By Nick Cammett

The Cleveland Browns entered the 2019 season picked by many to contend for not only a division title but in some eyes, the Super Bowl. Needless to say, 2019 has been somewhat of a let down for not only the Browns but their avid fan base. Nick Cammett reports from FirstEnergy Stadium on how the Browns and their fans are handling the sluggish start and potential saving of their season.

At the halfway point of the 2019 NFL season the Cleveland Browns are well behind where many pundits, experts and fans thought they would be. 

After eight games, the Browns were 2-6 following an ugly 24-19 loss to the hapless Denver Broncos. After being on the road 4 of the last 5 games, the Browns return home for 3 pivotal games in 21 days. First up, the Buffalo Bills, a team on the rise and a matchup that presents some challenges to the Browns and their fans. 

“I feel pretty badly about Freddie Kitchens,” one fan said. “I feel like he’s not developing Baker Mayfield into the quarterback he should be. For his second year, I didn’t see the jump that I wanted to.”

That sentiment is matched by many fans. After the offseason acquisition of wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., the belief that the Browns went from basement dwellers to title contenders put Browns fans in an odd position, as position of hope. That hope was quickly turned to skepticism after ugly losses and an ugly couple of wins. Those games coupled with bad performances by the team’s stars like Baker Mayfield, Beckham, Jarvis Landry and rookie head coach Freddie Kitchens began the old refrain of ‘same old Browns’. A mantra uttered by the most jaded of fans who have endured 30 plus years of nothing but losing. Yet they still show up, 4 1/2 hours before a game. 

“I guess because I’ve got nothing to lose,” said one fan. “As a Browns fan I’ve already lost everything so I’ve got nothing to lose. 

After a close victory over Buffalo, many fans shared a reluctant joy after seeing something that resembled a complete win. 

“We skated by the Bills,” said another fan. “A wins a win anyways.”

The jubilance of a win was manifested into optimism within a few days because of the Browns’ Thursday night game against the rival Pittsburgh Steelers, a team that is also struggling this season. 

“ The season as a whole we’re what 3-6. It’s been more bad than good. I hope they’re starting to figure things out, but tonight’s gonna prove a lot.”

“ They’re starting an eight-game winning streak, they’re going to the playoffs. Absolutely. They’re gonna kick the Steelers’ ass tonight, this is like a playoff game.”

“I’ll tell you what, we have the schedule to do it. They have the opportunity to do it but they haven’t shown me enough, the coaching staff hasn’t shown me enough. I don’t put it on the players because we have all the talent in the world to make a run to the playoffs, but Freddie Kitchens, man. He’s a new coach so I don’t want to get on him too much but the team just hasn’t shown my enough where I think they can go on an 8-0, 7-0 run you know what I’m saying? It would be a lot of fun and it would reenergize this city.”

The Browns vanquished Pittsburgh 21-7, but the win felt more of a loss after an incident in the final minutes in which all-pro defensive end Myles Garrett hit Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph over the head with his own helmet. This spurred an on field melee between the teams. Garrett was suspended for the remainder of the season and the Browns push for the playoffs has begun to seem more bleak. 

After a 41-24 win over the Miami Dolphins, the Browns completed their 3 game home stand and continued on the road toward a wild card birth. The Dolphins game showed fans the closest thing to what was expected of this Browns team all year. Confidence was high, and a rematch with the Steelers was on the horizon. If the Browns wanted to be considered in the playoff chase, they’d have to win in Pittsburgh. Something that hasn’t happened in 15 years. 

“You know as a fan base I’m happy that we’ve rallied behind the Browns. It’s probably a result of how much hype there was coming into the season.”

Entering the game, chants of “Pittsburgh started it” and “Pittsburgh’s gonna finish” it bellowed through Heinz Field. The Browns jumped out to a commanding 10-0 lead, seemingly in control, but like always, Browns things happened and suddenly they were leaving Pittsburgh with yet another loss. 

“All offseason it’s in Dorsey we trust every move, but the hire of Freddie has made me question it. Freddie’s a great guy, on the surface he seems like a guy who gets along with the players, can manage a locker room but what he’s shown this year just hasn’t proved that.”

Now at 5-7, the Browns face a tough road if they are to sneak into the playoffs. Not only would they have to run the table but there will be a heavy reliance on four other teams to fall to record worse than theirs. Anything is possible but remember, this is the Browns we’re talking about.

By Pearline Young

It’s been five years since an 11-year-old Kent boy was accidentally shot and killed by his 15-year-old cousin. Pearline Young has the story of how his family turned the tragedy into a foundation that spreads kindness and compassion to everyone all around the world.

AJ Nicholson was a thin boy with long blonde hair flipped to the side. He did average 11-year old things like beatbox, play video games and do many backflips. His compassionate spirit is what made him unique. 

His dad Joseph Nicholson recalls the day his changed forever.

“It was March 12th of 2014 and it was a very weird morning because I remember there was no snow on the ground. Yet um a lot of school districts were calling off and because they were preparing for a snowstorm to come. So, we um my wife went to work, AJ’s school got called off, the school I was working at did not get called off. We were trying to find a place for him to go, so we had a couple people offer for him to come over and stay the day um, but we chose to send him over to my wife’s aunt’s house. AJ’s cousins were over there. There was a 15-year-old and a[n] eighteen-year-old who were also off for the day. And we decided that that’d be the safest place, it was right down the road from us. So, I dropped him off there and I went to work,” Nicholson recalled. 

 “Probably around 11:30 (a.m.) is when it happened. His 15-year-old cousin decided to show off his dad’s guns. And they weren’t properly locked up, they just had a handgun in one night stand drawer and the bullets in another night stand drawer. And the 15-year-old decided to put them together and um the gun was pointed at AJ whenever he shot it. So, AJ died before…… before the ambulance got there,” he said while choking up. 

It took a while for someone to tell Joseph and his wife Stephanie what had occurred. Sadly, Nicholson found out about the tragedy as he was teaching a class. He has not been back to that job after his son’s death.

“I could have easily called off and spent the day with AJ. I had went through all of the what if I did this and what if I did this different. I can now accept that it’s not my fault. And I would never known what was going to happen in order to change it,” Nicholson said.

 The Nicholson’s was thinking of a way to honor AJ’s life. After hearing many positive stories from AJ’s teachers, friends and even bus drivers, The AJ Way foundation was created.

The Nicholson’s created cards which are indestructible, tear free and waterproof. The back of the card explains how compassionate and giving AJ was and it encourages people to do the same as him. It has been a continuous cycle of paying it forward. 

They also designed purple wristbands, which was AJ’s favorite color. The cards and wristbands help spread his story and kindness throughout the world. Even in countries such as Amsterdam and China. Joseph hopes the foundation will keep his legacy alive.

“He was just like the sweetest kid. He was so nice. The teachers say he was always polite and always respectful. His friends always say that he always made them smile. He was a very thoughtful person. He was an awesome kid,” Nicholson reminisced. 

Joseph says the cousin who was 15 years-old when he accidentally shot AJ is not close with the Nicholson’s these days.

The Kent Police department offers free gun locks with no questions asked.

By Presly Phillips

The pagan belief system used to be an odd concept or a scary religion, but recently there has been an acceptance. Metaphysical stores like The Dragons Mantle in Akron have opened. Presly Phillips talked with Carrie and Gianni of The Dragons Mantle about what the pagan belief system is and what it means to practice witchcraft. 

Carrie believes, the best way to open people up to the belief is by educating them. 

“The majority of pagan beliefs are earth centered they center around nature and the change of the seasons. Many of them believe in multiple gods and goddesses and various pantheons.”

