March 29, 2018

diversity at appalachian THE APPALACHIAN MARCH 29, 2018

March 29, 2018

THE TEAM Sydney Spann @spannooo EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Olivia Wilkes @theappalachian ADVISER

EDITORIAL

BUSINESS

MULTIMEDIA

Victoria Haynes @victoriahayness

Jules Blaylock @jayblay96

Jonathan Mauldin @MauldinJonathan

Nora Smith @noraagracee

Halle Keighton @halle_keighton

MANAGING EDITOR

CHIEF COPY EDITOR

GRADUATE ASSISTANT

GRAPHICS EDITOR

PHOTO EDITOR

Bradley Workman @Brad_Workman

Braxton Coats @brxcoats22

Jamie Patel @jptalksfooty

BUSINESS MANAGER

WEB MANAGER

VIDEO EDITOR

Q Russell @Q_M_Russell

Ashley Goodman @AshleyGoodman97

OPINION EDITOR

A&E EDITOR

Moss Brennan @mosbren

Aidan Moyer @Aidan_Moyer_

IN-DEPTH EDITOR

NEWS EDITOR

Cristian McLaughlin @CAMcLaughlin

MARKETING DIRECTOR

Brooks Maynard @BrooksMaynard

SPORTS EDITOR

T H E COV E R: This is The Appalachian’s first diversity issue. Our cover represents the stories told within this issue.

CRIME LOG CAMPUS MAR. 25

10:30 a.m. | Damage to Property Appalachian Panhellenic Parking Lot Undisclosed

MAR. 24 12 a.m. | Underage Consumption of Alcohol White Hall Parking Lot Closed

MAR. 23

MAR. 21 10:30 p.m. | Possession of Marijuana Frank Hall Closed

MAR. 19 7 p.m. | Criminal Damage to Property - Vandalism Plemmons Student Union Closed, Leads Exhausted

MAR. 19

3 p.m. | Threat Assessment Edwin Duncan Undisclosed

4:25 p.m. | Possession of Marijuana Appalachian Heights Closed

MAR. 23

MAR. 18

5 p.m. | Larceny - From Buildings Living Learning Center Further Investigation

2:35 a.m. | Driving after Consuming Alcohol Underage Trivette Hall Loading Dock Closed

MAR. 21 10:50 p.m. | Underage Consumption of Alcohol Gardner Hall Closed

The Appalachian Crime Log comes from the ASU Police crime log found at cleryapps.appstate.edu/crimelog/

March 29, 2018

What it means to be Jewish on campus

“Y

ou’ve got a lot of balls wearing that

here.”

I look up and there’s only one other person in the hallway with me. They’re standing beside me throwing something away.

I don’t say anything as I am still trying to process what this man said to me as he turns to walk down the hallway. The only thing that stands out about me is my Star of David necklace displayed prominently against my black sweater.

It’s not the first time someone has made a rude comment to me for being Jewish.

One of my friends overheard a man cough and say, “Jew,” as he passed us. Another Jew-

Megan Kornhauser is a guest opinion writer from Appalachian State Hillel. She is a senior history and psychology double major.

ish friend of mine called me brave for still wearing a Star of David necklace after these experiences.

It is not the first time someone has made me feel unsafe to be Jewish on this campus. Three years in a row between our holiest holidays, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, anti-Semitic stickers have been posted around campus. Swastikas have been found carved into benches and desks.

“Smash Cultural Marxism” posters were placed in several buildings this academic year, using a neo-Nazi

dog whistle that suggests the Cultural Marxists, or Jews, are trying to replace white, Christian culture with their own; its connection to Jews is through Karl Marx’s Jewish ancestry.

Being Jewish on this campus means that incidents like these are rarely discussed.

There are almost no emails about how we will not have this hatred on our campus.

Being Jewish in the south and on this campus is not always about living with the experiences of anti-Semitism or worrying about the open resurgence of neo-Nazis.

Between the Jewish community of Appalachian State and the greater Boone area, there isn’t a high population,

which lends itself to a tightknit community.

This is the place that fostered my identity as a queer Jew as I have been able to meet other people who shared those identities.

At Appalachian State, I have been able to meet others who understand my experiences, both good and bad, of being queer and Jewish.

I get to make jokes with them about how I like nice Jewish boys and girls, as it is very important to Jewish grandmothers that their granddaughters meet a nice Jewish boy.

With the people I have met here, I have been able to develop more pride in my Jewish identity.

I care more about matzo ball soup, latkes and going to Shabbat services now than I did before college.

I know more people now who, depending on their relationship with their Jewish heritage, may share the same identity of their ethnicity, culture or religion as me than I have ever known before.

These other Jewish people I have met are the reason that no matter the comments made to me, I am not going to take off my rainbow Star of David button or stop wearing my necklace because I love my Jewishness more.

On campus, I’ve faced a lot of problems as a Jew, but I’ve also become prouder in myself as a Jew.

What Are You?

What are you?

What am I? Well, I’m human.

No, no, no, your complexion...

Correction, My skin has nothing to do with who I am... or what I’m capable of.

So use to the projection and deflection of the hatred and judgment...

Your excuse is the last election...

Wait, wait, are you Indian? Caribbean? Bolivian?

No, no, and just so you know I’m Indigenous.

My people weren’t given citizenship until 1924, postwar.

74,187 lives lost fighting for a country that would never be ours... again.

Inhumanemy people have lived on this continent since 12,000 B.C. You don’t have to agree.

To you, all we ever were was savages in Tepee’s.

I disagreeReality is that over 18 million of us lived happily hereWell before Columbus even existed...

Well before the genocide.

That was justified, glorified... countrywide by the white man.

What are you?

Well I’m still horrified, The image of the Cherokee, Creek, Chickasaw, and Choctaw children walking 2,200 miles side by side.

Helplessly watching as 25,000 of their people, MY people died.

What am I? I am classified as a Lumbee Native American, Not federally recognized.

What am I? What... am... I...?

I am, well I’m tired of being asked that question.

Kaycee Boulet is a guest opinion writer from the Native American Student Association. She is a member of the Lumbee Nation. She is a sophomore philosophy major.

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March 29, 2018

Chi Upsilon Sigma National Latin Sorority, Inc. welcomes all Anna Dollar│

C

hi Upsilon Sigma National Latin Sorority, Inc. was founded by Latinas who faced the prejudices experienced by women of minority groups. They wished to have an organization to promote leadership in the Latino community, along with having a sisterhood, according to Chi Upsilon Sigmas’ website.

Fall semester of 2015, eight women started a chapter of the sorority on campus.

Three of the founding sisters, now seniors, remain in the undergraduate chapter: Natalie Villacis, chapter historian and child development major; Perla Castro, chapter treasurer and criminal justice major; and Dwlce Zarraga Acosta, chapter parliamentarian and double major in nursing and Spanish. The five other founding sisters are Aneisy Cardo, Alicia Kasputis, Zully

Castaneda, Kimberly Jacome and Stacy Sellers.

All 15 women currently in the sorority come from a Latinx background. However, the sorority is not limited to Latina women, according to Villacis.

“We want more women who moreso identify with the values and everything we stand for regardless of their ethnic background,” Villacis said. “We are not only focused on empowering Latina women, but all women.”

Jainny Estrada, senior international and comparative politics major and chapter president, said the sorority has a majority of Latina women.

“A lot of the reason why some of my sisters have decided to join our particular sorority is because it has that connection to our roots, and it is something that is always celebrated and always at the forefront,” Estrada

@Anna_Carrr│News Reporter

said. “At the end of the day, our goal is to elevate, educate and empower all women across the board regardless of race, religion or nationality.”

Joining the sorority does not mean that members have to learn about the Latinx culture, but since it is a Latina sorority, there will be conversations about what is going on in the Latinx culture and community, according to both Villacis and Estrada.

While any race can join any sorority of their choice, Kendall Rankin, graduate public administration major and graduate assistant for the Multicultural Student Development Center, said that it is a good thing that there is a sorority for Latina women.

“They are very deserving of this because every organization has its own set of cultural ties instead of them having to conform to cultur-

al ties of some other ethnic identity,” Rankin said.

The sorority is an associated member with the National Panhellenic Council, which is the council for the historically African-American fraternities and sororities on campus. Chi Upsilon Sigma National Latin Sorority, Inc. is not associated with the Panhellenic Council, which is for the 10 sororities that hold formal recruitment every fall.

The letters of Chi Upsilon Sigma National Latin Sorority, Inc. The Latinx Sorority was founded in 1980.

