Spartan Daily Vol. 159 No. 23

Students decry Title IX Offi ce

Advocacy group makes its voice heard while DOJ visits campus

By Bryanna Bartlett PRODUCTION EDITOR

Chants including “No justice, no peace. No complicit employees,” could be heard Wednesday in front of Tower Hall. Inside, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has been holding listening sessions for the community regarding their experiences with San Jose State’s Title IX Office.

“The Department of Justice is holding office hours here in Room 110 to hear from the campus community about concerns regarding sexual discrimination and the university’s efforts to respond to sexual assault in its Title IX Office,” said Alexandra Ferry, social work sophomore and Students Against Sexual Assault co-founder. “We want to encourage students and faculty to attend these office hours because it’s an opportunity for your voice to be heard.”

Students Against Sexual Assault, which put on the news conference, is a student organization that advocates for the

Sikh community members gather in mourning in SJ

By Alexia Frederickson STAFF WRITER

Prayer chants could be heard at the San Jose Sikh Gurdwara as at least 60 San Jose community members gathered for a candlelight vigil for 8-month-old Aroohi Dheri; her mother Jasleen Kaur, 27; father Jasdeep Singh, 36; and uncle Amandeep Singh, 39, who

were kidnapped and killed in Merced on Oct. 5.

The Sikh family members ran their own trucking business and were kidnapped at their place of work, according to an Oct. 7 CNN article.

Gurdwaras, which are Sikh places of worship, have been holding vigils around the Bay Area in respect for the family throughout this week.

Sikhism is a religion from the Punjab region in India, according to the Britannica encyclopedia.

Sukhdev Singh Bainiwal, member of the Sikh Gurdwara Management committee, organized the event and said he was deeply saddened and disturbed by the kidnapping and killing of the family.

Turning Point USA affiliates ignite debates on campus

By Alessio Cavalca STAFF WRITER

The unofficial San Jose State chapter of Turning Point USA, a nonprofit conservative organization, sparked discussions about free speech with passers-by Wednesday in front of the Chavez Fountain.

Turning Point USA is focused on educating and training students to promote freedom, according to its website.

Although members said the event had been “canceled” by San Jose State because of a university policy violation, the organization was on campus for more than four hours.

Turning Point USA was planning to utilize campus facilities under another student organization reservation through College Republicans, which is not permitted, according to an email statement from the SJSU Student Involvement Office.

College Republicans is not a student chapter of Turning Point USA, so when it booked the space for Turning Point USA’s use, the organization violated Student Union guidelines, according to the SJSU Student Involvement Office email statement.

Morgonn McMichael, Turning Point USA contributor, was on campus to interview SJSU students about freedom of speech and to provide copies of the U.S. constitution and voting registration forms.

McMichael said she felt fortunate to speak to SJSU students.

“The university did not want our organization to have a presence here on campus,” McMichael said.

BRYANNA BARTLETT | SPARTAN DAILY

Students Against Sexual Assault calls out the SJSU Title IX Office and its staff efforts in front of Tower Hall Wednesday.

ALEXIA FREDERICKSON | SPARTAN DAILY

to the Dheri family, who were kidnapped and killed on

members at the San Jose Sikh Gurdwara on Wednesday.

Board of directors shows support for Afghans

By Nick Zamora

The San Jose State Associated Students Board of Directors unanimously passed a letter of support for the Afghan Adjustment Act during its meeting on Wednesday in the Student Union Room A1.

The Afghan Adjustment Act is currently being pushed through the U.S. Senate.

The letter was written in collaboration with San Jose State’s Afghan Student Association, which is an organization on campus that aims to provide a cultural safe space and networking opportunity for Afghan students and allies, according to its mission statement.

“I really commend all the student leaders that have really collaborated and utilized our student voice, to make a statement about how they feel about the Afghan Adjustment Act,” A.S. president Nina Chuang said.

If passed, the Afghan Adjustment Act would address the more than 82,000 Afghan nationals who evacuated during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan at the end of December 2021 and now remain in the U.S. in a state legal limbo, according to a December 2021 Department of Homeland Security Afghan Evacuee Report.

