On Thursday, guest speaker Dr. Sandra Bernal Heredia spoke about Spanish heritage speakers and the importance of comics as a way to deal with trauma. 

Heredia is an assistant professor of Spanish at Colby College. In 2020, she created the Spanish heritage track. 

Spanish heritage students are those who had parents, grandparents or guardians who immigrated from Latin America. They often know Spanish in an informal, private setting, but without the formal teaching that second language students have.

The students from Heredia’s class created comics of their family’s immigration stories and these were showcased around the school. They were put into a 25-page comic book for others to see. Now, the comics have been inspiring to other Spanish teachers and students. 

The comics are being exhibited on the second floor of Williams Hall until the 24th. The comic book is available online in English.

Heritage students can struggle more than other students, as they don’t have the formal understanding of their heritage language. Programs helping second-language students and first-generation students can help get these learners into good colleges, however this does not change their need for assistance.

“These programs connect low-income students with colleges,” Heredia said. “Unfortunately, what usually happens is they get these students to the university, they get them to the door, and then they forget about them.”

In creating the Spanish heritage track, Heredia hopes to give specific help to students and help them have a successful college career.

“We wanted to encourage our students to continue using their heritage language,” Heredia said.  

The assignment she gave her students was to interview their family and create a comic based on their immigration story. In creating the comic, students are able to learn about their family, think about the struggles of immigration and learn more about grammar within Spanish.

“The heritage students get excited to know grammar. They’re like finally, I know where to put that accent,” Heredia said.

In addition to being a second language, heritage student’s Spanish tends to be highly regional and hold a lot of variety. 

“By building these varieties, it builds a sense of familial pride,” Heredia said.“Heritage speakers might speak Spanish at home, but English quickly becomes the first language.” 

According to Heredia, comics are a useful tool for learning how to format sentences to tell a story and fit into short text bubbles. They need to know the grammar to tell a story and they need to tell it effectively and in a short period of time. 

Another benefit of comics is their ability to help recognize and deal with trauma.

“Comics have been used to depict trauma throughout time, a famous example being Maus,” Heredia said. “It was something very criticized at the time.”

According to Heredia, the generational trauma of immigration can be depicted in comics which allow students to process it. The style of comics allows for gaps in time, especially for hard to think about scenes.

“You see the build up of a story and then the resolution, but you might not see the actual moment,” Heredia said.

As well as skipping over scenes that are too hard to depict, comics also give a useful tool for bridging the students with moments from the past.

“The comic structure can bring these moments that may not be in the same time and connect them side by side,” Heredia said. “Comics allow the past and present to exist together.”  

The decision to use comics also helps new readers see the stories of immigration and understand the struggles of others.

“It’s knowing these stories that takes us to respecting and understanding,” Heredia said, “The comics have been a colorful way to advertise and educate.”

By having her students showcase their work to the school and outwards, Heredia has been able to help inform others about the struggles of immigration, as well as build awareness of heritage students.

The 19th annual International Dance Fest was hosted on Feb. 11 at the Collins Center of the Arts. The show was shown twice, once at 2 p.m. and the other at 7 p.m. The program lasted about two hours, with a brief intermission in between the two acts. 

The Masters of Ceremony, Sonja Birthisel and Taylor Ashley, came out first to hype the crowd. They started the show with party music. Ashley, decked out in an orange coat, busted out the worm. These outfits were changed by the time they came out after the first act. 

The acts range from emotional performative dances, energetic pieces and traditional dances. Many pieces were solos or duets, with a few ensemble pieces towards the end of each act.

The Dance Fest featured 12 acts, each with music and style from the dancer’s country of origin.

Each act had fitting costumes to go along, all having their own unique style and design. 

Countries represented at the Dance Fest were China, Turkey, Peru, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Nepal, Cambodia and Columbia. China had the most dances, with four separate acts. 

The Festival started with a dance from Megan Lu, titled “Xi.” The dance was an emotional piece with Lu displaying sorrowful movements.

Closing the first act was the “Dance in the Morning Light,” performed by a group of four dancers of the greater Bangor area. The dance portrayed Shanghai in the 1930s, as four housewives went about morning chores. The women moved gracefully around the stage, at one point dancing atop small stools.

