BEST SMALL, NON-DAILY —2017 Virginia Press Association The independent press of Virginia Commonwealth University
SPORTS Volleyball: 13 straight • 4
OPINIONS Ode to Self Care • 9
SPECTRUM Zine fest • 8
PHOTO BY ERIN EDGERTON
NEWS Student protests • 2
October 2, 2017 • Vol. 59, No. 6
VCU hit-and-run victim speaks out ering from serious injuries after she was hit by a, either red or orange, 2017 Ford Explorer while crossing the intersection of West Grace and North Belvedere Streets. The SUV didn’t stop after hitting the student and headed north, stopping at a red light a block from the impact at West Broad and North Belvidere Streets. Police tracked the
SOPHIA BELLETTI Executive Editor VCU Police Chief John Venuti announced a $5,000 monetary award Thursday for anyone with information leading to the arrest of a suspect in the hit-and-run involving a VCU student on Sept. 3. The 21-year-old junior is recov-
car across Leigh Street and believe it got onto I-95, but the exact path was unclear. The junior, who identifies as Lynn, hopes by telling the story of her accident the driver, or someone with information, will come forward. “I don’t hate them, I’m not angry at them,” Lynn said. “I just want them to know what effect they had,
their actions had, that night. I do want to see justice for what happened and I do really hope they decide to make the right choice and come forward.” Venuti says he believes there was more than one person in the vehicle. “There is no question whoever was in that vehicle knew they struck a human being,” Venuti said.
Lynn is now confined to a wheelchair for several more weeks while her pelvis, which was broken in four places and realigned by several metal rods that were inserted surgically, begins to heal. She said she hopes to be walking by next semester and was very lucky to not sustain head injuries. The incident occurred around
The empty stomach in our pockets
Richmond Tattoo & Arts Festival celebrates 25 years PHOTO BY ERIN EDGERTON
story on page 9
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DACA Renewal Clinics in Richmond EMMA GAUTHIER Contributing Writer Following the Trump Administration’s announcement to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, Political Latinxs United for Movement and Action in Society at VCU (PLUMAS)
teamed up with other Richmond organizations to hold DACA renewal clinics. The Legal Aid Justice Center and the Richmond Immigrant Legal Resource Coalition helped PLUMAS at VCU organize three clinics throughout the month of September — the most recent held
at the University of Richmond on Sept. 30. The clinic offered free DACA renewal applications to any recipient whose status expires before March 5, 2018. DACA holders are able to apply for renewal until Oct. 5. —continued on page 3
Field hockey: six-game streak snapped DANIEL PURYEAR Contributing Writer
PHOTO BY MICHEL MAULDING
story on page 5
10:24 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 3. Lynn crossed the sidewalk at North Belvidere Street. She was a few steps ahead of her boyfriend who watched helplessly as the SUV struck Lynn from behind. Police said the vehicle had a green light, but failed to yield right-of-way, as Lynn also had a walk signal. — continued on page 2
Field hockey (8-3) hosted the Saint Joseph’s University Hawks (9-2, 3-0 A-10) on Friday, Sept. 29 and the Appalachian State University Mountaineers (3-7) on Sunday, Oct. 1.
SIONA PETEROUS Spectrum Editor This past weekend one of the world’s oldest tattoo conventions, Richmond Tattoo & Arts Festival, celebrated it 25th anniversary. The festival featured more than 150 national tattoo artists, who are also internationally known, including celebrity artists from “Ink Master,” “Ink Master Angels” and VH1’s “Black Ink Crew.” There was also a vast number of entertainment options including tattoo competitions like Best Color Tattoo, Worst Tattoo and the Kids’ Tattoo competitions. For the second year in a row, the festival was run by Jesse Smith, owner of Loose Screw Tattoo in Richmond and Kenny Brown, co-owner of Jack Brown’s Tattoo Revival in Fredericksburg. Brown and Smith didn’t know each other before they started to organize the 2016 festival, however, the previous organizers figured they would work well together. Both men have extensive experience in the industry with Brown tattooing for 25 years and Smith tattooing for 20 years, respectively. “The people who ran the convention before knew both of us and thought we’d make a good team,” Smith said. “They said ‘OK you guys are the team, go!’ and we had to figure everything out.” Smith said the duo balances each other — Brown helps Smith him from “running” into the more progressive new forms of tattooing and Smith encourages Brown from staying rooted in tradition. This balance between the contemporary and the historical falls in line with the aesthetic chosen by the co-creators. — continued on page 8
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The Commonwealth Times
Monday, September 25 Drunkenness 1000 W. Grace St. Closed Drug Violation 800 S. Cathedral Pl. Pending Stalking 10 Randolph St. Pending Harassment Grace & Broad Residence Hall 1000 W. Grace St. Pending Larceny 601 W. Cary St. Pending Sexual Assault B800 W. Grace St. Pending Hit & Run 1200 W. Clay St. Outside Agency Hit & Run 1500 W. Broad St. Outside Agency Fraud - Credit Card 301 W. Grace St. Outside Agency Burglary 1120 W. Grace St. Outside Agency Threaten Bodily Harm Main Hospital - MCV 1250 E. Marshall St. Pending
Tuesday, September 26 Shooting 919 W. Grace St. Pending Shoplifting Barnes & Noble 1111 W. Broad St. Pending Hit & Run 224 E. Broad St. Pending Harassment 107 N. Morris St. Pending Theft Cary St. Gym 101 S. Linden St. Pending Hit & Run Cary St. Deck 1101 W. Cary St. Closed Drug Violation 812 W. Franklin St. Closed Fraud- Credit Card 1363 W. Broad St. Outside Agency Burglary 15 S. Morris St. Outside Agency
Wednesday, September 27 Drunkenness Shafer Dining Hall 810 Cathedral Pl. Closed Trespassing 535 N. Harrison St. Outside Agency Shooting 301 W. Franklin St. Outside Agency Theft 100 N. Morris St. Outside Agency Shoplifting Kroger 901 N. Lombardy St. Outside Agency
Thursday, August 24 Hit & Run West Main St. Deck 801 W. Main St. Pending Drug Violation 1200 W. Marshall St. Closed Harassment B00 N. Laurel St. Pendin g Aggravated Assault 1120 W. Grace St. Outside Agency
Download the VCU LiveSafe mobile phone app to report crimes anonymously. To contact the VCU PD: (804) 828-1196. For an on-campus emergency: (804) 828-1234. For an off-campus emergency: 911.
Experts weigh in on what motivates protesters
SAFFEYA AHMED Contributing Writer Neo-Confederate protesters defending the preservation of Confederate monuments in Richmond were met in opposition by hundreds of individuals on Monument Avenue Sept. 16. Later that Saturday afternoon, a “Richmond Stands United” rally marched to counter the monument defenders. With tensions between political parties still running high following the most recent presidential election, citizens across the nation continue to voice their beliefs. “People protest because they perceive there to be an injustice in their society,” said Adam Ewing, assistant professor in the Department of African American Studies at VCU. “They doubt the ability of elected officials to adequately address it.” Samuel J. West, a doctoral student at VCU who specializes in group extremism and violence, said the motive behind protesting often boils down to one of two key ideas: group dynamics and moral decision making. While people are motivated by at least one of these two concepts, West said the motive for students is more pervasive. “There is a huge push from every direction for young, new undergrads to seek out groups to belong to,” West said. West expanded, saying extremist groups exploit that push and it is apparent with white supremacist groups who groom, recruit and radicalize young people before they realize it. The “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville in August embodied this idea. The rally sparked debate over the defense or removal of Confederate monuments and led to counter protests in cities across the nation. “The protests against the Confederate monuments have been remarkably successful,” Ewing said. He said a debate regarding the monument removal would have been unimaginable 10 years ago, but now motivations behind protesting are stronger and more persistent. “We are in the early years of a new phase in the struggle for racial justice,” Ewing said. Khudai Tanveer, student at VCU and president of the Queer Trans People of Color Collective, who attended the pro-Confederate rally as a counter protester, said her motivation for protesting stems from personal struggle and moral choice. “It’s this understanding of where your body stands and where you stand as a person,” Tanveer said. “Am I really willing to put my body on the line when it actually matters and when other people’s lives depend on it?”
