Full Issue 11/23/2020

$2,200 grant to digitize newspaper approved

P4

Students relax, build gingerbread houses

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THE STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA MONROE

VOLUME 98 ISSUE 12

www.ulmhawkeyeonline.com

Should Thanksgiving be a national holiday?

November 23, 2020

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What will spring 2021 semester look like?

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Miss Black & Gold pageant uplifts black women P 7

Historic ULM, LA Tech game canceled P 8

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THE STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA MONROE

November 23, 2020

BRIEFS CALENDAR Monday, November

23

No event planned

Tuesday, November

24

No event planned

Wednesday, November 25 Thanksgiving break begins at 12 p.m.

Thursday, November 26 Thanksgiving break

Friday, November

27

Thanksgiving break

Saturday, November 28 No event planned

Sunday, November

29

No event planned

QUOTE

West Monroe

Louisiana

California

Brazil

NEWS-STAR- A West Monroe man is facing multiple drug possession with intent to distribute charges after a traffic stop and a subsequent search at Parkview Apartments.

James Dangelo "Booger" Ard, age 38, was booked into Ouachita Correctional Center Thursday afternoon after an arrest by the Monroe Police HEAT team.

HEAT team officers obtained information that Ard possessed and sold an assortment of narcotics from the apartment at 1101 Richwood Rd. No. 2.

During a traffic stop, Ard was taken into custody on an active warrant for distribution of marijuana. A search warrant was executed for Ard's apartment.

Packaging materials and several digital scales used to sell narcotics were also located in the search with an estimated value of $30,000.

KNOE- Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry says Apple has agreed to a $113 million settlement over the company’s 2016 decision to throttle the performance of customers’ iPhones to address unexpected shutdowns in some models.

Landry says based on a multi-state investigation conducted by himself and his colleagues, Apple discovered that battery issues were causing unexpected shutdown in some iPhone models.

Rather than sharing this information with customers or replacing the problematic batteries, Apple kept the information from customers.

Landry says Apple’s concealment of this info eventually lead to a software update in December of 2016 that reduced iPhone performance in an attempt to keep the phones from unexpectedly shutting down.

MCT- The parents of the two Saugus High School students who were killed during a shooting by a classmate last year have filed wrongful death lawsuits against the school district.

In separate lawsuits filed Monday, days after the one-year anniversary of the teens' deaths, the parents of Dominic Blackwell, 14, and Gracie Anne Muehlberger, 15, allege that the William S. Hart Union High School District failed to take actions that could have prevented the tragedy.

The families are seeking an unspecified amount in compensation and asking the district to make safety changes.

"We just want it to be safer for the children, because at the end of the day this is what it's about," Dominic's father, Frank Blackwell, told KNBC TV news.

"It isn't the 8 seconds," Gracie's father, Bryan Muehlberger, said. "It's the 43 minutes prior to that that something could have been done.

MCT- Street protests swept across Brazil and shops were looted after a video went viral showing grocery store security guards beating a Black man to death.

Two Carrefour outsourced employees were filmed killing the 40-year-old man in the southern Brazilian city of Porto Alegre on Thursday. The man, who was shopping with his wife, had a disagreement with employees at the checkout, local media reported. The guards were white, according to the reports.

By Friday, which happened to be Black Consciousness Day in Brazil, about 2,500 protesters had gathered in front of the Carrefour store.

There were also protests in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, to object to the killing and—more broadly—to the country's racism. Some protesters carried banners that read "Black Lives Matter" in Portuguese.

Pot, pills seized in State to recieve over Parents of shooting Citizens protest after apartment drug bust $3 million from Apple victims file lawsuit guard kills black man

TODAY IN HISTORY

MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF YEAR

"The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity."

November 23 1935: Italy makes an unconfirmed announcement that they will declare war on France if France cuts them off from oil.

Dorothy Parker, American writer

1945: American prosecutors charge German troops of various war crimes.

1954: 25 years after the 1929 Wall Street Crash the Dow Jones recovers to the pre crash high of 381.17.

1963: Following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson becomes the new president of the U.S.

Front page credits: Main graphic: Sunil Bishwokarma

1973: Five crewmen drown when the Cypriot freight ship sinks into the sea.

