Where students get a voice and a high school gets factual representation
We Are The Husky Howler . . .
Our 2019-2020 Pieces
Content created by students for students! Updated with new content every month, providing all sides.
A Quick Note From The Howler Team . . .
Hello readers, from wherever you come from, it's nice to catch you during such an intense time in our lives. With quarantine keeping our staff at home, we aim to keep the news rolling on this site. It's a hard time for all, sure, so the Howler wants to make sure that people have the chance to take a break from the mess... to simply read and watch content produced by students driven in quarantine to inform and entertain. The Howler will be active until the original last day of school for Reagan, May 15th, and we hope that you and your families can enjoy our final edition of the 2019-2020 Howler safe at home. Thank you Reagan supporters.
- Webmaster, Mya Bailey, and the rest of the Husky Howler Team
Hello readers, from wherever you come from, it's nice to catch you during such an intense time in our lives. With quarantine keeping our staff at home, we aim to keep the news rolling on this site. It's a hard time for all, sure, so the Howler wants to make sure that people have the chance to take a break from the mess... to simply read and watch content produced by students driven in quarantine to inform and entertain. The Howler will be active until the original last day of school for Reagan, May 15th, and we hope that you and your families can enjoy our final edition of the 2019-2020 Howler safe at home. Thank you Reagan supporters.
- Webmaster, Mya Bailey, and the rest of the Husky Howler Team
Hey! We're still doing the Weekly Howl, a week update of Reagan related news and events. Especially with school out of session, these videos will help update you on how Reagan's dealing with things. If you missed any and would like to check them out, please hit the button to the left.
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Next Steps For The Referendum
By Rebeca Acosta
On April 7th, the polls were open amid a pandemic; only 5 out of the 180 Milwaukee polls were open, about 400,000 state residents voted in person, and another 1, 239,611 requested absentee ballots, yet only 113,849 absentee ballots were returned. Despite voters having to choose between their vote or health, Milwaukee voters made their voices heard: YES for MPS as 78% of voters voted YES for the MPS referendum asking for 87 million dollars.
A couple weeks later, MPS Superintendent Dr. Keith Posley established the MPS budget for the 2020-2021 school year. The budget is set to increase academic achievement and accountability, improve district and school culture, develop staff, ensure fiscal responsibility and transparency, and strengthen communication and collaboration. Furthermore, the budget includes 35 teachers to help reduce class size, 64 mental health professionals, four restorative practice coaches, eight art teachers this year, two paraprofessionals, and professional development around teaching.
Gianmarco Katz, an 11th grade MPS student, was an active supporter for the YES for MPS campaign. Katz has collaborated with Voces de la frontera to promote the referendum. He shares that he has “canvassed and phone-banked for the referendum for 40 hours, had a meeting with the regional superintendent about the allocation of funds. I also have been fortunate enough to help lead efforts along with other great activists from around MPS, in a letter to the superintendent focused on prioritization of funding.” Katz and other MPS students have drafted a letter for Dr. Posley. “Our hope with this letter is that it provides the central office with the students' perspective on how to ensure equability throughout our district,” Katz says.
Katz goes on to explain “As a Reagan student, I am very fortunate to have access to full time electives such as: art, choir, band, orchestra, and language. I am also very fortunate to have four assistant administrators and four secretaries. However, other schools that serve disenfranchised populations receive less funding solely based on their student body. This algorithm is not equitable and caters to more fortunate, well-equipped schools like Reagan.”
Other schools across MPS have not been so fortunate. Teachers have had to teach classes they are not qualified for, classrooms have windows with broken screens, and students are learning by cover-less textbooks. Katherine Villanuevaa, a 10th grade student at Milwaukee School of Languages (MSL), says “one thing MSL doesn't have is a full-time librarian. Having one full time will allow us access to books any day of the week whether it’s a book required for a class or one we want to read for our own pleasure.” Z
To ensure schools like MSL get funded, the letter proposes MPS with a set of areas of what students needs’ need to be addressed, including child literacy, reading comprehension, the math proficiency gap, nutrition, retaining qualified teachers, staffing, hiring paras, full time electives, and outdated educational tools.
MPS students should be receiving the best education in the best learning environment. For students who see a problem within the educational climate, talk to your school's principal or union leader because it takes student voices like Gian to assure that all MPS students are granted the best education. Katz says “We believe that this letter combined with pressure and people voicing themselves, we can affect how funds are allocated.” It is important that students express their opinions because “Students see the challenges the district and it’s students face everyday. There is no other population of people better equipped to speak on the disparities in our district.”
Students or parents who want their voices heard can share their concerns or comments on Tuesday, May 19th at the MPS Board meeting at 5:30pm. Testimonies, which will be only two minutes long, will be taken live during the meeting. Those who want to speak to the Committee must register by 3:00 P.M. on May 19, 2020. To register to participate by dial-in, call 414-475-8200 and follow the instructions; to register to participate via email, visit the Broadcast page of the MPS website to send an email request: https://mps.milwaukee.k12.wi.us/…/School-Board/Boardcast.htm; to submit comments to the Office of Board Governance by mail, address to 5225 W. Vliet Street, Milwaukee, 53221; by email, to governance@milwaukee.k12.wi.us; or by fax, to 414-475-8071. Public comments received before 3:00 P.M. on May 19, 2020, will be forwarded to the Committee for its consideration.
The referendum has passed but it is up to the community to ensure they get what they voted for. Katz notes, “the fight is not over to guarantee equitable education in our city. We need constant participation and support. For anyone reading this that has not been a participant up to this point. I implore you to get involved as this is not only fighting for you, but your teachers, relatives, and your neighbors.”
By Rebeca Acosta
On April 7th, the polls were open amid a pandemic; only 5 out of the 180 Milwaukee polls were open, about 400,000 state residents voted in person, and another 1, 239,611 requested absentee ballots, yet only 113,849 absentee ballots were returned. Despite voters having to choose between their vote or health, Milwaukee voters made their voices heard: YES for MPS as 78% of voters voted YES for the MPS referendum asking for 87 million dollars.
A couple weeks later, MPS Superintendent Dr. Keith Posley established the MPS budget for the 2020-2021 school year. The budget is set to increase academic achievement and accountability, improve district and school culture, develop staff, ensure fiscal responsibility and transparency, and strengthen communication and collaboration. Furthermore, the budget includes 35 teachers to help reduce class size, 64 mental health professionals, four restorative practice coaches, eight art teachers this year, two paraprofessionals, and professional development around teaching.
Gianmarco Katz, an 11th grade MPS student, was an active supporter for the YES for MPS campaign. Katz has collaborated with Voces de la frontera to promote the referendum. He shares that he has “canvassed and phone-banked for the referendum for 40 hours, had a meeting with the regional superintendent about the allocation of funds. I also have been fortunate enough to help lead efforts along with other great activists from around MPS, in a letter to the superintendent focused on prioritization of funding.” Katz and other MPS students have drafted a letter for Dr. Posley. “Our hope with this letter is that it provides the central office with the students' perspective on how to ensure equability throughout our district,” Katz says.
Katz goes on to explain “As a Reagan student, I am very fortunate to have access to full time electives such as: art, choir, band, orchestra, and language. I am also very fortunate to have four assistant administrators and four secretaries. However, other schools that serve disenfranchised populations receive less funding solely based on their student body. This algorithm is not equitable and caters to more fortunate, well-equipped schools like Reagan.”
Other schools across MPS have not been so fortunate. Teachers have had to teach classes they are not qualified for, classrooms have windows with broken screens, and students are learning by cover-less textbooks. Katherine Villanuevaa, a 10th grade student at Milwaukee School of Languages (MSL), says “one thing MSL doesn't have is a full-time librarian. Having one full time will allow us access to books any day of the week whether it’s a book required for a class or one we want to read for our own pleasure.” Z
To ensure schools like MSL get funded, the letter proposes MPS with a set of areas of what students needs’ need to be addressed, including child literacy, reading comprehension, the math proficiency gap, nutrition, retaining qualified teachers, staffing, hiring paras, full time electives, and outdated educational tools.
MPS students should be receiving the best education in the best learning environment. For students who see a problem within the educational climate, talk to your school's principal or union leader because it takes student voices like Gian to assure that all MPS students are granted the best education. Katz says “We believe that this letter combined with pressure and people voicing themselves, we can affect how funds are allocated.” It is important that students express their opinions because “Students see the challenges the district and it’s students face everyday. There is no other population of people better equipped to speak on the disparities in our district.”
Students or parents who want their voices heard can share their concerns or comments on Tuesday, May 19th at the MPS Board meeting at 5:30pm. Testimonies, which will be only two minutes long, will be taken live during the meeting. Those who want to speak to the Committee must register by 3:00 P.M. on May 19, 2020. To register to participate by dial-in, call 414-475-8200 and follow the instructions; to register to participate via email, visit the Broadcast page of the MPS website to send an email request: https://mps.milwaukee.k12.wi.us/…/School-Board/Boardcast.htm; to submit comments to the Office of Board Governance by mail, address to 5225 W. Vliet Street, Milwaukee, 53221; by email, to governance@milwaukee.k12.wi.us; or by fax, to 414-475-8071. Public comments received before 3:00 P.M. on May 19, 2020, will be forwarded to the Committee for its consideration.
The referendum has passed but it is up to the community to ensure they get what they voted for. Katz notes, “the fight is not over to guarantee equitable education in our city. We need constant participation and support. For anyone reading this that has not been a participant up to this point. I implore you to get involved as this is not only fighting for you, but your teachers, relatives, and your neighbors.”
What We're Eating: Take It From The Howler
By The Howler Staff
As quarantine wipes the nation for many teenagers alike, a common theme found around many was in baking. Many found themselves toying around with recipes, replacing the usual stress of the everyday educational system with an frosting--perhaps it's the comfort in doing something entirely of your own tastes that makes this hobby appear when least expected. That being said, below we have three accounts from three of our current Howler Staff Members: Gabriella Hartlaub, Maysa Saadeddin, and Rebeca Acosta. Watch in full to learn how to reproduce these snacks on your own at home!
By The Howler Staff
As quarantine wipes the nation for many teenagers alike, a common theme found around many was in baking. Many found themselves toying around with recipes, replacing the usual stress of the everyday educational system with an frosting--perhaps it's the comfort in doing something entirely of your own tastes that makes this hobby appear when least expected. That being said, below we have three accounts from three of our current Howler Staff Members: Gabriella Hartlaub, Maysa Saadeddin, and Rebeca Acosta. Watch in full to learn how to reproduce these snacks on your own at home!
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By Gabriella Hartlaub (Top Left), Maysa Saadeddin (Top Right), and Rebeca Acosta (Pictured Below)
The four videos below are all brought to you Sefarina Benavidas, as she decided to go the extra mile and make FOUR recipe tutorial videos. Enjoy! These are for the following things: Butter Garlic Shrimp Pasta (Below, Top Left), Roasted Brussles Sprouts (Below, Top Right), and then Homemade Starbucks.
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Coronavirus Photo Essay By Rebeca Acosta Taken by Howler Staff member Rebeca Acosta, below are two slideshows that capture the feeling of living beside a pandemic in modern day. Please take a moment to look a little closer & ponder how you feel. These photos were taken in early April, 2020. |
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Teacher Appreciation Week: Student Spotlight
By Hayley Klemz
A special mention to a student that the Howler wanted to make out is to Reagan Junior Hayley Klemz. She has not only creatively drawn some of our Reagan Staff to the left for Teacher Appreciation Week, but she is also responsible for creating a scale copy of Reagan in Minecraft. Check this out!
By Hayley Klemz
A special mention to a student that the Howler wanted to make out is to Reagan Junior Hayley Klemz. She has not only creatively drawn some of our Reagan Staff to the left for Teacher Appreciation Week, but she is also responsible for creating a scale copy of Reagan in Minecraft. Check this out!
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Black Lives Matter
Reagan's Black Student Union opens the BLM Week of Action with an affirmation on the Morning Announcements.
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Black History Announcements
The Founding of Black Lives Matter
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Trayvon Martin's Birthday
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Liberia - The Black Mayflower
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HBCUs
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Juneteenth - Bessie Coleman
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Rebecca Lee Crumpler
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Katherine Johnson
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Gordon Parks
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Shirley A. Chisholm and
Charlotte E. Ray |
First in the Nation why Iowa and New Hampshire are viewed as important
By Gabriella Hartlaub
February marks the true beginning of the democratic nomination process, where real voters get to weigh with their own votes on who they think the nominee should be. Iowa is the first in the nation to vote and run a caucus, and New Hampshire is the first primary. Following New Hampshire is Nevada, South Carolina and then super Tuesday where a host of states including California cast their votes and pledge their delegates.
But let’s start with an explanation of how the Iowa process works. You’ve probably heard of a primary, in fact, the entire nomination process is sometimes referred to as the primary process but Iowa runs a caucus which is entirely a different process and very much more complicated. A primary is much like regular voting, candidates are on a ballot, people go into voting booths check off names on the ballot and then it gets sent off to be counted. The process doesn't take all that long unless the lines in your polling place are very crowded and it's pretty easy. By contrast, Caucasus involves a group of people standing around in a high school gym for what can be four hours. In a caucus, you show up with a candidate in mind, and your direction to a certain section of the gym or hall where your station is located, and that section is for your candidate.
For example, one corner is for Joe Biden and there's a group standing there that will be counted, then there's a Bernie Sanders corner with a group of his supporters, same for Elizabeth Warren, and Pete Buttigieg and so on. These supporters in the groups are counted, those totals are written down and that is referred to as the first alignment. If a candidate doesn’t reach fifteen percent of total voters, then they are not viable and those supporters have to pick another candidate. When the people who supported viable candidates in the first alignment are split up to other candidates, they are counted and that is the second alignment. The second alignment is the final total and determines how much support a candidate has in what county and how many state delegates they earn. The delegates that each candidate earns is based on there support and a math formula created by the state, meaning that the candidate who has the most raw votes isn’t always the candidate with the most state delegates.
Iowa and New Hampshire hold their places as first in the nation in high regard as matters of state pride but their positions are in jeopardy as more people become aware of the primary process and it’s sometimes skewed results. These thoughts of changing the first in the nation-states mostly come from members of the democratic party, who question why so much attention is paid to the results from two mostly white states, Iowa is 91% white for example when the entire democratic electorate is a lot more diverse. Despite their high regard for there first in the nation status, at least one of these two became gist in the nation on accident.
