Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2021
Volume 157 No. 2 SERVING SAN JOSE STATE UNIVERSITY SINCE 1934
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JAIME CABRERA | SPARTAN DAILY
San Jose community members march together in celebration of the newly named Barack Obama Boulevard in downtown Saturday near the SAP Center on Santa Clara Street.
San Jose unveils Barack Obama Blvd By Allison Kruse STAFF WRITER
More than 200 community members gathered in downtown San Jose on Saturday morning to celebrate the city’s newly-named Barack Obama Boulevard in front of the SAP Center, located on Santa Clara Street. This comes four years after a local leader launched a petition with 2,486 signatures to rename the formerly known South Autumn Street, to Barack Obama Boulevard after the former president. Former President Barack Obama became the first Black man elected to hold presidential office in 2008 and was reelected for a second term in 2012. Alex Shoor, founder of the Barack Obama
and received unanimous approval from San Jose City Council to rename the street, according to a Jan. 6 City of San Jose news release. Shoor’s petition raised over $9,000 to cover the costs for the city to rename the street, according to a January 2019 update on the petition. Shoor, who is also the executive director of nonprofit organization Catalyze SV, Helen Simms called on local leaders in the petition’s Barack Obama Boulevard Committee vice president description to rename the street because of Barack Obama’s “historic presidency.” Catalyze SV is a group of community Boulevard Committee, was responsible for members, city leaders and developers that aim to create “vibrant, equitable authoring the petition in 2017. The Barack Obama Boulevard and sustainable locations” for people in Committee is a coalition of community Silicon Valley, according to its website. “In these times that again feel dark members who petitioned, raised funds
San Jose has stepped up and created the change that we can believe in, Barack Obama Boulevard.
with uncertainty, many people could use a small, symbolic step forward that honors our nation’s history and its first African-American president,” Shoor wrote in the petition’s description. Saturday’s ceremony, led by San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, featured speeches from San Jose’s National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) chapter, Vice Mayor Chappie Jones and other city councilmembers. Several keynote speakers and attendees expressed gratitude for the street’s renaming. “San Jose has stepped up and created the change that we can believe in, Barack Obama Boulevard,” said OBAMA | Page 2
OnlyFans explicit sex ban affects income opportunity
AUG16 - SEP22
2021
Some San Jose State students who once produced explicit content on OnlyFans, a subscription-based social media platform, will no longer be able to do so following a ban on sexual content outlined in the updated OnlyFans acceptable use policy. The ban is expected to begin Oct. 1 in compliance with the requests of OnlyFans banking partners and payout providers, according to a Thursday company statement obtained by Dan Primack, Axios business editor. Axios is an online news website launched in 2017, according to its website. “In order to ensure long-term sustainability of the platform . . . we must evolve our content guidelines,” the company said in the statement. While sexually explicit content will be banned, general “nudity” is still allowed as long as it aligns with the new acceptable use policy. Sexually explicit content includes “extreme” exposure of one’s genitals or anus, fake or actual masturbation, the portrayal of actual or simulated sexual acts and actual or simulated bodily fluids
related to sexual acts, according to the acceptable use policy. Content currently on the platform that contains sexually explicit conduct must be removed before Dec. 1, according to the same policy.
It was just at a time where I was maybe struggling a little bit, I just wanted an easy way to control my income and make a difference in my own life. C.F. art and psychology junior
Those accounts that violate the user policy will be suspended or terminated and access to earnings will be unavailable, per the policy. An art and psychology junior, who asked to go by C.F. for privacy concerns, said he began creating explicitly nude content on OnlyFans in late 2019. “I just wanted money,” C.F. said in a Zoom interview.
