The Epitaph Volume 56, Issue 7

THE EPITAPH THESPIAN SOCIETY

Wednesday, May 1, 2019 Vol. 56 Issue 7 Homestead High School 21370 Homestead Rd, Cupertino, CA 95014

SCHOOL RECOGNIZES STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT Awards given for contributions to school

NEWS | 2

PROM DRESS FRENZY OPINION | 5

RONSHEIMER’S BOOK LIFESTYLES | 11

AUTISM AWARENESS SPREAD | 8-9

AVENGERS: ENDGAME ENTERTAINMENT | 13

IZZY TALK SPORTS | 14

Photo courtesy of Cianna Burse

Photos courtesy of Govind Menon

AWARDS WERE GIVEN to show appreciation for Govind Menon (12), Kelsey Van Horne (12) and Cianna Burse’s (12) contributions to the community through leadership, academics and school activities.

By Dexter Tatsukawa Several students were recently recognized for their contributions to the community and school, as well as their leadership capabilities.

The FUHSD Foundation Student award was awarded to senior Cianna Burse, and the Poster Student award was given to seniors Kelsey Van Horne and Govind Menon.

“I am a student of the stage manager for the drama department … I’ve been here for four years,” Burse said. “I help students with acting and plays, [and] the office comes to ask me about helping Black and Hispanic students. They always want my input and they say that it’s really important for them.”

Burse said she had not expected to receive the award, which is given to a student who makes significant contributions to the community.

She said the award ceremony made her realize the scope of the contributions she has made to the school and community as a whole.

“I still have this confusion of why I got this award, but I am actually really grateful that [the administration] sees that I have been helping other students and even myself grow,” Burse said. “Homestead has really been through a lot this year and I have been trying to help students calm down and focus.”

Van Horne, meanwhile, won the Poster Student award, which is given annually to two students who are able to show a balance of leadership, activities and academic excellence.

Like Burse, Van Horne said she was somewhat surprised to be the one to win the award. It was only after receiving it that she rethought the worth of her

actions in leadership: heading HOP, being a part of the volleyball team and being president of Scream Team.

“It came as a surprise when they named us on the morning announcements, when the whole school was finding out,” Van Horne said. “That was also the first time I found out … at first, I was like, ‘Why?’ I was just living my life the way I wanted to do it, so I didn’t have an award in mind when I was doing this stuff.”

Van Horne said she was thankful for the award as a sign of gratitude from the school for the efforts she put into improvements.

“It’s rewarding to know that my hard work to make Homestead a friendly place has been acknowledged,” Van Horne said.“I put a lot of work to hopefully create a place where stu-

dents on campus feel safe and create a campus where people want to go to school.”

Menon was also recognized as a Poster Student. At the ceremony, Menon said the award meant a lot to him, as a sign of the school’s appreciation for his work as a part of leadership.

“It feels really good knowing my accomplishments have been recognized,” Menon said.

“While I am extremely honored to receive this award, I am proud of myself for just accomplishing what I have done at this school.”

Although Menon is proud of his own efforts, he also attributes his success to the people around him.

“Most importantly,” Menon said, “I have some fantastic friends, teachers and my family who have helped me in this four-year journey and have made it a rewarding and fun ex-

ASB ELECTION RESULTS ANNOUNCED New ASB officers discuss process of campaigning

By Shruti Magesh

The ASB elections have come to a close, and the new ASB officers have been announced for the 2019-2020 school year.

The new elected officers are Lior Kishinevsky as ASB President, Carolyn Shan as Vice President, Tam Dan Nguyen as Secretary, Rohan Zamvar as Treasurer, Allen Dao as Social Manager, Martin Wu as IDC Representative and Anoushka Tambay and Grace Hendricks as the Rally Commissioners.

The ASB elections required active participation from the candidates.

“First we have a mandatory ASB meeting, in which they go over all the rules, the instructions, and the do’s and don’ts. You also join a Google Classroom where you end up submitting your application,” Kishinevsky said.

After submitting the application, the candidates move on to the next step of the process: campaigning. Campaigning allows candidates to gain recognition and receive student votes.

“Basically that Monday

brunch, you can start campaigning, which goes through the whole week, and voting will be that Thursday and Friday,” Kishinevsky said.

The campaign process involves creating posters, making videos that discuss each candidate’s goals, and simply speaking to students around campus.

“For the ASB elections, everyone runs and campaigns the whole week, they have this video component, as well as posters they can make and talk to people

about,” Shan said.

After doing their best to campaign and gather student votes, the candidates move on to the next stage of the election process: voting. The student body casts their votes for the candidate they think will do the best job in each position. Voter turnout was 51 percent, according to the announcement of election results.

However, in some cases there may be ties for certain positions. “[This year], two people won the Rally Commissioner posi-

tion because they tied … it was Anoushka Tambay and Grace Hendricks,” Shan said.

There are also certain positions in ASB that require more than one person. In such cases there is a separate process for selecting those candidates.

“For the two-people positions — one of them is decided by the person that currently holds the position, and the other one is elected by Ms. Kirby herself,” Shan said.

In addition, there are positions that require a completely different election process, Kishinevsky said. These positions skip the entire student voting process, and are replaced by an interview component instead.

The interviews are conducted by those in charge of the ASB elections.

The positions that require candidates to go through the interview process include the IDC Representative, the Social Manager and the Media/Tech officer, Jessica Kirby, who heads leadership, said.

PAGE BY ALFONSO PITCO III

2

News

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

ORCHESTRA PREPARES FOR JUNE PERFORMANCE AT CARNEGIE HALL Year of rehearsals will culminate in ‘Sounds of Summer’ music festival

By Aishwarya Jayadeep A total of around 80 students from HHS and CHS will perform at Carnegie Hall in New York City as part of the June “Sounds of Summer” music festival, music department chair John Burn said. A selection of the two schools’ string players, along with HHS wind players, will take part in the event.

“All the students in the music program had this opportunity,” Burn said. “We also hand-picked some students from the band program.”

The orchestra took part in the music festival four years ago, Burn added, with this being a chance for a fresh batch of students to experience it.

Those who accepted the opportunity have been practicing since the start of the school year, junior Sabrina Kim said.

Rehearsals take place weekly during Wednesday tutorials, along with the practice time allotted in the orchestra class.

Apart from tutorial rehearsals, practices have also taken place on Mondays with no school, senior Timothy Fu said.

“We’re playing Tchaikovsky’s ‘Fourth Symphony,’ ‘Danzón No. 2’ by Marquez and we’re doing a new piece called ‘Myrna,’ by a contemporary composer,” Kim said. “But with orchestra and the winds combined, we only have like 45 minutes once a week. So that’s kind of tough.”

Kim, in the leadership role of concertmaster, said she also looks forward to the community aspect of sharing the unique experience with the rest of the performers.

Burn concurred on the importance of the teamwork component.

“It’s experiences like this — being in a school, orchestra band or choir — where kids learn so much more than the music, but also about friendships and how to work as a team, and how to be responsible for your own piece of the puzzle,” Burn said.

Apart from the roughly 20-minute evening performance, students will also have the chance to explore the city, Kim said.

“We get to spend maybe two or three days exploring,” Fu said. “We’ll also be watching the musical ‘Wicked,’ that’s going to be great as well.”

Fu added that he sees the trip as a fun way to cap off his high school musical experience, with years of work culminating in it.

“Playing with the Homestead ensemble for the last time before graduating is a good ending to to my Homestead music journey,” he said. “And playing in Carnegie in general is going to be a pretty amazing experience.”

Burn, meanwhile, said that he looks forward to students experiencing the rich musical history of New York.

“I’ve done this before, and I think performing in [Carnegie Hall] is a life-changing experience,” he said. “When you just walk on stage and look at that beautiful hall, your eyes just open. And then, when you play a note and release it, with the perfect acoustics of the hall, the note resonates forever. [The students’] jaws just drop.”

Illustration by Melody Chen and AIshwarya Jayadeep

STUDENTS TAKE PART in one of the weekly Wednesday rehearsals for their upcoming Carnegie Hall performance.

THESPIAN HONOR SOCIETY EARNS RECOGNITION Students’ commitment to theater pays off

By Ryan D’Amour

Illustration by Andrea Sun

The International Thespian Society (ITS) was finally recognized by the district, honoring the phenomenal work done by students in theatre. This was the first time ever that the district has recognized the ITS at HHS. The Thespian Honor Society, ITS’s Homestead troup, is an honor society including students who have a love for theatre. Here, the drama club is the home for Troupe 3553. In order to become part of the Troupe, one must show commitment to the drama club through participation in their events. The participation can be as simple as ushering tickets at one of the performances.

When you have completed all the prerequisites for the club, you are then inducted into the Troupe. The induction ceremony by the drama club has received a bit of school-wide fame for its cult-like and mysterious qualities.

The club and the Troupe members have consistently provided HHS with phenomenal performances. They recently were given recognition for their continuous success. On April 2, Troupe 3553 was given the honor

Photo by Ryan D’Amour

MEMBERS OF TROUPE 3553 of the Thespian Society were recognized by a district board meeting

of being recognized by the school district at a district meeting.

Members were brought before the district board and presented with a plaque. This was the first time the Troupe has been honored by the district. The troupe was being honored for their magnificent works and shows that they have put on throughout the year. Leslie Lloyd, who is the adviser of the drama club and the

Troupe, was given the teacher of the year award during this meeting, as well.

Sophomore Jackson Leuenberger was inducted into the troupe second semester of his freshman year.

“The district, finally, for the first time ever, recognized ITS at one of their board meetings,” Leuenberger, said. “It’s really cool to finally be recognized.”

PAGE BY BATOOL AL JABIRY AND ANDREA SUN

News Wednesday, May 1, 2019 3 GUIDANCE DEPARTMENT AWARDED BEST STAFF COLLABORATIVE GROUP BY DISTRICT STAFF New programs contribute to department’s recognition

By Gianella Ordoñez The guidance department was awarded for being the best Staff Collaborative Group this year on April 2.

Guidance counselor Lillie Phares said she was initially surprised because the guidance department has never won such an award. Phares and guidance counselor Nicole Deatherage attributed this recognition to some of the new programs started by the department this year.

“We tried some different things this year and we are really proud of that,” Deatherage said.

“It felt good to get recognized.”

One of the new systems implemented was a guidance tutorial program for freshmen struggling with core classes.

“We worked closely with the bio team, algebra 1 team and lit/ writ team to work with students who were getting a D or an F in the class,” Deatherage said. “[We] brought them in during tutorial to help them with the skills they were lacking in those subjects.”

The guidance tutorial program was created because the department noticed some students

were having a difficult time with the transition from middle school to high school.

“We wanted to help students not just do well in their classrooms, but have an additional resource on campus,” Phares said.

The guidance department also made individual appointments with members of the sophomore class and came up with a fouryear plan for each sophomore through Google Classroom, a process that was started this year, Deatherage and Phares said.

The guidance counselors were

very excited and honored to have been recognized for the work they have done this year, Phares said. Thanks to the positive response, the freshmen guidance tutorials and sophomore fouryear plan will continue next year.

They are also looking to try more types of guidance programs in the future.

“Next year we are thinking about doing some social emotional learning,” Phares said.

“Addressing more of the mental health and stress among students.”