Top sidebar photo: Cobe Boston Top left photo: Kaitlin Maness Top right graphic: Calli Sinclair

photo by Calli Sinclair

A student decorates a gingerbread house at a Christmas event hosted by the Campus Activities Board last Friday in the SUB ballrooms.

November 23, 2020

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THE STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA MONROE

OPINION

Holiday

Thanksgiving: Should it be a holiday?

Yes

No

Ashlyn Dupree My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. I don’t know why, because it’s almost like any other Sunday lunch spent with my immediate family except there’s a turkey instead of a roast. Maybe it’s the different options served compared to the Sunday lunch or because I get to spend quality time with my extended family. Or it might be the traditions my family have made together.

But there are many families opposite of mine. They hate Thanksgiving and don’t celebrate it because they view it as religious or a holiday where the pilgrims stole the land from the Native Americans.

Thanksgiving shouldn't hold these standards. In fact, Thanksgiving should only be a time to be with family and friends. Let’s leave the history of Thanksgiving behind and create a new inclusive Thanksgiving.

Stubbs 131 700 University Avenue Monroe, LA 71209 Editor-in-Chief - Kaitlin Maness Co-managing Editor Design - Sunil Bishwokarma Co-managing Editor News - Loryn Kykendall Opinion Editors - Loryn Kykendall, Kaitlin Maness Freestyle Editor - Uchechi Owunna Circulation Director - Ashlyn Dupree

As mentioned before, most people that don’t celebrate Thanksgiving do so because it is viewed as a national day of mourning, according to Independent. These individuals consider Thanksgiving a symbol of the conquest of Native American land.

While it is true that most of the land was taken from the Native Americans, in the beginning settlements, Americans bought the land from the them, according to Harvard University Press. The Native Americans wanted to create alliances with the colonists and buy goods from sellers.

I am not condoning the pilgrims' acts.

This shouldn’t be the reason we celebrate Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving should be a time to be with family and friends. This can be a time to develop your relationships with family members.

While I always knew Thanksgiving was about the pilgrims, I didn’t look at it that way.

Thanksgiving was a day for me to proclaim what I was thankful for in my life.

If you don’t like viewing Thanksgiving as the conquest of the Native Americans, make your family aware of the horrendous acts by the pilgrims. But also cultivate Thanksgiving into a day where you appreciate your loved ones and friends. contact Ashlyn Dupree at dupreeaf@warhawks.ulm.edu

Loryn Kykendall If you go to Google and type “real Thanksgiving story” into the search bar, you’ll be met with a wave of articles, all insisting they know it—But they don’t.

Some say that the first Thanksgiving was simply a feast of unity between the Wampanoag and the pilgrims. Some say it was a celebration of only the pilgrims and although no Native Americans were invited, they showed up anyway. Some say that it was a celebration thrown by the pilgrims after the 1623 massacre of the Pequot.

No matter what the real story is, Thanksgiving is a holiday that perpetuates lies and it shouldn’t be celebrated.

While the details of the first Thanksgiving are foggy and nobody seems to agree on the story, it’s an unavoidable fact that European colonists decimated the Native American

population over hundreds of years.

And how do we acknowledge the half a century of brutal transgressions against the Native Americans? We teach every American child that pilgrims and Natives got along perfectly well. We teach them lies.

According to TIME, the Thanksgiving story was already being taught in schools by 1920.

Native Americans weren’t even allowed to become citizens until 1924.

The truth has been completely abandoned and the made-up story we tell disrespects every Native American life that was stolen by the European settlers.

Some people would argue that a solution would be to celebrate Thanksgiving only for the purpose of giving thanks. To forget the fake story of the pilgrims and Native Americans, and just make the holiday all about being thankful for everything you have.

While that’s a nice thought, it wouldn’t make any difference.

It wouldn’t make anyone understand the severity of the lies that have been nailed into the minds of every American since elementary school.

But you know what would get people’s attention? The removal of a national holiday.

Since that's unlikely to happen, we must take it upon ourselves to stop celebrating it. contact Loryn Kykendall at kykendalllk@warhawks.ulm.edu

The opinions expressed in personal columns are the opinions of the author and not necessarily the opinions of the editors, staff, adviser or the university.

Unsigned editorials represent the collective opinion of The Hawkeye’s editorial board, but not necessarily the opinions of the adviser or the university.

