Issue 3

VOL. XLIX ISSUE 3 DECEMBER 3, 2021

There must be a more conscious effort to address the lack of wheelchair accessibility in public spaces OPINION PAGE 3

PLAY BALL, NOT WAR India and Pakistan compete in cricket match for the first time in five years

BRINGING DOWN THE BILL Biden’s Build Back Better plan gets backlash for economizing paid leave

PASS THE MIC Commissioners of Athletics highlight student athletes in video series

NEWS PAGE 4

FOCUS PAGE 7

SPORTS PAGE 10

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NO MORE NU ALLEGATIONS Students discuss sexual assault and potential preventative measures in schools

On Sept. 24, Sigma Nu, a fraternity at the University of Southern California (USC), was reported for sexual assault and lacing drinks with drugs. As a result, USC issued a safety alert on Oct. 20, nearly a month after the report to its students regarding these incidents (Los Angeles Times). By Oct. 22, Sigma Nu’s chapter president was identified as a suspect, which led to his suspension by the Sigma Nu chapter at USC and the national fraternity (People). Since the safety alert was published, an additional 12 reports of sexual assault and battery, as well as nine more reports of drugging involving other fraternities, have been filed by anonymous students. Despite USC’s prestigious status and ranking at #27 on on U.S. News’s list of the best national universities in 2021, the college has not taken proper responsibility for the sexual violence occuring on campus, therefore putting its students under lasting stress and in unnecessary danger.

Because of its status, some may believe students that face sexual violence have enough resources from the school. Unfortunately, this is not the case, and the fraternity scandal has only brought more awareness of sexual abuse in the education system, specifically at high school and college levels. The Los Angeles Times (LA Times) reported that nearly one in three women on USC’s campus have dealt with sexual assault in 2019, yet the school still has very few resources for victims to turn to. Through more in-depth education, safe spaces for victims and increasing awareness about sexual violence, students can feel more at ease on campus.

However, the current system for teaching students about sexual education is not effective enough.

In order to create a culture that understands the importance of asking for consent and focuses on the prevention of sexual violence, these difficult discussions need to occur with students about how to keep future generations safe.

“I believe it is better to just talk about sexual assault more,” sophomore Skylar Rapoport said.

“While it is a touchy subject, it is safer for [everyone] to know the reality of what [they] are dealing with.”

From middle school to high school, education on basic values like consent are often covered once in a unit and never mentioned again. The California Healthy Youth Act, established in 2019, mentions that comprehensive sexual health and HIV prevention education is only required ‘at least’ once in high school. With only 18 U.S. states requiring the content of sexual education to be medically accurate, it is clear that the topics surrounding sexual health need to be properly addressed and updated to fit the current time

and better help students. Keeping this in mind, California is the only state that requires sexual education information to be medically accurate, age appropriate and culturally unbiased.

In the Palos Verdes Peninsula School District (PVPUSD), high school students are taught about sexual health through the Positive Prevention Plus program in the second semester of their biology class. The scope of the class only covers some forms of sexual violence and one unit of consent, and it is evident that these programs need to properly address sexual violence by updating its

teaching material. This can start with teachers having a discussion with students about the harmful effects of victim blaming, which often puts victims of sexual assault at fault for what happened to them. According to research found by the Journal of Adolescent Health, comprehensive sexual education leads to students feeling informed and making safe decisions. By having students participate and contribute their own feelings on

sexual violence, adolescents can learn how to take these lessons and apply them to the real world instead of just taking a course that takes notes and tests for a semester grade. From these conversations, safe spaces can naturally develop and help empower those affected by sexual violence to speak up about their experiences.

“Schools do not provide a safe space for victims, and that is why so many [people] do not come out when [sexual assault] happens,” sophomore Joie Chiu said. “It seems to be more trouble than it is worth. That is why it keeps happening.”

The need for a safe space for victims of sexual violence is urgent. According to the Rape, Abuse, Incest and National Network (RAINN), two in three victims of sexual violence are between ages 12 to 17, with 34% of victims under age 12. RAINN states that only 310 out of every 1,000 sexual assaults are reported to police, which means that the issue could be inaccurately framed in a way that attracts less awareness and public concern for its occurrence. Without a safe space, victims are already at an increased risk of developing mental illnesses because they may not know how to find support when recovering from such a traumatic event. Victims of sexual assault have an increased risk of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance use disorders, eating disorders and anxiety (Mental Health America). Providing students with the access to a safe space is imperative, and the fact that USC has nowhere for victims of sexual assault to rely on halts potential victims from coming forward with their stories.

“Education can help decrease certain behaviors and actions, but there are always people who will see what they can get away with,” school nurse Wendy Keller said. “[Schools] being a little more assertive and up front about [sexual violence] would be helpful to help normalize the mindfulness that needs to occur.”

Changing the culture surrounding sexual violence means forming safe spaces for those in need, proper sexual education and greater societal awareness. In order for people to understand the consequences of their actions, they must have a sense of accountability and recognize the importance of consent. If students witness sexual assault on campus, they have the responsibility to say something and prevent the situation from progressing further. School districts like PVPUSD need to prioritize better sexual education when it comes to discussing this pressing issue. Until all schools start teaching proper, medically accurate sexual education and creating spaces for students to openly discuss the prevention of sexual violence, students will never be able to feel safe walking around on a campus knowing that a one in three sexual assault statistic remains.