The bill would expedite and expand the process for permanent residence and obtaining special immigrant visas, according to a Sept. 22 New York Times article.

Of the more than 82,000 Afghan nationals in the U.S., only 3,500 evacuees are now

legal permanent residents, 3,000 of which are receiving special immigrant visas, according to the New York Times article.

The passed letter of support comes five days after U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar initially read and introduced the bill on the Senate floor Friday.

Dominic Treseler, A.S. director of legislative affairs, said change can seem minimal at first and made note of how quickly A.S. was able to give its support to the bill.

“I think it’s important for people to understand and to know that activism starts small,” Treseler said. “I’m really excited that we’ve taken such swift action, in support of a really important cause.”

The letter of support comes after a similar letter, also in support of the Afghan Adjustment Act, was written and submitted to University of California, Berkeley’s A.S. board of directors from its respective Afghan Student Association.

Myenn Rahnoma, SJSU’s Afghan Student Association president, said she was motivated to create something similar after a meeting with UC Berkeley, UC Davis and Sacramento State’s Afghan Student Associations.

Rahnoma said after that she reached out to Luis Aquino, SJSU A.S. director of intercultural affairs, they began drafting the letter together.

**Editor’s note: Rahnoma is a staff writer for the Spartan Daily.

The Afghan Adjustment Act is being reviewed by a senate judiciary committee and if passed, the bill is expected to expand availability for special immigrant

IN BRIEF

The San Jose State Associated Students Board of Directors unanimously passed a letter of support for the Afghan Adjustment Act, which is currently being pushed through the U.S. Senate.

The letter was written in collaboration with SJSU’s Afghan Student Association.

If passed, the Afghan Adjustment Act is expected to expand eligibility for special immigrant visas, modify and streamline the process for permanent resident status and require the Department of State to respond to inquiries from Congress about specific applications.

visas, according to the bill’s summary.

As of now, special immigrant visas for Afghan nationals are only “generally” available for nationals who were employed by or on behalf of the U.S. government in Afghanistan. The bill would extend access to special immigrant visas for Afghan nationals who are qualifying relatives of a veteran or member of the U.S. Armed Forces.

It mandates that the president establish a task force to develop and implement a strategy to assist Afghan nationals who qualify for admission into the U.S.

The bill also stipulates that the Department of State must respond to inquiries from members of Congress about special

POLITICS

Continued from page 1

applications from Afghan nationals seeking special immigrant or refugee status, as well as establish an office in Afghanistan to do various tasks such as giving visas if no embassies are operational in Afghanistan.

“Talking to student leaders of the Afghan Student Association really resonated with me,” Chuang said. “Their passion to really represent their community and really make a statement, and having them collaborate with Associate Students, really shows their initiative and their drive to really make change.”

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“If they commit a crime, we certainly take action, but speech, as long as it’s not hate speech or anything that’s prohibited by law, they are free to do it,” Belcastro said.

“We were supposed to have a planned event today, a formal speaking event in a classroom, but instead, we’re out here doing it right on Seventh Street.”

In a Wednesday article written by McMichael on Turning Point USA’s website, SJSU has allegedly refused to reinstate the chapter on campus.

Robin McElhatton, SJSU assistant media relations director, said the chapter was a recognized student group between 2019-20, but it did not apply for a re-recognition or to be a new student organization this year.

The re-recognition process includes completing an application and required training through a Canvas course, according to the SJSU Student Involvement Office.

from page 1

“We wanted to put a platform together where [everyone] can all come together and grieve in this sorrowful moment and, you know, let their frustration out,” Bainiwal said.

Many from the Sikh community feel as though they have been coming together to grieve frequently, especially as there has been an increase in hate crimes against Sikhs in recent years.

Sikh hate crimes have increased by 82% from 2019-20, according to the U.S. Department of Justice’s report on the FBI’s hate crimes statistics.

Many who came to the vigil expressed feelings of distress and outrage.

“We don’t want this to be a pattern,” said Meher Singh Nagpal, San Jose State engineering senior and Sikh Student Association board member. “We have to defend ourselves. That shouldn’t be something we have to do, but we have to because there’s no change happening in the system.”