Carries says in this belief system, there are many gods and goddess and different paths a person can take. 

“You have, of course you are familiar with Oden and Thor from the marvel comics lately. (goes on to explain Oden and Thor’s god of sun, etc.). You also have Isis and Osiris in Egyptian. Most of the gods and goddesses represents different aspects of nature. We have storm gods and nurturing, mothering gods. Gods of the ocean and the forest. Even just within Wicca, there are many different traditions (names multiple such as Celtic, northern American, voodoo, Santeria) Each culture has had their own belief systems over the years.”

One of the main aspects is spell casting and a witch’s craft. Carries describes some crystals and candles a beginner witch should have.

“I do maybe two or three spells a year and they are specifically written spells for protection and to keep the good things going and even. I guess that would depend on what a beginner witch would want to begin with. A clear quartz, amethyst, citrine and rose quartz are all beautiful stones to work and meditate with. Candles are inexpensive, so, grab every color in the appropriate candle holders and a few extra white ones because those are used for your protection.”

Carrie says before you do a spell, you should cleanse your space by casting a circle. 

“For many people, it’s a multi-step process. Some people will set out candles to mark the perimeter of their circle in the cardinal directions (north east south and west) and other people will use a ritual knife to walk around and energetically put a circle around. People put salt down, you’ve seen that in Supernatural. It’s not just to cleanse space it’s also an act of protection.”

On November 2^, The Dragons Mantle hosted a Samhain Ritual. The Samhain Ritual is a druid tradition that celebrates the dead with a festival or an event. For the Dragons Mantle they hosted a peaceful event in the back of the store.

You walk into a circle of people surrounding an altar that consists of candles, personal items and photographs of lost loved ones. Hosting the ritual is Gianni who is wearing an all-black suit and with a white square on the collar. 

The ritual begins with forming a safe circle with the five elements. Then, passed around shortbread cookies with the pentagram symbols on them. After that they passed around a ceramic chalice with apple cider for everyone to drink from it with a fresh spoon. Then they added flowers to the alter before everyone prayed individual. At the end for five minutes there was a meditation to close the ritual. 

Lately, there are more metaphysical stores opening and more people are using crystals and essential oils to naturally benefit them. Do you feel that the pagan belief systems are more excepted today or that people are more educated about it?

“I can hope so,” Carrie said. “I believe that national polls tell us that more people identify as spiritual versus a definite Christian based religion but I feel like there still is a lot of push back out there. There is still a lot of people that are hardcore, not going to stray from the beliefs they’ve been brought up in.”

Lastly, I am interested in how you started your path. You are an Eclectic Witch which means you make your belief system work for you. How do you find out that path best suited you?

“Just over years, self-teaching,” Carrie said. “I read many books and I still recommend to people today that you do not have to select a path by Saturday at midnight. Read, gather information and find out what is right for you. Give yourself room to grow and learn because then maybe you will realize, hey, this isn’t working for me and maybe it’s time to move on to this now.”

By Lexi Biasi

Get up in the morning, go to work, come home, sleep, repeat: that’s the typical routine for adults in America who work the typical office job. But, that’s not the case for humane agent and animal control office, Brian Young. Lexi Biasi takes us through his Saturday shift, in the first installment of “A Day in the Life.”

Cats, dogs, snakes, even goats. It would be an understatement to say animals are Brian Young’s best friend. 

Most days, he works out of his black pickup truck driving to and from calls and welfare check ups. Brian is the Humane Agent of Jefferson County and Animal Control Officer of Steubenville. Both jobs have different responsibilities, but one commonality: they give a voice to the voiceless. 

“The difference between the two jobs is, animal control actually takes care of any aspect of an animal problem inside the city limits of Steubenville. I do trapping of nuisance groundhogs, nuisance raccoons, different things like that. And actually, deal with snakes if they’re in somebody’s house. The main difference is the ACO Humane Agent just does neglect and abuse of all types of animals, farm animals, domestic animals, any type of neglect or abuse.” 

A typical day consists of responding to calls, but most of the time, it’s following up on already open cases.

“Most of the time, there is a follow up or something because you don’t just go to a call and then close it out. Sometimes you do, sometimes you don’t. But there’s other people you just got to keep swinging by every so often to tell them, ‘hey, your waters froze.’ Things you probably shouldn’t have to do, but there’s a lot of education when it comes to people with, especially with the domestic animals.”

The day I met with Brian, he was following up to a call from Child Protection Services. They removed kids from a home with a dog and a cat – and now it was Brian’s responsibility to get the animals – whether that be seizing them or convince the owner to surrender them. He starts with a phone call. 

After the call – we head to the apartment where the animals are kept. The dog – an energetic pug named Luigi and a grey, elegant cat, Ollie, are only seen and fed once a day, but Ohio law mandates domesticated animals need to see a human every 12 hours. We get to the apartment just a few minutes after the owners –who know Luigi specifically, isn’t getting the attention he needs. 

“I know he’s not getting the love he should, you know? Like he’s a happy, lovable dog. Like we love him every day, you know what I mean? But there could be someone else that could, like kids that could constantly be playing with them, you know? And he’s a great dog dude. I mean he’s, it’s a pug.”

The owners ended up surrendering Ollie and Luigi. They both rode in the back of the truck with us – headed to what would end up being a better life. What was so interesting for me to see — is what Brian does every day. 

“I get up and do what I do because the animals, it’s like, I guess they’re just like little babies. They can’t speak for themselves, they can’t take care of themselves. They need humans to do that.”

Humans like Brian and even humans that don’t work with animals every day.

“People need to get more involved with the aspect of turning people in. If you don’t think something’s right, you should turn it in. If somebody breaks into your house or somebody is around your house, you call the police on them. If you see something that’s not up to par or you’re not sure about, you’re better to call to make sure that the animal is being taken care of. That’s what we’re there for is to investigate, to go look at your calls and there’s no minor call, major call, any call; we treat pretty much the same way as we go to it because these animals will sit there and actually die. If somebody doesn’t get involved, they cannot pick up the phone and call us.”

Brian has saved over 100 animals since he started working in 20-13. Many of them would have died without his help. But he’s not alone. He has support right at home from his wife, Joyce, who loves animals just as much.

“I don’t know why they’re so important to me. I just like, I just love them. I always have, you know? I grew up with animals. I’ve had them my whole life now. Brian hasn’t, Brian didn’t really have animals as pets until we got married. But we’ve always had dogs in the house, always multiple dogs, always. I mean he, he just like, we just care for, for, for people too. But more so for animals because there’s so much neglect out there. There’s so much abuse, you know?”

When Brian gets home from work – he’s greeted by their six dogs: Harley, Elsa, Carmen, Axel, Tessie and Luna. He calls himself, and his family, foster failures.

“A foster failure is you foster a dog and you end up adopting the dog. That’s a foster failure.”

At the end of the day – everyone has to have passion for what they do, and Brian’s passion is animals. Even though his job is frustrating at times

“I can only enforce the law. I can’t enforce my opinion, which they would be in trouble if I could enforce my opinion.” 

Brian says: if you see something, say something. It’s not only his, but everyone’s job to give a voice to the voiceless. And though he does a lot for animals, if he could describe his jobs in three words:

“Happy. Sad. Rewarding.”

Brian plans to retire in May of next year but doesn’t know if it’ll actually happen. As for Luigi and Ollie, they are now up for adoption waiting to find their “fur”-ever home. For now, that’s a day in Brian’s life.

By Gershon Harrell

The societal construct masculinity is something that has been deeply rooted within black community since slavery. Gershon Harrell, talks with two gay black men and how this idea of masculinity has affected them in their life.