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ADDRESSING THE ANTISEMITISM ROOTED IN ANTI-VAX ARGUMENTS Those against mandatory vaccines such as the newest coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine, commonly referred to as antivaxxers, have been vocal about their distrust and refusal to receive the COVID-19 vaccination, arguing that the mandates are an infringement on people’s rights despite the vaccine’s proven safety and ability in slowing the virus’ spread. On Nov. 12, at a Special Committee on Government Outreach in Kansas City, Kansas, a group of anti-vaxxers arrived wearing a yellow Star of David taped to their chests. In attendance at the Government Outreach, Kansas residents and business owners, who are against receiving the COVID-19 vaccination, are demanding unemployment insurance following termination from their jobs for lack of vaccination. The star that these people wore mirror the Jewish badge from World War II, which all Jewish people were required to wear by law in Nazi-occupied lands. The Jewish badge served as a form of branding as part of Adolf Hitler’s larger plan to stigmatize, separate and eventually deport Jews to concentration camps during the Holocaust. Given this history, it is disgusting to see the comparisons made between the industrialized genocide of Jews, where at least six million people were killed, and the vaccine mandates instituted to help slow the spread of a deadly virus and keep people safe (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum).

This is not a one-time occurrence; anti-vaxxers’ arguments often make light of the Holocaust. On Apr. 24, many British citizens protested the mandatory COVID-19 vaccine documentation in London by sporting a yellow Star of David on their clothing, according to Cable News Network (CNN).

One banner reportedly went as far as to state, “stop the vaccine Holocaust”. However, this offensive and absurd analogy is not exclusive to the COVID-19 vaccine; anti-vaxxers who are against vaccinations in general have brought up this comparison for years. In 2015, during the anti-vaxxers’

protests against California’s mandatory school vaccination laws, they edited images of the yellow Star of David onto themselves to make the comparison that forcing their children to receive vaccinations was reminiscent of the Nazis’ treatment of Jews during the Holocaust (CNN).

Despite anti-vaxxers’ main argument being that the vaccine limits their civil liberties and thus deems the mandate an act of oppression, getting the vaccine does more to benefit the community than it does to harm oneself. With the vaccine’s high efficacy rating before being approved for mass distribution, the foundation upon which their argument is built on is faulty and their actions only put those around them at risk. Furthermore, anti-vaxxers’ basis for the terms of infringement are unfounded under the 10th amendment of the Constitution, which addresses police power under the state’s authority as overruling those opposing the vaccine and, more generally, placing citizens’ health as the highest priority (Hartford Courant).

Thus, this appropriation of vaccine requirements being a mass genocide is blatantly tone-deaf and demonstrates a significant lack of proper education about the Holocaust.

Not only is it disrespectful to Holocaust survivors and their families that their trauma is being used for this purpose, but also to Jewish people as a whole, as the mass extermination of millions of Jews is not comparable to certain people’s distrust of science. Anti-vaxxers’ constant need to portray themselves as an oppressed victim perpetuates this harmful normalization of antisemitism, as the two are not comparable and anti-vaxxers are simply trivializing the Holocaust and using it to further their own selfish agenda.

This casual normalization of antisemitism in current society is unnacceptable and must be properly addressed.

It is imperative for people to educate themselves on the Holocaust, as there are many resources online and no excuse to remain ignorant to why casual references to the Holocaust should not be made lightly or to prove a point.

THE IMPORTANCE OF WIDESPREAD WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBILITY Although advocates for disability rights have been speaking on it for decades, the issue of insufficient accessibility in public spaces is just now entering mainstream news coverage.

In a recent article from Cable News Network, it was reported that Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett threatened not to attend the 26th U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP26) if the organizers did not provide proper wheelchair access for guests. This statement was issued after Israeli Energy Minister Karine Elharrar, who uses a wheelchair, spent two hours on Nov. 1 trying to enter the COP26 venue and ultimately was unable to participate in any events. The U.N. Climate Change secretariat claimed that it was due to “exceptional and unprecedented logistical circumstances”, even though the COP26 President Alok Sharma had previously stressed the importance of an inclusive conference. True inclusivity cannot exist without accessibility, and the negligence of the COP26 organizers exemplifies an overarching societal disregard for disabled individuals.

Unfortunately, poor accessibility is not a problem exclusively faced by adult wheelchair users. A 2021 report conducted by the Government Accountability Office, an office responsible for monitoring federal spending and performance, showed that 63% of school districts have physical barriers that limit disabled students’ mobility and potentially violate the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (American Broadcasting Company News). Schools and organizations like the U.N. have the civic duty to facilitate a comfortable environment for all participants, which includes maintaining basic accessibility and teaching individuals to be conscious of how their actions affect those with disabilities.

“Even at Peninsula, our wheelchair accessibility is not that great,” Associate Principal Katie Clovis said. “It is a maze for people coming from [the front entrance] to get down onto

campus. Adapting buildings so that everyone can access them is a legitimate problem. I think it is important to put funds toward it.”

The federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) states that all students with disabilities are to be given a free public education that is individualized and ensures maximum academic participation with non-disabled students. Although Peninsula complies with these guidelines by supplying necessary equipment for students that use wheelchairs and designing customized special education curricula, this is far from widespread. An investigation from the U.S. Department of Justice in 2016 found that 83% of public schools in New York City had entrances, bathrooms or playgrounds that were not ADA-compliant. Most nondisabled students have no idea what it is like for people who use wheelchairs to navigate the world, and they are not conscious of them in a packed school hallway. In order to maximize student safety, sophomore Yuna Oh is required to lower the speeds on her mobility device and leave classes early to avoid crowds. “[Students] just run around, even when there is a wheelchair,” Oh said. “They rush in front and do not make way [for me] because they do not understand [that] I need to slow the settings [to keep everyone safe].”