In the second act were two more Chinese dances. The first of these was a duet titled “Guan Shan Jiu.” The dance was said to embody longing for the good old days, as well as having a close friend that is now far away. The pair spent the first part of the dance in sync, although keeping a distance from each other. They moved around but never interacted. They then switched to the second part of the dance, which was slightly more upbeat and incorporated paper fans that they danced with. 

The last Chinese dance was a solo piece from Zhiwei Liu and was titled “Dong Du (To the Realm of Mind and Spirit).” This piece, as introduced by Taylor, depicts a Chinese myth of an island that contains an herb of immortality. A group goes missing searching for the island. The dance was elegant, with Liu’s flowing robes adding to the movement of the piece.

The other country to have more than one dance was Turkey. Two Turkish dances were showcased in the program, one in each act.

The first was a traditional belly dance, titled “Šeherezáda” and was the second act of the show. Two dancers, one dressed in red and one in blue, brought energy to the audience as they moved around with tambourines. The dance was said to have originated in Romani culture.

“Roma people still have an influence on Turkey,” Ashley said. 

The other dance from Turkey was the final piece of the show. The largest ensemble piece, the dance titled “Damat Halayi” is a traditional dance done at weddings, parties and other gatherings. The nine performers danced fast and excitedly in a line, repeating steps as the music got faster and faster. 

Along with the two dances of Turkish origin, this year’s International Dance Festival aimed to raise money for relief in Turkey and Syria. The countries were hit by devastating earthquakes early last week. Donations taken outside and proceeds from concessions go to NGO non-profits and split between the two countries.

“Everywhere is destroyed and I’m looking back at where I grew up and it’s so hard for me,” Hira Avci, an international student from Turkey and president of the International Business and Culture Club, said.

Avci was not a dancer in the program but came up to talk about Turkey and the impact the earthquakes had.    

Other highlights of the Dance Fest was the traditional Maiden Dance from Nigeria. Dancer Chisom Orakwue brought an energized dance full of rapid body movements. She had a visible grin the entire way through her dance. 

Ana Jimenez Lagos from Peru danced “Reggaeton,” inspired by the streets of Latin America.

“The streets are part of us,” the description of her dance read.

One of the other ensemble pieces was the Salsa from Colombia. Eight members danced, split between four boys and four girls. 

The International Dance Fest is hosted once a year. This is the 19th iteration of the program, with the first instance being in 2005. The University of Maine has over 500 international students, many of which showed up to watch the show. While this year’s Dance Fest is over, there are sure to be more unique dances next year for students to enjoy.

Aries (March 21 to April 20)

You may be struggling with managing your time as you adjust to a new schedule. You may be finding that you have many ideas you want to act upon but not enough time to do everything. Prioritize what needs to be done and consider how much time you will need to do it.

Taurus (April 21 to May 20)

This is a time where you may feel drawn to emotional or romantic pursuits. As you go, you may find yourself seeing more of a connection than there actually is. While it is good to keep your mind open, try not to let your imagination get the best of you.

Gemini (May 21 to June 22)

Self-sufficiency may be what you need in the coming times. Not relying on others can help you be happy, as well as knowing how much others can rely on you before it becomes too much. Be fair to both yourself and others, and don’t give or take more than is needed.

Cancer (June 23 to July 21)

This is a good time to move forward with plans for your future. You may be in a good emotional or material state to work toward your goals, so don’t be afraid to do so. Even if you are hesitant or are worried about how things will go, have faith in yourself.

Leo (July 22 to Aug. 23)

Now may be a turbulent time for your emotional life. You may be questioning how you feel about people or yourself, and not sure how to go from here. If you need a break, don’t be afraid to admit that. Take some time to think about how you really feel and find out what is going to be best for you.

Virgo (Aug. 24 to Sept. 23)

It may be hard, but now is the time to work towards savings and cleaning up your surroundings. You may feel disorganized in your material world, so try and get things right. Focus on what is going to be helpful in the long run, even if it is hard right now.

Libra (Sept. 24 to Oct. 23)

Be careful not to get too full of yourself in the coming times. While you may receive praise or recognition, and it is likely rightfully earned, don’t use that as an excuse to get away with things. Keep heart and continue to earn praise, not just believe it should be given.