Many speakers, including Harbir Kaur Bhatia, advocated for self-defense classes to be taught at local Gurdwaras.

“But we can control and make sure that we are being the best Sikhs, best residents of this nation, of these communities,” Kaur Bhatia said. “We have that right . . . Do not let these beautiful souls be just another number. Please use them as a reminder that you must go out and learn self defense.”

The suspected killer Jesus Manuel Salgado was arrested on Oct. 6 on four counts of murder and kidnapping, according to a Oct. 7 CNN article.

His brother, Alberto Salgado, was also arrested on charges of accessory, conspiracy and destroying evidence, according to the CNN article.

Jesus Manuel Salgado was able to own a firearm despite previously being convicted and sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2007 for armed robbery and possession of a controlled substance, according to the same CNN article. He was released early on parole in June 2015. His parole ended in June 2018.

officers came to support the Gurdwara and pay respect to the family.

“Words cannot describe how every member of our department is mourning just like everyone here,” SJSU Capt. Brian Spears said.

Other local leaders including California state Senator Dave Cortese, who came from Sacramento, and Matt Mahan, San Jose City Councilmember and mayoral candidate, also gave speeches.

“We need to seek assurances that our leaders are going to take actions to make sure that we are safe to make sure that families like this family in the future would be safe,” Cortese said.

Mahan said the city isn’t doing enough to address mental illness or identify the signs so SJPD can appropriately intervene to give people the help they need.

“When someone’s repeatedly committing crime driven by a behavioral health issue, we need to be able to have alternative interventions to jail,” Mahan said.

Throughout the night, many people from all backgrounds came to give their respects to the family. A small memorial with the faces of the Dheri family members was displayed on the ground surrounded by candles.

One family held up posters that contained photos of the family in black and white, with “R.I.P.” captioned onto them. One of the posters contained a QR code to a GoFundMe page to help fund the funeral for the Dheri family.

Amanpreet Uberoi, an SJSU electrical engineering senior, said members of the Sikh community want to see change, as well as mourning about this tragedy.

“It seems like a repeated cycle of something bad happens to our community, and then we’re out here giving our prayers and then nothing happens to change the events that’s happened,” Uberoi said.

Meher Singh Nagpal said the sights of the vigil were powerful.

“This is a very lively temple for a lot of people, a lot of people come here to pray every Sunday, every day of the week, really,” Singh Nagpal said. “So seeing, you know, this entire community, silenced and listening to these words is just, it’s pretty heavy.”

Student organizations also need to have five minimum members, an SJSU faculty or staff member to serve as an adviser and to submit a constitution that is aligned with California State University policies to be eligible for re-recognition, according to the SJSU Student Involvement Recognition Process webpage.

Some San Jose State students affiliated with Turning Point USA, who prefer to remain anonymous because of privacy concerns, all said they still need to find an adviser for their organization.

Although the official event was canceled, UPD Capt. Frank Belcastro said McMichael and other Turning Point USA affiliates did not break any university guidelines by being on Seventh Street.

Belcastro said as long as they did not set up a table, they had the right to stay there.

Turning Point USA affiliates held up signs around a wagon that was covered with signs and had pamphlets on top of it.

Magnus Herrlin, Associated Students board member and president of the student organization Democrats at San Jose State, debated with McMichael in front of the Student Wellness Center.

Herrlin said McMichael allegedly made false statements about the university.

“I find it offensive for them to be claiming that SJSU violated their rights to standardize them for their views, which is completely untrue,” Herrlin said.

He said although he does not condone the standpoints on issues that

Turning Point USA is known to hold, he thinks dialogue is important, especially with those who have different points of views.

“I do have a problem with how they continuously spread misinformation about vaccines and the election,” Herrlin said.

Turning Point USA has forged a strong relationship with former president Donald Trump, with organizers spreading misinformation about the 2020 presidential election and COVID-19 vaccines, according to a July 23, 2021 Washington Post article.

It also runs the controversial “professor watchlist,” which seeks to “expose” professors who allegedly discriminate against conservative students and advance “leftist propaganda,” according to a Feb. 14, 2019 Anti-Defamation League article, an anti-hate organization.

