Before the long hours of unpaid work, before the 7 a.m. meetings over Google Hangouts and before there was a team of 12 dedicated women skilled in photography, videography, writing and web design, Majesty Digital co-founders Yasi Milani and Srushti Kamat simply had an idea. It was one that drew from internal inspiration and a desire to connect the shared experiences of women of color from around the world.

Majesty Digital is an online publication that was founded by University of Oregon students for the sole purpose of creating a platform for women of color to share their experiences. Every issue will follow a general theme. The first issue, released on May 25, focused on the arts, with extended interviews from a number of successful women, such as graphic artist Zoya Rahim and figurative artist Shyama Golden, who is known for her extensive experience in oil painting and design.

Blue Chalk, a Portland-based, award-winning production and media strategy company known for their nonfiction visual storytelling, recently hired Kamat, requiring her to move to Portland while continuing her education online at UO.

Milani and Kamat are often able to finish each other’s sentences in the way two best friends might after having known each other for many years. This unspoken bond is emblematic of what Majesty Digital aims to do on a global scale: bring women of color together who are able to understand one another and share common experiences.

“We were both really tired of it being 2018 and this platform not existing,” Milani said. “The idea was there — we just had to decide how to implement it.”

Kamat agreed, adding that a special mix of timing and dedication helped make the first few months possible.

“I had an idea and she had an idea and we both met at the right time. It was kind of a brain wave, serendipity moment of like, ‘Okay, let’s do this this. Let’s put in our blood, sweat and tears,’” Kamat said.

While initially conceived on the UO campus with all team members enrolled in classes, Kamat, who was born in Mumbai and raised in Singapore, was clear that this isn’t a student organization. There are no faculty advisors, and there isn’t funding from the university.

“From the very beginning, Yasi and I both wanted this to go global, and we still do. I’m an international student who’s here on scholarship, but a lot of the things Yasi and I bonded over in regards to the immigrant experience transcended borders. It had nothing to do with our nationalites. It had to do with our experiences,” Kamat said.

Almost one year ago today, at the end of Spring term in 2017, Milani approached Kamat with the idea for Majesty Digital. By the end of the year, they had posted the first episode of an ongoing web series that features interviews with different women of color.

To date, Majesty Digital has released ten short episodes from a series that highlights women of color discussing a wide-range of topics, such as self-expression, undocumentation and sexual assault, among others. The interviewees often use personal stories to underscore the vulnerability it takes to discuss these kinds of topics. You can tell that the style of the interviews helps participants feel comfortable, as the stories often switch from light-hearted banter to gut-wrenching sadness in a matter of minutes.

“The launch of the first video was a key moment,” Milani said. “That’s when we started to get applications. That’s when we started to get responses.”

UO students Cassidy Kusumoto and Robyn Wright were some of the first applicants in the initial hiring process. Kusumoto, who currently acts as the main videographer and video editor for Majesty Digital, knew right away that she wanted to be involved.

“I didn’t have a concrete idea of what Majesty was, but I knew I wanted to be a part of it,” Kusumoto said. “It wasn’t until after the meetings when I started talking to everyone in the group that I became more passionate about it.”

Wright, also expressing an early sense of confusion as to what the team would look like, became a copy editor. She remembers finding out about her addition to the team in between terms, and although she didn’t quite know what she’d be doing, she celebrated nonetheless.

“I remember opening the email on break, and even though I didn’t know exactly what it was, I celebrated like it was my dream job,” Wright said. “When I finally came out of the first meeting, I was so overwhelmed and honored to be a part of the stories that are being told here.”

This kind of excitement has been echoed throughout the community, both on and off campus, with thousands of people tuning in to watch the monthly episodes uploaded to Facebook and Instagram. Since December, the team has grown to include more women, and although they go without pay, there’s no shortage of passion.  

“We have a 12-member team and nobody is paid to do this. The fact that we have team members who are willing to be a part of this process and be a part of this dream is amazing,” Milani said. “We’re motivated because what we’re doing is so much bigger than us. It’s not about us. We’re using our platform to give women who have been silenced a voice.”

While there’s no tentative date for the release of the next issue, Majesty Digital will still be producing content for their Instagram and Facebook feeds. The rarity of a UO-bred group aiming for something more than a student-based readership is a testament to Kamat and Milani’s original idea: to connect women of color from all around the globe and create something that didn’t exist.