Editors

Thomas Denome Editor-in-Chief Aishwarya Jayadeep Editor-in-Chief Aarya Gupta Senior News Editor Laurel Schmidt Senior News Editor Gianella Ordoñez Senior Opinion Editor Renee Wang Senior Opinion Editor Andrea Boyn Senior Lifestyles Editor Hana Baig Senior Lifestyles Editor Andrea Sun Junior Lifestyles Editor Katie Fung Senior Entertainment Editor Izzy La Rue Senior Sports Editor Nicole Fuller Senior Sports Editor Eden Pollitt Senior Design Editor Brandon Welty Senior Photo Editor Jacqueline Beaufore Junior Photo Editor Kate Gabrielson Copy Editor Batool Al-Jabiry Copy Editor Claire Torii Senior Multimedia Editor Katelyn Pan Business Manager

Reporters Pranavi Abburi Harley Anderson Leiyonee Bosé Melody Chen Emily Choi Ryan D’Amour Anastassia Dardenne

Steven Lefaive Shruti Magesh Katelynn Ngo Alfonso Pitco III Dexter Tatsukawa Patrick Yu

Natalie Owsley

Adviser

The Epitaph is a non-profit publication at Homestead High School, 21370 Homestead Rd, Cupertino, CA 95014.

Photo courtesy of Nicole Deatherage THE GUIDANCE DEPARTMENT was awarded Best Staff Collaborative Group based on the new programs they implemented this year.

ECON GROUPS PLACE IN STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS Two teams tested on economics place third and fifth

By Emily Choi Two teams from Economics Club attended the Economics Challenge State Championships at the Federal Reserve Bank in San Francisco early last month, placing third and fifth.

Econ Challenge is a program hosted every year by Council of Economic Education, giving students the opportunity to showcase their knowledge in economics. Students make their own teams within their school, where they compete with other groups by taking tests and exams on eco-

Photo courtesy of Arleen Liu ECONOMICS CLUB MEMBERS (Left to right) Arleen Liu, Clarissa Gao, Evan Pomeroy and Teresa Yang competed in the Economics Challenge.

nomics. If qualified, teams can compete at the state and national levels.

“We got second in our school, so we qualified for state championships,” Economics Club member and senior Arleen Liu said.

The club has only been around for two years, but HHS has been a consistent participant in the Econ Challenge.

“Mrs. Heaton, who is the [club] adviser, has been recruiting and helping students with Econ Challenge for a lot longer,” Liu said.

Teams prepare by learning about economics through selfstudy. HHS does not offer an AP economics class, so students can turn to a number of other resources available to them.

“Mrs. Heaton provides textbooks and workbooks, and [econ club] provides sources as well, ...so you just use those resources, gather with your

team and prepare.” Liu said.

The Economics Challenge is not well known among the student body. A majority of participants in the challenge are juniors or seniors.

“Part of the reason why Econ Challenge isn’t super popular is because most people don’t really know what economics is. And because of that initial intimidation factor, no one wants to join,” Liu said. “ If people realize they don’t

need to know anything to join, then it would be more popular.”

Despite falling short of qualifying for the next round, the teams said they enjoyed their time at State Championships.

“I actually bumped into quite a lot of people I knew at states, from other schools that I didn’t realize did Econ Challenge. Overall, it was fun because of the people I was around,” Liu said.

The Epitaph is a forum for student expression and not subject to prior review, in accordance with Education Code 48907. The staff is composed of Homestead Journalism students.

Views expressed do not necessarily represent views of the school, its staff, or the district. Editorials are opinions of the editorial board.

The Epitaph welcomes all letters to the editor but reserves the right to edit all submissions. Letters should be limited to 300 words. Include contact information. Unsigned letters cannot be published, but names will be withheld upon request. Send via homestead. epitaph@gmail.com, or drop letters in the newsroom or the office mailbox.

If the Epitaph has made an error, please send corrections to homestead.epitaph@gmail.com.

The corrections will be published in the corrections box for the next issue.

To reach the Epitaph staff in C105, email homestead.epitaph@gmail. com

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Let us hear your voice If you have any corrections, concerns or comments about this issue...

1. Send them to homestead. epitaph@gmail.com OR 2. Bring them to room C105 ... and you might have your letter printed in the next issue!

Donors David & Charline Sun Spencer Fung Manjari Patel Greg Tatsukawa Julie Tatsukawa Morpheus Tatsukawa James Tatsukawa Sadae Tatsukawa Margaret Batek Virginia Uchiyamada

Jason Halden Catherine Hansa Thomas Kendall Laurel Schmidt Dexter Tatsukawa Angela Wipfler Bridget Wipfler Katelyn Wong Katie Yasuda Christopher Zeren Hinoko Torii

PAGE BY PRANAVI ABBURI

4

Opinion

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

REDUCE HOMEWORK, PRESERVE LEARNING Quality of work should take place over quantity

By Dexter Tatsukawa

THE IMPATIENT PATIENT

By Renee Wang

Columbine.

Sandy Hook. Parkland. The death toll does not always end after a school shooting.

Columbine student Greg Barnes committed suicide following the first anniversary of the shooting. Sandy Hook parent Jeremy Richman committed suicide last March near the site of the shooting. Parkland graduate Sydney Aiello committed suicide last March, with another Parkland student taking their life a week later.

School shootings are not just an issue of gun violence, but a pervasive and widespread mental health issue.

223,000 American students have been exposed to gun violence two decades after the Columbine shooting, according to the Washington Post.

28 percent of those who have been in a school shooting will develop PTSD, according to the National Center for PTSD. Psychologically, the effects of school shootings are not just an issue contained to their victims — nationwide, 20 percent of students report concerns over their safety in schools, according to Gallup. Americans have developed a “predictable reaction cycle” with school shootings: we have become desensitized, according to psychologist Elisabeth Kubler Ross.

Desensitization only leads to further normalization of such tragic events.

We have students afraid of coming to school, we have parents who have lost their children and we have children forced to grow up too quickly and grapple with a lifetime of mental health issues.

We must realize the importance of mental health services, and push programs that are accessible to students.

Even after gun control regulations are set in place, the issue of mental health will continue to permeate the lives of an entire generation.

We are part of a generation that has seen only one week since 2013 during which there was no incidence of a mass shooting, according to Vox. Let’s not leave this as part of our legacy.

Homework often takes up a major portion of students’ time and energy.

According to the New York Times, California high school students spend, on average, 3.1 hours on homework alone.

In the article, students reported that the time required by homework left them with little room for anything else, resulting in stress and sleep deprivation.

The negative effects of homework raises the question of whether the educational value is worth the effort.

Countries such as Finland have already shown that it is possible toreduce work given to students while maintining learning.

According to the BBC, part of what allows Finnish pupils to achieve success while reducing their workload is a greater stress being placed on the quality of education rather than the quantity.

The Finnish National Agency for Education describes its approach as focused on “learning rather than testing,” allowing teachers more flexibility to teach material in the way they feel is easiest for their students to understand, rather than being bound to teach students based on the tests they need to take.

The effectiveness of this method can be seen in the results

of the Program for International Student Assessment.

According to the OECD, in math, reading and science, Finland ranks ahead of the U.S. The succes of Finlands approach to education suggests that other countries could follow suit.

From Finland, it is seen how workloads can be reduced without reducing education — and possibly even improving it.

Additionally, excessive homework can have a negative effect on students.

According to a study of Spanish students done by the American Psychological Association, homework should not take more than two hours, and excessive amounts of homework can actually have a negative effect on student learning.

As a rule of thumb, time spent on homework in minutes should be 10 times the grade level, but not past two hours.

The time students spend on homework detracts from other

meaningful activities such as socializing with family or engaging in other hobbies or interests.

This time is taken in the name of education.

However, teaching based on emphasizing learning material over testing can help reduce workloads.

Test-based teaching can have issues because it leads to the focus on being able to take the test well when the real goal is comprehension of the material.

Although testing can

give an indication of a student’s understanding of a material, teaching students how to do well on one test should not be the main goal of a lesson.

In addition, although education is important, a student’s health should be the main priority.

The physical and mental effects of overwork should be given heavy consideration in determining student workloads, to help students balance the stress of schoolwork with their lives.

LARGE AMOUNTS OF homework can be avoided through more efficient teaching techniques.

Photo illustration by Dexter Tatsukawa

DEBUNKING THE DILEMMA OF DOUBLING UP

Doubling up on classes increases enrichment, lowers stress

Illustration by Aishwarya Jayadeep

DOUBLING UP ON classes of similar subject areas prepares students for college and increases their expanse of knowledge in that particular subject.

By Shruti Magesh As the school year draws to a close and students begin thinking of finals and their grades, they feel the pressure to think about next year’s classes and about college.

With so many choices and restrictions on the amount of classes they can take, these big decisions can impact a student’s high school career.

I know I, for one, spend large amounts of time looking at the pros and cons of each class I plan to take.

Meanwhile, students who enjoy a particular subject, such as science, might have the desire to take two science classes instead

of one, so they can increase their knowledge.

By increasing their expanse of knowledge in a particular subject area, students will be more prepared for their future career paths, which will benefit them in the long run.

Doubling up on classes of a similar area should be allowed, as it increases a student’s expanse of knowledge in a subject they enjoy, and allows them to meet their learning needs without taking classes outside of school.

In addition, doubling up on classes can challenge students to really push themselves, and apply their knowledge to various

aspects of the same subject.

However, FUHSD does not allow doubling up on classes of a similar subject; for example, taking two math classes or two science classes is not allowed, Principal Greg Giglio said.

“Most people want to double up on science ... the academic concern is that you are learning concepts [such as physics and chemistry], which are complementary or contradictory, which may be hard and confusing,” Giglio said.

However, taking classes in the same subject area is not confusing, since the classes are simply branches of different aspects of the subject.

For example, physics and chemistry may both fall under the science category; however they have completely different content.

Doubling up in subjects may actually make it easier to understand the content, as content in one of the subjects could make concepts explained in the other more clear.

In addition, there are concerns the content will not be learned as thoroughly if a student juggles many classes of the same subject at once.

“When you try to jam a lot of stuff in, you only get a surface level understanding, which is the exact opposite of what higher level classes want,” Giglio said.

However, the same may be said for students who take multiple AP or honors classes.

Although they are taking multiple classes that require a signif-

icant amount of work, they get more than a surface level understanding of the content.

It is not a matter of the classes that students are taking that affects their understanding, simply how much time they devote to each subject and how willing they are to learn about the subject.

There are also concerns about the stress and mental health aspect of taking multiple challenging classes, along with problems of staffing classes that do not follow a logical progression, Giglio said.

Yet, doubling up has its benefits. By doubling up on certain subjects during the school year, students can avoid taking summer enrichment classes that may compress that content into a few months.

In addition, doubling up allows students to get much exposure to subject areas that they are interested in, which is beneficial for college.

In addition, doubling up onclasses can allow students to finish their classes prior to senior year, relieving much stress during their last year of high school.

This could give them more time to spend with their friends and family before heading to college, according to the Daily American.

Overall, doubling up on classes should be available as an option, as it can help bolster their knowledge and prepare them for college, aswell as reduce stress in senior year and make finishing high school early an option.

PAGE BY JACQUELINE BEAUFORE

4

Opinion

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

REDUCE HOMEWORK, PRESERVE LEARNING Quality of work should take place over quantity

By Dexter Tatsukawa

THE IMPATIENT PATIENT

By Renee Wang

Columbine.

Sandy Hook. Parkland. The death toll does not always end after a school shooting.

Columbine student Greg Barnes committed suicide following the first anniversary of the shooting. Sandy Hook parent Jeremy Richman committed suicide last March near the site of the shooting. Parkland graduate Sydney Aiello committed suicide last March, with another Parkland student taking their life a week later.

School shootings are not just an issue of gun violence, but a pervasive and widespread mental health issue.

223,000 American students have been exposed to gun violence two decades after the Columbine shooting, according to the Washington Post.