PHOTOS BY ERIN EDGERTON
CRIME LOG
“At the base level, people want to be heard,” said Lecia Brooks from the Southern Poverty Law Center. In regards to Charlottesville, she said the rally repeated this narrative of emboldening people to be unafraid to act publicly. There were several systems at play for Charlottesville’s rally to happen the way it did, Tanveer said. “I think the fact that it is always black and brown bodied folks putting themselves on the line says a lot,” Tanveer said Alt-right groups rising in the U.S. since the 2016 election have seen their share of opposition.
“The rise of white nationalism and supremacy is largely due to the shifting demographic in the U.S.,” said Lecia Brooks, director of outreach at the Southern Poverty Law Center. According to Brooks, the socalled “browning” of America, and the white racial anxiety resulting from it, gives certain people a false sense of marginalization. “At the base level, people want to be heard,” Brooks said. In the case of alt-right groups,
Brooks said that posing as the aggrieved party has become a strategic motive more than anything else. For them, she said, it is all about gaining more media attention and creating buzz, rather than a desire stemming from moral choice. Brooks said the solution lies in the unequivocable denunciation of any and all hate. “Protests are an essential component of social change,” Ewing said. “But protests themselves are never enough. Change requires
organized political pressure and day-to-day grassroots organizing, which is much harder and much less visible.” According to Tanveer, achieving true social change requires showing up in different ways. Other steps in the forms of financial contributions, campaign work or educating those around you are necessary. “We’re on the brink of a revolution that we’ve been fighting for a while,” Tanveer said.
VCUPD offers $5,000 reward for information in hit-and-run —continued from page 1 Lynn said she remained conscious the whole incident and heard the SUV accelerate as it ran her over and dragged her 50 feet down the street. “I remember being under the car,” Lynn said. “I remember afterwards I could see the pool of blood underneath me. I could feel something was broken. I didn’t know if it was my spine or my pelvis but I could feel my bones shifting a little bit and grating against each other. The first thing I did was wiggle my toes to make sure my spine was OK and I wasn’t paralyzed because that was scary for me. I was in shock, I didn’t know it happened at first. I thought it was a bad dream.” Lynn said police were on the scene within five minutes and the ambulance followed shortly behind. VCU security cameras caught the same vehicle six minutes before the accident driving on the wrong
side of the road. The SUV traveled westbound in the eastbound lane of Broad Street between 4th and 3rd streets. “That tells us the driver was either impaired or unfamiliar with the area,” Venuti said. Lynn now requires constant care and says she is no longer able to do mundane tasks by herself. “I can’t walk, stand or do normal things like use the bathroom alone,” Lynn said. She hopes to begin walking with a walker within the next few weeks before making the transition to crutches. “I think I’ll be feeling a lot better when I’m making progress I can see,” Lynn said. Venuti said VCU has a high density of both pedestrians and vehicles and encourages safety from all participants occupying the VCU footprint — whether that be by vehicle, foot or bicycle. “Pedestrians and vehicles are constantly competing for the same
space,” Venuti said. “We constantly see pedestrians walking when they shouldn’t. We do a lot of traffic enforcement to try to modify the behavior of the drivers, but it’s a really dense area with a lot of students and a lot of vehicles and we encourage drivers and people operating bicycles to be careful when driving in the VCU campus.” VCU Police detectives ask anyone with information about this crime to call Det. Lee Olds at (804) 382-2719. VCU Police also accepts information and tips at (804) 828-1196. Members of the VCU community can download the LiveSafe app to submit tips, screen shots, photos and videos directly to VCU Police. Tips can be submitted anonymously to Metro Richmond Crime Stoppers online or by calling (804) 780-1000.
PHOTO BY ERIN EDGERTON
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“Lynn” is in recovery following a hit and run accident leaving her wheelchair bound.
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ZOBIA NAYYAR Contributing Writer VCU student-run organization, United 2 Heal (U2H), is in the process of gathering and sending medical supplies to Houston, Texas as they rebuild from the September floods. U2H gathers surplus medical supplies from local Richmond hospitals and sends it to communities in need, often overseas. U2H has sent shipments of supplies to various countries including Lebanon, Syria, Ghana, Nepal, Philippines, Egypt and Bangladesh. One of their biggest shipments was sent to Turkey last winter when U2H sent a 40-foot container filled with medical supplies and clothing donations worth $100,000. “We believe that the lack of medical supplies should never restrict someone’s access to proper healthcare,” said Elhaam Jawadi, president of U2H. “Our hope is that by opening chapters in universities across the United States [including the University of Virginia, University of Richmond, and George Mason University], we will create enough collection and redistribution centers to account for excess medical supplies in the country.” Moustafa Moustafa, a student
at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, started U2H in 2008. A friend of Moustafa’s, Mohamed Shaaban, started U2H at VCU in Fall 2011. The organization became an official non-profit in June 2015.
We all genuinely believe that what we’re doing is going to save the world. Anja Armbruster U2H Volunteer Shaaban died in 2013 due to a sudden health complication. However, according to U2H volunteers, his legacy lives on through his mission to bring medical supplies to countries all around the world. U2H has various positions on their executive board to increase their level of impact including a local outreach director, warehouse
director and an outreach committee. The committee is pivotal to the core function of U2H since they are responsible for connecting to local clinics and hospitals to receive donated medical supplies. According to warehouse director Zaid Mahdawi, every Friday an estimated 30 volunteers drive to the U2H warehouse on Maury Street where they sort, package and ultimately send out supplies. “When you’re working with United 2 Heal and you’re working with this incredible group of people, there’s this sense of hope and genuine youthful energy that you can’t find anywhere, “ said Anja Armbruster, a VCU student and U2H volunteer. “We all genuinely believe that what we’re doing is going to save the world.” U2H has a number of events planned for this semester including a soccer tournament and a destress event before final exams in December where they distribute stress balls, cookies and U2H gear. “We are currently working on increasing our rate of incoming donated supplies as well as our shipping rates,” Jawadi said. “We appreciate donations of our community members and local businesses as they help us continue to fulfill our mission.”
PHOTO BY ELIZABETH HUMPHREYS
VCU student organization sends aid to Houston
United 2 Heal sent roughly $100,000 worth of supplies last winter to a refugee camp in Turkey.
