The Guardsman, Vol.170, Issue 3, City College of San Francisco

MIGRATION OF ART SUPPLIES

UNCERTAIN FUTURE FOR DACA

FROM CCSF TO STARDOM

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Vol. 170, Issue 3 | Sep. 16 – Sep. 23 | City College of San Francisco | Since 1935 | FREE | www.theguardsman.com

Professor Light Captures Darkness at the Border

By JohnTaylor Wildfeuer jt.wildfeuer@gmail.com

Mothers handcuffed to their children, a full-grown man stuffed into a drainpipe, a family of three crammed together in the boot of a car. Under the cover of night they were found and detained by border patrol officers, their moments of fear, loss, and resignation caught in the glow of Ken Light’s Hasselblad camera, and now enshrined in “Midnight: La Frontera”.

From 1983 to 1987 Light, a professor at UC Berkeley and City College, rode with Border Patrol agents in Otay Mesa, San Diego, north of the border between California and Mexico, to document the experience of immigrants in the moments they were detained.

With these and photographs taken of agricultural workers in California’s Central Valley, he published To the Promised Land in 1988.

Over thirty years later, Light has returned to those contact sheets stating that images that were unpublished or underappreciated at the time now had “a new power, and a new meaning given the current crisis”.

He spoke of the experience of reexamination saying, “The more I dug and the more I saw what I had photographed back in 1983 the more excited I got, I really wondered how did I miss this?” As he drove home from photographing the Northern California complex fires, he revisited his observations of the southern border.

Light spoke of changes in the attitudes of immigrants met with Border Patrol agents at the border.

Whereas detainees in 1983 were mostly compliant, by 1987 he says, “The word spread that if you ran five different directions, there was a better chance for you to get out”.

By contrast, in 2019 while working on a film at the border with a colleague from the journalism school at UC Berkeley, Light says that, “While we were filming a group of people literally came through the fence and sat there waiting to be apprehended”.

In that time Light has seen little change in the attitudes of border patrol agents, saying, “It’s a job and you’ll talk to some agents and they have very heavy hearts, and it’s difficult for them. And you’ll talk to other agents and they’ll describe it as like hunting.”

According to the Fiscal Year 2019 ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Report, “ICE removed 267,258 individuals, an increase from the 256,085

Ken Light co-wrote "Midnight La Frontera" with José Ángel Navejas, who successfully crossed the border from Tijuana to San Diego. Navejas wrote the introduction to the book, in Spanish and English, and gave his first-person testimony of his migration. Orinda, CA. Sept. 14, 2020. Photo by Melvin Wong/The Guardsman.

removals in FY 2018”. In an interview with Huckmag in July 2020, Light remarks, “This moment is a repeat of the 80s, it’s not a new story”.

Light shared his thoughts on the cycle of deportation saying, “Part of the idea of the book is for people to reexamine this whole era of immigration and try to understand why have we not solved this problem, and why is it still going on, and who are these people?”

Immigration and the struggle for American citizenship have been a topic of constant debate in the public forum. In 1988, the Washington Post ran an article with the headline “1980s Expects to Set Mark as Top Immigration Decade”, and last month the Washington Post published another that read “As U.S. expels migrants, they return, again and again, across the Mexico border.”

To this point, Light recalls, “One of the agents I photographed with told me a story where he was working one night and he caught a group and he sent them back. The second night he caught the same exact group, sent them back. The third night he caught them again, on the third night this immigrant said to him ‘Don’t you get a day off?’ He said ‘In fact the next day was my day off and that was the last time I ever saw them’”.

In the 1988 Washington Post article Alan Kraut, an American University history teacher, states "There is an old immigrant saying cont. on page 4

Illustration by Burcu Ozdemir /The Guardsman. Instagram: @Ozdemrbrcu

Early Statistics Show Sharp Drop in Student Enrollment

By Tobin Jones tobinjones@protonmail.com

The COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences have resulted in a significant decrease in enrollment at City College, according to statistics released by the school.

Preliminary findings released last month show a 18% decline in the number of students signed up for classes during the Fall 2020 semester when compared to 2019.

A NATIONAL TREND Representatives for the college stressed that the numbers are subject to change as the term progresses and students drop units or sign up for mid-semester courses. But they appear to be consistent with the wider picture emerging across the country. Data collected by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center showed a seven percent nationwide drop in enrollment from Summer 2019 to Summer 2020.

The decline is especially pronounced among lower-income populations. Working class AfricanAmerican students and those attending institutions in predominantly rural areas have withdrawn or cancelled plans to start school at particularly high rates, according to the study.

This apparent exodus of disadvantaged students serves to highlight the exceptional nature of the current economic downturn.

Historically, community colleges have seen increased attendance during periods of recession, as struggling workers return to

school as a way to gain an edge in a weak job market. Indeed, in the weeks that followed the initial move off campus, when most anticipated a return to in-person classes by the end of the semester, many expressed concern that City College's resources would be overwhelmed by an influx of new registrants.

“We argued at the time that there would be an increase in enrollment,” said Vick Van Chung, recently elected to the Student Trustee position, “Because individuals would become unemployed, and with that they would like to come back into school to, you know, gain another certificate during this time to give them a little bit of leverage when the job market reopened. That has proven to not necessarily be true.”

A US Census survey of households with a minimum of one adult who cancelled plans to attend an institution of higher education found the most common reason given to be the shift to remote instruction. Low-income students, who make up a larger share of those enrolled at community and junior colleges than four year institutions, often find themselves on the wrong side of a digital divide that, even before the pandemic, had contributed to inequality in educational outcomes.

Some of students who did not reenroll this term expressed a lack of confidence in their ability to effectively learn in an online context. This was one reason that Ron Pettway, an audio production major, gave for deciding not

to register for Fall classes. “As a recording student, it would be more helpful to be in the booth to learn how to use the Trident,” a sound recording console. Even if students had access to the console itself, he said, the experience of having an instructor in the room to walk them through the device's operation was irreplaceable. “It's no use to be able to get behind the (console) if you don't know what you're doing.”

