Online weekly at www.sdcitytimes.com
CITY TIMES HYBRID IDENTITIES
DEAL WITH THE DEVIL
Professors screen film at local festival PAGE 4 ‘How the Irish Became White’ PAGE 8 Covering the San Diego City College community since 1945
Take Note.......................... 2 Arts.................................. 5 Life................................... 8 Voice............................... 11 Sports............................. 16
Volume 65, Number 10
Ramen for Brown
March 8, 2011
Bookstore policy potentially confusing By Shane Finneran City Times
Kalie Sandstrom (left) and Sidney Gallegos are among dozens of City College students that marched on to Gov. Jerr y Brown’s downtown office on March 2, as part of a protest against budget cuts to education. Troy Bryant Orem, City Times
Students protest governor’s plan to cut millions from education By Ernesto Lopez and Ricky Soltero City Times A few dozen students and some faculty members laid “dead” in Gorton Quad on March 2, part of a statewide protest of Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposal to cut millions from higher education. After the die-in event, a group of students marched to the downtown offices of Brown on 1350 Front St., hoping to deliver $300 worth of Top Ramen soups while chanting “No more budget cuts!” and “What do we want? Education!” The proposed cuts will slash
$500 million from the University of California system, $500 million from the California State University schools and $400 million from community colleges for the next school year. Brown also has proposed increasing fees at community colleges from $26 to $36 per unit. “We’re trying n More to give everyone protest a physical rep- photos resentation of Page 4 what’s happening to our education,” student Angela Dance said. “If we don’t do something, it’s going to get worse,” Dance added. “It’s going to keep happening. A big ball of hell.”
About 50 students and faculty members participated in a die-in event at Gorton Quad on March 2, simulating the death of education. Troy Bryant Orem, City Times Jose Rodriguez, a member of the campus group Bringing Education and Activism Together (BEAT), said that Brown has failed students across the state
and that increasing the cost of education prevents people from finding high-quality jobs. See Ramen, page 13
Women talking openly about sex
‘Vagina Monologues’ actors hold talk-back about womenhood
By Angela d’Avignon Correspondent After the sold-out debut performance, the cast of the ‘Vagina Monologues’ gathered on stage to host a talk back forum the night of Friday Feb. 18. In light of the monologues, collected and arranged by playwright Eve Ensler, the actresses addressed questions from audience members and offered per-
sonal responses. Main discussion points were both the experience of performing real women’s thoughts about womanhood and their own thoughts on the subject of femininity and of course, their vaginas. “This is something young girls need to know about themselves,” said one of the actresses, dressed in red and black matching the cast. “Tell (her) the truth,” she said, responding to a question
about what the play’s overall message would be for a young man. Similarly, another male audience member asked what he should do when his daughter felt too shy to talk about her developing sexuality. “I speak freely about sex,” one actress said. A few of the girls went on to explain the importance of conveying an air of comfort when talking to one’s children about sexuality. “We have to learn
to empower ourselves, so we can empower our youth.” Likewise, a young woman asked the cast if any of them had been transformed by the process of studying and performing other women’s monologues. Rebekah Ensley, who performed “Because He Liked to Look at It,” admitted to being somewhat reserved when See Women, page 13
Nursing student Shantell Lacy attempted to return a textbook at the City College bookstore on Feb. 8 but gave up after speaking to the cashier, who mentioned that the last day for a full refund was Jan. 29. “They should at least give us until the middle of February,” Lacy said. What Lacy didn’t realize — and what the large return-policy sign hanging near the cashier station didn’t mention — is that after Jan. 29, the bookstore will work with customers who believe they deserve their money back. “The store folks make exceptions every day for refunds,” said Nancy Wichmann, bookstore manager for the district. For example, customers who can provide proof that they dropped a class are likely able to return a textbook from that class. A student facing military deployment should also be entitled to a refund. Lacy said she had hoped to get her money back because her professor told her that the book, originally a required text, wasn’t necessary after all. According to Wichmann, the bookstore will try to issue refunds in such situations after consulting with the professor to figure out why the book was originally listed as required. DeeDee Porter, who runs the City College bookstore, reiterated its commitment to serving its student customers. “We will always err on the side of the student,” Porter said. In an email interview, Professor Darius Spearman said some of his students were hesitant to buy books because they were not sure if they were going to be able to add a class. “I had suggested that they just buy the books and follow along with the assignments, assuming that they could return them by the Feb. 4 (add/drop) deadline,” Spearman wrote. Some of his students responded that the bookstore’s return period ended a week earlier, on Jan. 29. Wichmann and Porter explained that — as indicated in the formal refund policy, a half-page blurb available in the bookstore — it’s actually the no-questions-asked See Bookstore, page 14
Though the bookstore’s sign didn’t mention it, students may be eligible for refunds after Januar y 29. Carlos Maia, Correspondent