The Hawkeye (USPS #440-700) is published weekly except vacation, exam & holiday periods

by The University of Louisiana at Monroe, 700 University Avenue, Monroe, LA 71209.

Annual subscription price is $15.00. Periodicals Postage Paid at Monroe, LA 71203.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Hawkeye, 700 University Ave., Stubbs 131, Monroe, LA 71209-8832.

Multimedia Editor - Saugat Shrestha Ad Director - Chelsea Terrell 318-342-5453 ulmhawkeyead@gmail.com Faculty Adviser Dr. Christopher Mapp 318 342 5454 mapp@ulm.edu Assistant Director: Courtney Collins 318 342 5450 ccollins@ulm.edu Feedback 318 342 5453 newsroom 318 342 5452 fax ulmhawkeye@gmail.com

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Contact the writers or the editor at kykendalllk@warhawks.ulm.edu

graphic by Sunil Bishwokarma

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THE STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA MONROE

November 23, 2020

NEWS

Pandemic

Spring 2021 semester specifics undecided

by Kaitlin Maness

As the fall 2020 semester ends, many students have found themselves wondering what the upcoming semester will look like. Will Zoom meetings and social distancing requirements remain or will the university revert to old policies?

According to Alberto Ruiz, the vice president of Academic Affairs, student safety is ULM’s top priority during the coronavirus pandemic.

All decisions about spring 2021 will stem from what is believed to be the safest option for students, faculty and staff. And as of right now, that appears to be continuing with the same precautions put in place this semester.

“Student safety is our main priority as well as safety for faculty and staff,” Ruiz said.

ULM will be using four class models: Face-to-face, hybrid, hybridflex and online. Ultimately, how each class will function is based on which classroom the instructor or professor has been assigned. All the classrooms on campus have been evaluated to see if and how many

graphic courtesy Pixabay

students can safely fit inside at one time.

“The professor or instructor of record should notify students as to what days will be in face-toface mode or Zoom mode,” Ruiz said. “Communication is and will continue to be the key to success in every class.”

For RSOs and other student organizations, restrictions of in-person events and meetings will remain in place until further notice, accord-

ing to Meagan Lee, the assistant director of Student Life and Leadership.

“I would like to remain optimistic that the RSO restrictions will lessen, but that will only happen if the state mandates and CDC guidelines allow,” Lee said. “I would love to see our RSOs thriving again with in-person events, but only time will tell if that is the best decision for the safety of our campus.”

Lanye Normand, a pre-nursing

major, said that she finds it difficult to learn through Zoom. She would prefer the benefits of getting to see your professors and classmates each week. Not only that but Normand also feels as if she is losing out on the college experience.

“It is so depressing not being able to go to class, meet new people, take part in all the college activities and just try to enjoy my college years,” Normand said.

Other students, like Kameron

Clinton, are happy with the sacrifices ULM are making to contain the virus. Clinton said he thinks that the university’s main focus should be Normand to “preserve life in the midst of a worsening pandemic.”

“As already seen, people can’t be trusted to make the safest decision without some sort of administrative or governmental involvement,” Clinton said. “Face-to-face learning should be started up again once the risks of the virus have been greatly mitigated.”

The University of Louisiana System has requested that universities make plans for the spring 2021 semester. According to Ruiz, the ULM administration is still in preliminary talks. Any changes to the upcoming semester will be shared through the Student Government Association. contact Kaitlin Maness at manessk@warhawks.ulm.edu

Funding

Library to digitize ‘Pow Wow’ newspaper with $2,200 grant

by Loryn Kykendall

graphic by Sunil Bishwokarma

Last semester, Patrick Morgan’s English professional writing class had only seven students. He tasked them with writing a grant proposal to be presented to Heather Pilcher, a ULM librarian.

The grant proposal they wrote requested $2,200 which would be used to digitize old issues of the Pow Wow, the school’s newspaper at the time, which are kept in the ULM Library Special Collections and Archives.

Last week, their proposal was approved by the National Endowment for the Humanities and Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities.

The idea to write a proposal concerning the archives came to Morgan when he took a tour of the archives led by Pilcher. He said it was obvious she has a passion for preserving history.

“I asked her at the end of the tour, ‘if you had the money, what are your dream projects,’” Morgan said.

Pilcher said she would digitize ULM’s history.

