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The Montclarion                                                                        Student Newspapers

1-23-2020

The Montclarion, January 23, 2020
The Montclarion

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themontclarion.org                          The Montclarion                          themontclarion                          @themontclarion                   Montclarion Video

 Volume XXX, Issue 14                                                     Thursday, January 23, 2020                                                            themontclarion.org

       Montclair State Faces Lawsuit Over
        Student Government Regulations

Sergeant Kaluba Chipepo tells members of Young Americans for Liberty to stop their protest while explaining the school’s policy.                       Photo courtesy of Young Americans for Liberty

           Zoe Gleason                  tain areas. Their message was            anyone who wants to speak                er substantial benefits through       trustees says that the current
         Feature Assistant              clear: gun-free zones only ben-          publicly on campus must obtain           its “class” system. The YAL           procedures allow for all mem-
                                        efit criminals.                          permission at least two weeks            argues that Montclair State’s         bers of the university’s commu-
    Young Americans for Liberty             They proposed that gun con-          in advance. The dean’s office            SGA “class” system “imple-            nity to exercise their rights of
(YAL), a pro-liberty organization       trol laws only hurt law-abiding          will then assign them a time             ments a seniority system and          assembly and speech. The of-
at Montclair State University,          citizens who carry guns for              and place to speak.                      a discretionary and discrimina-       ficial statement maintains that
filed a formal complaint against        self-defense. The president of              The Montclair State chapter           tory tier system.” The case file      the existing channels of approv-
the Montclair State Board of            YAL at Montclair State, Mena             of YAL is a class four organiza-         attests the existing class system     al allow the community to “en-
Trustees and Student Govern-            Botros, said the group chose to          tion of the student government.          violates students’ rights to due      gage in all University organized
ment Association alleging that          forgo the process of requesting          The group currently has twenty           process because “it is unconsti-      activities without disruption.”
some of the school’s policies are       a space through the registrar            members, all with varying ideo-          tutionally vague.”                       The SGA said they can “con-
unconstitutional and that three         and gaining approval from the            logical standpoints.                         The Montclair State board         fidently say that [the referenced
students’ First Amendment and           standard departments.                       The case file makes the claim         of trustees and SGA told The          complaint]      mischaracterizes
Fourteenth Amendment rights                 A Montclair State police of-         that Montclair State’s “Speech           Montclarion that they hadn’t          our policies and procedures.
were violated.                          ficer, Sergeant Kaluba Chipepo,          Permit Policy thus grants [the           been served by the complaint,         Our policies and procedures
    On Sept. 10, 2019, Mathew           asked the group to cease their           Dean of Students] Coleman-               but both provided official state-     encourage the formation and
Botros, Mena Botros and James           protest and remove their or-             Carter and the Office of the             ments. The official statement         growth of student organiza-
Pillion were peacefully protest-        ange jumpsuits. The officer also         Dean of Students unbridled               denied any form of violation of
ing outside of the Feliciano            informed the students that they          discretion to grant or deny stu-         their policies.
School of Business on the is-           were violating the Montclair             dents permission to speak on                “We have no reason to think
sue of gun-free zones. The trio         State Speech Permit Policy               campus.”                                 that we have taken any action
                                                                                                                                                                 Crossword puzzle
wore orange jumpsuits as they           because they had not obtained                 The complaint postulates            in violation of our principles or      & more on pages
pretended to be prisoners and           permission to speak publicly             that the Student Government              policies,” read the official state-
held signs mockingly in support         from the dean’s office.                  Association (SGA) allocates              ment.
                                                                                                                                                                    12 and 13
of the ban on firearms in cer-             As per Montclair State’s rules,       student-funded money and oth-                 Montclair State’s board of

              NEWS                                 FEATURE                                  OPINION                            ENTERTAINMENT                               SPORTS

          p. 3                                   p. 4                                     p. 8                                     p. 14                               p. 20
   “Attorney General                       @montclairstate-                       “Free Speech Should                     Films that Flew Under                  Women’s Basketball
     Grewal Urges                        confessions Provides                      Not Cost Anything”                        the Radar in 2019                   Bounces Into Spring
    Graduates to Be                       An Opportunity For                                                                                                     Semester on Seven
   Fearless and Take                     Students To Express
                                                                                                                                                                  Game Win Streak
         Risks”                              Themselves
Montclair State University Digital Commons
PAGE 2 • January 23, 2020 • The Montclarion                                                                                                                      themontclarion.org

                THE MONTCLARION
     School of Communication and Media, Room 2035                                     New Year Brings New Minimum
                  Montclair, N.J. 07043
The Montclarion is a publication of Montelican Publishing, Inc. published              Wage Increase to $11 an Hour
weekly, except during examinations, summer and winter sessions. The
Montclarion is funded by student fees distributed by Montclair State Uni-
versity and incoming advertising revenue. The views expressed in the Opin-
ion section, with the exception of the Main Editorial, do not necessarily reflect
                            the views of The Montclarion.
The Montclarion has a commitment to accuracy and clarity and will print correc-
tions or clarifications if information is found to be incorrect. To report an error
of fact or a Letter to the Editor, email the Editor-in-Chief at montclarionchief@
                                      gmail.com.
Information reported in the Red Hawk Rap Sheet comes directly from
the MSU Police Department. We do not print retractions to the rap
sheet unless information directly from the police report is incorrect. We
can print an update to the events only if the newspaper is given access
              to relevant documents to corroborate the information.
All submissions to the newspaper become property of The Montclarion.
              We do not print articles from anonymous contributors.
     The first issue of The Montclarion, then named The Pelican, was
                             published on Nov. 28, 1928.

                                STAFF                                                                                                        Adrianna Caraballo | The Montclarion

