THE
ANTLERETTE VOLUME 96 // ISSUE 1
the antlerette // fall 2021
TA B L E O F
CONT ENTS 3 RACIAL
STEREOTYPING I N H O L LY W O O D TRISHA TRAN // STA FF
5 WHITENESS
13 P R O B L E M S IN
TRUE CRIME ALYSO N COLES // STAFF
7
E AT I N G D I S O R D E R S A N D FA S H I O N B E NJAM IN CARRILLO // EDITOR-IN-CHIE F
9 THE
PROBLEMS WITH ORGANIZED RELIGION
MAIYA LOPEZ // COPY EDITOR
WITH T O U R I S M I N H A WA I I
G R E G S AN TOS / / D E S I G N E D I TOR
15 U N N E C E S S A R Y
S E X U A L I Z AT I O N IN WOMEN’S CLOTHES
S YD N E Y WE S S E LI N K / / S TAF F
17 T H E
NEOPRONOUN DISCOURSE IN T H E LG B TQ + COMMUNITY
C AM E R ON C AIN / / S TAF F
19 H O S T I L E
ARCHITECTURE
11 T H E
AN N ALYS E THOR PE / / G UE S T WR IT ER
CLINTONS
R YA N O ’ S U L L I VA N // CONTENT EDITO R
21 T D A G A L L E RY
hidden controversy < 2
BENJA M IN CARRILLO // EDITOR- I N - C HI E F
LETTER F R O M
T H E
E DI T O R
I
n our most recent edition of the Fall Magazine, The Antlerette staff confronted the hidden controversies of the world. We believe these issues aren’t nearly thought about as much as they should be. The world we are currently living in is one that has plenty of issues being covered by the media and activists online. However, everyone has a battle they are fighting. And these are the issues we believe deserve more attentiveness. See the staff delve into the less talked about controversies of widely known issues, and dissect corruption from places and people we know of and enjoy. Read the piece from our new guest writer, as they delve into the popularity of anti homeless shelters. Everything has a hidden controversy, everything deserves to be discussed. I’m incredibly proud of the staff this year, and without a doubt this is some of the best writing we’ve had in the magazine in years. We as a group did the research, looked into the deeper issues, and found some of the underlying issues that we think deserve the utmost attention. Read the different places racism affects worlds, like the typecasting in Hollywood. There are articles truly looking into most controversies from unthought of angles, like the neopronouns discourse-or the body image issues that some are subjected to. Our entire staff’s desire is to not only shed light upon these issues, but that with this knowledge from these articles, we hope the readers will take it upon themself to start the change in some of these hidden controversies.
CON
FIDE
NTIA
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EDITORIAL ADVISOR // MICHELLE HAMILTON
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF // BENJAMIN CARRILLO
PHOTO ADVISOR // KENT PICKERING
CONTENT EDITOR // RYAN O’SULLIVAN
COVER PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // KATHY PHAM
DESIGN ADVISOR // MARGARET SOULIERE
DESIGN EDITOR // GREG SANTOS
GRAPHIC DESIGNERS //
COPY EDITOR // MAIYA LOPEZ
CHRISTY AU, STEPHANIE CHAN, LOGAN DOOSE, ELOISE GATIP, PHILIP HOPKINS, VINCENT KAN, JAKE RAU, ZACK RICHARD, KAITLIN ROHALY, LILY WILBER
3 > the antlerette // fall 2021
hidden controversy < 4
RACIAL STEREOTYPING I N H O L LY W O O D TRIS HA TR AN / / STAFF
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hen the word “Hollywood” is mentioned, many people may immediately think of the glitz and glam of an actor’s life or it being the birthplace of iconic films. However, people have started exposing the ugly side of Hollywood. Under the name of diversity, more filmmakers have included people of color in their projects, but usually not in the correct way.