“We’re both the type of people that if something doesn’t exist, then we’ll create it ourselves,” Milani said.

And that’s exactly what they’ve done.

The post Majesty Digital amplifies marginalized voices appeared first on Emerald Media.

On May 7, attorney Kevin M. Hayes, on behalf of the University of Oregon’s intellectual property counsel, wrote a letter to the current leader of the Oregonians for Immigration Reform, Cynthia Kendoll, in regards to the similarities between the the UO’s “O” logo and the the logo being used by OFIR.

OFIR, an anti-immigration organization that was labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, was co-founded by Jim Ludwick and two others in 2000. Ludwick, originally from San Diego, served as president of OFIR from 2001 to 2010 before being replaced by Kendoll. Ludwick claims that the “O” logo attached to the organization looks nothing like UO’s.

“We designed the logo in 2002. It actually predates the UO’s logo,” Ludwick said. “And you’ve seen the difference. Nobody would mistake our ‘O’ for the University of Oregon’s ‘O.’ It’s crazy.”

The first usage of the Oregon “O,” designed by Nike, was in 2001. The letter became the schools official mark in 2003, and trademarked in 2004.

OFIR is known for successfully helping to overturn a 2013 bill that granted undocumented immigrants the ability to get drivers licenses. They’re currently collecting signatures attempting to repeal Oregon’s decades old Sanctuary City laws, which offer legal protections for undocumented immigrants. The group needs to collect 88,184 signatures to qualify for the ballot by November.

Christopher Chavez, associate professor in the advertising department at UO’s School of Journalism and Communication, said that the OFIR “O” has enough in common with the UO’s to be considered problematic.

“I do think that it does warrant a concern for the university. The specific color of green and the shape of the “O” are similar enough that they have the potential to cause confusion,” Chavez said.

Chavez maintains that OFIR is likely aware of the similarities between logos, possibly attempting to align themselves with the nationally recognized Oregon logo.

“OFIR is simply trying to present a friendly face to what many consider to be a hate group. The Oregon logo has become synonymous with the state of Oregon and generally received favorably. OFIR is likely hoping to capitalize on that positive sentiment,” Chavez said.

UO spokesperson Tobin Klinger said that it’s common for the university to send out letters asking organizations to change their logo because it’s too similar or identical.

“Over the last three years, for example, nearly 20 such cease and desist letters have been sent,” Klinger said. “As have nearly 600 of what’s known as “take down requests,” which are sent to request vendors remove items for sale that use the ‘O’ without permission.”

According to UO advertising professor Kim Sheehan, many people could potentially associate OFIR’s “O” without thinking about it too much.

“Many people will look at a logo very quickly and then associate it with something that’s already in their memory — for this reason, I would anticipate that some people will assume the OFIR is affiliated with the UO given that the UO’s logo is most likely much more well-known than OFIR’s,” Sheehan said. “OFIR will benefit from the positive goodwill generated by the ‘O.’ UO has more to lose, perhaps, as the mission of OFIR seems to go against the mission of the UO and any connection with OFIR will harm the UO’s brand.”

UO freshman Veronika Vike doesn’t believe that the logo is similar enough to garner this type of attention.

“I don’t think it’s that big of a deal,” Vike said. “To me, all this press is just bringing more attention to the group in general. Bad press is still press.”

OFIR founder Ludwick remains unconvinced that UO actually cares about the logo in the first place, citing political motives as the real reason for the letter.

“I don’t think they actually have a problem with the logo.They want to say they have trouble with it, just to go against us. I think it’s purely a political move by the university,” Ludwick said.

UO sent the letter only five days after the University of Oregon Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán, or MEChA, a student group that provides resources for Latinx students in higher education, sent a letter to the UO’s General Counsel detailing the resemblance of the two “O’s” and asked for action to be taken against the group.

Ludwick confirmed that OFIR’s attorney had sent a response back to UO before the May 11 deadline. The contents of the letter haven’t been made public, due to the pending status of the case.

The post UO sends warning letter to anti-immigration group using similar O logo appeared first on Emerald Media.

Like hundreds of students, University of Oregon junior Corina Perea is considering applying for internships. She’s an international studies major and would like to get some professional experience before she graduates.