                                                                                                    Rosaria Lo Presti                out a lot to have a little extra money in
        Executive Board                         Editorial Board                                      News Assistant                  your pocket.”
         Editor-in-Chief                             News                                                                                While the new legislation will put
           Heather Berzak                       Adrianna Caraballo                         New Jersey passed a bill to increase      more cash in the hands of college stu-
                                                 montclarionnews                        workers’ minimum wage from $10 to            dents with minimum wage jobs, many
           montclarionchief                                                             $11 an hour in 2019, and it was official-    businesses will struggle to pay for the
            @gmail.com                             @gmail.com
                                                                                        ly enforced on Jan. 1. of the new year.      increase in employee wages. This will
                                                                                           The minimum wage is also set to in-       decrease the availability of jobs, while
        Managing Editor                                Feature                          crease yearly by one dollar an hour until    at the same increase the cost of goods
       Mackenzie Robertson                       Casey Masterson                        2024, when it will reach and remain at       and services.
       montclarionmanaging                      montclarionfeature                      $15 an hour. This new bill directly af-         Charles Gu, a senior majoring in ac-
          @gmail.com                               @gmail.com                           fects college students who work to af-       counting and finance, works as a resi-
                                                                                        ford school and basic living costs at        dent assistant on campus and believes
             Operations                               Opinion                           minimum wage earnings.                       that the increased minimum wage
              Manager                             Brian Rooney                            According to the Bureau of Labor Sta-      won’t make much of a difference.
          Gabriela Cevallos                     montclarionopinion                      tistics, the largest majority of minimum       “It’s very hard for midsize businesses
         montclarionadsales                       @gmail.com                            wage earners are between the ages of         to continually pay their workers an in-
            @gmail.com                                                                  16 and 24, making this topic one of          creasing wage,” Gu said. “I don’t think
                                                 Entertainment                          large concern for college students.          it will be a huge impact because em-
               Business                            Thomas Neira                           Junior animation major Sydney Kram-        ployee expense is tax-deductible. It’s
               Manager                              montclarion                         er is a Student Information Desk em-         not as much as people thought it would
         Raul Jaramillo                            entertainment
                                                                                        ployee in the Student Center. She be-        be.”
  montclarionbusinessmanager                                                            lieves that the minimum wage increase          Increasing wages could force owners
          @gmail.com                                @gmail.com                          will help college students pay for col-      to minimize hours or hire fewer work-
                                                                                        lege utilities.                              ers.
               Assistants                               Sports                             “I am definitely for the dollar raise,       “I don’t think that they should keep
                                                Samantha Impaglia                       even though it’s just a dollar,” Kramer      increasing it. I believe that we should
               News                             montclarionsports                       said. “Every dollar counts when you are      be paid by our value and our ideas,
          Rosaria Lo Presti                       @gmail.com                            a college student, especially because        but not our time,” Gu said. “Increased
                                                                                        of the rise in prices of things like text-   minimum wage will come with cutting
          Carmela Winter
                                              Chief Copy Editor                         books and supplies. It definitely helps      hours.”
               Opinion                              Jen Losos
             Anton Specht                         montclarioncopy
                                                   @gmail.com
                                                                                       Red Hawk Rap Sheet
               Feature
                                                                                                                                                                             Graphic by Claudia

             Z.W. Gleason
                                                                                                                                                                             Habrahamshon

                                                    Web Editor
            Entertainment                       Adrian Maldonado
             Sharif Hasan                        montclarionweb
                Copy                              @gmail.com
            Brielle Wyka
            Ben Caplan                            Photography                                                               Friday, Dec. 20
          Lauren Lamantia                         Ben Caplan                          Parker Hall: Patrol officers responded in reference to a
          Nathaly Martinez                 montclarionphotography@
                                                  gmail.com                           trespasser at the residence hall. Upon further investigation, officers
               Sports                                                                 determined that the individual, a non-student, was prohibited to be
             Corey Annan
                                                   Video Editor                       on campus. The individual was escorted off campus.
             Photography                        Annabel Reyes
             Olivia Kearns               montclarionvideo@gmail.com
                                                                                                                        Saturday, Dec. 28
                                           Social Media Manager                       Blanton Hall: Patrol officers responded in reference to an assault
            Faculty                            Chris Giacomini                        in progress. Responding patrol officers investigated the scene and,
                                           montclarionsocialmedia@                    based on personal statements and injuries to the victim, arrested
         Faculty Advisor                          gmail.com
            Tara George                                                               non-student Lucas Green of Somerset, New Jersey. The victim was
              georgeta                        Production Editor                       provided with resource information but did not wish to apply for a
           @montclair.edu                                                             temporary restraining order. Green is scheduled to appear at Little
                                                 Erin Downey
                                             montclarionproduction                    Falls Municipal Court.
                                                 @gmail.com
                   Writers and Contributors                                             Anyone who has information regarding these incidents
   Corey Anann, William Beavers, Sam Carliner, Ryan Contino,
     Jack Landon, Evelyn Lavitola, Kelvin Jimenez Michaca,                                is urged to call the police station at T-I-P-S (8477).
                Kristen Milburn, Charlee Reiff
                                                                                                   All calls are strictly confidential.
Montclair State University Digital Commons
themontclarion.org                                                                                                                         The Montclarion • January 23, 2020 • PAGE 3

   Attorney General Grewal Urges Graduates
         to Be Fearless and Take Risks

New Jersey Attorney General, Gubir S. Grewal, addressed the graduates of the class of 2020.                                                               Photo courtesy of Montclair State University

     Kelvin Jimenez Michaca            ary degree, Grewal addressed                “It [school] was awesome, I              Janet Dillon-Kowallzic, edu-       the ropes and got an associate’s,
           Staff Writer                the graduating class.                   made friends that I still talk to        cational leadership major and          bachelor’s and now my master’s
                                         “As you walk off this stage with      and have very good memories              graduate, was able to experi-          degree.”
  Montclair State conferred 665        your degrees in hand, know that         [with]. The professors and staff         ence a second career in obtain-           Dillon-Kowallzic is a first-gen-
degrees to graduate students           your journeys are just begin-           have been very helpful, and I            ing her degree.                        eration American and the first
across various schools and dis-        ning, that you too may encoun-          would go back again if I need               “[I] worked as an EMT and           to attend college in her fam-
ciplines at the graduate school        ter obstacles and adversities           to,” Gonzales said.                      eventually a firefighter with the      ily. She honored her immigrant
commencement ceremony in               that you never anticipated,” Gre-          Gonzales is one of the many           New York City fire department          parents by wearing the stoles of
the New Jersey Performing Arts         wal said. “But when one door            Montclair State students to re-          (FDNY) on the terror attacks of        Puerto Rico and the Dominican
Center (NJPAC).                        closes for you, don’t ever be           ceive both an undergraduate              9/11,” Dillon-Kowallzic said.          Republic.
   Among the degree recipients         afraid to change course and to          degree and a master’s degree, a              It was after having her fifth           “By wearing these stoles, I
on Friday, Jan. 17 was the hon-        open another one. Don’t ever be         first for members of her family.         child that she was inspired to         am representing my heritage
orary degree recipient, New Jer-       afraid to follow a path you never          “Having a speaker [like Gre-          educate herself further.               and sending a message that if
sey Attorney General, Gubir S.         before considered.”                     wal] to talk on diversity gives a          “[My son] was born with learn-       you really apply yourself, there’s
Grewal; the first Sikh-American           Anel Gonzales, business ad-          lot of new and interesting points        ing disabilities and I decided         nothing you can’t succeed [in ac-
to hold the position in the Unit-      ministration major and gradu-           of people’s experiences,” Gon-           to go back to school to be able        complishing],” Dillon-Kowallzic
ed States.                             ate, explained that it was the          zales said. “I am Latina and the         to assist my child and educate         said. “Graduating has been a
  Grewal was awarded an hon-           connections at the university           first of my siblings to graduate,        myself more,” Dillon-Kowallzic         wonderful experience because
orary Doctor of Laws degree.           that made her want to continue          so I think diversity is very impor-      said. “I only had a high school        I’ve been able to show my chil-
After having received the honor-       pursuing her education.                 tant.”                                   diploma, so I worked through           dren that hard work pays off.”