A certain amount of difficulty was likely inevitable, given the sudden and unpredictable nature of the pandemic. But deep cuts made in recent years to student services have likely exacerbated the problems. Dayna Holtz, a City College librarian who also serves as the Secretary of the Associated Federation of Teachers Local 2121, which represents faculty at the school. She told the Guardsman that layoffs and hours-reductions in the Library department have resulted in “Reduced support for students trying to navigate the crisis-online learning environment,” and that because of this, “Students struggle not only to figure out our wonky course technology, but the library resources we can offer remotely to fulfill assignments.”

When added to the already considerable struggles faced by pupils from working-class backgrounds in 2020, the challenges can seem insurmountable. Van Chung, who had been living in what they described as an abusive living situation, found themselves forced to secure new housing once cont. on page 2

2 | NEWS

Vol. 170, Issue 3 | Sep. 16 - Sep. 23, 2020

Non-Credit Classes Attempt to Bridge the Digital Divide

By Eleni Balakrishnan ebalakri@mail.ccsf.edu

Non-credit classes at City College fully transitioned to online registration and remote learning this semester, and despite many obstacles ahead, students and faculty hope some of the changes are here to stay.

City College offers non-credit course options in English as a second language, child development, and computer applications, as well as courses for older adults and disabled students. These courses allow people to gain valuable life and work skills, for free.

“We're one of the largest noncredit programs in the state and we're for sure the college that has the largest percentages of its offerings in non-credit,” said English as a Second Language (ESL) Department Chair Greg Keech.

Keech said non-credit ESL classes make up 18 to 20% of City College’s revenue, with 15,000 students last year, but his department’s biggest challenges with remote learning include just supporting students with accessing class online.

Debora Nicole Bolanos Larios, 25, is taking Vocational ESL and Keyboarding this semester, but also spends time helping fellow noncredit students move online.

“Most of the students don't know how to use their phones, how to join the classes from Canvas … so I have been helping them step by step,” Larios said. She helps students with anything from downloading apps onto their phones to signing up for their student ID number.

Larios said non-credit students

have had to adjust to the waiting periods of online registration: the 48 hours after signing up for a student ID number, then the 24 hours before gaining access to Canvas.

Historically, non-credit students could visit campus to register for classes and were given a piece of paper telling them where class would be held. They typically had limited online interactions with teachers or classmates, if any.

After the sudden move to remote learning in March, teachers scrambled to find their students’ email addresses, but many never made contact. By the end of the spring semester, Keech began community outreach along with other instructors and students through flyers, social media and local radio stations.

Despite enrollment hurdles, Larios emphasized how helpful applications like Canvas have been for assignment tracking, communication with teachers and classmates, and flexible access.

“The first week or two of classes, it was like hitting a brick wall for teachers,” Keech said. But now, he’s hearing a lot of positive feedback from students and teachers alike. “There's a lot of things about face to face that we'd like better, but there's some things about remote learning that we've come to appreciate.”

For example, Larios said students who wouldn’t otherwise take classes due to work or childcare schedules, now have the opportunity to.

Some of the successes of online learning have been so evident that Keech expects his department will make some of the changes

Illustration by Burcu Ozdemir /The Guardsman.

Instagram: @Ozdemrbrcu

permanent, even after classes eventually return to in-person learning.

Until then, Keech is working to make City College’s non-credit courses “more multilingual at the front end,” as part of his goal to get more students enrolled. He is currently looking for volunteers to help ESL students of various languages find courses, register for classes online, and use Canvas.

“I think that if we do this with non-credit students — this goes for all students — but if we make sure that they understand how to access this technology, we're helping them bridge the digital divide, and we know that's a big divide in this country,” Keech said.

In spite of its importance, noncredit course enrollment has been declining for years, and this semester was a close call, Keech said.

“We're actually doing okay in credit; we're pretty much where we were before, and non-credit is doing better than we thought,” Keech said. “Now, I wouldn't say

close to its normal numbers. [But] it's not horrible. It's not as bad as I was afraid of.”

In addition to the pandemic, Keech believes many factors have been bringing down enrollment in the non-credit ESL courses he oversees: the changing demographics of San Francisco and increasing cost of living, the current political climate of anti-immigration, and decreasing numbers of high school students.

Keech also feels these courses are not valued or supported by the school’s administration. While many see non-credit courses as a way to prepare for credit courses or traditional university schooling, he said the majority of ESL students do not have that goal.

“From my point of view, the college is worried too much about what it can count [for] credit, and not worried enough about who we're serving and what success means to them,” he said.

Enrollment Decreases continued from page 1 the shelter-in-place order made staying at their home untenable.

The expense of moving compelled them to find additional employment, which has significantly cut into the amount of time they have available for schoolwork, they said.

Van Chung believes that many other students have had similar experiences. “On top of the fact that we have to shelter in place and everything is online, you really compound all these things that are happening...There were so many barriers in place prior to the pandemic and then heightened because of the pandemic, that we now see a reduction in enrollment.”

The long-term effects of this reduction remain unclear. Under a new formula passed by former Governor Jerry Brown, 70% of funding will be determined by student enrollment, 20% by the number of students who receive federal grants or aid, and 10% will be contingent on how many earn a degree, transfer to a four-year institution, or complete a certificate program. Because of a provision designed to allow colleges time to prepare for this shift, colleges will not see cuts due to reduced enrollment until at least 2023.

Nevertheless, concerns remain that the downward trend in enrollment may continue, and that barring a further extension of the provision, City College and other institutions across the state could face the prospect of serious funding decreases in the future.

Holz, who describes the situation at City College as “dire,” said that cuts were antithetical to the mission of keeping the school from continuing to hemorrhage students. “We need more support, not less, for students as we dehumanize the learning experience.”

Online Registration and Canvas Access Fraught with Problems

By Starr A. Wilson swilson3@mail.ccsf.edu

Registration this early Fall was fraught with errors resulting in frustration to both faculty and students. Not only have students not been able to register for classes, but faculty were unable to access student emails and respond to them.