There were no hotel rooms left for the regular state convention, so the organizers moved it up to comply with state law handing Iowa it’s first in the nation status that it has since guarded with state law. New Hampshire was not an accident, the state organizations made it the first in the nation on purpose to have the notoriety and then the state law cemented it. As you can see these two became first in the nation by methods that were less than purposeful.
Iowa and New Hampshire are looked at as important by the media and converged on my reporters from every medium because people are so anxious for any kind of data on the election and any kind of inkling about how it will turn out. However, for the reasons that were outlined above theses states are not good indicators. Coming up are some states that are more diverse like the primary and causes in South Carolina and Nevada. These states will give more details on the actual state of the race, and will most likely be trendsetters for the rest of the elections.
By Gabriella Hartlaub
February marks the true beginning of the democratic nomination process, where real voters get to weigh with their own votes on who they think the nominee should be. Iowa is the first in the nation to vote and run a caucus, and New Hampshire is the first primary. Following New Hampshire is Nevada, South Carolina and then super Tuesday where a host of states including California cast their votes and pledge their delegates.
But let’s start with an explanation of how the Iowa process works. You’ve probably heard of a primary, in fact, the entire nomination process is sometimes referred to as the primary process but Iowa runs a caucus which is entirely a different process and very much more complicated. A primary is much like regular voting, candidates are on a ballot, people go into voting booths check off names on the ballot and then it gets sent off to be counted. The process doesn't take all that long unless the lines in your polling place are very crowded and it's pretty easy. By contrast, Caucasus involves a group of people standing around in a high school gym for what can be four hours. In a caucus, you show up with a candidate in mind, and your direction to a certain section of the gym or hall where your station is located, and that section is for your candidate.
For example, one corner is for Joe Biden and there's a group standing there that will be counted, then there's a Bernie Sanders corner with a group of his supporters, same for Elizabeth Warren, and Pete Buttigieg and so on. These supporters in the groups are counted, those totals are written down and that is referred to as the first alignment. If a candidate doesn’t reach fifteen percent of total voters, then they are not viable and those supporters have to pick another candidate. When the people who supported viable candidates in the first alignment are split up to other candidates, they are counted and that is the second alignment. The second alignment is the final total and determines how much support a candidate has in what county and how many state delegates they earn. The delegates that each candidate earns is based on there support and a math formula created by the state, meaning that the candidate who has the most raw votes isn’t always the candidate with the most state delegates.
Iowa and New Hampshire hold their places as first in the nation in high regard as matters of state pride but their positions are in jeopardy as more people become aware of the primary process and it’s sometimes skewed results. These thoughts of changing the first in the nation-states mostly come from members of the democratic party, who question why so much attention is paid to the results from two mostly white states, Iowa is 91% white for example when the entire democratic electorate is a lot more diverse. Despite their high regard for there first in the nation status, at least one of these two became gist in the nation on accident.
There were no hotel rooms left for the regular state convention, so the organizers moved it up to comply with state law handing Iowa it’s first in the nation status that it has since guarded with state law. New Hampshire was not an accident, the state organizations made it the first in the nation on purpose to have the notoriety and then the state law cemented it. As you can see these two became first in the nation by methods that were less than purposeful.
Iowa and New Hampshire are looked at as important by the media and converged on my reporters from every medium because people are so anxious for any kind of data on the election and any kind of inkling about how it will turn out. However, for the reasons that were outlined above theses states are not good indicators. Coming up are some states that are more diverse like the primary and causes in South Carolina and Nevada. These states will give more details on the actual state of the race, and will most likely be trendsetters for the rest of the elections.
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A World Among Worlds: Dillman's Fairy Garden
By Sefarina Benavidas To the left is a video put together of Mr. Dillman's extravagant Fairy Garden. This is located in room 102, the Theory of Knowledge classroom, and Dillman personally buys every single piece of this widespread Fairy Garden for his student's consumption. Enjoy a piece of the magic. |
Inside a Convention: A Brief Look At The “Belongingness” Within “Fandom” Culture
By Mya Bailey
Psychologists Roy Baumeister and Mark Leary have historically argued that “belongingness” within humanity was something fundamental, depicted as something to be recognized as a “normal” part of living. The lack of belongingness, as the two put it, can increase consequences in life around self esteem and acceptance into society—one should acknowledge that need of inclusion in their life, whether it be from youth or in the present day. This inclination is so universally spread to the point that cultures all over and everyday connections can be drawn directly back to this original argument, and in that forms the term “fandom”. This growing phenomenon of fan culture, especially in conventions and online subcultures alike, can allude itself to the disguised need for belongingness in modern day, and this occurrence, perhaps just food for thought, appears every time a con like Anime Milwaukee comes around.
Originally starting as a college anime club, Anime Milwaukee (AMKE) is an anime convention that spans three days each year and celebrates all forms of fan culture; whether it be Japanese animation or western media, the con involves gaming, music, manga, panels, and so much more for fan consumption. This year, 2020, was actually their 19th year running, and they had a monumental 11,011 attendees at the event. That being said, something here is obviously quite popular, and it isn’t only in Milwaukee that con culture and fans take on public locations to show their appreciation. Globally, cons of all kinds have grown in population, especially with the improved age of the internet to support that increase.
“All the weird geeky stuff you might be interested in is all out in the open either in the form of merch or in cosplay… and you’re surrounded by other people just like you so you suddenly feel at home,” says High School student Desiree SW, an individual interviewed at AMKE 2020. Desiree has been to a total of seven different conventions in her lifetime, and ultimately she has come to a very common consensus that even the others interviewed did—that conventions were inclusive in a home-like way because of the constant surrounding of alike passions they hold. Olivia Penner, another student who has been going to cons since the sixth grade, says that these cons are both special in terms of exposing small-base artists to a larger scale, getting their work out there for buyers in unique fashion, but that she also enjoys the social aspect of it and prefers to go with friends. The same is said by Desiree when she speaks more towards her past con experiences, and, Jay Tran, another AMKE guest who has been to four cons in her life, says that the cons brought her into a “completely new world.”
“As I began to go to more conventions, mostly to meet up with friends or on a date, I began to become more comfortable. Each experience I learn something new and awe-inspiring,” Jay even continues on to her experience at Anime Milwaukee thus far, “I decided to take a shot at cosplaying for the first time as Joker from Persona 5 at AMKE. It was cool, I felt confident. From thinking that conventions were a place where people can relive Halloween more than once a year to enjoying conventions and making it a place where I can make memories…” And these feelings and thoughts that Jay speaks of show in these conventions too. Whether it’s in the selling of art by buyers who are additional fans of the media they’re producing or in the consumers themselves, cosplaying and interacting with other fans about their interests, these conventions represent something even bigger: a community. When it comes to approaching how we live, indefinitely how society has built up social groups, the term “fandom” and conventions catered to them censors the fear of disconnection.
Olivia Penner agrees, saying that, “Feeling like you belong somewhere and seeking out people with similar beliefs and interests as you is part of the human condition.” Excluding just speaking towards the modern day fandom, Desiree SW instead speaks towards the “inevitability” of grouping and finding your “own flock” to be something completely natural. “We all like different things and as social beings it is only natural for us to want to be around others who like the same things we do... in a broader sense, it's kind of how we all live in different countries or states, or even at school. There will always be different groups… lunch tables and cliques. It's something that’s bound to happen.”
So, perhaps it becomes a little bit of both. Convention practices and the outward connection to a fandom is not only done because of personal pleasure, but also significant in terms of a silent human express for belongingness.
“However, like social media, fandoms can get toxic on the human mental health. Those in fandoms may fall into the loop-hole of wanting attention, getting depressed, anxious… Can fandoms allude to the human need of “belonging”? Yes. Can it be both a positive and negative sense of "belonging?" Yes. Should this stop you from joining fandoms? Absolutely not,” Jay Tran speaks about the toxicity in trying to belong to a group, the bad side to conforming in this sense. She even clarifies in an interview that her appreciation of fan culture is extendless, but that she recognizes the limit in getting “too invested” in one, and how that bad side of the apple shouldn’t ruin the rest of it’s taste.
All three of these interviewees, everyday people who just happened to be attending Anime Milwaukee 2020 this year, conclude the topic with a warm, togetherness emotion in relation to fandom culture, and this conclusion shouldn’t be simply brushed over.
By Mya Bailey
Psychologists Roy Baumeister and Mark Leary have historically argued that “belongingness” within humanity was something fundamental, depicted as something to be recognized as a “normal” part of living. The lack of belongingness, as the two put it, can increase consequences in life around self esteem and acceptance into society—one should acknowledge that need of inclusion in their life, whether it be from youth or in the present day. This inclination is so universally spread to the point that cultures all over and everyday connections can be drawn directly back to this original argument, and in that forms the term “fandom”. This growing phenomenon of fan culture, especially in conventions and online subcultures alike, can allude itself to the disguised need for belongingness in modern day, and this occurrence, perhaps just food for thought, appears every time a con like Anime Milwaukee comes around.
Originally starting as a college anime club, Anime Milwaukee (AMKE) is an anime convention that spans three days each year and celebrates all forms of fan culture; whether it be Japanese animation or western media, the con involves gaming, music, manga, panels, and so much more for fan consumption. This year, 2020, was actually their 19th year running, and they had a monumental 11,011 attendees at the event. That being said, something here is obviously quite popular, and it isn’t only in Milwaukee that con culture and fans take on public locations to show their appreciation. Globally, cons of all kinds have grown in population, especially with the improved age of the internet to support that increase.
“All the weird geeky stuff you might be interested in is all out in the open either in the form of merch or in cosplay… and you’re surrounded by other people just like you so you suddenly feel at home,” says High School student Desiree SW, an individual interviewed at AMKE 2020. Desiree has been to a total of seven different conventions in her lifetime, and ultimately she has come to a very common consensus that even the others interviewed did—that conventions were inclusive in a home-like way because of the constant surrounding of alike passions they hold. Olivia Penner, another student who has been going to cons since the sixth grade, says that these cons are both special in terms of exposing small-base artists to a larger scale, getting their work out there for buyers in unique fashion, but that she also enjoys the social aspect of it and prefers to go with friends. The same is said by Desiree when she speaks more towards her past con experiences, and, Jay Tran, another AMKE guest who has been to four cons in her life, says that the cons brought her into a “completely new world.”
“As I began to go to more conventions, mostly to meet up with friends or on a date, I began to become more comfortable. Each experience I learn something new and awe-inspiring,” Jay even continues on to her experience at Anime Milwaukee thus far, “I decided to take a shot at cosplaying for the first time as Joker from Persona 5 at AMKE. It was cool, I felt confident. From thinking that conventions were a place where people can relive Halloween more than once a year to enjoying conventions and making it a place where I can make memories…” And these feelings and thoughts that Jay speaks of show in these conventions too. Whether it’s in the selling of art by buyers who are additional fans of the media they’re producing or in the consumers themselves, cosplaying and interacting with other fans about their interests, these conventions represent something even bigger: a community. When it comes to approaching how we live, indefinitely how society has built up social groups, the term “fandom” and conventions catered to them censors the fear of disconnection.
Olivia Penner agrees, saying that, “Feeling like you belong somewhere and seeking out people with similar beliefs and interests as you is part of the human condition.” Excluding just speaking towards the modern day fandom, Desiree SW instead speaks towards the “inevitability” of grouping and finding your “own flock” to be something completely natural. “We all like different things and as social beings it is only natural for us to want to be around others who like the same things we do... in a broader sense, it's kind of how we all live in different countries or states, or even at school. There will always be different groups… lunch tables and cliques. It's something that’s bound to happen.”
So, perhaps it becomes a little bit of both. Convention practices and the outward connection to a fandom is not only done because of personal pleasure, but also significant in terms of a silent human express for belongingness.
“However, like social media, fandoms can get toxic on the human mental health. Those in fandoms may fall into the loop-hole of wanting attention, getting depressed, anxious… Can fandoms allude to the human need of “belonging”? Yes. Can it be both a positive and negative sense of "belonging?" Yes. Should this stop you from joining fandoms? Absolutely not,” Jay Tran speaks about the toxicity in trying to belong to a group, the bad side to conforming in this sense. She even clarifies in an interview that her appreciation of fan culture is extendless, but that she recognizes the limit in getting “too invested” in one, and how that bad side of the apple shouldn’t ruin the rest of it’s taste.
All three of these interviewees, everyday people who just happened to be attending Anime Milwaukee 2020 this year, conclude the topic with a warm, togetherness emotion in relation to fandom culture, and this conclusion shouldn’t be simply brushed over.
The Sonic Movie: A Nice Surprise
By Gabriella Hartlaub
Breaking News: The Sonic Movie was actually good. Going into this movie, I did not have high expectations, judging just based on the fiasco that was the original trailer I thought this movie was going to be a hastily put together mess but I was pleasantly described. Video Game adaptations have gotten a bad rap in the last few years but between this movie and Detective Pikachu, there on the rise and making a lot of money. Sonic alone was at the top of the box office presidents day weekend, setting records for a video game adaptations, and making 70 million dollars.
Even with all of those records set, the sonic movie wasn’t anything revolutionary. It felt familiar, and in most ways it was. It was the classic story: a guy on the precipice of change in his life finds a mythical creature they bond and his life is changed as they defeat a villain, then they all live happily ever after, think Alvin and the chipmunks. Just because it wasn’t revolutionary doesn’t mean that it was any less good, in the age of movie makers thinking the only way to elicit emotion from an audience is to make them uncontrollably sob it’s nice to have just a funny feel-good movie to enjoy with no strings attached or hard to understand metaphors.
This movie is definitely funny. It’s made for kids so the jokes are not at all hard to understand, or all that complicated which is a definite plus. They border on stupid but it’s nice to be able to laugh at something that’s a little bit childish, and out there in terms of suspension of disbelief. Speaking of comedy, Jim Carrey was evidently a standout in terms of acting for this movie, the way he played his character was a little jarring at first, and well throughout the entire movie, but it was funny nonetheless.
One complaint I have is the CGI. Now don’t get me wrong, this sonic design was a thousand times better than the original one with the scary human teeth, but it still was a little creepy. There’s not a lot that could be done about it however, it has more to do with the fact that maybe sonic wasn't meant to be put into a live-action movie more than anything else.
All in all, if you are looking for a fun movie to escape with, then Sonic is for you. You don’t have to think too hard about it when watching, it’ll make you laugh out loud and under everything, it’s a touching story about friendship and new experiences.
By Gabriella Hartlaub
Breaking News: The Sonic Movie was actually good. Going into this movie, I did not have high expectations, judging just based on the fiasco that was the original trailer I thought this movie was going to be a hastily put together mess but I was pleasantly described. Video Game adaptations have gotten a bad rap in the last few years but between this movie and Detective Pikachu, there on the rise and making a lot of money. Sonic alone was at the top of the box office presidents day weekend, setting records for a video game adaptations, and making 70 million dollars.