                                                                                                   The Graduate School Commencement ceremony was          Photo courtesy of Montclair State University
Montclair State University conferred 665 degrees    Photo courtesy of Montclair State University   held at New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark,
on Friday, Jan. 17.                                                                                New Jersey.
Montclair State University Digital Commons
PAGE 4 • January 23, 2020 • The Montclarion                                                                                                                           themontclarion.org

Greek Life has been one of the many topics discussed on the Instagram page.                                                                              Rose Kershner | The Montclarion

       @montclairstateconfessions Provides An
    Opportunity For Students To Express Themselves
               Corey Anann                           While many of these            “They shouldn’t be ac-     can come and share sto-         lar Instagram page that made an im-
          Assistant Sports Editor              posts may come off as bi-      cepting such explicit con-       ries, ideas, complaints or      pact on the university as a whole.
                                               zarre to those who come        tent and posting it,” Dolan      whatever they please. He           “When I saw the way the account
      We’ve seen plenty of Montclair           across them, this hasn’t       said. “[The confessions]         also believes it can be hard    was being run, it made me realize
 State University-related social media         caused any hesitation from     could all be lies and even if    to connect with people          that a similar idea for our campus
 accounts gain popularity and fame             Watson to share these sto-     it’s real, someone could be      in college, particularly at     had the potential to help students,”
 in the last few years. Instagram ac-          ries out to the world.         hurt by the content put out      Montclair State, which has      Watson said. “Not everyone is com-
 counts such as @memesofmontclair                   “When people tell me      there.”                          over 16,000 undergraduate       fortable to say what they have to say
 and @montclairredchawks have                  that they want to post on           Despite the criticism of    students.                       in person.”
 gained quite a following among the            the page, I try to tell them   the page’s explicit content,        “I wanted the page to be        Kylie Wester, a sophomore public
 Montclair State student body. How-            that this is their page and    it is no secret that these bi-   a place where everyone can      health major, agreed that the page
 ever, both Instagram accounts cer-            they can [confess] to what-    zarre confessions have cre-      know what goes on around        has made some progress in bringing
 tainly haven’t reached the notoriety          ever they want to,” Watson     ated a massive following         [campus] and stay connect-      the students of Montclair State to-
 and fame that @montclairstatecon-             said. “If people are opening   among students. The ac-          ed with each other,” Watson     gether.
 fessions obtained over the last few           up and sharing their sto-      count has already reached        said. “I’m trying to bring         “I think it’s brought the communi-
 months.                                       ries, no matter what it is,    over 1,800 followers, as         groups of students together     ty together in a sense,” Wester said.
      The Instagram page, created by           I’m all for it.”               more and more students           so that they have one com-      “Some of the stories are relatable
 Montclair State sophomore Justin                 Emily Dolan, a freshman     have discovered the ac-          mon thing to share.”            stories to what others are dealing
 Watson, has given students a chance           television and digital media   count.                               Watson’s inspiration for    with themselves.”
 to anonymously air out some of their          major, believes the page            Watson’s motivation for     the account came from a              Watson has also expanded the
 most private and personal secrets.            could be more mindful of       creating Montclair State         friend who attends the Uni-     page’s content beyond just confes-
 The account is an open forum for any          what confessions they de-      Confessions was to create        versity of Buffalo in upstate   sions. He recently created a “mixer”
 and all students to submit whatever           cide to release to the pub-    a community where every          New York, who mentioned         post in which the goal was to try to
 they please.                                  lic.                           Montclair State student          that his school had a simi-     help students look for friendships
    These submissions range from the                                                                                                           or romance. He also has done polls,
 memorable moments they’ve had on                                                                                                              Q&A’s and more.
 campus to mature and private mat-                                                                                                                 Watson ultimately plans to hand
 ters such as sex, drugs and more.                                                                                                             over the rights to the account when
 Some have even used this as a way to                                                                                                          he graduates. He hopes that whoever
 criticize certain aspects of Montclair                                                                                                        he chooses to take over the account
 State, such as Greek Life, residence                                                                                                          in the future can continue to carry
 halls, other students and more.                                                                                                               his vision for the page.
     Submitting a “confession” to the                                                                                                             “I’ve had plenty of people who say
 account is very simple. Students can                                                                                                          they’ve wanted to even start helping
 go onto Montclair State Confession’s                                                                                                          out with the page now,” Watson said.
 Instagram account and click a Goo-                                                                                                            “I have to really trust that person to
 gle Forms link at the very bottom of                                                                                                          keep the vision of the [page] going.”
 the bio.                                                                                                                                         He also credited the student body
    When filling out the form, students                                                                                                        for helping to make his vision for this
 must give their major, year and in-                                                                                                           page a success so far.
 clude their confession. Watson does                                                                                                               “When you create something like
 not know who is sending him these                                                                                                             this, you have to assume the com-
 confessions, simply because he                                                                                                                munity will give it a chance,” Watson
                                               The homepage of the             Image courtesy of @montclairstateconfessions on Instagram
 doesn’t ask for a name in the form                                                                                                            said. “They have, and they are the
                                               @montclairstateconfessions Instagram account.
 itself.                                                                                                                                       reason for the success of this page.”
Montclair State University Digital Commons
themontclarion.org                                                                                                                The Montclarion • January 23, 2020 • PAGE 5

                                                          The Memes
                                                         of Montclair State

     This meme pokes fun at the struggle of opening the front doors of University Hall.                                       Photo courtesy of @memesofmontclair on Instagram