Horticulture Department Chair Steve Brown said, “With Canvas, I get an email from students whenever they post something. You can reply to this message but it bounces it back. I have to go to Canvas, wait for it to load. If I open the shell there is nothing.”

City College’s internal management system, the Banner 9 software, was developed by Ellucian and has presented problems every now and then for the past few years.

The company’s Vice President of Corporate Affairs Susan Aspey, wrote in an email, “Although CCSF uses our student information system, the college manages the servicing of this product using

internal support and multiple other vendors.”

Since Ellucian no longer is contracted by City College, CampusWorks has taken over the administration of the system.

The new registration system has not only presented problems for students and faculty to manage the adding process, but the CCSFmail server has not been working as expected for some students.

When students place an add request to a course, they are supposed to receive an email from the system alerting them that their request has been approved.

However, many students are claiming that they did not receive this notice, losing their spot in their class.

In an Aug. 26 town hall meeting, Interim Chancellor Dr. Rajen Vurdien said, “Zoom and Canvas have been working fine.

Registration is working with faculty and staff to solve problems.”

One problem is adding classes.

In one situation where a student was trying to add a horticulture

Staff Co-Editors-in-Chief Jennifer Yin Meyer Gorelick News Editor Matheus Maynard

Culture Editor Alexa Bautista

class, she wasn’t able to add even with over three weeks of repeated attempts.

Brown said, “As a department chair, I can only approve. If you pull up the roster it looks like the student added twice. She’s been trying to add this class for three weeks and she still isn’t able to add. If I go to Faculty Services, Revoke Class Authorization, select a semester, it has a dropdown menu for my classes only.

As department chair, I can’t see anything else. I can only do mine.”

During the Summer term, City College also introduced a new registration system called College Scheduler.

Dr. Vurdien said that “some faculty and staff will be put on campus to personally help students as of September 8, 2020 to navigate registration issues.”

“We asked Tom Boegel to fix the system,” Brown added.

Vurdien’s comments were met with disbelief from some faculty members at the town hall meeting.

They questioned whether late start

Opinion Editor Andy Damián-Correa Photo Editor Emily Trinh

Design Director Nazli Ece Kandur

Online Editor Fran Smith Social Media Editor Diana Guzman

Illustration by Burcu Ozdemir /The Guardsman.

Instagram: @Ozdemrbrcu

classes would begin with the same registration problems.

Journalism student An Pham said, “When I was trying to register for all of my classes, they were remote, and the system didn't show that I have any schedule for those classes. Yet, in order to register for classes, I needed a schedule planned. So I had this problem for

Illustrators Manon Cadenaule Burcu Ozdemir Staff Writers Eleni Balakrishnan An Pham Tim Hill

Starr Wilson Hannah Patricia Asuncion

three weeks straight where I didn't know what to do.”

Further, he said that after he emailed the registration office, he did not get a reply until three days later.

Journalism Department Chair Juan Gonzales instructed Pham to contact registration on Zoom. cont. on page 3

Elizabeth Lopez Tobin Jones Sadie Peckens John Taylor Schneider

Kaiyo Funaki Rachael Scarborough Photographers Jennifer Hsu Kevin Kelleher Melvin Wong

NEWS | 3

Vol. 170, Issue 3 | Sep. 16 - Sep. 23, 2020

City College Journalism Cleans Up at 2020 Bay Area Journalism Awards

By Meyer Gorelick msggorelick@gmail.com

City College Journalism Department Chair Juan Gonzales received the Lifetime Achievement Award, while 18 of his students past and present took home first place prizes on Thursday, Sep. 17 at the San Francisco Press Club’s 2020 Bay Area Journalism Awards.

Gonzales, who just celebrated the 50th anniversary of El Tecolote, the bi-lingual Mission Neighborhood newspaper he founded in 1970, has been the journalism department chair at City College since 1985.

“It means a lot,” Gonzales said about the award. “It’s kind of a recognition of all the effort that one makes to try to be of service to people especially if their pursuing a career in journalism.”

He said that seeing so many of his students and El Tecolote journalists receive awards “gravy to the experience.”

City College student publications Etc. Magazine and The Guardsman both won first place for Best College Magazine and Best College Newspaper.

Etc. Magazine alumnus Janeth Sanchez won first place for her fall 2019 issue cover photo from Daniel Murphy’s story “Psychedelic Therapy” which won first place for College Media Business/ Technology Story.

“It feels rewarding,” Sanchez said. “It feels like, oh, somebody sees this. Somebody with this authority believes that it’s a good cover, so it’s encouraging to keep working hard.”

Sanchez has received her Journalism Certificate from City College and has been freelancing and doing commercial shoots for Sue Tallon Photography.

David Horowitz, a City College Journalism Department graduate who is in his final year at San Francisco State University, won for his El Tecolote story “Family seeks justice for slain Indigenous CCSF Email continued from page 3 There, Pham “was on hold for one hour.”

Pham added, “My problem got fixed by a simple change in the setting, but it was not included in the instruction.”

Brown continued, “I want to be able to email students. Dean Terry Hall set up a program where we could access the department and email students. We could track enrollments. It has fallen away.”

“Registration is working with faculty and staff to solve problems.”

- Dr. Rajen Vurdien,

mother”.

Horowitz has written about the proven disparity in tracking and reporting on crimes against Black and Indigenous people.

“It’s already fucking huge when anyone dies, but there was also the bigger picture that Indigenous people’s lives aren’t taken as seriously,” Horowitz said about the story.

Emily Huston who was EditorIn-Chief at Etc. Magazine for three semesters won two awards for her fall 2019 story “A WellStocked Pantry,” which she wrote and photographed.

“That one was a lot of work, and it was also a lot of fun in that I met a lot of really great people at City College who are doing the important work,” Huston said about her story on the Rams Market food bank.