Even with all of those records set, the sonic movie wasn’t anything revolutionary. It felt familiar, and in most ways it was. It was the classic story: a guy on the precipice of change in his life finds a mythical creature they bond and his life is changed as they defeat a villain, then they all live happily ever after, think Alvin and the chipmunks. Just because it wasn’t revolutionary doesn’t mean that it was any less good, in the age of movie makers thinking the only way to elicit emotion from an audience is to make them uncontrollably sob it’s nice to have just a funny feel-good movie to enjoy with no strings attached or hard to understand metaphors.
This movie is definitely funny. It’s made for kids so the jokes are not at all hard to understand, or all that complicated which is a definite plus. They border on stupid but it’s nice to be able to laugh at something that’s a little bit childish, and out there in terms of suspension of disbelief. Speaking of comedy, Jim Carrey was evidently a standout in terms of acting for this movie, the way he played his character was a little jarring at first, and well throughout the entire movie, but it was funny nonetheless.
One complaint I have is the CGI. Now don’t get me wrong, this sonic design was a thousand times better than the original one with the scary human teeth, but it still was a little creepy. There’s not a lot that could be done about it however, it has more to do with the fact that maybe sonic wasn't meant to be put into a live-action movie more than anything else.
All in all, if you are looking for a fun movie to escape with, then Sonic is for you. You don’t have to think too hard about it when watching, it’ll make you laugh out loud and under everything, it’s a touching story about friendship and new experiences.
a narration of what it means to be american. and mexican.
By: Rebeca Acosta Esmeralda Rocha, a born American who does not consider herself an American. Her parents were born in Mexico. Her dad is undocumented and her mom is a resident. Esme supports her family financially. Because she works, she can pay a couple of bills. She also emotionally supports her brother and sister. Esme puts her family first and herself last. Esme says she wants her siblings to succeed more than she could. She wants more opportunities for them than what she had. |
Growing up, Esme only spoke Spanish and attended an English school starting first grade. A lot of her teachers would yell at her for speaking Spanish. While she was trying to learn English she faced a lot of criticism due to her thick accent and mispronunciation.
Esme also faced obstacles because her skin says she's white but her character says she's Mexican. When she goes to Mexico, they call her “gringa,” an offensive term to say she does not fit in. People around her questioned her ethnicity because of the color of her skin.
Esme is the one who keeps her parents up to date in the world. Esme is politically involved while her parents are not. Because she stays awake, she shares that knowledge with her family so they could be aware of communities around them. She also keeps them up to date on school problems, too. However, her parents do not actively support the fight but do support it in their hearts.
Esme is involved with Voces de la Frontera. Her father does not support Esme’s choice because he doesn’t believe the fight has taken steps forward and he has lost hope. He thinks Esme is wasting her time. He is very closed minded while her mom is open-minded. Events have shaped her mom's perspective and now her mom wants to support her daughters’ passions.
Esme believes the way immigrants get treated when they get arrested is unfair and is one of the many problems the American immigration system has. Esme’s dad was stopped. When the police officer ran the license plate number, there was no name. It was harshly cold and her dad was in his first week of chemo. He wanted to wait in the car because it was cold but the cop refused. Esme’s dad tried to explain himself. But there was no sympathy.
Esme understands that police officers respect their country but they should take into consideration the people they are affecting. Esme believes immigrants should be taken in as people; immigrants should be taken in as human beings.
Esme being a Mexican American causes her to consider both sides and what's best for both worlds. As a result, it causes self conflictions. Esme wants to support her people while understanding the American perspective. She often asks herself, “am I more Mexican or American?”
But Esme identifies as more Mexican than American. She does not agree with some choices American society has made since the start. Overall, her heart does not let her be more American than Mexican.
Esme also faced obstacles because her skin says she's white but her character says she's Mexican. When she goes to Mexico, they call her “gringa,” an offensive term to say she does not fit in. People around her questioned her ethnicity because of the color of her skin.
Esme is the one who keeps her parents up to date in the world. Esme is politically involved while her parents are not. Because she stays awake, she shares that knowledge with her family so they could be aware of communities around them. She also keeps them up to date on school problems, too. However, her parents do not actively support the fight but do support it in their hearts.
Esme is involved with Voces de la Frontera. Her father does not support Esme’s choice because he doesn’t believe the fight has taken steps forward and he has lost hope. He thinks Esme is wasting her time. He is very closed minded while her mom is open-minded. Events have shaped her mom's perspective and now her mom wants to support her daughters’ passions.
Esme believes the way immigrants get treated when they get arrested is unfair and is one of the many problems the American immigration system has. Esme’s dad was stopped. When the police officer ran the license plate number, there was no name. It was harshly cold and her dad was in his first week of chemo. He wanted to wait in the car because it was cold but the cop refused. Esme’s dad tried to explain himself. But there was no sympathy.
Esme understands that police officers respect their country but they should take into consideration the people they are affecting. Esme believes immigrants should be taken in as people; immigrants should be taken in as human beings.
Esme being a Mexican American causes her to consider both sides and what's best for both worlds. As a result, it causes self conflictions. Esme wants to support her people while understanding the American perspective. She often asks herself, “am I more Mexican or American?”
But Esme identifies as more Mexican than American. She does not agree with some choices American society has made since the start. Overall, her heart does not let her be more American than Mexican.
Black History Month
By Rebeca Acosta One shot from a man hit Travon Martin. An armed man shot an unarmed teenager. A white man shot a Black teenager. One shot sparked the Black Lives Matter movement in 2016. The movement was founded by three women: Alicia Garza, Opal Tometi, and Patrisse Cullors. Similar to the protest against police brutality in the 1960s, during the era of Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Black communities around the nation unified in the fight for equality. The implicit bias, racial profiling, and systematic racism in white society was not home to Black Americans or any person of color. It still isn’t acceptable and the Black Lives Matter movement continues to fight. George Zimmerman, a man who said during a 911 call described Martin by saying “he looks black.” During the trial, State of Florida v. George Zimmerman. "I did not shoot to take his life, I shot to save my own, '' Zimmerman would later post on his personal website.” The conversation has to be about saving others life before your own. This is what America teaches. |
A system made for white men kills Black youth and adults but with the fight of the movement, the goal is that every “Black person has the social, economic, and political power to thrive,” says the Black Lives Matter website.
In recent years, the conversation about what the Black Lives Matter movement means has been questioned into an “All Lives Matter” movement. Some people believe that the movement excludes other minorities or disregards all life but Black Lives matter is about the Black lives lost. It is making a statement of the importance of Black communities. The Black Lives Matter movement serves to acknowledge the systematic racism Black communities face, empower Black communities, and encourage change.
Zimmerman is the one that got away. During the 911 call, Zimmerman had begun to chase Martin after he began running. The dispatcher had told him not to but Zimmerman continued. Zimmerman had said “These a****** always get away” but he is the one that got away after he was found not guilty on second-degree murder under Stand Your Ground Law, which permits any person to use force including deadly force if meet with force if the person feels threatened. He may have gotten away but the legacy of Martin lives on.
In recent years, the conversation about what the Black Lives Matter movement means has been questioned into an “All Lives Matter” movement. Some people believe that the movement excludes other minorities or disregards all life but Black Lives matter is about the Black lives lost. It is making a statement of the importance of Black communities. The Black Lives Matter movement serves to acknowledge the systematic racism Black communities face, empower Black communities, and encourage change.
Zimmerman is the one that got away. During the 911 call, Zimmerman had begun to chase Martin after he began running. The dispatcher had told him not to but Zimmerman continued. Zimmerman had said “These a****** always get away” but he is the one that got away after he was found not guilty on second-degree murder under Stand Your Ground Law, which permits any person to use force including deadly force if meet with force if the person feels threatened. He may have gotten away but the legacy of Martin lives on.
Importance of Black History Month
The father of Black History month is Dr. Carter G Woodson. Woodson lobbied schools and organizations to participate in a special program to encourage the study of African American history, which began in February 1926 with "Negro History Week." Later, Black History Month became a national observance by President Gerald Ford in 1976. Black History Month is celebrated in February because February coincides with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. Douglass was in the forefront of the U.S. abolition movement and the first Black citizen to hold high rank in the U.S. government. Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation which was a step to freedom from slavery. |
The importance of Black History Month stems from the lack of conversation around racism in America. It comes from injustices that are swept under the rug. The importance aims to have every non-Black person become racially aware and respectful to Black communities. Black History Month is bigger than a month, it is a small step to equality in a bigger movement.
Where MPS Stands - Looking at the Proposed Referendum
By Rebeca Acosta
On April 7th, 2020, the polls will open and Milwaukee will vote in the Spring Elections and Presidential Preference Primary. While this is an important choice for voters who have children in a Milwaukee Public School the most important question is on the back of the ballot. A proposed referendum to give MPS $87 million.
By Rebeca Acosta
On April 7th, 2020, the polls will open and Milwaukee will vote in the Spring Elections and Presidential Preference Primary. While this is an important choice for voters who have children in a Milwaukee Public School the most important question is on the back of the ballot. A proposed referendum to give MPS $87 million.
A referendum is a question proposed to the voters. The MPS funding referendum is to raise property taxes by approximately $160 per $100,000 of assessed value to provide funding for MPS. This would average to about $15 per month for an average household in the city. This is not the first time Milwaukee has gone to a referendum of school funding. The 1993, the referendum did not pass, and in that almost 30 years since, per pupil spending in Milwaukee Public Schools has changed.
Since 1993 410 out of the 421 Wisconsin school districts have passed a referendum to raise the spending limits for their students. MPS Superintendent Dr. Keith P. Posley believes this is an “opportunity in a lifetime for our communities to be able to provide the schools that children deserve.” The district will use the |
$87 million to attract and retain high-quality, certified teachers; offer more career and technical education programs; and expand art, music, physical education, language and support programs.
According to Supereintendant Posley, MPS spends nintey cents out of every dollar “ in the classroom on students and the needs of students… our focus is students, and has always been students, and will continue to be students as we transition forward.” The district is seeking a referendum to address the inequality facing MPS students in comparison to neighboring suburban school districts.
According to Supereintendant Posley, MPS spends nintey cents out of every dollar “ in the classroom on students and the needs of students… our focus is students, and has always been students, and will continue to be students as we transition forward.” The district is seeking a referendum to address the inequality facing MPS students in comparison to neighboring suburban school districts.
Nicolo Onorato, an 11 year teacher in MPS and a member of the Milwaukee Teachers Education Association, served on the MPS Task Force and says “based on the standards that the state has put out, our students are worth less than students in other districts” According to the Department of Public Instruction the 2019-2020 State Imposed Per Pupil Revue Limit imposed by the State of Wisconsin caps spending for a MPS student at $10,297. This is $1,501 less than Shorewood, $2,037 less than Glendale-Riverhills and $5,293 less than a student who attends school in the Nicolet School district.
According to polling, the city of Milwaukee agrees that MPS students should receive a high quality education. 60% of likely voters said that they would strongly support the referendum. With the majority of the city behind the effort, MPS has partnered with community organizations and supporters like Voces de la Frontera, to knock on doors and get the word out.
Voces de la Frontera has supported MPS and has launched Vote Yes for MPS campaign in support of the referendum. “I think that it is important to invest in our public schools because not everybody has the opportunity to go to private schools because of the expense,” Alejandra Gonzalez, lead youth organizer for Youth Empowered in the Struggle, the student branch of Voces, says. They have supported public education because many of the immigrant, refugee and minority groups they serve, attend public schools. Voces has been apart of the community efforts involved in the referendum like “canvassing neighborhoods to let people know what the referendum actually means, fundraising to get those efforts out,” and served as an organization on the Task Force. As an MPS graduate, Gonzalez express “I know the benefits of going to a public school especially, as somebody who grew up undocumented.” One of those benefits is the arts in schools.
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The referendum also seeks to provide opportunities for students to participate in art, music, and physical education. Mr. Onorato believes in the arts in schools because it gave him a safe place to express himself and the benefits of the arts is that it “help reinforce some of the things [students] are learning in school… our kids need to have support not only academically and artistically but mentally.” In recent years, the conversation on mental health has become less taboo. School psychologists, therapists, social workers, nurses, counselors, and safety staff is one of the eight prioritizes for the MPS budget. |
Dr. Posley suggests that the solution is to “look at things we have never looked at before,” and while the referendum is “something that is not going to fix all the problems that we have in funding it is a step in the right direction,” The future of MPS is in the hands of Milwaukee voters.
The Girl That Said "Inshallah," Mini Chapter
By Maysa Saadeddin Only one tear was shed, then wiped away. Only whispers, then silence Only a thought, then forgotten How long does it take to forget a soul, does it change when you’ve known them for years, months, weeks, days, hours. I never forgot about her and she’s never left me. I never coped either, she made me expressive turning my fingers into paint brushes. A different color on each brush dripping down to show the emotion my face can’t. One day her favorite color was blue, the next it was yellow.. Ever changing never the same. The bland colors I once dripped from my fingertips isn’t the same as what I do now. It was ever changing, based on feeling, from emotions. She taught the artist emotion, to step away from just black and white. Once I was confused by colors, why the need to express emotion through vibrant when there's black and white. “What emotions do you hide behind black and white?” “I’m not hiding.” “What is behind the lifeless eyes of your drawings? Is there a need for eyes when there's yellow or blue?” My grandma constantly explained to me the importance of color, she thought it would help me cope. She knitted a scarf for me, both black and white. I felt hopeless, she wrapped the scarf around my neck, what is made for comfort felt hopeless. The next day my grandma made another black and white scarf, she made 10 of the same scarves. Each day wrapping them around me the last one on my eyes. This isn’t what she wants me to see, she wants me to see color, blue and yellow. “A drawing without color is like a person without a soul, or at least a beautiful soul.” Although she loves me, I felt her disappointing stare from above, as I still stood there confused and continued to use black and white until my teen years. |
Countdown to Milwaukee DNC: Debates
By Gabriella Hartlaub
With the democratic primary campaign currently in run, next month will officially mark the start of elections. With this, the primaries and caucuses will eventually choose the nominee, but until then the candidates have been campaigning both in person and through outer advertisement in states who vote first; this mostly being Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. They’ve been making lots of public impressions too during this point, even outwardly debating one another, which they have been doing since the fall.