                    Zoe Gleason                   they find they enjoy the same book or     innumerable memes related to Mont-           He is not a stranger to using “It’s All
              Assistant Feature Editor            movie.                                    clair State, “It’s All Here” is by far the   Here” as facetious commentary to-
                                                      “Memes help me relate to people       most popular.                                ward the amenities at Montclair State.
           The Instagram page @meme-              in a way that was unprecedented be-         “We genuinely love Montclair State            “There’s literally nothing here,” Has-
    sofmontclair showcases some of Mont-          fore our generation,” Alessandro Tox-     and truly believe everything is ‘all         san said. “Nearly every time I’ve need-
    clair State University’s most prominent       iri, a freshman majoring in business      here,’” The Mademoiselles of Me-             ed [Montclair State], they’ve failed me.
    issues— from the poor food quality at         administration, said. “It allows you to   mes said. “We are aware that some            This applies to financial aid, housing
    Sam’s Place to the parking predica-           learn more about other people.”           memes focus on the issues at our             selection and bad schedule advising.”
    ment.                                             Typically, memes are humorous in      school, but it is meant to be relatable,        Responding to an unfortunate situa-
        This Instagram page is run by two         tone, but occasionally content cre-       not a complaint.”                            tion with “It’s All Here” was a way for
    undergraduate students, one com-              ators utilize memes to allude to much       Some students do genuinely believe         students to reclaim the promotional
    puter science major and one public            more serious topics. Memes can be         that everything you’ll ever need can         motto. This trend has outlived the ini-
    relations major. The duo has chosen           about anything from purposely silly       be found at Montclair State. Howev-          tiative itself.
    to remain anonymous and asked that            animal anatomy to the lack of elec-       er, this sentiment is not shared by all         “If you look up ‘it’s all here’ the first
    a pseudonym be made for them. The             tions under dictatorial governments.      students. Some people use “It’s All          thing that shows up is a Montclarion
    Mademoiselles of Memes started their                Once in a blue moon a meme          Here” sarcastically as a way to cope         cartoon of parking problems at Mont-
    page in February 2019 and have just           makes it— sometimes content cre-          with their frustrations.                     clair State,” Anthony Gachetti, a fresh-
    over 3,000 followers.                         ators inadvertently produce media             Emam Hassan is a nutrition and           man environmental science major,
         Students are using the @meme-            that will go viral. Though there are      food science major in his senior year.       said.
    sofmontclair page to anonymously
    voice their concerns about the cam-
    pus. One post assesses the remodeling
    of College Hall, and questions why so
    much of the budget is going toward re-
    building. The original creator suggests
    this money might be better spent sup-
    plying the campus with better food, fix-
    ing Sprague Library or making repairs
    to Bohn, Dickson or Freeman Hall.
       A meme is defined as an element of
    a culture, a piece of media or a system
    of behavior that is passed from one in-
    dividual to another through imitation,
    word of mouth or, most popularly, so-
    cial media.
       Images with text superimposed over
    them are called macros. Most image
    macros are memes, but not all memes
    are image macros. Often people will
    make slight variations to these macros
    by changing the text to fit their own
    needs.
         In college culture, memes allow
    students to find common ground
    with their peers and connect through
    common structures of feeling. This is        An altered version of the “Distracted Boyfriend” macro implies that Montclair Photo courtesy of @memesofmontclair on Instagram
    similar to the way people bond when          State’s budget shouldn’t be going toward refinishing College Hall.
Montclair State University Digital Commons
PAGE 6 • January 23, 2020 • The Montclarion                                                       themontclarion.org

 Submit your Montclair State related images.                          #MontclarionPhotoOfTheWeek
 Email: montclarionphotography@gmail.com
 Subject Line: Photo of the Week Submission

The cold weather can make us think of warmer places just like this.               Carmela Winter | The Montclarion

PHOTOS OF THE WEEK

A bicycle is frozen outside of Hawk’s Crossing.                                        Photo courtesy of Ed DuCoin
Montclair State University Digital Commons
themontclarion.org                                                                                                             The Montclarion • January 23, 2020 • PAGE 7

Sophomore attack Julia Maltagliati looks to get past a defender on Jan 21 practice at Sprague Field.                                           Corey Annan | The Montclarion

Students are berry excited to start a new year.          Jenna Sundel | The Montclarion      Wicket celebrates winter break.                Casey Masterson | The Montclarion
Montclair State University Digital Commons
PAGE 8 • January 23, 2020 • The Montclarion                                                                                                                      themontclarion.org

                                                                                                                                             Alex Kitchmire | The Montclarion

             Free Speech Should Not Cost Anything
 L     ast September, three
Montclair State University
                                  be ironic: recently developing
                                  gun control efforts, in particu-
                                                                     issue were in attendance, all
                                                                     making their voices heard by
                                                                                                          should be given to extremism
                                                                                                          like white supremacy and oth-
                                                                                                                                                unfamiliar is not at all a bad
                                                                                                                                                thing, and if you disagree with
students advocating pro-gun       lar, gun-free zones.               the other.                           er domestically toxic, histori-       a philosophy contradictory to
rights on campus had their          The reason given by the uni-       These protests were cer-           cally violent and dehumanizing        your own, so be it.
peaceful demonstration shut       versity officer for bringing the   tainly more raucous than the         organizations and “activists.”           It is a crucial aspect of what
down by university police.        demonstration to a halt was        demonstration shut down last             Of course, anyone who in-         makes a society flourish, that
Earlier this month, a lawsuit     that anyone who wishes to          September. Despite that dif-         cites violence should not be          is, each of its members hav-
against Montclair State was       hold a political demonstration     ference, the two did share a         given a platform to do so and         ing the ability to safely come
filed by the students, claiming   on campus must obtain per-         characteristic in that neither       anyone who does do so abuses          together, discuss, decide what
the university restrained their   mission from the university,       were approved by the adminis-        their right to free speech, as        they believe individually and
ability to exercise their first   who will give them a time and      tration.                             well as turns their back on the       go their separate ways without
amendment right.                  place to do so.                      The possibility of Montclair       American ideals of equality           having any philosophies forced
    No matter your opinion, if       The lawsuit filed by the stu-   State’s administration choos-        and fellowship.                       upon one another. Addition-
you live in the United States,    dents claims that the require-     ing which voices should and              Moreover, disagreeing with        ally, in the event that any spe-
your right to freedom of          ment prohibiting them from         should not be heard could            someone because they hold a           cific philosophy is written into
speech must be protected. It is   their public activism puts a       be problematic. All opinions,        different opinion than you is         law, those who feel wronged
imperative to the fundamental     restraint on their first amend-    including those that may be          not the same as disagreeing           reserve the ability to correct it
ideals of this country, as well   ment rights. Furthermore,          considered unpopular, should         with someone because their            through a democratic process.
as to the ongoing progression     they believe the requirement       carry the same weight. Any-          opinion is inherently danger-              Whether you are pro-gun
of its society.                   allows for the university to       thing otherwise directly defies      ous.                                  rights or pro-gun control, pro-
    Mena Botros, a Montclair      pick and choose which causes       the first amendment and your            In a time where the political      life or pro-choice, right, left
State sophomore and the pres-     and agendas they believe to be     right as a citizen of the United     spectrum is increasingly polar-       or anywhere in between, your
ident of Young Americans for      important or not.                  States.                              izing, it is important to have        opinion is still your opinion. No
Liberty, led the demonstration      Following the 2016 presiden-        A common and indisputably         your perspective challenged no        matter what that opinion may
alongside two other students.     tial election, Montclair State     important argument counter-          matter where you fall on that         be, every American deserves
Wearing orange jumpsuits, the     campus saw a multitude of          ing the idea that there should       spectrum.                             to express it absent from any
three protestors jokingly sup-    anti-Trump student protests.       be no restraints to free speech         Being exposed to new ideas         bureaucratic resistance.
ported what they believed to      Students on both sides of the      is whether or not a platform         and points of view that are