Local organizations help DACA recipients renew before dealine
ILLUSTRATION BY YEWEI WANG
—continued from page 1 Legal Aid Justice Center Attorney Phil Storey was a lead organizer for the clinic. “We’ve been involved since the beginning in supporting DACA recipients,” Storey said. “When the announcement came out we got involved with our northern Virginia office and this group came up with this clinic model so that we could offer as many of these clinics throughout the state as possible.” DACA is an immigration policy that grants the children of undocumented immigrants two-year stays with an option of renewal. According to the Pew Research Center, roughly 790,000 individuals were impacted by the program since its inception in 2012 under the Obama Administration. The program allows young undocumented immigrants to apply
for college, driver’s licenses and work permits without the fear of deportation. President Donald Trump announced the termination of DACA on Sept. 5, which gave DACA recipients, also known as “DREAMers,” exactly one month to renew their status unless Congress passes legislation to protect the recipients. According to the State Council of Higher Education in Virginia, 1,326 students under DACA are currently enrolled in universities in Virginia, with 58 students at VCU. In total, about 200 people in the Richmond area are eligible for renewal. “[The termination of DACA] is really sad and unfortunate and I don’t think it’s legally necessary,” Storey said. “The argument from the Attorney General [Jeff Sessions] was that this was unconsti-
tutional in the first place. I disagree. I think it was unnecessary to terminate it.” One DACA recipient who attended the renewal clinic and asked to remain anonymous for safety concerns said their status is set to expire March 9, missing the timeline for renewal by four days, which they said, “leaves them undocumented.” The government has not released any information hinting towards mass deportations. President Trump encouraged Congress to develop legislation in the next six months to help protect the DREAMers. According to Sessions, if no legislation is passed by the March 5 deadline then DACA recipients will be seen as undocumented immigrants and will face the risk of deportation.
MARY LEE CLARK Staff Writer According to new reports by the Federal Student Aid center, student debt is not improving. The report, showing trends in federal loans and Free Application for Federal Student Aid, applications among borrowers, found more people are in debt and less are applying for federal loans and grants through FAFSA. Leslie Stratton, professor of economics at VCU, said these trends are not new. “It is well known that the total amount of debt, outstanding student debt, has been growing very rapidly,” Stratton said. “There have been claims from time to time that it’s going to be the next overall debt crisis.” Fifty-seven percent of borrowers owe less than $20,000 in federal student loans and about 5 percent of borrowers owe more than $100,000 in federal loans, ac-
cording to the report. Washington D.C. has the highest average federal student loan debt balance for students with nearly $50,000. The report also shows less students are applying for FAFSA. In its peak year, 2011-12, FAFSA received 21.9 million applications. In the 2016-17 cycle, they received 18.7 million. Forty-two percent of outstanding student loans are from public colleges and universities, 32 percent from private schools and the remainder are from proprietary and foreign institutions. According to Stratton, there is hope for students because of new repayment policies and plans. For example, the FSA study cites higher enrollment in the new incomedriven repayment plans such as Income-Based Repayment (IBR), Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE). All of these programs help students who have accumulated federal debt
repay their loans at an easier rate. The same week the report was released, the U.S. Department of Education cut funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — a federal agency that acts as a watchdog to monitor student loan lenders and for-profit colleges who are often accused of defrauding students. For example, the CFPB is currently suing Navient, the largest student loan servicer in the United States, after examining complaints from student borrowers. The CFPB alleges a number of Navient customers have run into problems during the repayment process, which has led to more fees or potentially default. Betsy DeVos, Department of Education Secretary, is being sued by several states for the delay in the development of regulations designed to help defrauded borrowers get their money back.
PHOTO BY ERIN EDGERTON
Student debt continues to grow despite less FAFSA applications
Locals came to the aid of DACA recipients after the Sept. 5 announcement to recsind the policy.
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Monday, October 2, 2017
The Commonwealth Times
Stat of the Week
Volleyball (16-2, 3-0) has swept their last 13 sets, including all three conference matches.
THE PRESS BOX
Requiem for a protest the recent surge in anthem demonstrations. “Because this wasn’t a protest. This was unity — so what are we showing solidarity against? Colin Kaepernick was original- We’re showing solidarity because ly ostracized by the NFL commu- President Trump challenged NFL nity for breaking the cardinal rule owners. It wasn’t until he came of American sports; he brought for the NFL that their conscience politics onto the field with him. was shocked, but it wasn’t their Now, Kaepernick has paid conscience that moved them, it for his heresy with the loss of his was their cash.” livelihood. As the league kneels When Trump directly chaland locks arms in the largest unilenged the actions of NFL owners, fied protest major American sports he crossed a line in the sand. The have ever seen, Kaepernick is jobresulting league-wide surge in less and his message forgotten. protests is not the valiant, orThis demonstration may appear ganic defense of free speech it has to be a victory for the marginlargely been depicted as. Rather, it alized and disenfranchised on is a manifestation of NFL owners surface level. In reality, it is an flexing their muscles. These proepic failure — a clever ruse ortests are a public relations move — chestrated by those in power who a brilliant one at that. seek to defer attention from the Under the guise of Kaeperreal issues at hand. nick’s pro-tests, owners descended At a rally in Alabama on Friday, from luxurious VIP sweets to Sept. 22, President Trump elluded show solidarity with their disento Kaepernick and his fellow athfranchised employees. Really, the lete-activists, saying NFL owners NFL is one big happy family of should “get that son of a bitch off social activism. We’re all just singthe field right now,” when players ing kumbaya at this point. protest during the anthem. In all seriousness though, the This vitriol sparked the now hypocrisy necessary to put on such infamous expanded anthem proa performance is revolting. Owntests. All of a sudden, the NFL — ers such as Washington’s Daniel owners, coaches and players alike Snyder, the Cowboys’ Jerry Jones, — are united against a common New England’s Robert Kraft, the enemy, emboldened in their desire Jets’ Woody Johnson and Jackto speak out against institutionalsonville’s Shahid Khan — owners ized racism and bigotry just as who gave a million dollars for the Kaepernick did. inauguration of President Trump Right? — now portray themselves as apWrong. In reality, the NFL’s re- palled at his comments. sponse to Trump’s comments could “What are we uniting against? not have been more inorganic. What are we standing for now?” All of a sudden, after all the Sharpe said. “If that’s what atrocities this president has comit took, if what (Trump) said mitted, from joking about violatshocked your conscious, made ing women to mocking mentally you chose to unite — so be it. challenged children and failing to But there’s a bigger issue — the denounce white supremacists, this racism and the injustices in is what crossed the line? One “son America which Colin Kaepernick of a bitch” comment was where took a knee for in the beginning, things went too far? and only Martellus and Michael Please. Bennett, Malcolm Jenkins and What’s more, these protests a handful of other (players) still could not be further removed understand what the issues are.” from Kaepernick’s original iniJenkins and the Bennett brothtiative. The then 49ers quarterers are the most outspoken of the back said he began sitting and few players who joined Kaepersubsequently kneeling for the nick’s protests last season. With anthem in protest of police bruthe majority of the league now tality against people of color. wrapped up in the owner’s ruse, “I am not going to stand up to these activist’s political message show pride in a flag for a country has been shrouded in a veil of reject, was to reassure fans that it that oppresses black people and farcical unity. was both possible to love an unpeople of color,” Kaepernick said. Atlantic columnist Van changed NFL and care about the Whatever this new wave of Newkirk illuminated this contraracial issues Kaepernick brought protests seeks to denounce, its diction in an article, published last to the game,” Newkirk wrote. spirit is nothing like the moveweek, titled “Football Has Always “Just under the surface, the truth ment Kaepernick sparked a year Been a Battleground in the Culis that the gridiron is one of the ago. Although the demonstrations ture War.” Newkirk argues that main arenas where the fight over are similar, the cause behind them the two messages simply cannot injustice and American identity is more warped and twisted. go hand-in-hand. is waged, and that fight won’t be “I’m disappointed, and I’m “The net effect of the protests ending anytime soon.” unimpressed,” NFL Hall of Fame across the league, done in full The best lesson to be taken tight end and current Fox Sports embrace of the pageantry that from this charade, therefore, is analyst Shannon Sharpe said of Kaepernick’s protest seems to that the fight Newkirk eludes to is
ILLUSTRATION BY W.MAC WOOD
ZACH JOACHIM Sports Editor
an ongoing one. Kaepernick was and continues to be ostracized for mixing politics with sports, while the very owners who refuse to employ him engage in a mockery of his demonstration to show their “solidarity” with players. It’s really an ingenious public relations move, to be frank. It’s brilliant because NFL owners — and Trump, for that matter — have long realized what America seems to just now be figuring out. Sports, and particularly the
NFL, are not a safe haven from politics and clashes of cultural identity, but rather, a societal manifestation thereof. “There is no greater unifier in this country than sports,” said New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. “And unfortunately, nothing more divisive.” Colin Kaepernick didn’t bring politics on the field with him last year — he illuminated the extent to which they make up the foundations of the modern sports com-
munity, a corner of society which has long distanced itself from the political spectrum. And for better or worse, this enlightenment is here to stay — the revolution is, in fact, televised.
