follows up with her confession about how she doesn’t regret her choices, claiming, “Good food is good food, and who is anyone to deny me of that god-given right.”

She goes on to recount her experience at In-N-Out: “It was around 11:30 p.m. on a Saturday night when I first went. My friends and I were tired and hungry from attempting to get schoolwork done and playing Among Us. My friend and fellow Texan, Toni, in the dead of silence, asked everyone if we wanted to get food, namely In-N-Out. The two Californians, Matthew and Isa, quickly nodded in agreement, but I was left frozen. I had never had InN-Out and would never have In-N-Out in support of my Texan roots and connection to the Texas-born burger joint, Whataburger.

But I thought, Toni’s Texan too. If she eats In-N-Out, the consequences can’t be that bad. Oh, how wrong I was. As soon as my mouth touched that food, I knew I was a different

person. A better person. Maybe it was the crispness of the fries. Maybe it was the comfortable, buzzing midnight air. Maybe it was Maybelline. I don’t know what it was, but I knew I would never be the same again.

Although those delicious animalstyle fries and that burger cooked to the heavens changed my life, they simultaneously ruined it. My mom called and told me not to come home. My dad still doesn’t know, but it’s not long before he finds out. To this day, I have to tell my mom it’s not just a phase. This is my lifestyle now — a lifestyle of In-N-Out and true happiness — a lifestyle of a girl who is going to be okay.

Even with the hardships I continue to face because of my decision, I only have one regret and it’s not eating InN-Out sooner. Those animal-style fries are something you go to war for. From now on, I will have a locket

like a soldier in the World War and I’ll open it to see a picture of animalstyle fries and remember what I’m fighting for.

Whataburger was my lover for nearly 20 years. As I reach my 20th year around this Earth, I have found a new partner. Like Gabriella in High School Musical, I, too, need to go my own way, but this time, hand in hand with In-N-Out.”

Allen ranted much longer on how the fast food chain remarkably changed her life and soon had to be dragged out of the interview room and charged with first degree of yappage. The current statehood status of the student is still unknown as the Texas government has not made its final decision. However, from the looks of it, the panhandle state will have to grab a marker and subtract one from their state population because In-N-Out has taken hostage their very own citizen.

LARRY IS REAL CONFIRMED???: The Dangers of Being Delusional on the Internet

By Georgia French ’27 Staff Writer

Delena. Robsten. Jelena. Bughead.

While to the untrained eye, these words may appear to be made up, to the select few, arguably chronically online groups, these names are immediately recognizable as the relationships they represent. Ship names are often catchy, cute, fancreated, and join two celebrities or characters who are not necessarily in a confirmed relationship.

Considering most of us have found ourselves unexplainably obsessed with certain couples, ship names make total sense. This increasingly common phenomenon is not necessarily problematic, but a few select ships have managed to create such fierce fandoms that justify reasonable wariness — in particular, the borderline delusional craze around … Larry Stylinson! For those of you who somehow skipped over the One Direction phase, this is the ship of Harry Styles and fellow band member Louis Tomlinson.

One Direction and fan fiction, along with the obsessive mindset the platform inspired, were both at their peak circa 2010-2016. These two pop culture movements existed at the same time, leading them to greatly influence one another. Clips of prolonged eye contact, hand signals that Larries convinced themselves held meaning, and just about any form of physical touch between Harry and Louis led to the conception of Larry.

These minuscule tokens of “proof” were enough to get the fan fiction mindset reeling.

While it might seem dramatic to write a whole article about a likely fake relationship that can largely be credited to the amazingly fantasized worlds within 15-year-olds’ brains, this is seriously what Larry warrants. In order to fully encompass the phenomenon of Larry, I interviewed two of the most well-versed people I know: my best friend Trudy Cohen (she/her, age 19) and my brother Owen French (he/him, age 20). Both of them have fallen down enough Larry evidence YouTube video rabbit holes to give them a certain authority on the subject.