in the past have included corny depictions of minorities, like Breakfast at Tiffany’s. The 1961 film includes a character named Mr. Yunioshi, who is a mocking caricature of Japanese people. Mr. Yunioshi had an insulting accent and was also played by Mickey Rooney, a white male actor. Numerous actors have had personal experiences with stereotyping in auditions. Serving as a notable example, Justin Chon, a
I, as a black woman with braids and tattoos, shouldn’t only be able to play a hippie; I should also be able to play a lawyer or doctor or comedian or whatever it is! Through racial stereotyping in auditions, actors and actresses of color have been subjected to doing accents and characterizations that have no significance to the plots. The continued stereotyping often leads to mockery, demeanment, and limitations of certain racial groups. With the widespread nature of media and film, this can lead to a dangerous end result. Racial stereotyping is defined as having an exaggerated or altered image of a particular race in mind. Many famous movies
Korean American actor, wrote an editorial on NBC News, called “I Walked Out on Racist Audition”. He detailed his own personal experience of driving far to an audition that was full of other Asian American actors. Chon detailed how he frustratingly walked out of the audition after hearing that the casters required the eager actors to use an Asian accent with the lines given, although the accent served no purpose to the actual film. The Twilight actor notes that he was only able to walk out of the audition because he was financially stable. Chon
recognizes that his younger, struggling self probably would have set aside his own morals for the job. Similarly, many other actors and actresses of color understand that if they reject the job, there will be another desperate person who is willing to do the job. As acting roles in Hollywood are considered a scarcity compared to the number of aspiring talents, competition among actors and actresses of color has been created for the wrong reasons. Therefore, the problem has no easy fix and can’t be resolved with band-aid solutions, like all actors just rejecting all racist roles completely. Other actors and actresses feel tied down to certain roles because of their race. In 2017, Kal Penn, a Gujarati Indian actor, released his old scripts on Twitter that contained heavy racial stereotypes. The scripts called for characters, such as Snake Charmers, Fire Eaters, and Gandhi lookalikes, all of these being clichés for Indian people. He shows the need for change as racial stereotyping has been around for too long. A well known actress, Zoe Kravitz, has also been very vocal about her struggles with being a black woman. In an interview with ET Canada in 2018, she states, “ I, as a black woman with braids and tattoos, shouldn’t only be able to play a hippie; I should also be able to play a lawyer or doctor or comedian or whatever
it is!” Kravitz urged Hollywood to keep up with the times and understand that people of color are not limited to any preconceived images in the media. Although people can’t change the system that has been around for decades immediately, people of color have other options to combat the endless loops of racial stereotyping. Many filmmakers and actors, such as Chon, are at the forefront of a new tactic of creation. By creating their own films and videos with the correct stories of people of color and characterizations, they are able to set the new standard for entertainment. Now more than ever, it is easier to publish short films and vlogs to a greater audience. So how can the regular person contribute to changing Hollywood into an industry where true diversity is welcomed? Start by supporting minority filmmakers and normalizing correct representation.
5 > the antlerette // fall 2021
“Through the lens of a white audience, crimes that don’t fit this aren’t real crimes.”