Huston is now freelancing while also working full-time and taking writing classes at City College. She had an investigative piece published by the San Francisco Examiner, and a piece in the Richmond Review Recently.

“It’s not easy to get assignments, especially now with lots of publications closing,” Huston said.

“I wish journalists got money instead of awards when they do a really good job on things,” Horowitz said.

The Guardsman’s Tyler Breisacher and Matheus Maynard won first place for College Media Environment/Nature Reporting.

Breisacher is currently taking classes at City College to enhance his digital media and audio production skills.

Despite the challenges students face in furthering their careers in the face of a pandemic and the ever-shrinking opportunities to earn a living in journalism, Gonzales and others feel that these awards provide meaningful recognition of the department's accomplishments.

Screenshot taken from the 2020 Greater Bay Area Journalism Awards presentation. The award ceremony was held virtually on Sept. 17, using pre-recorded videos due to restricted face-to-face interaction during COVID-19.

“I appreciate how the number of awards that El Tecolote won speaks to the quality of the journalism they produce, especially considering that a good amount of their reporting comes from students who attend CCSF and SF State,” said Horowitz.

Discussing what’s next in his long and distinguished career, Gonzales said that once he is assured that the Department is in capable hands and safe from the threat of class cuts, retirement will not be far off.

“Just the fact that we have a journalism program I think is 100% due to Juan’s many many years of Juan’s fighting to keep our classes, because it seems like they’re on the chopping block almost every semester,” said fall 2019 editor-in-chief of The Guardsman Lisa Martin, who also received an award.

“He seems to work very hard to get his students experience in the field,” Martin added. “Personally, I’ve had him recommend me for an internship with Bay News Rising

Altar Still at Downtown Campus After August Shooting

By Starr A. Wilson swilson3@mail.ccsf.edu

A memorial for 21-year old Frank Beltran in front of the Downtown Campus on August 28, 2020 . Beltran was shot on Aug. 12, 2020. He later died of his injuries. Photo by Franchon Smith/The Guardsman.

Interim Chancellor Faculty Advisor Juan Gonzales

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and another position with a local religious newspaper. I know of his City College Journalism Students Honored: other students who have gone to work for El Tecolote, SF Examiner, Chiara Di Martino Ingleside Light, and SF Chronicle.

Claudia Drdul I can’t remember a single educator Amal Ben Ghanem whoever put in that much effort Meyer Gorelick for so many different students.

Caoilinn Goss He’s not just trying to give you an David Mamaril Horowitz education, he’s trying to put you to Emily Huston work. That’s something I’ve really Lisa Martin appreciated.”

Matheus Maynard “I would like to see that the Daniel Murphy department continues to be a viable Janeth R. Sanchez academic program and career Peter J. Suter program at City College, even Hiya Swanhuyser in light of the fiscal crisis it faces Tyler Breisacher because journalism is so imporCliff Fernandes tant to democracy,” Gonzales said.

Caollinn Goss “We teaching students how to be Casey Ticsay the next storytellers and watchMichael Toren dogs of the powers that be is still an important mission of journalA full list of recipients and a ism, and I hope that the college realizes that and makes sure that video of the awards ceremony can the journalism department stays be found at sfpressclub.org as part of the institution and is supported as much as possible, to see its growth.”

ccsfjournalism.com Twitter @theguardsman Instagram @CCSFjournalism

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YouTube theguardsmanonline

There are two photographs and a small altar in front of the downtown campus in memory of shooting victim, Frank Beltran.

Beltran, 21, died in the hospital after being shot at Fourth and Mission Streets on Aug. 12, 2020.

Jose Alvarez, 23, was arrested later that day and charged with felony murder as well as carrying and being in possession of a firearm in violation of probation.

That afternoon, around 3:22 p.m., San Francisco police responded to a report of a shooting at Fourth and Mission Streets and found Beltran suffering from a gunshot wound lying in front of the

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City College Downtown Campus.

Beltran was taken to the hospital and treated for life-threatening injuries but died shortly thereafter.

San Francisco Police cordoned off the area and conducted a floor-to-floor search of the Fifth and Mission Street garage where Alvarez was last seen. Cars were allowed back inside around 7:30 p.m. that evening.

Alvarez is represented by Deputy Public Defender Gregory Alton Feldman. There is a hearing scheduled on Oct. 20, 2020, in Department 9, 9:00 a.m., at the Hall of Justice in San Francisco.

Mailing Address 50 Frida Kahlo Way, Box V-67 San Francisco, CA 94112 Bungalow 615

4 | CULTURE Midnight La Frontera continued from page 1 that goes, 'America beckons but Americans repel.'"

Dorothea Lange, a Depression Era photographer whose work has influenced many including Light, has said of photography that the object is not the photographs, but their consequences.

The desired consequence of “Midnight: La Frontera” Light says is, “...that people will look at the book and start to wonder why do we have this policy and who are these people? The people in the pictures could be City College students, or their parents, or their grandparents. They could be your professor, they could be a doctor or a lawyer. They could be a gardener, they could be a domestic worker, they could be a bus driver. The people in those pictures are part of the fabric of America.”

Ken Light’s 86 photographs, developed in the darkroom for “Midnight: La Frontera”, were purchased early in 2020 by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. When the museum reopens, he will be there to share his pieces of the fraying fabric of America, to continue to document the undocumented.

ACCJC Keeping an Eye ACCJC PLACING CITY COLLEGE ON ENHANCED MONITORING

By Meyer Gorelick msggorelick@gmail.com

City College has been placed on enhanced monitoring by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) due to budget concerns.

Interim Chancellor Dr. Rajen Vurdien announced during the Participatory Governance Committee meeting on Thursday, Sep. 17, that ACCJC President Dr. Stephanie Droker had called him to give him a heads up that he would be receiving a letter informing the school of the decision.

“Enhanced monitoring is not in itself any form of sanction,” Vurdien said. “All it means is that the commission is keeping an eye on what we are doing at the college, especially in relations to our budget.”

“She informed me that all she would require from me is a letter before December fourth informing her that I have received the letter and we are working on addressing our issues.”