An Intercollegiate Broadcasting System Radio Station of the Year w > ÃÌ Your college Your station Your music 4

Courtesy of Chi Upsilon Sigma

March 29, 2018

FEAR GOD

#NoH AppStaatte e

FROM THE CARTOONIST: Most days on App State’s campus, one can find a mass of students flocked around Sanford Mall. Whether they are hammocking, slacklining or playing Quidditch, the space is densely packed. Of course, many times on these days when the temperature rises above 50 degrees, another addition comes to the mall in the form of the infamous “mall preacher.” With his yellow hoodie reading “Follow Jesus! Stop Sinning!” and his sign proclaiming “Fear God!,” he often gathers a crowd -- of protesters, that is. Drawn together for a common disregard of the mall preacher’s hateful sentiments, wonderful actions such as the infamous bagpipe player drowning out the vitriolic yelling make the scene one of student solidarity.

Cartoon and description by Lindsey Wise

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March 29, 2018

Anatoly Isaenko poses at his desk on March 19. Isaenko is from Russia and is a professor in the Department of History.

Anatoly Isaenko recollects leaving Russia after Soviet Collapse Savnnah Nguyen│

A

natoly Isaenko sat at his desk clad in denim from head to toe, sporting a handlebar mustache and talked through a thick Russian accent for hours about life in his home country. During the span of almost seven decades, Anatoly Isaenko has seen the end of Stalin’s regime, the end of Soviet Russia and the beginning of Russia’s democratic society.

Before moving to America, Anatoly Isaenko said he was instrumental in the democratization of Russia after the resignation of USSR leader Mikhail Gorbachev, which consequently led to the fall of Soviet Russia in 1991.

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Some of Anatoly Isaenko’s accomplishments included writing the regulations for the new democratic government, establishing and joining its new congress, co-editing and writing for its first democratic newspaper titled “Rebirth of the Terek Cossacks,” and the list goes on.

“Of course I joined with these people who were building a new democratic state,” Anatoly Isaenko said. “I was adviser to the president, to parliament and headed this movement of my people: Cossack legal rebirth.”

However, as a result of decades of war against ethnic minorities by Russian elites,

@TheAppalachian│A&E Reporter

tensions began to rise during the ‘90s after the collapse.

Because of these strains, Anatoly Isaenko said Chechens, an Islamic minority group in Russia, targeted him as a prominent figure of the new movement for legal rebirth. As a result, he and his family were forced to risk going west to America in 1995.

They fled with the help of a colleague with only $200, the clothes on their backs and the luggage they could carry.

Among the 23 other members serving on the congress Anatoly Isaenko helped to create, 19 were killed and their families were abused, Anatoly Isaenko said.

“History cannot be separated from the history of

me and my family,” Anatoly Isaenko said.

One of his sons, Sergei Isaenko, commercial photography adjunct professor at Appalachian, said he vividly remembers the journey of escaping from Russia to America. He described it as jumping through a portal into a new world.

With Sergei Isaenko in his late teens, the move added confusion during a time when most American students his age were worried about college rather than running from terrorism, Sergei Isaenko said.

“Moving away from my home city and home country was an incredibly dramatic experience bound for anoth-

er world, another universe,” Sergei Isaenko said. “But one of the biggest highlights of arriving to another country was the sensation of culture shock.”

In contrast with what Sergei Isaenko was used to in post-collapse Russia, America represented wealth and abundance, Sergei Isaenko said. There was an abundance of food, streets were clean, there were manicured lawns for every home and roads were devoid of any potholes. America freed them from constant persecution and provided a quality of life that Russia had deprived them of, Sergei Isaenko said.

“In comparison, my world and childhood was filled with

Savannah Nguyen

March 29, 2018

This scan of the newspaper “Terek Cossack” continues Anatoly Isaenko’s first article in the first democratic newspaper for Cossack people and displays his name at the bottom. grim memories of war,” Sergei Isaenko said. “But it took years to adjust. Still to this day, I don’t completely fit into this culture and never will. I will always carry a hole inside of me that represents what the life behind the wall took out, and the scars it left on the inside of my soul.”

For Anatoly Isaenko, the move meant a second chance.

“From zero I rebuilt my career again,” Anatoly Isaenko said. “I am proof of the American dream.”

Anatoly Isaenko is currently a historian and history professor at Appalachian. His primary focus is in ethnic conflict among persecuted minorities, especially in Russia.

“From elementary school, I knew I would be (a) historian,” Anatoly Isaenko said.

Upon graduating from North Ossetian State University the dean offered Anatoly Isaenko the opportunity to obtain his doctorate at Moscow State University.

At Moscow State University, Anatoly Isaenko obtained his doctorate in world history but also received what he calls a “parallel education” that threatened the line between life and death.

In addition to religious reading on the Puritans, Anatoly Isaenko was given prohibited titles by American authors and more censored readings from authors around the world that threatened al-

Courtesy of Anatoly Isaenko

legiance to the Russian government at the time.

Despite the amount of persecution he endured, Anatoly Isaenko said his love for history and learning has never wavered. This passion comes from his childhood, when his father and brother in arms would spend hours recollecting adventures during their time in the service, he said.

Anatoly Isaenko would listen in on these conversations and become inspired.

Coming from a long line of military service there was never a shortage of war stories in his home. His family heavily participated in the military on both anti-communist and communist fronts, Anatoly Isaenko said. He has

known both sides of Russia’s history, which he said often disproportionately advantaged Russian elites over ethnic and religious minorities.

As a professor, Anatoly Isaenko brings to life examples from his memory in the classroom. He integrates vivid stories that reveal the multifaceted reality behind Russia’s closed doors during his lessons.

Doctoral candidate Evan Wallace said he sees Anatoly Isaenko as one of his main mentors and even made the decision to move from Florida specifically to complete his master’s thesis under him. Wallace was intent on studying ethnic trauma and said he could not think of a

better advisor.

“When I was initially performing my research, I was constantly following new trails and leaving topics behind, but he never grew frustrated,” Wallace said. “His patience and passion for his discipline created an environment which allowed me to flourish.”

Anatoly Isaenko said that he will continue to teach issues such as the themes behind revolution and conflict throughout history because they put into perspective the “psycho-historical underpinnings” of conflict.

By learning about these topics now, methods of prevention are tangible, Anatoly Isaenko said.

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March 29, 2018

PHOTO ES S AY

SAGA AMATEUR DRAG SHOW

Fruitcake paused for a moment during her performance at the 2018 SAGA Amateur Drag Show so everyone could admire the long black gloves she was wearing.

Betty Reigh strikes a pose while dancing to a Kesha song during the 2018 SAGA Amateur Drag Show on March 16.

Dixie Diamond ended her performance by laying down in her cowboy boots and money that she had gathered throughout her performance.

Ethyl Knoll entering her performance at the SAGA Amateur Drag Show on March 16.

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Lindsay Vaughn

March 29, 2018

The Gender, Women’s and Sexuality Studies program is affiliated with the Department of Cultural, Gender and Global Studies.

The GWS Department is located in the Living Learning Center.

The Appalachian State Gender, Women’s and Sexuality Studies program Mariah Reneau│

G

ender, Women’s and Sexuality Studies is an interdisciplinary field that discusses traditional academic areas of study through the lens of women, gender and sexual minorities, according to the program’s website.

“The idea is that there are theoretical constructs and all sorts of theories that people study and use to address issues of power, privilege and experiences,” interim director Sarah Greenwald said.

This program has several opportunities for students within the program: a GWS major and minor, a Girls’ Studies minor and an LGBT Studies minor.

Within this program, students take classes such as Introduction to LGBT Studies, Global Women’s Issues, Feminist Theories, Queer Theory and several others.

This program has looked very different over the past 40 years.

In 1976, the Women’s Studies program at App State was founded, making it the second oldest program in the state of North Carolina, according to the program’s website.

In 2015, the program was changed to be called Gender, Women’s and Sexuali-

Veronica Hayes

ty Studies program. This was not the only aspect of the program that changed. The curriculum of the program changed as well.

“Changes, new synergies and creative energies are part and parcel of every interdisciplinary field,” associate GWS professor Sushmita Chatterjee said via email. “The changes happened in order to meet the needs of our students, faculty, and community at large.

Our program now speaks to diversity in manifold ways, offers cutting edge curriculum, and mentors students towards successful careers and lives.”

One topic that is discussed throughout the program is intersectionality, which is one aspect of the program’s mission, according to the program’s website.

“The idea is to look at intersections of gender, women and sexuality with other aspects like race, ability, nationality and class in a critical thinking and analytical way to address lots of issues of equity, diversity and social justice in the world today from an academic standpoint,” Greenwald said.

These studies can be overlooked in a high school setting.

“I only knew about (GWS) in high school because of the internet and Tumblr,” junior

@reneau2│Senior A&E Reporter

psychology and GWS major Marina Delgreco said. “My teachers in high school were great in their own right, but we didn’t talk about social justice issues and stuff like that.”