hidden controversy < 6
WHITENESS IN TRUE CRIME A LYS ON C OL ES / / STAF F
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // XIMENA RAMIREZ GONZALEZ
T
rue crime, by the name itself, promises to be faithful to reality. At first glance, maybe it is. Individual stories within true crime as a genre are told honestly. Think: the murder of JonBené Ramsey or Kitty Genovese. But a look at the bigger picture sends a different message. Why are certain stories chosen to be covered, and others cast aside? What makes a crime worthy of television, podcasts, or books? Why are so many of the victims we as a society recognize attractive, young, white women with big accomplishments and would-be promising futures? If the highest rates of homicide are among indegenous women, how come I can’t name a single famous true crime case involving them? All narratives are written to convey a specific message. It’s no coincidence that most true crime focuses on cisgender, white women suffering at the hands of men of color who they don’t know. Through the lens of a white audience, crimes that don’t fit this aren’t real crimes. The first true crime magazine, True Detective Mysteries, later just True Detective, ran from 1924 to 1995. True Detective quickly became popular across working class America, and though hundreds of imitator magazines were created in wake of its success, it was considered the best and most reliable true crime magazine. During the 60s, the authors for True Detective often included messages from the FBI director at the time, J Edgar Hoover, who is known now for, among other things, targeting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and sending him an anonymous letter urging him to kill himself. This same man personally closed the case of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, which killed four black girls, without filing charges against any of the named suspects, and spread false rumors about civil rights worker Viola Liuzzo to President Johnson. The main informant for the most influential true crime magazine of the 20th century allowed crimes against black people to go on without punishment. This PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // JOSH STROM
shaped the kinds of stories covered by true crime authors, and how they told those stories. In recent years, black people have accounted for 50% of all victims of homicide in America, even though they make up less than 15% of the population as a whole. In true crime though, black men are portrayed most often as killers and rapists of white women. The dissonance is clear. This made-up narrative about black men dates all the way back to the reconstruction era with the movie, The Birth of a Nation, in which a white man in black face plays an animalistic rapist of an innocent white woman. Even outside of true crime as an entertainment genre, the public has been affected by its exclusion of black people as sympathetic victims. Public outrages over missing people almost always involve a young white woman as the victim. When these are the only people being acknowledged by internet sleuths, it becomes, according to Olivia Gatwood, “...a privilege to have your body looked for”. True crime doesn’t honor victims of violent crimes, it sensationalizes them to the point of dehumanization. We need to recognize nonwhite victims and honor them in true crime, and recognize them as people.
7 > the antlerette // fall 2021
E AT I N G D I S O R D E R S A N D FA S H I O N BE NJAMIN C A RRIL L O // E DI T O R-I N-CH I E F
“There needs to be a CHANGE, and
“
we need to do BETTER...
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // MIA SULIT
hidden controversy < 8
W
hile body acceptance is all but an unspoken topic, the exclusionist mindset that plagues the modeling and fashion industry is a topic that desperately needs to be addressed more often in the world. There’s an unspoken level of commitment needed to be a significant part of the main fashion world. Just look at the models in any store you’re in. The vast majority, if not all, of the models are the standard for what we as a society deem as beautiful. The bodies aren’t an accurate representation of the figures most have in everyday life, and the plus sized and extremely thin aren’t properly represented. This perpetuates and excludes those body figures, putting a big spotlight on those bodies that shame them and makes those bodies feel like outcasts. This horrid mindset that arises from the blackballing of the “imperfect” bodies normalizes eating disorders. We need to erase the stigma that surrounds the figures of the fashion industry. When walking into a store, the first thing normally seen is the outfits on display on the mannequins. Now clearly the central focus of the mannequin is the outfits it has on. But the mannequins itself isn’t representative of the majority of familiar bodies in the world. A third of the population in America is considered obese. With such a substantive population not fitting the beauty standard, there’s a significant portion of the population with no sort of portrayal on these mannequins. Just while walking past the common Tilly’s, or passing by a Zumiez, there’s absolutely no representation for such a huge amount of people. What’s the point of window shopping when the clothing lines advertised in the windows aren’t representative of the body of who’s shopping? And sure, the mannequins can only really represent one size. But is the clothing inside any better? Sizes are only getting smaller and smaller. I myself am a 5’6 teen who is relatively scrawny. And yet I’m considered a “large” in stores like Tillys and Zumiez. Seeing the fact that I’m a large only further pushes my curiosity on how other bodies that are bigger than me would be seen in a store. Where’s their representation? Clearly people are bigger than me and taller than me, what’s their size?