Vurdien added that as soon as the letter is received it will be published on the City College website in the accreditation section.

City College is still suffering the financial consequences of a significant decrease in enrollment that began after the ACCJC threatened to revoke the school’s accreditation in 2014.

Vol. 170, Issue 3 | Sep. 16 - Sep. 23, 2020

The Surplus Property of Fort Mason

Illustration by Burcu Ozdemir /The Guardsman. Instagram: @Ozdemrbrcu

By Hannah Asuncion hasunci1@mail.ccsf.edu

The closure of the Fort Mason Campus has affected the community of students and faculty who used to take classes there, especially the Art Department who has now been affected by this talk of the disposal of their art supplies.

There’s been numerous conjectures when it comes to the Board of Trustees and their decision-making process for this certain situation.

Therefore, it’s been quite indefinite where the future for these art supplies from Fort Mason will lie ahead.

Art Department Chair Anna Asebedo, believes that it was in the end of May when the Board of Trustees decided to no longer pay the rent for the Fort Mason Campus, due to state funding getting reduced over the years.

“Fort Mason definitely lost the credit classes, pretty much consistently over the past eight years because of funding difficulties.”

Asebedo worked with contractor Mark Swirling, who was very responsive when it came to help organize the packing of all the City College related properties at Fort Mason. Fort Mason didn’t just provide art classes, it had an extension program, workshops, and even some healthcare classes.

“I spent the month of June packing up everything… also designating what equipment there would be room for at the Ocean Campus and what I hope will be moved into the STEAM building because Art is part of the STEAM building that’s gonna open 2024,” Asebedo said.

Some materials were put into containers at the Balboa Reservoir

and some might be auctioned off, especially the ones they don’t have room for. City College has been facing a tremendous loss of staff from all departments and their class offerings are also getting much smaller.

Asebedo believes that constant communication is very important especially now, since there’s a new interim Chancellor. “People lost an amazing area to learn and to be part of the art community…

I’m hoping with continued work with the facilities group and with people like Mark Swirling and the chancellor’s office we can do a better job describing the activities that we’re working on right now,” Asebedo added.

The surplus property of the Fort Mason lease is ending Sep. 30, according to Leslie Milloy, Chief of Staff. Items such as kilns, potters wheels, art presses, welding equipment, essentials like worktables, cabinets, stools, and lockers were moved to the Ocean Campus and Chinatown Centers.

The rest of the equipment, which is no longer usable, is part of the Surplus Disposal list on the Board agenda for action at the next board meeting on Sep. 24. According to the Board Policy 7.33 and California state law, “all state institutions – including the College - must follow a standard process for identifying and disposing of surplus property to prevent any conflicts of interest”.

The Board must first vote on the Surplus Disposal list before any sale or disposal takes place.

Once they vote, then the College is legally obligated to get a third party to orchestrate the sale, disposal, or re-use of any property.

Alan D’Souza, Member of

AFT 2121’s Executive Board, believes “it is extremely unfortunate that the College decided against renewing our lease at Fort Mason and instead to shutter programs that had served the surrounding communities for decades.”

D’Souza also thinks that City College needs to open access rather than shut doors since the college is currently struggling to grow enrollment.

“As to the disposal of ‘surplus equipment’ from Fort Mason, Art Department faculty spent countless hours this summer inventorying college resources and thoughtfully designating equipment that should be moved to other locations, placed in storage, or removed from the college inventory,” D’Souza said.

There were lots of public comments made during the Aug. 27 Board of Trustees meeting regarding the availability of usable items from this list of equipment for the general public and nonprofits.

Although there hasn’t been any update on the Board’s action to auction off any sellable items; D’Souza “will continue urging the District to revisit delivery of educational opportunities to the Marina and surrounding communities.”

Vick Van Chung, a community advocate, “believes the Board policy should be updated, regarding whenever we dispose of property to have it go through the participatory government council … Department chairs know their department better, they are the ones who are the best to make the decision.”

Chung also thinks that the administration should get used to the idea of going to the committee, college stakeholders, and recommend it to the board before coming up with plans and broad decisions.

“The reason for where I am is because of art, it helps me have a sense of control/freedom in my own body. Art education isn’t just about access also providing access whether or not it makes you feel.

It’s everywhere. Art is directly involved in processes, it’s disappointing to know what we used to have to what we have now,” Chung added.

“People lost an amazing area to learn and to be part of the art community…

I’m hoping with continued work with the facilities group and with people like Mark Swirling and the chancellor’s office we can do a better job describing the activities that we’re working on right now,” -Ana Asebedo, Art Department Chair

CULTURE | 5

Vol. 170, Issue 3 | Sep. 16 - Sep. 23, 2020

Virtual Premiere Debuts Disability Visibility for New Oaklash 2020!

By Jay Sea

jcontere@mail.ccsf.edu

The Bay Area’s biggest annual drag festival, Oaklash, made its feature debut online this year via the streaming platform Twitch, showcasing a long awaited partnership with disability justice leaders in the form of an interactive panel forum, producing a paradigm changing conversation for the LGBTQ communities.

Long has access been neglected when it comes to living as a disabled, queer artist/perfomer. At every level of society today disability justice has more space that it should be occupying, and in 2020 amidst a global pandemic on the rise, the queer and disabled artist communities in the Bay came together (virtually) to put on a production that has adapted to today’s crisis.

Normal was obliterated in March 2020 and so far adapt has seemed to become the word of the year. And this year, the organizers of Oaklash decided to do something differently. Via Twitch, an online live streaming platform popular among gamers and social media pop culture, the entire four day event was recorded and broadcasted live at multiple locations across the Bay, but also featured contributing LGBTQ artists live streaming from all over the world.

“We learned a lot this year doing our event online. Number one is that digital events are an amazing way to bring our work to new audiences and to make our programming more accessible,” said Mama Celeste (@mamacelestefanclub), one of the main organizers and board members of the Bay Area non-profit collective known as Oaklash.