At the Kent State University ballroom senior fashion merchandising major, Tyrone Berry gallantly strutted across the stage in the best dressed competition for the 50th anniversary of the Renaissance Ball. In a pair of high heels, a corset around his waist, and a long black cape with a train he challenged the typical idea of masculinity.

Berry describes social construct masculinity as a box with a hard shell. While he believes, masculinity is all about freedom and being able to be his most authentic self.

“That’s really just what masculinity is defined as in like my lane and my world. Just because I go against so much against the grain of the typical masculinity. I’ve kind of had to create my own box of masculinity for myself, I don’t like boxes, so I have to create them own realm of masculinity for myself. If then if I want to jump back and forth between portals, I can do so easily.”

Through fashion he tries to show the different facets of what it means to be black and gay.

“So, like, one day I might have on the suit, one day I might have on heels, one day I might have on a pink satin robe or one day I might have on a corset it one day, I might have all of it together. And I really like to show those different sides of me. Because it reveals, it kind of exposes the people that love me, people that support me, and also the masses. It shows them something different in that everything isn’t so one note.”

Berry vividly remembers the day his mother found out that he was attracted to men. He was at church in Bible study and recalls that his mother was acting strange. His mother went into the bathroom and began to cry.

 “She actually came up with a My room about an hour later. And then she asked me, she was like, ‘So, I heard that you was liking pictures of like half naked people waiting on like the internet?’ And I’m like,

‘What was talking about? Like, what? Who told you that?’ Um and then she kept asking me and she kept asking me then she started crying and then I’m sitting there like, ‘What’s going on?’ And then she kept asking so I just eventually told her.”

After he admitted the truth about his sexuality, his mother asked him questions on whether if he was going to wear heels or starting dressing like a girl. He casually responded to his mother and assured her that he wasn’t.

As he looks back at the concerns his mother had about his outward appearance he understands that it was rooted in fear. He mentions transwomen and non-binary people who live their lives as most authentic selves and how there is a fear of how the world will treat them.

“Just that fear. That every mother has. Yeah. So that’s really the root of it. It’s like, how’s the baby bout have to survive he’s already a black man now as a gay black man, and on top of that, he may be fem so just like it’s just so many different added layers that go along to it.”

Growing up was there ever a time when someone told you that you weren’t man enough or that you needed to act more like a man?

“I feel like there was well you know you know the black community there’s never going to be like you’re not man enough but there is going to have you need to act more like a man even though I wasn’t like totally directly just by actions. Or like Told by actions like stop holding your wrist like this. A big thing was when I was a little kid, I used to love Barbie dolls. But I knew that I couldn’t play with them because like I would get in trouble. So, I used to, I, this is so embarrassing, I used to take pencils. And I used to wrap like toilet tissue or like, cut up the hair, and like, tape it around the pencil and play with barbie dolls like that like I was like or. But I just did it because I had to be like super creative. But yeah, I just always loved Barbie dolls.”

Charmaine Crawford, an associate professor in Oscar Ritchie Hall, does research on stereotypes and how certain factors can LGBTQ people of color. She breaks down black masculinity in comparison to its white counterpart.

She breaks it down from a historical standpoint by pointing out how black men have been hypersexualized under slavery and hyper masculine as being violent.

“So, while black men and white men we share similar elements in terms of their sex and or gender, where they may have male privilege over women in particular context, overall, black men are then subordinated. It’s a form of a subordinate masculinity that takes place for black men because of their race, and or race class and or race and sexual orientation.”

How can it affect a gay black man or gay black man or someone who’s dealing, how can that affect someone mentally?

Crawford introduces the idea of internalized homophobia, where a person knows that they are gay but they use demeaning homophobic language and masking yourself by becoming the oppressor.

“Destructive, masculine hyper masculine behavior, where you actually engage saying gang violence against someone who’s queer and you are. So in toward in order if you’re growing up in a heart in the inner city, and you want to ensure that you’re protected, you engage in hyper masculine behavior.”

“Other elements is living a double life. Talk about the download. See if you’re a bisexual man or you know that you really want to be with men, but you are according to standards but at the same time you having extra marital relations with a man.”

Crawford realizes that being in pan African studies, the black community can have a fixed notion of blackness and it doesn’t really show the diversity in within the community.

“If you’re black, you have to be straight. If you’re black, you have to conform a particular way.”

For Darryl Mcknight, a dance major at Kent State University, his awakening of the societal construct of masculinity began when he transferred from a predominantly white school to a black one.

“The first thing that they said was my voice, the way that I Part of the way that I sounded was one, Caucasian to them and too gay. I, I did not understand what the difference was. My demeanor, I was always very quiet. I didn’t say much. I wouldn’t say timid. I just never felt the need to talk to people really. And a lot of people thought that was gay.”

Growing up his mother always encouraged his artistic side.

“The singer, dancer, actor, writer sensitive. Those were all the things that she was okay with. She never forced me to play sports or anything, there was a brief moment. But she never really pushed any of those things on me.”

He says, in the black community, specifically within hood culture, it can be hard to masculine because the community can be very vocal about their homophobia.

“They make it very hard to be one black but one to be black and a man when it comes to masculinity in those places. It’s hyper like, you’re not a man if you don’t like guns or you know, you’re not a man, if you’re not all up over the girls, you know, like, there’s a certain way of carrying yourself there’s a certain demeanor.”

If you could speak on the difference of being a white gay male and being a gay black man, how do you feel like this social construct affect those two counterparts?

Mcknight says from his observations, being a black man is hard because it comes with a lot of critique. Other black men in the community will scrutinize you if you don’t live up to their standards of what a black man should be. While being a white man you’re not being burdened by those same ideals.

“In that sense, because they’re still going to be a white man, which means they’re still going to have that privilege. They don’t have to worry about it because at the end of the day, they can walk into whatever place they are, and feel completely safe. This is where I belong. This is my environment. However, me, I walk into a space with them. And me as a black man, I don’ have that same security, but then me as a black gay man walking into a space of other black men. I also don’t have any security because I’m gay.”

By Ella Abbott (via WKSU)

At Ashland University, the marching band has proven that age is no barrier to performance. At 70, the oldest member of the band gave his final performance during the last football game of the season.

Frank Stanek celebrated his 70th birthday this year. He’s also a member of the Ashland Marching Band.

“Okay, we’re going to do a flashback,” Stanek said. “I retired and was playing in community bands and got introduced to Tuba Christmases.”

This is where Frank Stanek met Scott Garlock, the former director of the Ashland marching band. Stanek says Garlock convinced him to return to college in 2014 to study music performance. From there, as the students got to know him, they began trying to convince Stanek to join marching band.

“I was 65 at the time,” he said. “I thought they were joking. They were serious.”

Eventually, Stanek gave in. At least, for that first season. “So I says, that was it, I’d do one year,” Stanek said. “That was it. The next three years, I’m very pleased they kept asking me again and again and again.”

It wasn’t the physical demands that caused Stanek to stop marching after that first season. He was taking about 20 credit hours on top of other obligations. Marching band was a four-day-a-week commitment.

This year, Stanek decided to rejoin the marching band for a final season. He graduated in 2017, but he’s still on campus as a senior guest. The only classes he’s taking this semester are marching band and brass ensemble.

Joseph Lewis is the current director of the Ashland marching band. He says he had no concerns about Stanek being able to keep up. “I said, ‘Are you sure you’re up for that?’ And he said, ‘Well, I’m turning 70 years old, and it’s something that I wanna do.’ And I said, ‘Frank, if you feel like you’re up for it, then we’d love to have you.'”