Scorpio (Oct. 24 to Nov 22)

You may feel that something isn’t going the way you thought it would. While it can be easy to try and change courses when things get tough, know that it will work out if you stick to it. Don’t be off-put if things are hard at first or don’t come naturally to you.

Sagittarius (Nov. 23 to Dec.21)

Good choices with money and material things is the key to happiness at the moment. Try and work to save and use your money wisely, and things are likely to go right. Work towards your future instead of what you want most in the moment.

Capricorn (Dec. 21 to Jan.  20)

Your intuition may be telling you that things aren’t going well, and this may be a cause of strife in your life right now. If you truly feel that things aren’t working, a big change may be needed. If you need to cut something out, don’t be afraid to rebuild yourself in a way that will make you happier.

Aquarius (Jan. 21 to Feb. 19)

The world may be telling you to take risks right now and to charge forward in life. Try and go at things with a clear head and don’t do anything too reckless. While new adventures are good, don’t do anything you’re likely to regret later.

Pisces (Feb. 20 to March 20)

You may feel like other people are your responsibility to take care of, even if it ends up hurting you. While giving is often a good thing, not every struggle needs to be yours to help with. Don’t let others take advantage of you, even if it means saying no.

In the University of Maine’s Versant Power Astronomy Center and Jordan Planetarium’s new show “Worlds of Ice,” it details how ice is formed in outer space, the history and importance of ice on earth, and the future of human’s relationship with it. All of the planetarium’s main shows run on Fridays at 7 p.m.

The show, running for about an hour, is split into three sections: the pre-show, the main show and an after-show that looks at the current night sky. 

The pre-show contained a video from NASA talking about how climate change is affecting ice 

and how much ice is lost each year. There was also a segment about UMaine and its partnership with the Juneau Icefield Research Program. 

Founded in 1946, this program takes students and faculty across the Juneau icefield in Alaska. During the summer, students from UMaine are able to go to the icefield and aid in research on it. 

Also mentioned was the proposed satellite to be sent into orbit around Jupiter’s moon, Europa. 

The smallest of the four moons found by Galileo, Europa is believed to have the highest likelihood of habitability of objects in our solar system. The satellite is said to launch in October of 2024. It will complete 30 flybys of the moon, with the closest being 16 feet from the surface. 

During the main show, the narration tells of a member of the Inuit people and their interest in ice. 

It goes through general history, Earth’s ice ages, the importance of ice to life on earth, and ice in other parts of the solar system.

The movie gives the illusion of being encased in ice, as the sound and image of a person ice skating goes by. These continue throughout the show. One section has footage of floating between towering icebergs, with the water lapping around. The audience then plunges underwater to see the impact that melted glaciers have on sea life in the area, with computer-generated sea life swimming around and above the audience’s view. Another part in the movie displays the illusion of the screen crystallizing, forming massive snowflakes. 

While the visuals are incredible to see, those who get motion sick may need to stay home. Zooming motions are often made within the movie, sending the audience hurtling through space. The visuals can be dizzying. 

After the movie, the planetarium host takes back over and gives the audience a view of the current state of the night sky, as well as pointing out what constellations are visible. This section occurs after every show and is more humorous and interactive than the movie. Members of the audience chuckled as the host pointed out canis minor or, as he calls it, “the laziest constellation.”. Apart from being a glimpse at what can be seen by anyone, this section also featured some overview of the myths around the visible constellations as they were pointed out.  

“I’m really just interested in space in general. How out of world it is is incredible,” Madeline Hayden, a repeat visitor of the planetarium shows, said. 

Hayden came with her mother, Mariah Hayden. The pair are from Orono.

“This is our fourth or fifth show,” Mariah Hayden said.

“This one was a lot more earth-centric but still interesting,” Madeleine Hayden said. 

The planetarium shows change monthly, allowing for a number of topics to be covered. 

“We saw one about dark matter. That was just incredible,” Madeleine Hayden said.

While the “World of Ice” show came to a close this weekend, the February show will be “Forward to the Moon.” This show will look at our own moon, with focus on the Artemis program.

If you want less science, the planetarium also has music shows, also rotating monthly. These shows feature specific bands and combine their music with a light show in the planetarium. The upcoming show is “Foo Fighters in February” and will run every Wednesday at 4 p.m..

Prices for the show are $7 for adults, $6 for students, seniors and veterans, and $5 for children under 12. Music shows are slightly more expensive, being $9 for general admission. Tickets can be purchased at the door by calling the planetarium or off their website.