Herrlin said despite that, he maintains that the dialogue is important.

“Hopefully, we’re able to change some minds today,” Herrlin said.

ALEXIA

SPARTAN DAILY

by community members during

vigil

the Dheri family at the San Jose Sikh Gurdwara on Wednesday evening.

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university to become a safe and supportive space by ensuring Title IX protection, according to its Instagram page.

Vanessa Becerra, sociology junior and Students Against Sexual Assault member, said the group formed in October 2021 to track SJSU’s progress in fully complying with the DOJ’s demands of rebuilding its Title IX Office.

“[Students Against Sexual Assault had] stepped on this campus [in May] and demanded SJSU act adequately to staff the Title IX Office, remove complicit staff that are still on campus [who] allowed for decades of violence against our students and ignored them in their most vulnerable state,” Becerra said. “Lastly, we demanded SJSU take accountability, provide transparency and ensure student safety.”

She said the group was outside the DOJ’s listening sessions with similar demands from its May 11 news conference.

The DOJ had “office hours” for several hours on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively and is expected to hold two others in Tower Hall today from 5-7 p.m. and Friday from 3-5 p.m.

Its campus visit is compliance monitoring that is congruent with the Sept. 21, 2021 DOJ-SJSU resolution agreement, in which the DOJ found that the university failed to adequately answer to sexual misconduct reports for more than a decade, according to the resolution.

Concerns about the SJSU Title IX Office were raised after Scott Shaw, former SJSU athletic trainer and director of sports medicine, had been charged with violating civil rights of at least four female student-athletes from 2017-20 for engaging in sexual misconduct, according to a March 10 U.S. Attorney’s Office news release.

Shaw was initially investigated in 2009-10 about his pressure-point therapy on the genital and breast regions of female student-athletes, but he was cleared of wrongdoing by the university, which enabled him to treat more than 1,000 female student-athletes before he retired in August 2020, according to the DOJ investigation report.

The DOJ also reported that the university took active measures to cover up the misconduct, which included retaliating against whistleblowers.

The DOJ said in its Sept. 21 findings the 2020-21 reinvestigation was “only” initiated after Sage Hopkins, swimming and diving head coach, circulated a 300-page dossier through the FBI and the National Collegiate Athletic Association in December 2019.

I’ve worked at different universities with different students and sometimes they make . . . demands that could be described as unrealistic. Not these students. I can see that they have things to do with personnel investments, resource investments, accountability, separation of where information goes and who has access to it, which is all to protect people who are vulnerable.

Jason Laker SJSU counselor education professor

analyst in February; Wendi Liss, the former Title IX and gender equity officer who had a base salary of $132,000 and was rehired in May as the interim deputy Title IX coordinator; Andrew Nguyen, who was hired in July for the newly-created position of Title IX project manager; and Mary Keating, who was hired in September as a Title IX investigator.

gender discrimination and rather than being reactive, that they be proactive.”

She said SJSU shouldn’t just be doing the bare legal minimum.

Lim said the Title IX Office is committed to building an effective program.

Hopkins sent out the dossier, which detailed more than 17 swim and dive student-athletes’ sexual misconduct accounts against Shaw, after it “disappeared” from the university’s Title IX Office in 2019, according to a Sept. 25 Mercury News article.

Hopkins, a main whistleblower throughout the 10-year-long athletics sexual misconduct scandal, said he attended the news conference in support of Students Against Sexual Assault.

He also said he spoke to the DOJ during its listening session Tuesday and thinks it’s an opportunity for the administration to keep focus on what’s important: protecting students.

“I feel like there’s been a lot of very good changes that have been made,” Hopkins said after the news conference. “I’m very happy with our new administration, both in athletics and interim president Perez. I feel that they have the [students’] safety as their number one priority.”

He added that the DOJ being at SJSU is a chance for the university to really see how it is doing in regards to the changes it is federally required to make.

The resolution agreement between the DOJ and SJSU states that the university must reform its Title IX Office and increase the number of Title IX staff workers, which should be made up of at least five members.