The notable difference, however, is that the field has gotten smaller on the debate stage, but the number of overall candidates have continued to grow. While a few candidates have dropped out of the race completely, there are some who don’t make the cut to be allowed onto the debate stage. In June of 2019, when the first debate took place, the candidates had to be separated into two nights because there were so many of them. In contrast, at the most recent debate in December of 2019 there was only one fourth of the original number on the stage. Overall there have been 29 major candidates, including those who dropped out and 20% of those have never participated in a debate.
The main reason for candidate decrease and even the disallow for some to debate is in the new rules set forth by the Democratic National Committee— the organization that runs the prairie, local conventions, and even helps the eventual nominee campaign. The qualifications for candidates to participate has gotten harder even to the point of narrowing down the number of candidates and excluding those who waited until later to get into the race. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and Former Massachusetts Governor, Deval Patrick.
For the first debate, Candidates had to achieve 1% in at least 3 polls done by organizations pre-approved by the committee like CNN, Quinnipiac University, or The Associated Press, for example. These polls are taken by the organizations of only people who are registered democrats and can, therefore,vote in the democratic primary. candidate having 1% ultimately means that 1%of all people surveyed know that they will be voting for that candidate. On top of that, the candidates also had to meet a fundraising requirement: they had to have at least 65,000 unique donors to their campaign by the cutoff date. This means that 65,000 different people have to of donated to the campaign beforehand,
By Gabriella Hartlaub
With the democratic primary campaign currently in run, next month will officially mark the start of elections. With this, the primaries and caucuses will eventually choose the nominee, but until then the candidates have been campaigning both in person and through outer advertisement in states who vote first; this mostly being Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. They’ve been making lots of public impressions too during this point, even outwardly debating one another, which they have been doing since the fall.
The notable difference, however, is that the field has gotten smaller on the debate stage, but the number of overall candidates have continued to grow. While a few candidates have dropped out of the race completely, there are some who don’t make the cut to be allowed onto the debate stage. In June of 2019, when the first debate took place, the candidates had to be separated into two nights because there were so many of them. In contrast, at the most recent debate in December of 2019 there was only one fourth of the original number on the stage. Overall there have been 29 major candidates, including those who dropped out and 20% of those have never participated in a debate.
The main reason for candidate decrease and even the disallow for some to debate is in the new rules set forth by the Democratic National Committee— the organization that runs the prairie, local conventions, and even helps the eventual nominee campaign. The qualifications for candidates to participate has gotten harder even to the point of narrowing down the number of candidates and excluding those who waited until later to get into the race. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and Former Massachusetts Governor, Deval Patrick.
For the first debate, Candidates had to achieve 1% in at least 3 polls done by organizations pre-approved by the committee like CNN, Quinnipiac University, or The Associated Press, for example. These polls are taken by the organizations of only people who are registered democrats and can, therefore,vote in the democratic primary. candidate having 1% ultimately means that 1%of all people surveyed know that they will be voting for that candidate. On top of that, the candidates also had to meet a fundraising requirement: they had to have at least 65,000 unique donors to their campaign by the cutoff date. This means that 65,000 different people have to of donated to the campaign beforehand,
demonstrating to the committee that there is support for the candidate and that they are willing to act on this view. In comparison to late debates, these weren’t hard requirements to meet, so the debate stage ended up having 20 candidates.
By October of 2019 the candidates who reached the debate stage was cut in half to just ten candidates which meant that there no longer had to be two debates done per night like before. For this debate, candidates had to reach at least 2% in at least four approved polls, which is a slight uptick from the initial debate, and the number of unique donors also increased to 130,000. |
The next debate is happening on January 14, 2020, at Drake University in Iowa, an early voting state. The qualifications have yet again changed and become more rigorous. To participate in these debates candidates must reach at least 5% in support for 4 different polls, but the catch her is that these can be done nationally or from early voting states such as Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina. A candidate may also qualify if they reach 7% in two polls from these previously named early voting states.
Furthermore, a candidate must have support from around 225,000 unique donors. The cutoff date was on the 10th of January and only 6 candidates qualified.
The January debate did not come without controversy, however, because it will be the first debate held with only white candidates despite there being multiple candidates of color in the race. These candidates such as Senator Cory Booker, Deval Patrick and Andrew Yang have all struggled to make it onto the debate stage. Yang was the only candidate of color to qualify and participate in the December Debate, Booker qualified for all the debates up until December, and Patrick has yet to qualify for a single debate. This proves to be a continuing struggle for a party whose total electorate in 2016 was made up of only 19% African American and 9% Latino, but diversity in elections should, hopefully, continue to fluctuate as the future weighs on in politics. |
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PSA: Recognizing Local Climate Change By Sefarina Benavidas To the left is an informative video put together by Howler member Sefarina Benavidas about the worldwide issue of Climate Change and how an individual can do their part to prevent it. Including reference to activism and the existence of young activists (Autumn Peltier and Mari Copeny), Sefa links into direct ways the student body, and really anybody, can combat modern day Climate Change. |
Hypocrisy within Donation Exposure: A Closer Look at Publicizing "Good Deeds" and the Australian Fires
By Mya Bailey
A clear, subjective beginner’s note to stand by: Climate Change is very much real and, especially around the rise in issues such as the Australia wildfires, the worsening conditions of the Earth tell a lot to a future if precautions aren’t taken. Alongside this constant fight against Climate Change, weighing costs and ways people can help in all instances, there’s a large conclusion that money can be an asset to most issues for following through. Things such as the building of wind turbines, management in sources of storage, forest restoration, solar farms and so forth all add up to the amount of cash someone has in their pocket. In a world devoted to cash and value in fortune, one might feel that, although personal endeavor can be taken, that money could solve quicker and more sufficiently. But what comes out of this concept--is it better to allow trust in those with money to take action and then, ultimately, how does this look to the everyday person? Celebrity donation and the media-based advertise of doing so might be where lines start to blur in terms of helping the environment within the public eye, and the concept of outwardly showing donations to the world… should it be seen as an act of gratitude or something to gravitate more likes and retweets?
It’d be better to focus on the recent rise in awareness towards the entire issue of global warming for this piece: The current Australia wildfires. Going back to Sydney of late October, 2019, a single strike of lightning on the trees of Gospers Mountain in New South Wales would mark the start of, what is now, a three month long trickle of wide-spread wildfires. The shocking factor here is both in the intensity of these fires, and how quickly they’ve achieved burning land. Immenseness when compared to a still burning fire began the rise of societal awareness all over; skies coloring orange daily in Australia and the ruin of biodiversity in these ecosystems proving to be futile as the seconds continue on. To some, the issue sparked a sense of initiative. The majority who felt helpless to aid spread the news through social media, others even starting fundraisers in all sorts of forms to tackle this issue, but the common agreement fell in getting money for those indulged in the practice to take control. It would then, ultimately, be a lean on the fortune of the world to tackle the specifics head on.
While influencers such as H3H3, comedian Youtubers Ethan and Hila Klein, used their wide following and popular clothing industry to sell a shirt labeled “Orange Sky” with 100% of proceeds going to the Australian Koala Hospital and the NSW Rural Fire Service, other notable celebrities proceeded to take action through voice and public control of opinion exposure, such as Pink, Leonardo DiCaprio, and even Ricky Gervais through his monumental Golden Globes 2020 monologue.
By Mya Bailey
A clear, subjective beginner’s note to stand by: Climate Change is very much real and, especially around the rise in issues such as the Australia wildfires, the worsening conditions of the Earth tell a lot to a future if precautions aren’t taken. Alongside this constant fight against Climate Change, weighing costs and ways people can help in all instances, there’s a large conclusion that money can be an asset to most issues for following through. Things such as the building of wind turbines, management in sources of storage, forest restoration, solar farms and so forth all add up to the amount of cash someone has in their pocket. In a world devoted to cash and value in fortune, one might feel that, although personal endeavor can be taken, that money could solve quicker and more sufficiently. But what comes out of this concept--is it better to allow trust in those with money to take action and then, ultimately, how does this look to the everyday person? Celebrity donation and the media-based advertise of doing so might be where lines start to blur in terms of helping the environment within the public eye, and the concept of outwardly showing donations to the world… should it be seen as an act of gratitude or something to gravitate more likes and retweets?
It’d be better to focus on the recent rise in awareness towards the entire issue of global warming for this piece: The current Australia wildfires. Going back to Sydney of late October, 2019, a single strike of lightning on the trees of Gospers Mountain in New South Wales would mark the start of, what is now, a three month long trickle of wide-spread wildfires. The shocking factor here is both in the intensity of these fires, and how quickly they’ve achieved burning land. Immenseness when compared to a still burning fire began the rise of societal awareness all over; skies coloring orange daily in Australia and the ruin of biodiversity in these ecosystems proving to be futile as the seconds continue on. To some, the issue sparked a sense of initiative. The majority who felt helpless to aid spread the news through social media, others even starting fundraisers in all sorts of forms to tackle this issue, but the common agreement fell in getting money for those indulged in the practice to take control. It would then, ultimately, be a lean on the fortune of the world to tackle the specifics head on.
While influencers such as H3H3, comedian Youtubers Ethan and Hila Klein, used their wide following and popular clothing industry to sell a shirt labeled “Orange Sky” with 100% of proceeds going to the Australian Koala Hospital and the NSW Rural Fire Service, other notable celebrities proceeded to take action through voice and public control of opinion exposure, such as Pink, Leonardo DiCaprio, and even Ricky Gervais through his monumental Golden Globes 2020 monologue.
...So if you do win an award tonight, don't use it as a platform to make a political speech. You're in no position to lecture the public about anything. You know nothing about the real world. Most of you spent less time in school than Greta Thunberg...
It’s significant in the controversial stance many see with celebrities and their awareness of societal issues such as climate change, but it does raise question to what society acknowledges as “right” within helping world issues in the public eye and how it’s interpreted as a whole. If anything, donation and act of kindness should be seen as the greater good, yes? Controversy struck around this area when Kim Kardashian, american media personality and well-known millionaire, was confronted about exposure to charity.
This tweet can be seen to the right. The issue here then formulated even clearer to the naked eye--is it better for celebrities to publicize donation and charitable deeds or for them to keep quiet? In Kim’s case, one may look at this as something out of the ordinary, thus the tweet below it basically stating that, since the Kardashian family is well-received as modern day “braggers” to their successes and endeavors, that them not showing off their donation in this sense just feels, to put it lightly, off. Kim backs it up saying that she shouldn’t need to tell people that she made a generous donation, rightly so, but when it comes to celebrities who are so built by their “show” of success, the critique of society still stands as something to question. It's up to societal interpretation, perhaps, as most things are... but the value of doing something good should be agreed to come in the form of selflessness.
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Selflessness by default is curated under a human's reaction to empathy, that want to do something larger than oneself for another. Philanthropy, the concept of donation or performing of charitable proceed, mixes swell with this human-born compel that one gets to help others, but it's in how one does it that can turn something done for the presumed "good" into a modern day "seek for attention". Taking it back to the case of the Kardashians, there is truth in not needing the promotion of charitable acts in society, but, since this family is globally known for publicizing everything they do--feminist organizations, worldly global issue relief, or even in cases of homelessness--there's a right to criticize. Those in power with money, the ones who have the media wrapped around their fingertips... it's these celebrities that "locals" or everyday people want to look to for some sort of control at issue; the ones with the money can, as one would naturally see it, be able to do more. That being said, charitable acts aside, it's in the individual themselves how the metaphorical "rights" and "wrongs" of charity.
Ansam Althabatah, a 12th grade student at Reagan, when questioned about the concept above says the following...
Ansam Althabatah, a 12th grade student at Reagan, when questioned about the concept above says the following...
It makes you look like what you did was for attention... you donating a certain amount, no matter how much it is--I believe that it shouldn't have to be made clear to people because any kind of donation helps even if a little bit. Donating and saying you did so, even promoting the issue for others to help, is good, but making people aware of the exact amount you donated or work you did for that organization... it just seems to lower down the respect seen for the original act.
MPS Safe Haven Resolution Versus MPS Policy
By Sefarina Benavidas According to the resolution written in 2017, Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) are meant to take action to assure all students are protected from the actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that could create legal issues, such as checking ID’s, or immigration status when students are leaving the premises or asking schools to speak to a student personally on school grounds to discuss their legal status. It’s understood that the creation or revision of administrative policies is a mutual effort by the Board and the Administration. |
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Larry Miller is the current School Board president for the Milwaukee Public Schools District. In an interview with the Husky Howler, President Miller was asked to discuss some of the policies and action plans set forth for MPS schools in the event that any Immigration officer request access to a student of any background or legal status. And what policies are in place to ensure the security of the students. In the 2017 Resolution, submitted by Larry Miller and Tatiana Joseph, stated that every Milwaukee Public School is to be a “Safe Haven” for the students and families threatened by immigration enforcement or discrimination.
The Resolution states “the Superintendent, upon notification of the intent of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers or other immigration-law-enforcement personnel to enter a district school, shall request and make photocopies of a judicial warrant; — If no warrant is presented, shall contact legal counsel for the District”.
However in the Administrative Policy (last updated in 2014), there are no guidelines explicitly regarding the protection of a student from an ICE agent or Immigration officer. The policies that are implemented only regard the identification of law enforcement officers (such as the Milwaukee Police Department) when wanting to interview a student regarding investigations of possible crimes committed by the student. President Miller stated that the 2017 resolution takes precedent over the policy written in 2014, While the Resolution has been publicly shared, it has not been updated in the administrative policy that School Administrators use daily to reflect the procedures that must occur when an ICE agent or immigration officer comes to question students.
On the MPS website it states, that there will be designating person at every school to serve as a resource to immigrant and undocumented students and families. Some resources available to students and their families are the in-school representatives such as School Social Workers and counselors.
For general information: no MPS school is allowed to release any information to any law enforcement or immigration officer without the knowledge or consent of the parents of said student, this includes whether the student is present in the building or attends school there. Schools are also obligated to protect any student who wishes to stay inside the building in order to avoid questioning or arrest by any immigration or ICE officer. The school building will act as a safe haven for the students. Students are allowed to stay inside the school buildings for as long as necessary or until they feel safe to exit.
MPS is committed in creating an immigration Advisory Group in partnership with community-based organizations. These groups consist of Voces de la Frontera and YES club, as well as a few other school-sanctioned and supported groups. Groups are accessible by students and might be beneficial to undocumented students and their families. Recently there has been much discussion amongst the MPS student body about correcting the District policy, having it reflect the same information as presented by the MPS school resolution action plan.