“It was just at a time where I was maybe struggling a little bit, I just wanted an easy way to control my income and make a difference in my own life.” C.F. said the ability to set his own prices and create as much content as he wanted helped him feel in control. The money he made from OnlyFans contributed to his rent and personal budget. OnlyFans had a surge in content creators who chose to stay home and make money online after the coronavirus pandemic began in March 2020. The company reported revenue growth of 553% in November 2020, according to a Financial Times report. OnlyFans hosted less than 20 million content-buying users prior to the pandemic and now has over 120 million content-buying users, according to the same report. An SJSU student, who preferred to go by the alias Dan for privacy concerns, joined the platform in March 2020 during the beginning of the pandemic to make money when he was laid off from his job. “It was hard to [find] work so I was just doing videos from home,” Dan said in a phone call. “I [realized I] ONLYFANS | Page 2
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By Evan Reinhardt
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NEWS
TUESDAY, AUG. 24, 2021
ONLYFANS Continued from page 1 can get paid for this.” He earned around 100 dollars each week creating sexually explicit content and he said it was a good way to make side money. OnlyFans brought in $375 million in net revenue in 2020 and the company is expected to make $1.2 billion in 2021, according to an Aug. 19 Axios article. While the company is raking in profit, it’s struggling to find investors and appease payment processors like Visa and Mastercard because of risks related to pornography platforms, according to the same article. OnlyFans has an alleged history of lenience to accounts that post illegal content, including child porn or sexual abuse, according to leaked documents in a Friday BBC News articllce. The documents state that some of these accounts would be given multiple warnings in lieu of automatic account elimination even though they break the OnlyFans terms of service. An OnlyFans spokesperson stated in the same Friday BBC News article that
If they’re trying to make this business pivot to less sexually explicit content, is it too late? Steve O’Brien SJSU economic lecturer
this type of occurrence was rare. Much of the money they are aiming to gain from new investors will be used to pay out majority stakeholder Leo Radivinsky, a webcam pornography mogul who has made millions from the company’s growth, according to the article. The other part of the investment will be used to secure the company’s “legitimate” status among other social media platforms, including Twitch and YouTube, in terms of financial assets, according to the same article. While the OnlyFans policy may be important to the company’s survival plan, SJSU economics lecturer Steve O’Brien said the consequences of banning sexually explicit content could be a risk for business. “If they eliminate a big component of their business, that probably also eliminates a lot of potential investors who say, ‘Can you really [succeed] without that kind of content?’ ” O’Brien said in a phone call. The company’s reputation may be too fully formed to change direction so easily, he said. “If they’re trying to make this business pivot to less sexually explicit content, is it too late? Is the brand they’re associated with tied too closely to that kind of content?” O’Brien posed. “If it is, their business model seems in jeopardy.” With such a large portion of the website including sexually explicit content, OnlyFans is betting on a beneficial trade-off, O’Brien said.
INFOGRAPHIC BY LINDSAY VILLAMOR; SOURCE: ONLYFANS ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY AND THURSDAY STATEMENT, AND A THURSDAY AXIOS ARTICLE
Creators who produce sexual content will be cut off from a platform where they once made money, but Dan said he believes some sections of the community will survive. “There is a wide variety of content on OnlyFans,” Dan said “There are things that people can post that aren’t sexual but can still be a kink . . . like feet stuff.” Conversely, other creators with known followings are already leaving the platform.
Rapper Tyga deleted his OnlyFans account only 24 hours after the company announced its policy change, according to a Friday Forbes article. In his interview with Forbes, Tyga said he will establish his own subscriptionbased social media platform that will allow sexually explicit content. Though C.F. no longer creates OnlyFans content, he said those looking to create sexually explicit content won’t be completely stopped once the new
OnlyFans policy goes into effect. “I think everyone’s just going to honestly move on to the next [media platform],” C.F. said. “That’s kind of what always happens.” OnlyFans will continue to update it’s community guidelines moving forward, according to it’s Thursday statement.