28 percent of those who have been in a school shooting will develop PTSD, according to the National Center for PTSD. Psychologically, the effects of school shootings are not just an issue contained to their victims — nationwide, 20 percent of students report concerns over their safety in schools, according to Gallup. Americans have developed a “predictable reaction cycle” with school shootings: we have become desensitized, according to psychologist Elisabeth Kubler Ross.

Desensitization only leads to further normalization of such tragic events.

We have students afraid of coming to school, we have parents who have lost their children and we have children forced to grow up too quickly and grapple with a lifetime of mental health issues.

We must realize the importance of mental health services, and push programs that are accessible to students.

Even after gun control regulations are set in place, the issue of mental health will continue to permeate the lives of an entire generation.

We are part of a generation that has seen only one week since 2013 during which there was no incidence of a mass shooting, according to Vox. Let’s not leave this as part of our legacy.

Homework often takes up a major portion of students’ time and energy.

According to the New York Times, California high school students spend, on average, 3.1 hours on homework alone.

In the article, students reported that the time required by homework left them with little room for anything else, resulting in stress and sleep deprivation.

The negative effects of homework raises the question of whether the educational value is worth the effort.

Countries such as Finland have already shown that it is possible toreduce work given to students while maintining learning.

According to the BBC, part of what allows Finnish pupils to achieve success while reducing their workload is a greater stress being placed on the quality of education rather than the quantity.

The Finnish National Agency for Education describes its approach as focused on “learning rather than testing,” allowing teachers more flexibility to teach material in the way they feel is easiest for their students to understand, rather than being bound to teach students based on the tests they need to take.

The effectiveness of this method can be seen in the results

of the Program for International Student Assessment.

According to the OECD, in math, reading and science, Finland ranks ahead of the U.S. The succes of Finlands approach to education suggests that other countries could follow suit.

From Finland, it is seen how workloads can be reduced without reducing education — and possibly even improving it.

Additionally, excessive homework can have a negative effect on students.

According to a study of Spanish students done by the American Psychological Association, homework should not take more than two hours, and excessive amounts of homework can actually have a negative effect on student learning.

As a rule of thumb, time spent on homework in minutes should be 10 times the grade level, but not past two hours.

The time students spend on homework detracts from other

meaningful activities such as socializing with family or engaging in other hobbies or interests.

This time is taken in the name of education.

However, teaching based on emphasizing learning material over testing can help reduce workloads.

Test-based teaching can have issues because it leads to the focus on being able to take the test well when the real goal is comprehension of the material.

Although testing can

give an indication of a student’s understanding of a material, teaching students how to do well on one test should not be the main goal of a lesson.

In addition, although education is important, a student’s health should be the main priority.

The physical and mental effects of overwork should be given heavy consideration in determining student workloads, to help students balance the stress of schoolwork with their lives.

LARGE AMOUNTS OF homework can be avoided through more efficient teaching techniques.

Photo illustration by Dexter Tatsukawa

DEBUNKING THE DILEMMA OF DOUBLING UP

Doubling up on classes increases enrichment, lowers stress

Illustration by Aishwarya Jayadeep

DOUBLING UP ON classes of similar subject areas prepares students for college and increases their expanse of knowledge in that particular subject.

By Shruti Magesh As the school year draws to a close and students begin thinking of finals and their grades, they feel the pressure to think about next year’s classes and about college.

With so many choices and restrictions on the amount of classes they can take, these big decisions can impact a student’s high school career.

I know I, for one, spend large amounts of time looking at the pros and cons of each class I plan to take.

Meanwhile, students who enjoy a particular subject, such as science, might have the desire to take two science classes instead

of one, so they can increase their knowledge.

By increasing their expanse of knowledge in a particular subject area, students will be more prepared for their future career paths, which will benefit them in the long run.

Doubling up on classes of a similar area should be allowed, as it increases a student’s expanse of knowledge in a subject they enjoy, and allows them to meet their learning needs without taking classes outside of school.

In addition, doubling up on classes can challenge students to really push themselves, and apply their knowledge to various

aspects of the same subject.

However, FUHSD does not allow doubling up on classes of a similar subject; for example, taking two math classes or two science classes is not allowed, Principal Greg Giglio said.

“Most people want to double up on science ... the academic concern is that you are learning concepts [such as physics and chemistry], which are complementary or contradictory, which may be hard and confusing,” Giglio said.

However, taking classes in the same subject area is not confusing, since the classes are simply branches of different aspects of the subject.

For example, physics and chemistry may both fall under the science category; however they have completely different content.

Doubling up in subjects may actually make it easier to understand the content, as content in one of the subjects could make concepts explained in the other more clear.

In addition, there are concerns the content will not be learned as thoroughly if a student juggles many classes of the same subject at once.

“When you try to jam a lot of stuff in, you only get a surface level understanding, which is the exact opposite of what higher level classes want,” Giglio said.

However, the same may be said for students who take multiple AP or honors classes.

Although they are taking multiple classes that require a signif-

icant amount of work, they get more than a surface level understanding of the content.

It is not a matter of the classes that students are taking that affects their understanding, simply how much time they devote to each subject and how willing they are to learn about the subject.

There are also concerns about the stress and mental health aspect of taking multiple challenging classes, along with problems of staffing classes that do not follow a logical progression, Giglio said.

Yet, doubling up has its benefits. By doubling up on certain subjects during the school year, students can avoid taking summer enrichment classes that may compress that content into a few months.

In addition, doubling up allows students to get much exposure to subject areas that they are interested in, which is beneficial for college.

In addition, doubling up onclasses can allow students to finish their classes prior to senior year, relieving much stress during their last year of high school.

This could give them more time to spend with their friends and family before heading to college, according to the Daily American.

Overall, doubling up on classes should be available as an option, as it can help bolster their knowledge and prepare them for college, aswell as reduce stress in senior year and make finishing high school early an option.

PAGE BY JACQUELINE BEAUFORE

6

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

GENDER EQUALITY IN BIRTH CONTROL

Opinion

Male birth control has the ability to alter teen pregnancy rates

By Leila Salam and Saanvi Thakur

THE RIPPLE EFFECT

By Aishwarya Jayadeep I’ve learned a variety of things from writing this column over the course of the past three years. How to research and write about an event in the span of two hours. The names of a grab-bag of world leaders. Much too many details about major elections in different countries since 2016.

Yet I don’t actually mind having all this information (some of it outdated, other parts, not so much) knocking around my head. No, what I’ve realized instead is the importance of getting your hands on as much information as possible.

You have to know the context of whatever’s around you before zooming into the little picture. After all, a common baseline of facts is necessary for communication. The world is our context; what’s happening? It all trickles down to us.

Take a glance at what interests you, what affects you, and then branch out.

It’s not just about what’s happening right here (or there, or everywhere), right now, but about pattern recognition. Fit the pieces of the historical puzzle together. You can see not only the world as it is now, but be able to take a stab at guessing where it’s going in the future, based on what you’ve read in the past.

Read the news, but not just for bragging rights or only when it hits close to home. Read what hits further away from home. Not just what people like you feel, but why people unlike you are scared, worried, celebrating, panicking. Read headlines if you want the gist, read the rest if something resonates. Read about what interests you, albeit run through a salad spinner and shaken, not stirred, into different frames of reference — other groups, other states, other nations.

Reality is just a frame of reference. Smash up the picture frame we’ve displayed the world in, let the light refract through every direction, every angle. Look at all the angles, all the reasoning, all five “Ws” of “who, what, when, where, why,” and you’ll figure out your own spin on the world.

When the end of freshman year comes around, it’s time for sex ed in many science classes.

Everyone expects to learn about protection, STDs and forms of contraception.

The main message through the entire unit is to stay safe and prevent pregnancies. We get condom demonstrations and lectures on the negative effects that teen pregnancy can have on prospective parents. The constant reminders to use protection are shown to help prevent teen pregnancy rates.

But even with all of this education about the prevention of unwanted pregnancies, they are still far too common.

Currently, women have 15 types of birth control available to them, while men have three, according to Planned Parenthood. All three male birth control forms — vasectomy, withdrawal and condoms — are between 78 to 99 percent effective and inexpensive, except for vasectomy.

Although women have a larger variety of birth control options, this puts all the responsibility of using protection on women, rather than it being shared equally.

The lack of variety in birth control available to men has led some to argue that it is unfair when men are held responsible

for ‘knocking a girl up’. What people don’t realize is that there have not been any male birth control pills on the market until now. Every time a new pill was proposed, there were dangerous side effects, or the formula wasn’t effective.

Recently, a male birth control pill was tested for safety and effectiveness and succeeded. According to a press release, it will be another 10 years before another safe male birth control enters the market.

Now, with a male birth control pill in the works, there is a greater chance for unwanted pregnancies to be avoided.

According to a study by the Department of Health, there were 194,377 births to mothers between the ages 15 and 19 in 2017.

There are many options for teen parents like getting an abortion, keeping the baby, foster care or adoption but most options leave a mental strain on the parent. Having male birth control as a possibility allows teens who are sexually active to reduce the risk an unwanted pregnancy.

If all teen males got on the pill, teen pregnancy rates would decrease dramatically.

This would allow thousands of teens to finish high school, get their GED and further con-

Illustration by Leila Salam and Saanvi Thakur

MALES CAN NOW take a birth control pill similar to birth control for females.

tinue into their future without having to worry about keeping a roof over both their and their child’s heads. Of course, being a parent, regardless of age, comes with its own amazing experiences, but the majority of teen parents are financially unstable and are stuck in other situations that are not fit to welcome a new life.

The idea of the number of teen pregnancies decreasing sounds like a benefit for many, but it will only lower if teen males actually use the pill.

Hopefully, the new pill will give men an excuse to take responsibility for getting girls pregnant. The likelihood of a

woman getting pregnant, if both she and her partner are on the pill, is lower than one percent according to Planned Parenthood.

After sixty years of research on the possibility of male birth control, the final product is near. Male birth control pills seem like an obvious solution to unwanted teen pregnancies but the question is whether male teenagers will take advantage of this opportunity. Hopefully, teen boys use this beneficial medication to prevent themselves and others from entering a world filled with instability and uncertainty.

THE GROWING LONELINESS EPIDEMIC

What is truly lurking beneath the superficial surface of success

Illustration by Steven Lefaive

STUDENT LONELINESS IS rooted in the pressure crafted from the social constraints of today’s high school structure.

By Steven Lefaive and Tisha Kothari “High school was the best four years of my life.” That’s what I hope to tell my child one day. But is it true — or does the truth entail late night studying just to get a B on a test and turning essays in at 11:58 p.m.?

Yet people always say high school was the best part of their life. Is this really true, or are they inadvertently banishing high school’s stressors from their

minds? Childhood classics like “High School Musical” and “The Breakfast Club” convince young adults that high school is amazing by portraying students’ lives as exciting and worry-free.

Kids consequently see high school as a time to go on adventures, find the love of their life and make unbreakable friendships.

When students do not meet these expectations, negative mental perceptions form; students feel they are doing something wrong because their current sit-

uation deviates from what their internal prototype of the concept entails.

These portrayals crafted by media depict only the highlights of specific individuals’ experiences, but fail to acknowledge the brutal reality. Unrealistic expectations set students up for a social shock to differences from this utopian mirage.

Students in Silicon Valley aren’t strangers to overexerting themselves to complete an assignment. Kids invest so much time in building their academic

image that they lose touch with the importance of socially interacting with others.

As work increases, our sleep and free time decrease. Without sleep and free time, individuals are prone to being irritable, closed off and emotionally unstable.

According to stageoflife. com, a website dedicated to reducing student stress, 75.5 percent of high schoolers fear performing poorly academically, and 40 percent are afraid of not being accepted or fitting in to society.