Instead of going to college after high school, Stanek says he made the choice to go to a trade school. He spent his career in construction. After retiring, he ran an agricultural business. So, Stanek is no stranger to the type of physical work that marching band requires.

“So I had no qualms about doing it, but I did about a month beforehand I did go back and start working out,” he said. “And I didn’t tell too many of the kids this, but because of the logistics of the horn, the first week my neck and shoulders were killing me.”

Stanek plays the euphonium.

“The euphonium I have is a marching style and it has the range of a trombone. It’s a valved instrument. It looks like a trumpet only bigger. So, it’s got a larger bell, it sticks out farther and it’s heavier.”

Michaela Wood is a sophomore at Ashland who plays baritone horn beside Stanek. She says he is always willing to step in and offer advice to the younger members.

“He’s lived a very full life, so he has a lot of stories and wisdom to share,” Wood said. “He never tells us what to do, he just shares his experience with whatever we’re going through and then lets us interpret it from there.”

Fifty years ago, Stanek could have studied music in college, with the help of scholarships. Instead, he made the decision to go to trade school because he would earn more money. He understands the financial pressure younger students are under.

When he can, he’ll take some of his bandmates to Akron or Cleveland to see other jazz bands perform.

“Just, get in the car, we’re going. I got the tickets reserved. The meal’s on me.”

Stanek also appreciates feedback from the other band members. He knew he wasn’t going to be perfect right off the bat. “So, the first day in band camp I said, ‘listen, if I screw up out there, yell at me,'” Stanek said. “And boy have they yelled.”

Stanek says when he came to the band in 2014, he fell right into it. But this season, he struggled to keep up. “The music is maybe faster and the movements are quicker and Mr. Lewis gives us some doozy shows to put on,” he said. “So the kids have helped tremendously.”

The band usually does a medley of three pop songs during halftime. Every week, they do something different. “So, we have, I’m gonna say 30 to 40 songs we’ve played through the year, and then we have 10 or 12 stand tunes that we play when the team is doing this, that or the other on the field,” Stanek said.

As he performs for his final show, other band members take photos with him, people in the stands stop to congratulate him as they pass. Stanek says there’s a bittersweetness to the final performance, but it’s gratifying.

“It was something I did because I was invited and to celebrate my 70th birthday,” Stanek said. “So, consequently, I’ve got that out of the way.”

Stanek’s time with the marching band may be done, but not with music at the university. He plans to continue performing in both the school’s symphonic and concert bands.

By Caty Payette

Morgan Harper is quietly tapping her foot as the first event of her evening begins. She’s currently sitting on a panel discussion about prison reform. 

“This is Morgan Harper, 3rd Congressional District representative,” the moderator says, until Harper quickly corrects him. 

“Candidate, not representative yet,” Harper jokes. “I like that thinking, though. Very positive.” 

For the first nine months of her life, Harper lived in foster care before being adopted and raised on the east side of Columbus. She says she became committed to fighting inequality at the age of 10, after attending a private school and witnessing economic disparity among her peers. She then pursued her passions at Tufts University, Princeton and Stanford. 

30 minutes before the event, Harper was at her corner office on East Main Street — a 500 square foot space that sits beneath her apartment — a few blocks away from the small library auditorium she currently sits in. She had been listening to two mothers explain how their sons were shot and killed by Columbus police officers. 

She now sits in front of a crowd of about 15 people when she introduces herself as a Congressional candidate. 

“Just to introduce myself to people I haven’t met before, I’m Morgan Harper, as Chris said, and I’m running to represent Ohio’s 3rd District in U.S. Congress in Washington.  A big reason I got in this race is because I do believe the system is built to keep most of us down, and occasionally there are exceptions, but that is rare and it shouldn’t be like this,” Harper says. 

“It’s not complicated, but we have let a system get by for at least a generation — more if we’re honest with ourselves — that keeps the majority of people down and we’ve got to put a stop to it. That’s what I’m advocating for and that’s why I’m running for office,” the candidate continues.

Morgan Harper announced her Congressional campaign for the Third District on July 1, 2019 — marking the first time any Democrat has challenged the incumbent — Representative Joyce Beatty — in the primary, who has held the seat since 2012. 

A strong advocate for Morgan Harper’s campaign, Lydia Ertachew has lived in Columbus all her life. She’s currently the social and marketing director of the Ohio State College Democrats. Lydia says the wave of progressive grassroots movements has a lot to do with the establishment — which, she says, Congresswoman Beatty embodies. 

“I think a lot of it has to do with Representative Beatty. Personally, I agree with Morgan, like, I do feel like she is being left alone. There are so many politicians within this community who are Democrats and say they care about their people and yet they are refusing to even acknowledge Morgan Harper or really see the validity in the movement she’s running and the organization she’s doing,” Ertachew says. 

Ertachew also sees Morgan’s movement as an exciting opportunity for progressive ideologies like Medicare for All, ending mass incarceration and the Green New Deal, to be brought to the table on a more local scale. 

“Really living in this city, like living in this city, and seeing how many things are unjust and how many of it is unaddressed and even facilitated by democratic members… I’m really looking forward to a push out of establishment and centrist ideals and policies, and I’m really excited for Morgan Harper and her campaign and the movement that it’s bringing,” Ertachew adds. 

Although Congresswoman Beatty wasn’t available to comment for this story, she has previously accused Morgan Harper of raising “false hope” by backing programs like “Medicare for All” and the Green New Deal without a plan for them. She’s also described Morgan’s platform as an, “Off-the-shelf template developed by national groups…One built by trust-fund babies and million-dollar folk who live on the East Coast.” 

Morgan Harper says she has heard this plenty of times before.

“I certainly heard that like this is not Queens, New York, who does this girl think she is, and to that I say, we got 90% of zip codes that make up this area to donate to our campaign in this first quarter, so, not possible in the Midwest? I don’t know, that would suggest otherwise,” the candidate says. 

“Seeing what was possible in 2018, you had women, particularly women of color, that were just taking it upon themselves, to launch campaigns and challenge power and challenge the establishment, even though they weren’t told it was their turn. They weren’t rich, they were just making it happen through grassroots movement building,” Harper suggests. 

“That was really inspiring. It kinda gave me a feeling, like, okay, maybe I can do that too and in fact, kinda shame on me if i’m not even willing to try.” 

With over 300 thousand dollars raised by single donors in the first quarter, Harper’s team is hopeful about the March 17 primary date that’s quickly approaching. Win or lose, Harper says she’s already had many victories. 

“To me, we’re winning everyday. The culmination of the winning will be March 17, 2020. When I connect with people who have never met a politician before, that means everything to me. That means we’re getting politics reset to actually be oriented toward us, toward people.”

By Sean Yang

Swag is one of Kent State’s e-sports teams taking their first shot at a fierce competition against the University of Akron and Case Western Reserve University. Sean Yang uncovers the fighting story of Swag.

Swag is playing League of Legends. It’s a multiplayer online battle arena video game. Five people are a team and their goal is to destroy the enemy’s base to win. Since its release, it has been loved by gamers around the world, including Kent State students Kris and Steven. 

This game already published for 10 years,” Kris said. “So, I have played almost eight years. This game has a very large number of players around the world. Even if you haven’t played it, you may have heard about it.”

“I probably started playing this game for about seven years ago, Steven said. “It almost accompanied me through the entire middle and high school period.”

Kris, Steven and three other students are in Swag. More than 100 million people worldwide are playing the game. It has hosted various esports competitions around the world. 

“This game has a special world competition,” Kris said. “So, if one team can win the champion in the world competition series. And this team, I think they will get the highest honor.”

Compared with console game, as a multi-player interactive game, it requires players to have stronger teamwork and communication skills. 