A form of Direct action was supported by Voces de la Frontera on November 12, 2019. A nation-wide school walk out was held in protest of the recent vote to remove the protection of students supported by DACA. According to the Immigrant Legal Resource Center DACA is the “immigration option for undocumented immigrants who came to the United States before the age of 16. Although DACA does not provide a pathway to lawful permanent residence, it does provide temporary protection from deportation, work authorization, and the ability to apply for a social security number. Hundreds of students in the MPS district chose to participate in this walk-out in support of the Dreamers in America, and to urge senators Tammy Balwin and Ron Johnson to vote NO on the move to revoke the protection of students utilizing DACA set forth by the Trump administration.
Community supporters such as Voces de la Frontera and YES Club are what communities need. Not only for the Dreamers and hard working students and families living in America, but for every single member of our communities. Thousands of people could be affected if this system of protection were to be revoked. So it’s fallen into the hands of students to protect those who need protection, and count on the MPS school whose responsibility it is to give them a Safe Haven.
The Resolution states “the Superintendent, upon notification of the intent of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers or other immigration-law-enforcement personnel to enter a district school, shall request and make photocopies of a judicial warrant; — If no warrant is presented, shall contact legal counsel for the District”.
However in the Administrative Policy (last updated in 2014), there are no guidelines explicitly regarding the protection of a student from an ICE agent or Immigration officer. The policies that are implemented only regard the identification of law enforcement officers (such as the Milwaukee Police Department) when wanting to interview a student regarding investigations of possible crimes committed by the student. President Miller stated that the 2017 resolution takes precedent over the policy written in 2014, While the Resolution has been publicly shared, it has not been updated in the administrative policy that School Administrators use daily to reflect the procedures that must occur when an ICE agent or immigration officer comes to question students.
On the MPS website it states, that there will be designating person at every school to serve as a resource to immigrant and undocumented students and families. Some resources available to students and their families are the in-school representatives such as School Social Workers and counselors.
For general information: no MPS school is allowed to release any information to any law enforcement or immigration officer without the knowledge or consent of the parents of said student, this includes whether the student is present in the building or attends school there. Schools are also obligated to protect any student who wishes to stay inside the building in order to avoid questioning or arrest by any immigration or ICE officer. The school building will act as a safe haven for the students. Students are allowed to stay inside the school buildings for as long as necessary or until they feel safe to exit.
MPS is committed in creating an immigration Advisory Group in partnership with community-based organizations. These groups consist of Voces de la Frontera and YES club, as well as a few other school-sanctioned and supported groups. Groups are accessible by students and might be beneficial to undocumented students and their families. Recently there has been much discussion amongst the MPS student body about correcting the District policy, having it reflect the same information as presented by the MPS school resolution action plan.
A form of Direct action was supported by Voces de la Frontera on November 12, 2019. A nation-wide school walk out was held in protest of the recent vote to remove the protection of students supported by DACA. According to the Immigrant Legal Resource Center DACA is the “immigration option for undocumented immigrants who came to the United States before the age of 16. Although DACA does not provide a pathway to lawful permanent residence, it does provide temporary protection from deportation, work authorization, and the ability to apply for a social security number. Hundreds of students in the MPS district chose to participate in this walk-out in support of the Dreamers in America, and to urge senators Tammy Balwin and Ron Johnson to vote NO on the move to revoke the protection of students utilizing DACA set forth by the Trump administration.
Community supporters such as Voces de la Frontera and YES Club are what communities need. Not only for the Dreamers and hard working students and families living in America, but for every single member of our communities. Thousands of people could be affected if this system of protection were to be revoked. So it’s fallen into the hands of students to protect those who need protection, and count on the MPS school whose responsibility it is to give them a Safe Haven.
The Power of Students
By Rebeca Acosta Student voice in education entails the values, opinions, beliefs, perspectives, and cultural backgrounds of individual and groups of students. Which then leads to instructional approaches that are based on student choices, interests, passions, and ambitions. However, student voice can be hindered. There are opportunities for students who can exercise their student voice with the exception of not disturbing the classroom. First, students can join clubs like Youth Empowered in the Struggle, Gay Straight Alliance, or Black Student Union. Secondly, Office of Civil Rights aims to bring light to student concerns and issues affecting people that are commonly overlooked and is set to Be the Change. Finally, students can get involved within the district by applying for the |
Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council. The SSAC provides opportunities for students “to serve as the student voice for their respective schools, engage diverse student voices to provide input on district initiatives, build student aptitude as it relates to communication, leadership, advocacy and civic engagement, and to create a sustainable difference at the students’ respective schools and to positively impacting the district,” according to the MPS website.
Student voice in many ways is important for the educational system. Student voice gives students the right to practice their first Amendment rights permitted by school policies. For example, a school newspaper has one standard out of three to follow. First, the Tinker Standard where a student opinions/publications cannot be silenced by administrations. Second, the Fraser Standard allows the administration can censor student expression with “reasonable cause” Finally, the Hazelwood Standard grants that Schools held to a “higher standard” in which censorship is expected and encouraged. Student voice can be practiced in many different formats such as . Therefore, giving students a chance in voicing their concerns or problems within a school in hopes to improve the educational atmosphere.
Student voice in many ways is important for the educational system. Student voice gives students the right to practice their first Amendment rights permitted by school policies. For example, a school newspaper has one standard out of three to follow. First, the Tinker Standard where a student opinions/publications cannot be silenced by administrations. Second, the Fraser Standard allows the administration can censor student expression with “reasonable cause” Finally, the Hazelwood Standard grants that Schools held to a “higher standard” in which censorship is expected and encouraged. Student voice can be practiced in many different formats such as . Therefore, giving students a chance in voicing their concerns or problems within a school in hopes to improve the educational atmosphere.
Not only is student voice important to the educational system but it is important to society. Youth leaders have practice student voice and changed our world for the better. For example, Greta Thunberg gave up her education to protest for climate change. Thunberg started off at school and used her student voice by striking and not attending school to protest climate change. Now, she is believed to be the most powerful youth activist as she continues to raise awareness on climate change. Emma Gonzalez was a student at Parkland High School where a school shooting occurred in 2018, killing 17 people. As a student who experience gun violence first-hand, she practices her student voice by fighting for gun control. Katie Eder was a prior student at Shorewood High School where she organized a 50 mile march from Madison to Janesville in protest of gun control. Eder exercices her student voice by recruiting youth from her school to join the movement and march. Students from all around the world are not afraid to speak up to use their voice, causing a change in society. Currently, youth have taken the positions of leaders and have used their voice. Will this youth movement be recorded in history books? Perhaps because the power lies in the voice.
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Music That Brings Us Together, Ronald Reagan Fall Jazz Concert
By Sefarina Benavidas
The Reagan Jazz concert is full of motivated performances from different grades and practice to give their best performance. Overall, the jazz band had a fair turn out as the audience sat down to see the Sophomore jazz band perform first.
The concert started off with all brass and woodwinds. Short increments of pieces, warms ups for the long concert to come. Drummers keeping the feeling of jazz and swing going through transitions and breaks. The venue had lots of space, that turns into dancing floor. When they performed All of me , in a classic jazz tune, there was a piano and trumpet canon. The two instruments beautifully responding to each other, making people move to the music.
The concert was then drawn to the “birthplace of jazz”, New Orleans, with the performance of Mason Street. The set up of stage: Front row sax, 7 alto tenor and baritone, the Second row clarinet, 2 trombone, two flutes, 5 trumpets, alto clarinet, sax, 2 guitars, drums, and piano.
The venue had lots of space, that turns into dancing floor. When they performed All of me , in a classic jazz tune, there was a piano and trumpet canon. The two instruments responded to each other. This is a very common stylistic component of jazz music.
Blues for a new day was audience capturing, very lively with some diminished chords. Diminished chords are an important part of any jazz guitarists harmonic palette, as they will come up in jazz tunes everywhere. They can be used in a variety of harmonic situations when applied to comping, chord melody, and chord soloing. The sound of the drummer’s cymbals, keeping up the beat then holding it until rounding off and passing over the melody to the brass, followed by an incredible sax solo. Players were getting into performance, dancing in place and swaying from side to side, tapping their feet and nodding their heads. The peace concluded with a strong crescendo and ultimate finish.
The next piece was Metallica, Sandman, with John Makransky on alto sax and Guillermo Alvarez on guitar. The alternate saxes canoed off each other, with a combating heavy guitar melody. The drums and saxes took the lead in this performance. The trombone shared some melodies with sax then all brass joined in for chorus. The guitar solo was absolutely incredible.
Momentarily the audience members tried clapping along, luckily this did not distract the performers as they were focused on perfecting their performance until the end. Although, one of the alto clarinets fell behind in tempo for a short time, it was only noticed during rests, but the overall piece was till performed very well. Some trombones seemed not to be counting completely correct, as well as a few of the trumpets were playing a bit louder than what their parts required from them, but were quickly corrected as a result of their practice.
The next group the audience was thrilled to wait and see was the Upperclassmen jazz band.
The setup of the stage was: Front row Violin, Tuba, Soprano Sax, Alto Sax, Tenor Sax, Alto Sax, then Baritone Sax. The second row setup was; 3 Flutes, 2 Clarinets, 3 trumpets, F Key Trombone, Guitar, Electric Bass Guitar, Drum Kit, then an Upright piano.
For the first song they performed, it was lively yet very repetitive. Mr. Adam Murphy described the concert as if it were like “you’re on the late show”. Murphy posted a second invite for all dancers to join them on the stage, and many students began dancing off to the side. The fourth song that was played sounded like music straight out of a jazz club, as I could visualize females dancing in white dresses, swinging their arms back and forth in joy, similar to a Rocket girl dance. Unexpectedly, the single violin was well heard through audience, and I was able to pick up the very high pitches compared to the lower frequencies produced by the brass and woodwinds.
In the dog house staring off with deep piano, steady repeated beat between drums and trombone, then incorporated sax and violin. There was a weak (quiet) transition between parts of the piece but the performers’ recovery was fast. Transfers were indicated by parts between violin, saxs and trombones (these were good). The piece ended with a long sustained ending phrase that left everyone in awe.
Pick up the pieces had a short violin solo between major beats (7 notes repeated) then (three notes repeated). “Up up up up up up up down”. Adding in the violin solos to the jazz band was a very good choice, unique and enjoyable. Soprano sax solo lasted a while, shining a spotlight on the talented player. Which was then followed by a wicked drum solo. Unfortunately, I believe that the violin and flutes had the same melody, but at times they were unsynchronized.
Star Wars Cantina band was played very spirited and lively. Some of the violin notes felt out of place, I heard audience members mistake them as “squeaks” from the clarinets. Trills and dramatic rapid decrescendos pulses were pleasant to listen to from the violin. This jazz band seemed less enthusiastic about the performance, demonstrated by the posture of the players, they simply “danced” the rhythm less than the sophomore jazz band.
For the next and final performance group for the Fall concert was the Reagan Taparza band The setup of the stage was:drums, bass, 2 guitars, trumpet, trombone, 2 trumpets, then a singer.The audience's attention was grabbed when hearing the cymbals ringed and the melody was held by the trombone. There was a quick escalation to upbeat tempo when lights in the cafeteria shut off. Swinging dancers entered the stage, however, they were just audience members wanting to be involved and enjoying the music. People continued to enjoy the music apart from the trumpets that were a bit off from each other and sounded like a trickling instead of an abrupt entrance; this could be a different taste in music or an international style choice. The guitar created a really “Caribbean style” sound for the piece. An unfortunate downside was hearing the strong breathes from the trombone players, they were quite obvious with the mics.
In the second song, Demaris Rodriguez, their vocalist, was very into the dance and she sang a Spanish tune, same a Hispanic Heritage program, with the instrumentalists behind her playing brass joining in, echoing her voice, responding to her. In this section of the concert, many more students began to get up to dance as a result of the singer’s enthusiasm and energy.
Pistol de su piel had rapid trombone parts, the song talked about a speaker's love for a woman's body.
During Never enough, many dancers flooded into the middle of the stage, no longer shy to demonstrate their love for the music.The singer spoke “You are enough for me”, while absolutely owning the stage. At the same time, the repetitiveness of the song combined the exuberant loudness made it very difficult to hear the one singer. A brief guitar solo was presented which everyone was impressed by.
Corazon de Tejas was a purely instrumental sing meant for dancing. It was very repetitive, with the same 12 notes gradually getting faster and louder. This was the grand finale of the show. With an ultimate climax and the cheer for an encore from the audience. The piece closed off the show very well and left everyone with parting feelings of joy and resolution.
By Sefarina Benavidas
The Reagan Jazz concert is full of motivated performances from different grades and practice to give their best performance. Overall, the jazz band had a fair turn out as the audience sat down to see the Sophomore jazz band perform first.
The concert started off with all brass and woodwinds. Short increments of pieces, warms ups for the long concert to come. Drummers keeping the feeling of jazz and swing going through transitions and breaks. The venue had lots of space, that turns into dancing floor. When they performed All of me , in a classic jazz tune, there was a piano and trumpet canon. The two instruments beautifully responding to each other, making people move to the music.
The concert was then drawn to the “birthplace of jazz”, New Orleans, with the performance of Mason Street. The set up of stage: Front row sax, 7 alto tenor and baritone, the Second row clarinet, 2 trombone, two flutes, 5 trumpets, alto clarinet, sax, 2 guitars, drums, and piano.
The venue had lots of space, that turns into dancing floor. When they performed All of me , in a classic jazz tune, there was a piano and trumpet canon. The two instruments responded to each other. This is a very common stylistic component of jazz music.
Blues for a new day was audience capturing, very lively with some diminished chords. Diminished chords are an important part of any jazz guitarists harmonic palette, as they will come up in jazz tunes everywhere. They can be used in a variety of harmonic situations when applied to comping, chord melody, and chord soloing. The sound of the drummer’s cymbals, keeping up the beat then holding it until rounding off and passing over the melody to the brass, followed by an incredible sax solo. Players were getting into performance, dancing in place and swaying from side to side, tapping their feet and nodding their heads. The peace concluded with a strong crescendo and ultimate finish.
The next piece was Metallica, Sandman, with John Makransky on alto sax and Guillermo Alvarez on guitar. The alternate saxes canoed off each other, with a combating heavy guitar melody. The drums and saxes took the lead in this performance. The trombone shared some melodies with sax then all brass joined in for chorus. The guitar solo was absolutely incredible.
Momentarily the audience members tried clapping along, luckily this did not distract the performers as they were focused on perfecting their performance until the end. Although, one of the alto clarinets fell behind in tempo for a short time, it was only noticed during rests, but the overall piece was till performed very well. Some trombones seemed not to be counting completely correct, as well as a few of the trumpets were playing a bit louder than what their parts required from them, but were quickly corrected as a result of their practice.