  Campus
  Voices:
                                  “It means a lot because when         “I think freedom of speech         “I think freedom of speech             “I think that freedom of speech
                                  you have one singular narra-       on campus is very important,         means exactly what it means –          on campus comes down to be-
                                  tive that people or an orga-       especially now in the political                                             ing able to express your opin-
          How                     nization can control, then it      time we are now. I think there’s
                                                                                                          just saying what you want free-
                                                                                                          ly. But I don’t think that means       ion and being entitled to your
       important                  limits what can really be said     a lot of touchy political aspects    that saying what you want              own opinion in the classrooms
                                  and we all have to follow that     right now in life that people        won’t come with judgement, or              without any judgment.”
        to you is                 one certain pathway instead of     need to speak up about if they       rather that’s what you have to
      freedom of                  asking questions and trying to
                                  broaden our way of thinking.
                                                                     want to see changes made. So
                                                                     I think it all starts with educa-
                                                                                                          risk for saying the things that
                                                                                                          you want. At the same time,
       speech on                  If the pathway is controlled       tion, and I think if you’re unable   you should still have the op-
                                  then we’re just going to be very   to talk about things in school,
        campus?                   simple and we’re not going to      then you’re more likely to not
                                                                                                                         tion.”

                                        expand as a society.”        talk about it outside of school.”

                                          - Ben Berube                    - Sheyla Baez                         - Katherine Kim                     - Giselle Huasipoma
   By Brielle Wyka                  Television & Digital Media       Communication & Media Arts                    Psychology                    Communication & Media Arts
                                              Senior                          Senior                                 Junior                                 Junior
Montclair State University Digital Commons
themontclarion.org                                                   The Montclarion • January 23, 2020 • PAGE 9

                     WHAT’S NEW THIS SPRING IN DINING?
                                New Hours of Operation
                       Please visit dineoncampus.com/montclair for more details.

         Shawarma Spot food truck menu will available soon in the
                           Red Hawk Diner!

         Beyond Meat® options available at Dunkin’ Donuts at the Plaza
          at Blanton Hall and Grill Nation at the Student Center Café!
PAGE 10 • January 23, 2020 • The Montclarion                                                                                                                             themontclarion.org

                                Just Because You’ve Got it
                              Doesn’t Mean You’re Flaunting It
        Insisting that someone is “flaunting” their body is not the compliment we think it is

                     A
                                                                                                                                              She wasn’t “flaunting” anything. She
                          dele is known                                                                                                    was having fun with loved ones in the
                      for many things:                                                                                                     same way that most people do during
                      incredible vocals,                                                                                                   the holidays.
                      sad songs and                                                                                                           We’ve become so obsessed with the
                      winning armfuls                                                                                                      idea of thinness that when someone
                      of Grammys. If                                                                                                       becomes skinnier, we don’t give them
                      you logged onto                                                                                                      an option to simply exist without label-
  KRISTEN MILBURN twitter         during                                                                                                   ing it as flaunting their new body. A
    STAFF WRITER      the holidays, you                                                                                                    post of oneself performing an everyday
                      would have quick-                                                                                                    activity is no longer about the activity
                    ly forgotten about                                                                                                     itself, but how thin he or she looks in
her musical achievements as thou-                                                                                                          the photo. You lose a few pounds and
sands of tweets poured in regarding her                                                                                                    everyone forgets that the primary pur-
weight loss.                                                                                                                               pose of a body is to simply keep you
    Adele posted two photos of herself                                                                                                     alive and carry you through life.
smiling at a holiday party and has re-                                                                                                            It’s an unnecessary burden and
portedly lost 100 pounds, which is un-                                                                                                     frankly downright creepy to assign this
deniably a notable change. Seeing the                                                                                                      expectation of performance to people.
thousands of tweets and articles cel-                                                                                                          People’s bodies do not exist just to
ebrating and admiring her weight loss                                                                                                      look nice for you, so it’s damaging to
was unsettling to me.                                                                                   Alex Kitchmire | The Montclarion   insinuate that when someone is simply
    Society’s obsession with being thin                                                                                                    going about their day, they are actively
and praising those with a slim figure,       figure” or “showing off her new body.”        our socially constructed ideas of beauty.       “showing off” how they look for your
particularly women, is nothing new. The      These posts were well-intentioned and             It’s hard to come across a headline         own benefit.
truth is that it’s definitely a problem;     even meant as a compliment but they’re        of someone “flaunting” their figure after          It’s clear we have a lot to re-evaluate
I could go on about it all day. Adele’s      troublesome for two reasons.                  they’ve gained weight. This is because          about how we perceive weight loss and
weight loss epitomizes the issues of             It’s problematic firstly because it       our society is wildly and unfairly predis-      our obsession with weight in general.
how we perceive weight in the growing        shows how we reserve this kind of lan-        posed to think of weight gain as some-          Even when we think we’re being posi-
number of people insisting how beauti-       guage to describe the type of body we         thing shameful or bad.                          tive, we’re often just perpetuating dam-
ful she is now (presumably because she       think warrants confidence. It’s also an          With the way the public reacted to           aging ways of thinking.
is thinner).                                 issue as the simple act of saying some-       Adele’s photos, it seems as though post-           I would like to focus on things other
    Others commenting on how healthy         one is flaunting their body is inherently     ing a picture of yourself means you are         than Adele’s weight, like what does
she is now forget that a slimmer figure      damaging in and of itself.                    showing off your body, which places an          “rolling in the deep” actually mean,
does not always equate to a healthier           The issue with saying that someone         unnecessary aspect of performance to            anyway?
lifestyle. The way that so many people       is flaunting their figure construes that      just existing as a normal human. The
responded to Adele’s weight loss has re-     we only use this kind of language to          photos of Adele were of her simply en-
vealed a deep-rooted issue.                  describe thin people or those who have        joying a holiday party and doing nothing        Kristen Milburn, an English major, is in
  People lauded Adele’s physical appear-     recently lost weight. In other words, it      more than laughing and making a funny           her second year as a staff writer for The
ance by saying she was “flaunting her        implies confidence for people who fit         face at the camera.                             Montclarion.