Follow Evan on Twitter @ReinhardtEvan
OBAMA
purpose,” Peralez said during the ceremony. “May this street represent hope and progress and Continued from page 1 serve as a firm reminder to our Helen Sims, Barack Obama Black, Latinx, Asian locals that Boulevard Committee’s vice they belong in elected positions president, during the ceremony. in all levels of government Vice Mayor Jones voiced as well.” recognition for the committee’s work. “After many setbacks, numerous conversations, here we are today watching Barack Obama Boulevard become part of our city,” Jones said during his ceremony speech. He said the boulevard will revitalize the downtown area and welcome visitors. Raul Peralez, San Jose’s District 3 councilmember, said the street’s location is significant because “the heart of San Jose Alicia Carvajal serves as a major gateway into San Jose community member downtown.” “I am proud that this highly Several attendees of the trafficked street, which has boulevard’s unveiling wore many practical transportation buttons pinned to their clothes purposes for our local residents with Obama’s first presidential and for tourists, will now have election slogan in 2008, such a significant symbolic “Yes we can.”
Obama’s success gave all people, particularly African Americans, a sheer joy to watch American history take place.
JAIME CABRERA | SPARTAN DAILY
A construction worker unwraps the Barack Obama Boulevard street sign Saturday in Downtown San Jose.
According to an October 2009 Gallup survey, 20% of national adults and 44% of Black adults believed Obama’s presidency was the most important advancement for Black people. “Obama’s success gave all people, particularly African Americans, a sheer
joy to watch American history take place,” said Alicia Carvajal, 42-year-old San Jose community member, in an interview after the ceremony.
Madilynne Medina contributed reporting.
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
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TUESDAY, AUG. 24, 2021
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JAIME CABRERA | SPARTAN DAILY
Top: the San Jose State Quartets, a musical club, performs outside Martin Luther King Jr. Library Friday. Bottom left: Eric Velasquez, an SJSU almunus and graffiti artist, finishes his abstract painting on the steps of the MLK library. Bottom right: The 408 Collective, a local band, transitions in between sets near the library.
Weekly festival debuts Downtown By Saumya Monga STAFF WRITER
With the help from a local nonprofit, San Jose State is revitalizing life in Downtown San Jose with a weekly Friday festival after the coronavirus pandemic left it quiet for more than a year. The Urban Vibrancy Institute collaborated in hosting the school’s first weekly “Every Friday in Downtown,” from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Urban Vibrancy is a local nonprofit dedicated to bringing new life to downtown and unifying the San Jose community, according to its website. Its founder Eric Glader said despite mixed opinions over masks and dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, the downtown community joined together for an evening of music, food, and drinks. “[Many] people may not want to be masked, they may not be vaccinated, but they can all agree that music is awesome. Music is this connective tissue,” Glader said. “Our goal is to create a variety of different [music] spots simultaneously.”
You look around and you see people having a good time, listening to music that I think we all enjoy regardless of our personal preferences. Eric Velasquez local artist and SJSU alumnus
The festival encompassed three locations: Martin Luther King Jr. Library’s lawn, Fountain Alley, a downtown pedestrian paseo at the corner of Fourth and San Fernando streets, and Camino Brewery, located on South First and Virginia streets. These three spaces formed a triangle of live music so attendees could walk around Downtown San Jose and interact with different performances. The crowd of around 50 people consisted mostly of
new and returning SJSU students looking to explore the city. Urban Vibrancy invited The 408 Collective, a local band, to headline Friday’s event. Jared Carbajal, the founder of The 408 Collective, said it was exciting to have a mixed audience to watch their performance because they love the excitement of interacting with fans. Carbajal said The 408 Collective is a community-based band and organization, but the members classify the set as a “jam session,” meaning any spectators can join the stage. “We’ve been hosting community nights [where the] band plays [a set] and then we invite community members to come up and play songs with us,’’ Carbajal said. Some SJSU students in attendance said they were stoked to receive a Thursday campuswide email from Charlie Faas, university vice president for administration and finance, inviting the community to “Every Friday in Downtown.” “I’m glad there’s an event a little outside because we’ve been kind of