The next step for Peninsula and other schools to take would be to foster more interaction between disabled and non-disabled students, ultimately encouraging an empathetic approach to disability awareness. Furthermore, major renovation in public infrastructure, both inside and outside of school campuses, needs to take place before the world is truly disability-friendly. “[People should be] more aware of other [people] who have physical needs,” Resource teacher Crestina Quesada said. “I know everybody is in their own world, but just be more conscious of what is going on around you.”

THE PEN PALOS VERDES PENINSULA HIGH SCHOOL 27118 Silver Spur Road, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274 EDITORS IN CHIEF Keila Bara Caitlyn Lee HEADS OF DESIGN Shai Becker Sakura Sasaki HEAD OF BUSINESS Makayla Lui ADVISER Jaymee DeMeyer PUBLICITY PUBLICITY MANAGER: Victoria Rhodes WEBSITE MANAGER: Savanna Messner Rodriguez OPINION EDITOR: Clara Reckhorn WRITERS: Leigh Fitch Audrey Lin Sarah Porter NEWS EDITOR: Jeremy Kim WRITER: Aarushi Chaudhari Christian Downs Zahra Habib FOCUS EDITOR: Hannah Corr WRITERS: Jacelyn Chen Brian Park Alena Rhoades Neha Sambangi STUDENT LIFE EDITOR: Nomi Tsogmagnai WRITERS: Tessa Kang McKenna McCallister Juliette Lin Lauren Webster ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT/SPORTS EDITOR: Jenna Long WRITERS: Nick Jones Josie Kwak Eleanor Olsen Kuru Romanov GRAPHICS Josephine Cho Hana Fujii Kiara Lee Jihee Seo Lynn Takahashi Brooke Vo ADS Riley LeongKaye Hana Rivera Priya Thakar “The Pen” is the student newspaper produced by the advanced jounalism students of Palos Verdes Peninsula High School. It is published eight times per year. Advertising inquiries may be directed to Head of Business Makayla Lui at (310)753-9550.

Copyright © 2021 COVER DESIGN BY SAKURA SASAKI

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X: A NON-BINARY GENDER OPTION ON PASSPORTS On Oct. 27, the United States Department of State (DOS) issued its first passport with an “X” gender marker, acknowledging those who do not identify as male or female. The recipient was Dana Zzyym, an intersex military veteran. Zzyym was born with ambiguous physical and sexual characteristics, but they were raised as a boy and had several surgeries that failed to make them appear fully male, according to court filings (Associated Press). While Zzyym’s original birth certificate identified them as a male, they opted to have their driver’s license list them as female. Additionally, Zzyym served in the Navy as a male but later came to identify as intersex while working and studying at Colorado State University.

Zzymm originally requested for a passport with a gender “X” option in 2015, but was rejected by the DOS (Associated Press). In response to this, Lambda Legal, a national civil rights organization, filed a lawsuit against the DOS in the U.S. Federal Court for the District of Colorado on Zzyym’s behalf. The court ruled in favor of Zzyym in 2016, but the DOS continued to refuse recognition of a gender marker that is neither ‘M’ (male) nor ‘F’ (female) on passports (New York Times). However, since assuming office, President Biden has conducted several executive actions through the DOS to protect human rights, such as the recent addition of a non-binary marker for Zzyym’s passport. The DOS will expand the gender neutral option to all applicants next year (New York Times). After hearing about Zzyym’s struggle and success, sophomore Natalia Salazar, who identifies as gender nonconforming, felt optimistic about gender “X” becoming an option.

“I would like to get the [gender “X”] mark on my passport, [as] I would feel much more comfortable without needing the label of female or male,” Salazar said. “I feel that the option of gender “X” on U.S. passports gives

[the gender-fluid community] a chance to be recognized and respected.”

The previous policy for changing a gender marker on a passport required medical certification, which was an option available only to those who had transitioned from one gender to another. Now, applicants will be able to self-select their gender as male, female or “X” regardless of their medical history (Associated Press). As far as medical records are concerned, sophomore Jiselle Nguyen, who identifies as non-binary, feels that they would rather have the opportunity to mark a gender option on their passport than having their passport being marked for them.

“I think that self-selecting gender options are much better,” Nguyen said. “It is about preference, so if [the passport] gets marked for you, it can be damaging to your mental health if [the gender selected through medical records] is not what you would prefer.”

The U.S.’s decision comes after several other countries--including Argentina, Canada and India--have adopted similar policies. In addition to passports, 21 U.S. states and the District of Columbia allow an “X” gender designation on driver’s licenses. Each state has a different set of laws that regulate how someone can request a gender marker change on a driver’s license, and 22 states allow people to decide what gender markers are appropriate for theirs; this is the policy that the DOS will use (National Broadcasting Company). Regarding the U.S.’s decision to join other nations in providing gender “X” as an option on passports, sophomore Lia Osipyan feels content about how it would affect the non-binary community.

“I think that the U.S. joined the other nations in this decision a little late, but I am still glad that they [eventually] made it,” Osipyan said. “I hope that making gender ‘X’ an option on passports will further solidify the LGBTQ+ community and [shed light on] its struggles to be correctly represented in society.”

5 INDIA AND PAKISTAN’S MONUMENTAL MATCH Since the Partition of India in 1947, which split British India into the two independent countries of India and Pakistan, there has been tension between the two. This rivalry, which is evident in many interactions between the two countries and their people, extends to their cricket national teams.