And that’s exactly what the LEH Rebirth Grant is going to do. The Pow Wow was ULM’s student-run newspaper from 1931 to 1980. The newspaper reported on some of the most pivotal events of the 20th century, including the

attack on Pearl Harbor, the John F. Kennedy assassination and the Civil Rights Movement.

“I’m very excited about getting the grant,” Pilcher said. “Because it will allow ULM to offer an additional online resource available to researchers and alumni.”

When it’s digitized, the paper will be available at the Louisiana Digital Library and will be free to everyone.

There will also be a public exhibit showcasing the newspaper’s highlights through the decades.

The students who did the research and wrote the grant proposal are Alfonzo Hillman Galvan, Mary Hillman, Clayton Bryan, Trinity Foucha, Rufus Dell McDowell II, Jenessa Taylor and Sarah Treadway.

Hillman is now a teacher in the Monroe City School District, and plans on using the skills she learned in Morgan’s class to help her school and to fund an adult literacy project at a local shelter.

“I’m extremely grateful I took the grant class,” Hillman said. “Grants are so crucial to all levels of education.” contact Loryn Kykendall at kykendalllk@warhawks.ulm.edu

November 23, 2020

THE STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA MONROE

PAGE 5

NEWS

Donation

State Politics

Letlow, Harris compete for congressional seat

by Morgan Andrews

The presidential election is not the only election that took a long time to call this year.

The congressional race for the 5th district in Louisiana still has not reached the finish line.

Out of the nine candidates, two of them are now facing a runoff for the U.S. representative position. The candidates are the former chief of staff for Rep. Ralph Abraham, Luke Letlow, and Louisiana State Representative and businessman, Lance Harris.

With Abraham retiring after three consecutive terms as the U.S. Representative for Louisiana’s 5th congressional district, his position is up for grabs.

On the day of the Nov. 3 election, results from the Associated Press showed that Letlow led in first place with 33% of the primary vote and Harris came in second with 17%. However, no one was able to reach at least 50% of the primary vote. Hence, the runoff.

The 5th district is Louisiana’s only congressional race that has not been resolved.

The district is the largest in the state because it consists of Northeast Louisiana, North Central Louisiana, and part of Southeast Louisiana.

According to his campaign website, Luke Letlow is a Republican from Monroe who graduated with a bachelors from Louisiana Tech University in Ruston.

Abraham has endorsed him, and has said that he knows the district better than anyone.

Letlow is passionate about supporting Louisiana farmers, timber and logging companies, and veterans. On a national level he still wants to completely fund the military and continue to protect national security. He is also pro-life and a strong defender of the second amendment.

According to Lance Harris’ website, he is a Republican from Pineville. He started at Northwester State University in 1979 to pursue a degree in piano performance, and graduated from the Louisiana Banking School of the South in 1984.

He has stated and owned many companies, including Leebo’s Store, Stokes-Harris Enterprises and Woodside Pecan and Cattle Farms. He has been a Member of the Louisiana House of Representatives since 2011, in District 25.

Harris is pro-business and wants smaller

government involvement in public policy and private sectors. He believes his major success is authoring the nation’s first “Blue Lives Matter” law that protects police, firefighters and EMS personnel from hate crimes.

Harris, like Letlow is also pro-life and a supporter of the second amendment.

Voting: Early voting for the congressional runoff is Nov. 20 to 28, with the exception of Nov. 22, 26 and 27 for holidays. The last day to vote and the day of the election is Dec. 5. contact Morgan Andrews at andrewmr@warhawks.ulm.edu

Literature

History professor publishes book Monica Bontty debunks myths about Ancient Rome

by Loryn Kykendall

If you’re planning on reading a new book over the holiday break, there’s a new release written by a ULM faculty member.

“Ancient Rome: Facts and Fiction,” written by Monica Bontty, explores a few common misconceptions about ancient Rome and debunks some of the myths.

“I have always been interested in Ancient Rome, especially Graeco-Roman Egypt,” Bontty said. “When the opportunity arose, I took advantage of ABCCLIO’s offer to write the book.”

Each of the nine chapters of her book thoroughly explains a different misconception that people believe about Ancient Rome. The chapters are set up in three parts. The first part introduces the misconception.

photo courtesy ULM photo services

REWRITING HISTORY: In Monica Bontty’s new book, “Ancient Rome: Facts and Fictions,” she explains nine common misconceptions about Ancient Rome. She then proves that they’re fictions instead of facts.

