• Rose-colored romanticization vs. historical eras’ reality

from the Epic, Volume 57, Issue 4 - February 1, 2022

• The humor and harm of school Instagram pages

February 01, 2022

IN-DEPTH 13 Rose-colored romanticization vs. the reality of historical eras

BY ANWEN HUANG AND NEHA AYYER

Aweb search of “Victorian Era” yields lavish ballroom scenes. A browse for the “1980s” produces neon glitzy outfits. However, these depictions often sugarcoat the realities of historical eras, reinforcing flawed ideas of what life was like during them. Victorian Era: Despite the popular belief that Victorian living was refined, the era is more nuanced than most know.

As industrialization swept Britain, flocks of people migrated to the cities to find work. London’s population density during the 19th century doubled to almost twice the city’s modern-day density, and the high population created atrocious living conditions that bred filth and disease.

Outside the home, urban life was also far from luxurious.

“In cities, there’s a growing service industry pro- vid i n g basic necessities for the growing population, so that consists of most of the working class,” AP U.S. History and World History teacher Steven Roy said. “But at the same time, you have factories where there’s really no safety regulations, and they tend to be dangerous — a lot of open spinning belts, people getting torn apart on machines and things like that.” 1920s: “People often think of the twenties, the Roaring Twenties, as a time of glamor, new freedoms, women’s liberation and growing consumerism, and that is true to some degree,” said David Bush, Adjunct History instructor at Foothill College. “But it was also a time of labor unrest, declining farm prices, a growing KKK and strong anti-immigrant sentiment.”

Following World War I, farmers nationwide remained poor, battling a surplus that made agriculture prices plummet. The racist propaganda that inspired Prohibition was one encapsulation of the era’s pervasive bigotry. The other was the revival of the Ku Klux Klan, which, by the middle of the decade, had up to 8 million members.

In popular culture, these elements have been disregarded. Frequent symbols of the time, such as flappers, young women known for their carefree lifestyle, appear at 1920s-themed events, reinforcing the idea that the era was one of liberation. However, for the most part, the time is difficult to generalize. 1960s: The hippie movement of the 60s, which has been romanticized through fashion, was only one element of a more tumultuous era.

“The beginning of the 1960s was not about hippies at all. The beginning was about the Civil Rights movement,” San Jose State University history professor Raymand Buyco said. “In contrast to most African Americans fighting for their basic rights in the Civil Rights movement, the hippies were middle class — these were not working class people struggling to put more money in their pocket or have better working conditions. They were largely college kids who decided they didn’t want to live like their parents.”

Despite popular depiction as a peace-loving decade, many held pro-war sentiments during the Vietnam War. And even with the Civil Rights movement, African Americans continued to face discrimination and economic inequality. The movement also did not extend toward other minorities. For many, the era presents a dichotomy.

“I think of the 60s as a time of change, with significant strides toward racial equality with the Civil Rights Movement,” senior Angela Hu said. “But I also think of drugs and liberation that’s countercultural.” 1980s: The view of the 1980s as a time of glamor and liberty was only true for some. During the AIDS epidemic, the LGBTQ+ community was stigmatized, with AIDS being referred to as the “gay disease.” The nation also saw a rise in neoconservative politics.

“During Reagan’s presidency, unions were attacked, government programs lost support and affirmative action programs were curtailed,” Bush said. “The increasing concentration of wealth in the hands of a few and the growing gap between the rich and the poor hurt women, children and people of color the most.”

The militarization of the War on Drugs led to drug hysteria and high imprisonment rates. In prison, many drug users’ health declined further.

Modern 80s-themed shows like “Stranger Things” (2016) glamorize the 80s with a modern-retro atmosphere, erasing the struggles that people faced during this time. Conclusion: Popular depictions of historical eras create distorted views, and historians stress the importance of understanding the complexity of history. “The present is a creation of the past, and without acknowledging and dealing with the complicated — and often horrific — past, we will continue making destructive choices,” Bush said.

agri culture continues to show promise as local food supply in cities has noticeably grown through the development of urban farms. Beyond providing space for fresh produce, community gardens also help to increase social bonds among people in a neighborhood, regardless of diverging backgrounds.

Many feel that urban agriculture has built promising relationships within the community,” Babcock said. “It’s unreal, and it’s always been culturally diverse. There’s always been a sense of pride.”

Gardens strengthen pride within a community, serve as an excellent opportunity for education on food sustainability and involve community members with their surroundings.

BY DEEKSHA RAJ AND KATIE CHIN

Urban agriculture — the production, marketing, and distribution of food in urban and suburban areas — has taken root across the Bay Area. Breathing life into the area’s bustling urban sprawl, community gardens and local orchards offer residents fresh produce and opportunities to form meaningful connections.

“I grow flowers, beans and cucumbers,” sophomore Atharva Rayan said. “It helps me feel more connected to the environment.”

The idea of urban agriculture dates back to 3500 B.C., when Mesopotamian farmers reserved plots of land for farming i n

KATIE CHIN—THE EPIC cities. From the 1880s to the early 1900s, European cities like London, Paris and Stockholm had allotment gardens, plots of land given to the urban poor, to help them become self-provisioning. With one acre of land each, these families grew and sold their own crops, gaining easy access to fresh food and income. In the 1890s, English urban planner Ebzener Howard championed the garden city movement, which moved gardens and larger agricultural fields to be within walking distance of towns.

Today, urban agriculture can be found scattered across the Bay Area. Once populated with unending orchards and fields, the area’s agriculture is now preserved in community gardens and local orchards.

Founded in 1990, Sunnyvale’s Orchard Heritage Park boasts 10 acres of open land, housing 850 to 900 blechnum apricot trees. Trees are often replanted so the lush apricot trees can be sustained and provide greenery to the city of Sunnyvale year-round. The trees are carefully tended to by Charlie Olson, also referred to as Sunnyvale’s apricot hero, who has headed the orchard for more than 25 years. Park officials hope that the space will continue to educate community members about agriculture and encourage gardening in the community through educational programs in its children’s teaching garden.

“I hope we’re allowed to expand to allow people to be able to grow gardens in any space they can,” said Laura Babcock, director of the Sunnyvale Heritage Park Museum.

Benefits of urban agriculture include cutting energy costs of healthy food production because it thrives in smaller spaces and coexists with city life. Additionally, as havens for pollinators, community gardens promote biodiversity in suburban areas. However, urban agriculture faces challenges of limited space, as agriculture groups struggle to balance their agendas with their city’s development goals. Changing support from local governments can also prove difficult to navigate, and programs consistently face a lack of funding and support from the city.

“You always have a tussle with politicians’ decisions as to whether providing housing is more important than providing agriculture,” Babcock said. “It’s really up to every city to find their balance the best that they can.”

Despite this, urban

DEEKSHA RAJ—THE EPIC