confined to the campus,” said Amber Sangha, a biology systems and physiology junior. Eric Vasquez, local artsit and SJSU alumnus and local artist, created a colorful and abstract art piece with spray paint as community members grooved to the music. “I hope that the art we’ve got going on here brings people together,” Vasquez said. “You look around and you see people having a good time, listening to music that I think we all enjoy regardless of our personal preferences.” Glader said, as much as students look forward to attending these types of live events, Downtown San Jose is reliant on their engagement. “The city wants to embrace the students and it really is just this rising tide lifting all ships or services that you guys need and [there is] business that the restaurants need,” Glader said. Carabajal said his band received local recognition thanks to “Every Friday in Downtown” and its large turnout. “I mean [Urban Vibrancy took] a really big chance with us and every event we’ve been doing,” Carbajal said. “I mean the whole goal for them and for us right now
The city wants to embrace the students and it really is just this rising tide lifting all ships or services that you guys need and [there is] business that the restaurants need. Eric Glader Urban Vibrancy founder
is to kind of revive areas that went down [through the COVID-19 pandemic].” While everyone was vibing to live music, some attendees came particularly for the food. Rodney Baca, an award winning chef who has long championed local businesses in San Jose, particularly drew a crowd around his “pop up” cafe. Located inside the MLK library during the event, “The Shop” is his latest venture with delicious, Michelin-rated cuisine. The Michelin rating is one of the best known guides that awards one-to-three stars to restaurants with perceivably high culinary merit, according to the Michelin guide webpage. The smell of gourmet macaroni and cheese wafted through Chef Baca’s restaurant all the way outside, catching the senses of many passersby and drawing them into the cafe. Like many SJSU students, Ashley Sligh said she’s excited to finally have in-person events after a year-and-a-half of events being on Zoom. “I’m just excited about hearing the live music because I haven’t been around that in a long time,” Sligh said.
Jaime Cabrera contributed to this article.
Follow Saumya on Twitter @MongaSaumya
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SPORTS
TUESDAY, AUG. 24, 2021
South Campus shows off fresh look
CHRISTIAN TRUJANO | SPARTAN DAILY
Matthew Hoak, a San Jose State lacrosse senior attacker, practices striking the goal at the South Campus sports recreation field on South 10th and East Alma streets Monday.
By Isalia Gallo SPORTS EDITOR
San Jose State’s South Campus, the base for university athletics, was recently renovated and now includes a parking garage and recreational sports field open for use starting this semester. South Campus, located about two miles south of main campus between Seventh and 10th Streets, consists of SJSU athletics facilities. University Athletics Director Jeff Konya said the South Campus Parking Garage and Sports Field facility project, located on South 10th and East Alma streets, began in April 2019 to create space for students, faculty and staff. “The transformation of South Campus is positive for not only our Spartan student-athletes but the student body and surrounding community,” Konya said in an email. He said the synthetic turf sports field adjacent to the new parking garage will accommodate university recreational, intramural and greek life events. Meanwhile, the new four-level parking garage has 1,500 parking spaces, an IT room, two sports storage rooms and three restrooms. Scott MacDonald, the new deputy athletics director for public relations and
content strategy, said this new garage will help mitigate parking issues as it replaces the role of the Park and Ride lot. The Park and Ride lot, located on Seventh and Humboldt streets across from the CEFCU Stadium, offered half-hour, daily and semester permit parking for SJSU students, faculty and staff prior to the completion of the renovated garage. “The garage can accommodate all current demands in the South Campus,” MacDonald said, adding that university shuttles will limit stops at the garage and reduce route time. He said the university shuttles run Monday through Thursday on 20-minute intervals and stop at two locations: the South Campus Parking Garage and Duncan Hall, located on East San Salvador Street. MacDonald encouraged students to use the free shuttle app, DoubleMap, to monitor shuttle times. Biological science sophomore Briana Ceballos said it takes her about 15 to 20 minutes to drive to the main SJSU campus and finding parking can be hard. “I think the new parking garage will serve [SJSU] students and other community members for game days and school days,” Ceballos said. “The [daily] parking permit option will be helpful for me since I won’t be in person everyday.”