                                             End Our Endless Wars
                        The U.S. is moving closer to a war with Iran, which Americans
                                     and Iranians alike would suffer from.
                     T   hree days into
                      2020, global af-
                                             Baghdad as justification for the assas-
                                             sination of Soleimani. President Trump
                                                                                           make the U.S. look more justified. Many
                                                                                           Americans who likely had not heard of
                                                                                                                                           American troops could stay alive if
                                                                                                                                           our government would just bring them
                      fairs were shaken      even claimed that Iran orchestrated           Soleimani a month ago have been quick           home. Instead, they are being left as sit-
                      by the assassina-      the protests. No proof of that claim has      to spread the talking point that he was         ting ducks in a country that just wants
                      tion of Iran’s top     been offered.                                 a bad person because he killed Ameri-           sovereignty.
                      general, Qasem           Our government has a history of lying       cans. Soleimani did kill Americans, but            If it was the Iranian military occupy-
                      Soleimani,       via   to get involved in foreign conflicts. The     these were not civilians, they were U.S.        ing Montclair, turning the new School
    SAM CARLINER      drone strike au-       most infamous case in recent history          troops.                                         of Communication and Media to rubble,
    STAFF WRITER      thorized by Presi-     being the Bush Administration’s false           While any death during war is devas-          Americans would likely have no issue
                      dent Trump. Since      claims of weapons of mass destruction         tating, as any unnecessary loss of life is,     with violent resistance to that threat.
                      then, tensions in      in Iraq, which resulted in a war that the     Soleimani is not a monster for fighting            Americans should put themselves in
the region have escalated.                   U.S. has been stuck in for nearly two         back against a force trying to invade his       the shoes of Iranians. It is not hard to
    As the irrevocable consequences of       decades.                                      home.                                           wish for the safety of our troops and
war become more concerning for civil-          Just a few months ago, the Washington         The U.S. has been illegally occupying         still understand that their role in this
ians of Iran and U.S. troops within the      Post revealed that U.S. military leaders      countries in the region for decades and         conflict is that of the aggressor.
region, some of the biggest political and    have been lying for years about the state     has been known to harm, rape and kill              Whether it is out of sympathy for the
media leaders in the U.S. have been          of the war in Afghanistan. It is not a leap   civilians and ravage entire towns.              civilians of a foreign country or our own
spreading narratives that depict conflict    to assume that once again, our govern-          Like the vast majority of people who          military, Americans must avoid letting
with Iran as necessary, even beneficial.     ment is lying to rally support for war.       have experienced devastation as a               this conflict be reduced to “good guys
   In the Warhawk punditry being plat-          What many Americans won’t hear is          result of U.S. occupation, Soleimani            versus bad guys.” Instead, we should
formed by just about every significant       that our history of tensions with Iran        wanted the United States out.                   demand our government withdraw our
news source, there is a lack of nuance       started in 1953 when the American gov-           The people of Iran, as well as Iraq,         troops and end its war crusade in the
surrounding U.S. history with Iran.          ernment overthrew the democratically          Afghanistan and many other nations in           Middle East, once and for all.
If provided, this context would make         elected Iranian Prime Minister, Mo-           the Middle East, have a right to defend
it clear that the U.S. should take no        hammed Mosaddegh. Since that first            themselves against the foreign pres-
course of action other than withdraw-        act of violence, the U.S. has terrorized      ence that is invading their homes.
ing troops from the region.                  Iran, causing chaos within the region.          Just recently, Iraq’s government voted        Sam Carliner, an jounalism major, is in
   Many people on social media cited a         Even the narratives of Soleimani’s role     unanimously for the U.S. to leave, but          his third year as a staff writer for The
Dec. 31 protest at the U.S. embassy in       in this conflict have been distorted to       our government is refusing to listen.           Montclarion.
themontclarion.org                                                                                                           The Montclarion • January 23, 2020 • PAGE 11

                                  Houston, We’ve Got a Problem
              Baseball’s latest cheating scandal reveals much more than just pitch signals

                      E    arlier this
                       month,      Major
                       League      Base-
                       ball punished the
                       Houston Astros
                       for stealing op-
                       ponents’     pitch
    BRIAN ROONEY       signs during their
  OPINION EDITOR 2017 champion-
                       ship season. The
                     lengthy investiga-
tion concluded with a $5 million fine,
a loss of first and second round draft
picks in 2020 and 2021 and one year
suspensions for Astros manager A.J.
Hinch and general manager Jeff Luh-
now.
   The only thing they forgot was con-                                                                                                                 Alex Kitchmire | The Montclarion
fiscating the Houston Astros of their
World Series title.                         on the wrist for cheating to win the             Even Pete Rose, baseball’s all time        slot is the majority of the battle.
   In 1919, eight players on the Chicago    World Series, a crime I believe to be far     hit leader, arguably the greatest hitter         Every batter in the MLB is a good hit-
White Sox were accused of throwing          more heinous than losing on purpose.          in baseball history, was permanently          ter. They would not be at the highest
the World Series for money. What is           All of the players involved in the cheat-   banned from baseball after betting on         playing level in the world if they weren’t.
now known as the “Black Sox Scandal”        ing scandal were granted immunity by          games as a manager, a crime entirely          It’s players who are able to make those
ended with all eight alleged culprits be-   the MLB for their cooperation in the          separate from his career as a player.         quick judgments correctly and react
ing permanently banned from baseball        investigation. None of them will be pun-         Additionally, he never once put his        accordingly who separate themselves
despite being found not guilty of all       ished. Key players like Jose Altuve, Alex     money against his team, only betting on       from averageness.
counts in court.                            Bregman and George Springer will con-         them to win. He will never be admitted            In a time where different tactics are
     Granted, there were various cover      tinue their careers full of success and       into Cooperstown, and will only be re-        constantly being developed to speed up
ups, including a suspicious vanishing of    praise, all ending their time in baseball     membered for that unfair absence.             the game and create more offense to
crucial evidence within the case that led   with no permanent blemish on their ca-          Many people are attempting to under-        raise dwindling viewership, this is a di-
to the acquittal.                           reer timeline.                                cut the severity of the Astros’ crimes by     saster for the sport of baseball, and the
   Regardless, none of the eight players,       Meanwhile, players like Barry Bonds       claiming their players still had to hit the   MLB should treat it as such.
including “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, who       and Roger Clemens are mentioned in            ball themselves, and simply knowing
supposedly backed out of the fix, could     lockstep with their use of steroids and       what pitch was coming is not much of
ever play baseball again.                   year after year fall shy of election into     an edge.
   One hundred years later, in what one     the Baseball Hall of Fame. Rightly so,           When the ball is firing towards you        Brian Rooney, a communication and media
would think would be a more enlight-        but all cheaters should be treated equal-     upwards of 90 miles per hour, detecting       arts major, is in his first year as opinion edi-
ened game, the Astros are given a slap      ly.                                           the ball’s rotation and the pitcher’s arm     tor for The Montclarion.