Even so, she’s not sure whether to take an unpaid internship or hold out for something paid. She’s worried an unpaid internship might be a waste of her time.

“Internships have the potential to be an amazing tool, but it also allows room for exploitation,” said Perea, who is also majoring in women’s, gender and sexuality studies. “A student can get an internship at a law firm, and while they get to put that on their resume, they actually just spent the summer grabbing coffees and answering phone calls.”

Perea is not alone in her apprehension. Many students and faculty members say that while internships can help bridge the gap between secondary education and full-time employment, some students can’t afford to work for free as an intern and others wonder if an unpaid internship will offer a less meaningful experience.

“Sometimes the reality of an internship is very different than what was advertised,” said Gretchen Soderlund, associate professor in the UO School of Journalism and Communication. “I’ve talked to students who have done internships that were basically glorified administrative assistant positions that didn’t in any way prepare them for the job market they’re looking to break into.”

Todd Milbourn, co-director of UO’s journalism masters program, also noted that unpaid internships are not an option for students who need paid work in order to cover tuition and make ends meet.

“That exposure and that experience is essential and you’re going to need that to land a job. But in the meantime, exposure and experience doesn’t pay the bills,” Milbourn says. “It doesn’t pay the rent and it doesn’t make sure you have your groceries covered.”

Milbourn emphasized how the financial stability throughout an unpaid internship can hold those who need the wages out of the job market.

“What happens is, the students that can take those unpaid internships tend to come from wealthier backgrounds. They either have parental support or have funding themselves,” Milbourn said. “It’s a barrier that’s going to keep out a whole bunch of people who otherwise are bringing really great things to the table. It’s a big problem, and I think it’s one that more and more students are having to navigate. It’s troubling.”

However, Milbourn doesn’t want to underestimate the value of internships as a tool to help students apply their education.

“Internships have always been important. I think that what young people are trying to do is build work experience, build portfolios, build skills — and internships are a really critical way to do that,” Milbourn said. “They also give you an opportunity to test out what you’re learning in the classroom.”

Like Milbourn, Soderlund understands the importance of internships. She just wishes there could be a guarantee of value, whether it’s monetary or otherwise.

“The internship has to be conceived of as an educational experience for the interns coming in rather than as a way to get cheap labor,” Soderlund said. “There has to be some kind of compensation, or else it’s unclear whether this is a training program or they’re just getting a lot of free labor.”

Hannah Schandelmeier-Lynch is a junior working on her economics major who recently completed a paid internship at the Food for Lane County Youth Farm. While it was a positive experience, Schandelmeier-Lynch acknowledged that she wouldn’t have been able to participate in the same way had it been an unpaid position.

“I was able to spend time outdoors, learn about something new and regularly meet and interact with positive people,” Schandelmeier-Lynch said. “If It were unpaid, I wouldn’t have been able to do it all.”

The job and careers section on UO’s website, which lists prospective job and internship opportunities for students, doesn’t include whether an internship is paid. This information is usually included in the fine print of an internship application.

Lorena Galvan, assistant director of the Lundquist College of Business Center Services, said there are multiple places students can look for information regarding paid internships.

“The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries has some information that can help students understand internship expectations and requirements,” Galvan said. “Students can also reach out to their career services professionals for help identifying, evaluating and negotiating opportunities.”

The post Students and professors weigh in on the value of unpaid internships appeared first on Emerald Media.

With spring term half-way over, many University of Oregon seniors will soon be transitioning out of college life and into the workforce, and lucky for them, the job market is welcoming them with low levels of unemployment nationwide.

On May 4, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its April hiring and unemployment report, providing a glimpse into the latest economic trends in the United States. The report states that the unemployment rate has officially dropped below four percent for the first time since 2000.

Mark Thoma, economics professor at UO for over 30 years, as well as an analyst for the business division of CBS News, says that while the economy is certainly in better shape than it was a decade ago, the unemployment rate alone isn’t able to paint the full picture.

“Although the unemployment rate looks historically low, and that we’re close to reaching full employment, there’s a lot of other signals saying that maybe we’re not there yet,” Thoma said. “We’re not seeing inflation. We’re not seeing wages going up.”