“For a five people game’s competition, the individual ability is secondly,” Steven said. “I think the primary thing is the cooperation to cooperate with our teammates, it is to make up for each other’s shortcomings in order to let the overall strength of the whole team reaching a good balance.”

Kris believes the most important part of the game is communication and cooperation. He said, if you don’t know how to play in a team, you’ll fail.

“This game is different than the other like console games,” Kris said. “It’s about the five people game, it’s not only one. So, you need to play with the other teammates, and you have to cooperate with your teammates. And (if) you don’t talk about the skill, you need have a clear brain and clear plan, and you have to know what you do now, so you have to know the target of this game.”

Last week, they had the quarterfinals and they successfully advanced to the semi-finals this week.

“In the quarterfinal we know for sure we will get advance, because I think their personal abilities are ok, but I don’t think they got better chemistry with each other like us because we got better team work so the advance is what we’re expected,” Steven said.

Unfortunately, Swag wasn’t as lucky as last time. They didn’t defeat the opponent and lost the qualification to enter the finals.

“But in this time, our enemy is the school team of Case, which is the team to compete for their school,” Steven said. “And everyone in the team got more experience than us, I think. And they have trained for a long time. We just got a week for training before game. So, they got more training the better teamwork than us.  

“In this game, our enemy is very hard,” Kris said. “They are really the sick badass. So, like compare the other teams they are more strong and, so, when we face a team like this and we are really feel, like, weakness. So, I think they are the strongest team in this competition. If we face the other teams, I think we have a bigger chance to get in final.”

Esports is also a very cruel game. It also has high requirements for the psychological quality of the players. They made a lot of mistakes and it also caused the players to have a dispute during the game! 

“We have very big problem in there, like communicate,” Kris said. “We have some player’s emotion not very good and they cannot control very well. So, like when they communicate with each other and they didn’t do very well. And let us to be killed by the enemy. In this time, the player easily have an emotional breakdown”

In the second period of this competition, Steven didn’t get any response from his teammates when he asked. The reason is because he forgot to open the microphone. This unexpected situation also caused him to shout when he was totally crushed. 

“And there was a very embarrassing problem is that I accidentally turned off my microphone,” Steven said. “I didn’t know my mic is off and my teammates cannot hear me when I was yelling. I was almost breakdown. It’s really a big adverse impact for our team.”

Although Swag didn’t get a good result, they gained a lot of experience from this competition.

“At the beginning we were all selfish and not really know how to cooperate with the teammates,” Steven said. “Because usually we just play the game for fun and we just don’t care about the strategy and teamwork very much. However, a lot of problems is exposed when we begin to care the detail in the competition. I think we have learned a lot detail and have improved ourselves a lot through this competition.”

“I think we tried our best,” Kris said. “And this result is belong to us. Although this result, I’m not happy with it, but it is very interesting and fun.”

This competition not only provides a stage for college students to compete in games, but also helps players who love games to make more friends with the same interests. Steven and Kris and their team Swag didn’t receive honors in this competition, but they gained experience and happiness.

By Nick Cessna

A massive project is underway on the second floor of Kent State’s library. Shining with the colors of navy blue and gold, it’s an arena that will be the battlefield of Kent’s newest athletes: Esports athletes.

Up the escalator, make a right and then a left you will find the room the esports team meets in. It’s relatively small, the walls are painted yellow and are lined with dozens of computers the teams use to practice.

“You see a lot of colleges around the country building up their esports program and handing out scholarships like Kent does and Kent’s really taken a really big step in the direction of setting this all up to be a really big thing for the college level,” said Matthew Reardon, Aka (GoldDust) of the overwatch varsity team.

“Everybody’s all about the pros and wants to be the best but if you can’t be the college level is also a really good entry point for that and the fact that Kent is a really a big component of that shows. I think it will help a lot. A big part of being a varsity sport is having facilities to practice and to be able to do what you need to do to get better as a team. When you go to land, when you go to play matches at an arena with people watching, you feel different and the atmosphere changes. So, I feel like it would be a good experience for everybody.”

How does exactly Reardon balance school with esports?

“Although I am good at my major and I enjoy it. It’s not necessarily something that I can ignore. So, with esports, it is my dream, it is something I love doing, I love being on the team. But in terms of balancing it, Kent makes it clear that you have to have certain GPAs and certain requirements to meet and be on the Varsity team. That kind of helps me to balance it out but I always dedicate a few hours a night, to getting homework done and catching up on the classes I did that day.”

Reardon says esports athletes have to maintain a minimum 2.5 GPA and be a full-time student with good academic standing. “Exactly like every other sport,” he says.

Just like any other sport, the key to victory is devising a game plan before the match begins.

“I can tell you what went through my head for our biggest match last week,” Reardon said. “What was going through my head was regardless of how good the enemy team was my policy is typically I’m better than everyone until they beat me and regardless of what you think of how good of a mindset that is, it helps me play my best and it helps me keep in the mindset of it doesn’t matter what rank they are or how much higher they are ahead of me if I can beat them in a team environment, then I’m better and I know I’m better. So being able to have that confidence going into a match is better than just saying ok, they look a lot better than us, so we should keep that in mind.

“I really don’t think about who’s watching when I go into play,” Reardon said.  “The feelings that go through me, you feel a little nervous going up a team and you’re not sure exactly how you’re going to do you just know that your gonna go through with whatever plans you guys planned for ahead of time.”

The league they play in is called Tesla. “It’s our semester/yearlong league and we play other college teams throughout the country,” Reardon said. “Right now, we are in preseason, so it will determine however well we do with preseason it will determine how well we did for placements for next semester.”

Reardon explained what makes a game fun.

“It’s people you’re playing with, and if everybody is respected and respecting each other. It’s always a good time. You don’t really have to worry too much about people getting up and getting angry with each other because that really doesn’t happen too much in esports. I think what makes a really good game is when both teams are going through with whatever plans they had ahead of time perfectly. When both teams are playing to the best of their abilities, it just comes down to sometimes just sheer luck. So, whatever two teams you’re watching just depends on how perfect each team is executing their plans.”

By Carter Adams

There are 393 million civilian-owned firearms in the United States. Enough for every person in the country to have one and still have literal millions left over for special occasions. 

Alex Ross is a 24-year-old software salesperson, photographer and microgreen farmer. I’m not sure what his astrological sign is unfortunately.  He shares a house with his fiancé, his two dogs and two rabbits. On top of being a photographer and farmer, he’s a gun owner and gun builder. 

Now he isn’t the type of person to hoard dozens of rifles and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. He’s not what one would call a “gun nut.”  He actually hates that term, and we’ll hear more about that later. But he does enjoy using guns, having them and as we’ll hear tonight, building them. 

It’s around 7 in the evening. The air is cool and still, the sun just starting to set. In a detached garage the green glow of overhead florescent lights is seen from the driveway of a quaint ranch house. 

Inside the garage, the clutter of several hobbies is scattered. Mountain bikes, rakes, shovels and scrap wood litter half the garage while the other is occupied by a mid-2000s pickup truck. 

The only free space is by the workbench where Alex is tinkering with the bright pink receiver of an AR-15 rifle. 

Tonight is Alex’s second AR-15 build. The first being his fiancé’s, which he built for her birthday. The gun he’s working on tonight is a pistol. That’s important to note because it looks like a rifle with a shorter barrel and a short stock.  But, according to Alex, the AR-15 variant he’s working on is a pistol as far as the ATF is concerned. 