                          Thumbs Up                                                                             Thumbs Down
  Yankees legend,                               Greece elects                                Outbreak of new                            Heavy metal pioneer,
Derek Jeter, elected                               Katerina                                 coronavirus kills 9                           Ozzy Osbourne
 into baseball Hall                           Sakellaropoulou                                people in China                            announces he has
      of Fame                                 as its first woman                                                                         Parkinson’s disease
                                                   president
                                                                                                     The snacking community says
                       Bruce Springsteen’s                                                           goodbye to Planter’s mascot,
                      son, Sam, sworn in as                                                          Mr. Peanut. He was 104 years
                     firefighter in Jersey City                                                             old #RIPeanut
PAGE 12 • January 23, 2020 • The Montclarion
                                                       Classifieds                                       themontclarion.org

        Help Wanted                            Help Wanted          Help Wanted               Help Water/Other
      JOBS AND CLASSIFIEDS
                                      $9.50 per hour/           $30 – $35 hourly pay               OTHER
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 to do the voice over/                around exam and           level, subject) and        1-800-273-8255
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 hour on-line safety                  The address is walk-      have a car. Schedul-       speak to a counselor
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 provide the laptop                   Grove Street, Clifton     education major.           the Crisis Text Line
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themontclarion.org                                                                             The Montclarion • January 23, 2020 • PAGE 13

        The Montclarion Crossword Puzzle and More!
                                            Spring Semester Holiday Edition

               Across                                               Down
               1. A Jewish holiday celebrated in April.             1. On the third Monday in February, we honor these figures.
               2. An Irish holiday accompanied by a big parade.     3. A day everyone dreads involving money in April.
               4. A day full of love in February.                   5. We honor a prominent figure in the civil rights movement.
               6. The Christian celebration on a Sunday in April.
               7. A May celebration in honor of mothers.

                                                                                           Word Search
                                  Sudoku

                                                                    New Years 			Fireworks 			Snow
                                                                    Ice 				Spring 			Flowers
                                                                    Graduation 			Ramadan      		Break
                                                                    Winter 			    Memorial Day 		 Classes
   *For answers to the puzzles, please check                        Resolutions			 Working Out 		Goals
   The Montclarion Facebook page every Thursday.*
PAGE 14 • January 23, 2020 • The Montclarion                                                                                                                                      themontclarion.org

 Films that Flew Under the Radar
                                                                               in 2019

                                                                                                                                                   Kristoffer Fernandes | The Montclarion

                                    Stephanie Romano poses in Calcia Hall on Tuesday.

“The Farewell” has disappointingly not been nominated for anything in this year’s Oscars.                                                                                     Photo courtesy of A24

               Jack Landon                         dience squirm more than the last one.            watch with a friend, but not with a fam-           seen a better use of camera move-
                Staff Writer                       In “Climax,” he traps the audience in            ily member so you can avoid awkward                ments. Every camera movement is, for
                                                   an abandoned building with a dance               eye contact at the more strange parts of           lack of a better word, freeing. It’s like
     It’s the new year and as much as              troupe having one of the scariest acid           the film.                                          you’re watching someone just living
everybody is anticipating this stacked             trips that would make any Phish fan                                                                 their life, which is why I think a lot of
year of movies from the titans of film-            nervous.                                         A Hidden Life                                      Americans can resonate with this film.
making, here are some films that you                    The first thing to note about this                                                             It puts you in the place of the main
might have missed and should watch,                film is the staging (which is no sur-                 Terrence Malick is one of the few             character, and the issues he deals with
listed in no particular order.                     prise because the whole cast are pro-            film makers that will always live up to            are interesting to compare to what we
                                                   fessional dancers), which deserves               their own hype. With zero nominations              deal with now.
The Farewell                                       recognition on its own, but Noé com-             this year at the Academy Awards, this                     The long three-hour runtime is
                                                   bines elaborate dances on screen with            straight forward narrative about a Ger-            daunting, which is why I recommend
     Sophomore filmmaker Lulu Wang                 wicked camera movements following                man farmer who refuses to fight for the            seeing this in theaters because it will
made a big splash this past year with              characters as they slowly descend into           Nazis in World War II is one of the more           keep you more invested in the movie
the incredibly realistic and original sto-         madness.                                         socially relevant films of 2019.                   itself.
ry presented in “The Farewell.” Despite                This is definitely a film you should             In this era of films, I don’t think I’ve
its lack of representation in the Acad-                                                                                                                The Death of Dick Long
emy Awards this year, the film should
be regarded as one of the better films                                                                                                                    “The Death of Dick Long” is defi-
of 2019.                                                                                                                                              nitely one of the better screenplays
     It is reminiscent of a Wes Ander-                                                                                                                written in 2019, and its lack of recog-
son-type film without trying to imitate                                                                                                               nition at the Academy is probably at-
it. The way the characters talk to one                                                                                                                tributed to the plot. Daniel Scheinert
another, the interesting shot compo-                                                                                                                  has finally gotten a second crack at
sition and the presence of something                                                                                                                  another feature film since his debut
mystical in the world of the film are all                                                                                                             feature “Swiss Army Man,” which has
qualities that both Wang and Anderson                                                                                                                 a great spirit, but Scheinert fails to sol-
share.                                                                                                                                                idly end the film.
    The film is brilliant and Lulu Wang                                                                                                                  The film delivers an intelligent story
is an interesting writer. After watching                                                                                                              that is transcended with terrific perfor-
this film, you might become just as ex-                                                                                                               mances, witty banter from rednecks
cited for her new work as I am.                                                                                                                       and deep characters. The whole cast
                                                                                                                                                      should have been nominated as every-
Climax                                                                                                                                                one had an excellent performance.
                                                                                                                                                          Stream this on Amazon with some
   If you’re unfamiliar with Gaspar Noé                                                                                                               friends and not a family member. The
and recognize his name from trendy                                                                                                                    film, like the characters in it, get weird.
film forums then this might be the film                                                                                                                    You may not have heard of them
to watch so that you can tell your film                                                                                                               before,   but these are the unsung he-
                                                         Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight Pictures “Climax” is one of the most Photo courtesy of A24
nerd friends that you “dipped your toe                                                                                                                roes of 2019 cinema. Take a break
                                               “A Hidden Life” is the 10th film from                entertaining movies about dancing
into the delirious mind of Gaspar Noé.”        Terrence Malick.                                     that has nothing to do with dancing.              from watching more blockbusters and
    Noé is known for pushing the enve-                                                                                                                mainstream films and watch these
lope in his films, trying to make his au-                                                                                                             low-key flicks.
themontclarion.org                                                                               The Montclarion • January 23, 2020 • PAGE 15

       BECOME A

          SP
         OR
           TS WRITER

           Room 2035 School of Communication and Media in Upper Montclair, NJ 07043
            Phone 973.655.5230
            Fax 973.655.7804
            E-mail Montclarionsports@gmail.com

                                                                  Student Job Opportunities in the
                                                                 Office of International Engagement:

                                                                    Study Abroad Graduate Student Assistant
                                                                The Study Abroad Graduate Student Assistant (GSA) provides support
                                                                  for all aspects of the study abroad/away programs. This position
                                                                would allow a graduate student to gain paraprofessional experience in
                                                                             Study Abroad and university student services.
                                                                     Please note, this is NOT a Graduate Assistantship position.