Students need to take a break from their work and spend time with the people who value them. It is imperative we find a balance between school and our peers.

This means we should be actively listening to our mental necessities and associate success not only with academics, but with a stable social life, as well. Learning to build a resistance to judgment is the first step towards changing how we perceive success.

The importance of trying our hardest regardless of social standards morally outweighs the internal desire to achieve what others want from us. Without a moral compass, the loneliness epidemic will lead our mental stability and personal values in the wrong direction.

PAGE BY RYAN D’AMOUR

Lifestyles

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

PHOTOGRAPHY BECOMES TRENDY HOBBY

7

Editing for social media grows into passion for new art form

By Anastassia Dardenne Clubs, classes and other groups on campus foster many passions and hobbies, one of which is photography. In recent years, with the growth of social media, many students have taken to photography, film and editing to showcase their best angles on various online platforms.The result is a new art form students are passionate about.

Senior Hanson Ma got into photography as a freshman when he took photography here at HHS. He remembers getting field passes to the homecoming football game as the decisive moment that got him interested in sports photography.

“It was my first ever on field experience and I got some pretty good pictures, even though I had no idea what I was doing,” Ma said.

Though Ma was able to get good pictures on his very first day on the field, he has since learned different techniques that have improved his skills.

Ma has worked on the yearbook staff and at Prep2Prep for most of his high school career.

There, he discovered what he is most passionate about, which is high-shutter-speed sports photography.

“I think this style allows for a

lot of storytelling within the picture, because you get to capture an angle or a moment that is too fast to see with the naked eye,” Ma said. “It’s always fun when I get a picture of someone with a very funny face.”

Senior Isabella Wahab also kindled her interest for photography early on, she said. In eighth grade her stepfather started teaching her how to use a camera.

“I like doing portraits best, of my best friend and family, but I also like taking pictures of flowers and sunsets,” Wahab said.

Unlike Ma, Wahab sometimes edits her pictures to adapt them to better fit social media accounts.

She mostly uses VSCO, a photography app for Android and iOS devices that has gained popularity amongst high schoolers in the past few years. The app allows the user to edit a picture’s brightness and other settings to achieve a final social media-worthy look.

“I don’t do heavy editing, mainly just on VSCO, but I do it to help highlight the subject and set the tone or bring out the colors that I want to bring out,” Wahab said.

For Wahab, photography is not only a hobby but also a social activity. Her best friend and vari-

ous other friends are also heavily into photography and editing.

In senior Nikhil Kulkarni’s case, photography and film are more than just a hobby. Kulkarni plans on pursuing film in college.

Since sophomore year, when he began getting into video-based editing through IndoPak and other projects that involved creating short videos, Kulkarni has been an active presence on social media and often posts inspirational photos and videos.

When asked about what he likes about this relatively new art form, Kulkarni said it’s the ability to tell a story and slowly build it up to reflect emotion visually.

“Recently, I really like doing more continuous shots that circle around an individual,” Kulkarni said. “I find it eye-opening in the way that you can see this person from all different perspectives.”

Ma, Wahab and Kulkarni are part of an increasingly larger community of student photographers and editors.

Though social media often receives backlash from parents and educators, it can be credited with helping create a new form of art that has become a significant part of many students’ lives.

The Epitaph Photo courtesy of Nikhil Kulkarni

NIKHIL KULKARNI (12) plans to pursue film in college and hopes to bring more positive stories to the film industry.

DEAR DAISY...

‘I am not sure how to respond when I overhear racist comments directed at people I know or people on the street. What do I do?’

Struggling in school?

Need advice about friends? Having relationship troubles?

Scan the QR code to ask Daisy a question!

Illustration by Aishwarya Jayadeep

WHETHER IT BE in public or just between friends, racist comments should be addressed and called out.

Racism is something that hurts many people from all walks of life, and unfortunately, people still participate in it.

These people may look at others disgustedly because of their skin tone or because they said something pertaining to their culture; they may use offensive words towards those who are ethnically or culturally unique, and believe their own race is dominant over all others.

There are many ways you can react to racist, ignorant people.

Speaking from both personal experience and research, I have some ideas for ways you can react responsibly.

Being scared or nervous in moments of confrontation is nor-

mal, especially in a situation like this, but speaking up is the right thing to do. If you want to be a defender, you have to be sure of yourself and be composed.

When standing up for someone in public, keep it short and simple.

It is important to get the point across that what he or she is doing is wrong.

A simple, “Hey, that’s rude,” or “Stop harassing that person; they didn’t do anything to you” is sufficient.

The most effective method of helping a victim of racism is to ensure the oppressor knows that what they are doing is wrong and to prevent them from passing on the hate.

However, when speaking out in public, you have to be careful.

You can never know if the oppressor will hurt you or others nearby, so speak out if you are comfortable and try to record the encounter, if possible.

If the racist action is performed on a higher scale, it is best to bring more attention and support.

Sometimes, the people making racist comments are your friends.

In these situations, you need to do what you think is right.

If that means speaking up against the oppressor, then you must do so. I find that whenever I do not stick up for a victim of racism, whether it is someone in public, a friend or myself, I always

regret it later.

At the end of the day, the oppressors may not see their wrongdoings, but at least the ones who were being put down know there are people out there who do not hold the same views as the oppressor: and who do not see them as a threat or nuisance like the oppressor.

Standing up to bullies in any circumstance is hard, but helping others will always be the right way to go.

Just remember to state your point and be confident. I believe in you.

Love, Daisy

Illustration by Hana Baig PAGE BY LEIYONEE BOSÈ

8

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Wednesday, May 1, 2019

WHAT IS AUTISM? Misconceptions & Awareness Month

By Emily Choi Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder, refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech and nonverbal communication, according to the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network.

These conditions are not always extremely prevalent or noticable.

Autism is best described as being on a spectrum, meaning there is a range of severity. Each person diagnosed has a different combination of symptoms.

Since 2000, there has been an increase in the number of people diagnosed with autism, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This rise is attributed to a spike in awareness and better training, leading researchers to discover a larger, previously undiagnosed population in the general public.

With this increase in awareness

comes a constantly improving way of diagnosing the disorder. Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder, so there are no physical exams to diagnose it. Instead clinicians observe patient behavior, interview patients and, if necessary, talk to their parents and family.

Raising awareness is important to ensuring early and proper diagnosis for those on the spectrum. An early diagnosis can help young children with autism receive the support they may need.

April is Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month. This month focuses on bringing autism to the forefront of conversation and educating and celebrating people with autism as family, friends and community members.

Educating the public on autism does not stop when the month of April ends. It is a continued conversation and celebration, because autism is a natural part of the human experience.

SABRINA KIM HUMBLED BY CAMPER’S STORY

tion by Em ily Choi stra

Illu

CLUB AIMS TO EDUCATE ON DISABILITIES

UNPACKING AUTISM AWARENESS AND ACCEPTANCE MONTH

The Differences Among Us raises awareness with social events

By Eden Pollitt

The Differences Among Us club has taken initiative through meetings, volunteering events and their annual Buddy Ball to educate students about the various disabilities and special needs that students and community members live with.

While the club’s goal is to teach and promote the universal acceptance of all differences and disabilities, their events are more geared toward autism, senior and co-vice president Anisha Chandra and junior and co-activities director Annabelle Law said.

They volunteer with Animal Assisted Happiness, which in turn allows them to enlist with a wide range of organizations such as Via West’s Halloween Festival, which focuses on all disabilities, as well as autism walks.

TDAU meetings are also a large part of how club officers spread awareness about the disabilities and special needs communities.

During meetings, the officers play videos that showcase new perspectives. They also periodically hold activities that subtly demonstrate what it would be like to live with a disability or special need, Law said.

One example loosely demonstrated what it would be like to

have dissociative identity disorder by having one person close their eyes while the other took their hand and drew a picture, Law said.

“The purpose was to show that in this disorder, they were not fully aware of what their other personality was doing,” Law said.

The club orchestrates monthly buddy lunches, in which members meet students within the resources department at lunch to hang out and play games. “[A friend] and I went the other day and we were playing games with four other guys,” Law said. “Everyone was so good at the game, but [my friend] and I really sucked at it. It was just really fun to laugh with them.”

In addition to volunteering, TDAU is responsible for an annual Buddy Ball, which is meant to give the experience of a high school dance to those with disabilities or special needs, Chandra said.

One of the benefits of putting on TDAU events like Buddy Ball is that members are able to meet and form friendships with all types of people, including event participants and volunteers, Chandra said.

This year’s Buddy Ball will be held on May 3 in the field house.

Senior speaks out about misconceptions surrounding Autism Awareness Month

By Melody Chen

By Melody Chen They just might express it differently.”

Kim said it was humbling to get to know the campers and their stories.

“A lot of them are just the most kind people I’ve met,” Kim said of the campers. “[They] are super generous and they just want to hang out with you.”

Some campers even came up to her and offered to do her hair or massage her, she added, even offering her a hug before going to bed.

Kim said the most memorable part of the camp was dancing and singing with the campers.

“You can be really silly, and they don’t judge you because they’re so unique,” she said. “And they’re just so

9

THOMAS DUDLEY SHARES EXPERIENCE WITH AUTISM

Junior spent summer with campers with special needs at Camp Krem While many students spent their summer traveling and hanging out with friends, junior Sabrina Kim signed up to be a counselor-intraining last year for Camp Krem, an overnight camp in Boulder Creek for people with disabilities.

“I did everything with the campers,” Kim said, “like help[ing] them wake up and [eating] with them. And [I] just hung out with them and had fun.”

The campers had different conditions, including autism and Down Syndrome, she said, but the counselors-in-training focused on getting to know them as people. As a counselor-in-training, Kim said she realized that the campers are not as different as some may think.

“We’re all just human,” she said.

“Some people might have conditions, but that doesn’t stop them from feeling the same things that we do.

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

happy to do what makes them happy.”

Kim encourages others to get to know people with special needs, be it through volunteering or spending time with them.

“You should just go out there and put yourself out there,” Kim said.

“Get[ting] to know other people [and] just having a really open mind, you might be surprised at what you discover from working with those people.”

Illustrations by Emily Choi

It is easy for one to fall into the misconception that people with autism act a certain way, senior Thomas Dudley said. Even awareness groups, he added, promote the acceptance of autism by highlighting differences rather than establishing a conversation.

“Autism isn’t necessarily a terrible thing,” Dudley said, “but [it] definitely can cause some problems. It’s a beautiful and kind of terrifying thing at the same time.”

Dudley lives with autism; he said he has a difficult time catching social cues in conversations.

“I don’t know how

to properly conduct a conversation most the time,” he said. “I have a hard time trying to detect sarcasm.”

He compared his situation to living in a software different from the software that society is staged in. “[Having autism]’s like having a different operating system on a computer,” Dudley said. “It’s like how a lot of people tend to use Chrome or Mac or iOS or Windows or Android. I just happened to run [on] Linux — [in] a new world that’s mainly designed for iOS.” In school, Dudley said he faces skepticism from peers who are not aware that he has autism. He said it is rather frustrating when students react negatively to his story.

“I’ve had experiences with people who have either reacted negatively to [my autism],” Dudley said, “or that are — this is the funny thing — they’ve always said ‘oh, I didn’t know you were autistic.’ It’s almost like it’s ... kind of a joke.”

It is common for people to think that people with autism are intellectually challenged, Dudley said. Some may even go as far as to use the

word “autism” in a situation where a person commits an ignorant act.

“The first [misconception] is obviously the use of autism to mean ‘that’s so stupid,’” he said. “It isn’t that. It just means that you’re wired differently.”