According to Thoma, in order to get a more complete image of economic trends, it’s important to look at a variety of sources, including employment to population and labor force participation rates. To be a part of the labor force, you either have to be employed or actively looking to be employed. If the participation rate doesn’t match up with the lowering unemployment rate, it can be a sign that people stopped looking for work altogether. Students who aren’t employed are not considered part of the labor force.

“What can happen is that a lot of people get discouraged and leave the labor force,” Thoma said. “And another factor to consider is the aging population. As the baby-boomers retire, the labor force gets smaller.”

As of April 2018, Oregon’s unemployment rate sits slightly above the national average at 4.1 percent. Lane County, which encompasses both Eugene and Springfield, is at 4.6 percent.

UO senior Katie Robison is graduating with an Environmental Studies degree this year and remains worried that she won’t find a job that aligns with her studies.

“I’m nervous to enter the workforce after graduation. I know so many people who have ended up with jobs that have nothing to do with their degree because it’s the only thing they could find,” Robison said.

Her fear of under-utilizing her degree has been echoed nationwide. As of March 2018,  according to a dataset from the New York Federal Reserve, 42.5 percent of recent graduates are working in jobs that don’t necessarily require a college degree.

Regardless, according to UO economics professor Timothy Duy, having a college degree will help set graduates apart from competing applicants.

“If you come out of college in a strong job market, you will do a lot better,” Duy said. “Students looking for summer jobs are probably going to find themselves with more options than they’ve had in recent years. The job market is sharply better than it was five years ago.”

Duy predicts that sustaining a lower rate of unemployment should mean a pretty big increase in wages, as employers compete over a smaller number of candidates. This is typical when unemployment drops, and the job market becomes more competitive.

“Firms won’t be able to select only the very best and perfect applicants. They’ll be faced with the prospect of having to pay higher wages to retain employees,” Duy said.

Unlike her peer, Robinson, UO student Jordan Kihn-Stang is surprised by the number of people she knows who found work in their respective fields immediately after graduation.

“I have a lot of friends who recently graduated with Geology and Earth Science degrees that have found jobs directly related to their major within a few months,” Kihn-Stang said. “From oil jobs in Utah, to forest service jobs in California. It makes me feel way less-anxious about graduating after this term.

Both Robison and Kihn-Stang are looking to relocate after graduation, citing increased opportunities for work in larger cities. Duy agrees that most graduates tend to leave Eugene after finishing school.

“I think that most of our students tend to migrate away. This tends to be a place where people come for college before going back to your hometown or a bigger city, where there’s more job opportunities.”

Duy is confident that the job market for students is better than it’s been in years, and only getting better.

“It’s most likely, for the next year, going to continue getting better. I don’t foresee any dramatic shifts in the economy, so I would expect it to improve going forward,” Duy said. “It certainly won’t be any worse.”

The post Unemployment drops to historic low as students get ready for graduation appeared first on Emerald Media.

“Where I was born, Cinco de Mayo wasn’t celebrated. It’s not celebrated because it’s a war we actually lost,” said Manuel Mejia Gonzalez, UO student and Ethnic Studies major who was born in Mexico. “The only place that really celebrates it is the city of Puebla, where the battle was actually fought.”

On its surface, Cinco de Mayo is a celebration of Mexico’s victory over the French Empire in 1862, although it has since found new meaning in the United States as a broader celebration of Mexican-American culture. Gonzalez says that what originally began as a way for people with Latin American roots to celebrate their own heritage has morphed into an ugly display of negative stereotypes.

Gonzalez is currently the Political Director for UO MEChA, a student organization that focuses on the educational rights of Latinx students. Latinx is a gender-neutral way of referring to people with Latin American descent.

Gonzalez moved to Springfield, Oregon during middle-school. His family in America doesn’t celebrate Cinco de Mayo the way we’ve come to know it in the US.

“We drink on the 16th of September, which is the actual Independence Day of Mexico,” Gonzalez said.  

(Image from Facebook)

“I think it would be a little weird if a student wanted to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, considering MEChA doesn’t want to celebrate Cinco de Mayo,” Gonzalez said. “And I’m not opposed to having fun. But if you’re going to celebrate something, I would consider having a little context. I’m not asking for an essay or review of the holiday, but think about the images being promoted with this day. It doesn’t benefit the Latinx community.”