Mykel Vallar, freshman transfer student and Students Against Sexual Assault member, said since the student group’s first news conference in May, its members have met

with Interim President Steve Perez and Peter Lim, interim Title IX and gender equity officer, multiple times.

Vallar said Students Against Sexual Assault provided feedback to Perez and Lim on how to improve the Title IX Office, which included hiring staff members and removing staff members who were complicit in the sexual misconduct mishandling.

“By not implementing feedback in the Title IX Office, Lim and Interim President Perez continuously fail the San Jose State community,” Vallar said. “Perez has stated, ‘We must do better’ while still failing to fully staff the Title IX Office with permanent employees.”

Lim said both he and Perez have met with the advocacy group and have offered follow-up sessions with it.

“We are in frequent communication with [Students Against Sexual Assault members] and always welcome the opportunity to receive their input, listen to their concerns and answer their questions,” Lim said in an email.

Robin McElhatton, SJSU assistant director of media relations, said in an email that since the DOJ released its investigation report last year, the university has cooperated with the DOJ in its efforts to monitor SJSU’s compliance with the resolution agreement and federal law.

Lim said the Title IX Office currently has five full-time employees, which is congruent with the terms of the resolution agreement.

Those employees include: Lim; Karina Hernandez, who was hired as the Title IX

“In the coming months, the university will commence a national search for a permanent Title IX and Gender Equity Officer. The Title IX Office will make an official announcement before launching the search and all will be invited to provide input on the selection process,” Lim stated in a Sept. 22 message posted on the university’s For Your Information Athletics Investigations webpage.

Karlie Eacock, social work graduate student and Students Against Sexual Assault co-founder, said the student group doesn’t approve of the current employee status of SJSU’s Title IX Office.

“We are also asking that the Title IX Office and San Jose State University remove Wendi Liss from the Title IX Office,” Eacock said. “As some of you may or may not be aware, Wendi Liss worked within the Title IX Office prior to the DOJ investigation and prior to the removal of the Title IX staff once that investigation and resolution agreements started.”

Liss authored Title IX annual reports for the university in 2017-18 and 2020-21, which seems to indicate that she worked in the Title IX Office for several years.

University media relations could not provide specific information about Liss’s employment at the university in time for publication. The story will be updated online as soon as the university can provide that information.

Eacock said the Title IX Office is also “failing” with only one Title IX investigator on staff.

According to the Title IX Staff Directory, there is one vacant Title IX investigator position out of the two.

“We demand that SJSU makes these changes, that we staff the Title IX Office with trustworthy staff,” Eacock said. “Our vision is that our campus be responsive to sex and

“This is hard and complicated work and we welcome [the DOJ’s] expertise and input,” Lim said in an email. “We are participating in most of the [DOJ] listening sessions and appreciate the opportunity to listen to members of our community and learn from them.”

SJSU counselor education professor Jason Laker said he attended the news conference to support the process of investigating what has happened, what needs to change and the accountability to execute those changes.

Laker said Students Against Sexual Assault is asking the university for very reasoned, thoughtful and executable actions.

“When your university has to have the federal government come to intervene, that is a deep level of failure,” he said. “What I can say for sure is that with the federal government already swooping in to do this in the state legislature, you know, that’s on [SJSU’s] radar – If they screw it up this time, I do have hope that there’ll be bigger consequences.”

Laker declined to comment on whether he has or intends to sit down with the DOJ during its listening sessions this week.

He said his “strong preference” is that the university tends to what needs changing, but only by investing in Title IX areas surrounding prevention, response, support and education.

Laker said he was also proudly impressed by the “demands” of Students Against Sexual Assault.

“I’ve worked at different universities with different students and sometimes they make . . . demands that could be described as unrealistic,” he said. “Not these students. I can see that they have things to do with personnel investments, resource investments, accountability, separation of where information goes and who has access to it, which is all to protect people who are vulnerable.”

BRYANNA BARTLETT SPARTAN DAILY

Advocacy group holds a news conference Wednesday outside Tower Hall, where inside, the DOJ has been holding “office hours.”