On Oct. 24, Pakistan and India played against each other for an official International Cricket Council (ICC) event, the Twenty20 (T20) World Cup opening game, which was the first cricket match between the two countries in five years. The result of the game was a win for Pakistan, which many people considered an upset as Pakistan had not defeated India in the T20 World Cup tournament in nearly 30 years (New York Times).

The scarcity of recent matches between India and Pakistan is due to tense diplomatic relations between the two countries (Forbes). Ever since the Partition of India, the countries have been feuding over controversies such as unsettled territorial issues, political incompatibility, irreconcilable positions on national identity and the absence of significant economic and trade relations between the two states (Research Gate). These problems have resulted in four wars between the two countries, including one undeclared war, along with many border skirmishes and military standoffs (Times of India). These relations between the countries and their citizens led to three college students from Kashmir getting arrested by Indian officials. According to Cable News Network,

Kashmir is a territory that is administered in part

by India and in part by Pakistan. The students were charged under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act after reportedly shouting pro-Pakistan slogans and putting up social media posts in support of the neighboring country at an engineering college in Punjab, India after the match (Aljazeera).

Due to the tense relations between the countries, Pakistanis are not permitted to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL), the most lucrative and popular outlet for the game of cricket according to Britannica, and India’s government does not allow its cricket team to play Pakistan in either of the team’s respective countries. As a result, when India and Pakistan were set to play against each other in the United Arab Emirates for the World Cup match, there was much excitement surrounding the match. 167 million people tuned in, making it the most viewed Twenty20 International (T20I) match to date.

“The match started around 6 a.m.,” junior Arnav Singh said. “My whole family was up and ready to watch. [We were sitting] with popcorn and blankets in the living room, waiting to see who would win the toss.”

With Pakistan having a high Muslim population and India having a high Hindu population, much of the tension between the two countries is rooted in animosity for the others’ beliefs. This religious divide is not only evident between the government of the two countries; it also manifests itself within the citizens of both countries, especially online (Global Conflict Tracker). After the cricket match, some people on social media and select news outlets attacked an Indian cricketer of Islamic

faith, Mohammad Shami. They blamed Shami for India’s loss, since the Pakistani batsmen were able to score a significant number of runs against him, and accused him of being a “traitor”, questioning his allegiance to his country of birth. Other people came to Shami’s defense, calling out the display of Islamophobia in these accusations and saying that Shami was not the only one who contributed to the loss that day. Sophomore Zeyna Haji is upset by the treatment of Shami online.

“The world should take these issues [of discrimination] seriously and the media should stop provoking the situation,” Haji said. “[The treatment of Shami] is not fair at all; he is playing for his country, not his religion.”

While the stakes and the tension surrounding matches between the two teams have always been particularly high, the players on both teams are usually civil toward one another and show each other respect. Virat Kohli, the captain of India’s national team, was applauded for his sportsmanship when he congratulated Pakistan after they defeated India in the Champions Trophy final in 2017 (Forbes). Freshman Maryam Ali hopes that both governments will follow the actions of their cricket teams and learn to be more civil towards one another.

“The rivalry between the two countries [ultimately] causes the behavior against players on the field,” Ali said. “[The reactions to the match by fans on both sides] cannot be condoned by politicians and other leaders. They need to speak up to educate and unite and serve as the role models they should be, [following the examples from the cricket players on both teams].”

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FACULTY FACULTY FIGHTS FIGHT

PALOS VERDES FACULTY ASSOCIATION NEGOTIATES FOR A FAIR CONTRACT

Recently, students have not been able to hold meetings in classrooms or contact their teachers after school, which sparked a rumor that the teachers are going on strike. However, this is not the case; teachers and staff who are members of the Palos Verdes Faculty Association (PVFA)--a union of teachers, counselors, nurses, speech language pathologists and other public servants that work in PVPUSD and are committed to promoting and preserving the collective voice of their members--are continuing to work amid negotiations with the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District (PVPUSD). The contract negotiation process started at the beginning of quarantine for the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which called for the shutdown of schools nationwide and the transition to online learning in March of 2020. Concurrently, the contract between the PVPUSD school board and its employees expired in July of 2020.

The faculty have continued working without a contract, which PVFA claims is due to PVPUSD delaying the negotiation process repeatedly over the course of the pandemic.

Since the beginning of the 2021-22 school year, these negotiations have been ongoing, with a renewed contract for staff in the district back on the table for negotiation. On Oct. 14, PVPUSD made their final offer of $8.5 million in new funding for employees that is pay-related, which refers to salary and benefits, such as insurance, raise and stipends. According to PVFA, PVPUSD’s last offer is still below the benefit caps and total compensation for other school districts in the South Bay. Although PVPUSD’s final offer came out to a total average compensation of $93,173 for PVPUSD employees, surrounding districts’ contracts offer upward of $100,000; Manhattan Beach Unified School District’s total compensation is $113,451 and Redondo Beach Unified School District’s is $111,728. As someone who has to provide for a family, Advanced Placement Physics C and Advancement Via Individual Determination teacher Mike Spalding believes that PVPUSD teachers deserve a competitive salary.

“I [do not] like thinking about the fact that we still have to negotiate for a

fair contract because, as with many teachers on campus, it makes me feel undervalued by the people who run the district, which is ultimately the school board,” Spalding said. “I [do not] think teachers are asking for too much [because] what our bargaining team has requested is [not completely] unreasonable.”