The GWS program also extends itself past the classroom with a variety of programs each semester. Just this month, the GWS program has either organized or co-sponsored a variety of lectures and activities such as Mark Rifkin’s talk, “Between Two Ghost Dances: Sarah Winnemucca and the Politics of Representativity,” Andrea Pitts’ talk, “Intersectionality and Resistant Imaginaries in Latin American Feminist Philosophy,” Armin Langer’s presentation, “Salaam-Shalom: Cross-Cultural Activism and Coalition Building in Europe Today” and Catherine Harnois’ talk, “Making Sense of Mistreatment: Intersectionality and Perceptions of Everyday Discrimination.”

“GWS programming has definitely applied to the studies aspect of Gender, Women’s and Sexuality Studies, and we’re very interested in concepts like feminist theories, queer theories and intersectionality and how they can be looked at from various disciplines,” Greenwald said.

There is an exhibit open in the library until March 30 called “Reclaiming Intersections: An Exhibit of Student Work,” which features the work produced by students in stef shuster’s, assistant professor in sociology, Intro to LGBT studies class.

“In their class, stef had organized that their students would do essays to pair along with the course,” Greenwald said. “So you’re not seeing the essay work that went behind it, but you are seeing the creative product that came out of that component of it.”

In April, the GWS program will host a panel of students to discuss how their coursework and experiences within GWS have helped them with internships and other aspects of campus, Greenwald said.

“The degree provides them with critical thinking skills, problem solving aptitude and ways to analyze situations and pave the way for a better world,” Chatterjee said via email. “Our students are currently engaged in many career choices such as pursuing a PhD in Gender Studies, journalism, law school, librarians, teachers and many other careers.”

Although the program has already changed, there is still more change on the horizon.

“As new disciplines emerge that connect with the field, people will find new ways to connect theory to practice,” Greenwald said.

As evidence of that, Greenwald worked with a few others to design a new mathematics badge for Girl Scouts of the United States.

“It brings together some theory with the actual practice of trying to encourage students to stay in and study mathematics,” Greenwald said.

Delgreco hopes that as the program expands, the curriculum will be further extended to others outside of these studies.

“I think it could be a really enriching program if people would give it the chance,” Delgreco said. “People who go to be a GWS major or minor already have a vague idea and want to educate themselves more, as opposed to those who really don’t know anything who would benefit more from the classes.”

Overall, this program continues to grow and gain popularity among students as these classes make an impact on their lives, Chatterjee said.

“For many students taking GWS classes is a life changing experience in being able to articulate their lived experiences and respond to the world around them,” Chatterjee said.

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March 29, 2018

Appalachian Popular Programming Society strives to represent students through entertainment Mack Foley│

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or the second time in two years, the Appalachian Popular Programming Society has booked a hip-hop act for a spring show at Holmes Convocation Center. In 2016, the venue was host to Lil Wayne’s Kampus Krash Tour, which saw him alongside Vice Versa, Gudda Gudda, HoodyBaby and Jay Jones.

This year, APPS booked a show with Migos, a trio from North Atlanta coming off the January release of their number one album, “Culture II.” Before Lil Wayne and Migos, Holmes Convocation Center was primarily host to more rock-adjacent gatherings, seeing shows from artists like The 1975, The Avett Brothers and Willie Nelson.

For the most part, Boone attracts more metal and jamband acts, and APPS often plays into that, Emily Lamb, chairperson of the society’s club shows council and sophomore electronic media broadcasting major, said.

“Of course, we all want to branch out and do different genres and stuff like that, but knowing that’s the niche part of Boone, that’s kind of how we’re focused,” Lamb said.

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Over the past two years, it would seem as though entertainment at Appalachian has begun shifting toward being more inclusive than it had been in the past, bringing in acts that appeal to more than just its white students.

Appalachian State is not the most ethnically diverse campus in North Carolina. Only 16 percent of the student body identified as mixed or non-white as of fall 2017, and that number saw a 10 percent increase from the year before, according to Appalachian’s website.

The faculty has the same problem, with only 6 percent of teachers being ethnically diverse as of 2016. Seeing a 10 percent shift in student demographics over a year would suggest that Appalachian is taking steps to broaden its horizons, and in the same way, bringing in Lil Wayne and Migos would suggest that the Appalachian Popular Programming Society is doing the same.

Over the past few years, APPS realized that Boone was lacking in terms of rap and began focusing on bringing more hip-hop to the area, Lamb said. As the club has started moving toward in-

Jeeda Barrington performing a native African step dance during Step Afrika in 2017. The event was put on by APPS in the Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts.

@TheAppalachian│Intern Reporter creased inclusivity, though, its lack thereof is occasionally glaring.

“There’s a big emphasis on diversifying, but not on really showing the Hispanic community and also the Asian community,” Ana Dell, chairperson for APPS’ Cultural Awareness and Student Engagement council, said.

“These are two populations that are here on campus.”

Dell said that the Hispanic community is the largest minority population on campus, but that the school has not seen an emphasis on representation of these groups.

Women are also all but absent from Appalachian’s music scene, and APPS is currently working to bring more female artists to town, Lamb said.

“As an executive board, we’re really focused on bringing a pretty big, or even local, female artist,” Lamb said. “That’s something that we’re really focused on, and it’s really apparent that we’re lacking that.”

However, Dell said that the club is taking more strides to reach all of its students with its programming.

“When I became chairperson, my goal was to reach

out to as many multicultural organizations as possible,” Dell said. “Although it wasn’t the case last year, my freshman year, I saw an emphasis on that and trying to bring new perspectives. A big part of doing that was with Tunnel of Oppression. I really tried to reach out to different clubs and organizations on campus, not just multicultural, but for example, the Accessibility Council came.”

That sentiment not only applies to social and club events on campus, but also to the entertainment that APPS reaches out to. The club has taken initiative to represent a larger portion of the student body in the recent past, Dell said.

“I know with CASE specifically, we are partnering with special events to bring Shangela, who is a drag queen of color,” Dell said.

“She’s been on ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ a couple of times, so we’re bringing her in and that’s a big thing as well.”

Music is both powerful and appealing, though, and it could be a significant factor in the college decision process for incoming students.

Appalachian has used entertainment in the past to en-

tice incoming students, and it might be useful in bringing a more diverse crowd to Boone, Lamb said.

“When The 1975 came, that was a really big marketing tool to bring people to App,” Lamb said. “I would love to do a survey with the freshman class and be like, ‘Hey, what were some of the reasons you came to App? Can you name some of them?’

I think a lot of them would be like, ‘Oh, this is the school that brought Lil Wayne. This is the school that brought The 1975, The Avett Brothers and Migos.’ I don’t know how much it’ll bring in a new ethnic perspective, but that’s always our hope.”

In the past, a diverse list of well-known artists was not something Appalachian could illustrate. As the school grows and its demographics continue to broaden, representation through entertainment and events has become a focal point for APPS. Moving forward, students and staff can look to the school and APPS to continue increasing representation, celebrating every voice possible on campus, regardless of their weight in the student body.

Lindsay Vaughn

March 29, 2018

Minorities in Media course opens eyes through discussion Natalie Broome│

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ince the spring semester of 2006, the Appalachian State University Department of Communications has offered a course called Minorities in Media. Designed to have students critically analyze the way minority groups are portrayed in the media, this lecture and discussion-based course aims to open students’ eyes.

Originally offered as a special topics class, Minorities in Media was comprised of mostly communication students. After a few semesters, there was a push to make the course available to a wider pool of students. Carolyn Edy, assistant professor of communication, helped to make the course a general education credit because she said she felt that all students could benefit from the material. Minorities in Media is a discussion-based class,

so by opening the class up to students from other majors and departments, the students can enrich the learning experience.

Assistant professor of communication Newly Paul, who teaches Minorities in Media, said she sees the benefit in a focus on class discussion.

“We have people who come from various backgrounds. They bring their own examples, they bring theories, authors that they’ve learned in their other classes, and then they will tie that up to the main things in class,” Paul said.

Paul has been teaching Minorities in Media for four semesters, and she defines media as including more than the news media, but also advertisements, entertainment television, songs and web portrayals.

Paul starts out the course by discussing stereotypes and media theories, so students can have the framework to understand the

@NatalieBroome13│A&E Reporter

Carolyn Edy leads a class discussion in her spring 2018 Feature Writing class. course material.

The class then devotes each class period to discussing a certain minority group and how they are portrayed

Newly Paul teaching her spring 2018 Introduction to Journalism class in Walker Hall on March 22.

in the media. Topics for discussion include people of color, women, LGBTQ populations, age, women in politics, minorities in politics and more. At the end of the semester, the class is devoted to discussing solutions for the future and how media coverage can be improved.