Spartans get ready for new seasonSpartans get for new season

By Kyle Tran SPORTS EDITOR

Chants of “Who got my back, I got your back” rang through the San Jose State club lacrosse team huddle during its practice.

Business senior Aaron Escobar, president of the club lacrosse team, said he became involved with the sport in Summer 2016 and started playing Spring 2017 in high school.

He joined the SJSU club lacrosse team when he was a freshman in Fall 2019.

“The sport is growing so quickly here in California,” Escobar said. “Every year, it seems like you hear about

for the rest of my life.”

Hovatter said he initially joined the team to play around, but as he served in leadership roles including being president last year, he learned competence, leadership and managing responsibilities and relationships with other lacrosse programs.

He said his fondest memory came during a 17-0 shutout against Cal Poly Humboldt, formerly known as Humboldt State University as well as the time where the team enjoyed “hanging out being bros” at the beach during a Los Angeles trip.

more and more schools getting lacrosse teams and people getting into the sport.”

Wesley Hovatter, applied economics graduate student and team treasurer, said the team markets itself as a no-experience-required team.

This fall marks Hovatter’s third year with the team but he has been playing the sport for nine years.

“People don’t realize how good they can get in just three weeks,” Hovatter said regarding why the team doesn’t require experience.

Last year, the club was struggling to find potential players, but this year has been the opposite.

Head coach Derek de Lemos said it’s a good problem to have too many players this year.

Escobar said there are many members who are striving to improve their skill sets by reaching out and practicing with others.

He said one of his favorite memories is when the team traveled to Southern Oregon University and beat the Raiders in overtime 16-15 on Feb. 22, 2020.

“That was my best moment of my freshman year by far because I really got to bond with that team extremely well,” Escobar said. “People talk about ‘Oh, you’ll make so many memories in college.’ Like that was it. That was a memory that I’m going to keep with me

The team is still in the process of constructing its winning formula for when its season starts in Spring 2023 by hosting scrimmages and exhibition matches at the recreational fields located at South Campus.

To prepare, the team is playing other club teams including University of California, Santa Cruz, Chico State University and St. Mary’s College while also playing post-collegiate teams such as the Palo Alto Ducks.

Escobar said club lacrosse at SJSU is built by a strong network of alumni who have and want to share the love of the sport especially since all four coaches were former SJSU club lacrosse players.

“Alumni dating all the way back from 2006, come out to play a game against our current team, just purely out of love for the team,” Escobar said.

Though the team is in the preseason, its players have high aspirations for the spring as they hope to make a playoff push and participate in Nationals.

“We’re here to make ourselves better by introducing people to new things and new sports,” Hovatter said. “It really is like a brotherhood.”

PHOTOS BY KYLE TRAN | SPARTAN DAILY

Above: Kelliah Tarver (left) attempts a pass to a teammate on the run while a defender tries to get in front of him. Below: A player looks on as a coach gives instructions during a break in action.

Jackson Christopulos, San Jose State club lacrosse player smiles in a huddle before a scrimmage. The Spartans finished the 2022 season 3-6 with a 2-3 record at home.

We’re here to make ourselves better by introducing people to new things and new sports.

Wesley Hovatter Spartan defender

Blaze in peace: Biden takes step to decriminalization

between 2001-10, 88% were for simply having marijuana, according to a report by the American Civil Liberties Union focused on racially targeted marijuana arrests.

At the federal level, those who will be pardoned should have a much easier time getting a job, reaping federal benefits, renting out a place to live and applying for college.

In Biden’s announcement of the pardons, he also addressed the elephant in the room: how highly the government ranks marijuana as a drug.

President Joe Biden announced Thursday that thousands of people will be pardoned for their federal convictions of possessing marijuana and for that I say: finally.

The pardons will clear those convicted of federal charges for simple possession since it became a crime in the ’70s, according to an Oct. 6 New York Times article.

While that decision is long-overdue, it is a step in the right direction.

About 6,500 people, who were convicted between 1992-2021, will be pardoned according to the New York Times article.

While the number is relatively small, it’s the thought that counts. Helping the people who have been charged with simple possession is the first of many steps to lead towards legalization.