“So, the ATF, the way they classify firearms; if the overall length is over, I-think-it-is 23 and a half inches, then it is considered a rifle,” Ross explained.  “So, a rifle cannot have a shortened barrel. Your rifle can have an adjustable stock, it can have a vertical foregrip, really a rifle is your standard rifle.”

“If it gets shorter though than that overall length, then you have to do some modifications to make it a pistol OR you have to get a tax stamp to make it a short-barreled rifle.” 

“With a pistol however it is governed as a handgun,” Ross said.  “The differences are; It’s shorter than that length, it doesn’t have a stock, so it’s not designed to be shouldered and it is not allowed to have a vertical foregrip. So that’s the major differences.” 

“They treat it like a handgun because it is designed to be used as a handgun.”

It should be noted that the shock absorber used in leu of a stock can very easily be used as a stock, despite its slimmer, angular design. 

The pieces and parts for this project have an interesting origin. Aside from the lower receiver, the part that makes a “gun” a gun, the bits and pieces all came curtsey of a kit. Purchased online, shipped express from California. 

For the lower receiver Ross did need a background check, which he passed. Everything else though required only a credit card, shipping and billing address. 

 “Without a background check I could not acquire the lower receiver,” Ross said.  “I could acquire all the other parts but the thing that actually holds the trigger and allows you to shoot it- you have to have a background check. 

As the night goes on, the 5-rounds per second elephant in the room becomes more and more evident, why do this? 

“Cuz it’s fun,” said Ross, chuckling. “You know?” “Same reason that 40-year-old Bill from down the street bought himself a 76’ Mustang and now he’s supping’ it up. It’s fun. What, does he need a 76’ Mustang? Nah, it’s fun, come on.”  

Ross doesn’t consider himself a gun nut. He alludes to “gun nut” being a title reserved for people who can afford to spend and do spend $1,200 on a rifle and all the accoutrement that go with it.  

“Oh, I think ‘gun nut’ is something I use in a derogatory manner,” Ross said. “Really I’m talking about people who just have that god complex; ‘well because my equipment is more expensive than yours it’s obviously better–and therefore I’m better.’ Which, you know, that’s, that’s not the case. 

After a while, the haphazard layout of polymers and metal begins to take shape. The “stabilizer,” the stock stand in, is attached and so are all the main components, save for a barrel here and gas exchange there. 

The longer the build went on, the differences between a short-barreled rifle and pistol became more about semantics and petty differences, Case in point: The foregrip. 

“If I put a vertical foregrip on this, it becomes a short barreled rifle, which requires a tax stamp, and because I don’t have one that would be very illegal for me to do, and that’s why I’m not going to do it,” Ross said. “You can have an angled foregrip, or a finger stop like I got on here, that’s fine.” 

After just over three hours of tinkering, adjusting and hammering– the build is done. From box to actionable weapon took less time than watching a Martin Scorsese film. So long as someone follows instructions and has the proper tools, they could easily do what Ross did. Gun science isn’t rocket science. 

“I can load this and stick it next to my seat in my car legally,” Ross said when asked if, since he has his concealed carry weapons permit, his new pistol qualifies for that. “Yes, I’m serious,” he added. “It’s a pistol. It’s no different than my 9mm. No different.” 

By Campbell Rico

In Northeast Ohio, winter is here. Any pick me up you can get this time of year helps. Campbell Rico reports on a gym in Kent that’s goal is to not only improve your physical health, but also your mental health.

“The one thing I tell everybody is when you start Jiu-Juitsu you have to be careful of one thing, it can be addicting.”

That’s Jack Edwards, he’s the owner of Martial Arts Ohio in Kent. The dojo is packed full on this Wednesday night. 

The 1,200-sq.-ft. Martial Arts Ohio studio has a blue padded mat that covers the floor. Punching bags and more equipment surround the mat on both sides. The walls are covered with old photographs, some an ode to Jack’s history. 

“I’ve been doing martial arts since 1993. I started off in Kuk Sool Won,  it’s a traditional Korean system. Covers kicking punching joint manipulation, throwing, pressure points its more of a traditional martial art so more of a Korean traditional system, but we also train here in Jiu-Jitsu, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, it’s all grappling all ground fighting. Great self-defense as well as a sport. 

At 7:15 Monday through Thursday, you’ll find Jack teaching a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fundamentals program.

Grayson, a new student, sums up his experience. “I’ve been here for six months. It’s not just a workout it’s a way of life.”

“There’s two ways of thinking of Jiu-Jitsu, number one is self-defense, but then on the other side, it’s more sports oriented. Our Jiu-Jitsu has a really good fundamentals program, that’s usually 7:15 Monday through Thursday. The beginner as well as more advanced students take that class, and all do well in it.”

If you’re like me than you have never stepped foot in any sort of dojo before, but as soon as I walk through the door I can feel that it is a welcoming environment.

Joe’s been training at Martial Arts Ohio and he has enjoyed his experience so far.

“I’ve been doing Jiu-Jitsu here for about a year; the school is fantastic, Jack and Josh are great teachers, super welcoming environment. Everyone is very nice and It’s a really low-pressure environment. “

Everybody from the young college student female who has never had any kind of experience in martial arts up to people who come in as black belts in other systems we have people who come in with experience in wrestling and they all do well. 

“No matter what my day brought, when I get out to the mat it’s a nice way to forget about everything. There’s always pressures at home but when you get out here, you’re just having fun.”

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the United States, affecting 40 million adults or 18 percent of the population every year. Morgan, a student at Martial Arts Ohio for the past seven months, says the classes have helped her relieve some anxiety.

“I do the kickboxing classes on Monday and Wednesdays and I always feel a lot better after doing that. More relaxed a lot less anxious stuff like that. Don’t be too scared of it, it’s intimidating at first but once you get into it, you’ll start learning you love it, it becomes addictive, so I say go for it.”

An outlet for anxiety, a relief of stress, those are some of the benefits I expected to hear, but what Jack told me next really stuck with me and showcases the power this type of activity and community can have.

“I have a guy who just started, him and his son and he came back from Iraq and Afghanistan and he’s been back a couple years now.  His wife came in to sign up because they did their trial and loved it and the wife came in without them and this is something that humbles me, and she said this is the first time since my husband came back and he’s here with me now.”

Before I leave the studio, I ask Jack what the future holds for him.

“We’ve been here for about three years. My biggest problem now is it’s getting a little cramped. I don’t know how long we’ll be in this location, but we will be in Kent for a long time to come.”

By Isabel Brinegar

Two different people from two different backgrounds with two radically different ways to be radical. Isabel Brinegar reports on how activism in its many forms, can come to the same conclusion.

I’m standing outside the Planned Parenthood clinic in Kent, Ohio. It’s marked by a green sign with gold letters, all the buildings around it are marked by the same sign. It’s tucked behind all the quirky shops and restaurant in Akron ally. It’s in the suite upstairs and almost impossible to find if you aren’t looking for it. There are two planned parenthood clinics in Ohio that perform abortions, 10 total. Kent’s planned parenthood is not one of them, you can tell because there aren’t any protestors outside. 

There are two sides of Planned Parenthood, the medical side and the activism side. Mackenzie Burchett is the president of the Planned Parenthood activists of Kent State University and says she has always been an activist. Even today, she is dressed up for a job interview to be a grant assistant for a nonprofit in Akron that offers addiction services. 

“In fifth grade I started campaigning against Sarah Palin because she was having bounties on wolves from Alaska, and I was like, ‘Wow I don’t like that,’ even though I was 10 and didn’t really fully understand the implications of sending petitions to somebody in office in Alaska.” 

Her activism has grown since then, now spending time mostly with reproductive rights and union rights. 

“I think abortions and contraceptives represent bodily autonomy; I think that’s one of my main issues.”

