A N A C P H A L L O F FA M E N E W S PA P E R A N AT I O N A L PA C E M A K E R AWA R D N E W S PA P E R
Volume 62, Issue 4
theswcsun.com
May 9, 2019
President cancels ASO election
Marco Figueroa/Staff
Joshua LePaul Williams/Staff
President Murillo’s decision comes amid outrage over alleged racism and incendiary Instagram post Norquist said she was so upset by the post that she stayed up the entire night prior worrying about someone coming to the May 2 hearing with a gun and shooting all black students. “I requested that a police officer walk around this building because we don’t feel safe that you would promote something to where someone who is crazy with a gun will come in and attack my black students or attack me for representing [the Black Student Union],” she said. “How dare you put our lives in jeopardy. But a public apology is what you all think is necessary.” BSU President Monte Clark publicly named four students affiliated with Team Green as potential creators of the Instagram post, based on his review
False shooting report sparks panic By Sabrina Wu, Steven Sylvia, and Andrew Penalosa Staff Writers
please see False Alarm pg. A2
Assistant football coach Jose Baez became an up-and-coming strongman competitor after injuries ended his playing career.
The tensions began during an emergency hearing on April 29 regarding Loa’s comments about Team Elite.
By Molly Rivas Hernandez Staff Writer
Luis Javier Vargas/Staff
CAMPUS
ARTS SWC’s cast and crew bring youthful energy to “Bring It On: The Musical.”
A week of rising tension.
Ayona Hudson, a presidential candidate for Team Elite, filed a complaint after two witnesses came to her and said they overheard Loa mocking the students for being an all black slate. Richard Eberheart, the student activities coordinator, said the emergency hearing was crucial because polls were open. But Student Trustee Rudolph Villegas and current ASO President Jorge Ivan Ortiz both said the meeting was illegal due to an agenda not being posted 24 hours prior. Two additional meetings following the April 29 hearing were postponed due to what Eberheart said was a series of complaints made by Villegas to Murillo, VP of Academic Affairs Angelica Suarez and Dean of Student Services Malia Flood. please see ASO pg. A4
New Dreamer’s Center will be safe space for DACA students
Yet, in the days and weeks that followed, this incident raised questions about how well SWC is prepared for these situations, especially if the next time the threat is real. At a town hall meeting in March, some members of the college community told SWC President Dr. Kindred Murillo they felt confused and frightened. “It was also an important learning [experience, “Murillo said. “We are a learning institution and we are always, always learning.” There was a lack of training and few of those on campus were prepared for this situation. After the chaos, students, staff and faculty said they were confused with not only what was happening, but also what procedures to take during the
SPORTS
In an instant, a typical Tuesday afternoon turned into a chaotic scramble on Southwestern College’s campus as word spread that gunshots were fired on the third floor of the library. Confusion turned into panic on Feb. 26 when a faculty member screamed for people to back away from the library. Crowds ran through the criss-crossing pathways of the campus grounds. Those inside classrooms became fearful, not knowing what to do. The campus was in a state of total disorder for almost an hour. As time passed, authorities determined there was no shooter on campus. It was a false alarm.
of footage from the protest. With the district investigations still pending, The Sun chose to not reveal any student names. Numerous members of both teams were in tears by the time Murillo arrived and called for an end to the hearing. The district has since launched two investigations. Murillo was vague when referring to the investigations. One dealt with “complaints filed on Board Policy and federal and state statutes, the other regarding Instagram Posts,” she said in an email.
Southwestern College nationally recognized as one of the best schools for veterans.
Southwestern College is taking another step to show solidarity with undocumented students. First, SWC defied President Trump’s push to end Obama-era Deferred Action for childhood arrivals (DACA) by implementing sanctuary policies. It then offerred a variety of legal and financial resources for students protected under the DACA, who are known as Dreamers. Now a Dreamer’s Center will be the hub of safety and information for DACA students in need of aid. Dr. Corona de Guadalupe, director of the equity, diversity and inclusion program and Patti Larkin, director of financial aid, evaluations and veteran services collaborated to help write a
Rapper Nipsey Hussle passed recently, but his passion for his community lives on.
grant for the Dreamer Center. Larkin said their goal is to create a place of trust and security, where students can feel welcomed and open to confiding their personal information. They want to make sure all Dreamers are being helped in every way possible within the law and help those who come from mixed-status families. After learning the individual’s legal status, they can best determine what resources will benefit them the most. “We want to make sure that there’s a place and location that makes that information and those resources readily available with staff that are well trained and committed to this community,” Larkin said. A key value that Corona and Larkin share is that finances should not be a barrier to a student’s goals. please see DREAMER pg. A3
@THESWCSUN
Southwestern College President Kindred Murillo cancelled the Associated Student Organization’s annual election last week after learning about a fake Instagram post that made it appear a slate of black candidates was attempting to incite racial violence against their predominantly Latinx opponents. The black candidate slate, known as Team Elite, denied any knowledge of the post, which called to “chop the heads off of the euro-centrist white supremacist mexicans of the campus,” and accused the predominantly Latinx slate, known as Team Green, of creating the post in attempt sway the election in their favor. The election controversy is the latest
eruption in a long history of black/ Latinx tensions on campus. It bubbled over May 2 during a discipline hearing by the ASO’s election board on accusations of racist comments made by a Team Green member about Team Elite. Black students reacted with outrage after the board imposed a punishment on the Team Green VP of Public Relations candidate Dimitrius Loa that they felt was too lenient. Black Student Union Faculty Advisor Trishana Norquist then revealed a packet of printed screenshots of the fake Instagram post. The post, which Norquist said “incited” violence, included a video of Team Elite’s protest over what they consider to be the election board’s inadequate handling of their complaints.
VIEWPOINTS
By Katy Stegall Editor-in-Chief