Lucky number 13: volleyball keeps streak alive blocks and 18 block-assists to Davidson’s six. With 40 kills in all — and a whopping 13 from Italian sophoVolleyball (16-2) traveled to more outside hitter Vicky GiomDavidson, North Carolina to marini — VCU stormed past the play the University of Davidson Davidson front row. Giommarini Wildcats at the Belk Arena Sat- shortening her distance in the kills urday. The Rams won in straight leaderboard between her and Gersets, 25-17, 25-22, and 25-13 over man senior Alica Kandler. Kandler the Wildcats to secure their 13th leads Giommarini by 76 career consecutive victory. kills, 459 to 383. The Rams continue to breeze Where the Rams truly set through opponents, both confer- themselves apart from the Wildence and nonconference. VCU’s cats was in kills percentage. VCU win Saturday was lucky No. 13 on managed a .213 percentage, comtheir history-making win streak pared to Davidson’s -0.19. and their third A-10 victory of the Rebekah Strange, the Rams’ season. The Black and Gold have senior libero from Avon, Indiana, also won 13 consecutive sets. kept the Black and Gold defense Volleyball did not let anything in check with a total of 18 digs. come in their side of the court Sophomore middle blocker JasSaturday night, with six solo mine Sneed led VCU in kill per-
PHOTO BY ERIN EDGERTON
DANIEL PURYEAR Contributing Writer
Senior libero Rebekah Strange (No. 6) recorded her 1,520th career dig on Saturday — she’s just the fifth VCU player to ever reach the 1,500 mark.
centage with .556 and six kills. The 16-2 start is the program’s best since the 2012 season, with VCU only losing to Texas A&M University and the University of Notre Dame in invitationals. The Rams are currently 3-0 in conference and right above the preseason favorite, Dayton University (2-0). Volleyball now begins a three-game homestand which will kick off with a matchup against the University of Maryland- Eastern Shore (14-5) on Tuesday, Oct. 3 at the Siegel Center. The Rams next conference game is against the University of Duquesne (7-10, 2-1 A-10) on Friday, Oct. 6.
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Field hockey loses consecutive matches first time this season
continued from page 1 Appalachian State
PHOTOS BY MICHEL MAULDING
Only two days after Saint Joseph’s University ended VCU’s six game winning streak, Appalachian State University likewise came to play. Junior forward Emily McNamara continued to lead the Rams’ attack after her game-high 12-shot performance against the Hawks. McNamara led the Black and Gold once again with eight shots, two on goal. Twin freshman midfielders Svea and Maite Sturm each put up two shots, with three on goal combined. Senior keeper Chessa Kownurko snagged a shot from Appalachian State’s Ali Williams in the 19th minute but, only 1:29 later, the Mountaineers were able to get past the senior. Taylor Cimbalist recorded the first shot for App State and of the game. VCU senior midfielder Spencer Tossone fed a corner to McNamara in the 42nd minute. McNamara was able to slip past the App State back line and open the scoring for the Black and Gold.
The goal was McNamara’s 10th of the season. Kownurko made some impressive saves in the second period and led the Rams into a third period with the score tied at 1-1. Appalachian State started the overtime period with intensity, committing eight penalties in the first nine minutes. That intensity allowed Mountaineer Meghan Smart to get her rebound shot in the net shortly into the overtime stanza. The Mountaineers played more aggressive and were able to get more shots on goal, leading to their 2-1 win in overtime. St. Josteph’s
The Rams went into a conference showdown with the Hawks of St. Joseph’s University riding a six-game win streak. Sadly, the Black and Gold’s streak came to an abrupt halt after hosting the #21 Hawks. The leaders of the A-10 downed the Rams decisively by a final score of 4-0. VCU put up a valiant effort, with more than double the
number of shots and shots on goal as the Hawks. McNamara put it all on the line and lead the team with 12 shots, six on goal. The Rams struggled to keep the ball away from the goalie box, and Kownurko was only able to save four of eight shots. The senior goalkeeper was even used by the Hawks’ Anna Willocks to get a shot in -- Willocks hit a shot off Kownurko’s foot and into the back of the net. The Hawks brought a physical mentality to Richmond with them, piling up 50 fouls in 70 minutes. This gave VCU ample opportunities through penalty corners, but the Black and Gold were never able to capitalize on the advantage. VCU (8-3, 2-1 A-10) heads to the University of Massachusetts (8-3, 3-1 A-10) on Friday, Oct. 6 for another pivotal conference showdown.
Senior forwards Jamee and Alexis Albright have combined for one goal on 16 shots this season.
Cross country’s Catlett leads Rams
JESSICA WETZLER Contributing Writer
Both VCU cross country teams traveled to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania to compete in the Paul Short Invitational this weekend. Only two invitationals into the new season, both teams have been performing strong and efficiently as they settle into the fall campaign. Men’s cross country placed 11th out of 18 teams in their first
8,000 meter race of the season at the Paul Short Invitational, while the women came in 12th out of 24 schools for the 6,000 meters. MEN
Leading the way for the men was sophomore Bryce Catlett, who placed fourth out of a field of 132 finishers. Catlett jumped 61 spots from his overall finish a year ago at the Paul Short Run. His 24:51
time was the best he’s recorded in his young collegiate career and was only 10 seconds behind the first place time. Junior Michael Villagomaz, who finished 70th overall, was VCU’s second runner to complete the race. Covering the 8K in 26:32, Villagomaz trimmed nearly 90 seconds off last year’s time. Following Villagomaz by 15 seconds was junior Austin Conway, who finished 81st. Freshman
James De La Rama completed his first collegiate 8K, placing 85th with a time of 26:53. Rounding out the Rams’ runners was senior Bismillah Alidost, coming in 110th. Between the men’s five runners, they averaged a time of 26:34.
WOMEN
On the women’s team, the Rams averaged a time of 23:07
during their 6,000 meter course. Sophomore Ashley Brown paved the way for the Black and Gold coming in 39th out of 197 competitors. Brown finished the race with a time of 22:31, beating out 158 other runners. Sophomore Judith White and senior Courtney Holleran ran sideby-side, both crossing the finish line at 22:35. The pair placed 45th and 46th, respectively. Coming in behind White
and Holleran at 23:18 was senior Kathleen Gardner, who secured the 84th overall spot. Gardner was just five seconds off her 2016 Paul Short 6K time. Senior Lindsay Seeley closed it out for the Rams with a time of 24:33, making her the 144th to cover the 6,000-meter course. Next up, the Rams will travel to Newport News, Va. to compete in the CNU Cross Country Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 14.
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PHOTO BY RAEYLN FINES
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Freshman midfielder Samantha Jerabek has tallied one assist and 20 shots so far this season.