To those interested in the night sky, the show also mentioned that a comet will be visible in the coming week. Called 2022 E3(ZTF), the comet will be brightest on Feb. 1 and can be found near the little dipper.

Aries (March 21 to April 20)

As you go into the coming week, now is a good time to think about yourself. Focus on self care and don’t feel obligated to change yourself for others. You may feel at odds with the world around your inner peace.

Taurus (April 21 to May 20)

You may feel hurt by something or someone around you. Although this has impacted you, now is a time to get a fresh start and look forward. Take the time to improve yourself and don’t be afraid to interact with others. 

Gemini (May 21 to June 22)

As you go forward, this is the right time to save and act cautiously. While times may seem good, be sure to take the opportunity to build yourself a safety net in case they go bad. 

Cancer (June 23 to July 21)

You are on the tipping point of a new beginning. Try and take a second to reflect on what you could get rid of in your life that’s holding you back, as well as what is best for you going forward. Embrace new ideas that come to you, but try not to rush in head-first.

Leo (July 22 to Aug. 23)

You may feel trapped in your life right now with authority figures watching you. While this may feel suffocating, it may lead to a feeling of accomplishment when you finish what you’re working on. 

Virgo (Aug. 24 to Sept. 23)

Things may feel at odds around you and like you are torn between your long term goals and short term pleasures. Try to look for new solutions and find happiness where you can.

Libra (Sept 24 to Oct 23)

You may find yourself losing hope. If you’ve tried to begin a new journey, things may not go well and might lead to you feeling disappointed with the outcome. While not through a fault of your own, your energy for the project may disappear. 

Scorpio (Oct. 24 to Nov. 22)

You may feel yourself in battle with both yourself and those around you in coming times. You may feel like you have to compete for what you want, or that those around you are out for you. While thoughts may cause you to be unhappy, try and focus on what you want in the long term as well as embrace those around you that support you.

Sagittarius (Nov. 23 to Dec. 21)

You may feel stressed about a personal project or goal you are working on. While the expectations are set by yourself, they can still cause strife if you feel you aren’t meeting them. Try and step back and remember why you were invested in this in the first place. Don’t burn yourself out.

Capricorn (Dec 21 to Jan 20)

While things may be going good in your life, you may feel uneasy or out of place internally. Try and find inner peace and accept what good things come to you. Things will be good if you allow them into your life.

Aquarius (Jan. 21 to Feb. 19)

Now should be a time to rest and put yourself in a good place. Try and save, whether financially or emotionally. Don’t feel that you have to worry about major changes and enjoy the time you have.

Pisces (Feb. 20 to March 20)

You may feel that someone has put you somewhere you feel you don’t belong. Try and follow what you want for yourself, even if that means having conflict with others. Do what will make you feel at peace before doing what will please others.

While Maine is known for its natural beauty, winter can often make it hard to enjoy. It can be difficult to find ways to get outdoors that don’t involve trekking through the snow or going on a hike. 

About two hours south of the University of Maine are The Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. While most known for the in-season foliage and butterfly house, the Boothbay garden has an event for those wanting a casual winter outing. 

The annual Gardens Aglow event runs from Nov. 19  to Dec. 31. It is open in the evenings on Thursdays through Sundays, save for holidays. Tickets for the event are $18 for adults and must be purchased ahead of time online. There are also discounts for children or seniors, as well as a family package. You can book tickets for any of the four arrival times at 4 p.m, 5:30 p.m, 6:30 p.m and 7:30 p.m. The gardens are a wonderful trip to take with family. 

The event gives visitors a way to enjoy the gardens in the cold season, with the grounds being completely lit with more than half a million lights. Trees and fence posts are lined with color, giving the gardens an otherworldly appearance.

Sections feature different colors, with one section being lit as a blue winter wonderland that stretches out in the evening sky. Others are littered with purples and teals that run overhead. The garden’s pond is also not left out of the spectacle, with lights going around the water and being on platforms in the pond itself.

There are also less natural, but still fun, displays with the lights. Glowing moose and nests of branches with fairy-like lights mixed within are just some of the past spectacles they have had.