Mackenzie is a grassroots activist. She spends time learning local legislation and getting familiar with local issues. She wanted to become the President of the Planned Parenthood activists of Kent State to shed more light on abortion. 

“I wanted it to be very abortion focused since we’ve seen so many abortion attacks this year in Ohio.”

Mackenzie’s platforms change from day to day, either a panel that was planned for months or off handed facts in class. But even with her outgoing nature, she believes that students can help motivate each other to act against injustice, whatever platform a person has, they should use it. 

“I think students seeing other students can have these positions that give them a platform is pretty inspiring, and I think they see, ‘Oh that person is the same as me I can relate to them and they can use that as a way to get involved.’”

But students aren’t the only ones getting involved and using their platforms to help reproductive rights. 

“Who has the authority to make the call about whether women, about women’s reproductive health and reproductive rights…”

Tammy Clewell has been a professor in Kent State University’s English department for 20 years and actively speaks out against the oppression of reproduction rights. 

“The position that I don’t respect, and that I would work actively against is the position that people who would not choose an abortion for themselves, whether they be men or women, would want to legislate their choice onto other people’s bodies.” 

She has taught classes revolving around grief, personal accounts of trauma, and women’s literature, but her academics are not the first time she grasped the importance of reproductive rights. Her great grandmother gave her an anecdote when she asked her about the changes in women’s rights from the early 1900’s to the 1980’s. 

“And she said two things, the first thing she said in a little bit of a joking manner, but she said the ability to cut her long hair and wear her hair short really freed up her time and her days… and the second more important thing she said was the availability of contraceptives.”

For Tammy, when it comes to protecting Planned Parenthood, “I can’t think of an issue that is culturally more important.”

Tammy donates money to Planned Parenthood because she says her days of marching the streets are over, to let the young people cover that. But she helps in other ways, not only talking about reproductive rights in literature to her classes, but by giving her own personal experiences with Planned Parenthood as well. 

“I shared with my women’s literature class that I myself have had 2 abortions in my life. Both times I had an abortion were when I was married.”

She chose to get each abortion because she didn’t think she could afford a child while continuing with her research. She believes by sharing her experiences, she can help fight the stigma that surrounds abortions, and more broadly, Planned Parenthood. To help people make the right decision for themselves. 

“I have never regretted it, I have never calculated, ‘Oh how old would that child be today’ because it was the right decision for me. And I shudder to think what my life would look like had I not had access to making the right choice for myself.”

 Activism takes many forms. Tammy and Mackenzie might not take the same road, but their strong position towards reproductive rights have the same goal: equality. I’m Isabel Brinegar

“And we have about 10 verbally active students, Mackenzie is one of those students.”

“As people are affected by these changes, we need to do everything we can to help fight against them. I think there’s an obligation to do so.”

By Kennedi Combs

Every year in the United States, thousands of people are wrongly convicted for crimes they didn’t commit. Kennedi Combs reports on how one man lost so much for a crime he did not take part in.

Today, Derrick Walters sits at his stand just outside the Browns Stadium at the corner of Lakeside Ave and East 9th street in downtown Cleveland, selling his distinguished Cleveland Browns Dog bone necklaces and other Brown’s paraphernalia for his company Rock Your Team Colors. However, three decades ago his life was very different.

“Tell me about the day you were arrested,” I say.

“So, I walk over from the school, which was Alfred Benesch, to the projects on 55th and

Quincey and as soon as I walk up in the yard, I see all the people that I know. Friends and stuff that I grew up with or whatever. They hadn’t seen me in a while because I had been working and going to school. So, one of them handed me a beer. So, I’m like ‘Okay’. I’m standing out there talking to them and everything.” Derrick said.

Next, Derrick said he saw a police officer approach and everyone around him ran away. He stood still with a beer in his hand.

“I didn’t run because I didn’t do anything. All I had was a beer in my hand. So, I went and go set the beer down on the incinerator and walked back to where I was standing. Police come up they get out the car, they go over there, where I had set my beer down.”

Derrick said the police officer had found a pouch full of drugs.

“So, they come over to me and say:

‘What were you doing over there?’

I said, ‘I went and set that beer right there, right over there, cold and everything. I went and set

the beer down because I ain’t want y’all to say nothing to me.’

‘Well you put more than a beer down.’

I’m like, ‘No I didn’t.’

‘Where this come from?’ And he shows me the pouch.

I said, ‘I don’t know where that came from, it’s not mine.’

Everybody was like, ‘It ain’t none of his. He just walked up’ You know.

They was like, ‘Nah it’s yours, buddy.’

Now mind you, I got on a Leather Adidas suit, sweat suit. I got on jewelry, ring, chain. So I guess I typically look like “The Dope Man”. But I don’t sell dope! They handcuffed me and took me to jail.”

Derrick’s trial was a quick one. The prosecution did not retrieve DNA evidence to prove Derrick’s fingerprints were on the pouch. He said he was told he would have to pay for the forensics out of his own pocket. Not being able to afford that type of research to be done, Derrick was at the mercy of the law. The officers who arrested him that day allegedly lied in court, saying they saw Derrick put the pouch in the incinerator walls. The prosecution’s only evidence was Derrick’s word against the arresting officers. With all the odds stacked against him, Derrick was sent to prison.

Upon arriving in prison, Derrick, still rattled by how suddenly his life got turned around, got into a confrontation with a correctional officer, where racial slurs and punches were thrown. Because of this, Derrick ended up in the hole. A 6-by-9 one-man cell with no human interaction whatsoever. Derrick stayed in the hole for four months.

To get a better understanding of Derrick’s time in prison, I talked to his brother, Henry Flonnoy, who was also incarcerated at the same prison, around the same time his brother was there.

“So, he would be just screaming in the middle of the night. Screaming my name. He would rile up all the rest of the inmates,” Henry explained.

Worried for his brother, Henry asked a CO to check on how he’s doing.

“Word came back, that he was O.K. but he had got to- I guess to a point where he was delirious, couldn’t take it anymore. And he had taken the lid off the Vienna sausages that I would give him and he sliced both of his wrists.”

To get a deeper look into how his family handled Derrick’s incarceration Sierra Walters, Derrick’s oldest daughter, is in her mid-thirties now but was just a young child when her father was sent away.

“I don’t remember much; I remember my dad was there one day and gone the next. I remember my mother crying about it, while talking to my dad on the phone. I just remember standing there, not understanding why she was so upset or where my father was,” Sierra said.

Derrick spent three long years in prison and was finally released due to lack of evidence. Thirty years later, Derrick looks back on this tragic event with a positive attitude.

“I became a better person, because that taught me a life lesson. This is gonna sound weird but I’m almost — I’m not glad that it happened but I’m glad at the result of what happened. Far as my human development.”

By Chris Ramos

Walking up to this mysterious dome, there is a sense of curiosity. It could stem from the fact that it’s isolated, lingering on its own down a dead-end street. Approaching the front door which is illuminated by a neon sign that reads “open”. I knew that I was in for quite an experience.

That’s the sound of a burlesque drag show. Cassandra, the LGBTQ+ coordinator for The Dome is the mastermind behind the event. She hosts drag shows every Wednesday, not only making it a hallmark of The Dome but also establishing an LGBTQ+ friendly environment.

“I’ve been doing the LGBT events. I’ve been here for the last couple of months, since the beginning of the semester,” Cassandra said. 

“Usually on a Wednesday, doing different events like poetry, art vending but mostly since I do drag since that’s my wheelhouse and where most of my friends are, I like to book drag and burlesque shows. That’s what we’re doing tonight.” 