Edy taught Minorities in Media for one semester, and though she had a large group, she put effort into making the environment comfortable for discussion, partly by arranging desks in a circle.

She designed the material to fit the students, catering discussion topics to their interests and individual needs.

Students had the opportunity to give Edy feedback on a subject without having to do so in the middle of class.

If a student did not understand an issue, Edy would

explain the material or show a Public Broadcasting Service video in the next class so everyone could be present in the discussion.

“Sometimes the discussions were heated, but that was kind of, that discomfort is the place in which you learn, so that was kind of exciting too, to see students kind of thriving with the challenges of the class and enjoying that,” Edy said.

Paul said she sees the class as an opportunity to help students understand each other.

“I think this class may be a really tiny small step in making people get into that space where they’re uncomfortable, but then at least come away with the perspective of the other side and what the view looks like from their side,” Paul said.

Scan this QR code to view The Peel’s editorial board applications on AppSync.

Sam Kepple

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March 29, 2018

Mariah Overton dances with the J-Pop Trio at the Cherry Blossom Festival on March 22. The event was hosted by the Japanese Culture Club.

Japanese Culture Club welcomes spring with its Cherry Blossom Festival Mack Foley│

T

he Japanese Culture Club hosted its fourth annual Cherry Blossom Festival on Saturday, celebrating the arrival of spring with music, food, a fashion show and more.

The Cherry Blossom Festival, known as hanami, is a Japanese event that began in the 700s during the Nara period when ume blossoms were celebrated. Now every spring when cherry trees begin to bloom, friends and family gather to picnic under the blossoms, known as sakura. Cherry blossom festivals are also held in the United States now, with some of the larger American festivals taking place in Washington D.C., San Francisco and Macon, Georgia.

The Japanese Culture Club’s celebration kicked off with a live performance from the App State Video Game Ensemble saxophone quartet, which played music from the video game se-

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ries “Kirby” and the anime “Cowboy Bebop.”

“The first I heard about this event was from Becky (Berrian),” Brandon Lu, vice president of the Video Game Ensemble, said.

“She and I had lived in the same dorm freshman year and we were very close, so she asked me if I was able to play. Then she said the five most beautiful words I’ve ever heard when someone’s asked me to do a gig: ‘Can you do ‘Cowboy Bebop?’’”

The live music continued at different times throughout the evening. Lu played two more songs by himself and local indie band Kuma Kid performed later in the night.

The club also held a fashion show by Japanese exchange students, during which they showed off traditional Japanese clothing including kimono, yukata and jinbei.

As the models made their way down the runway, Japanese Culture Club president

@TheAppalachian│Intern A&E Reporter Shannon Wells gave information about the students and the clothes they were wearing.

Leroy Wright, App State’s associate vice chancellor of student development, was in the crowd for his second time at a JCC Cherry Blossom Festival.

“I think this is another opportunity to promote inclusiveness and diversity here at Appalachian,” Wright said.

“The favorite aspect I have is students sharing their culture, educating others and creating an experience for our community, faculty, staff and students about Japanese culture and influences and how it impacts our lives. It’s a good multicultural experience.”

The JCC also provided common Japanese food for everyone that attended and spent more than seven hours making enough for 200 attendees, Wells said. Visitors chose from one of two appetizers, miso soup or yakitori, marinated chicken skewers; two entrees, vegetable curry

or nikujaga, smoked sausage with vegetables; and two desserts, either matcha cookies or mochi.

While attendees were eating, the club celebrated modern Japanese pop culture as Japanese exchange students performed a dance to Gen Hoshino’s 2016 single “Koi.” Their performance was followed by App State’s K-Pop Association, who carried out dance routines to a minimix of Japanese versions of NCT 127’s “Limitless,” BLACKPINK’s “As If It’s Your Last” and Pentagon’s “Gorilla.”

The celebration also included another dance act, in which a J-pop dance trio performed a routine to E-girls’ “Dance With Me Now!” For those that enjoyed or missed this year’s Cherry Blossom Festival or are interested in getting involved with the Japanese Culture Club, the club holds meetings every Monday at 5 p.m. in the Attic Window room of the Plemmons Student Union.

CHERRY BLOSSOM FACTS 1. Cherry blossoms are Japan’s national flowers 2. Cherry blossom festivals are referred to as Hanami (flower viewing) 3.U.S. cherry blossom trees date back to 1912 4. Peak bloom is usually around April4 5. Cherry blossoms are said to be native to the Himalayas 6. There are 200 different varieties of cherry blossoms 7. Each tree may only bloom for up to a week Source: House Beautiful

Brendan Hoekstra | Graphic by Sydney Spann

March 29, 2018

The K-Pop Association dance along to Japanese versions of K-Pop tunes at the Cherry Blossom Festival on Saturday in Parkway Ballroom of the Plemmons Student Union.

Yuki Yamamoto, undecided major, wearing a traditional outfit for men at the Cherry Blossom Festival’s fashion show. Yamamoto was one of 14 models in the fashion show on Saturday.

Eri Sasaki, non-degree undergraduate, shows off a traditional gown during the Cherry Blossom Festival’s fashion show on Saturday.

Brendan Hoekstra

Models bow at the end of their fashion show at the Cherry Blossom Festival on Saturday. Each person showcased traditional Japanese attire.

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March 29, 2018

CAMPUS CLUBS UNITE

LGBT COMMUNITY

Ashley Goodman│

@AshleyGoodman97│A&E Editor

ACCESSIBILITY COUNCIL App State currently has six main LGBT-oriented clubs, all of which are dedicated to promoting inclusivity and community in broader and more specific communities. Three clubs, SAGA, TRANSaction and A-SPEC are managed under the LGBT Center umbrella, and three more, Accessibility Council, Gay and Progressive Pedagogy and Queer People of Color are more loosely affiliated with the center.

The Accessibility Council, an organization endorsed by the Office of Multicultural Student Development and the Office of Disability Services, advocates for the rights and voices of App State’s disabled population.

Though the club is not strictly for LGBT students, the council has connections with multiple LGBT clubs on campus, and vice president and sophomore art and visual culture major Seb Jove said the exploration of intersectionality is integral to the club’s mission.

“Any time you talk about one identity and their experiences, you usually get a more complete, more well-rounded, more well thought-out picture when you consider intersections of identity and the way these experiences relate and correlate,” Jove said.

Accessibility Council promotes accessibility on campus through activism, discussion and educational events. The council is currently planning a disability culture event to educate the public on how to respect people with disabilities. Chayym Kornhauser, senior psychology major, said that acknowledging disability as a facet of diversity can improve accessibility on campus.

“What we try to do is promote awareness of disability as a social identity and an aspect of diversity,” Kornhauser said. “We also try to generate awareness of accessibility and accessibility issues, whether it’s infrastructure or societal things. Inaccessibility doesn’t have to be just physical barriers, it can also be how people treat and talk to disabled people as well.”

Accessibility Council is open to everyone, regardless of ability, and meets on Mondays from 6-7 p.m. in the Bass Lake room of Plemmons Student Union.

SEXUALITY AND GENDER ALLIANCE The Sexuality and Gender Alliance offers a number of social and educational opportunities to students of all sexual orientations and gender identities. The club hosts meetings weekly as well as a number of campus-wide events annually.

SAGA also organizes and participates in larger social and educational events, such as annual amateur and professional drag shows.

SAGA’s professional drag show will take place April 14 at Legends and will be hosted by “RuPaul’s Drag Race” queen Shangela.

Typically, the meetings simply offer LGBT students a safe space for conversation. Sometimes this manifests in simple social opportunities like board game nights, other times with educational events, like Queer Literature Night, in which the club migrated to Foggy Pine Books for coffee and discussions about LGBT-oriented books.

SAGA also recently organized its first scholarship for LGBT students, funded by money raised by club members.

“Sometimes we do informational meetings, in which we talk about the general history of LGBT people or the history of a specific group,” Vice President of Administration and sophomore game design major Alex Luckett said. “The last meeting we had was a queer literature night, where we talked about different queer literature we’ve read, literature we’ve really hated and just different ways that people did representation.”

GAY AND PROGRESSIVE PEDAGOGY The Gay and Progressive Pedagogy club promotes activism through inclusive education. GAPP has an emphasis on LGBT representation, but also focuses on inclusivity of all marginalized identities.

Club president and junior English secondary education major Logan Land said GAPP is intended as a space to discuss marginalized identities’ roles and representation in education. The club’s mission is to provide a safe space not only for queer and marginalized educators, but also for the marginalized students of future generations.

“We create a space of how to be inclusive and showing that ‘normal’ in a classroom doesn’t exist,” Land said. “We want to break that down and be able to have all students and teachers feel welcome in the classroom.”

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“If you are in danger of not being able to pay for college because of your identity, apply,” Vice President of Community Seb Jove said.