Although PVFA matches PVPUSD’s final offer concerning benefits-related pay, the disagreement regards faculty salary in their contracts. PVPUSD’s final offer includes a 3% on-schedule raise for the 2021-22 year, which refers to a scheduled annual percent increase of one’s salary, as well as a 2% off-schedule raise for the 2020-21 year, which is a negotiated raise that happens during bargaining between faculty and the school district. PVFA wants a 4.25% on-schedule raise for the 2021-22 year, as well as a 3% off-schedule raise for the 202021 year, and this offer has a 1.25% difference to PVFA’s on-schedule offer and 1% difference for the off-schedule offer.

As of Oct. 21, the constant bargaining between PVFA and PVPUSD has reached an impasse, a state where both sides are unable to reach an agreement. In response, PVPUSD notified PVFA on Oct. 28 that they will move on to the next step, mediation, due to the lack of a settlement or agreement reached. This means that the Public Employees Relation Board (PERB) will send a mediator from the state on Dec. 10 to meet with both sides in order to try and formulate a compromise. On their website, PVPUSD expressed that their goal regarding the mediation process is to balance student needs with providing competitive salaries for their staff. PVFA has claimed that PVPUSD is not negotiating in good faith, as PVPUSD is hoping to engage in bargaining off the record, which is bargaining that is not legally binding. English 4 and Advanced Placement English Literature teacher Tim Coleman, who has been the president of PVFA since August of 2020, disagrees with the district’s decision to bargain off the record because he believes both sides should go through the entire negotiation process legally.

“The collective bargaining process is important because it

allows districts and teachers to work through labor issues in a professional way,” Coleman said.

“If the district has a proposal to make [regarding salaries], [they] can and should do so on paper as the PVFA does.”

If both parties are unable to reach a settlement in mediation, the mediator will notify PERB and the next step of the negotiation process may be requested from either side. This next step is Factfinding, in which a third-party panel hears oral and written evidence from both sides; in this case, this is PVPUSD and PVFA. Including the third party allows for PERB to issue a non-binding recommendation on the issues as the last stage of the process. Kelly Baranick, a school counselor and member of the PVFA bargaining team, has been part of the union for nearly two decades and believes that employees deserve the terms of their proposed contract.

“I have been a school counselor [at Peninsula] for 19 years and [have] never seen it as a job [because] it has always been [my] way of life,” Baranick said. “[It is] hard to be in a situation where you [do not] feel valued.

A lot of people understand that going into education [you are] never going to be a millionaire, but that still [does not] mean you [do not] deserve to be fairly compensated like the rest of the professionals in your field.”

S FOR TS FOR EQUALITY EQUALITY

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BIDEN’S BUILD BACK BETTER PLAN: LESS PAID LEAVE FOR U.S. WORKFORCE

Originally proposed to Congress on Oct. 28, Biden’s new Build Back Better plan is garnering both controversy and support, especially regarding paid family leave. In order for the bill to pass, the Democratic Party needs to have the backing of the majority of their House of Representatives members and all 50 senators in their party. However, Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat from West Virginia, is one of the main opposers to the plan because he thinks that it will put the U.S. in further debt and believes paid leave should be included in a different bill (American Broadcasting Company). The Build Back Better bill ranges between $1.75 trillion and $2 trillion so far, and it includes benefits such as free preschool for all children, ensuring clean energy technology and paid family leave (The Washington Post). Initially, the Build Back Better bill was supposed to include 12 weeks of leave, but paid leave was removed for about a week before being reinstated and limited to four weeks (Cable News Network).

Currently, the legislation is undergoing a process of budget reconciliation. The Democratic Party is trying to find ways to fit the budget, and one option to economize the price is to decrease the number of weeks allotted for paid leave. National paid family leave can be expensive, as the estimated cost is projected upward of $225 billion over a 10-year period (Consumer News and Business Channel). Another possible solution being discussed is a tax on the wealthy to help cover the costs, but that has sparked controversy as well, especially among the Republican Party.

Although decreasing the number

of weeks on paid leave seems to be the current resolution, many believe that four weeks is not enough time, especially for new parents. According to the National Partnership for Women and Families, an organization dedicated to advocating for health care and reproductive rights for women, children experience positive health outcomes from their parents being able to take time off to bond as a family. Research from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) shows that a lack of parent-child bonding in early life can lead to long-term mental health problems later and that the brain development of infants relies on a loving relationship with a primary caregiver. Associate Principal Christina Sunada strongly believes that new parents should be able to have more time with their newborn children and wishes she had more time with her two children.

“It [is not only] hard for [new] mothers to go back to work right away if they need the income [because] their bodies [are] not ready, [but also] fathers and mothers who did not give birth need that bonding time with their new babies,” Sunada said. “[There is] a lot of bonding that happens in the first year of life. I am fortunate enough for my husband to work from home, so he is able to spend a lot of time with my boys and [can make] those bonds with them now. I think parents should have a year to learn how to be a new family group.”

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has also affected paid leave, as many people have had to take time off to care for sick family members or were recovering from illness themselves.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), establishments with 50 to 99 workers experienced a 30% increase in paid leave given to workers between July and September of 2020. However, even before the pandemic, about 23% of Americans had previously taken leave to care for a sick family member (Pew Research Center). Statistics and Essentials of Algebra teacher Monica Rudder reflects on how the new bill will affect other teachers with situations similar to hers.

“I took a leave of absence to take care of my mother who needed extra care for her

advancing dementia,” Rudder said. “After a year and a half [of leave], I was able to return to work. My mom lived with us and lived a much fuller life because I was able to take time to be with her.”