Around me, attendees down their drinks and carry on in their frivolous conversation. The lighting is mellow, intimate and the hexagon shaped window panels around the dome stare down at me. The walls are a bit worn out, and the second-floor balcony includes a billiards table along with booth seats. It’s a bit grimy for sure, but nothing that’ll make you want to run out screaming. 

Dressed performers with colorful make-up and props mingle with the crowd. Cassandra tells me it’s an important night.

“Midwest Nerdlesque Festival is a burlesque festival. Their brand does a couple of burlesque festivals throughout the year but this their annual, big, huge one. And so tonight, we have one of the arguably biggest drag kings in America, or the world right now and we’re really excited,” Cassandra said. 

Drag shows are just one facet within The Dome’s entertainment dynamo which includes comedy shows and its bread and butter; live music. Comedy shows occur once every month and live music can be seen every Friday and Sunday night. There are weeks in which only one live show is scheduled, but on average it’s about two per week.

The Dome traces its roots back to the 70s and has undergone numerous identities. It is currently owned by Pete Colosimo. General manager Shane Vain is responsible for tending to the day to day operations. 

Its fascinating architecture is as fascinating as its history. It was most recently a strip club prior to becoming a music venue. Brooke, a bartender and show promoter explains what the transition means. 

“Well, it means a lot of things. So, obviously, as you know and I’m sure you’ll touch on, it was formerly a strip club. But it was also a ton of other things, like I think it originally started out as a bar and venue and then a restaurant,” Brooke said. 

“At one point apparently, it was an ad agency. It was all different things. The space is odd. It’s surprising to see how many different things it was.”

Considering all of the changes, The Dome has kept moving along with the times. After the strip club venture had bottomed out, it was left abandoned and empty. 

Shifting the focus to music was necessary to keep the venue alive. But more important than that, is the newfound opportunity that awaits. Kent’s music scene was once described to me as something that goes through a cycle of “ebb and flow”. It’s no secret that it is in an ebb period, as the lack of DIY venues has forced bands to play in Akron or Cleveland.  A DIY venue refers to house shows or shows in buildings such as warehouses, it’s essentially working with the barebones with an emphasis on music. 

 Brooke is aware that The Dome could revitalize the scene. 

“You want these bands to still feel that they can come and be involved and have a landing spot that isn’t only Cleveland. Cleveland is awesome. Akron is awesome. But Kent is like a home of Devo and The Waitresses like really cool people played here. And then it stops,” Brooke said. 

“So, my hope and why I’m involved and why I know other people who have had shows here, is to bring music back to Kent.”

 Currently, The Dome relies on social media to get the word out about upcoming events. Bands that perform at the venue also turn to social media to promote the show and location and they typically bring along friends to come watch them play. The Dome has been featured in student publications like The Burr and has also collaborated with Black Squirrel Radio in setting up concerts. 

Becoming a go-to venue in Kent will take time and obviously require a lot of communication. 

It’s hard enough that its obscurity makes it unknown to most of the public and the people that are aware of the venue still associate it with its past. Renovations such as a new bar and sound system are good starting points but being able to attract patrons and having them stick around is key. 

“I think we have at least once a show, some guy will walk in and say, ‘Not a strip club anymore?’ And I have to go, ‘No.’ But then sometimes, they’ll sit and have a beer and they’ll watch whatever weird band is on and they’ll give it a shot. I kind of appreciate this weird – I know what you used to be, let me see what you are now,” Brooke said. 

And as stated before, the fact that it includes other kinds of performers and communities strengthens its chances to really build a foundation in the area. Forget the past, it’s about looking onward and seeing what can manifest.

Driving out of the gravel parking lot, reflecting on what I just experienced, The Dome dwindles in my rear-view mirror. It has introduced itself to yet another person.

By Tanisha Thomas

Movements, such as the #metoomovement, the Women’s March, Equal Pay Day and #TIMESUP, amplify women’s voices to be heard. A similar effort is being done at Kent State with a new organization called the Female Filmmakers  Initiative.

Tierra Tramble, a senior journalism major and Digital Media Production minor, remembered how she felt when she first started in the DMP program and did not want those who come after her to feel the same way.

“I didn’t do this for me. I did it because I believe in Ms. Dana, I believe in this mission, and I remember coming into the DMP major feeling as if there were no space for me,” Tramble said. 

Digital Media Production professor Dana White decided to do something about it by creating the Female Filmmakers Initiative. The organization provides a space for women to be able to learn and grow as filmmakers while providing them with the resources needed to be successful after college.

“One thing I noticed was,I was teaching directing, I was teaching screenwriting and things like that, and what I noticed was the young women there were just so strong and they were so ambitious. I could see that they just didn’t have the opportunities that the young male students were getting,” White said.

Five women make up the organization, and Tramble is the president.

“We wanted this to be a space where women could share their voices. We could tell stories that are from our perspective and not only that, but our mission was to allow women to gain the kind of experience they wanted to gain within the filmmaking industry,” she said.

 While more movies have showcased female representation on screen like Ocean’s 8, Crazy Rich Asians, and Widows only 20 percent of women worked behind-the-scenes for the top 250 grossing films in 2018, according to a study done by the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film. 

“It’s not so much that there are not enough stories being told,” Tramble said. “There’s not enough people being given the opportunity to tell the story they want to tell.” 

White believes the history of the industry being predominantly male plays a factor too.

“It has been a big boys club. It has been very hard for women to break in … The more women that can get in there, it changes the dynamics so that more women feel comfortable working in that environment, and it becomes a much more equanimous working environment,” White said.

Bobbi Broome, a senior Digital Media Production major and director of the initiative, echoes the same thoughts, emphasizing how while it is important to occupy those male-dominated spaces, educating in the process is too.

“If you are a male and you don’t know what reproductive rights look like and you don’t care. Say FFI made a film about reproductive rights issues and somehow the man sees it on their recommended page on YouTube, and they’re interested and know what the big deal is about. That can start a movement itself,” Broome said.

To overcome those barriers, White hopes because the organization is an initiative, it will receive grants and funding for graduating students to apply for to help them execute their creative ideas.

“The students still at Kent State, they have the resources. Once you graduate, you’re own your own. They can continue on with what they’ve learned,” White said.

Tramble believes creating a space for female filmmakers has tackled one of those barriers.

“It takes finding that safe space and finding that comfortable platform, organization, a group of people, community whatever, and leaning on them to build yourself,” she said.

Since the group has announced its presence, support has poured in from other organizations and Student Media.

“A lot of people see and understand the need for something like this … I actually connected with a lot of student media, and all the student media responses were very helpful and a lot of words of encouragement. There has been a lot of positive feedback,” Tramble said.

Fellow female alums have reached out, expressing how they wished the organization existed when they were at Kent State. One of them is 2019 Kent State grad Paulina Tesnow. 

“I would’ve felt more inclined to tell my stories and share my voice and not feel like I need to change or cater to that in any way,” Tesnow said.

Tesnow’s expertise is questioned even while directing her own films.

“There was a guy working on a set one day helping, and I heard him ask someone, ‘should we go ask what Ben thinks about this?’ That’s my boyfriend. He was like, ‘well Ben’s directing it, right? I was just like so angry because he was there and the assumption was it can’t be me, it has to be my boyfriend,” she said.

Broome wants to make sure the organization leaves a lasting impression as they inch closer to their film festival debut.

“I want to show people this is our opening ceremony for the Olympics. We just want to show people the vision we created, and the camaraderie we have with each other and the community we have built with each other, and see it grow,” she said.

The initiative will makes its first impression as an organization with its first-ever film festival Dec. 6, inviting female filmmakers to showcase their work and female artists to display their artwork.