CHRISTIAN TRUJANO | SPARTAN DAILY
Senior midfielder Collin Dwyer (bottom) and Hoak (top) practice drills in preparation for the start of lacrosse season in February 2022 on the new recreational field.
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While university administrators say the South Campus Parking Garage and Sports Field facility is a great addition to athletics, track and field student-athletes feel left without a proper training site. After the demolition of the historic Bud Winter Field in June 2019, where legendary “Speedy City” alumni Tommie Smith and John Carlos practiced, for the remodeling of South Campus, track and field athletes were forced to use the soccer and football fields including those at San Jose City College. The track and field team has been using the football and soccer fields ever since the Bud Winter Field was demolished. “I think it’s cool that they’re building a sports field, [but] I’m not sure I know any other school that has a sports field as a compromise for a track,” said track and field sprinter Bashar Barksdale. Barksdale said he knows SJSU isn’t one of the bigger schools for track and field, but there’s universities that receive less funding and still have a track complex.
STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS YANN LAPNET JAIME CABRERA TRAVIS WYNN
NEWS EDITOR MADILYNNE MEDINA
SPORTS EDITOR ISALIA GALLO
Briana Ceballos biological science sophomore
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COPY EDITORS SAVANNAH NATIVIDAD KAH MUN CHIA ALAN BAEZ REBECCA LEE HAILEY FARGO
OPINION EDITOR ROYVI HERNANDEZ
I think the new parking garage will serve [SJSU] students and other community members for game days and school days. The [daily] parking permit option will be helpful for me since I won’t be in person everyday.
PHOTO EDITOR SANDRA SANTOS-CRUZ
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER MADISON FAGUNDES NEWS EDITOR CHRISTINA CASILLAS
Kinesiology junior Abhijeet Sandhu said it takes him 45 to 50 minutes to get to Downtown San Jose. “I think the new parking lot will help solve some parking issues . . . as the day goes on it gets really hard [to find parking space at Main Campus],” Sandhu said. Game-day parking for the SJSU community is also available in the new garage for $20, Macdonald said.
GRAPHICS EDITORS NICK YBARRA HANZ PACHECO LINDSAY VILLAMOR AUDREY TSENG DAISHA SHERMAN AARON CHEUNG
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The Student Union gave a $3 million donation for the south campus renovation, in which $2.5 million paid for the recreational field and $500,000 went toward the softball field renovation, according to an April 13, 2019 SJSU Blog post. The softball field opened in May 2018 after remodeling, according to the same blog post. SJSU announced in the same blog post that it wouldn’t continue with the plan to build a new track field because it would cost about $20 million more than originally anticipated. Konya said the university is working on giving student-athletes a “valuable and meaningful” experience in their athletic journey at SJSU with a newly developed athletics department vision statement called “The Charge of the Spartans.” He said the Charge of the Spartans vision will aim for the construction of new facilities for student-athletes. “We will always explore opportunities, even continue improvements in facilities, as we attempt to positively impact the student-athlete experience for all of our athletes,” Konya said. These improvements focus on practice and competition facilities and support service areas for all SJSU athletics programs. He said the transformative South Campus construction project is still in development, as a new CEFCU Stadium video display board and scoreboard will be installed within the next month. A new Spartan Athletic Center is anticipated to open in 2023, according to SJSU’s Facilities Development and Operations website. “[The Spartan Athletics Center] will be the primary hub of activity for our soccer and football programs [and] will benefit San José State student-athletes in all of the intercollegiate sports that we offer, especially in providing more service and care in the critical areas of nutrition and sports medicine,” Konya said.
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