The second part explains how the misconception became popularized and the third provides proof that the misconception is false.

One of the chapters touches on the rumor that Nero, a Roman emperor, neglectfully played the violin as Rome went up in flames.

Since each chapter is about something completely different, readers can skip around the

book.

In the introduction of the book, Bontty tells readers, “This book is written so that you can begin reading wherever you wish. If Nero is your thing, you can start there.”

Bontty has a clear passion for ancient history and has spent many decades studying it. In 1997, she received her doctorate in near eastern languages and cultures from the University of

California, Los Angeles.

Since she started teaching at ULM in 2005, she’s taught courses on anthropology, archaeology and many about Ancient Egypt.

“The most rewarding thing for me was bringing these characters to life so that others might enjoy reading the book as much as I did writing it,” Bontty said. contact Loryn Kykendall at kykendalllk@warhawks.ulm.edu

31 Ambassadors hosts toy, book drive for children

by Kaitlin Maness As the holidays quickly approach, there are still families with hardly any income due to the pandemic. Currently, the national unemployment rate is at 6.9% which is 3.3% more than the rate at this time last year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. This means there will be children without Christmas presents.

31 Ambassadors decided to combat this issue with their children’s Christmas drive last week.

For two days, people could drop off toys and books for children in need to receive.

Brittney Coleman, the organization’s committee service head, said the main reason for the drive was to bring smiles to children’s faces.

“31 Ambassadors wanted Coleman to provide a Christmas opportunity for kids in the community to not only have books to help them in their studies but toys to bring smiles to their faces on Christmas morning,” Coleman said.

There were 65 donations in total, according to Coleman.

The West Monroe Community Center partnered with 31 Ambassadors to complete the event. All the donations will be delivered throughout Monroe and West Monroe by community center employees and volunteers.

31 Ambassadors is an organization dedicated to hosting alumni-related activities and increasing awareness of the university by sponsoring events. But their service reaches much further than just on campus, according to 31 Ambassadors President Ashlyn Dupree.

“31 Ambassadors is an organization which wants to not only help the students, faculty and alumni of the university but also the community,” Dupree said. “We strive to help those in need and provide moments that people will remember forever.” contact Kaitlin Maness at manessk@warhawks.ulm.edu

PAGE 6

THE STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA MONROE

November 23, 2020

FREESTYLE

Holiday Food

Holiday

Tasty meals to make for Thanksgiving

Celebrating Thanksgiving during COVID-19

1. Brown Sugar Smokies Everyone will tell you this is their favorite side dish of the day. You’ll need one pound of bacon, one package of cocktail sausages and one cup of brown sugar. First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Next, cut up the bacon and wrap it around the sausages. Place a toothpick at the top of the bacon covered sausages to hold the bacon in place. Place it on the baking dish and sprinkle brown sugar on top. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the bacon is crisp and the brown sugar is melted.

2. Turkey Strips If you want to have a traditional turkey for Thanksgiving, but you live in a dorm, you can still make it using a crockpot. You will need slices of turkey or chicken breast, two tablespoons of brown sugar, one tablespoon of chili powder, one tablespoon of smoked paprika, one teaspoon of garlic powder, a few pieces of thyme or chopped parsley, ½ of cup of chicken broth, two tablespoons of honey and ¼ a cup of soy sauce. First, place your turkey strips in a crockpot. Then mix all the other ingredients together and pour it over the strips. Once all of the ingredients are added into the pot, put it on a low setting for three to four hours or until cooked. If you are using a stove, set it on low for less than three hours or until cooked.

by Kylie Cichocki

A global pandemic and the holiday season are not exactly a perfect match. COVID-19 has already taken so many things away this year, but our holiday fun does not have to be one of them.

Here are some fantastic examples of holiday events that you can do safely during this Thanksgiving.

1. Virtual Dinner Whether you are still at home with immediate family or living in a dorm room unable to travel home, you can still celebrate the holiday with your entire family through a virtual video call.

This way, you are still able to feel connected with loved ones, all while keeping yourself and others safe. During the call, you all can get your version of Thanksgiving dinner whether that be takeout or a home-cooked meal. During the dinner, everyone can go around and say things they are thankful for to lighten up this dark year

and stick to some traditions.