Sizing charts themselves aren’t a universal measurement unit, and they vary depending on which store you’re at. Because of the lack of a universal standard, there’s lots of room for more exclusion that makes most figures feel even less valued and more like an outsider. By the fashion industry only honing in on the “normal” beauty standard, there’s an isolation of the portion of society that doesn’t fit the standard. About 28.8 million people in the US alone suffer from some sort of eating disorder, and while that’s only 9% of the population, 9% is too much. Psychiatric health expert Timothy J. Legg credits self esteem as a primary cause of eating disorders in the world. The issue of self esteem is obviously rooted from a variety of different issues and ideas. However the modeling industry’s ties with self esteem is even more rooted together than what initially meets the eye. Despite models already very clearly being beautiful to the eyes of society, those ideals aren’t always the mindset that’s believed within the eyes of any given model. Dr. Adrienne Key estimates that 20-40% of all models have an eating disorder. The fact that percentage is so high is frankly disgusting. If the people who we look up to for beauty have eating disorders from the societal pressures pushed on them, what does that say for everyone else? We need to do better. Exclusion and hate throughout society has never been successful or brought anything beneficiary to us. This is only further exemplified by the more niche issues that are rooted around society that aren’t instantly shed light on, like the eating disorders perpetuated by the exclusion of certain bodies in society. There needs to be a change, and we need to do better and stay properly informed on not only body exclusion, but any other similar issue that causes a fundamental problem that leads to our world being even harder to live in. Let’s stop excluding and start including, and work towards the goal of making fashion an inclusive art form that makes everyone feel like their expression is valid and brings important conversation to the frontlines.
9 > the antlerette // fall 2021
THE PROBLEMS WITH ORGANIZED RELIGION M A I YA LO PE Z / / CO PY E D I TO R
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eligion could be a beautiful thing. It is defined as “a particular system of faith and worship.” In theory that would sound appealing, to partake in the togetherness of a group of people with similar beliefs. These could all be great aspects of religion, but it also sparks the question of if it’s actually too good to be true. And truthfully, that’s exactly the case. In today’s society, it can often be used to justify hatred, bigotry, and hostility towards differing groups of people, typically with opposing beliefs. But all of those are just surface level issues. Beneath the already challenging issues, what really goes on in organized religions? While some critics of religion may argue that religion is not only harmful to the individual but to society, it is very scarce that people question why. Many religions suffer from religious ethical issues because of selfish, greedy, and immoral leaders. These people tend to twist what the rules of their religion state, and bend them to suit their wants or needs. Corrupt religious leaders emotionally manipulate their followers by guilting or instilling a feeling of hopelessness to keep them vulnerable. And considering the power differential at play between the followers and priests, this shows a worse narrative that expresses the harsh reality of power differentials in religion. Religious trauma syndrome is a direct result from these transgressions, the exact definition being when an individual struggles with leaving
a religion or a set of beliefs that has led to their indoctrination. Symptoms for RTS arise in response to traumatic or stressful religious experiences, which can be categorized as religious abuse. Religious abuse is abuse administered under the guise of religion, including harassment or humiliation, and more often than not results in psychological trauma. Some prime examples of this are spiritual, sexual, physical and emotional abuse. Some religious leaders, often found in Christianity and Catholicism, abuse the power they have by emotionally and mentally tormenting those below them by misusing religion for selfish, secular, or ideological ends. It’s not just always the organization; it could also be the people. Alcoholism, substance abuse, domestic violence, greediness, sexual immorality and promiscuity are commonly seen within the church-going populations, a huge contrast to what their religion teaches. The most self-righteous, God-fearing believers can sometimes be the most corrupt people. Those all could be just human-nature traits, but considering these people are religious, it could have connection to past religious abuse and corruption. Organized religion has many issues that are barely touched on the surface without extensive years of research. However, by speaking out against religious abuse and uplifting victims to share their story, we can work towards ending the corruption that can come with organized religion.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // MALIA KEKAHUNA
hidden controversy < 10
11 > the antlerette // fall 2021
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // NICOLE YAP
hidden controversy < 12