“Tell your friends to apply. This is an awesome, really worthy use of your time, and it’s something we’ve worked really hard on for a really long time.”

SAGA meets at 6:30 p.m. on Thursdays in Attic Room at the Plemmons Student Union.

Land said they helped found GAPP in November 2016, just after the election of President Donald Trump, after discussions with few other education majors and assistant professor of educational foundations Matthew Thomas-Reid, who now serves as the club’s adviser.

“We just started talking and saying, ‘We don’t have a safe space for these queer and marginalized students in the college of ed, and that’s a problem,’” Land said. “So we decided to create that space, a space where we could have dialogue about inclusive issues that we’ve been having and how we can teach that in the classroom.”

Land said they believe that in political climates such as this one, inclusive education is a form of active resistance.

GAPP is open to all, regardless of major or identity. The club meets from 6-7 p.m. every other Monday in room 229 of the Reich College of Education building.

March 29, 2018

TRANSACTION TRANSaction offers a private, social safe space to App State students identifying as trans or questioning their gender identities.

“It’s a closed door policy where only trans and questioning students can enter, so that way it’s a space where people are similar minded and similar in identity where we can relax with people that are like us and have had similar experiences to us,” Vice President and sophomore studio art major Lee Hansen said.

The club meets weekly to offer a sense of community to its members, whether through social events like field trips to Asheville or educational and charitable events, like the Trans Day of Visibility, which will take place on Friday and will educate trans people and allies about trans culture.

TRANSaction collected clothing donations in the weeks leading up to the event; although anyone can donate, the club asks that only trans-identifying students take clothing at the event.

Above all, Hansen said, the club is a fun, stress-free way for trans people to find a social community.

“We are a very chill and fun club to be in, and we will in no way judge anyone who comes in to be here,” Hansen said.

Because TRANSaction has a closed door policy, trans-identifying or questioning individuals interested in attending the club are encouraged to contact the LGBT center or a club executive.

“Right now we’re going to make it a mainly educational event, like what is trans, how to be visible as a trans person and how to receive visible trans person with respect,” Hansen said.

The event will be preceded by a trans clothing drive on March 29.

QUEER PEOPLE OF COLOR The Queer People of Color club is one of the newer LGBT clubs on campus. This club offers a safe space for queer people of color to interact and socialize, and like TRANSaction, the club has a closed door policy to protect the privacy and security of club members.

Club president and applied engineering major Jon Spencer said the organization was started last fall, but will officially become a club this fall. For now, Spencer said, the club is mostly in the planning stages.

QPOC is intended as a safe space for queer people of color as well as a space for the community to discuss diversity and inclusivity on App’s campus.

“We would be the club that would come up with ideas about how to help App State with its diversity planning, retention rate and things like that, especially with not just people in the queer community but also people of color within that community and as a whole,” Spencer said.

Spencer said QPOC offers a unique opportunity in that it fosters a sense of solidarity among queer people of color, an especially small population on App’s campus.

A-SPEC A-SPEC is App State’s club for students on the asexual and aromantic spectrum. The club is relatively new, having become an officially recognized club in spring 2016, and offers a social space and opportunities for advocacy to its members.

While A-SPEC offers educational opportunities, such as during Asexual Awareness Week in October, club president and junior public relations major Becky Parsons said the club is primarily a social space.

“We do more visibility/social stuff than we do advocacy, mainly because it was originally formed as just a space for people to come and meet other ace or aro people,” Parsons said.

During meetings, members typically end up partaking in random discussions about life, Parsons said, whether about everyday struggles and thoughts or deeper concerns, like coming out to family members.

“We start the meeting with a question, but it usually devolves into tangents about different parts of people’s lives,” Parsons said.

“We just vent.”

Parsons said one important opportunity offered by A-SPEC is the supportive community it fosters.

“I know that with App State’s current ‘diversity,’ there’s not a lot of people of color in general, and then when you get to queer people of color, it gets smaller and smaller,” Spencer said.

“I feel like starting this club lets people know that they are included in everything that they do here, and that they have a whole community of people who are just like them who will be there no matter what.”

“It’s private, and it’s a really welcoming and open place to share if you want to and learn more about our community,” Parsons said.

“It’s just a community building place, and I think a lot of people enjoy having a space to meet people and make friends.”

People interested in joining QPOC can contact the LGBT Center or a club executive for more information.

“We welcome anyone, we welcome allies, we just want to know who are you are before you step into our space,” Parsons said.

A-SPEC is a closed club to protect its members’ confidentiality, but Parsons said all are welcome to attend, regardless of identity.

Those interested in learning more about A-SPEC can contact the LGBT Center or a club executive to find more information.

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March 29, 2018

Planned Parenthood club: educating and advocating President sophomore public relations major Katie Wynn and Vice President sophomore sustainable development major Emma Start at the National Generation Action Organizing Summit in Charlotte in January.

Emily Baeszler│

P

eople who walked into the Plemmons Student Union last week might have been greeted with candy, condoms and bright pink “I stand with Planned Parenthood” stickers. These were handed out by the App State Planned Parenthood club, or campus’ Generation Action Chapter, as a way of spreading the word about the work they are doing on campus.

The App State chapter, which started this semester, is one of more than 300 Generation Action groups across the country. The groups are funded by Planned Parenthood with the goal of educating people about sexual health and advocating for reproductive freedom.

“Mostly what we’ve done so far has been event-based

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and education-based,” Katie Wynn, a sophomore public relations major and president of the App State Generation Action Chapter, said.

The newly formed club has been making a name for itself through a wide range of events. Earlier this semester, they partnered with Wellness and Prevention Services to put on a sex education trivia night, an event where participants could compete to answer questions about sexual health.

Their partnerships have also extended to the Latina sorority on campus, Chi Upsilon Sigma National Latin Sorority, Inc. for an upcoming showing of the film “Dolores,” which focuses on the activism of labor leader Dolores Huerta.

A common misconception about the club is that they are a political organization or a

@TheAppalachian│Intern A&E Reporter fundraising group.

“One of the main things we’ve faced is people thinking Planned Parenthood is a political organization, when it’s not. It’s bipartisan,” Wynn said. “There’s so many connotations, positive and negative, attached to Planned Parenthood.”

Wynn stressed the fact that the club does not fundraise for Planned Parenthood. Their events are only for the purpose of educating, raising awareness and providing service.

Even though there is no Planned Parenthood facility in Boone (the nearest one is in Asheville), some members got involved with the organization through volunteering.

The club’s event coordinator, freshman political science major Maggie Behm, has been involved with Planned Parent-

hood since her freshman year of high school.

“I started volunteering there (at the Raleigh location) truly just to get community service hours, and then I realized how much they do as an organization,” Behm said.

Behm said she faced some opposition from protesters during her time volunteering in Raleigh but has not encountered any problems from App State students. Wynn believes that college students are generally accepting of the organization.

“Our generation is more likely to be in favor of Planned Parenthood, whereas if we were out in the community we might have a few more issues,” Wynn said.

The Planned Parenthood club is always welcoming new members, and since it is still

fairly small, people have plenty of opportunities for involvement, sophomore sociology major Chloe Starr, a member of the club, said.

“Everyone has a role and everyone’s able to be involved with everything we do. Even if someone doesn’t have a title, people have a purpose in the club,” Starr said.

She emphasized that the casual environment of the club does not take away from the fact that the members are putting in work to make a difference and working to tackle big issues regarding reproductive freedom and sexual health.

The Planned Parenthood Generation Action chapter meets every other Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the Women’s Center in the Plemmons Student Union.

They are currently accepting new members.

Courtesy of Katie Wynn and Emma Start

March 29, 2018

Pride Shabbat brings LGBT and Jewish communities together Ashley Goodman│

S

tudent organizations Hillel and the Sexuality and Gender Alliance came together Friday night for Pride Shabbat, a religious service celebrating God’s day of rest, in an LGBT-oriented space.

Shabbat, or the Sabbath, is Judaism’s day of rest.

Shabbat celebrates the biblical creation story and is observed just before sunset Friday evening, leading into Saturday night.

Pride Shabbat also celebrated the intersectionality of LGBT and Jewish community through readings by LGBT Jewish people.

“It’s kind of a Jewish Shabbat service, and it’s also going to have an emphasis on LGBT identities.

We have a number of readings that will be happening

by LGBT Jews and rabbis, and it’s presented by a lot of people who are from Hillel or SAGA,” club member and senior psychology major Chayym Kornhauser said.

Appalachian State Hillel is a student organization that helps members learn more about Jewish faith and culture. Globally, Hillel is the largest Jewish campus organization in the world, with campuses ranging from Argentina to Poland.

Club president and junior philosophy major Marisa Fernandez said Hillel gives them the opportunity to explore their own heritage.