The next group the audience was thrilled to wait and see was the Upperclassmen jazz band.
The setup of the stage was: Front row Violin, Tuba, Soprano Sax, Alto Sax, Tenor Sax, Alto Sax, then Baritone Sax. The second row setup was; 3 Flutes, 2 Clarinets, 3 trumpets, F Key Trombone, Guitar, Electric Bass Guitar, Drum Kit, then an Upright piano.
For the first song they performed, it was lively yet very repetitive. Mr. Adam Murphy described the concert as if it were like “you’re on the late show”. Murphy posted a second invite for all dancers to join them on the stage, and many students began dancing off to the side. The fourth song that was played sounded like music straight out of a jazz club, as I could visualize females dancing in white dresses, swinging their arms back and forth in joy, similar to a Rocket girl dance. Unexpectedly, the single violin was well heard through audience, and I was able to pick up the very high pitches compared to the lower frequencies produced by the brass and woodwinds.
In the dog house staring off with deep piano, steady repeated beat between drums and trombone, then incorporated sax and violin. There was a weak (quiet) transition between parts of the piece but the performers’ recovery was fast. Transfers were indicated by parts between violin, saxs and trombones (these were good). The piece ended with a long sustained ending phrase that left everyone in awe.
Pick up the pieces had a short violin solo between major beats (7 notes repeated) then (three notes repeated). “Up up up up up up up down”. Adding in the violin solos to the jazz band was a very good choice, unique and enjoyable. Soprano sax solo lasted a while, shining a spotlight on the talented player. Which was then followed by a wicked drum solo. Unfortunately, I believe that the violin and flutes had the same melody, but at times they were unsynchronized.
Star Wars Cantina band was played very spirited and lively. Some of the violin notes felt out of place, I heard audience members mistake them as “squeaks” from the clarinets. Trills and dramatic rapid decrescendos pulses were pleasant to listen to from the violin. This jazz band seemed less enthusiastic about the performance, demonstrated by the posture of the players, they simply “danced” the rhythm less than the sophomore jazz band.
For the next and final performance group for the Fall concert was the Reagan Taparza band The setup of the stage was:drums, bass, 2 guitars, trumpet, trombone, 2 trumpets, then a singer.The audience's attention was grabbed when hearing the cymbals ringed and the melody was held by the trombone. There was a quick escalation to upbeat tempo when lights in the cafeteria shut off. Swinging dancers entered the stage, however, they were just audience members wanting to be involved and enjoying the music. People continued to enjoy the music apart from the trumpets that were a bit off from each other and sounded like a trickling instead of an abrupt entrance; this could be a different taste in music or an international style choice. The guitar created a really “Caribbean style” sound for the piece. An unfortunate downside was hearing the strong breathes from the trombone players, they were quite obvious with the mics.
In the second song, Demaris Rodriguez, their vocalist, was very into the dance and she sang a Spanish tune, same a Hispanic Heritage program, with the instrumentalists behind her playing brass joining in, echoing her voice, responding to her. In this section of the concert, many more students began to get up to dance as a result of the singer’s enthusiasm and energy.
Pistol de su piel had rapid trombone parts, the song talked about a speaker's love for a woman's body.
During Never enough, many dancers flooded into the middle of the stage, no longer shy to demonstrate their love for the music.The singer spoke “You are enough for me”, while absolutely owning the stage. At the same time, the repetitiveness of the song combined the exuberant loudness made it very difficult to hear the one singer. A brief guitar solo was presented which everyone was impressed by.
Corazon de Tejas was a purely instrumental sing meant for dancing. It was very repetitive, with the same 12 notes gradually getting faster and louder. This was the grand finale of the show. With an ultimate climax and the cheer for an encore from the audience. The piece closed off the show very well and left everyone with parting feelings of joy and resolution.
One Line: Storytelling Project
By Rebeca Acosta
From the life of Rebeca Acosta, and those around her, the following is a look into fresh, direct one liners given from students at Reagan.
By Rebeca Acosta
From the life of Rebeca Acosta, and those around her, the following is a look into fresh, direct one liners given from students at Reagan.
Election Day: What you should know?
By Gabriella Hartlaub
These days, everyone is looking forward to the 2020 election, who will be the democratic nominee and who will end up being the president. Although there not as popular or seen as interesting as the national presidential election, there are also important 2019 elections going on as well. The results were also surprisingly interesting, so, let’s look at some of the results from election night 2019 and preview 2020.
The tough elections
Two states had elections for their governors, Mississippi and Kentucky. In Mississippi, Republican Tate Reeves won his first term in office, having beaten out Democrat Jim Hood, Independent David Singletary and Libertarion Bob Hickingbottom. Kentucky's election is a little more complicated, however;the results have Democratic candidate Andy Beshear delivering an upset to the current Governor Republican Matt Bevin, by a margin of about 5,000 votes (which translates into 1.4%) but Bevin has yet to concede and has been calling for a recount. Both men had more votes than Libertarian candidate John Hicks, who only gained 2% of the vote.
Another complicated election is for the Virginia State Congress. Virginia already has a Governor who is a Democrat but now it has both a state house and senate that are majority Democrat as well. This was the first time in a while that this has happened, and was seen as a big victory for the Democratic party as a whole, even though it is just a state election.
Around now is when one might start thinking, but I live in Wisconsin what does any of this have to do with me?
Beyond the political implications of elections like these (the news is going insane right now about what these results could mean for the presidential election next year in terms of voter turnout and enthusiasm), simply put: the laws in Kentucky matter when you're driving through Kentucky. Some things that are illegal in one state aren’t in others, (see: recreational Marijuana) so it matters to know what the views of the people making the laws, or at least signing them, are even if you can’t technically vote on who they are.
Also on the state legislature front: they can actually end up making an impact on the national level, if they can all agree.
For example, representatives in Virginia have hinted that now that the Democrats have the majority of the state is willing to Ratify (basically pass and allow into the law) the equal rights amendment, or ERA, which is a proposed amendment to the constitution that would finally put into the greatest law in the land that men and women are equal under the laws of the united states, no hesitation about it. If this law is needed is another debate entirely, but if Virginian were to ratify it the 38 state threshold would be passed and if no one challenged it in the courts then it would be added to the constitution which would be pretty cool. Fun fact: Wisconsin has already ratified the ERA.
Ballot Measures
A little known Hallmark of general elections are the ballot measures that are sometimes included. These are laws that the government wants the public to vote on to see if there is public support for these issues that could one day be turned into laws or are already bills waiting to be signed into law. A majority yes vote by the public doesn’t mean that it will be passed but it does show lawmakers that the public supports the issue and wants to see action taken.
Two interesting ones from this election came from Texas and Colorado. In texas the public voted yes on a bill that would make it so former police dogs could be re-trained and allowed to be adopted by the public when they are no longer in service instead of being put down, even if someone wanted to adopt them. In Colorado the state legalized sports betting, as long as ten percent of the money gotten from it went back to the state in the form of taxes and go towards repairing the water systems.
Looking Forward to 2020
Milwaukee & Wisconsin
Milwaukee has a Mayoral Election coming up in November 2020. Current Mayor Tom Barret is up for reelection and there are already five declared candidates trying to take his place, including state Senator Lena Taylor. Barret himself hasn’t said if he will run for reelection.
Wisconsin has 8 seats in the House of Representatives and all 8 of them are up for grabs in 2020. District 4, which includes the entire city of Milwaukee has only one declared candidate, Republican Cindy Werner, the current representative is Gwen Moore and she has not declared her candidacy yet. District 5, which has the western and northern suburbs of Milwaukee has one declared Republican and one declared Democrat.
US
The biggest election coming up for the entire United States is the presidential election. So far it is assumed that the Republican Nominee will be current President Donald Trump but the Democratic nominee is yet to be decided with at least 10 candidates running for the position.
By Gabriella Hartlaub
These days, everyone is looking forward to the 2020 election, who will be the democratic nominee and who will end up being the president. Although there not as popular or seen as interesting as the national presidential election, there are also important 2019 elections going on as well. The results were also surprisingly interesting, so, let’s look at some of the results from election night 2019 and preview 2020.
The tough elections
Two states had elections for their governors, Mississippi and Kentucky. In Mississippi, Republican Tate Reeves won his first term in office, having beaten out Democrat Jim Hood, Independent David Singletary and Libertarion Bob Hickingbottom. Kentucky's election is a little more complicated, however;the results have Democratic candidate Andy Beshear delivering an upset to the current Governor Republican Matt Bevin, by a margin of about 5,000 votes (which translates into 1.4%) but Bevin has yet to concede and has been calling for a recount. Both men had more votes than Libertarian candidate John Hicks, who only gained 2% of the vote.
Another complicated election is for the Virginia State Congress. Virginia already has a Governor who is a Democrat but now it has both a state house and senate that are majority Democrat as well. This was the first time in a while that this has happened, and was seen as a big victory for the Democratic party as a whole, even though it is just a state election.
Around now is when one might start thinking, but I live in Wisconsin what does any of this have to do with me?
Beyond the political implications of elections like these (the news is going insane right now about what these results could mean for the presidential election next year in terms of voter turnout and enthusiasm), simply put: the laws in Kentucky matter when you're driving through Kentucky. Some things that are illegal in one state aren’t in others, (see: recreational Marijuana) so it matters to know what the views of the people making the laws, or at least signing them, are even if you can’t technically vote on who they are.
Also on the state legislature front: they can actually end up making an impact on the national level, if they can all agree.
For example, representatives in Virginia have hinted that now that the Democrats have the majority of the state is willing to Ratify (basically pass and allow into the law) the equal rights amendment, or ERA, which is a proposed amendment to the constitution that would finally put into the greatest law in the land that men and women are equal under the laws of the united states, no hesitation about it. If this law is needed is another debate entirely, but if Virginian were to ratify it the 38 state threshold would be passed and if no one challenged it in the courts then it would be added to the constitution which would be pretty cool. Fun fact: Wisconsin has already ratified the ERA.
Ballot Measures
A little known Hallmark of general elections are the ballot measures that are sometimes included. These are laws that the government wants the public to vote on to see if there is public support for these issues that could one day be turned into laws or are already bills waiting to be signed into law. A majority yes vote by the public doesn’t mean that it will be passed but it does show lawmakers that the public supports the issue and wants to see action taken.
Two interesting ones from this election came from Texas and Colorado. In texas the public voted yes on a bill that would make it so former police dogs could be re-trained and allowed to be adopted by the public when they are no longer in service instead of being put down, even if someone wanted to adopt them. In Colorado the state legalized sports betting, as long as ten percent of the money gotten from it went back to the state in the form of taxes and go towards repairing the water systems.
Looking Forward to 2020
Milwaukee & Wisconsin
Milwaukee has a Mayoral Election coming up in November 2020. Current Mayor Tom Barret is up for reelection and there are already five declared candidates trying to take his place, including state Senator Lena Taylor. Barret himself hasn’t said if he will run for reelection.
Wisconsin has 8 seats in the House of Representatives and all 8 of them are up for grabs in 2020. District 4, which includes the entire city of Milwaukee has only one declared candidate, Republican Cindy Werner, the current representative is Gwen Moore and she has not declared her candidacy yet. District 5, which has the western and northern suburbs of Milwaukee has one declared Republican and one declared Democrat.
US
The biggest election coming up for the entire United States is the presidential election. So far it is assumed that the Republican Nominee will be current President Donald Trump but the Democratic nominee is yet to be decided with at least 10 candidates running for the position.
Holiday Night Lights
By Lisa Kvein Do you love the holidays watts and watts? Visit The Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival that occurs from November 21st to January 1st in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin. There are more than 500,000 holiday lights to enjoy with family and friends with many photo opportunities and decorations like lit up snowmen. This year is the 21st season of The Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival, with Milwaukee's 106th Christmas Tree Lighting happening on the 21st as well. During the kickoff, performances by the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra take place. There will also be fireworks, free hot cocoa with cookies, and Santa will make an appearance to take pictures with kids. Plus, free rides on the Jingle Bus will be offered, which is a bus that takes you on a 40 minute tour of downtown landmarks and lights. You can experience this for only $2 November 21st through December 29th. If you are dreaming of a bright Christmas, this is the festival for you! |
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Disney Plus or Minus?
By Gabriella Hartlaub
Remember back when the only streaming service available was Netflix? When everyone watched their TV shows live or risked missing them forever, and kept their favorite movies on DVD. Those days are over. In the modern world, there seems to be around a different streaming services out there. Hulu, Netflix, CBS all access, Vudu, Fandango Now, Apple Music, Spotify, Apple TV, Amazon Prime, and even more on the way like HBO Max (where the office is heading when it leaves Netflix at the end of the year). All of these services come with their own original shows and content along with a backlog on content from licensing agreements (like NBC/Comcast allowing Netflix to stream The Office among other shows), or shows owned by their respective companies (CBS All access stream all the shows currently or having aired on CBS the channel). The streaming service with, arguably, the most extensive backlog and the newest one to be released is Disney +, which is owned by, you guessed it, Disney.
If you're not completely sure what Disney + is, think of it as a Disney-based Netflix. Now, not to say that Disney + contains only stereotypical Disney content such as Disney channel shows movies, but they also bring a lot more to the plate. Disney owns smaller companies like Marvel Entertainment (which includes movies, shows and comics), Lucas film (translation: Star Wars), National Geographic, and even more recently they’ve bought out 21st Century Fox. Despite all that, however, Disney + does have a few pitfalls. Let’s look at a few of the advantages and drawbacks of Disney +.
Plus: It has Marvel movies
Drawback: It doesn’t have all of them (and probably won’t in the future)
If you’re a fellow Marvel fan then you’ve probably heard about the new series coming to Disney + next year that directly ties into movies going forward. However, none of these have yet been available for launch. What Disney+ did have, however, were a few of the 23 MCU movies made so far but not all of them. At launch, some of the titles available were , Avengers: Endgame, Captain Marvel, Ant-Man, all three of the Captain America movies and Iron Man movies, but the issue here is that some of them are missing. Notably, Avengers Infinity War, Ant Man and the Wasp, Black Panther and both Spiderman movies. The first three are all on Netflix and will probably be available when those contracts are up, but the Spiderman movies are released by Sony,therefore will probably not be making it into Disney+.