Black Americans will be the most affected by this as they are more than four times as likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than white Americans, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.

The consequences of being booked for possessing a small amount of marijuana are brutal and deeply affect those convicted.

Going through background checks will currently show your employer the marijuana conviction, which could obviously hinder your chances of landing that job. Same goes with finding a place to live, a car to drive, even colleges will see the conviction.

Of the 8.2 million marijuana arrests

Marijuana is ranked as a Schedule I drug, which is defined as “drugs or substances that are not currently accepted for medical use and high potential abuse,” the same category as heroin and LSD.

For reference, Schedule II, the rank where less harmful drugs are supposed to be, contains cocaine and meth, according to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration.

Would you rather have someone ask if you want to go smoke some weed, or shoot some heroin? The two shouldn’t be classified together.

Biden additionally wants to review the classification of marijuana, seeing if it can be placed in a different schedule instead. On Oct. 6, Biden wrote in a Twitter post, “We must classify marijuana at the same level of heroin – and more serious than fentanyl. It makes no sense.”

This would be a great step to establish legalization across the country, allowing for people over the age of 21 to pack their bowls without fear and without a medical prescription.

This is not the only step Biden has to take.

Presidents do not have the power to pardon charges at the state or local level. However, Biden’s current action does shine a light for communities to have more confidence in their lifestyle.

Biden’s call to pardon simple marijuana convictions across the country has already been underway, as California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Colorado Gov. Jared Polis have already issued pardons for simple

possession of marijuana convictions in their states.

Momentum will continue to build once it sees a spark, so these beginning steps in the right direction will be seen nationwide.

This proclamation by Biden will formally restore political, civil and other rights to the individuals who were denied to them as felons for their simple possession of marijuana, according to an Oct. 6 CNBC article.

While the number may be relatively low for individuals granted these pardons, the massive numbers of individuals convicted at the state and local level in the American criminal justice system for simple drug

charges have a sign of hope.

Whether it’s 10 convictions or 10 million, all that matters is that something is actually being done. Some form of action must be taken to ensure not only safety, but confidence, to people who just want to smoke weed in peace.

Whether or not the government pushes for Biden’s attempt at granting these pardons at the state and local level, the actions he has taken shows people that he is willing to fight for their causes.

Brandon Twomey

Follow Brandon on Twitter @Brandon_2me

BY KATIA KASOWER

Music recap: fall albums astound

By Saumya Monga

Chloe Moriondo’s album

“SUCKERPUNCH” (released on Oct. 7)

The sounds of a camera flash open pop artist Chloe Moriondo’s latest album “SUCKERPUNCH.” Immediately, listeners are hit with references about Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.

In the 2000s, Spears and Aguilera were popstars with vital voices. They made waves with their bold music which talked about all things women were not allowed to speak about, including sex.

“SUCKERPUNCH’s” first song is “Popstar,” named after the trailblazing women who have inspired Moriondo’s sound.

While her previous 2021 album “Blood Bunny” took a more pop punk route, “SUCKERPUNCH” is more risqué with its lyrics.

Moriondo no longer feels the need to follow in other popsinger’s footsteps to prove herself as an artist with pitch perfect vocals as she plays with autotune.

“Knockout” still features Moriondo’s feisty lyrics, usually aimed against toxic men, and features the sound of a boxing bell ringing in the background.

She sings “Punch guys, win a prize, I’m the pinnacle,” turning the machismo wrestler image on its head.

“SUCKERPUNCH” positions Moriondo as one of the most exciting voices in pop music today, not because she caters to trends, but because she has the courage to explore her sound. She truly “knocks out” listeners with her highly-malleable, transformative sound.

Easy Life’s “MAYBE IN ANOTHER LIFE” (released on Oct. 6)

The track “Basement” off of Easy Life’s latest album “MAYBE IN ANOTHER LIFE…,” starts off with faded noises of a party next door. You can hear muffled chatter and the dampened sounds of music, getting louder and louder.

All you want to do is crash this party or risk the fear of missing out.