On Wednesday, about 80 students and community members learned about the history of Cinco de Mayo and how it has morphed in the US while attending an event at the Museum of Natural and Cultural History.

In 2015, MEChA wrote a letter to the Editor in the Emerald asking that the UO community not appropriate their culture. The letter begins on a light note saying it’s great to celebrate, but it becomes a problem when it’s taken out of context and is offensive.

Maria Gallegos, ASUO president-elect and the external director for UO’s Multicultural Center, compared the celebration of Cinco de Mayo with the Trump Administration’s efforts to deport Mexican immigrants.

“You degrade those people and deport those people, but you really enjoy Cinco de Mayo?” Gallegos said. “It’s a strange dynamic,”

Several of the largest student-housing complexes around UO, Including 13th & Olive and Duck’s Village, are hosting events to celebrate the holiday.

Last year, students at Baylor University took appropriating Mexican culture to an extreme and received backlash after dressing in overtly racist costumes. The Emerald reported on it and offered alternative ways to celebrate and support the Latinx community.

The post Some students say Cinco de Mayo has all but lost its roots in Latinx heritage appeared first on Emerald Media.

(Left to right): UO students Taylor Allen, Claire Brown and Joy Wilcox march through campus. “It’s our responsibility to uplift and honor the survivors of sexual violence and abuse through our united voices,” says Brown. “We should not have to be afraid of the dark anymore.” The 40th annual Take Back the Night march takes place through the streets of Eugene, Ore. on April 26, 2018. (Sarah Northrop/Emerald)

Claire Brown, a UO freshman and political science major, held a sign that read “Shatter The Silence,” at Thursday night’s Take Back The Night rally. She said she has a responsibility to uplift and honor the survivors of sexual violence.

“I march because the violence experienced by women in our communities is real. We demand change. We should not have to be afraid of the dark anymore,” Brown said.

It’s been 40 years since Take Back The Night first crowded the streets of Eugene, uniting students and community members to march for an end to sexual and domestic violence. The name of the annual rally represents the unsafe feeling many women have when walking the streets alone after dark. As the decades have passed, the faces of marchers have changed, but according to Itzel Chavez, Sexual Violence Prevention and Education Coordinator at University of Oregon’s Women’s Center, the importance of the march has not.

Chavez chose this year’s theme to highlight indigenous and marginalized groups after analyzing the book “The Round House,” which was provided to first-year students at UO.

“It talks about how tribal nations don’t have the ability to prosecute perpetrators who are non-native and come onto reservations and commit these crimes against native women. There’s a huge loophole in the legal system that allows these people to act without consequence,” Chavez said. “I want to amplify a voice who, for centuries, has been purposely silenced by the government.”

Chavez said the threats to under-represented women are not being addressed and that this year’s rally is in response to the lack of support.

“This oppression continues and nobody talks about it. I want to amplify a voice that’s been purposefully silenced for centuries by the government,” Chavez said. “This is what happens when you silence a group of people and make them vulnerable.”

The TBTN marchers chant while making their way toward The Atrium in downtown Eugene. The 40th annual Take Back the Night march takes place through the streets of Eugene, Ore. on April 26, 2018. (Sarah Northrop/Emerald)

The rally began at 6 p.m. with volunteers passing out red bracelets as people began to fill up the area surrounding the amphitheatre. Fatima Pervaiz, Director of the Women’s Center and one of the event’s organizers, explained the significance of the color red in following this year’s theme.

“The color red commemorates missing and murdered indigenous women, of which there are over a thousand, and this is something that we need to raise awareness about,” Pervaiz said.

The podium came alive with a number of speakers representing different marginalized groups within the UO community. Pervaiz and Chavez had gone to great lengths to make sure the evening is an all-inclusive event that gives individuals of all walks-of-life an opportunity to march in solidarity for a unifying cause.

“That’s a huge part of what we do here. We validate people’s experiences and affirm that we believe them, we support them and that it was not their fault,” Pervais said.

Leah Cruz is a member of the UO Veteran and Family Student Association. Cruz served as a medic in the United States Air-Force from 2009 to 2014, before heading back to school to earn a degree in psychology. She fought back tears as she spoke to the crowd about the veteran experience within college upon returning from duty.