“I grew up in a multicultural household, my father was Latino and my mother

@AshleyGoodman97│A&E Editor

is Jewish,” Fernandez said.

“For me, Hillel is an opportunity to explore more of my identity that I wasn’t given a chance to when I was growing up.”

SAGA connects people of all gender identities and sexual and romantic orientations with social and educational opportunities. The club organizes App’s amateur and professional drag shows, participates in campus’ National Coming Out Day and Pride festival, and offers a safe, social space to its members.

Pride Shabbat celebrated intersectionality, offering a welcoming religious space to LGBT students and helping LGBT Jewish students celebrate multiple aspects of their identity.

“As someone who identifies as queer and also strongly identifies as Jewish, there isn’t necessarily always a space that’s intersectional for me,” Fernandez said.

“It’s really meaningful that I can represent two sides of myself at the same event and feel included.”

Some LGBT students at last year’s Pride Shabbat, Fernandez said, expressed that this was the first time they had been accepted in a religious environment.

“It was very sad to hear because I was thankful enough to feel always accepted for who I am in my space, but I know not everyone has that when it comes to religious background,” Fernandez said. “I think it’s awesome that we can kind

of show people that religion doesn’t always have to be scary or intimidating or isolating.”

SAGA club president and junior graphic arts major Dalton Parry said last year’s Pride Shabbat was the first time he had felt accepted in a religious environment as well.

“Last year was the first time I’d ever felt welcomed in a religious space at all,” Parry said. “That’s exactly what it is for a lot of us.

I’m not necessarily Jewish. I don’t know where I fall, but it’s a great event to come to and feel welcome at.”

Pride Shabbat featured a number of traditional songs and prayers before the fellowship concluded with snacks and socialization.

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17

March 29, 2018

Posters displayed outside of the Black Student Association. BSA is located in room 215 of Plemmons Student Union.

Black Student Association and marginalized communities on campus Patrick McCabe│

F

ounded in 1974 at Appalachian State, the Black Student Association seeks to create a “change for unity” for marginalized students, according to their websit “It’s about talking about equity, it’s about talking about social justice, and it’s about talking about community,” J. Spenser Darden, assistant director of Multicultural Student Development and adviser for BSA, said.

Senior public relations major Drew Wilson serves as president of BSA. She works in part as a liaison, connecting the broader campus with the perspectives of black students. Sometimes this communication takes place after black students have negative experiences on campus.

“I’ll communicate with various black students on campus from different groups, whether its Greek life or any specific department or major that they may be in, and communicate that with different faculty and staff members and administrators,” Wilson said.

Maintaining a connection to the students who came before them remains a goal. One of the founders of BSA, Willie C. Fleming, currently serves as Chief Diversity Officer for Appalachian State.

“We’ve kept that communication going with the founders of BSA through different alumni events that we have, especially during homecoming when they all come back,”

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Wilson said.

Sophomore biology major Jalyn Degraffenreid serves as chair of programming. She gauges the interests of members to help organize relevant events.

“I listen to how they’re feeling, what they thought about different events, what events had good turnouts, what events didn’t have good turnouts, what kind of social issues they want to focus on and orchestrate events around those,” Degraffenreid said.

Wilson said she supports the increasingly progressive Student Government Association. Marginalized students have become better represented in recent years, and SGA has done more to engage with multicultural groups.

“This cabinet and last year’s cabinet were literally the most diverse SGA cabinets that this university has ever seen, so really getting that representation in SGA, especially in higher roles in SGA, is really empowering and amazing,” Wilson said.

Last semester, Appalachian State administration introduced a new mantra, #NoHateAppState. Displayed on signs, stickers and social media, the push drew the ire of some students. Darden saw how this misstep catalyzed some students he works with.

“Much of the activism and much of the energy around changing the space had a lot to do with both that campaign and then the banner that happened shortly thereafter, as well as

@patm_cc│A&E Reporter

the response,” Darden said.

Wilson is critical of the campaign and didn’t see it as the proper way to bring these issues to the forefront of discussion.

“It just kind of removed that sense of acknowledgement that hate does indeed happen on this campus. It’s very real, it’s very prevalent on Appalachian’s campus,” Wilson said.

Carving out a space where black students feel included and encouraged to express themselves fully has made BSA valuable for many.

“It’s definitely a safe space, somewhere where I know I feel comfortable, and I feel like other students do as well, a place that kind of allows you to let loose after you’ve had maybe a week or day of school work. It’s just a time to focus on yourself and fellowship with friends,” Degraffenreid said.

The university has stepped up its efforts to attract students with marginalized identities in recent years. They task diverse Appalachian students, including BSA members, with sending postcards to diverse admitted students to congratulate them on their acceptance.

“We’re able to really get that personal touch when it comes to incoming students to let them know that there’s other diverse students who do attend this school,” Wilson said.

But just as the diversity of incoming freshman classes is important to multicultural leaders, so too is retention.

“There should be a lot of center on retention, not just getting students here, so making sure the students who are already here are satisfied and happy with our Appalachian experience, not just trying to funnel in a bunch of diverse students who may not be happy here,” Wilson said.

Improving access to resources also plays an important part in the programming of Multicultural Student Development and BSA. Darden oversees the ASCEND program, which offers an orientation for freshman and transfer students. Students like Wilson discuss their experiences at Appalachian State with incoming students who hold marginalized identities.

“They’re able to get that one-on-one communication and start building those relationships with people who share the same identities as them, which I really think is something that’s incredible when it comes to retention because you’re able to get that insight of what other people who have already been here for a while have already dealt with,” Wilson said.

One new resource has come from Wellness and Prevention Services, which now employs a black post-graduate counselor, according to Wilson. With diversity resources coming from many different campus departments, Darden feels that communication between them should be improved.

“I think finding a way for

the services that do exist to communicate a little bit better would be an important thing,” Darden said.

The relatively recent formation of the Chancellor’s Student Advisory Board for Diversity Recruitment has helped leaders like Wilson to share the voices of black students with faculty and staff. Still, Wilson said she wishes that student complaints more often resulted in concrete action.

“In the classroom when professors have micro-aggressions and say super offensive things, and where people have tried to share that information with higher ups, but it hasn’t really gone anywhere,” Wilson said.

Darden actively engages with faculty and staff through workshops designed to increase knowledge and understanding of stereotypes, bias and social justice issues. He recently partnered with the Office of Human Resources as well as the Center for Academic Excellence.

“Our three offices came together to talk about this idea of inclusive excellence of what is it, why does it matter in the classroom,” Darden said.

One upcoming BSA event is a cookout at the end of the school year. For Wilson, this will be her last semester with BSA. “We’re celebrating just having a great year and a successful year, not only for our organization but for students, and wishing everyone a happy summer,” Wilson said.

Mickey Hutchings

March 29, 2018

FREEDOM OF SPEECH: AppSpeaks puts on Panorama

(Left) Sophie Crist, sophomore studio art major, presenting her talk, “Undersized by Humanity.” (Right) Mikaela Thomas, junior sustainable development major, presenting “Civil Justice System in a Refugee Camp.” Crist and Thomas were two of several students to speak at Panorama on March 20.

Amber Grant│

P

anorama 2018 was held March 20 in the Parkway Ballroom of the Plemmons Student Union.

The event was put on by AppSpeaks, an organization dedicated to promoting discussions about issues involving App State students.

Panorama is an annual event put on for students to promote their First Amendment right to freedom of speech, where students are allowed to discuss their passions in a safe space.

AppSpeaks also hosts weekly discussions about current world issues during an event called the Socrates Cafe.

The Department of Student Engagement and Leadership was also involved in putting on the event. With an attendance of around 150 students and faculty, the Panorama speakers stood on stage to deliver their speeches, with most lasting around 15 minutes.

The students gave speeches about anything they were interested in and wanted to inform the audience about, ranging from discrimination, civil justice within refugee camps or even discussing the future of electric air racing.

The students had to audition in order to earn a spot to speak.

During the auditions, the students were selected based on their public speaking abilities and interesting topics.

“The auditions were in October, and then there were two

Mickey Hutchings

workshops before the event where students received feedback on how to improve their performances,” freshman English major Anna Spradley said.

Spradley was one of the many volunteers involved with AppSpeaks who helped with the organization of Panorama. She helped pick up the catering, provided by Stick Boy Bread Company, and also swiped students’ AppCards at the doors to the event.

The first speaker was Mikaela Thomas, a junior sustainable development major, who spoke about the civil justice system in refugee camps.

During a visit to Fez, Morocco, she witnessed the established crime and consequence system in the camps, where the police were typically not called to handle crimes due to the camp residents’ fear of being deported.

“As an American, I was shocked. In America, we have this set in stone law and anything outside of that law is considered anarchy,” Thomas said. “But in other systems, they need to set up their own laws and punishments in order to have a society.”