Caring for loved ones is one of the main reasons people take leave, besides maternity and personal health problems (National Partnership for Women and Families). Many agree that taking leave to care for family in most cases can be extremely necessary, but could put financial stress on people having to take time off from their work.

While maternity leave seems to be generally supported by the public, there seems to be less widespread support for paternity leave; this could be due to traditional societal roles, in which a mother would take care of the child while the father works (British Broadcasting Company). Although paternity leave in the U.S. is more normalized today than it would have been a century ago, maternity leave gets more time than paternity leave in most countries.

According to the World Policy Analysis Center at the University of California, Los Angeles, 109 countries currently offer parental leave to fathers, which is less than the 186 countries that give leave for mothers. Currently, paternity leave is 12 unpaid weeks and is only applicable for about 40% of the workforce. English 1 Honors and English 2 Honors teacher Maria McCloud believes that paternity leave should be given the same attention as maternity leave.

“Just because the mother is the one that gives birth [that] does not mean the father is not equally important,” McCloud said. “You have two parents who have created the child, two parents who are raising the child and both of them should have that time to be home with their brand new child.”

The bill passed in the House of Representatives on Nov. 19 and now awaits approval from the Senate. The bill will undergo multiple amendments and edits before it will be voted on to decide if it will pass. While the future decision on the whether the bill will pass is unclear, there is a consensus in the workforce around the country: four weeks of paid leave is not enough time.

8

BUILDING CONNECTIONS THROUGH ROBOTICS On Nov. 13, the robotics team Phantom Cubz competed in the challenge division of the First Lego League (FLL) competition at Valley Christian Middle School in Cerritos, California. This year, the theme of FLL’s challenge was Cargo Connect, in which teams built robots that focus on sustainable ways to innovate the future of transportation. Phantom Cubz, an all-girls robotics team that consists of 10 fourth and fifth grade students from Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District elementary schools, was mentored by students in Peninsula’s robotics club, Phantom Catz, for the competition.

In FLL competitions, students use their science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills and problem solving abilities to create solutions for realworld problems.

The decision to create Phantom Cubz was made by the leadership team and outreach, one of the eight Phantom Catz subteams that work together for competitions. The outreach subteam assists in serving the community, which includes initiating STEM camps. The shared goal of leadership and outreach was for female members of Phantom Catz to have an opportunity to educate younger students and provide them with STEM experience for the future, so they registered Phantom Cubz with For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST), the youth organization that operates FLL. One of Phantom Catz’s main tasks was to help Phantom Cubz form an idea to compete with, which resulted in researching a solution to package theft; their reasoning for selecting this topic was because around 1.7 million packages are stolen or lost every day (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute).

Thus, Phantom Cubz and Phantom Catz came up with an idea to scan package barcodes through Ring doorbells. In that case, if the package gets

stolen and carried over a certain diameter, an alarm will sound while the owner of the package and police are alerted through the Ring app. At the competition, they first presented their innovation project, which was this solution to package theft.

They also worked on a robot design, which was another category of the competition. During the weekly Saturday meetings that Phantom Cubz held at Peninsula beginning in early October, they designed and built a robot from parts given by FLL. Then, they presented this design and the process of how they built the robot for points. As the competition is intended for elementary students, more emphasis was placed on how the students have built character from building their creations rather than the ranking of the competition itself. In this year’s competition, Phantom Cubz was awarded the Core Value Award due to the teamwork and compassion the team showed during the season.

Dapplegray Elementary School fifth grader Lauren Chin, a member of Phantom Cubz, is grateful for this experience and plans to continue robotics and programming in the future.

“I wanted to learn [how to build] a robot, and [I thought] doing competitions [and programming] was fun,” Chin said. “I think putting together the missions and the robots [is the best part]. It makes me feel excited to do the competition and it means a lot to me because it [will] show how much I learned in the program. I [have learned] more about programming and [will] probably [continue it] in the future.”

Junior Cedar-Rose Leach is the lead technical mentor of Phantom Cubz and teaches the students how to turn their ideas for the robot into reality by helping them learn about robotics. This process consists of assisting them in the basics of making and testing robots and how to overcome setbacks that may arise, like issues with time restrictions and programming. Leach enjoyed the process of

teaching the girls and watching them grow.

“In the beginning, they were all shy and not very confident,” Leach said. “[However,] the more meetings we had, the more [self-assured] and friendly they got with each other. [They soon became] a lot more willing to take their idea and put it onto the robot rather than waiting for other people’s approval. This was really good to see because they had a lot of drive to start building the robot the way they wanted to build it.”

While Leach helped the girls with the robot and programming, junior Charlotte Chung, the lead research mentor of Phantom Cubz, helped the girls come up with their research project and guided them through this process along the way.

As part of outreach, Chung has previously assisted in launching STEM camps, charity drives and parades. Creating Phantom Cubz was part of the effort by Phantom Catz to allow young girls to have a place in an environment that is currently maledominated, with only 28% of the STEM workforce consisting of women (American Association of University Women). Although the FLL competition was Phantom Cubz’s first and last competition of the season, the team members and leaders of Phantom Cubz have plans to continue robotics activities in the future. Chung hopes that the girls will be inspired through this experience to pursue STEM despite any societal restrictions they may face along the way. “[As mentors, we] want to make sure a team of girls will be encouraged [to pursue] STEM [and] feel safe to speak up and have their own minds,” Chung said. “So, [by] having a team surrounded [and mentored] by women, [we] make sure that [Phantom Cubz members are] in a [space] where they are completely encouraged and never brought down by their gender. I hope they have made friends and feel encouraged to pursue STEM without any limits or barriers.”