The British band consists of Murray Matravers on vocals, Sam Hewitt on saxophone, Olly Cassidy on drums, Lewis Berry on guitar and Jordan Birtles percussion and keyboard.

Easy Life doesn’t take the ups and downs of life too seriously and confront difficult emotions with an overwhelmingly positive outlook, whether it’s

through their lyrics or carefree production.

Their music is a blend of genres that combine funk, jazz and hip-hop.

“BUGGIN” starts with a school bell ringing that then transitions into an extremely funky, wavy melody. Throughout the song there are high-pitched voices singing “shut the fuck up” and the outro is simply a repetition of those lyrics.

Easy Life truly flourishes when leaning heavy on comedy. They address serious topics including mental health but are always cheeky in their delivery.

“MEMORY LOSS,” a song about forgetting parts of your life, features a healthy amount of sarcasm as Matravers sings “Think I lost my virginity/Under a tree/Now that’s some achievement.”

some achievement.”

Singer-songwriter and actor Joshua Bassett’s music is profound and evokes a beautiful feeling of melancholia. There is no shortage of sad songs that make you cry your eyes out at 2 a.m., and Basset has perfected that sound.

His latest track, “would you love me now?” is an ode to anyone who has failed to confess their love for another.

The song navigates emotions like a character in a romance film, who’s at the door of the person they admire, hand hovering just above the door in a paused motion. Or laying in bed about to send a text confessing their love but is never able to go through with the action.

Saumya’s album of the week: Riz Ahmed’s “The Long Goodbye” (released on March 6, 2020)

British Pakistani actor Riz Ahmed is one of the most prominent South Asian actors in Hollywood.

He starred in the critically acclaimed and Oscar-nominated 2019 film “Sound of Metal” and received his first Oscar for best live-action short film for “The Long Goodbye.”

While most people may know Ahmed as an actor, he was first and foremost a rapper. His 2006 track “Post 9/11 Blues” was a sign of what his music would continue to address: identity, race and discrimination.

The song has Easy Life’s classic groove, compelling listeners to sway to Matravers’ lyrics about trying to remember his

The song

trying to his childhood

It’s an interesting juxtaposition that speaks well to Easy Life’s general outlook: to have an “easy life,” sometimes all we need to do is

It’s an that well to Life’s general outlook: to have an life,” sometimes all we need to do is laugh at our pain.

Joshua Bassett’s “would you love me now?” (released on Oct. 6)

Joshua Bassett’s “would love me now?” on Oct.

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Bassett lets the emotion of the lyrics speak for itself and includes minimalistic production. It’s just him and the piano. At the chorus, he hits a stunning falsetto as he questions whether someone would love him despite missing his chance in the past.

His second studio album “The Long Goodbye,” named after his film of the same name, was released on March 6, 2020.

The album proves Ahmed as a potent wordsmith, rapping against racism in Great Britain and painting vital pictures of what it means to be brown.

plead

His high-pitched voice sounds like he is pleading, begging to know if there is still an opportunity for someone to love him.

While the song speaks to the heavy feelings of regret, it could very well be about Bassett asking listeners whether they could love him given the drama surrounding his previous relationship with fellow musician Olivia Rodrigo.

It can be so easy to make someone a villain on the internet and much of the hate was directed at Bassett, who was accused of breaking Rodrigo’s heart.

Bassett’s music speaks to the complexity of what it is to be a human in the age of the internet. Whether you are famous or not, we all face the pressures of social media.

I have often thought about whether the people I know online would love who I am in real life. Bassett’s single makes me question, “Would they love me

On “Mogambo,” Ahmed raps “Pick a side, do or die / ’Cause all we ever do is die / They either bomb us or we suicide.” It is a brutal reflection on how the world perceives Muslims.

Ahmed isn’t interested in creating digestible narratives for audiences. Being brown comes with being constantly discriminated against and it can be exhausting for South Asians to constantly mold themselves to make white people comfortable.

That is why Ahmed is widely respected in the brown community. His music is tailored to them with subtle references to their culture.

On “Fast Lava,” Ahmed proclaims “I spit my truth and it’s brown” and it’s time the world realizes that the truth is uncomfortable.

now, without the facade of social media?”

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