Korick Sisomphone, a graduate Appalachian studies major, performed a talk titled, “Hip-Hop from the Hilltops: Perspectives on Place, Identity, and Resistance.” He spoke about his own experiences living in Boone and the long history of musical resistance.

@TheAppalachian│A&E Reporter He related the struggles that the people of Appalachia have faced to the struggles that many hip-hop and rhythm and blues artists face today. Both genres of artists use music as a way to represent and talk about the places they come from in order to respect their own roots.

James Furr, a senior sustainable technology major, spoke about the future of electric air racing. Having been inspired by electric cars by being a member of the App State Solar Vehicle Team, Furr discussed the possibility for electric powered planes.

Using statistics and technological evidence, he showed the audience how electric powered planes could be used to combat global warming and air pollution caused by plane engines.

Robert Havelka, a senior sustainable development major, used his speech to take a look at economics through a political lens. He discussed the problems with American politics and economics, claiming that most American workers feel like pawns and no longer have a voice about how the government goes about certain economic issues.

Regarding the rate and hourly compensation and productivity not equalling each other out, he coined the phenomenon as “The Destiny’s Child Effect.”

“Destiny’s Child moved forward as a team all together until Beyonce skyrocketed to the highest point of produc-

tivity,” Havelka said. “Hourly compensation and productivity rates need to get back together again, just like Destiny’s Child.”

Mackenzie Bruckner, a senior communication studies major, gave a speech titled “Narrative Nostalgia.” During her speech, she spoke about the natural cultural longing for nostalgia and how this longing is reflected in remaking old classic movies or TV shows.

Bruckner also claims that by remaking shows like “Mad Men,” we are blaming the societal issues displayed in certain shows on the fact that they are portraying older times, even if these social issues are still prevalent in today’s society.

Logan Frazier, a junior English major, spoke about the established simulacrum of celebrities in Hollywood today.

The simulacrum, Frazier explained, is an established facade created by anyone who tries to hide their true personalities from the outside world.

Many celebrities hide their true selves in the eye of the public. When even a little bit of their true personality shows, they are perceived as being fake or two-faced.

“Their narrative is not their own,” Frazier said. “Eventually, after hiding the original versions of themselves, their own personalities begin to fade away and instead they become a copy of themselves.”

The final speaker of the

night was Sophie Crist, a sophomore studio art major. Crist spoke of the discrimination and challenges she has had to face throughout her life struggling with achondroplasia.

Achondroplasia, out of the 300 forms of dwarfism, is the most common. Despite struggles she has faced throughout her life, Crist is still successful in the art field, having created several music videos for rap artists in the past. She moved to Boone to escape intolerance and study art. She also spoke about an event called Little Persons of America, where over 3,000 dwarfs meet annually and discuss their own stories living with dwarfism.

“Everyone has a thing to celebrate,” Crist said. “And we celebrate dwarfism because we are proud of who we are.

The only difference between you and me is that I am 4 feet tall. We celebrate because we do not see ourselves as a disability, we see ourselves as individuals.”

After her presentation, Crist received a standing ovation from the crowd.

“Sophie’s speech was incredibly moving,” Spradley said. “It provided a new perspective from the discrimination little people face. It really made me think about her story, and it made me want to help others.”

Any student hoping to participate in Panorama 2019 are encouraged to get involved with AppSpeaks.

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black WHITE AND

Athletics is more diverse than campus Moss Brennan│

Brooks Maynard│

O

ut of the 3,306 new freshmen that were on campus in the fall of 2017, 106 of them were black, according to data on App State’s Institutional Research, Assessment and Planning (IRAP) website. On the App State campus, minorities made up 17.8 percent of the freshman class while black students alone made up 3.2 percent of the freshman class.

In the fall of 2017, App State as a whole had a black student population of 707 while there were 15,610 white students. Black students make up 3.7 percent of the entire

@mosbren│In-Depth Editor @BrooksMaynard│Sports Editor

student body according to data from IRAP. In the fall and spring semesters, there were a total of 111 black athletes who were enrolled in the school.

Black athletes and coaches said that they feel somewhat separate from the rest of the school when they are practicing or playing their sport.

When they come onto campus for their class, go to their dorm or just hang around campus, it is different than what they see in practice.

In 2013, the Chancellor’s Commission on Diversity was created before Sheri Everts became chancellor. In 2014,

Chancellor Everts charged the group with coming up with “recommendations focused on the recruitment and retention of students, staff and faculty from underrepresented groups.”

The group came out with 14 proposals to implement initiatives to better diversify and educate App State’s campus.

There are also currently 31 initiatives that range from introducing a bias incident reporting protocol and having hair services for students of color.

In overall diversity, which looks at racial, ethnic, age, geographic and gender diversity, App ranks 1,184 out of 2,355 universities nationwide,

according to College Factual.

App State ranks 2,175 out of 2,718 nationwide in ethnic diversity.

There were 111 black athletes enrolled for the 2017-18 school year out of a 511 total athletes at the university, making up 21.7 percent of the athletic population. For the 201617 school year, black athletes made up 24.4 percent of players in the NCAA sports in which App State participated, according to the NCAA Demographic Database.

Coming to App, players in athletics get to see a different side of the university that the rest of student body does not.

Courtesy of App State Athletics Illustration by Nora Smith

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March 29, 2018

Brandon Smith is a junior and runs sprints and hurdles on the track and field team. Smith said that although he was prepared for a lack of diversity on campus, coming to Appalachian was a culture shock.

Section 1: Players Basketball, football and track and field are all sports in the Sun Belt Conference that have a majority of black athletes.

Brandon Smith, a junior on the track and field team, is from Fayetteville, North Carolina, and attended one of the lowest income schools there: Douglas Byrd High School. He ran track and took Advanced Placement and honors level classes because he did not just want to be an athlete.

“I became student body president my senior year. Before that I was freshman class president and sophomore vice president,” Smith said.

Coming to App was almost a culture shock for Smith, but because he was part of SGA and went to statewide conferences, he saw the lack of diversity. He said that even though he was prepared for it, he still had to get used to being on campus.

Sage Holley was a redshirt freshman on the football team during the 20172018 season. He is transferring this fall to play football at East Carolina University to be closer to home.

Holley went to Christ School, which is a boarding school, in Asheville, North Carolina. When he came to App it was not that much of a shock because Holley’s high school was not very racially diverse until his junior and senior year, Holley said.

As football players, Holley felt that the team was separate from the rest of campus.

“The team is kind of its

Hayley Canal

own self contained, little school. We’re always together, always doing stuff together,” Holley said. “The outside student body doesn’t matter as much because we are always with the team.”

The 2017 football roster made up .006 percent of App State’s student body population.

Justin Forrest is a freshman guard on the men’s basketball team. He went to Greenforest-McCalep Christian Acade-

State, it really opened up his eyes to being at a bigger school that is not predominantly black.

“It was different but it was different in a good way because it really opened up my eyes and seeing different cultures and different races and being able to interact with them,” Forrest said.

Maya Calder, freshman forward on the women’s basketball team, went to National Christian Academy in Fort

750/1232

Football players are black

34/432

Baseball players are black

18/310

Female soccer players are black

129/187

Female basketball players are black my, a private school in Decatur, Georgia. His graduating class was about 23 people, according to Forrest.

The school was a predominantly black school and also had kids from other countries that attended.

“We tried to get some transfer kids from out of the country. You know we had a couple of Nigerian kids play basketball at the school,” Forrest said. “We had a couple of Asian and Chinese kids who went to the school.”

When Forrest got to App

Washington, Maryland, and played on the varsity basketball team. Her school, which was also a middle school, was predominately black. She said there were 100 to 200 kids total at her school.

Since coming to App, Calder has been very excited about all the people she has met and the experiences she has had in the area.

“Like even my teammates, she’s from Spain and Australia, and it’s like you find out stuff that you wouldn’t know about different people,” Calder

said. “You just get to see different things. I think that’s a good thing being here.”

Calder said she believes that athletics is more diverse because everyone is together all the time and feels more diverse.

EJ Scott is a junior defensive lineman from Farmville, North Carolina, who attended Farmville Central High School and also played football at Shaw University in Raleigh before transferring to App State, where he joined the football team as a sophomore walk-on in the spring of 2017. Shaw University is one of ten historically black colleges and universities, or “HBCU’s” in North Carolina according to edonline.com. “(At Shaw) there’s more of my race, I guess, but there wasn’t really anything I couldn’t handle when I got here because I’m friendly,” Scott said. “It doesn’t matter what you are, I’m still going to talk to you until you give me a reason not to.”

Christian Insley played football at North Carolina A&T State University before coming to App in the 20112012 school year and graduated in 2015. He did not play football for App but instead focused on his studies.