Also located throughout the grounds are a collection of large wooden troll statues, hanging out among the trees. They are recent additions to the sights of the gardens, having been added in 2021. The Gardens Aglow event took a two year hiatus due to the pandemic, and this will be the first year that the trolls are included in the winter wonderland.

The botanical gardens have a small market that sells refreshments, as well as a sitting area. The enclosed area can be a nice place to get out of the cold air while enjoying a sandwich or baked goods. 

While the gardens are a wonderful trip on their own, nearby is Boothbay Harbor. Mostly a summer destination, the town has a number of shops and restaurants that are open year round. Shops range from the usual suspects to Maine-based chains, like Sherman’s bookstore, and unique stores selling crafty or handmade items. 

For food, the harbor features a number of seafood restaurants, which is no surprise, with the town being on the Maine coast. In the summer months, Shannon’s Unshelled is a family favorite for fulfilling the lobster roll craving. Her location is seasonal, however, meaning it isn’t open at the time.

Mine Oyster is a popular dock-side seafood restaurant. Their hours vary, opening at 11:30 a.m. every day and closing at 1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, or 9 p.m. most other days. For a to-go lunch, Red Cup Coffeehouse is a small eatery in downtown Boothbay Harbor. They are a good choice to grab something different and take your food to go.

If you want to continue to see Maine’s beauty, visit Ocean Point, a small stretch of rocky beach. Parking places line the side of the road and then it is a straight shot down to the water. It is usually not crowded and can be a relaxing pit-stop for the journey.

Aries (March 21 to April 20)

While it may be hard, be patient in the coming times. Restrain yourself even if you feel like you should be jumping into things. Stay calm and optimistic and good things will come your way. 

Taurus (April 21 to May 20)

You may find yourself being especially personable with others. This is ideal and should be leaned into. If you’re in a good place yourself, do what you can to help those around you. 

Gemini (May 21 to June 22)

You might be faced with the opportunity to ease your inner conflicts. This is a time to be the bigger person and let others know you’ve grown past your grudges. Don’t be brought down by past conflicts and remember to embrace your new positions.

Cancer (June 23 to July 21)

Your idea of success may be challenged. While you may feel that you’ve achieved what you want, this may not be enough for others and you might have to start again. Embrace the chance to reset yourself and do something new.

Leo (July 22 to Aug. 23)

Things may change and make you feel unsure of yourself. You may not particularly want things to change and resist this. Once you accept the change though, things can start going your way. Find new opportunities and growth in your situation. 

Virgo (Aug. 24 to Sept. 23)

You may feel like you are in a worse place than you are. Right now you may be overthinking things, but take a step back and trust yourself. Trust yourself to know if everything will be okay. You may be struggling with getting in your own way.

Libra (Sept. 24 to Oct. 23)

While you may feel like you’re in a good place currently, something may try to throw you off. Something might come up this week to spark conflict and ruin your good mood. Try to stay open and friendly and take any difficulties in stride. 

Scorpio (Oct. 24 to Nov. 22)

You may feel stuck between keeping your distance and branching out to try something new. While reflection has worked well for you in the past, it may be time to embrace new ideas. While it is easy to exist inside oneself, try looking outward more.

Sagittarius (Nov. 23 to Dec. 21)

You may be having trouble in an established group. While things may have worked well before, this may be the time to let them go and branch out on your own. Adapt to what will be best for your future. 

Capricorn (Dec. 21 to Jan. 20)

You may find you are losing faith in yourself. You may feel like others are doing well while you are left burdened and despaired. While everything may feel like it’s going wrong around you, try to keep sharp. Act smart and work around the conflicts you face, both internal and external.

Aquarius (Jan. 21 to Feb. 19)

While a coming conflict may feel like it will cause a large change, things will likely end up going back to how they were. This may feel comforting, as things return to the status quo, but still try to learn something from the change.

Pisces (Feb. 20 to March 20)

This may be a time where you feel particularly inspired and outgoing. Approach this week with energy and zeal, trusting in yourself to keep on task. Lead others with your passions.

Thanksgiving is right around the corner, meaning it’s time to start planning how to celebrate the holiday. In Maine, Thanksgiving, like most places, often is celebrated with a traditional turkey dinner with the family. For those on campus, going home to family is a large part of the holiday break.

“I have family in Pennsylvania so we visit them and have a big dinner,” Ellery Macgregor, a second-year student who is originally from Maine.