“Approximately 400 student veterans walk among us on campus at any one time.The veteran identity is vast and diverse, but we do share one common thread. We each care deeply about the state of the nation that we call America,” Cruz said. “My mission has been to increase the awareness and empower women who serve or have served in the military.”  

Just after 7 p.m., hundreds of protesters filled the streets for a peaceful, police-escorted march into downtown Eugene. Passers-by joined the march as they made their way through the city, chanting and waving signs.

The march came to an end at the Atrium building in downtown Eugene, which held the final event of the evening. Hosted by the Sexual Assault Support Services of Lane County, the Survivor Speak-out portion of the rally, according to Pervaiz, allowed people to share their personal stories and experiences involving sexual and domestic violences with a little more privacy than the public rally.

“There’s no media coverage inside the event. It’s more intimate, whereas the rally and the march is more of a public forum,” Pervaiz said. “If things have surfaced while marching or at the rally, or if someone recognizes that their feelings are valid and that they did experience sexual or domestic violence, sometimes it’s healing or cathartic to say your story out loud.”

The post Marchers “take back the night” in Thursday’s rally against sexual and domestic violence appeared first on Emerald Media.

On April 24, Dr. Charise Cheney was awarded the 2018 Tykeson Teaching Award for excellence in undergraduate teaching, on behalf of the University of Oregon’s College of Arts and Sciences.

Dr. Cheney has been a faculty member since 2009, having served as an academic advisor as well as teaching numerous courses within the Ethnic Studies Department. The department has nine core faculty members.

On Tuesday afternoon, Phil Scher, Divisional Dean for Social Sciences, surprised Cheney during her Intro to African American Studies class.

“Ethnic Studies 101 is a crucial class at the University of Oregon. This award is for all of your teaching, but this year was specially focused on teachers who display excellence in large classes,” Scher said.

Dr. Cheney began teaching Ethnic Studies 101 in 2009, and has now taught it 15 times, including summer sessions.

Laura Pulido, head of the Ethnic Studies Department, nominated Dr. Cheney due to the strength of her teaching, as well as her ability to bring new students into Ethnic Studies.

“I meet with all new majors or minors and approximately 80 percent of them were drawn to Ethnic Studies because of Dr. Cheney,” Pulido said. “Students simply love her.”

The Tykeson Teaching Award includes a certificate and a $2,500 cash prize. The first Tykeson  Award was given out in 2015. Every year, one faculty member in each CAS division receives the award for excellence in teaching. Past recipients include Professor Mark Lonergan in 2016, and professor Kelley Leon-Howarth in 2017, among others.

Dr. Cheney is a published author whose past work includes the 2005 New York University published book “Brothers Gonna Work It Out: Sexual Politics In The Golden Age of Rap Nationalism.” She’s currently working on a book concerning Brown v. Board, a landmark 1954 Supreme Court case that ended segregation in public schools.

Amy Thomas, assistant in the Ethnic Studies Department, and Ethnic Studies alum, has gotten to know Dr. Cheney the past few years through her work within the department.

“She’s a very powerful person. I’m continually inspired by her,” Thomas said.

Miakah Nix is a Ethnic Studies alum who took Dr. Cheney’s ES 101 before she graduated in 2017. She credits the class as having introduced him to the writings of indigenous people.

“It just blew my mind because I had always felt like I had been myth-busting all these negative stereotypes about indigenous people, and trying to find ways to work with them and against them,” Nix said. “In Ethnic Studies 101, I learned I don’t have to separate my identity from my successes.”

Dr. Cheney’s award will be further celebrated later this year at an annual reception hosted by the CAS dean.

The post Ethnic Studies professor receives 2018 Tykeson Teaching Award appeared first on Emerald Media.

On April 20, students and faculty gathered in the EMU amphitheater to participate in a nation-wide walkout commemorating the 19th anniversary of the Columbine Massacre. The “Walkout to End Gun Violence and White Supremacist Violence” was hosted by a number of student run groups, including the Young Democratic Socialists of America, the Muslim Student Association, the LGBTQ3, and the UO Student Collective.

T.J. Sokol, a graduate student in the College of Education, believes one of the most important aspects of these types of demonstrations is community building and showing strength in numbers.

“We’re here to give strength to the community to fight these kinds of violences. To call a spade a spade, to network and get to know each other. To hear each other’s stories and help each other, and to show our power in the face of gun violence and white supremacist violence,” Sokol said.