New audiences and accessibility came to the forefront for a significant portion of the event with its own time slot in the lineup titled, “Spill the Disibili-TEA!”.

Host Alex Locust, local Bay Area disability activist, led the forum segment as they explored issues which not only dealt with being queer and disabled, but also as an artist/performer, as well as a patron of the arts trying to access “nightlife”.

It was the entire concept of nightlife specifically that came under particular scrutiny during conversation with the panel. The topic was brought up in the discussion that queer nightlife has a history of being a secret, safe space where gender-non-conforming folks can come and gather. But for disabled people living in an ableist society, a simple night out with friends is actually a hidden, harrowing gauntlet from beginning to end.

“It is the elements of spontaneity and anonymity that are so enjoyable [to Queer nightlife] and which make queer community so attractive, but for us disabled folks those two elements are the least likely to be experienced in a typical urban nightlife setting,” Locust said.

Memories of hardship came up as panelists shared their stories of resilience and determination to just experience nightlife, all while being

queer and disabled. Queer artists spoke about how bravely going out into nightlife while disabled was a dangerous navigation of hostile space.

Originally, Oaklash intended to conduct the disability segment during last year’s festival. However due to logistics issues, it was scheduled for the 2020 edition and when the unthinkable happened and pandemic struck the globe, Oaklash went viral out of necessity, making the streaming feature accessible to anyone, anywhere with an internet connection. It was only natural that this time the topic of accessibility would gain more attention than years past.

Lola Ursula, panelist, spoke about the difference COVID created and said, “We have time now to sit and reflect, Community can be so much bigger.”

Disabled or not we all now are limited to nightlife, and for some able bodied people this is probably the first time in their lives where accessibility is prevented.

“Anyone in nightlife can use this as a training,” said Oaklash organizer and Bay Area artist, Nicki Jizz (@nicki_jizz). “COVID made it [Oaklash] accessible out of necessity, so yes accessibility came to the forefront” they said, “partnering with the disabled panel was an eye opening experience.”

The panel also explored issues not only related to disabled patrons trying to access nightlife preCOVID, but for queer, disabled artists trying to get booked on a stage in this town. “Access can’t only prioritize spectators, it also has to be for disabled performers,” Jizz said.

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act passed in 1990, only the “bare minimum” is outlined to make a space accessible and enforcement of compliance is not required, which makes nightlife an enter at your own risk scenario as described by Locust. “Disabled people have power, folks need to acknowledge that power and erase the invisibility of powerful, disabled people. Turn to them, they have the power to empower everyone.”

“We learned a lot this year doing our event online. Number one is that digital events are an amazing way to bring our work to new audiences and to make our programming more accessible,” -Mama Celeste, Oaklash Board Member

The official Oaklash 2020 typography and design are the brainchild of the program's co-creator Beatrix Lahaine and collage artist Rudy Broobie. Instagram: @Beatrixlahaine and @Broobs.psd.

The artistic duo curbAlert performs on stage at 7th West event space on Sept. 6, during Oaklash 2020. The three-day event was livestreamed on Twitch and is still accessible on Twitch.tv/oaklash2020.

Oakland, CA. Photography by Meme Cherry. Instagram : @Mimicherryig, @Curbalert.worldwide, @7thwestoakland, and @Oaklash2020.

@eastbayvicious (left) gives their all to a performance on the last day of Oaklash 2020 while videographer Huy Ho records their performance. The three-day event was livestreamed on Twitch TV from 7th West, an event space in Oakland, CA. September 6, 2020. Photo by Meme Cherry.

6 | OPINION

Vol. 170, Issue 3 | Sep. 16 - Sep. 23, 2020

City College Community Needed to Empower DACA Recipient Students

By Sadie Peckens speckens@mail.ccsf.edu

City College must continue to provide and expand support to students who are Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients. Strong action is essential in the face of the outrageous, horrific, and relentless attacks on immigration being led by the Trump administration.

DACA legislation was passed in 2012 under former President Barack Obama to protect Dreamers, defined as undocumented immigrants who arrived in the United States before their 16th birthday. It is essential legislation built to ensure recipients can work and attend school, in part by providing a social security number.

But DACA has been under continuous threat from Trump and his administration. In June, the Supreme Court ruled the Trump administration had rescinded DACA improperly. But shortly thereafter, on July 28, acting United States Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf issued a memorandum rewriting the terms of DACA. The program no longer allows new applications and now requires annual renewal rather than renewal every two years.

The new terms and the constant threat to DACA are excruciating for undocumented City College students and community college students throughout California.

According to the California Community Colleges website, up to 70,000 students who are DACA recipients are enrolled in the state's community colleges. City College benefits from a portion of this large constituency. City DREAM estimates there are around 500 undocumented students, including DACA recipeint students and students who qualify for the AB 540 non-resident tuition exemption.

City DREAM is the City College resource center for students who are undocumented or affected by immigration and citizenship matters. The City DREAM center opened in the Fall of 2019. Services include financial aid advising, a virtual help counter, events and workshops.

“We are a Sanctuary College in a Sanctuary City in a Sanctuary State, DACA students welcomed and we are committed to empowering their academic journey in a safe environment.”

- City College's About Webpage

“We are a Sanctuary College in a Sanctuary City in a Sanctuary State,” the City College About webpage states, and displays the promise, “DACA students welcomed and we are committed to empowering their academic journey in a safe environment.”

Free immigration legal services for City College students, faculty and staff are provided through a partnership with the Immigration Institute of the Bay Area (IIBA) San Francisco office. According to IIBA Paralegal Leslie Hernandez, the partnership began in March of 2019 and service began in 2020.

IIBA staff provide an initial screening and legal support for DACA recipients, some family-based petitions, and naturalization/citizenship applications. IIBA can also fund the $495 DACA renewal fee.

The IIBA program with City College is administered and funded by the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office, the California Department of Social Services, and the Foundation for California Community Colleges.

Hopefully, as the new program expands locations it will also aim to expand services. Currently, it does not provide representation for people in immigration court proceedings or support to people applying for asylum status, both of which are important areas of need.