2. Family Photos Your family can create a festive dress code for the holidays. Have everyone join a Zoom video call, and take a picture of everyone in the little squares. This photo can be printed out and even sent out as a family holiday card. It may seem a little different right now but in years to come, everyone will laugh at the fact the family looked like The Brady Bunch.

3. Games What is Thanksgiving without some fun? Your friends and family can all connect to a video call and you can have some games ready to play.

For example, you can play Pictionary and have everyone yell out their guesses or type them in the comment section. You can also have a scavenger hunt. Make a list of home items and whoever can run to find that item and get back to the screen the fastest will

graphic by Sunil Bishwokarma

get that point. You can mail out prizes to the winners.

4. Live Cooking Sessions Have all your friends and family join a video call. Everyone can either choose the same food or dessert to cook, or just cook whatever

they have and enjoy company while doing it. For most families, cooking pies or roasting turkey is a big tradition. Video calls are a great way to keep in touch and to keep holiday traditions alive. contact Kylie Cichocki at cichockikb@warhawks.ulm.edu

Holiday

Face-to-face family oriented activities

3. Sweet Potato Filling For an easy to make, dorm friendly dessert, try making a sweet potato filling in a crockpot.

For this recipe, you’ll need cut-up sweet potatoes, brown sugar, four tablespoons of melted butter, one teaspoon of cinnamon, ¼ a cup of water, one teaspoon vanilla extract and a pinch of salt. Put the cut-up sweet potatoes in a pan or crockpot and add the rest of your ingredients to it. After four hours of cooking, mash the potatoes. Then, add as many marshmallows and pecans as you want. Cook the mixture for about five to ten more minutes. Then enjoy a hot, sweet treat of sweet potato filling.

4. Instant and canned food You can buy instant and canned foods and vegetables like instant mashed potatoes, rice, macaroni, canned corn, green beans and carrots. These can be easily cooked in a rice cooker, microwave or on a stove. When cooking your vegetables, you can also add butter and other seasoning.

Play family football This activity could easily become a tradition you and your whole family observe after your bellies have settled from Thanksgiving lunch.

The great thing about family football is that you can have any number of people to play.

Whether you have a big family or a small one. All you need is a football and a competitive spirit. You don’t even have to play by the rules. Make up your own rules. Playing this game in a fun and relaxed atmosphere will help strengthen your family bond.

Thanksgiving art and crafts

If you have smaller children in your family, this will help the adults become closer to them. All you need is paper, yellow, red, brown and orange paint, sharpies and paintbrushes. Paint your hand with the different colors in any pattern you want to. Stick your painted hand on the paper. Draw a face on the thumb. This will make a Thanksgiving turkey. You can even make hats that represent Thanksgiving and fall themes with the paint, paper and sharpies.

Decorate for Christmas

This Thanksgiving tradition can help reduce the stress, of preparing for the holidays on your family members. You can pull out all your decorations and decorate with the family. From setting up the Christmas tree to putting on the ornaments, one can always use an extra hand. Help your family members decorate their homes after the Thanksgiving meal. Turn on your favorite Christmas movies and make some hot chocolate to have some of the best Thanksgiving memories.

November 23, 2020

THE STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA MONROE

PAGE 7 FREESTYLE FREESTYLE

Greek Life

Fraternity uplifts black women through pageant

by Kaitlin Maness

With her head elegantly bowed, Meilan Whitaker’s fingers flitted over the keys of her keyboard, and the room fell in awestruck silence. As the last note drifted through Bayou Pointe, the crowd erupted in applause loud enough to burst eardrums. This was not the last time Whitaker would elicit such a response from the audience that night.

Whitaker was one of eight participants in Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity’s annual Miss Black and Gold pageant. Each year, through the pageant, one woman is chosen to represent the fraternity. This year, Whitaker took home the crown and responsibility behind the title.

However, that is not all the Miss Black and Gold pageant stands for. It is also an event designed to empower and uplift the black women within ULM’s community. Through the pageant, the contestants widen their horizons by stepping out of their comfort zones and making life-long friends.

Starting preparation for the pageant six weeks ago, Whitaker was shy. But you wouldn’t have been able to tell that from watching her last Thursday night as she sashayed across the stage smiling from ear to ear.

“Starting out in the beginning of the pageant journey, I was so shy and stayed to myself.”