Although autism awareness groups do have positive intentions, Dudley said, they do not solve the problem of getting to know people with autism in real life. “[People should] just [be] doing something other than just saying ‘okay, I’m going to wear this blue ribbon for Autism Awareness Day,’” he said, “because it doesn’t do anything to actually solve the problem until you actually talk to people.”

It means a lot, he said, when people reach out to people living with autism instead of simply trying to be empathetic.

“Sometimes, just reaching out and talking to people and listening [to them] is all you really should do,” Dudley said. “And maybe trying to direct them into including more people into groups.”

PAGE BY MELODY CHEN, EMILY CHOI AND EDEN POLLITT

8

Spread

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

WHAT IS AUTISM? Misconceptions & Awareness Month

By Emily Choi Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder, refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech and nonverbal communication, according to the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network.

These conditions are not always extremely prevalent or noticable.

Autism is best described as being on a spectrum, meaning there is a range of severity. Each person diagnosed has a different combination of symptoms.

Since 2000, there has been an increase in the number of people diagnosed with autism, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This rise is attributed to a spike in awareness and better training, leading researchers to discover a larger, previously undiagnosed population in the general public.

With this increase in awareness

comes a constantly improving way of diagnosing the disorder. Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder, so there are no physical exams to diagnose it. Instead clinicians observe patient behavior, interview patients and, if necessary, talk to their parents and family.

Raising awareness is important to ensuring early and proper diagnosis for those on the spectrum. An early diagnosis can help young children with autism receive the support they may need.

April is Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month. This month focuses on bringing autism to the forefront of conversation and educating and celebrating people with autism as family, friends and community members.

Educating the public on autism does not stop when the month of April ends. It is a continued conversation and celebration, because autism is a natural part of the human experience.

SABRINA KIM HUMBLED BY CAMPER’S STORY

tion by Em ily Choi stra

Illu

CLUB AIMS TO EDUCATE ON DISABILITIES

UNPACKING AUTISM AWARENESS AND ACCEPTANCE MONTH

The Differences Among Us raises awareness with social events

By Eden Pollitt

The Differences Among Us club has taken initiative through meetings, volunteering events and their annual Buddy Ball to educate students about the various disabilities and special needs that students and community members live with.

While the club’s goal is to teach and promote the universal acceptance of all differences and disabilities, their events are more geared toward autism, senior and co-vice president Anisha Chandra and junior and co-activities director Annabelle Law said.

They volunteer with Animal Assisted Happiness, which in turn allows them to enlist with a wide range of organizations such as Via West’s Halloween Festival, which focuses on all disabilities, as well as autism walks.

TDAU meetings are also a large part of how club officers spread awareness about the disabilities and special needs communities.

During meetings, the officers play videos that showcase new perspectives. They also periodically hold activities that subtly demonstrate what it would be like to live with a disability or special need, Law said.

One example loosely demonstrated what it would be like to

have dissociative identity disorder by having one person close their eyes while the other took their hand and drew a picture, Law said.

“The purpose was to show that in this disorder, they were not fully aware of what their other personality was doing,” Law said.

The club orchestrates monthly buddy lunches, in which members meet students within the resources department at lunch to hang out and play games. “[A friend] and I went the other day and we were playing games with four other guys,” Law said. “Everyone was so good at the game, but [my friend] and I really sucked at it. It was just really fun to laugh with them.”

In addition to volunteering, TDAU is responsible for an annual Buddy Ball, which is meant to give the experience of a high school dance to those with disabilities or special needs, Chandra said.

One of the benefits of putting on TDAU events like Buddy Ball is that members are able to meet and form friendships with all types of people, including event participants and volunteers, Chandra said.

This year’s Buddy Ball will be held on May 3 in the field house.

Senior speaks out about misconceptions surrounding Autism Awareness Month

By Melody Chen

By Melody Chen They just might express it differently.”

Kim said it was humbling to get to know the campers and their stories.

“A lot of them are just the most kind people I’ve met,” Kim said of the campers. “[They] are super generous and they just want to hang out with you.”

Some campers even came up to her and offered to do her hair or massage her, she added, even offering her a hug before going to bed.

Kim said the most memorable part of the camp was dancing and singing with the campers.

“You can be really silly, and they don’t judge you because they’re so unique,” she said. “And they’re just so

9

THOMAS DUDLEY SHARES EXPERIENCE WITH AUTISM

Junior spent summer with campers with special needs at Camp Krem While many students spent their summer traveling and hanging out with friends, junior Sabrina Kim signed up to be a counselor-intraining last year for Camp Krem, an overnight camp in Boulder Creek for people with disabilities.

“I did everything with the campers,” Kim said, “like help[ing] them wake up and [eating] with them. And [I] just hung out with them and had fun.”

The campers had different conditions, including autism and Down Syndrome, she said, but the counselors-in-training focused on getting to know them as people. As a counselor-in-training, Kim said she realized that the campers are not as different as some may think.

“We’re all just human,” she said.

“Some people might have conditions, but that doesn’t stop them from feeling the same things that we do.

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

happy to do what makes them happy.”

Kim encourages others to get to know people with special needs, be it through volunteering or spending time with them.

“You should just go out there and put yourself out there,” Kim said.

“Get[ting] to know other people [and] just having a really open mind, you might be surprised at what you discover from working with those people.”

Illustrations by Emily Choi

It is easy for one to fall into the misconception that people with autism act a certain way, senior Thomas Dudley said. Even awareness groups, he added, promote the acceptance of autism by highlighting differences rather than establishing a conversation.

“Autism isn’t necessarily a terrible thing,” Dudley said, “but [it] definitely can cause some problems. It’s a beautiful and kind of terrifying thing at the same time.”

Dudley lives with autism; he said he has a difficult time catching social cues in conversations.

“I don’t know how

to properly conduct a conversation most the time,” he said. “I have a hard time trying to detect sarcasm.”

He compared his situation to living in a software different from the software that society is staged in. “[Having autism]’s like having a different operating system on a computer,” Dudley said. “It’s like how a lot of people tend to use Chrome or Mac or iOS or Windows or Android. I just happened to run [on] Linux — [in] a new world that’s mainly designed for iOS.” In school, Dudley said he faces skepticism from peers who are not aware that he has autism. He said it is rather frustrating when students react negatively to his story.

“I’ve had experiences with people who have either reacted negatively to [my autism],” Dudley said, “or that are — this is the funny thing — they’ve always said ‘oh, I didn’t know you were autistic.’ It’s almost like it’s ... kind of a joke.”

It is common for people to think that people with autism are intellectually challenged, Dudley said. Some may even go as far as to use the

word “autism” in a situation where a person commits an ignorant act.

“The first [misconception] is obviously the use of autism to mean ‘that’s so stupid,’” he said. “It isn’t that. It just means that you’re wired differently.”

Although autism awareness groups do have positive intentions, Dudley said, they do not solve the problem of getting to know people with autism in real life. “[People should] just [be] doing something other than just saying ‘okay, I’m going to wear this blue ribbon for Autism Awareness Day,’” he said, “because it doesn’t do anything to actually solve the problem until you actually talk to people.”

It means a lot, he said, when people reach out to people living with autism instead of simply trying to be empathetic.

“Sometimes, just reaching out and talking to people and listening [to them] is all you really should do,” Dudley said. “And maybe trying to direct them into including more people into groups.”

PAGE BY MELODY CHEN, EMILY CHOI AND EDEN POLLITT

10

Lifestyles

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

FLUTE PLAYER PURSUES MUSIC CAREER POST-HIGH SCHOOL

Senior Matthew Origel to attend UCLA’s esteemed Herb Alpert School of Music

By Andrea Boyn Most commonly, students seek entertainment from large blockbusters, like the newest “Avengers: Endgame,” or through the adrenaline rush of a Shoreline concert. But when it comes to senior Matthew Origel, all it takes is a flute for him to stay busy for hours.

“When I play the flute, I feel like myself, you know? It makes me Matt,” Origel said.

The flute extends an invitation for him to slow down and to feel present with himself, he explained. The ever-patient version of him who is content to work diligently comes in great contrast to when Origel has to focus on any other schoolwork.

“It will take me four hours to take 10 pages of notes, but when I’m playing the flute, I can jam it out in 30 minutes and get so much done,” Origel said.

Origel attributed this to the therapeutic quality of the arts. He described the slowly changing tones as a sort of auditory massage for the mind, incomparable to the strain brought about by complex formulas.

It has been a whopping six years since Origel first picked up the flute, shortly after realizing the trombone wasn’t the right fit for him, he said. Now, years later, he is ready to begin working more actively toward pursuing music as a career.

Although Origel applied to many programs, the appeal of UCLA’s in-state tuition and world-renowned faculty helped-

him to choose the Herb Alpert School of Music as his home for the next several years.

The appeal of well-known professors like Denis Bouriakov, who has been principal flute of the Los Angeles Philharmonic since 2015 and, before that, Principal flute of the Metropolitan Opera from 2009, is just one of the reasons Origel chose UCLA. In recent years, Bouriakov has established himself as one of the most active and sought after soloists in the flute world.

According to the UCLA school of music website, he has won prizes in many of the most important international competitions, including the Munich ARD, Jean-Pierre Rampal, the Prague Spring, the Carl Nielsen, and the Kobe competitions, just to name a few.

His wife, Erin Bouriakov, who is also an international soloist, has also appeared in many orchestras worldwide, such as the Seoul Philharmonic Co. and Metropolitan Opera in New York also teaches at the university.

“I’m looking forward to having them as my private teachers for the next four years,” Origel said.

While Origel said he has received a lot of support from fellow students and friends about pursuing his passion, a general stigma against majoring in the arts is prevalent in Silicon Valley.

“We work as hard as people getting in for computer science, but we are putting our time and

our energy into something completely different, something we’re passionate about,” Origel said.

In fact, when applying to arts programs, applicants often have to do everything a non-arts student does, in addition to supplemental applications and a rigorous audition process that involves prescreening videos.

Often times, in-person auditions are also “recommended” or rather obligatory to be competitive against other applicants. This involves additional time, money and other resources from Origel causing him and his family to make necessary sacrifices to maximize his chances for success.

Origel said he faces the most stigma when at work. He, of course, endures the typical interrogation that comes with pursuing the arts after high school: “What can you do with a music degree?” or “Are you worried about having a stable income?”

Origel is certain that majoring in music opens many doors for those who choose it.

“I definitely want to do a lot of performance, but it’s kind of hard, because it’s very, very competitive, whether it be performing in an orchestra or as a soloist,” Origel said.

He advises those who have similar dreams of pursuing music in college to not give up, as he has seen many do, and to practice all of one’s pieces before first semester starts and priorities shift to writing college essays.

Photos courtesy of Matthew Origel

BESIDES THE FLUTE, Origel has also played the piccolo and trombone.

WHERE ARE MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS?

Lack of feminine products poses problems for girls

By Jane Park and Kacey Rebstock Approximately 43 percent of HHS’s student population is female, according to an overview of HHS on the U.S. News and World Report website.

And 95 percent of girls begin menstruating by the age of 15, according to the National Institute of Health. This means that approximately 1,112 female HHS students are getting their period each month.

But a thorough search of each of the girls’ bathrooms on campus reveals that while there are coin-operated machines for tampon and sanitary pad distribution available in each bathroom, none are stocked with products.

This is a problem.

“1989 was the last time [the dispensers] were working. People used to break into them and steal the money and contents,” campus security Louise Garces said.

Garces said that even if the vandalism was curbed, there would be no way to ensure that the dispensers were fully stocked and routinely maintained.

“Sometimes [the dispensers] would jam up and they were high

maintenance to keep them working; someone has to [regularly] get the money from [the dispensers] and refill them,” Garces said.