THE CLINTONS R YA N O ’ S U L L I VA N / / CO NTE NT E D I TO R
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olitics is a cheater’s game. The harsh reality is most politicians just want your money in their pocket. It would be a fair estimation to say that no politician is free of at least a little bit of corruption. The U.S. has a two-party government, which most times causes politicians to fight tooth and nail in hopes that their party may come out the victor, which in this case means having the most power or the final say. While I point out that it is extremely rare to see a politician free of corruption, the Clintons have a very long track record of whistleblowers who ended up dying or just were completely wiped off of the face of the political scene. Before continuing further, one thing I would like to make clear is that I am writing this article completely free of speculation. I want to present the facts and the evidence that may back up or disprove these facts. First would be the suicide of Jeffrey Epstein. Jeffrey Epstein was a convicted sex offender and child trafficker. While most criminals with similar charges are sent to a state prison, Epstein was sent to Manhattan’s Metropolitan Correctional Center, a much more high-profile and monitored place to be jailed. In July of 2019, Epstein was placed on suicide watch after an inmate saw him in his cell, semiconscious, with marks on his neck. Prisoners who are placed on suicide watch are given special cells that allow 24/7 monitoring, and little to no objects that one might be able to hurt themself with. He was taken off suicide watch by a doctoral-level psychologist who detemined that suicide watch was no longer warranted. Just several days after being taken off suicide watch, on August 10th 2019, Epstein was found dead in his cell due to hanging. During Epstein’s autopsy,
Dr. Michael Baden, a forensic pathologist, who had been studying the body for 4 hours, told CBS News he noticed unusual fractures in Epstein’s neck that may point more to murder than suicide. Epstein had fractures of the left and right thyroid cartilage and the left thyroid bone. Baden told CBS, “I have never seen three fractures like this in a suicidal hanging.” While I will never rule out coincidence, it is very suspicious that a high profile billionaire had so little coverage surrounding his death. Very little had questioned how Epstein would even go about hanging himself in his cell. So why might a group of people like the Clintons, or other wealthy elites want an already incarcerated man to be found dead in his cell? Epstein’s Island, named Little Saint James, in the Virgin Islands, allegedly was the main location for Epstein’s transgressions against humanity. Many wealthy people were said to be on the flight log, including Bill Clinton. Clinton’s spokesman responded to the accusations that Clinton had a close relationship with Epstein. He claimed that Clinton took only four flights on Epstein’s private airline between the years 2002 to 2005. He also claimed that the former president knew nothing about the events that took place on Little Saint James. These claims however, are not backed up by flight records published by Gawker in 2015, suggesting that Clinton took more than a dozen flights on the Epstein airlines. Lastly, a woman who testified against Epstein in court claimed to have seen Clinton with “two young girls,” on Epstein’s island. The motive for these elites to murder Epstein in his cell would be the irrefutable evidence he held against them. He posed too big of a threat to the Clintons and even the Trumps if he were to speak in court regarding his island.
Second, the mysterious crashing of a plane that carried C. Victor Raiser and his son. There were five other members on board when it was said that low visibility and a narrow mountain pass caused the pilot to lose control of the plane and crash into the mountain pass near a fishing lodge about 2,000 miles North of Kodiak island, in 1998. Many conspiracy theorists claim that the crash was deliberately caused and point to the pilot’s delayed decision to switch course when it should have been otherwise obvious to do so. And also the pilots’ failure to maintain airspeed. Raiser, who was a major player in the fundraising for the Clinton campaign, was said to hold inside information that could criminalize the Clinton’s and lead to some underlying wrong-doing in the Clinton administration. Lastly, and maybe the most outlandish cause of death, happened to a very well known Clinton-critic and important media member, Victor Thorn. Thorn was most well-known for his publication of his three works known as the “Clinton Trilogy.” In these books, Thorn claims to expose various scandals undertaken by the Clinton administration. The cause of death for Thorn was multiple self-inflicted gunshot wounds. A questionable cause of death because in most cases it may seem that one shot might do the trick, also, how is someone to shoot themself twice? One may also ask, what would lead a motivated press advisor to take their own life just two months before a very important election? Thorn was found dead on his birthday in 2016. While there are multiple other conspiracies and stories regarding the criminal allegations in the Clinton administration, my hope was to go over some that may have been forgotten excluding the Epstein investigation.