Xander Berenstein, a senior double-majoring in math and biology, spoke at the walkout representing the Young Democratic Socialists of America, as well as the Jews Against White Supremacy.

“I am walking out against all gun violence. School shootings, domestic murders, police executions of black and brown people, airstrikes in Syria and sniper file on Palestinians protesters in Gaza,” Berenstein.

One year ago today, Jimmy Marr, also known as “Genocide Jimmy,” a local neo-nazi known for his public displays of bigotry, drove a truck through campus while waving anti-semitic flags.

Berenstein expressed disillusionment surrounding the UO’s response regarding last year’s demonstration.

“This resulted in a tangible disruption on campus. I mean, you can just imagine how safe I, and the other Jews on campus, felt,” Berenstein said.

Although offensive, Marr’s actions didn’t violate the First Amendment nor UO policy, so the University hasn’t banned Marr from returning.

Later, UO student Arkan Vetra spoke about their concerns surrounding the national gun-control debate, recently reignited by the 2018 Parkland school shooting.

“They want white people to have guns. But the second Black people attempt to arm themselves, the NRA is noticeably silent,” Vetra said. “Our gun problems need to be addressed by addressing the types of violence that are present in our society. That’s racial violence, disability violence, white supremacy violence and the list honestly goes on. We need to talk about how these types of violences can be undone.”

The post UO students stage walkout to show solidarity in the face of gun violence appeared first on Emerald Media.

On April 26, the second annual UO Zine Fest will be returning to campus to celebrate the advantages of self-publishing, while giving students an opportunity to showcase or view original art from the around the community. There will also be free workshops for students interested in learning how to make a zine.

UO students Mary Vertulfo and Teddy Tsai, founders of UO Zine Fest, got the idea for a campus-based zine festival after attending Euzine Fest in 2016, which is hosted in downtown Eugene once a year and attracts artists from all around the US.

“We felt bringing something like that to campus would be a great opportunity for students to get creative and show their work,” said Vertulfo.

Vertulfo, who’s currently working towards a Bachelor’s of Fine Art degree, will be showcasing several of her own zines at the festival. She loves the freedom and accessibility surrounding zine culture.

A typical zine can range from a single sheet of paper to a small book. Sometimes they follow a certain theme or story, and other times they include a collection of work from multiple artists.

“You can make them on a photocopier and a single sided sheet of paper can be made into a zine that gets passed around and shared. Because they’re so easy to make and distribute, they can be about anything and for any type of community,” Vertulfo said.

Tsai, who is a fourth year art major, agreed that zines are an accessible medium for many kinds of artists.

“Some are poetry, some are comics and drawings, they can really be anything,” Tsai, fourth year art major, said. “It really doesn’t matter how good you are at drawing or writing. It’s an open-format. If you doodle all the time, you can collect your doodles into a booklet and you have a zine.”

In the 1970’s, zines found a home in the punk scenes of larger cities, after technological advances helped make the large-scale production of zines cheap and accessible to just about anyone. The DIY culture of zines mixed well with the anti-establishment values of punk culture, creating a perfect storm for the underground press that covered what were, at the time, unknown bands, like The Ramones, The Clash and Joy Division.

Taylor Jones is a UO graduate and musician who is excited for the opportunity to get some feedback on a zine he’s been working on throughout the past few months.

“I aim to explore the human condition through the lens of art and culture,” Jones said. “It will be a print-only source for music recommendations, short stories, open letters and visual art. Our first issue ‘Art is Illegal’ hits the press, the streets and your friend’s bedroom this spring.”

One of Vertulfo’s favorite aspects of the Zine Fest is the sense of community and the ability to make and share art with few resources.

“The fest is a way to get a bunch of super passionate people and creators in a room to say, ‘Hey, I love something so much that I’m going to make something about it, and I want you to share that with me, so here’s a zine,’ ” Vertulfo said. “ It’s a great way to build community, spread information, and celebrate the diversity of the arts and creative spaces on campus and in the community.”

The 2018 UO Zine Fest will be held in the EMU Crater Lake rooms on Thursday, April 26, from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Registration is open for tabling and sharing your own zine, and can be found here.

The post Original art, literature and more at UO Zine Fest April 26 appeared first on Emerald Media.