“There’s not enough staff. The district would have to pay for another custodian to maintain the dispensers.”

Garces said she has repeatedly complained to the district about being understaffed with custodians and security, but has not received a response.

A different perspective from principal Greg Giglio sheds light on another reason period products are lacking in the bathrooms.

“Part of that issue is that back in the day, schools were providing [tampons] and kids were getting sick [from Toxic Shock Syndrome], and that was the school’s fault,” Giglio said. “It’s become a liability issue. It is one of those things that schools don’t provide.”

If a girl realizes she is starting her period, and doesn’t have any sanitary products with her, she has nowhere to turn. She is left with minimal options that could lead to both physical and emotional embarrassment.

In fact, in 2017, Assembly Bill 10 was passed by Gov. Jerry Brown, “requiring middle and high schools where at least 40 percent of students meet the federal poverty threshold to stock half their campus restrooms with free menstrual products,” according to an article in the Sacramento Bee. While Homestead does not meet the 40 percent poverty threshold, the availability of sanitary products remains an issue for all female students on campus.

There are a variety of reasons why students may not have sanitary products with them on campus, but the cost of purchasing products is an important one.

Even if the on-campus machines were stocked, the fact that students have to pay for the products is still a problem, especially for low-income students.

Fortunately, there are places on campus where students can find products for free.

“If a girl does need something like that, they know to come to see Ms. Figueroa in the School Climate office to pick up [period]

products,” school nurse Dan Yusim said.

There are also many teachers on campus who keep tampons and pads in their rooms for students, when needed.

While these resources are helpful, they are not made clear to the general student population.

“I think the office should inform the school population,” sophomore Katelyn Ma said. “I didn’t even know there were pads in there.”

The staff are currently seeking a solution to informed unknowing students.

“The only way I can think to advertise this is morning announcements, or an email to all female students through School Loop,” senior clerical assistant Rita Figueroa said.

Still, there are students who may find the task of asking for a tampon or a pad embarassing or inconvenient.

Junior Minji Kim said she would rather deal with it on her own, as the office has more important things to deal with.

“I don’t know, it’s really scary, just going into the office normally,” Kim said.“Period stuff is not important as paperwork. The office has more serious issues.”

Ultimately, sanitary products for girls are available on campus - students just need to be made aware of where to find them.

PAGE BY ANASTASSIA DARDENNE

Lifestyles

ZIBAA ADIL’S ACTIVISM ACROSS ANOTHER OCEAN

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

11

Junior surmounts safety concerns to raise awareness

By Renee Wang “The food!” junior Zibaa Adil exclaimed. “That is a must know about the Uyghur culture — it is in the center of the Silk Road, so there is a lot of mixing of [cultures].”

According to Adil, she is likely the only person of Uyghur origin in the FUHSD district.

The Uyghur people are a Turkic ethnic minority who primarily live in the Xinjiang region of China. The small community in the Bay Area is tight-knit and has even started a Uyghur school for younger children.

“In elementary school, I would practice how to respond when asked about [my ethnicity], as people assume I am either mixed race or Chinese,” Adil said. “In general, my parents would be worried about me exposing my identity as an Uyghur, being Muslim in America.”

Although she was the first of her family to be born in America, Adil’s Uyghur culture remains an integral part of her identity.

“With the diversity in the [Bay Area], I don’t feel alienated, but at the same time, I did not want to be grouped with East Asians as

I am [Uyghur],” Adil said. “I think that because I am very proud of my culture, I am quick to explain who I am when someone asks, or assumes otherwise.”

Adil said the Chinese government and Uyghurs have had ongoing tensions, with the past two years having been especially catastrophic due to the Chinese government placing the Uyghur people in political indoctrination camps, where they are forced to renounce their cultural identity.

“Communication is totally cut off ... while there have been people able to travel, the issue is that we would endanger our relatives if we were to go there,” Adil said. “I describe it as the [government’s] grip tightening, then loosening, on the Uyghur community.”

Adil was recently given a platform by HHS Red Cross to speak about the Uyghur plight in China.

“I was pretty nervous to do the presentation at school due to security issues if my name gets out, as it could be traced to my family in China, so before

HERE AND THERE

By Andrea Sun Photo by Renee Wang

“IF I HAD the opportunity to go back [to East Turkestan], I would so in a heartbeat,” Zibaa Adil (11) said.

the presentation I [requested] no one do any audio or video recordings,” Adil said. “It was hard not to get emotional, as speaking about such experiences can be harrowing ... I tried to talk in a way that would not cause controversy — but I am really happy to have a platform.”

Having a platform to speak about the issues of her people has allowed her to become more confident in her activism, Adil said.

Previously, Adil would reach out to activist accounts on Instagram or share articles on Facebook. Although Adil credits Red Cross for helping her spread her message to the school, humbling words from a friend have reaffirmed her activism.

“My friend said that I was single-handedly able to get the school, who had no idea about the [Uyghur plight], to become aware,” Adil said. “That made me happy.”

Illustration by Steven Lefaive

RONSHEIMER’S LITERARY TREK TO SELF-DISCOVERY French teacher slated to publish fictional memoir

Photo by Melody Chen

FRENCH TEACHER KELLY Ronsheimer’s fictional memoir,“Giving Depression a Voice,” follows a woman’s journey to self-discovery.

By Melody Chen French teacher Kelly Ronsheimer did not expect to be an author, nor did she anticipate being her own teacher in the writing process, she said. After battling 30 years of depression and anxiety, she embarked on a journey of self-discovery and wisdom through writing her first fictional memoir, “Giving Depression a Voice.” “[It’s] about a woman’s journey from realizing [that] the first page is the moment that she knew as a child that she started this protective layer,” Ronsheimer said. “It goes through each month; it jumps year to year.”

Organized into monthly chapters in French, the book encompasses snippets of past journal entries that document her life. Ronsheimer included an unfinished story she’d written three years ago, when

she was diagnosed with cancer, and a story about her daughter’s birth 12 years ago.

In her memoir, Ronsheimer entrusts her voice to Magen, whose name was inspired by her vacation home in St. Thomas, near Magens Bay in the Caribbean. She bought the house after lava had engulfed her previous house in Hawaii in July.

“I was super excited,” Ronsheimer said of buying the house, “But then, this depression and anxiety ramped up … All the demons that I had never been able to defeat were just in my face for a month and a half.”

In the “November” chapter, she writes that her greatest fear was hating St. Thomas. When she visited the house in December, she said she was “completely depressed in paradise,” as her fear came true.

“I felt flooded with anxiety,” she said. “It’s a physical feeling of

tingling everywhere, almost like you can feel adrenaline shooting through your body. You know when you get butterflies in your stomach? I had that, but all the time. It was just awful. It was just debilitating.”

While that stage was taking a toll on her mental health, the thought of compiling her past entries into a book did not cross Ronsheimer’s mind. But, not for long.

“I was laying there, and my puppies were on me,” she said.

“I was taking a moment’s break, which is really hard for me. I thought, why don’t I just write about what is easy for me to write about? ... Ten minutes after that, I got up and I just started putting out the structure.”

Ten minutes evolved into two months of writing and gathering past journal entries. “[Writing]’s like eating a good meal,” she said. “You get excited about it. You wait for it. You plan it. You think about when you will be able to do it next [time].”

Writing a book has also allowed Ronsheimer to take a step back in life. As she was raised to be goal-oriented as a child, she said she must now learn to break the habit of treating every act as a performance.

“My mind [is] learning to take a backseat to the wisdom that my body hasn’t been allowed to have in the forefront,” she said.

Just as Ronsheimer embarks on her own transition in life, so does Magen.

“You can hear the tone change, and it [has] become kind of this conversation between the mind and the body where Magen really pretty much apologizes to her body for not listening to it

for so long,” she said. “But, it’s super scary because there’s this vulnerability in not controlling everything with the mind and just waiting for the body to just show what it needs.”

Having been a teacher for seventeen years, she said she is learning to embrace vulnerability; writing the book became a major part of the learning process. In fact, one part of her inspiration to write a book was the relationships she gained from her students and colleagues. She said her students remind her of what is important in life.

“I think the only job on the planet where I age, but my client does not [is teaching],” she said. “Seventeen years ago, when I started teaching, I was teaching the same client — same age — and now, I have seventeen years of experience, and it always regrounds me of what matters.”

Ronsheimer is working on a query letter to get her book approved by a literary agent.

She is currently writing her second book “Giving Joy a Body,” which describes her journey after depression. She plans to write a third book.

Whether the agent approves her book, Ronsheimer said she has already reached her dream in writing it. As the book had helped her embrace vulnerability, she hopes that other people will find it helpful as well.

“It feels like a miracle,” she said. “I never thought I would be able to say my wish came true — from that birthday candle.”

Flash back to the moment your mom storms into your room, exclaiming about how you overslept and your family is about to be late to the airport: you wake up with a start, only to realize she woke you up at 7 a.m. for a flight at 1 p.m.

Despite your incredible frustration at being woken up at an absurd hour, we know why parents do this: to create room for error when it comes to flying.

Consider a trip my family took to New York, for example. Our flight to Dallas was delayed because of the weather, causing us to miss our flight to New York. We had no choice but to stay the night in Dallas.

Though we got to New York one day later than anticipated, we made the best of the Big Apple and headed home two days later with a layover in Chicago.

Of course, our flight out of Chicago was canceled, due to none other than the weather.

The next flight home was not until the next night, so we spent another night in a place we did not expect to. In addition, the weather in Chicago was far colder than in New York and we were all severely underdressed.

Despite the unforeseen curveballs, there were still parts of that trip that I enjoyed. In fact, the worst thing to do when travel plans fall through is to panic and complain.

When our flight to Cancun in 2015 was overbooked, the airline company offered huge benefits for anyone who would take a later flight, such as cash and a hotel room. My family did not have a transferring flight and it wouldn’t have delayed our plans much.

Instead of waiting and delaying the flight for everyone, we took the money and stayed near the airport for a night.

All in all, traveling can make you want to tear your hair out. However, delays and cancellations can open unique opportunities and take you to new places. Remember, airline companies are not trying to lose business, so take advantage of that and look at it as a chance to do something new.

PAGE BY STEVEN LEFAIVE

12

Entertainment THE CURRENCY OF CLOUT: MONEY IN MEDIA

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Kylie Jenner may not have inherited money, but she did inherit status

By Renee Wang

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“There’s really no other word to use other than ‘self-made,’ because that is the truth,” Jenner said, according to Interview Germany. She has since retracted her claim of being self-made, according to Elite Daily, admitting she is a “special case” due to her “large following.”

Different elements have contributed to the success of Jenner’s makeup empire. If her products were not innovative, or if her formulas were not well made, Kylie Cosmetics would be just a fad. However, Jenner’s sales numbers are proof that her products deliver.

But if Kylie Jenner were just another 20 year old with 500 Instagram followers, would anyone really have cared about her entrepreneurial endeavours?

Jenner has 132 million followers on Instagram, and frequently updates her legions of fans on new lip colors and products set to be released.

According to Forbes, thanks to Jenner’s large social media

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Fantasia’s lychee green tea is a fruit tea that has fruit. As obvious as that may sound, a lot of tea shops just use artificial flavoring and sweetners to flavor their drinks.

In addition to having actual lychee pieces in the drink, the fruit itself is fresh. Other tea shops like Tea Era have fruit in their lychee tea, but it is usually hard or stale.

It was very obvious to me that this drink went through a lot of trial and error on Fantasia’s part to get all of its components to work together in such a cohesive, well-rounded way.

A large drink there also gives you a lot more than large-sized drinks at other tea shops.