Immediately into our interview, Cohen prefaced, “Do I think they had intimacy at some point? Yes.

Do I think it’s people’s right to make obsessive videos about it? No.” While this recognition that she believes something happened between Harry and Louis might technically classify her as a Larry, Cohen’s instinct to separate herself from the title says something about the group’s reputation. The unwavering stance that many passionate shippers take creates a culture that goes beyond just supporting a possible relationship. The bits of evidence used to rationalize large claims, the demographic of Larries being hypersaturated in media, and the complete certainty people feel in their opinions resemble the rationale and fanatic culture behind conspiracy theories.

French held the same reluctance to claim the title, stating, “I refuse to call myself a Larry, however I do think some of the evidence is convincing.” The weight behind his use of the word “refuse” led me to question further. He explained his hesitance is due to not wanting to be “associated with those people who spend all their time arguing with people on the internet. There is also a chance it’s not true, and I don’t think Larries will ever be satisfied.”

The necessity of dissecting minimal interactions in order to find “evidence” of a romantic connection only leads to new extremes of grasping at straws. Speaking of reaching, French managed to analogize Larries to religious people. “There’s a fine line, no pun intended, between proof and evidence,” he said. “There is some evidence that feeds into the theory but neither one of them has said they were in a relationship or even kissed in public.. like when really religious people are talking to an atheist and you can’t prove that God is real. You can say there is evidence, but it’s all based on faith. The fact that there are people who deny God’s existence makes those people more passionate.”

Personally, every time I see edits of Harry and Louis with 2012 camera quality captioned with complaints of their silence on the subject, I am struck by fans’ sense of entitlement to such personal information. This anger Larries feel in never getting a confirmation is complicated by the

(hypothetical) relationship being queer. People have gone as far as accusing them of queerbaiting, solely for never verifying a self-created conspiracy.

A kind of ultimatum is set for the celebrities: either say nothing and be titled as a queerbaiter, deny the claim, which will undoubtedly be seen as a lie by Larries, or confirm the relationship. Considering neither Harry nor Louis have spoken on the legitimacy of their own accord, any kind of verification due to the relentless speculation would be a forced labeling of their sexuality that they clearly prefer not to give.

I find most queerbaiting accusations ironic. The persistent shaming of the possibility of queerbaiting to the point where fans force a “coming out” statement is undeniably more harmful than two men being flirtatious while not explicitly claiming a queer identity. This situation is not stuck in the past with Larry. A more recent example, proving the relevance of the problem, was up-and-coming actor Kit Connor’s forced coming out. The backlash he faced for starring in a queer role was under the assumption that he was straight. This criticism based on ignorance pressured the young actor to share his bisexual identity with the entire world. While making up ship names seems harmless, this unsolicited commentary can lead to real problems for real people. In short, your parasocial relationships are weird. Go talk to your family! Touch grass!

Photo Courtesy of Matthew Jaimes-Morales PZ ’26

Spring Into Your Horoscopes

By Belén Yudess ’25 and Ella Young ’24 Copy Editor Intern and Staff Writer

Higher Power, Sends Love

By Aviva Vic Maxon ’24 Staff Writer

Salty sea and breeze lapping at your legs, knee-high waves, threatening your courage, light burning where the razor nicked you, while shaving as the salty sea, rises, falls, comes close, up and up before breathing out pulling back and out and out such beauty, power, life lapping at your ankles when you run away.

Pinwheels

By Rebecca Allen ’25 Staff Writer

When we woke up, It was raining

And we watched as it

Pooled on the tiled patio

From inside your room, Our nest of quilted stars And lamp light.

Yesterday, you drove my car

As it rained; A darkening sky

And darker streets lined with cypresses and powerlines.

In the afternoon, I cut your hair with a pair of Acrylic green mini scissors. You sit at my desk

And I try not to make a mistake.

After, your face

Becomes new to me

And I keep forgetting that Your hair is shorter now; That you’re changing slowly.