Soccer: men down No. 15 Seahawks in 2OT, women falter in conference play
Men vs. UNC Wilmington
Nationally ranked UNC Wilmington provided the Black and Gold with a tough contest on Saturday, as the No. 15 Seahawks held VCU to a stalemate until the second overtime. Freshman goalkeeper Mario Sequeira’s effort in the net showed off his stellar abilities, as he made seven saves on seven shots, notching his second career shutout in as many games. Senior midfielder Rafael Andrade Santos was the hero of the affair, scoring the game-winning goal when only 17 seconds had ticked off the clock in the second overtime. Junior midfielder Eli Lockaby
Women vs. Umass
The University of Massachusetts Minutewomen visited the Rams on Sunday, with the match resulting in a 0-0 tie. Requiring two overtimes to complete, the deflating stalemate came just after the Duquesne Dukes broke the Rams hearts 1-0 in overtime in an away game for the Black and Gold. Junior forward Julia Suarez and freshman midfielder Samantha Jerabek each tallied four shots against UMASS, contributing to the team’s hefty total of 22. Suarez, junior defenseman Stephanie Stahl and senior defenseman Megan Dell all had one shot on goal apiece for a team total of three. Junior goalkeeper Audrey Sanderson added four phenomenal saves on the afternoon — UMASS could only muster four shots on goal themselves. VCU totaled 13 fouls, two more than the Minutewomen in what was a rugged, defensive match. After two overtimes, the
game ended with a 0-0 stalemate, leaving both sides proud of their back lines and searching for an offensive spark.
PHOTO BY ERIN EDGERTON
The VCU soccer teams combined for a 1-1-1 record over the past week, with the men’s squad adding a win to their record and the women’s team tallying a loss and a tie. Men’s soccer edged the University of North Carolina at Wilmington on Saturday by a score of 1-0, requiring two overtimes to down the No. 15-ranked Seahawks. On the women’s side, Duquesne University just managed to get by the Rams 1-0 and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst Minutewomen were unable to break a stalemate against VCU, concluding the match in a 0-0 draw. The men improved to 4-3-1, and the women dropped to 5-3-3.
and sophomore defenseman Ryo Shimazaki both tallied shots in the second half and UNCW collected two shots against Sequeira in the first overtime, but both were denied. Freshman center-back Zeron Sewell received a second yellow card minutes into the second half — VCU played with one less man for the remainder of time, but the Black and Gold were not deterred, as they collected a much needed win against a top-tier opponent
Women vs. Duquesne
Women’s soccer team was unable to hold off Duquesne on Thursday night, falling to the Dukes by a score of 1-0 — the Rams first loss in five games. The game’s first 90 minutes resulted in a 0-0 draw, sending the evening into overtime. Just moments into the first overtime, Duquesne scored a ‘walk-off’ goal. Sophomore midfielder Rachel Hardy paced the Black and Gold offense with three shots on the night, including two on goal. Junior midfielder Maddi Santo and freshman midfielder Kimberly Ito also notched two shots apiece, each putting one on goal. Each side only mustered two shots the first half, and the score remained at 0-0 at halftime. The first 24 seconds of the second half provided the Rams with four shot opportunities and their best chances of the match, but none ended up in the back of the net. The Wildcats of Davidson University will arrive in Richmond on Wednesday, Oct. 4, for a 7 p.m. faceoff with the VCU men’s team, who will look to tally their fifth win on the season. The VCU women’s squad will next face St. Joseph’s University on Thursday, Oct. 5, for a 7 p.m. match at Sports Backers Stadium.
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ADAM CHEEK Contributing Writer
Men’s soccer beat UNC Wilmington 1-0 despite being outshot 22-4. ADVERTISEMENT
Go Green, Save some green.
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On this day
Pink Floyd release their first international number one album, Atom Heart Mother, Oct. 2 1970 solidfying their status as alternative rock pioneers
Current Art Fair concentrates content
Sam’s Take: “Battle of the Sexes” is as entertaining as it is relevant
FU UF ND AI YI NB IO AT TR US
ing a time LGBT issues were still swept under the rug is fascinating to watch. Credit has to go to the filmmakers, but Emma Stone gives a stellar performance. She manages to encompass the public persona and the personal life of King, knowing the issues or the characters. Riggs when to “ham it up” and when to isn’t a horrible man who only exists strike with an emotional moment. as the villain of the real-life event. While King is the star of the King doesn’t always do the right show, Steve Carell manages to thing — after all she does cheat steal his scenes as Riggs. He plays on her husband. There are layers the part of a showman who loves to this event and to these people, the thrill of attention. Yet, he’s leaving the audience with relatable not just comic relief, as we are and complex characters. given brief glimpses into his own The majority of the time, the film problems. Riggs may have been is able to capture the look and feel as chauvinistic as he claimed, but of the 70’s, even down to the camit’s clear he’s doing these stunts era work. There are many scenes that against women more to be in the appear like they came from a docuspotlight rather than make any mentary shot in this time, feeling points about male superiority. grainy and improvised. What makes “Battle of the But the filmmakers don’t always Sexes” entertaining, honest and succeed since the visual effects effective is that it doesn’t simplify used to put the actors into older
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It’s easy to forget just how far we’ve come as a society in the past 40 years. While it’s clear that we still have a lot of work to do to represent underrepresented groups, social mindsets have changed dramatically. One event of the 1970’s that helped to change the minds of sexists around the world was the “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match between female tennis champion Billie Jean King and former male Wimbledon winner Bobby Riggs. It was an international event which served as proof women are capable and as strong as men in ways outside of gender expectations. The tennis match wasn’t just about tennis; it became an international representation of the rapidly growing women’s movement and would be referenced consistently as a point of inspiration during the conservative backlash against the movement of the 80’s. 44 years later, this legendary match has been turned into a feature film titularly titled “Battle of the Sexes.” Filmmaking duo Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris do a fantastic job at capturing not only the social impact of this match, but pointing out the surprising relevance of the issues discussed decades ago. Directors Dayton and Faris make a smart decision by mostly following King’s story, not only because she’s an interesting person, but her conflicts are timely. King’s struggle with promoting women’s rights as a gay woman dur-
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SAMUEL GOODRICH Staff Writer
footage always looks off. This made it difficult at points to buy that these famous actors were the people, they were portraying, breaking my suspension of disbelief. There’s an especially awkward shot of two people standing together near the end, ruining the tension the film was building towards the final match. Despite minor problems, “Battle of the Sexes” is as entertaining as it is relevant. A crowd-pleasing underdog story that is given more weight in how it handles issues of sexual identity, gender equality and public vs. private life. While nothing groundbreaking, this is still a film worth seeing if only for the uplifting message in this uncertain times.
PHOTOGRAPH BY ERIN EDGERTON
Spreading hope for Latin Americans
GEORGIA GEEN Staff Writer Many art galleries in Richmond are geographically close but from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1, 14 of them were even closer at the second Current Art Fair held in Main Street Station. The fair is the first of its kind in Richmond, bringing together contemporary art galleries in one space with intermittent panel discussions and live printmaking sessions. This year, galleries from Charlottesville and Petersburg were also in attendance. The total number of galleries doubled from last year. “I got a lot of interest after the success of last year,” Current Art Fair Director Sarah Irvin said. “When we come together, we make something better than when we keep in our own buildings.” This was Irvin’s first year directing the fair, a role she said she hopes to take on again next year. Main Street Station’s expansive space was divided with temporary white walls where gallerists hung their work, which was overall vibrant and colorful. A range of mediums were represented, including sculptures, photography and paintings. While all of the galleries displayed contemporary art, how the pieces fit into the overall category sometimes varied between galleries.
