Vol. 65, Issue 7
Est. 1981
March 7 - March 21, 2023
THE PAISANO
Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio Community /PaisanoOnline 1 | News
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3 | Opinion
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5 | Arts & Life
7 | Sports
Women’s rights march held in downtown By Laynie Clark Managing Editor
“Every person that is born should have fundamental rights”
Andrew Christianson/The Paisano
‘For me, better ways are important, because it [helps] patients lead a better life’ UTSA hosts renowned researcher Dr. Nicholas Peppas By Gauri Raje News Editor UTSA’s Academy of Distinguished Researchers hosted Dr. Nicholas A. Peppas, a professor of cellular and biomedical engineering at the University of Texas at Austin on Thursday, March 2. “As a part of [the] Academy, we have the Distinguished Speaker Series [where] we invite top-notch researchers across the nation to come here and give us a talk,” Dr. Hemid Beladi, chair of the Academy, said. Peppas, who serves as the director of the Institute for Biomaterials, Drug Delivery and Regenerative Medicine, discussed the future of biomaterials in improving the quality of life for patients. “It is a great honor for me to be here and discuss with you some of my thoughts about a very important subject,” Peppas said. “[Biomedical engineering] is a field that will give you the opportunity to go back home and help patients, help citizens, be proud that you [came up] with a better solution.” Peppas started by talking about the history of the biomedical field, including the first heart transplant performed by Christiaan Barnard in 1967; however, Peppas pointed out that despite advances in the
field, there was a lack of understanding of the biomedical properties of materials used. Today, the field of biomedical sciences looks very different, with the emergence of “advanced biomaterials, modified biological structures, intracellular delivery [systems]” and bionanotechnology.
“It is a great honor for me to be here and discuss with you some of my thoughts about a very important subject” Peppas then shifted focus to discuss autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease and macular degeneration. In an autoimmune disease, the body’s immune system attacks its own cells. For all of these diseases, treatment is administered through an injection which can be painful for the patient, sometimes making the patient reluctant to receive treatment. In the case of multiple sclerosis, treatment involves an intramuscular injection once a week. While skipping an injection for a week does not lead to
immediate effects, the patient’s health can deteriorate over a period of months. Drawing on his own experience of being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, Peppas recounted taking intramuscular injections as a treatment for the disease. While the diagnosis was incorrect, the experience impacted his research approach. “I submit to all of you that what we learn in undergraduate and graduate [school] is one possible solution,” Peppas said. “It doesn’t mean we have to stop there and say, ‘Because we have a way to [treat a disease], there is no better way.’” “For me, better ways are important because it [helps] patients lead a better life,” Peppas added. Peppas highlighted the importance of treatments available for autoimmune diseases while also discussing the importance of how these drugs can be administered. “Don’t tell me [the best way to administer these drugs] is by shots [or] an IV in a hospital once a month,” Peppas said. “We are active citizens [and] we want to continue being active. We are sorry that we have the disease, but you can not tell us that your best solution is [an IV or similar methods].”
See Research on Page 2
On March 7, Mujeres Marcharán Coalition (MMC) organized a march and rally in celebration of International Women’s Day. The march took place in downtown San Antonio at Milam Park. Assisting MMC were members of San Antonio’s chapter of the Party of Socialism and Liberation (PSL) and Autonomous Brown Berets de San Anto. The rally supported organized and independent speakers. Ruby Jimenez — a member of PSL — spoke on the importance of International Women’s Day and its impact on her. “International Women’s Day is something that shows that the struggles that affect so many different people in different regions have a root because there’s an underlying theme of oppression, of being treated as a secondclass citizen,” Jimenez said. “It’s usually a revolution in women that are the trailblazers for civil rights movements. I see people banding together to protect not only ourselves but the future of this planet.” Krystal Howard — an independent local organizer — described that the term “women’s rights” is problematic. For Howard, rights should be universal. “I don’t really like the term ‘women’s rights,’ I think it’s problematic in itself. I feel like
fundamental values are what’s really important,” Howard said. “Every person that is born should have fundamental rights. Women’s rights, to me, are just everybody’s rights — it shouldn’t even be a discussion.” Howard details how youth voter turnout is important. They believe that active participation is needed for the future. “I predict, and I would hope for a future where people just don’t feel left out anywhere,” Howard continued. “We just all get to exist in peace and happiness and not have to worry about not being allowed to be who you are. We just kind of get rid of all the bigots and fascists. I really have a lot of faith in the younger generation that we are reaching. I’m hoping the kids will change it.” As speakers started sharing their stories, the UTSA chapter of Students for Life showed up to counterprotest. Galaxy Acton — president of UTSA Students for Life — shouted a variety of statements regarding abortion and the dangers it poses to women. “28 women have died from legal chemical abortions in the United States,” Acton said. “Abortion is violent.” PSL and the Brown Berets linked arms and circled the protesters to create a barrier and minimize the distraction from the rally. The speakers continued on, ignoring the protestors, and the march began.
PERIOD partners with SGA to stock bathrooms with menstrual hygiene products By Naydine De La Fuente Staff Writer PERIOD at UTSA and the Student Government Association (SGA) collaborated to provide accessible feminine products in various restrooms across campus. SGA is a sponsored student organization that serves as the official advocate and voice of the student body, and PERIOD is an established group that plays an integral part in the menstrual movement— its main focus is to bring awareness to menstrual inequity and destigmatize menstruation in San Antonio. A lack of access to necessary menstrual products was the motivation for SGA and PERIOD to collaborate in an attempt to provide students with the feminine hygiene products that they need. Since the project began in 2019, some of the many obstacles members faced included the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and the scarcity of funds required to obtain all necessary products needed to fulfill the project’s main objective. “It was halted, of course, because of COVID[-19],” Yobana Solorzano, former President of PERIOD at UTSA, said. “People weren’t coming to cam-
pus; therefore, the dispensers weren’t being filled because, at the time, it didn’t feel like they needed to be because no one was there.” Once students were back on campus almost a year later, PERIOD continued its work to provide students with access to menstrual products on campus. PERIOD partnered with Womxn in Leadership to create surveys for students to get feedback about the placement of future dispensers on campus. They were even able to have multiple dispensers placed in different restrooms, including the Student Union women’s restroom on the second floor and the family restroom on the building’s first floor; however, a monumental change in this project occurred when SGA reached out to PERIOD and informed them of the Leader Fund grant. PERIOD was awarded the grant, which gave the organization approximately $3,300 worth in funds to purchase menstrual products to be distributed in various restrooms around campus. “There has been a lot of communication in seeing who will be filling what dispensRead the full article at paisano-online.com