Next, I tried Fantasia’s blueberry tea. You heard me right, blueberry. At first, I was extremely skeptical of what the drink would taste like, but my doubt was washed by with how great the tea was.

I was expecting blueberry flavoring to be used, but Fantasia used legitimate berries to flavor the drink, signified by the dark purple hue. You would think the berries made it too sweet, but it had the perfect amount of sugar, and I was pleased with how much the drink tasted like a combination of tea and blueberries, instead of an imbalanced mixture of juice and tea.

Third, I gave Fantasia’s plain black tea a taste.

The tea was considerably less sweet than the other drinks, but that’s because natural sugars from fruits are absent.

Finally, I tried the white peach sunset. Admittedly, that tea was not as good as the other drinks, but it is definitely worth a try.

The peach flavoring leans toward the artificial side, but still tastes recognizably like peach. When ordering it, I recommend getting 50 percent sugar, as the drink was too sweet for my taste.

Overall, it’s refreshing, but the peach is pungent.

Fantasia has a wide variety of fruity drinks, so I recommend trying them the next time you crave tea.

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By Steven Lefaive

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SPILLING THE TEA

Kylie Jenner and Mark Zuckerberg have one major thing in common: they have both held the title for the youngest selfmade billionaire, according to Forbes.

At 21, Jenner has managed to turn her perfect pout into a $900 million cosmetics empire, despite having started Kylie Cosmetics a mere four years ago.

Jenner’s hold on the title of youngest self-made billionaire has upset many, given the fact that Jenner is a part of the KardashianJenner clan, a family that has dominated pop culture in the last decade. Even Dictionary.com piped in, in a tweet defining self-made to be someone who has been unaided in life.

Despite the criticism, Forbes maintains the title, with their definition of self-made being someone who has not inherited their fortune.

According to USA Today, this is indeed true for Jenner, who started her makeup line with her own earnings.

presence, marketing costs are almost nonexistent.

Jenner’s makeup company has a mere 12 employees. Jenner is able to take a much larger chomp of profits thanks to reduced marketing costs.

On a scale devised

by Forbes, Jenner is a seven, with 10 being an individual like Oprah, who overcame numerous obstacles and is undoubtedly selfmade.

Technically speaking, Jenner is indeed self-made — her seven denotes that while no money was inherited, she did get a head start due to fame.

But realistically, in this day and age, clout has become a viable source of income, spurning the rise of “influencers.”

Jenner has a much bigger head start than just being part of a famous family.

According to the Digital Marketing Institute, the influencer marketing industry is expected to hit $10 billion by 2020.

Eighty-six percent of women

look to social media for recommendations on what to purchase — and who better to look to than Kylie Jenner: wealthy, connected and beautiful?

Still, to critique Jenner on being self-made opens a Pandora’s box on other “selfmade” billionaires who may have had an even bigger head start.

According to Vox, perhaps the backlash centralized around Jenner might be her status as a Kardashian — after all, to be a household name does not come without a legion of critics.

The fact of the matter is, whether a Kardashian or a Smith, Jenner is not selfmade.

She is innovative, and no one can fault her for utilizing her connections and advantages.

But Jenner comes from a long line of opportunities, with family who have numerous connections in different industries, in addition to connections with multiple fan bases.

Kylie Cosmetics was not built on sheer perspiration.

MOVIE LITERATE: ‘GET OUT’ AND ‘US’ RING IN A NEW GENERATION OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN CINEMA

By Claire Torii

Throughout our lives, we typically consume media that portrays people we can relate to, whether that be through shared passions, behaviors or most simply: physical appearance. It was only recently that I realized that my childhood affinity for movies like “Lilo and Stitch” and “Mulan” was not only for the exciting plots and colorful scenery but because the protagonists looked and behaved like me the most.

Even though I am JapaneseAmerican and French, Hawaiian Lilo and Chinese Mulan resembled me the most physically.

In order for a movie to succeed at the American box office, it must attract a majority demographic. In most instances, that means white adults or children. For instance, if a movie is rated R, it becomes increasingly difficult to do well, since the child demographic is eliminated. This is why when people talk about “Get Out” and “Us” earning over $200 million at the box office with a majority African-American cast, it’s kind of a big deal.

Although box office numbers can seem like just another Hollywood superficiality, they tell us that African-American casts can attract not only the AfricanAmerican demographic, but

Photo illustration by Claire Torii

THE LESSONS LEARNED in historical movies dealing with racism aren’t necessarily relevant today.

also the white demographic.

In the midst of racial tensions due to police brutality, there has been a resurgence of movies centered around the Civil Rights movement. It is easier to address racial issues in movies that take place when racism was clearly laid out in separate institutions for African-Americans and whites.

However, the moral of these movies is no longer applicable.

The reality is that most of the United States is no longer exposed to this blatant racism, but instead a more subtle form of underrepresentation and stereotypes.

Director, writer and producer of “Get Out” and “Us”, Jordan Peele, was born to a black father and white mother. He uses his biracial experience to not only portray a modern depiction of African-American life, but shows that race relations go deeper than

the idea that white people should feel guilty about slavery.

In both movies, the protagonist is a well-to-do African-American who has essentially accomplished the American Dream. However, in both cases they fall into traps in regards to their racial identity.

In “Get Out,” it is obvious that the trap is set by his white girlfriend who wants to use his body to carry the soul of her white ancestors. However, in “Us,” the trap is less obvious, considering that the leading cast is all African-American.

While Peele claimed that “[‘Us,’] unlike ‘Get Out,’ is not about race,” I would disagree.

Even though there are no white antagonists in the film, it does not mean that the plot does not address the personal racial woes that everyone, especially AfricanAmericans, face with themselves.

In “Us,” underground clones

live an oppressed and crude version of what “real” people experience at the surface.

The movie follows the clones’ uprising, and focuses on one family trying to survive the vengeance of their own clones.

This plot represents the often unspoken guilt many minorities feel after reaching success. Everything may be thriving at the surface, but deep down, there will be thoughts that you succeeded at the price of the suffering of your ancestors, and there will be guilt that they are not able to experience success with you.

Peele is ushering in a new and complex way of managing how to view and deal with racial tensions. Now, it is up to new filmmakers to follow his lead in sharing their own underrepresented narratives.

PAGE BY SHRUTI MAGESH

Entertainment

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

DIET FADS NEED TO DIE

11 YEARS, 22 MOVIES: ‘ENDGAME’ IS BLOCKBUSTER FILM OF THE YEAR ‘Avengers: Endgame,’ an end to an era

Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios

MARVEL MOVIES HAVE finally culminated in “Avengers: Endgame.”

By Izzy La Rue In 2008, who would have thought that the whole country would be waiting to watch a superhero movie?

Fast forward to 11 years later, and the whole world wants to see “Avengers: Endgame.”

After viewers saw “Avengers: Infinity War” last year, they were left with a bad taste in their mouths after watching half of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) get dusted away, including many superheroes who had been introduced on our screens years ago.

“Endgame” is about how the remaining heroes have a chance to reverse the Decimation, the event in which the main villain, Thanos, dusted away half of all living things, thanks to the power of the Infinity Gauntlet.

I’m glad the core group of the MCU, including the original Avengers, didn’t get dusted away, as this was their fight to finish.

“Endgame” serves as an end to their story arcs, since the core heroes had expiring contracts, and some actors were ready to stop playing their characters.

Every hero from the first

“Avengers” movie in the battle of New York had their stories end, while referencing how those stories began.

This served as perfect endings for all. Only three heroes seem to still have a future in upcoming MCU films.

Two heroes had both of their story arcs come to an end at the same time: Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner).

In “Endgame,” we get to see how much they mean to each other and how their lives have changed.

After all, when they meet for the first time after the Decimation, they have switched roles from the first time they met in Budapest.

If you have been watching the “Endgame” trailers, you will be surprised to find that most of the footage from the trailers is not actually in the movie.

It is also interesting to see how the relationship between Captain America (Chris Evans) and Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.) works out in the film.

13

Celebrities promote detox teas, unhealthy mindset

If you remember the trailer, after all, they are shown shaking hands and saying that they trust one another.

You have to remember that the two heroes have not seen each other since the end of “Captain America: Civil War.” In that film, their relationship was completely broken after Captain America and Bucky (Sebastian Stan) fought Iron Man following the revelation that Bucky had killed his parents. He wanted justice.

At the end of the fight in “Civil War,” Iron Man says that Captain America doesn’t deserve the shield, so Captain America leaves his shield behind.

And when they see each other again in “Endgame,” Iron Man blames Captain America for their losses, saying they should have had a united front.

“Endgame” is a culmination of 11 years and 22 movies about heroes we grew up watching in theaters.

If you are a fan of movies, this film is a must-see.

If you plan on staying after the movie is finished for mid- or post-credit scenes, don’t bother, as there are none.

But, just a hint: if you want to stay through to the end of the credits, there is an homage to the hero who started it all.

By Batool Al-Jabiry It’s a seemingly normal day and you’re scrolling through Instagram. The range of posts is the same, except for one new thing.

The usual detox “flat tummy tea” that the Kardashians are always promoting has been replaced with “appetite suppressant” lollipops. On May 15, 2018, Kim Kardashian took to Instagram, posing with Flat Tummy CO’s new “appetite suppressant” lollipops.

She urged her 135 million followers to get their hands on the candy for effective weight loss. No information on the ingredients of the product or how it worked was provided; the post instead claimed the lollipops are “clinically proven to be safe.”

But these lollipops serve no benefit for anyone but Kardashian.

Kardashian isn’t looking

“Avengers: Endgame” Directors: Anthony &

out for her followers. She’s looking to cash in another check, and using her influence to do so.

By promoting these products, Kardashian lies to her fan-base of young impressionable teenage girls. These products don’t actually work.

According to Bustle.com, diet suppressants, specifically detox teas, are simply laxatives.

And, similar to alcohol, your body builds up a tolerance and requires a higher dosage to be able to flush out everything, creating an addiction.

Furthermore, according to a VICE report, the FDA has reported several deaths resulting from laxative tea abuse. Extensive laxative abuse can cause permanent damage to the liver, colon and other areas of the body.

Though people such as actress Jameela Jamil are constantly taking to Instagram to call out promoters like the Kardashians, celebrities promoting diet loss fads will probably not stop anytime soon.

However, it’s important to understand that these celebrities don’t care about our health or well-being. These ads, and the products they sell, are just another source of income.

It’s up to us to call out this behavior for the sake of future generations, and end the obsession with weight loss society has cultivated.

Joe Russo

Release Date: April 26,

KIM KARDASHIAN AND other celebrities use their social media influence to sell detox teas, creating an unhealthy mindset of weight loss among their young teenage followers.

2019 Action, Fantasy

Genre: Rating: PG-13

Illustration by Katelyn Pan

DO IT FOR THE CULTURE: THE LOVE LANGUAGE OF CULTURE

By Katie Fung

Illustration by Katie Fung

THE EXCHANGE OF culture through song recommendations can be just as much a sign of affection and trust as other acts of friendship.

Let me set the scene: I’m listening to a new song or watching a movie or looking at memes and I think to myself, “Wow, my friend would love this!” So I tag her in the meme, I send the song recommendation to her, I text her to watch the movie.

It’s a simple exchange: I saw something, thought of her and sent it to her. But it’s more than that: it’s a reminder that I’m thinking about her and, in a way, an expression of love.

We learn that love language come in many forms: words of affirmation, acts of service and more. But one that isn’t often talked about is the love language of culture.

Culture is more accessible than ever these days. We can stream almost anything online, from entire series of television to the big football game in real

time. We can share Spotify playlists and tag each other in memes on Instagram. Culture is all around us; it’s in the flash of notifications on our phones and even the clothes we choose to wear.