9 HANA HUANG HITS THE MARK At 13 years old, junior Hana Huang discovered a newfound interest in archery when she shot a finger compound bow at a Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) summer camp. This bow releases arrows at high speeds and has many intricate cables, wheels and pulleys. Now, Huang spends five hours a day practicing at the Trident Archery shooting range in Carson, training with her coach and teaching other youth archers. She is currently ranked first in California after earning first place at the Junior Olympic Archery Development (JOAD) competition on Oct. 8. Archery has made a positive impact on Huang’s life, as it allows her to decompress while partaking in an activity she is passionate about.

“The shooting process of taking your

arrow, putting it in the bow and shooting it is very therapeutic,” Huang said. “In the beginning, I [thought] of [archery as a way] to relieve stress from school [because] I was taking [a few] honors classes in my freshman and sophomore year.

[Archery] is still a stress reliever for me and has become something I look forward to and enjoy doing at the end of the day.”

In 2019, Huang began competing at a national level with the support of her parents and level four certified coach, Byron Burkhart. According to USA Archery, a level four certified coach must demonstrate the steps of an advanced shooting style called the National Training System (NTS).

Over three years, Burkhart has seen Huang’s craft grow through her hard work and determination. At the start of Huang’s training, Burkhart introduced her to a shooting style called the Olympic recurve so that she could compete nationally; this style differs from using a barebow or compound bow because the archer utilizes a clicker to draw the bow and stabilizers for balance. As Huang collected victories on her record in highly renowned competitions, she has qualified for the United States Archery Team (USAT) this year. Burkhart fully believes that her dedication will pay off when the USAT considers recruiting her. “[Huang] put the time in to improve and get better,” Burkhart said. “She is strong-willed, determined and works very hard to [ensure] she understands it more. Huang puts in 1,000%, and it [is] shown in her archery scores and in

tournaments. I am really proud of her.”

Before the JOAD competition began, Huang engaged in her usual pre-competition ritual where she sits at the shooting range and listens to heavy metal music. She finds that this helps her keep her composure and her nerves from interrupting her focus. During the competition, Huang competed in the Cadet category, which 30 of the top 15-17 year old girls in the state competed in. Huang plans to continue her winning streak in the national ranking tournaments she has this year. While the JOAD competition changes one’s rankings in their state, the national ranking competitions determine an archer’s rank in the U.S. Currently, Huang is a level one instructor, but Burkhart refers to Huang as a coach because she has unofficially coached classes and private lessons for almost two years. Huang enjoys getting to know the archers on a more personal level and gaining a new perspective through coaching. Freshman and archer Alexsander Mytko recognizes the example that Huang sets through her encouraging attitude from training together for tournaments.

“Her positivity and motivation [are] contagious, which [has] made every practice more productive,” Mytko said. “Over the years of shooting with Huang, she [has] taught me to shoot with confidence. Her ability to persevere and learn from mistakes [has] helped her find success [in archery].”

10

Students highlight Peninsula athletes through new video series On Oct. 8, seniors Gianna Rosato and Jaiden Thakor released their first edition of Mic’d Up, an audio recording that reveals athletes’ commentary and perspective during games. As the two Commissioners of Athletics within the Associated Student Body (ASB), Rosato and Thakor work with the multitude of sports programs at Peninsula to ensure they are running smoothly. They both play sports that are less publicized, with Rosato on the girls varsity volleyball team and girls varsity soccer team and Thakor on the boys varsity water polo team; thus, the pair conceived the idea of Mic’d Up with a goal to highlight overlooked sports. “[We] come from [sports] teams that do not get too much attention and have seen how hard these athletes have worked,” Thakor said. “Our [whole campaign] for Mic’d Up is to spread more love to the sports who often do not have the whole student body in attendance.”

After the plan was put into place, Rosato bought a “Rode Wireless Go” microphone, which is a cordless microphone system, and taught herself how to use it to capture the athletes’ commentary. Next, Rosato and Thakor started recruiting athletes whom they believed would be good participants for the series. Within the first three months of the school year, six athletes from volleyball, song, cheer, football and tennis have been interviewed. By going to Given that it is impossible to include water sports in the traditional sense, as the microphone is not waterproof and the sound would not come out clear underwater, Rosato and Thakor had to think creatively on how to include these sports. Thus, they interviewed the

head coach of the boys varsity water polo team, overlaying his recorded audio onto footage that Thakor took using an underwater camera during one of his matches. This video aspect is a main feature of all Mic’d Up episodes; this footage is recorded by the commissioners on a Canon camera throughout the game, with the exception of water sports. Thakor later edits that footage to create a simplified, comedic compilation of the participant’s commentary. The final step in the process is posting the completed video onto their Instagram, @pvphs. athletics, for the public to view and comment on.

Rosato and Thakor took inspiration from the National Football League (NFL), who has been creating Mic’d Up videos since 1967. However, in the NFL, the coaches choose players to be recorded, whereas Rosato and Thakor reach out to players themselves to choose athletes they feel are good candidates. Additionally, they are conscious of which games they are choosing to record, as some games have higher stakes than others.

“We try to choose good games that we know [the players] are not too stressed about so they will just be in their element,” Thakor said. “[Luckily,] we have had really good luck with people so far who have performed very well.”

After receiving over 1,000 views on each post, individual athletes have had a chance to receive more recognition for their skill and dedication in their respective sports. On Oct. 27, senior Cydney Yamamoto was interviewed and recorded for Mic’d Up during her varsity tennis match against Culver City High School.