13 > the antlerette // fall 2021
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e’d like to welcome them, but we also realize we only have so many beaches.” For over a year, we as a society have been obligated to face the hardships of the Coronavirus. One of those obstacles included the desire to travel to your favorite vacation spots. Once Covid-19 started to settle down a little bit, all fully vaccinated individuals from the United States were allowed to stop quarantine and travel by flight at the beginning of July. People immediately took advantage and started to go to their favorite cities and islands. A very popular spot to vacation in is Hawaii. Even before the virus, Hawaii racked up almost 6 million visitors per year, for a great reason. Although tourism in the Islands has its benefits, like the economic increase of 10 billion dollars a year, there are numerous disregarded problems that we don’t witness firsthand. As a community, we must consider the little things that don’t pertain to just ourselves and our own pleasures. The increasing number of tourists have caused problems for preserving local habitat. A huge chunk of this environmental degradation relates to the absurd amount of infrastructure being built in relation to the tourism industry, mostly on the island of Oahu. From 1985-2010, the number of hotel rooms skyrocketed from 65,000 to approximately 132,000. The energy usage from these buildings to maintain the development will ultimately make the environment more fragile and unhealthy. Moreover, thousands of native burial grounds and sacred native temples have been violated for the resorts and hotel structures that lie in Waikiki today. The Native Hawaiians are struggling to spread knowledge of their heritage when their island is starting to become just another city. Developing these properties has diminished their ability to preserve their traditional livelihoods such as fishing and gathering food and medicine.
The overwhelming amount of visitors has the local residents overwhelmed in many different ways. Visitor arrivals to Hawaii in April of 2021 increased over 10,000% compared to last year. In April 2020, Hawaii had 4,564 tourists, which jumped to 484, 071 by April 2021. The ongoing traffic and hour-long wait times at restaurants are just a small portion of why these locals get infuriated when their lifestyles get interrupted. Since we are also in a worldwide virus, there are still people testing positive and filling up the ICU beds. This led to a shortage of hospitality workers and more waiting time for people with more urgent discomforts or injuries. There is also a major water shortage in Maui right now that prohibits residents from using their own water for washing their cars and watering their own lawns, as it is deemed as “non-essential”. Doing so can get you a $500 fine and Hawaii’s tourists are worsening Maui’s existing water conflicts.
“It’s not a petting zoo.” More aggravations stem from when the tourists are blatantly ignorant. During the resurgence of tourism in Hawaii, some toured and visited Laniakea Beach in Oahu. They pulled up and offloaded 600 people who stomped, kicked, and poured sand on the sea turtles who were trying to peacefully sleep on the beach. It is a felony to step within 10 feet of an endangered sea animal, let alone touch and harass them. It’s not a petting zoo It is clear that the overbearingness of tourism in Hawaii has many negative impacts on the locals who actually live there and take care of the environment. Educate yourself, understand before taking part, and use your voice to help allow these local residents and born natives to live peacefully at their home as we do in ours.
PROBLEMS WITH T O U R I S M I N H AWA I I GR E G SANTO S / / D E SI GN E D I TOR
hidden controversy < 14
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // DANIEL BOONE
15 > the antlerette // fall 2021
R
emember when you were at the age where you transitioned from shopping in the little girls section and wanted to start shopping in the teens/juniors? It went from tank tops and t-shirts to cropped, low neck shirts. Bathing suits went from shirts and shorts or one pieces to skimpy tops and bottoms. It’s understandable that there are plenty of girls who like to dress in that clothing, however there’s plenty that don’t. Whether girls like that style or not, isn’t it still inappropriate? There have always been dress codes, but it didn’t matter at a young-
er age since the stores didn’t really sell anything violating it. If our dress code was strictly enforced, what would we have to wear? There aren’t any stores that sell a wide variety of clothing. We would only have a small selection of clothing to choose from and there are so many different tastes in fashion. We would probably be wearing the same 4 shirts over and over again. In July, Norway’s handball team was fined $1,764 for wearing shorts instead of bikini bottoms. On the CBC news website, they tell us that beach handball rules require women to wear tops and bikini bottoms while men get to wear tank tops and shorts. The uniform regulations say, “‘Female athletes must wear bikini bottoms … with a close fit and cut on an upward angle toward the top of the leg, and ‘athletes’ uniforms
and accessories contribute to helping athletes increase their performance as well as remain coherent with the sportive and attractive image of the sport.” This tells us that because of our gender, we are expected to show ourselves in an inappropriate manner, and for this sport it must be done for an “attractive image of the sport.” Personally, the cut of clothing has always hindered my shopping abilities and made it harder to shop for me. Everything is always cropped, shorts are too small; however, my biggest problem is the swim suits. Stores mainly sell bikini bottoms, and teens are expected to wear them and expose themselves in inappropriate clothing in public. I’m not saying that it’s completely impossible to find something to wear. It’s simply just very difficult and frustrating to me after seeing what is being sold, and what’s expected of me to wear. Females shouldn’t be seen this way; it is wrong in every way.