City DREAM Coordinator Jacqueline Yañez Martinez said an additional goal is to “allow students to create bonds in their community.

I think that's very important right now. It is a sensitive semester. A lot is going on politically.” Martinez witnessed how deeply painful the July 28th memorandum was for potential first time DACA applicants, whose hopes had been raised just one month prior.

City DREAM is working to expand its partnerships. Early conversations with the City College health center are underway, in an effort to provide additional mental health services, including a specialist.

“Our students don't get the financial support that other students do. Many don't qualify for the Cal Grant,” -Jacqueline Yañez Martinez, City DREAM Coordinator The center also hopes to expand grant opportunities.

“Our students don't get the financial support that other students do. Many don't qualify for the Cal Grant,” Martinez explained.

Grants require state and institutional funding.

The City DREAM resource center is doing strong work and

Illustration by Manon Cadenaule/The Guardsman. instagram : @cadenaulem

building crucial partnerships. That is part of what is needed to truly empower undocumented students.

City College includes administration, faculty, staff, and students.

All of City College has a role to play in supporting undocumented students.

Martinez pointed out the importance of faculty who understand how to support City DREAM students. To that point, the center offers awareness and sensitivity trainings. Flex day workshops review how classes are run. “For example, political science classes.

How do they talk about this issue?

Are they being sensitive to the students in the class who are experiencing this first hand,” Martinez said. Faculty should be required to attend flex day trainings coordinated by City DREAM and put what they learn into action.

Califor nia Community Colleges Undocumented Student Action Week is October 19-23. A series of webinars will be offered, including a faculty track about how to be an ally. City DREAM will also provide a workshop series that week. Staff and students should attend and use what they learn in ally training.

The administration must ensure continued funding for City DREAM. In the wake of significant cuts to staff and classes at City College, the need to protect funding is important to note. In fact, additional services must be supported.

Everyone at City College can take steps towards being an ally for DACA recipient and undocumented students. In doing so, City College can deliver beyond sanctuary, towards empowerment and solidarity.

“For example, political science classes. How do they talk about this issue? Are they being sensitive to the students in the class who are experiencing this first hand,” -Jacqueline Yañez Martinez, City DREAM Coordinator

“Up to 70,000 students who are DACA recipients are enrolled in the state's community colleges.”

-California Community Colleges Website

COMMUNITY | 7

Vol. 170, Issue 3 | Sep. 16 - Sep. 23, 2020

Wildfires, Orange Colored-Skies and Climate Change; Too Little Too Late?

City College Batmale Hall appears as if it was under the night sky although photographed at mid-day. The intense smoke from several wildfires throughout California covered a large portion of the state and parts of Nevada upper atmosphere. Sept. 9, 2020. Photo by Franchon Smith/The Guardsman.

By Matheus Maynard mmaynar7@mail.ccsf.edu

A dark Wednesday, extreme heat waves, and ravaging wildfires on the West Coast are some of the urgent reminders of the climate crisis.

Orange- Colored Skies

San Franciscans woke up in the dark.

Not because of a power outage, but due to an orange dark sky caused by the more than 5 million acres that have burned since the start of the wildfire season on the West Coast.

It was Wednesday morning, Sep. 9, that the skies all over the Bay Area resembled an apocalyptic setting from a science fiction film. Hazy, smoke-covered dark orange skies reminded San Franciscans of the wildfires that are ravaging the West Coast of the United States.

“More than 4 million acres have burned across Western states causing the deaths of more than 30 people” -BBC News More than 4 million acres have burned across Western states causing the deaths of more than 30 people according to BBC News. Some of the fires in the Bay Area were caused by an unusual dry lightning storm that took place a couple of weeks ago.

“Our recent lightning storm has left a lasting impression on the Bay Area and the rest of California with more than 350 new

lightning-sparked fires from nearly 7,000 lightning strikes near the coast and inland on Sunday,” reported NBC Bay Area.

However, this is not arbitrary. It has become so frequent that Californians have come to expect wildfire season every year for the past few years. It’s something that Californians must deal with after the summer months. Wildfires are usually fueled by human action, but some natural phenomena increase the likelihood of these events. Santa Ana and Diablo winds are examples of some of these natural features.

But they alone aren’t to blame.

Politics vs. Science

For decades, scientists have been warning the world about the dangers of climate change, and the world has been ignoring it for the most part. International efforts like the Montreal Protocol and the Paris Agreement have pushed the debate in the right direction, but they also haven’t been as effective as they need to be.

Politicians sitting on opposite sides of the aisle have been engaged in political fights far too long, and have completely taken for granted the urgency for climate action. This topic, like many others within policy-making, have become the targets of polarized political agendas.

Ignorance regarding climate change is a major concern; in 2015, Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) brought a snowball to the Senate floor trying to discredit global warming.

On the other side of the spectrum, some politicians like Rep. Alexandria OcasioCortez (D-NY) have been pushing for the Green New Deal for quite some time, but political shenanigans pose obstacles for this package.

Too Hot to Handle

One consequence of climate change is that climate events will become more extreme and drastic. Wildfires can spread more easily with dry vegetation, lack of rainfall, and extreme heat waves, events that we have seen way too often in recent years in California.

Death Valley, in Southern California, recorded the highest temperature on Earth.

On Aug. 17, the hottest place on Earth recorded a reading of 130 degrees. “If that reading — the equivalent of 54 degrees Celsius — is verified by climate scientists, a process that could take months, it would be the highest temperature ever reliably recorded on earth,” reported by The New York Times last month.

If that’s not alarming enough, because Death Valley had already been infamously known as the hottest place on the planet, San Franciscans have been experiencing more frequent heat waves. ABC7News reported on Sep. 6 recording-breaking temperatures for this date, exceeding 100 degrees all over the Bay Area.