Dr. Larazon Nima speaks on how Sonia Sotomayor captures the complexity of Latinx politics. NYASIA MILAN WILLIAMS Contributing Writer On Sept. 27, VCU students gathered in University Student Commons theater as Larazon Lima, professor of American studies at The University of Richmond, spoke about the political disenfranchisement and emergence of the Latinx community. Early in the lecture, Lima emphasized the difference between Hispanic and Latinx identities. Hispanics are people living in America that are of Spanish-speaking ancestry and Latinxs are people living in America of Latin American ancestry. Lima went on to cover a background of Latin American history to support his lecture on the first Latin American Supreme Court Justice, Sonia Sotomayor. In honor of Latinx heritage, Lima spoke about the early involvement of Latinx advocacy groups. In September 1968 Congress approved Latino Spanish heritage week and by 1988 its observance evolved into a month-long period. Lima said that Latinx advocacy groups of that time recognized Latinx Heritage month as an opportunity to “foreground the legacies of survival of people
born out of the colonization of the the Americas through acts of national remembrance and commemoration.” Lima encouraged the Latinx audience members to identify themselves. He wanted to make a connection between the audience and his points on Latinx political disenfranchisement that American leadership doesn’t seem to consider. Current U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions made derogatory comments during Sotomayor’s confirmation hearings. Some of which reiterated the Latinx stereotypes in media. “It’s so saddening to [know] that the political leaders at the top don’t really know about the history and all the cases that have gone down,” said audience member Alexander Souvannarong. Latinxs are the “majority minority,” with a American population of 55 million, but are the least represented group, said Lima. He made note that many of the obstacles that Latinx individuals face are similar to those of the AfricanAmerican story, including racialized policing and barriers in the education system. Sotomayor defied the odds by being one of the first women to enter Princeton’s inaugural in-
tegrated class in 1972 and completed her studies at Yale Law School in 1979. Sotomayor’s success was helped by her Puerto Rican identity and opportunity to practice Princeton’s “affirmative action” option, one that so many before her did not receive, argued Lima. Sotomayor’s words from the “Opening Remarks to the Senate Judiciary Committee” projected on Lima’s presentation above him: “The progression of my life has been uniquely American...On her own, my mother raised my brother and me. She taught us that the key to success in America is a good education. And she set an example, studying alongside my brother and me at our kitchen table so she could become a registered nurse. We worked hard.” “She is the exception that proves the rule,” Lima said. “She proves the rule of national exclusion by virtues of graduation rates and data that we know that we already have.” Lima said America’s tiered democracy has made it so minorities like women, Latinx Americans, African Americans and Asian Americans are “the ones who want it the most, the ones who want to climb the ladder of success like Sonia Sotomayor did, are the ones traditionally most disenfranchised.”
Lima expanded on the idea of better opportunities to excel for people of the Latinx community by using the cases of Fisher v. Texas and Bakke v. California as an example of conflict. He said the diversification of administration and data are crucial in encouraging more minorities to attend college. “You want professors who reflect the wealth of students and their experiences, because we have the data. And the data tells us that students do well, whether they are African-American, Latinx or white or first [generation]... If they have professors who mirror the social mirror in front of them,” Lima said. Lima is a graduate of Connecticut State University, where there was a more representative student body. Lima adored the structure of VCU’s learning environment with the university’s aim for overall diversity and expressed a level of gratitude for diverse institutions like CSU and VCU for their ability to be more responsive to their students. “Now that we have the students, we need to change the curriculum in a way that’s meaningful,” Lima said. “History conditions political emergence.”
What I really hope is that the world notices the Richmond art scene. B.J. Kocen Glave Kocen Gallery B.J. Kocen from the Glave Kocen Gallery said his pieces lie somewhere between traditional and contemporary art. The pieces displayed at Current Art Fair included many cityscapes, including some of the Richmond area. The gallery shies away from politically or socially-charged work, despite the fact that art is traditionally motivated by those factors, Kocen said. “We want people to come into our gallery and relax, feel like they can decompress a little bit so that you can give yourself the rest to be able to do with those social [and]
political issues we’re facing today,” Kocen said. Kocen speculated that the rapidly growing success of Current Art Fair could play a role in turning Richmond into a more serious art market that can compete on a national or global scale. “What I really hope is that the world notices the Richmond art scene,” Kocen said. Eric Walton, the director of Walton Gallery in Petersburg, shares some of the same sentiment. “We will do our part in this art community to help it grow,” Walton said. “It’s all about everybody doing their part to make it one big, collective community.” The Walton Gallery has been open for five years and is familyrun. Walton described the gallery’s works as being more pure abstract art that might require more reflection in order to understand. The Walton Gallery in particular displayed a wide range of aesthetics, including black and white photographs and lively sculptures. “I kinda knew what every gallery was bringing, so I wanted to bring a different edge, another flavor to the program,” Walton said. Julia Monroe, one of the codirectors of Reynolds Gallery also labels her gallery’s collection as more abstract and “outwardly contemporary,” saying they try to embrace and cultivate those kinds of works. Reynolds Gallery also attended Current Art Fair last year and Monroe said the crowd was as good this year as they were last year. The only difference lies in the number of vendors, Monroe said. Reynolds Gallery Associate Janie Hall said the environment of Current Art Fair is different from a traditional gallery visit. “You feel like there’s this one big Richmond voice in a way, which is different than going to each gallery one-byone,” Hall said. Elementary and high school groups visited the fair to supplement their normal art classes and were able to engage with some of the more “interactive” features of the fair. This included panel discussions that helped visitors break down a “barrier” that can get in the way of art, Irvin said. Irvin said she enjoyed working with different parts of Richmond’s art scene and views Current Art Fair as a way to build momentum. “I wanted to put [the fair] together because I think it has the potential to completely change the landscape of the art scene here,” Irvin said. “I really wanted to be part of something that was the next step.”
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Richmond Tattoo & Arts Festival celebrates 25 years December 2016,” Heim said. “The reaction at the festival has been great since tattooing is a booming industry in the area.” Booming isn’t an understatement. Since 2010 Richmond has been ranked as having one of the country’s highest tattooed population and in 2016 it was ranked the No. 3 city in America by various publications. “Sometimes I wonder if this hype will ever go away but then I come to this festival and go to other conventions and see it may be here to stay,” said Natalia Cudem, a publisher based in D.C. who has attended the festival on-and-off since the first one in 1992. “I’ve seen it become more acceptable and women with tattoos now aren’t demonized as being ‘loose’ like we
... and now there are a lot of tattoo artists who can compete with fine artists. Jesse Smith Loose Screw Tattoo Owner used to be.” There were numerous women tattoo artists present including the well known names of Katherine “Tatu Baby,” Flores, Kelley Dotty and Melody Mitchell. There were women tattoo artists present at almost every single one of the tattoo stations who were with a client or talking a client through the process of selecting a tattoo design. Aziza Narvaez is a first-year fes-
tival volunteer and shared some of her own advice for selecting a first tattoo. “Don’t ever pick from a book, choose your design and don’t be cheap,” Narvaez said while pointing to her own first tattoo. Carmen Batiste is volunteering for the festival a second time around. For the New Orleans native, the festival is an extremely inclusive environment to meet people. Both Batiste and Narvaez said that most surprising thing about festival was the boldness of the entertainment and learning about the Airsex Championships. The description of the Championship compares it most akin to playing guitar, but instead pretending to engage in sex. Drew Manley has been tattooing for 22 years and his experience ranges from formerly owning Tattoo 702 in Richmond, working at River City Tattoo also in Richmond and now working at Great Southern Tattoo in Alexandria where he focuses on American-traditional solid, bright, bold cartoon style tattoos. “I’ve been coming here off and on since 1997 and it’s grown because television is a huge change for the industry and exposed us to more people,” Manley said. “There will eventually be a backlash against so many people getting tattooed and the rebellious thing to do will eventually be to not get a tattoo.” Smith, however, holds a more cautiously optimistic view. “I remember there was a time I was thinking, ‘OK it’s getting very popular it’s not gonna last much longer,’ and then it got popular. I thought again, ‘OK, it’s not gonna last much longer,’ and then it got more popular,” Smith said. “I still think this at times but it keeps growing and that’s what we want.”