                                                                               Graduate Student Assistant
                                                                The Office of International Engagement is seeking a graduate student
                                                                 assistant to assist in managing its front desk and to assist staff with
                                                                                           various projects.
                                                                     Please note, this is NOT a Graduate Assistantship position.

                                                                        Interested? Please apply via Hire a Red Hawk
                                                                             For questions or more information, please call 973-655-6862 or
                                                                                   visit us in Student Center Annex, Room 206 & 207
PAGE 16 • January 23, 2020 • The Montclarion                                                                                                                           themontclarion.org

     Top Picks                                                      ‘Bad Boys for Life’
     to Stream                                                     is the Best of the Baddest
          Oscar Snubs
              ‘Midsommar’
          on Amazon Prime Video

             Photo courtesy of A24
     2019 was a remarkable year for horror
 films despite being underrepresented in
 the Oscars. Among the graveyard of un-
 recognized accomplishments in this year’s
 nominations lies Ari Aster’s “Midsommar.”
 The film follows Dani, a young woman
 plagued by intense grief and a crumbling
 relationship, who joins friends on a trip to
 Sweden for the Midsummer festival. The
                                                    “Bad Boys for Life” is the third film in the Bad Boys franchise.                                      Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures
 idyllic countryside quickly loses its charm
 as the terrifying cultish reality of the rituals
 unfolds.                                                                   William Beavers                               haunt him since he got shot. A lot of good people who
      “Midsommar” is a visually immersive,                                     Staff Writer                               brought down Isabel’s husband were killed. In those mo-
 morbidly humorous and deeply unsettling                 In “Bad Boys for Life” Will Smith and Martin Law-                ments, Mike shows his serious side and works to redeem
 fairytale that brings nightmarish terror to        rence make an impressive comeback. This time, it moved                himself.
 broad daylight. Aster and his team handle          further away from the takedown of drug lords and tran-                   The younger cast members did well themselves. Hud-
 themes of human grief and familial con-            sitioned to discussions about building families, which                gens’ character of Kelly is a good shot at gunning down
 nection with a genre bending finesse and           makes the Bad Boys more human.                                        criminals. Ludwig as Dorn is an excellent computer ex-
 gut-wrenching empathy. Florence Pugh, a               While it is tiring to see the Latino villain stereotype, the       pert and could run and punch in the final battle like he
 fresh face to the industry, dominates the          film makes up for it with its soundtrack and its friendly             was on a football field. And Melton as Rafe comes off as
 screen as Dani delivers one of the most            moments between the two lead characters and the young-                comic relief when trying to be cool with Smith’s character
 powerful performances of the year. Its two         er new cast members, played by Vanessa Hudgens, Alex-                 while assisting with the missions.
 hour plus run time makes it a mental mara-         ander Ludwig and Charles Melton.                                            When looking at other aspects of the movie, the
 thon but an incredibly worthwhile one.                   In “Bad Boys for Life,” Marcus Burnett, played by               soundtrack is excellent. The scoring by Lorne Balfe re-
                 - Charlee Reiff                    Martin Lawrence, wants to retire and spend more time                  minds me of Hans Zimmer and Trevor Rabin when it
                   Staff Writer                     with his wife and grown-up children, while Mike Lowrey,               highlights the film’s dangerous and pleasant scenes.
                                                    played by Will Smith, still thinks he can maintain his bad            The soundtrack includes hip-hop songs performed by P.
  ‘The Last Black Man in San Francisco’             boy image and bring down the crooks of Miami in fast                  Diddy, Pitbull and the Black Eyed Peas among others.
         on Amazon Prime Video                      cars and suave suits.                                                 They’re great to hear during shootouts, car chases and
                                                         That all changes when Isabel Aretas and her son Ar-              victory scenes.
                                                    mando Armas, played by Kate del Castillo and Jacob Scip-                  While I liked the adrenaline-filled moments with the
                                                    io, attack Mike and begin shooting people who brought                 cast and the music, I grew somewhat tired of seeing the
                                                    down her husband’s drug cartel. Mike and Marcus agreed                usual Latino villain stereotype. In the case of Isabel and
                                                    they would ride together and die together long ago, so                Armando, the majority of the film portrayed them as Mex-
                                                    now they must embark on one last ride to bring Isabel                 icans whose lives were ruined by Mike, an American, and
                                                    and Armando down and get their lives back.                            their only way to move up is through murder. It’s best for
                                                        From the opening car chase, I knew the usual destruc-             people to be aware that they behaved the way they did
                                                    tion of the earlier films had come back. But just when I              because they were wronged, not because the film is trying
                                                    thought some things never changed, I was proven wrong                 to perpetuate untrue stereotypes.
                                                    when I saw Marcus’s concerns about Mike. Marcus wants                    Overall, “Bad Boys for Life” is the best of the baddest of
              Photo courtesy of A24                 to get away from the violence to be closer to his family,             the “Bad Boys” franchise. Smith and Lawrence still make
      Joe Talbot’s directorial debut “The Last      and he doesn’t want Mike getting killed over his vendetta             an excellent duo after all these years. If you want to see
 Black Man in San Francisco,” tells the story       against Armando, since Mike is like a brother to him.                 two bad boys confront harsh crooks and their humanity,
 of Jimmy Fails, played by himself. The film             As for Mike, he has a dark past that comes back to               watch “Bad Boys for Life.”
 explores the true story of Talbot and Fails in
 the bay city. Living with his best friend Mont-
 gomery “Mont” Allen and Mont’s grandfa-
 ther, played by Jonathan Majors and Danny
 Glover, Jimmy dreams of one day reclaim-
 ing the Victorian home his grandfather built
 in the 1940s. With Mont by his side, the two
 best friends skateboard through the streets
 of San Francisco, watching the city that they
 love change every day.
      This film received multiple awards and
 nominations but was unfortunately snubbed
 at the Oscars, mainly in the categories of cin-
 ematography, supporting actor and score.
 Every shot of the film is beautiful and cin-
 ematographer Adam Newport-Berra paints
 the city with love and heartbreak. Majors
 gives a spectacular performance as Mont, a
 character who acted with elegance and pas-
 sion throughout the movie. Emile Mosseri’s
 score is the perfect background for Jimmy
 and Mont’s lives in San Francisco. This is a
 fantastic movie that definitely should have
 received recognition from the academy.
                  - Sharif Hasan
          Assistant Entertainment Editor            Lawrence and Smith reprise their lead roles in “Bad Boys for Life.”                                   Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures
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