“We visit family in Iowa. We usually have dinner and hang out. Sometimes we get to see wild turkeys,” Izzy Kostelnick said, a second-year student from Illinois.

Another popular Thanksgiving tradition is watching the special events on TV.

“While the food is cooking – we all help make the food – my whole family watches the Macy’s Day Parade,” Erin Ciampa said, a second-year student from Massachusetts.

“We usually have football on,” Amanda Levesque said, a second-year student from Massachusetts. 

On campus, events are put on throughout November for Native American Heritage Month. The Office of Diversity and Inclusion is putting on a family feast on Nov. 17. The event is from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. and will take place in the North Pod of the Memorial Union.

The Multicultural Student Center has historically put on this dinner featuring Native American heritage. The dinner is meant to highlight how Thanksgiving is honored in other cultures as well as to enjoy their traditional dishes. 

Another on-campus alternative to the traditional Thanksgiving was put on by the Rainbow Resource Center. Their “Gay Thanksgiving” was open to members of the LGBTQ community who were unable to go home for the holiday as well as to anyone who wished to attend. 

Branching off campus, there is Orono’s annual Thanksgiving dinner. The Scott Scripture Memorial Community Thanksgiving Dinner will be held on Nov. 17 at 4 p.m. The traditional Thanksgiving dinner will be held in person as well as serve delivery meals that can be signed up for on the town of Orono’s website.

Also celebrating the holiday is L.L. Bean, which kicks off its annual northern lights event on Nov. 18. The initial day will have the lighting of the tree and events will continue daily through the end of December.

Across Maine, popular tourist destinations try to draw in those who wish to travel for the holiday. Bar Harbor, Camden, Kennebunkport and others present themselves as being ideal places for a Thanksgiving getaway.  

Thanksgiving aligns for hunters with deer season, moose season, the end of bear season, as well as pheasant, quail and ruffed grouse season all happening around it. 

Maine also participates in the trend of turkey trots. The 5k runs take place across the state in the week around Thanksgiving and, in many cases, take place at high schools. The run nearest the university campus is at Brewer High School on Nov. 20. It has an in-person option and a virtual option and can be registered for on the school’s website. Registration must be completed before Nov. 19. 

No matter how the holiday is celebrated, students can all enjoy a break from classes. This year’s break runs from Nov. 23 to 27.

On Wednesday, Oct. 26, English Professor Dr. Faith Barter gave a talk about the importance of legal form in 19th-century Black literature. The talk was held in the Coe Room in the Memorial Union and was hosted by the woman, gender and sexuality studies department as a part of their WGS at work series. 

Barter’s talk “Black Pro-Se: Authorship and the Limits of Law in 19th Century African American Literature” discussed ideas from her upcoming book.

Barter was a lawyer before becoming an English professor. She was born in Gardiner, Maine. 

then moved to Washington D.C. and practiced as a lawyer. After realizing that was not what she wanted to do she went back to get her doctorate in English which had also been her undergraduate area of study. She is currently working as an assistant professor of English at the University of Oregon. She is also affiliated with the Black studies program.

Barter’s talk discusses jurisdiction and how Black writers use established rules of law in order to find a place for themselves. Her background sparked her interest in how legal form was used in early Black writing in America.

“They used legal form as technology to disrupt literary genres,so many Black narratives go against existing genres” Barter said.

The talk focused heavily on the impacts of jurisdiction and sovereignty in relation to the 19th century. Barter noted the duality of jurisdiction as both the place where power is held and the tool to use that power. Barter noted how jurisdiction was taken beyond the idea of a place and into personhood, giving the masters of plantations jurisdiction over their enslaved people. These masters not only had jurisdiction over the place of their plantation, Barter explained, but also over those on that land.

“The United States was one big plantation. There was no outside place to offer sanctuary,” Barter said. 

Barter quoted Harriet Jacobs and referenced her book “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl” heavily throughout the talk. Barter spoke first of how the book cannot fit neatly into the genres of an autobiography or a slave narrative, exemplifying how Black literature of the time often varied in genre.

Barter focused on Linda, Jacob’s pseudonym and the main character of the book, and her attempt to escape slavery by hiding on the premises of her grandmother’s house which was close by the plantation she was escaping from.