KEYRIS MANZANARES Contributing Writer After Hurricane Maria left Puerto Rico completely devastated, aid from international organizations and from the United States has been scarce. Smaller organizations and communities, including Richmond, have decided to take matters into their own hands. Last week President Trump publicly blamed the Mayor of Puerto Rico’s capital city of San Juan, Carmen Yulín Cruz, for the island’s post-hurricane effort on Twitter after a viral video of Cruz criticizing the lack of emergency response and lack of federal assistance from Washington. “We are dying, and you are killing us with the inefficiency and the bureaucracy,” Cruz said on Friday at a news conference. While the issue of bureaucracy and red tape is debated in regards to the federal response, organizations across the country are taking the initiative to raise funds to send to Puerto Rico themselves. Some of this aid has come from Richmond. The Anderson at VCU and The Richmond Cookbook project have
joined together to present Richmond Potluck, a citywide potluck and benefit show for Puerto Rico relief on Oct. 6 at 5 p.m. The Richmond Cookbook, a project by a Puerto Rican VCUarts graduate Steven Casanova, wants to encourage conversation and consideration around the diversity of cultures, backgrounds and living situations around the city. The project is an open call for recipe submissions that answer the question, “What do you want to share with your community?” “Its for my people, it’s for my family,” Casanova said. “It’s the least I can do.” Casanova said that the lack of effort made by the U.S. to aid Puerto Rico spurred him take matters into his own hands. For him, what is happening in Puerto Rico is a humanitarian crisis caused by discrimination and neglect, expedited by a natural disaster. According to Casanova, the only way to help the island, which he describes as a colony, is to help them become self-sufficient. The potluck will serve as a way to collect funds through art sales by VCUarts students and local artists.
It will also close The Anderson’s current exhibition, “Reach Out and Touch.” The potluck will feature homemade food from residents throughout Richmond. There will be musical performances by local Richmond bands including Cheap Garlic, Drums No Guns, The Sweet Potatoes and Kenneka Cook. Local poets Mimetic and Jade Fleming will lead an open mic session for the fundraiser. Casanova says that he has always been skeptical of organized assistance — instead, he sought out places where the people of Richmond can make donations and be sure that whatever help they give will be directly given to Puerto Rico. Donations will be accepted at the potluck and also through Youcaring. com/La Bridge and on Venmo @ LaBridgada. “There are not many places to donate supplies,” Casanova said. “So the potluck is a place in the heart of the city where you can drop off relief items.” The Anderson will also serve as a drop off location from Sept. 29 through Oct. 9.
Richmond’s 11th annual Zine Fest celebrates diversity
PHOTOGRAPH BY ELIZABETH HUMPHREYS
continued from page 1 Although the first festival was held in 1992, Smith said the festival formation can be traced all the way back to when a tattoo club met in the same Hilton venue in 1987. “It’s [location is] very rich in history and and we try to chose our setting based on tradition and history,” Smith said. “But of course we want to keep one foot in being progressive and contemporary so we can ride both lines.” The artists who were selected represent a spectrum of tattoo styles from traditional artists, new school artists, Japanese artists, fine art artists to even the ancient practice of tebori where tattoos are etched into the skin. Smith said one of his larger goals is to collide the art world with the tattoo world and get rid of the existing divide between the two worlds. “The tattoo world is starting to bring in amazing artists and now there are a lot of tattoo artists who can compete with fine artists,” Smith said. The range of type artists available echoes with his vision. This attention to diversity of styles extended to the festival’s over 30 vendors present. A few of the dozen of vendors present on Friday evening of the Festival’s opening were Boom Boom Basics, Graven Goods, Kulture, Babies Rabies, Vinyl Conflict and 36 Ghosts. Nate Heim owns 36 Ghosts, a Harrisonburg based company where tattoo artists create paintings designed to specifically translate onto clothing. This concept is unique in it ensures coloring, depth and dimensions of the paintings are not lost as it is often seen with painting designs which are used for, but not made for, clothing. “It was an idea I thought back of in 2015 and it came into fruition in
Richmond groups collab for Puerto Rico
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The Richmond Zine Fest is a safer space, intended to be a welcoming, engaging and supportive environment.
CT FILE PHOTO
EMILEY BAGALAWIS Contributing Writer
130 tattoo artists set up at the double tree by Hilton hotel in Richmond where the first tattoo festival was held in 1992.
Right past the entrance of the Richmond Public Library sits a room where light pours in from the ceiling. There’s paintings on the walls and chairs lining the walkway. There’s about eight tables set up. People are murmuring and walking around to see what’s on the tables. Behind one of the tables sits a woman. Upon closer inspection, the table is covered with books with illustrations on it. One is titled “In A Rut.” Inside are comics starring a woman who mirriors her appearance and seems to depict various aspects of her life. The next table is lined with more books but illustrated in a different print style — more handwritten and photocopied. One of the smaller ones says “Educate. Agitate. Organize!” Inside is a list of social justice terms and their meanings like “ableism,” “cisgender” and “safer space.” These are just some of the people who had their work displayed at the Richmond Zine Festival held at the Richmond Public Library on Sept 30. Zines, pronounced zeen, are magazine influenced self-publications. While many focus on personal experiences or political ideologies, the range of topics spread across the spectrum. Over 130 zine publishers had their own tables to display
and sold their work. Celina Williams, one of the coordinators for the event, said she has been coming to Richmond’s zine festivals since it began 11 years ago. “There were about six queer folks that started organizing,” Williams said. “They were creating their own zines and they really wanted a zine fest. I attended the first one, tabled at the second one and started organizing the third one.” She said she was unknowingly creating zines since she was a little kid but back then she called them “mini books” and gave them to teachers, friend, or anyone else she admired. She started professionally exploring zines when she started college and created a zine for a final project in of her classes at VCU. “Zines are giving that space to all people, especially marginalized people,” Williams said. “To put [their experiences] in a zine and someone pick it up and say, ‘Oh my god yes! I’ve been there.’ I don’t think you can get that through mainstream stuff.” At a table in the corner sits a publishing and curatorial project called “Gender Fail” run by Brett Suemnicht, a graduate student at VCU for painting and printmaking. The zines focus on perspectives of queer and trans people and people of color, saying they have a rich history since they are part of “the other,” and exist outside
of traditionally socially accepted margins of society. “[Zines] are so vast there’s no one theme,” Suemnicht said. “But I think it comes from more of a vantage point of queer folks, people of color, from feminists.” The festival snaked its way downstairs to the library’s packed basement. Near the back sits “blckboiqueerjoy” run by Jelani Drew and Blaise Davi. These zines focus on voices and experiences of southern, queer and trans people of color. One of their zines called “Queer Love” is printed in black and white and folded with doodles and handwritten text. Drew said zines can be for anyone -kids, older people, queer people or people of color. “[Zines] are a creative way for me to say something, make a statement or put out information,” Drew said. “It’s creative, it’s art, it’s a DIY thing anyone can do.” Sitting with one of her friends and looking at the works she collected from Zine Fest is Kelly, whose last name was withheld for privacy reasons. It was her first Zine Festival and she only learned about what zines were in August. “Some of my friends were talking about zines,” Kelly said. “I think they can be really informational and get an artist’s name out there.”