hidden controversy < 16
U N N E C E S S A RY S E X UA L I Z AT I O N IN WOMEN’S CLOTHES SYD NE Y W E SSE LIN K // STA FF
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PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // ANDREA PRADO-AGUAYO
17 > the antlerette // fall 2021
THE NEOPRONOUN DISCOURSE IN THE LG B TQ + C OM M UN I T Y CAMERON CAIN // STAFF
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eopronoun discourse is an issue that isn’t often addressed with the same mainstream limelight as other issues. Many members both inside and outside of the queer community question the validity of neopronouns as they have come to light and become more popular recently. While these pronouns fit perfectly into the English language, they still get invalidated. Neopronoun users, who are often nonbinary and neurodivergent, deserve to be respected in their identity, even if their identity or pronouns are beyond the understanding of both cishet and queer people alike. While people in the queer community are often scared of speaking up about their issues as it can give bigoted individuals another excuse to be oppressive, speaking up about these issues and educating people about both the issues and the identities surrounding them can help resolve discourse and limit the amount of ignorant people, regardless of their sexuality or gender, in the world. But, what are neopronouns?
Neopronouns are often called nounpronouns but not all neopronouns are based on nouns, though a lot are. Neopronouns are pronouns outside of he/him, she/her, and they/them pronouns. More common examples of neopronouns include xe/xem, ae/aer, ve/vir, ze/zim, and fae/faer. The prefix “neo” means new, however neopronouns aren’t exactly a new idea. According to the article, “The History of Neopronouns” by Emil Tinkler the earliest record of neopronouns was in the 1850s. However, most, not all, neopronoun users usually do have “backup pronouns” that are easier for those who reject neopronouns and ensures they don’t get misgendered at least as much, though that shouldn’t be used as an excuse to purposefully avoid using one’s neopronouns. Refusing to use one’s neopronouns is not only transphobic but in some cases ableist as well, especially when they only use neopronouns. A lot of neopronoun users are also neurodivergent or more specifically autistic, as neurodivergent people typically have a different understanding of gender than neurotypicals. Though neopronouns aren’t a strictly neurodivergent thing. An article by Elena Correa explains, “many autistic people use neopronouns because they can’t feel a connection to either the female or male gender binary like neurotypical people do. Neopronouns help autistic people exist in a way that is more
comfortable and makes more sense to them, because their brains operate differently than the average person. Not all autistic people feel this way, but neopronouns are helpful for some.” Because of this, the ridicule of neopronouns is usually also rooted in ableism as well as transphobia. However, despite neopronouns being harmless, many opposers to neopronouns claim that they are harmful. People in the trans and neurodivergent communities even going as far to say they are ableist, transphobic or are giving trans and autistic individuals a bad name. Regardless, to refuse to use someone’s pronouns is disrespectful and invalidates their identity, no matter who they are. In an article from The New York Times, some teenagers explain their relationship with neopronouns and neurodivergent, one teenager saying...