Barter spoke to Jacob’s optimistic view of law despite her status under it. She referenced the shadow of law mentioned in the book and how Jacobs viewed the law as a protection she could slip under.

“While law may be protective, it can often be fickle and unpredictable,” Barter said.

Barter saw Jacobs’ shadow of law as being an overhang under which protection could be found. By hiding in the attic of her grandmother’s house Linda hid herself under this shadow. 

“Having never left, she experiments with jurisdictional misdirection,” Barter said.

To close out the talk, Barter noted how the uses of legal form went on to shape Black literature and theories in ways that are still used today.

“They were using laws as a foundation for what we now recognise as Black feminist theory,” Barter said.

The Black Pro-Se talk was the latest in a series of talks held by the WGS studies department. The WGS at work series is meant to draw in new students and faculty. 

The next event in the series will be held on Nov. 7 from noon to 1 p.m. in the Bangor Room of the Memorial Union. That talk will feature a professor of Spanish and is titled “The Father’s Embrace: Translation of Spanish Fiction into English.” Other former talks have included topics such as LGBTQ+ issues and policing and even had a member of the Maine House of Representatives speak.

Backcountry Squatters is a club at the University of Maine that focuses on outdoor involvement for women and genderqueer individuals of all experience levels. They have meetings every Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Foster Center.

The club is a national nonprofit organization with a growing on-campus chapter. They primarily focus on hiking and backpacking trips although they do branch out to other types of outdoor activities.

The club meets once a week for casual meetings. These can be for socializing with other club members or for small clinics such as gear swaps or yoga courses.

Outside of these meetings are the group’s main activities. Two to-three times a month the group hosts larger outdoor trips. These can be day trips or overnight trips. While always in Maine, they range in distance from being close to campus to hours away.

Among the list of things the club has done are bouldering, lead climbing, mountain biking and  climbing Cadillac Mountain. They also host a yearly Squatter’s Prom:, an outdoor music fest featuring local bands as a way to kick off the year. This year’s event was held last Friday.

While the group focuses on their activities, a large draw is the community aspect.

“Team bonding is probably the best part,” Vice President Melissa Genoter said “Everyone is so talkative. You’re getting to share these amazing experiences, getting to look at a sunset with these people.”

Community plays a large role in what makes the Backcountry Squatters different from the other outdoor clubs on campus.

“Squatters has the most close-knit, energetic, exciting community and that’s what makes it so special,” Genoter said.

The club was originally founded in 2014 in Montana. Their mission was to encourage women to pursue outdoor interests. The founders felt that women were underrepresented in these sorts of activities. Over the years, the club has expanded to include genderqueer individuals in their demographic as they want to show support and inclusion to everyone. While the UMaine chapter is made up primarily of women, they are open and in support of genderqueer members looking to join their community.

“Everyone is energetic and ready to be out. Gender and any sort of baggage can be left behind,” Genoter said.

For the UMaine chapter the group was revived in 2019 and has been growing rapidly since 2020. The group exists as a part of the larger organization, with officers participating in talks about diversity inclusion, ideas for trips and more. Other chapters are able to show their support for what occurs at UMaine and vice-versa, mostly through social media. The Backcountry Squatters are active on Instagram under the handle backcountrysquatters_umaine. On their social media, they post the month’s activities as well as photos from their trips.

Anyone can come to a meeting at any point, although there are dues and fees related to the trips. Most of their events are off campus and the group often carpools to get to locations. Trips are open to everyone. On overnight trips limitations depend on the availability of campsites.

One such overnight trip occurred last spring and involved members backpacking along Cutler Coast, an area of preserved land along the ocean. They spent the day along the ocean before staying overnight and heading back the following day.

Turnout for trips tends to depend on scale. For shorter trips, like day hikes, there can be over 40 participants. Overnight trips stay in the eight to 20 range. For a core group of members, there are around 20 to 30 people showing up regularly.

The Backcountry Squatters is one of many outdoor clubs on campus. All of them mesh to make the campus’ outing culture. While each club has its own unique specialty, they have some overlap and will help each other.

When a different club in the coalition is hosting a trip the Squatters may be interested in, the word is spread.

“We’re one piece of the bigger outdoor culture here,” Genoter said.

You can find more information on their instagram page. They meet Tuesdays at 7 pm in the Fosters Center for Innovation.