Climate change is no longer a future threat; climate change is happening right now, and we are far from prepared to deal with it. President Donald Trump has also been one of the biggest challenges when it comes to climate action. His administration has not only been disastrous on managing the COVID-19 pandemic but has also proven to be inefficient and favorable to fossil fuel lobbyists.

Too Late?

The direness of this crisis will be defined by our failure to act in the past, our tardiness

to act now, and whether the response will be effective enough to prevent major catastrophic changes to our livelihood.

Climate change cannot be ignored anymore, it’s no longer invisible. It spits ashes on our faces quite literally. What we do next will define our future.

It happens all around the world and we must act now. It happened in Brazil, it happened in Australia, and it’s happening every year now in America. Climate change is not a hoax. It’s something we can actively work on when we elect an administration who believes in science. Our vote matters for our planet.

“Our recent lightning storm has left a lasting impression on the Bay Area and the rest of California with more than 350 new lightning-sparked fires from nearly 7,000 lightning strikes near the coast and inland on Sunday,” -NBC Bay Area

8 | SPORTS

Vol. 170, Issue 3 | Sep. 16 - Sep. 23, 2020

Coast-to-Coast: How Johnnie Bryant’s Career at City College Landed Him a Job with the Knicks

By Kaiyo Funaki kaiyo.funaki@gmail.com

Former City College basketball star Johnnie Bryant was officially named as the associate head coach for the New York Knicks on Sep. 4, joining one of the most storied and culturally significant franchises in the NBA. The 35-year-old’s rapid ascension to prominence in the basketball world began in 2003 at City College when he was just a freshman looking to put his name on the map.

Bryant dealt with academic issues coming out of high school that prevented him from earning a scholarship with a Division I powerhouse, but this setback only served as a source of motivation.

Thus, he enrolled at City College, hoping to revitalize his career and pursue a coveted athletic scholarship to a prominent university.

Upon his first interactions with the team, Bryant immediately displayed a combination of determination, discipline, and veteran leadership uncanny for an 18-year old.

“I wanted to prove everyone wrong,” he said.

“I’d get in the gym, do exercises, lift weights on gameday … and sleep in the locker room just so I could have an opportunity to go back in the gym and not miss an opportunity to get better.”

Having a player like Bryant was crucial for City College Head Coach Justin Labagh, who had just been handed the reins to the men’s basketball team.

“He brought leadership, he had very high basketball IQ , so he was very easy to coach,” Labagh said. “That was invaluable for me because I was 25-years old and just starting my career. He was kind of a coach’s dream … so he made my life a lot easier.”

Labagh and Bryant forged a bond through late-night film sessions and post-game phone calls, and it ultimately led to the on-court success Bryant worked so relentlessly for.

He thrived in Labagh’s fast-paced offense, averaging 15 points and four assists per game, and his stellar play gave him the distinction of First Team All-Coast Conference Honors.

“He just allowed me to be me,” Bryant said about Labagh. “That was an opportunity to unlock some things I didn’t know I had just because of the free-flowing offense that we played in.”

Though he suited up for the Rams for just one season, that was all it took for Bryant to leave a lasting impression on everyone who watched him play.

Former teammate and close friend Juma Kamara emphasized the level of effort and leadership Bryant brought to the team day in and day out.

“He was always communicating with us, instilling confidence, and just always trying to motivate us to bring it to every practice and game,” Kamara said Bryant’s demeanor and work ethic were clear indicators to Men’s Athletic Director Harold Brown that he would be triumphant in any career that he wished to pursue.

“He was on a different level than everyone else,” Brown said. “You could tell that Johnnie was going to be successful.”

The traits that defined Bryant at City College proved to be the foundation of what was to come.

He eventually earned a scholarship to the University of Utah and redshirted his first year there. He then went on to achieve consecutive honorable mentions as an All-Mountain West Conference player and firmly established himself as a sharpshooting floor general. Bryant even left the program as the leader in career three-point percentage.

Despite going undrafted by the NBA in 2008, Bryant remained undeterred and traveled to Germany to play professional basketball for the Telemotive Muenchen.

After a one year stint overseas, Bryant returned to the state of Utah and transitioned to player development. He opened the Bryant Sports Academy in 2009, dedicated to the improvement and mentorship of basketball players of all levels.

“I never dreamed of coaching in the NBA, but I always had ambitions to be a part of professional sports,” Bryant said.

His work with former and current NBA players such as Ronnie Price and Paul Millsap caught the attention of the Utah Jazz, who hired him in 2012 as a player development assistant. He worked in this capacity for the team until 2014 when he was promoted to assistant coach.

In his eight years with the Jazz, Bryant helped shape the likes of Millsap, Donovan Mitchell, and Gordon Hayward, who all blossomed under his tutelage.

Asked what parts of his profession appealed to him, Bryant reflected on his journey from City College to the NBA. “It’s about the relationships that you build through this game. From there, seeing the players that you work with, that you coach, accomplish their goals … that’s the beauty of it,” he said.

“Each team, you have your own life, and you have those experiences that you’ll never forget.

It’s the relationships that you carry forward that last a lifetime, so that’s the most important part of coaching for me.”

Now coaching in the “mecca of basketball,” the Knicks hope his addition to the staff can harness the potential of a youthful and talented roster.

CCSF basketball Head Coach Justin Labagh huddles with the Rams during a timeout on January 29, 2020. CCSF defeated visiting Las Positas College 110-74, one of 30 wins during their 2019-2020 undefeated season. Photo by Kevin Kelleher/Special to The Guardsman

Juma Kamara (center) lights up his virtual portrait session calling in from Portland, Oregon where the former City College forward and Bay Area native now lives. September 16, 2020 - San Francisco, California. Photo by Kevin Kelleher/Special to The Guardsman.

Former CCSF guard Johnnie Bryant returns to campus—quarantine-style—all the way from Manhattan for a virtual portrait shoot with Kevin Kelleher (lower frame right of phone). Bryant is already starting his first-year work as Associate Head Coach for the New York Knicks. September 16, 2020 - San Francisco, California. Photo by Kevin Kelleher/Special to The Guardsman.