“I think (diversity) is one of the biggest issues there is.

That and the school is very progressive. You know they are definitely moving in the right direction, but it’s hard to see that sometimes when the community around the school isn’t so apt to move in that

same direction, if that makes sense,” Insley said.

Insley is not the only person who thinks that the region is the reason App is not as diverse as it could be.

MEN’S SPORTS COACHES

WHITE MALE HEAD COACHES WHITE FEMALE HEAD COACHES BLACK MALE HEAD COACHES

WHITE MALE ASSISTANT COACHES WHITE FEMALE ASSISTANT COACHES BLACK MALE ASSISTANT COACHES BLACK FEMALE ASSISTANT COACHES

WOMEN’S SPORTS COACHES

WHITE MALE HEAD COACHES WHITE FEMALE HEAD COACHES BLACK MALE HEAD COACHES BLACK FEMALE HEAD COACHES

WHITE MALE ASSISTANT COACHES WHITE FEMALE ASSISTANT COACHES BLACK MALE ASSISTANT COACHES BLACK FEMALE ASSISTANT COACHES

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March 29, 2018

The Multicultural Student Development Center is a way to help the diverse student population with over 30 different clubs and organizations. The office and more information about MSD can be found on the second floor of the Plemmons Student Union.

Multicultural, Women’s, and LGBT centers Amber Grant│

F

or students looking to be more involved with diversity, Appalachian State University offers several offices and clubs dedicated to increasing diversity and safety on-campus. As App is a predominantly white campus, minority students are encouraged by office supervisors and members to explore their cultures and get more involved in a welcoming and diverse community.

The Multicultural Student Development Center, located on the second floor of Plemmons Students Union, is the main office for anyone looking to get more involved with App State diversity. MSD provides a wide array of clubs and offices dedicated to making App State a more diverse campus.

The Hispanic Student Association, Black Student Association and Asian Student Association are some of the few clubs associated with the MSD offices and provide places for diverse students to get more involved with their own cultural community.

Vimbikai Chitambira, a junior finance and banking major, is an office assistant for the MSD main office. He assists anyone who comes into the office and is also a supervisor and director of events held by the offices.

“The MSD office helps provide resources for multicultural students and any events that

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we hold,” Chitambira said.

“We host events for people to de-stress and help relieve any problems faced by diverse students. MSD also looks over the other three offices, the Multicultural Center, the Women’s Center and the LGBT Center.

All of the office’s main purpose is to make people feel safe.”

Their common space, an open area for anyone to socialize, study and engage with other multicultural students, is one of many resources they have to offer. The center promotes overall wellness of all students and encourages interaction with intercultural activities. The Multicultural Center also offers enrichment grants and space reservation.

Events held by the center include a multicultural student welcome reception, Kwanzaa celebrations, multicultural awards and several intercultural lunch and learn sessions.

Within App’s predominantly white campus, one of the Multicultural Center’s main goals is to encourage appreciation of diverse cultural and identity groups on this campus.

Kendall Rankin, a graduate public administration major, specializes in diversity management, specifically on App State’s campus.

“There’s always room for improvement of diversity on this campus,” Rankin said.

“Steps should be more looking

@TheAppalachian│A&E Reporter into diversity recruitment. We have the infrastructure to work toward solving the issue. App needs to start recruiting students from underrepresented areas but needs to recruit faculty. When high school students see that App has a more representing student body, they will be more likely to apply here.”

The Multicultural Center also encourages volunteers to work desk hours within the offices. Volunteers work desk hours within the center to ensure the common space is a welcoming area and to answer questions from visitors.

The Women’s Center is another MSD office that promotes the safety of women on campus. The common space for the Women’s Center is located on the first floor of the PSU. It provides a space for promoting wellness and safety of women, as well as a place for women to seek guidance for any problems they may be facing. The App State Women’s Center is also the only completely volunteer-run Women’s Center in North Carolina.

The Women’s Center provides several resources for the women of App State. Women are able to pick up free hygiene products and condoms as a way to provide affordable wellness to students. During a weekly event, prosthetic breasts knitted by the desk-volunteers are made available for survivors of breast cancer.

The Women’s Center it-

self is not a club, but women are encouraged to meet in the Women’s Center every Monday from 6-7 p.m. to talk about any issues they may be facing.

The Women’s Center also holds several events throughout the year, such as the Vagina Monologues and Walk for Awareness. Walk for Awareness is an event that typically takes place in August or September that brings awareness to the lives of two App State women who were abducted and raped in 1989.

Jaxeli Martinez, a senior psychology major, is one of the volunteers at the Women’s Center.

“The Women’s Center is just a great place for any woman on campus to sit down and rant about their feelings,” Martinez said. “We offer many resources for these women, including an anonymous reporting system where women can come in and report any student or faculty who may have made inappropriate comments or approaches towards them.”

Other clubs dedicated to fighting the oppression of women include the Appalachian Women Leadership Group and the Gender, Women’s and Sexuality Studies student club.

The third center, also located on the first floor of the PSU beside the Women’s Center, is the LGBT Center. Within the LGBT Center, students of all genders and sexualities can

socialize with other students who also identify with the LGBT community. The center is dedicated to providing a place for LGBT students to feel supported by a community of like-minded individuals, as well as providing resources specific to the community.

Some resources include free HIV testing twice a year.

LGBTQA+ panels are also available for any club on campus to schedule in order to better educate themselves about the community.

The LGBT Center also provides LGBT therapy sessions for identifying students to seek help and discuss issues they may be facing. There is also a transgender therapy group for identifying students that discusses problems gender-variant students may face on campus. There is also a list of all gender-neutral bathrooms on campus on the LGBT Center’s website.

Another resource listed on the LGBT Center website is The Voices Project, where any member of the LGBT community can submit stories online about their experiences within their lives.The stories are then read through for App State to know what faculty and students need to do for the campus to become more inclusive of LGBT students. The stories may be used in seminars or other services to teach faculty how to better teach to the needs of their students.

Halle Keighton

March 29, 2018

DIVERSITY CELEBRATION This page is sponsored content from the Division of Student Affairs.

This year’s Diversity Celebration will take place April 9-13 throughout Plemmons Student Union. The Diversity Celebration supports and enhances Appalachian State University’s mission of “accepting the responsibility to be actively involved in addressing the educational, economic, cultural, and societal needs of the changing region, state, nation, and world,” by providing a venue where diverse perspectives, cultures and values are accepted, appreciated and celebrated. The below schedule is tentative. For more info visit diversity.appstate.edu/celebration.

MONDAY, APRIL 9 Addressing Climate Change Through the Arts 5-8 p.m. Parkway Ballroom, PSU Diversity in Appalachia 7-9 p.m. Linville Falls Room, PSU

TUESDAY, APRIL 10 Multicultural Festival 3-6 p.m. 1st Floor, PSU African Dance Class 3-5 p.m. Linville Falls Room, PSU Cultural Exploration 3-6 p.m. Grandfather Ballroom, PSU Biodiversity 3:30-6 p.m. Roan Mountain Room, PSU Gran’Daddy Junebug 3:30-6 p.m. Three Top Mountain Room, PSU Opal Tometi - Black Lives Matter 5-9 p.m. Blue Ridge Ballroom, PSU “POV Movie” Screening 5-9 p.m. Blue Ridge Ballroom, PSU

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11 “America’s First Climate Refugees” Screening 7-9 p.m. Greenbriar Theatre, PSU

THURSDAY, APRIL 12 Counseling Center Presents: Awareness of Diversity and Privilege Beads. Self Guided Exercise 10 a.m.-noon Blue Ridge Ballroom, PSU

FRIDAY, APRIL 13 Pride Event 1-4 p. p.m.. Sa Sanford o d Mall a

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Everyone is Invited to F.A.R.M. Cafe’s 5th Annual

Thursday March 29, 2018

6-10 PM Boone Saloon - Boone, NC Suggested Donation for Tickets

$25/person or $15/student Tickets available at F.A.R.M. Cafe Dance Music by Soul Benefactor Cash Bar, Food, Raffles, Auction, Games, Dancing, & Special Surprises!

Pre-Event Raffle Tickets for great trip packages now available at F.A.R.M. Cafe Thanks to the following Event Sponsors:

Scan this QR code to view The Appalachian’s editorial board applications on AppSync.

Friendship Honda Boone Drug, Inc. Boone Saloon

Carefree Cove Neighborhood The Roberson Family

US. Foods Rep. Betty Hamner

2018 Summer Courses Registration starts April 2nd First Summer: May 21 - June 27 Second Summer: July 5 - August 10 Extended Term: May 21 - August 10

summerschool.uncc.edu

Mast General Store

MPrints

Life Store Bank Hospitality Mints