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opinions
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Quote of the week: “Take a deep breath and stop going a thousand miles a minute, I guarantee you some of the things you do in life are going to be boring and obligatory and aren’t worth mentally straining yourself over.” — Shaun Jackson, Staff Columnist
LETTER TO THE EDITOR:
Smoking and its long lasting flavor To the Editor:
N BY S T EC K VON
—Myles T. Francisco
IL L US TRA NB Y IA IN DU FFU S
movie off of Amazon for no good reason other than the fact I could. It gives us freedom from the confines of what we know we already have. It seems to help when students set themselves a spending limit for the week. While I don’t have a spending limit for myself, I tend to go for the cheapest item that I can find or wait to see if I can somehow get it free. The Huffington Post reported that in 2011 the average student spent over $700 on off campus food. Even with prepaid dining plans, students still use their own money to go out and eat instead of spending it on other necessities. The “broke college student” is an idea students adopt to explain our mentality as we deal with the financial decisions we make through college. While the definition seems straightforward, it isn’t because the phrase can be interpreted in different ways. —Marlon McKay
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most seem like a trap we willingly throw ourselves into. It’s a given now that becoming a student means adopting financial issues. With this looming issue in all our futures, there is no wonder we often give ourselves this title. Whether it be for our present lack of money or the dread of the future when we have to pay back all the money we borrowed for college. I would say a broke college student is someone who never seems to have any free cash when the situation calls for it. To avoid this, students might ask their parents for some extra spending money, get a job on campus or participate in programs such as Spit for Science. While it is easy to plan to save and limit your shopping, it’s as easy to do the exact opposite, especially with the magic piece of plastic most people have. USA Today College noted a survey that found in 2014, college students were more likely to have and use more than one credit card than they were in 2012. A credit card makes it easy to swipe for any purchase without much thought. I recently used my card to buy a
SKY
It isn’t just money students have on hand that brings up this mentality. It’s also the fact that thousands upon thousands of dollars have been spent for a higher education which can al-
There are 3,866 business students enrolled at VCU and 1,121 students enrolled in the School of Medicine. It would not surprise me if students in these fields were also smokers as a 10 percent of VCU students make means of dealing with stress. up the Arts department. I would Sophomore Kayla Baker started argue that a large number of stu- smoking cigarettes her senior year of
Me ex says that he’s over me, truthfully I am just as over him, but whenever he sees me he is extremely resentful or rude toward me. I’m sorry, but that doesn’t indicate that you’re over me. Thoughts?
ILLUST RATION BY ALLISO N VERJIN
Marlon McKay
Myles T. Francisco
SHAUN JACKSON Staff Columnist
To the Editor:
It’s a given now that becoming a student means adopting financial issues. With this looming issue in all our futures, there is no wonder we often give ourselves this title.
Once addiction sets in, it will not be easy to turn down a puff because you have activated the long lasting effects of smoking.
highschool because of stress. “There does come a time when I realize the long term effects of something, but the results of a life full of stress is no better alternative,” she said. She mentioned that her smoking habits have not drastically changed since she came to college, however, she said she is developing the skills to manage her stress. We are the generation that has constantly been advertised to by non-smoking campaigns and while our generation does smoke significantly less than the generations before us, there are still smokers among this age. ABC News reported in August the rate of smoking among college students is stable at 28 percent. It also reported they mainly only smoke in certain situations rather than every day. Many may view smoking as a temporary sensation, but this temporary sensation develops into larger problems down the road. Our youth today is ignorant of the dangers of tobacco consumption, yet they do it anyways. Most of the people who smoke cigarettes for relaxation or for the suppression of appetites are now addicted to cigarettes. Once addiction sets in, it will not be easy to turn down a puff because you have activated the long lasting effects of smoking.
An Ode to Self Care
The empty stomach in our pockets We work, we earn and we save our money before we start our college careers so we can live on campus and still enjoy our lives. When we get to college, it seems as if all that money disappears and we’re quickly saying we’re broke. Just the other day I nearly cried when I spent $34 on supplies I needed for a project, yet didn’t bat an eye when I spent $140 on a new 3Ds Gameboy. Despite the money I spent and the amount I have in my savings, I still consider myself a “broke college student.” This is a term I’ve heard thrown around a lot, but what exactly does it mean?
T R AT IO
LETTER TO THE EDITOR:
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Throughout the course of my life, I’ve never been surrounded by so many people that smoke cigarettes within my own age group. There are several factors that contribute to picking up the habit of smoking including stress, one’s upbringing and peer pressure. I would argue the most common reason students start smoking is because they want to create or maintain an image for themselves. I am from a college town myself. The University of Virginia is located in the Charlottesville, Albemarle County area and normally you do not see people of a younger generation smoking cigarettes like they did back in the day. I view Richmond, or more specifically Virginia Commonwealth University, as a miniature New York City, and those inhabiting this city are mostly smokers. Smoking may start out as just social smoking, however, when one isolates the act of socializing and smoking, they are left with a habitual situation. When you are in a situation in which you are socializing with others, you are more likely to engage in smoking cigarettes. Michael Custer is a junior at Virginia Commonwealth University and said he began smoking because a friend offered him a cigarette. He says he does not make smoking a habit because he cannot cause everyone else was doing it,” rolled at VCU and 2,868 of those stand the smell. he said. students are enrolled in the Arts “It was just a one time thing beThere are 28,363 students en- department, which means at least
dents in the Arts department are smokers, because it seems most artists smoke cigarettes. I do not believe students in the Arts department are the only ones that smoke, but I do believe most students are told that smoking cigarettes can suppress appetites and also reduce stress levels.
Honestly, navigating how to interact with an ex is one of the more tricky beginnings of being post-break up. It is near the end of 2017 and being petty is quickly and quietly going out of trend, so don’t stoop to his level. If he has a problem with you that he has not vocalized before or during the break up, that is completely on him. Don’t make his problems your problems. Get back in control of your life and emotions and don’t let his petulant attitude inhibit that process.
I’m having trouble breaking up with my boyfriend. I really care about him but it’s just not working. I don’t feel enough to say I love him. I’ve never had to break up with someone before. What’s the best approach? The best approach is to let him down easily. Don’t lead him on and continue to waste his time and yours if this is the decision you know you want to make. Find time to sit him down and tell him how you feel, or more specifically, why you don’t feel for him. I’m always a fan of ending intimate things amicably, but deciding whether or not you want to see him or have him in your life at any point in the future is entirely up to you.
Is there something that you can suggest for someone who wants to stop over analyzing everything they do in life?
Firstly, calm down, being over-analytical about everything is nothing but torturous for your head. Take a deep breath and stop going a thousand miles a minute. I guarantee some of the things you do in life are going to be boring and obligatory and aren’t worth mentally straining yourself over. Let me tell you a secret: stop analyzing and worrying because your twenties are supposed to be messy and nonsensical at times because you’re still learning and figuring who and where you’re supposed to be and that’s okay. Don’t add on to the stressors and unnecessarily cloud your vision.
Should you always accept your friends despite their flaws? Even if those flaws involve things that are harmful to your own happiness? Never knowingly and willingly keep someone around whose toxicity is permeating your life. Never allow that. Now, if the company you keep has flaws that they are knowingly cognizant of and these flaws harm themselves and their relationships and they have not acted to change or try to get better, they sound like terrible friends, and I would highly recommend cutting them off and giving a second thought to the company you keep.
comics
10 The Commonwealth Times
Art Students by Adam Goodman
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