“I chose the ones I use as I feel a connection to them, EG [Sic] vamp/ vamp pronouns — I feel a connection to vampires and that in a way feels connected to my gender.” Neopronouns are just another way for trans and neurodivergent people to express their gender. The validity of neopronouns is not something cis or neurotypical trans people get to discuss; it is not harmful to the community or to anyone in any way and the use of neopronouns should be respected. To invalidate one’s neopronouns is transphobic and in most cases also ableist. Neurodivergent and nonbinary people shouldn’t conform to the comfort of cis and neurotypical people, no matter how desparately cisgendered people might want that.
hidden controversy < 18
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // KAYLA MERKEL
19 > the antlerette // fall 2021 PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // WILL PEDERSEN
HOSTILE ARCHITECTURE
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A NNA LY S E TH O R PE / / GUE ST W R I TE R
nti-homeless architecture is slowly becoming normal in day-to-day society, but people seem oblivious to the genuine nature of these structures. As a result, cities are forcing hostile architecture into parks, streets, and subway stations to deter displaced people from getting decent rest. The most typical structures are benches with armrests in between, preventing people from laying flat on their backs or putting their belongings next to them on the seat. However, these are not the only ones. Specifically, “leaning benches” have popped up in New York City subways, causing increased tensions from the public. These benches are slanted rests against the subway walls where people can place their lower back on the wood and lean as opposed to comfortably sitting. These structures deter homeless people, but many people with physical disabilities or pregnancies cannot sit and wait for the train. Cities have also been promoting separated benches as architecture for disabled people, mainly consisting of leaving gaps between benches and claiming it for people in wheelchairs. These benches and statements harm the homeless community and the disabled community as the city is using them to scapegoat their bigotry. But these structures tend to be highly noticeable changes to your local park or city street. Cities are currently producing curved benches that wrap around planters, and they are making more of an appearance in areas across America. Or picnic tables with curved seating underneath instead of straight seating. These benches make it nearly impossible to lay on for someone to rest while still allowing residents to regard them as ordinary park benches. Some of these benches even exist in Sacramento, where many displaced people gather on the streets. We’ve all seen at least one homeless encampment on the sidewalks driving around, but they would not have to be so vulnerable if they could sleep on the benches around the city. The city has been putting metal rivets on concrete benches in parks to stop people from sleeping on them, and benches now have arms separating them into sections. Unfortunately, these changes do not make Sacramento look more appealing to tourists as they now force the displaced into very public places just so that they can sleep. These structures are incredibly detrimental to the homeless population and force them either to the streets or into unsafe sleeping areas such as under freeway overpasses. Cities should be pushing the funding for these hostile structures to give homeless shelters free transportation, building homeless shelters, or even supplying free meals to homeless people around the area. Rather than do that, cities insist on driving these people away and causing them to be in public, pushing them to higher rates of homeless violence, death and increasing residents’ hatred towards homeless people. Anti-homeless structures need to end, and city governments need to work on eliminating the issue of homelessness in the states.
hidden controversy < 20
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION // SLAYTER HARBERT-BARTLETT
21 > the antlerette // fall 2021
T D A G A L L E RY S E N I O R S
SELF PORTRAIT // ADELINA COTHRAN SELF PORTRAIT // NICOLE YAP
SELF PORTRAIT // KATHY PHAM
C r e a t i v i t y i s C o n ta g i o u s
HOPES & DREAMS // PHILIP HOPKINS
SELF PORTRAIT // LILY WILBER
HOPES & DREAMS // STEPHANIE CHAN
SELF PORTRAIT // ELOISE GATIP SELF PORTRAIT // HANA HORIKOSHI SELF PORTRAIT // WILL PEDERSEN
hidden controversy < 22
T D A G A L L E RY J U N I O R S
OBJECT ILLUSTRATION // MARI CLIFT
OBJECT ILLUSTRATION // TRINA PHAM
GARDEN CARE
LOGO DESIGN // CADENCE RINELLI
BOOK COVER DESIGN // MAKENNA BERG
BOOK COVER DESIGN // ANDY NGUYEN
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