Whitaker said, “Now, I’ve gained so many

friendships from the contestants and alphas.”

As co-hosts of the pageant, Destinee Woods and Jalen Romain had the privilege of watching each contestant grow more comfortable with themselves through the process. To the both of them, this was the most rewarding part of the experience. “[The pageant] gets them out of their comfort zone and become more confident about themselves,” Romain said. “That’s the key to the whole pageant. Yes, it’s a competition, but it goes beyond just winning titles.”

The Miss Black and Gold pageant not only uplifted the contestants but also everyone involved. Woods had never considered co-hosting an event before but found herself going out on a limb to try something new.

“I am usually not the one to do public speaking but it was something I wanted to try,” Woods said.

Allison Newton, the current Miss ULM, helped judge the pageant. As a senior, Newton said she was curious to see what up-and-coming leaders were being cultivated in the university. After attending the Miss Black and Gold pageant, she was impressed by what she saw, and found it difficult to choose the winner.

“It was a quality field of candidates and it was inspiring to see everyone show their hearts on stage,” Newton said. “I believe consistency was the element that decided the winner. It seemed

Campus Event

photo courtesy Cobe Boston

FLAUNT, STRUT AND GRACEFULLY POSE:Members of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity congratulate the new Miss Gold, Miss Black and Gold and Miss Black after their coronation at the pageant.

so close to me.”

Whitaker is a sophomore pre-nursing majoring from Grand Cane, La. During her time as Miss Black and Gold, she hopes to host an event discussing the importance of women’s health.

Ty’leshia Brown won the title of Miss Gold, Khala Scott won the title of Miss Black and Kiauna Rollins won the title of Miss Congeniality. contact Kaitlin Maness at manessk@warhawks.ulm.edu

Warhawks relieve stress with Christmas cheer

by Calli Sinclair

photo courtesy Calli Sinclair

YOU CAN’T CATCH ME, I’M THE GINGERBREAD MAN:Warhawks relieve their stresses as finals approach by building gingerbread houses with CAB.

November is almost over, so you know what that means—It’s time to put up the tree, string the lights and turn on your favorite Christmas album.

If you want to get really festive, you can never go wrong with building a gingerbread house.

In fact, last Friday, students gathered in the SUB ballrooms to celebrate the holidays by building gingerbread houses together.

At the end of the event, anyone could enter their house into the competition. This was the first gingerbread house building event ever hosted by CAB, and officials said they plan to host more in the future, especially since this event had a good turnout.

Zaria Neal, the vice president of CAB, said, “We’re bringing Christmas cheer a little early.”

Like many others, Neal understands

that this semester has been very stressful for students because they’ve had to take most of their classes online.

“Because this semester has been stressful for so many, we decided to host this event to bring holiday cheer and help relieve some stress,” Neal said.

Attendees could also help themselves to hot chocolate and other treats while they built their houses.

Students were given free rein to be as creative as they wanted while showing their building skills.

Many built elaborate houses with intricate designs on the roofs and lawns. Several students even told a story with their art by displaying a gingerbread man murder scene.

Bryce Lovelady, a junior who is currently the weekends event committee head for CAB, expressed his satisfaction with the turnout of the event.

“We tried to think of a unique idea that hasn’t been done before,” Love-

lady said. “Many people usually don’t get the opportunity to build gingerbread houses, so we thought this would be a great way for students to have fun and be creative, while also de-stressing.”

A student who attended the event, Princess Ayika, was just as enthusiastic about the event.

“It’s great they host these types of events. It helps bring life to campus, especially since many of us aren’t able to be on campus because of online classes,” the senior medical laboratory science major said.

Ayika was one of the students who creatively displayed a gingerbread man murder scene in front of her house.

“To me, this event is successful because I see the smiles on the students’ faces. If they’re happy, I’m happy,” Lovelady said. contact Calli Sinclair at sinclac@warhawks.ulm.edu

PAGE 8

THE STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA MONROE

November 23, 2020

SPORTS

Football

Rival revival canceled after COVID-19 cases ULM, LA Tech students reflect on possibility of historic game

by Cameron Jett

As the Thanksgiving holiday draws closer, many students and Warhawk fans were anticipating a renewed rivalry: ULM vs. Louisiana Tech.