Plus: Star Wars
Unlike Marvel, Disney + does have all but one of the Star Wars movies. From Episode 1 to Episode 7, and even the inbetweens, Rogue One and Solo along with most of the Star Wars Animated Series. One of the main advertising points of Disney + is the new live action Star Wars show, The Madalorian, which is a Disney + original, and the service has two more on the way.
Plus: Original shows
Netflix Charges 12.99 per month and you can only watch on two devices at once. However, like any company, Disney can make its price higher at any time. Netflix did that this year when they changed their price from 10.99/mo to 12.99/mo. Although it’s a pretty good deal right now, it is subject to change.
Drawback: New episodes only come once a week.
Disney has elected not to model after Netflix by releasing an entire season of episodes on one day so that people can binge all of them. This is most likely to avoid people signing up for a free trial, watching all the episodes and then canceling. For all the Disney + originals so far, new episodes come out once a week which is an inconvenience for those who don’t want to have to wait to see the episodes of their new favorite shows.
Plus: The price
Drawback: This could change Disney + is only 6.99 a month, and with that you can watch on up to five devices at once.
Plus: The vault & Pixar
Disney + is full of classic Disney movies, from Inside Out and Frozen, to The Little Mermaid and other classic princess movies. one of which haven’t been available for purchase for years because they’ve been locked in the Disney “vault.”
By Gabriella Hartlaub
Remember back when the only streaming service available was Netflix? When everyone watched their TV shows live or risked missing them forever, and kept their favorite movies on DVD. Those days are over. In the modern world, there seems to be around a different streaming services out there. Hulu, Netflix, CBS all access, Vudu, Fandango Now, Apple Music, Spotify, Apple TV, Amazon Prime, and even more on the way like HBO Max (where the office is heading when it leaves Netflix at the end of the year). All of these services come with their own original shows and content along with a backlog on content from licensing agreements (like NBC/Comcast allowing Netflix to stream The Office among other shows), or shows owned by their respective companies (CBS All access stream all the shows currently or having aired on CBS the channel). The streaming service with, arguably, the most extensive backlog and the newest one to be released is Disney +, which is owned by, you guessed it, Disney.
If you're not completely sure what Disney + is, think of it as a Disney-based Netflix. Now, not to say that Disney + contains only stereotypical Disney content such as Disney channel shows movies, but they also bring a lot more to the plate. Disney owns smaller companies like Marvel Entertainment (which includes movies, shows and comics), Lucas film (translation: Star Wars), National Geographic, and even more recently they’ve bought out 21st Century Fox. Despite all that, however, Disney + does have a few pitfalls. Let’s look at a few of the advantages and drawbacks of Disney +.
Plus: It has Marvel movies
Drawback: It doesn’t have all of them (and probably won’t in the future)
If you’re a fellow Marvel fan then you’ve probably heard about the new series coming to Disney + next year that directly ties into movies going forward. However, none of these have yet been available for launch. What Disney+ did have, however, were a few of the 23 MCU movies made so far but not all of them. At launch, some of the titles available were , Avengers: Endgame, Captain Marvel, Ant-Man, all three of the Captain America movies and Iron Man movies, but the issue here is that some of them are missing. Notably, Avengers Infinity War, Ant Man and the Wasp, Black Panther and both Spiderman movies. The first three are all on Netflix and will probably be available when those contracts are up, but the Spiderman movies are released by Sony,therefore will probably not be making it into Disney+.
Plus: Star Wars
Unlike Marvel, Disney + does have all but one of the Star Wars movies. From Episode 1 to Episode 7, and even the inbetweens, Rogue One and Solo along with most of the Star Wars Animated Series. One of the main advertising points of Disney + is the new live action Star Wars show, The Madalorian, which is a Disney + original, and the service has two more on the way.
Plus: Original shows
Netflix Charges 12.99 per month and you can only watch on two devices at once. However, like any company, Disney can make its price higher at any time. Netflix did that this year when they changed their price from 10.99/mo to 12.99/mo. Although it’s a pretty good deal right now, it is subject to change.
Drawback: New episodes only come once a week.
Disney has elected not to model after Netflix by releasing an entire season of episodes on one day so that people can binge all of them. This is most likely to avoid people signing up for a free trial, watching all the episodes and then canceling. For all the Disney + originals so far, new episodes come out once a week which is an inconvenience for those who don’t want to have to wait to see the episodes of their new favorite shows.
Plus: The price
Drawback: This could change Disney + is only 6.99 a month, and with that you can watch on up to five devices at once.
Plus: The vault & Pixar
Disney + is full of classic Disney movies, from Inside Out and Frozen, to The Little Mermaid and other classic princess movies. one of which haven’t been available for purchase for years because they’ve been locked in the Disney “vault.”
15 Ways to Spread Kindness on World Kindness Day
By Lisa Kvein World Kindness Day is an international holiday that takes place annually on November 13th to encourage kindness. There are many ways to contribute to this holiday and spread kindness around the world. #1 Hold the Door for Someone It may seem simple, but holding the door open for someone can really mean a lot, especially if they have a lot in their hands. |
#2 Tell Someone How Much You Love Them
Text, call, or talk to someone and tell them how much they have impacted your life. Write your friend a letter on why they are so important to you. Telling someone why you are thankful for them can make them feel important and loved.
#3 Give Someone a Compliment
Compliment anyone you know, or even a stranger and watch how happy they get. Tell them something you like about them, and you will make their day.
#4 Pay for Someones Meal
If you can afford it, pay for the person behind you in a drive thru. Pay for a family's meal at a restaurant. It can mean a lot to someone and motivate them to do the same. You may start a chain of kindness.
#5 Tip your Server Well
A lot of servers are college students who could really use an extra tip. Tipping your server a little extra can mean a lot and help more than you may think. It will make their very stressful job a little bit easier.
#6 Sit with Someone who is Alone
If you see someone who is sitting alone, go sit by them and have a conversation. Make them feel included. It will make them feel noticed and happy, and you will be happy too.
#7 Offer Help to Someone
If you see someone who needs help with their homework or getting something off the top shelf at a store, help them out. Small gestures are more appreciated than you know.
#8 Smile and be Positive
Sometimes smiling at someone can change their whole mood and make them feel happy. Spreading positivity and being motivational can make people want to be kind to others.
#9 Donate
Get together some things you no longer use, and take them to Goodwill. Buy some canned goods to donate to a homeless shelter. You can also donate clothes. Take books and stuffed animals to Children's Hospitals. You can also donate money to charity.
#10 Forgive Someone
This does not mean their actions should be excused, but if they genuinely apology and it is something you can accept, you should forgive their actions. It will show you are a kind person and it can encourage them to forgive and not hold grudges.
#11 Stand Up for What’s Right
If you see something that is wrong occurring, you should stand up for it. For example, if someone is being bullied, you should stand up for them. It will make them feel good, and it will make you feel good too. You could possibly give someone the courage to stand up for something wrong they see too.
#12 Ask Someone How Their Day Was
Something so simple can mean so much to someone. Some people don’t have people who check up on them often. Having a conversation with someone about their day can make them feel better about themselves if they had a bad day, and can make them aware that someone cares about them.
#13 Give Up Your Seat to Someone Who Needs it More
If you are on a train or bus and all the seats are filled, give up your seat to someone who needs it. If an elderly person, disabled person, or pregnant person needs a spot to sit, you should offer your seat to show that you care. You could possibly inspire others.
#14 Volunteer
You can volunteer at many different places like animal shelters and homeless shelters to contribute to helping others. This is a great way to spread kindness and positivity.
#15 Do Something Nice for Yourself
Being kind to yourself is just as important as being kind to others. So make sure you spoil yourself sometimes by doing things like buying a new outfit.
Text, call, or talk to someone and tell them how much they have impacted your life. Write your friend a letter on why they are so important to you. Telling someone why you are thankful for them can make them feel important and loved.
#3 Give Someone a Compliment
Compliment anyone you know, or even a stranger and watch how happy they get. Tell them something you like about them, and you will make their day.
#4 Pay for Someones Meal
If you can afford it, pay for the person behind you in a drive thru. Pay for a family's meal at a restaurant. It can mean a lot to someone and motivate them to do the same. You may start a chain of kindness.
#5 Tip your Server Well
A lot of servers are college students who could really use an extra tip. Tipping your server a little extra can mean a lot and help more than you may think. It will make their very stressful job a little bit easier.
#6 Sit with Someone who is Alone
If you see someone who is sitting alone, go sit by them and have a conversation. Make them feel included. It will make them feel noticed and happy, and you will be happy too.
#7 Offer Help to Someone
If you see someone who needs help with their homework or getting something off the top shelf at a store, help them out. Small gestures are more appreciated than you know.
#8 Smile and be Positive
Sometimes smiling at someone can change their whole mood and make them feel happy. Spreading positivity and being motivational can make people want to be kind to others.
#9 Donate
Get together some things you no longer use, and take them to Goodwill. Buy some canned goods to donate to a homeless shelter. You can also donate clothes. Take books and stuffed animals to Children's Hospitals. You can also donate money to charity.
#10 Forgive Someone
This does not mean their actions should be excused, but if they genuinely apology and it is something you can accept, you should forgive their actions. It will show you are a kind person and it can encourage them to forgive and not hold grudges.
#11 Stand Up for What’s Right
If you see something that is wrong occurring, you should stand up for it. For example, if someone is being bullied, you should stand up for them. It will make them feel good, and it will make you feel good too. You could possibly give someone the courage to stand up for something wrong they see too.
#12 Ask Someone How Their Day Was
Something so simple can mean so much to someone. Some people don’t have people who check up on them often. Having a conversation with someone about their day can make them feel better about themselves if they had a bad day, and can make them aware that someone cares about them.
#13 Give Up Your Seat to Someone Who Needs it More
If you are on a train or bus and all the seats are filled, give up your seat to someone who needs it. If an elderly person, disabled person, or pregnant person needs a spot to sit, you should offer your seat to show that you care. You could possibly inspire others.
#14 Volunteer
You can volunteer at many different places like animal shelters and homeless shelters to contribute to helping others. This is a great way to spread kindness and positivity.
#15 Do Something Nice for Yourself
Being kind to yourself is just as important as being kind to others. So make sure you spoil yourself sometimes by doing things like buying a new outfit.
9 Fun events to do in Milwaukee during Autumn
By Gabriella Hartlaub It’s everyone’s favorite time of year again: fall. The weather will still be unpredictable because we live in Wisconsin, but eventually the leaves will start to fall from the trees, and some of the best events will take place in Milwaukee/Southeast Wisconsin. So if you're looking for something to do as spooky season starts, here’s a list of five major events happening in Milwaukee this October. #1. Harvest Fair From September 27-29 (Not technically in October but pretty close), you can head down to State Fair park to have fun at Harvest Fair. This event has free admission, and free entertainment along with that there are food from different vendors available for purchase all which fit the fall season. Along with that you can purchase “credits” which can be used to do more fun activities and go on rides like the classic giant slide. If you want to go to this event you can go Friday September 27th, 5-11pm, Saturday September 28th, 9am-11pm or Sunday September 9am-5pm, at State Fair Park in West Allis. For more information they have a website that is http://wistatefair.com/harvestfair/general-info/ |
#2. Doors Open MKE
Ever wanted to get into some of Milwaukee’s downtown historic buildings for free? Well Door’s open Milwaukee is your time to fulfill that want. Doors Open MKE is a free event where buildings downtown are opened to people to walk around in for the length of the event. These buildings include the Milwaukee County Courthouse and the US Bank Building (Which has an amazing view from the top floor). If you don’t want to walk yourself around there are a variety of tours available through Doors open some of which are free, and one which costs 10 dollars per person.
All in all, this is a fun event if your looking to see some of Milwaukee’s greatest landmarks, and get in some exercise while your at it. For more details, times and locations there website is linked here https://historicmilwaukee.org/doors-open/
#3 Fall Fun on the farms at Old World Wisconsin
If you want to learn about how the fall season was for the residents in Wisconsins past this is the event for you. This event has been happening every weekend since September 7th but there are three fun themed weekends coming up in late September/October. Tickets for this event have to be bought in advance; 10 dollars for children and 20 dollars for adults at this site https://oldworldwisconsin.wisconsinhistory.org/tickets/ and takes place at Old World Wisconsin in Waukesha.
Oktoberfest is a traditional Germna Celebration and Ceaderbug is going all out for their celebration. This festival is on both October 5 from 11am-8pm and October 6 from 10am - 5pm in Downtown Cedarburg. There will be live music, traditional German foods (including deserts), a merchants marketplace and multiple contests including the German spelling bee. If you want to try some good food, see some traditions and listen to some great music head on down to Oktoberfest. More information can be found here https://www.cedarburgfestival.org/oktoberfest
#5 Brady Street Pet Parade
Do you have a pet? Do you like looking at other people’s pets? If your answer to one, or both of these questions is yes then the Brady Street Pet Parade is the event for you. The parade itself starts at 1pm on Sunday October 13th, and starts at Easy Brady Street & North Franklin Place. The link to the entry parade route map is here http://bradystreet.org/documents/41-the-u-s-bank-brady-street-pet-parade along with the complete schedule of the day which includes events like costume contest and doggy yoga for those who have pets they want to bring. Those events require registration, which can be done from the site linked above.
#6 Under the Meso American Sky
Hispanic Heritage month is fully in swing and this event aims to celebrate that through an interesting lense: the stars. The UWM Planetarium is going to look at the sky through the cultural perspectives of Latin American Countries, (with no light pollution which is a huge plus). This event is stargazing but with a fun and education twist, the event is free and also includes live music and free food. The event goes from 6pm-8pm on Thursday October 3rd, with music starting at 7pm, and Planetarium shows at 6 & 7:30. It takes place at the UWM Planetarium, more information can be found here: https://uwm.edu/planetarium/event/under-the-mesoamerican-sky/
#7 The Milwaukee Film Festival
Even experienced movie-goers can get tired of the endless reboots, sequels, franchises and spin offs that are shown at theaters these days. If your looking to get away from that and see some independent films of all genres then you should check out the milwaukee film festival. This event shows films at a group of different theaters throughout the city, most notably the Avalon Theater in Bay View and the Oriental Theater near downtown. The entire festival runs from October 17- October 31st and individual tickets available online for 13 dollars each. The films and showtimes have not been announced yet but they will be soon. More information can be found on the website https://mkefilm.org/festival
#8 Bay View Pumpkin Pavilion
October is the month of pumpkins, and this event is all about them. From October 16-19 at the Humboldt Park pavilion you can enjoy pumpkin carving, live music, food from local restaurants and enjoy the display of 1,000 lit pumpkins, with more attractions and events to be added! More information can be found at this site: https://bayviewneighborhood.org/pumpkinpavilion
#9 Oak Creek fall festival
On Saturday October 19th from 9am - 6pm in the Drexel Town Square you can enjoy the oak creek fall festival which has a variety of activities to participate in. Some of the activities are: a farmers market, the friends of the oak creek library book sale, live music, hay rides, a costume contest and many more, a full list of activities can be found on their website here: https://www.visitoakcreek.com/event/fall-festival/
Ever wanted to get into some of Milwaukee’s downtown historic buildings for free? Well Door’s open Milwaukee is your time to fulfill that want. Doors Open MKE is a free event where buildings downtown are opened to people to walk around in for the length of the event. These buildings include the Milwaukee County Courthouse and the US Bank Building (Which has an amazing view from the top floor). If you don’t want to walk yourself around there are a variety of tours available through Doors open some of which are free, and one which costs 10 dollars per person.