Being sent song recommendations or being tagged in memes isn’t meaningful on the surface.

But the thought that goes into those recommendations, the knowledge of the person’s likes and dislikes, reveals them to be a reminder of love.

For one, my friend keeps recommending me “Game of Thrones.” I’ve been getting annoyed when she asks me if I’ve started it yet, when she constantly talks about Arya and Jon Snow and the Night King. But I remind myself that she loves this show, and she wants me to love it too.

The gift of culture is deeply personal; the media you connect with may not be for everyone. But

when you share the culture you love, be it “Game of Thrones” or a New York Times article, you’re sharing a piece of yourself with another person. It’s not just a mere exchange. It’s an affirmation of trust in the other person, and an expression of affection. Culture speaks when words do not.

There are times where I sit and think about how lucky I am to have the friends that I do. Yet I’m not going to say what I’m feeling: it’s too mushy, and it’ll probably sound dumb out loud.

So I send them a song that reminds me of them. I tag them in memes that make me think of adventures we’ve had together. I invite them over to see a documentary we talked about watching. Because I love them. And sometimes, I only know how to express that love through culture.

PAGE BY KATELYNN NGO

14

Sports CARLOS GONZALEZ FIGHTS FOR HIS GOALS

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Senior recounts his journey toward Olympic Qualifiers in kickboxing

By Laurel Schmidt and Andrea Boyn

IZZY TALK So this is it for my journalism career at HHS. This will be my last column for The Epitaph.

It’s been a ride, not gonna lie. Surprisingly enough, there have been many ups and downs. I started this column at the end of first semester my sophomore year (my first year in the class).

In my second column, I had a player angry about what I wrote. It was a column about the girls varsity basketball team, and in the article I wrote one negative thing. I said that a player caused some holes in the Mustang’s defense.

She didn’t take this too well and was angry at me for about a year, and when she became a trainer, she made my life difficult when I was on the football team.

Thanks to a friend who was a trainer, we talked it out and got over the whole scenario.

My two columns about track had the same impact, except most of the players on the team and the head coach were angry about what I wrote. I heard from someone on the team that the head coach tried looking for me after he read the article; I thought that was pretty funny.

What’s even funnier is that I did track this year and towards the end of the season he found out that I was the Israel La Rue from the Epitaph who wrote those columns about track, and he said if he knew it was me, he wouldn’t have let me join the team.

I think my favorite memory writing these columns is my first one about the boys basketball team. I was nervous since it was my first column and not many sophomores had columns, and no one had a sports column.

When it came out in the last issue of first semester, I got a lot of praise from people and editors in the class. That was the moment I knew I wanted to go to college for journalism and pursue a career in it.

I got the idea for this sports column after listening to a speaker in Indianapolis at a journalism convention, and he inspired me to freely write my opinions about my high school sports teams.

I’m glad it worked. This is Izzy La Rue signing off for the last time on Izzy Talk. Goodbye and goodnight, and remember to stay cooler than the other side of the pillow.

The sports students participate in are not limited to those offered by the school.

Senior Carlos Gonzalez has been boxing for over six years.

Specifically, he has been practicing Muay Thai, a form of kickboxing.

“My parents wanted me and my siblings to do some sort of self defense,” Gonzalez said. “They wanted us to learn how to defend ourselves for anything that could happen.”

Gonzalez said he has put a tremendous amount of hours into his boxing each week, both inside and outside the gym.

“Every day after school I would just go home, try to get some work in and then I would go to the gym at 6, leave at 9 or maybe 9:30,” Gonzalez said. “It’s every day of the week, Monday through Friday.”

The training and work does not end there. For Gonzalez, there is more training on Saturdays and Sundays, unless there are fights or tournaments.

Due to the hours, Gonzalez has had to make a lot of sacrifices in life.

“I have to make some sacrifices. I may not be able to hang out with my friends, I can’t go out to

go eat, I have to cut time off a lot,” he said.

Currently, he is putting in extra work because of the larger tournaments coming up, such as the Olympic qualifiers. This means much longer hours for Gonzales. One of the most difficult requirements is having to lose weight for a fight.

“It’s really hard to get ready for the big fights because you have to lose weight. I have to get on diets,” Gonzalez said. “I have to lose up to 10 pounds sometimes.”

Gonzalez said he never sees the difficulties and sacrifices as a negative. He knows they will help him in the long run. He has already achieved success.

“I’ve won three Norcal, I’ve won a state, and I could’ve gone to nationals on my eighth grade year,” he said.

Gonzalez always gives it his all when he boxes. One motivation is to make his supporters proud.

He is thankful for his family, friends and gym for helping him throughout his journey, he said.

“Your opponent is training just as hard as you, so you want to train harder than they are,” Gonzalez said. “You never want to be average, you want to be above and beyond.”

Photo courtesty of Carlos Gonzalez

SENIOR CARLOS GONZALEZ has trained for years in the art of muay thai.

FOOTBALL TEAM TRAINS DURING OFFSEASON

HHS’ football team prepare for upcoming season

By Izzy La Rue

Photos by Claire Torii

JUNIORS JARED WADE and Chuck Rak are pictured with sophomore Nadim Zarour. They are running plays where the center quarterback and runningback practice snapping and handing off the ball.

WADE AND RAK are doing a tackling drill where the running back and linebacker line up 10 to 15 yards away from each other, and the running back has to try and get past the linebacker.

RAK IS TAGGING Wade, as Wade could not get past Rak, since, as he put it, he is used to just running through defenders.

JUNIOR RYAN SCUDDER and Guy Haibi are pictured doing the same tackling drill as Rak and Wade.

Scudder is tagging Haibi since Haibi could not get past Scudder.

PAGE BY PATRICK YU

Sports

SCOREBOARD

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

softBALl softBALl

15

BASeBALl

Photo by Thomas Denome

9-14

Baseball is currently playing in a tournament at Bellermine College Preparatory.

If they win the remainder of their games, they could make CCS.

Track has sent their best runners, jumpers and throwers to League Trials. Whoever makes it past there goes to League Finals.

Players who qualify will then go to SCVAL, then CCS in Gilroy.

Photo by Claire Torii

Softball is currently 5-2 in their league, and are tied for second place. Their senior night is May 9.

11-8 Boys volleyball has a league record of 5-10, and their senior night is friday May Photo by Claire Torii

track and field

6-0

swimming

3-3

Photo by Claire Torii

volleyball

15-17

League meets are finished for Swimming. They are going to Leagues now at Palo Alto High School.

Photo by Claire Torii

boys tennis

Photo by Claire Torii

Badminton

6-6

8-3

Boys tennis is done with the regular season and are currently playing in Leagues.

Badminton just wrapped up their regular season and had their senior night last week against Los Gatos. They are now preparing for the post season.

Photo courtesey of Edmond Kwong

PAGE BY DEXTER TATSUKAWA

Last Word

Students share their views and opinions on high-end fashion “I can barely spend 10 dollars on a shirt, so the amount of money that people spend on highend fashion is whack.”

“I think it’s overrated and you could probably get better things for cheaper, but it depends on the brand and the quality of the products.”

Photo courtsey of Yarin Hagay Nevel

“Honestly, some of the highend fashion clothes just look like the normal ones, but they just have the brand’s logo and automatically, they become 10 times more expensive.”

“It is art in itself, but I like thrifting because it’s a way to explore your own sense of fashion without having to pay too much and each article of clothing has its own story behind it.”

Photos by Anika Karody

“Thoughts on High Fashion?”

THE FUTURE OF FASHION

to say whether online shopping or shopping in a physical store is better. Each is suited for different things. If you want to see all your options, but you do not have time to leave your house to go to a mall, online shopping is for you.

However, you must also be willing to wait for the clothes to come to your house, and be willing to pay the price of shipping clothes back because you do not like them.

If you want to try clothes on before you buy them to ensure the fabric is comfortable and the colors blend well, shop at a physical store. There, you can grab different outfits and try them all on; but be warned, you must be willing to roam around the store to find the best combinations.

BUYING IN STORES VS. ONLINE

the same time, shopping online provides a wider variety of choices, as you can instantly see all the options the store offers. Simply look up a keyword and every possibility and color scheme will present itself to you in a neat and orderly fashion.

But colors online can be misleading, and the feel of the fabric is a mystery. Will it itch?

You cannot know unless you are able to physically try it on.

In fact, shipping time is another downside to online shopping. It forces you to wait three to five days after buying your clothes online, and that is if you don’t end up returning the clothes. If you do return them and buy something else, that takes another four to five days on top of whatever time you waited before.

The most important thing, as always, is the price. In this sense, the answer becomes quite simple. A physical store has to pay the rent at a mall, electric bills and a large number of salespeople, and has higher prices to compensate, while an online store does not need to raise prices to cover overhead.

All in all, it is impossible

Comparing the pros and cons

By Sahil Venkatesan Shopping for clothes is a task some people view as a chore, and others view as a novelty. Whether you shop online or through a store, the process takes time and attention to detail.

Every person differs on their preferred method of shopping but two main methods always dominate: online or in a physical store. But which of the two is most efficient?

The age-old method of walking into a clothing store, trying on, then buying clothes has its pros and cons. Everyone loves the feeling of walking through the store’s doors and staring at the endless outfit options.

You can easily pick two or three things, walk into a changing room and try the outfit on right then and there.

If you do not like the look, just walk out and pick a different outfit.

But if you buy from an online store and you dislike your choice, you often have to pay for the return and wait all over again for a new outfit to arrive.

A t

Katelyn Ma (10) Yarin Hagay Nevel (11)

Nina Bair(10) Snigdha Gurram (11)

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

RESELLING THROUGH APPLICATIONS

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some use apps like Instagram and Facebook to make online markets for themselves and sell their clothing to family and friends who may be interested.

Freshman Princess Medina recently began selling her clothes through Instagram, and although she doesn’t use the account frequently; she said at first she decided to start the account just for fun.

“I’m honestly poor and I just wanted to make some extra money,” Medina said.

Some students prefer to buy their clothes through apps on their phones. Freshman Angelina Lomeli may not buy much resold clothing, but she does see the upside to buying cheap.

“Sometimes you can get good deals but sometimes it can be fake,” Lomeli said. “You have to be aware of what you buy and know that it’s authentic.”

Even if you don’t have much time to resell old clothes of yours, you can always make it out to be a fun time.

(LEFT) GLADFELTER SELLS HER clothes on Depop, an online app store. She takes pictures of her outfits so users can see how the clothes will look.

(ABOVE) Lomeli browses stores through her phone.

Photo by Brandon Welty

make much of a profit because she sells her clothes for less than she originally bought them for.

“I do make a decent amount of money for things that I might like to do on weekends with friends,” she said.

She also likes to browse other seller’s shops and buy their clothes.

“I love to buy clothes on Depop because you can get clothes in great condition,” Gladfelter said.

Downloading apps and selling through third-party may be inconvenient for some students, so

Buying and selling cheap

By Brandon Welty

Compared to going to a department store to buy new clothes or pick up the newest trends, it is clear that many students can see the comfort of buying clothes through popular apps like Depop, Trove or Etsy.

Apps like these have become much more popular thanks to the rise of online shopping and through the ease of smartphones.

Senior Jianna Gladfelter uses Depop to resell her clothes. She said she sells her old clothes to make extra money for college.

“I get a bit of extra money and sometimes I meet people through the app and have fun conversations with them.”

Gladfelter said.

Gladfelter said she doesn’t

Photo courtsey of Jianna Gladfelter

PAGE BY EDEN POLLITT AND BRANDON WELTY