However, as COVID-19 cases rose to unprecedented numbers, especially between the two schools, the game was forced to be canceled.

While ULM has fallen to have the worst record in the country, the potential upset of an old rival would go down in Warhawk lore.

Currently, Tech has the all-time series lead with a record of 29-14, and Tech would love to pad their lead with the first matchup between the schools in 20 years.

Fans of both teams have expressed their dismay over the decision to cancel the game. Blaine Wilson, a freshman nursing major from ULM, said he has been waiting all season for this specific game, and to have it taken away was saddening.

“It’s disappointing,” Wilson said.

graphic by Sunil Bishwokarma

“This has been the one game I have been looking forward to ever since the schedule was released.”

On the rival side, Emily Roberson, a freshman biology major from LA Tech, had been anticipating the game since quarantine. She said she even planned a trip to Shreveport with her friends for the occasion.

“This was the game that me and all my friends were looking forward to,

especially with it being in Shreveport,” Roberson said. “I have a lot of friends at ULM and we’ve been talking about it all through quarantine.”

John Waskom, a LA Tech football player, said that to him and to his team, the ULM game felt like a special opportunity.

“Every game is important but this one has felt more personal than any other one,” Waskom said. “I hate to

see it get taken off the schedule like this.”

The rivalry between the two teams located off I-20 dates back to 1953 when the Northeast Louisiana State Indians met against the LA Tech Bulldogs in Ruston. The two teams would meet every season until 1991.

Then, they would meet again for a four-year streak until 2000 when the rivalry seemingly vanished.

While this was set to be the first game between these two programs in two decades, it was not the first attempt to renew an old rivalry.

In 2012, ULM pitched the idea to schedule a game between the two teams. However, LA Tech’s President, Les Guice, was opposed to the idea.

Guice felt that the Warhawks were not up to par with a team that was becoming a “national brand.” At the time, Tech had won six straight bowl games, which is the fourth longest winning streak in NCAA football.

ULM on the other hand, has not made a bowl appearance in this time span.

Students and players are not the only people to be disappointed by the cancellation. ULM’s administration is McDonald saddened by the failed attempt to revive the iconic rivalry as well.

Athletic Director Scott McDonald said he will begin trying to reschedule the game soon.

ULM football will resume normal activities on Nov. 28. contact Cameron Jett at jettcm@warhawks.ulm.edu

Volleyball

Season ends with loss to Jaguars at championship

by Cameron Jett

ULM volleyball played in its final game this season, taking a loss to South Alabama in the Sun Belt Championship tournament.

The South Alabama Jaguars gave their all against the Warhawks in three sets with the scores being 2516, 25-18 and 25-19.

The seniors fought valiantly in their last game in a Warhawks uniform.

They earned praise from Coach Charlie Olson.

“They played great and left it all on the court,” Olson said. “The chance to play in the postseason was outstanding.”

While each set would remain competitive early on, the Jaguars went on runs that would put the game out of reach. In the first set, the Warhawks made it a two-score game on several occasions but the Jaguars

would score seven of their next eight that would keep the Warhawks out of the remainder of the set.

South Alabama came out strong in the second set and held off the Warhawks for most of the game. ULM found a sense of urgency late as they closed the gap to 19-17 after a number of errors on the Jaguars’ side.

The Jaguars fought back yet again to take the second series. In the third and final series, ULM would come out strong and take the lead for the first time all game.

ULM held a 7-4 lead until South Alabama went on a scoring streak and reestablished their hold on the series.

After getting to a 18-13 lead, the Jaguars would then proceed to put the game away.

While the record has not reflected it, this team has shown growth throughout the season, and with the

youth this team has, this growth will hopefully be carried over to next year.

Only a few Division I teams would get the opportunity to play in over 20 games this season, and Olson felt that all of the games were “very high quality and challenging play.”

Most of the major contributions in this game came from the younger players on the team. Junior McKinley Thieded led the team in assists with 12 while sophomore Hailey Hughes recorded three blocks and sophomore Madeline Hogan posted seven digs.

All of these players will return with more experience and leadership that will give this team the potential to compete next season.

contact Cameron Jett at jettcm@warhawks.ulm.edu

photo courtesy ULM athletics

BITTER END: ULM’s volleyball team lost against South Alabama’s Jaguars at the Sun Belt Championship. This was the Warhawks’ last game of the season.