Yamamoto enjoyed the experience overall, though she found it a bit difficult to balance staying focused on the game and making her commentary interesting.

“It was a little more challenging to stay focused during my match [because of the microphone],” Yamamoto said. “I was excited [that I had this experience] though; it was something different and I have never done it before. At first I was so focused on being entertaining, but I eventually got into the zone. I would definitely recommend other athletes to participate in Mic’d Up.” Since Mic’d Up seems to be well-received thus far, students can look forward to more videos to come in the future. Rosato and Thakor hope to continue highlighting all sports on campus and create a long-lasting tradition at Peninsula that will continue once they graduate.

“Stepping into our role as Commissioners of Athletics, we really wanted to create [a new] tradition [to honor athletes],” Rosato said.

“We are really excited to continue doing Mic’d Up this year and see who the commissioners for next year will be so we can show them the ropes and continue this tradition.”

11

On Oct. 22, Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures released the incredible blockbuster science fiction film, “Dune,” in theaters and on Home Box Office (HBO). Directed by Denis Villeneuve, “Dune” is an adaptation of the book, “Dune,” by American author Frank Herbert. The film tells the story of Paul Atreides, a boy who is sent to the planet Arrakis to manage its resources. However, everything goes awry when a war breaks out between his people and the previous inhabitants of Arrakis known as the House Harkonnen. The war causes many climactic scenes and is the main focus of the movie.

These thrilling scenes are further enhanced

by Dune’s soundtrack, which captures scenes effectively and helps set the mood. The score, composed by record producer Hans Zimmer, is a spiritual blend of human voices and remarkable instruments, such as Irish whistles, Indian bamboo flutes and war horns. While still remaining otherworldly and futuristic, these instruments help introduce tension and highlight important scenes.

For instance, during the track “Arrakeen”, suspense is built through the growing sound of ornithopters, vibrating drums and screeching metal. Later, in the song “Stillsuits”, a discordant pitch gradually increases, which is followed by faint throat singing and jarring drums. These combinations of sounds seize the viewers’ attention and leave them on the edge of their seat, keeping them engaged.

Junior Sasha Pantoja feels that the score was a key element of the movie. “[The soundtrack] did a great job of grabbing suspense [of the audience] and capturing the unexpected, rhythmic patterns in the desert,” Pantoja said. “It [mimicked] the atmosphere and

[helped to] set a subconscious atmosphere for [viewers] to enjoy the movie.”

“Dune” is also full of passionate acting performances that make the film more enjoyable and authentic. Specifically, actor Timothée Chalamet’s portrayal of Paul Atreides was poignant and touching. In one scene, Atreides is faced with a painful challenge known as the Gom Jabbar, which requires him to place his hand inside a box filled with pain; if he pulls his hand out, he will be poked with a deadly poison-tipped needle and die. The purpose of the challenge is to determine whether an individual’s awareness is stronger than their instincts. In this scene, Chalamet’s intense portrayal of pain and suffering is compelling and realistic, allowing viewers to feel his anguish and torture as he battles his urges in order to save his life. Moreover, Zendaya’s mysterious depiction of Chani adds depth to the movie, despite her minimal screen time of just seven minutes. Jason Momoa provided cheeky comic relief as Duncan Idaho, occasionally cracking jokes with Chalamet’s character smoothly and naturally. Momoa’s portrayal adds a sense of light-heartedness to the film, which is a treat in the midst of the action and fighting scenes. Additionally, Rebecca Ferguson defies the “strong female trope” in her role as the courageous Lady Jessica, making for a more complex performance. Instead of being tenacious throughout the entire movie like most strong female characters are written to be, Ferguson embraces her emotions and plays a character that is just as complex as her male colleagues.

Sophomore Jack Fletcher believes that all actors, especially Chalamet, executed their roles well. “[Timothée Chalamet] embodied Paul’s cold and strategic personality [with] his performance,” Fletcher said. “The interactions [the characters] had [felt] authentic, and it did not seem [like the actors] were playing characters at all.”

Dune’s computer-generated imagery (CGI) and visual aesthetics are also beautiful and captivating.

The scenes are striking and full of intensity and depth, as every pixel and tidbit is accounted for.

This is illustrated by the sandworms, which are detailed and lifelike. Spanning the entire width of the screen, the sandworms make the characters and audience seem miniscule in comparison.

Through the use of scope and visual contrast, viewers are given a taste of what it would be like to encounter otherworldly creatures on Arrakis and experience the ripples of sand in the desert.

Villeneuve uses the perfect amount of CGI, neither overdoing it nor using too little.

Due to the film’s stunning visuals and breathtaking audio, the film must be watched in theaters. By watching “Dune” in movie theaters rather than on HBO Max, viewers have the opportunity to experience the full potential that the film has to offer with its impeccable soundtrack and advanced CGI. They can see the thopters soar through the air, hear the massive explosions and watch as the giant sandworms consume the screen.

The sound echoes off the walls and the visuals are high quality, creating a euphoric experience that can only be felt in theaters. Viewers can immerse themselves in the world of Arrakis and practically feel scenes as they happen.

“I saw the movie in theaters,” senior Grace Westervelt said. “[The movie] has beautiful special effects, big spaceships, big monsters and big expanses of desert. With the soundtrack swelling around you, you are more involved [in] the world of it [when you watch in theaters] rather than [when you watch it] at home.”

Altogether, “Dune” is a beautiful movie that features gorgeous visuals and rich music. The actors are exceptionally talented and perform their roles well. For these reasons, this refreshing adaptation is an enjoyable way to spend two hours.