All in all, this is a fun event if your looking to see some of Milwaukee’s greatest landmarks, and get in some exercise while your at it. For more details, times and locations there website is linked here https://historicmilwaukee.org/doors-open/
#3 Fall Fun on the farms at Old World Wisconsin
If you want to learn about how the fall season was for the residents in Wisconsins past this is the event for you. This event has been happening every weekend since September 7th but there are three fun themed weekends coming up in late September/October. Tickets for this event have to be bought in advance; 10 dollars for children and 20 dollars for adults at this site https://oldworldwisconsin.wisconsinhistory.org/tickets/ and takes place at Old World Wisconsin in Waukesha.
- Weekend 1: September 28 & 29: The theme of this event is Winter is Coming weekend part 2. During this event you can learn and participate in some of the routines that settlers of Wisconsin did to prepare for the winter. Some examples of these include making salves and syrups and preserve produce.
- Weekend 2: October 5 & 6: This is Butchering Weekend, where you can see preparations for food in the kitchens and get to see performers doing traditional butchering. As a note: they will be butchering real animals and processing freshly butchered animals so don’t go if that makes you feel uncomfortable
- Weekend 3: October 12 & 13: The final weekend of the event is apprentice weekend where people of all ages can take part in “mini apprenticeships” or 5 -10 minute activities like sausage making, working in the general store and more!
Oktoberfest is a traditional Germna Celebration and Ceaderbug is going all out for their celebration. This festival is on both October 5 from 11am-8pm and October 6 from 10am - 5pm in Downtown Cedarburg. There will be live music, traditional German foods (including deserts), a merchants marketplace and multiple contests including the German spelling bee. If you want to try some good food, see some traditions and listen to some great music head on down to Oktoberfest. More information can be found here https://www.cedarburgfestival.org/oktoberfest
#5 Brady Street Pet Parade
Do you have a pet? Do you like looking at other people’s pets? If your answer to one, or both of these questions is yes then the Brady Street Pet Parade is the event for you. The parade itself starts at 1pm on Sunday October 13th, and starts at Easy Brady Street & North Franklin Place. The link to the entry parade route map is here http://bradystreet.org/documents/41-the-u-s-bank-brady-street-pet-parade along with the complete schedule of the day which includes events like costume contest and doggy yoga for those who have pets they want to bring. Those events require registration, which can be done from the site linked above.
#6 Under the Meso American Sky
Hispanic Heritage month is fully in swing and this event aims to celebrate that through an interesting lense: the stars. The UWM Planetarium is going to look at the sky through the cultural perspectives of Latin American Countries, (with no light pollution which is a huge plus). This event is stargazing but with a fun and education twist, the event is free and also includes live music and free food. The event goes from 6pm-8pm on Thursday October 3rd, with music starting at 7pm, and Planetarium shows at 6 & 7:30. It takes place at the UWM Planetarium, more information can be found here: https://uwm.edu/planetarium/event/under-the-mesoamerican-sky/
#7 The Milwaukee Film Festival
Even experienced movie-goers can get tired of the endless reboots, sequels, franchises and spin offs that are shown at theaters these days. If your looking to get away from that and see some independent films of all genres then you should check out the milwaukee film festival. This event shows films at a group of different theaters throughout the city, most notably the Avalon Theater in Bay View and the Oriental Theater near downtown. The entire festival runs from October 17- October 31st and individual tickets available online for 13 dollars each. The films and showtimes have not been announced yet but they will be soon. More information can be found on the website https://mkefilm.org/festival
#8 Bay View Pumpkin Pavilion
October is the month of pumpkins, and this event is all about them. From October 16-19 at the Humboldt Park pavilion you can enjoy pumpkin carving, live music, food from local restaurants and enjoy the display of 1,000 lit pumpkins, with more attractions and events to be added! More information can be found at this site: https://bayviewneighborhood.org/pumpkinpavilion
#9 Oak Creek fall festival
On Saturday October 19th from 9am - 6pm in the Drexel Town Square you can enjoy the oak creek fall festival which has a variety of activities to participate in. Some of the activities are: a farmers market, the friends of the oak creek library book sale, live music, hay rides, a costume contest and many more, a full list of activities can be found on their website here: https://www.visitoakcreek.com/event/fall-festival/
Mash-up Halloween
By: Maysa Saadeddin On the 31st we’ll be blinded by buttons, The ones Coraline will share to give us a scare, Casper will come late to class, As he casually flies through the glass, Help him with his books that he struggles to carry, He won’t be here for long when it gets all merry Jack will remind us of the real nightmare before Christmas,
Making us buy boo-grams for his new business. |
School Spirit Tradition
By Alana Alexandria Serrano
By Alana Alexandria Serrano
click photos to get a closer look . . .
A Win for Equitable Music Education
By Diego de Haan
On Tuesday, September 24th, the Milwaukee Public School’s Law, Regulations, and Regulations Committee met to talk about the MMEA’s policy and procedure for equitable music education in MPS. At the meeting, more than 70 public speakers went to the board to express their opinions on the MMEA’s policy. The speakers ranged from students to teachers, to performers, to general community members. The community spoke about the issue for around three hours; the number of speakers attested to the importance of the issue.
The speakers spoke on many different aspects of music. Many students went to the podium to speak about the importance of their music education and its impact on their multiple aspects of life. One junior for Milwaukee High School for the Arts powerfully said, “Music is something that ties us together despite what language we speak, how much money your parents make, what you have or don’t have. It’s something that allows us to be who you are.” A few significant points made that night, was music’s positive effect on literacy, cognitive thinking, language acquisition, community, and general life skills.
By Diego de Haan
On Tuesday, September 24th, the Milwaukee Public School’s Law, Regulations, and Regulations Committee met to talk about the MMEA’s policy and procedure for equitable music education in MPS. At the meeting, more than 70 public speakers went to the board to express their opinions on the MMEA’s policy. The speakers ranged from students to teachers, to performers, to general community members. The community spoke about the issue for around three hours; the number of speakers attested to the importance of the issue.
The speakers spoke on many different aspects of music. Many students went to the podium to speak about the importance of their music education and its impact on their multiple aspects of life. One junior for Milwaukee High School for the Arts powerfully said, “Music is something that ties us together despite what language we speak, how much money your parents make, what you have or don’t have. It’s something that allows us to be who you are.” A few significant points made that night, was music’s positive effect on literacy, cognitive thinking, language acquisition, community, and general life skills.
In addition to speakers highlighting the importance of music education, some also spoke on the logistics of the policy and procedure. Ben Zaber, band director and Rufus King, explained the policy’s procedure for implementation. He explained that equitable music education with certified music educators across Milwaukee Public Schools would be a five-year process implementing 15 music educators per year, with an estimated total cost of seven million dollars.
Once it came to voting to pass the policy to the full school board, to be solidified for implementation, Board president Larry Miller, explained before passing as is, the policy would have to be officially reviewed by the city attorney. However, between the Law, Regulations, and Regulations Committee members present at the meeting, it was a unanimous decision to pass the policy to the full board, with the Office of the City Attorney’s edits. |
Then, on September 26th, the MMEA’s policy and the procedure went in front of the school board. There, the City Attorney spoke about the edits made to the MMEA’s policy and procedure and made a distinction that the edits made were more for verbiage, rather than significant changes. The board voted 7-0 for the policy to pass.
Budgeting
One of the most prominent arguments against implementing music across all MPS is that budgeting can be a huge problem. Many schools would like to implement arts and music, however, they feel that they lack the funding to do so.
As it stands now, money is allocated to each school for music education. In an interview with Erica Breitbarth, Music Department Chair at Reagan High School, she explains, “There are a certain amount of funds allocated through AMP, which is Art, Music, and Physical Education.” She says that schools are allocated money from AMP based on student population. Breitbarth gives the example that at Reagan, AMP allocated funding for 1.2 teachers, 1 full-time education and one teacher once a week. Breitbarth tells, “If that was a new [music] program, that might be possible, but after that, it becomes impossible.”
For the implementation of the new policy, the projection was around 7-8 million dollars a year, which at face value, might be overwhelming. However, Breitbarth explains, “they had to project the highest possible amount it would cost and that money is not totally new funds.” Furthermore, Breithbarth believes that cost is in reality, much lower. She said “the educator cost was calculated for class sizes of 27 students,” which most music students know, is far from reality. Finally, Breitbarth states, “A lot of the materials already exist in the district, there are instruments going unused.”
In alignment with troubles with budgeting, a concern with implementing music into schools is that the funds reallocated will in turn harm other aspects of education. In schools where music funds are not used for music, where the money must be being used for something else, a concern with equitable music education is that reallocated that money to music will harm other important subjects.
On the other hand, Breitbarth confidently says, “having music in school improves student attendance, improve student’s health and well-being, improves the overall culture of the school, improves behavior and academic achievement.” She explains that putting money back into music, will not hurt, but even improve, other subjects. Another important point Breitbarth makes is that having schools with music (alongside other fine arts) will draw more students from across, and even outside, the district, into MPS, as seen in Reagan and High School of the Arts.
From here, the policy and procedure for equitable music education will be gradually implemented into MPS over the course of five years. Although this policy serves as a framework for music education, Erica Breitbarth explains the policy as a win for activism in general.
Budgeting
One of the most prominent arguments against implementing music across all MPS is that budgeting can be a huge problem. Many schools would like to implement arts and music, however, they feel that they lack the funding to do so.
As it stands now, money is allocated to each school for music education. In an interview with Erica Breitbarth, Music Department Chair at Reagan High School, she explains, “There are a certain amount of funds allocated through AMP, which is Art, Music, and Physical Education.” She says that schools are allocated money from AMP based on student population. Breitbarth gives the example that at Reagan, AMP allocated funding for 1.2 teachers, 1 full-time education and one teacher once a week. Breitbarth tells, “If that was a new [music] program, that might be possible, but after that, it becomes impossible.”
For the implementation of the new policy, the projection was around 7-8 million dollars a year, which at face value, might be overwhelming. However, Breitbarth explains, “they had to project the highest possible amount it would cost and that money is not totally new funds.” Furthermore, Breithbarth believes that cost is in reality, much lower. She said “the educator cost was calculated for class sizes of 27 students,” which most music students know, is far from reality. Finally, Breitbarth states, “A lot of the materials already exist in the district, there are instruments going unused.”
In alignment with troubles with budgeting, a concern with implementing music into schools is that the funds reallocated will in turn harm other aspects of education. In schools where music funds are not used for music, where the money must be being used for something else, a concern with equitable music education is that reallocated that money to music will harm other important subjects.
On the other hand, Breitbarth confidently says, “having music in school improves student attendance, improve student’s health and well-being, improves the overall culture of the school, improves behavior and academic achievement.” She explains that putting money back into music, will not hurt, but even improve, other subjects. Another important point Breitbarth makes is that having schools with music (alongside other fine arts) will draw more students from across, and even outside, the district, into MPS, as seen in Reagan and High School of the Arts.
From here, the policy and procedure for equitable music education will be gradually implemented into MPS over the course of five years. Although this policy serves as a framework for music education, Erica Breitbarth explains the policy as a win for activism in general.
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Emotionless
By Maysa Saadeddin The girl with a new emotion everyday, A new face, A new mask She can never choose her own emotions, it chooses her, one always glows; a different one every day to chase away all the other emotions she may feel. One day she laughs hysterically, Another she cries a whole river, She can scream louder than a wolf at a full moon, She can skip around the world with joy. Those who don’t understand her, Leave her When her mother saw her in a mask for the first time,
She went through all the terrible emotions: Sadness, anger, terrified Those who understand her, Betray her She saw her best friend suddenly attack her, Pushing her to the ground, Trying to break off the mask magically glued to her face. The hard life of being different, of being forced to express an emotion. |
By Rebeca Acosta
Art holds power to brighten a community, tell a story, and change perspectives. The movement of art starts within small communities, like schools. A small community like Reagan has adopted art and it has changed Reagan or what was predominantly known as “Town of Lake” at its establishing years. Chad Sperzel-Wuchterl, a teacher who has served Reagan for about 15 years set the canvas of what art looks like within the community. Back in the first couple years of “Town of Lake,” the IB curriculum had not been implemented because the MYP cycle was still being created. During this time, Chad and a few others had to set the curriculum for Art Foundations as preparation for Junior and Senior art. Reagan did have the IB curriculum in place until a couple years later. |
They began setting up the curriculum for Art Foundations. Reagan started off with only one freshman class. The top floor was home to the one class. Their plan was to add a class every year. A couple years later, Suzanne Milewski joined the team, and took the role MYP organizer while Chad organizers Junior and Senior year art.
Not only does it take committed teachers to run a visual arts program but it also takes committed students. Students who are apart of the Art Club at Reagan, advised by Chad and Milewski, are the key to the key to the visual arts. Everything “school spirit, decorative elements, has been done by the art club,” Chad continued.
The relationship with the art club and the community has sparked inspiration within the arts. As Chad puts it, “I cannot talk to someone about an experience if I can't share an experience. So I need to know what people are going through and I need to be always reminding myself ‘how do I do that?’” Having other artists add to |
the canvas paints the bigger picture for Reagan. The influence of the community changed the visual arts. Furthermore, it starts with a collaboration “with another organization, it's all about those community connections,” Chad stated. The art outside of the school building is apart of the representation of visual arts. The banners of arts is a yearly installation. However, but before the vibrant art, it “ came out of years of struggling,” Chad recalls, “but it starts with that.”
The obstacles of arts, including theater and instrumental arts, do not stop passionate teachers. Like Mr. Chad said, “The moment you settle, is the moment something dies.”
The obstacles of arts, including theater and instrumental arts, do not stop passionate teachers. Like Mr. Chad said, “The moment you settle, is the moment something dies.”