Issuu

Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019

Volume 153 No. 39 WWW.SJSUNEWS.COM/SPARTAN_DAILY

SERVING SAN JOSE STATE UNIVERSITY SINCE 1934

El Espartano Noticias

Sports

Access

Women’s basketball team extends winning streak

Latinos interpretan el Día de Acción de Gracias

Preview upcoming content from the “Relationships” issue

Page 6

Page 7

Page 8

FOOD INSECURITY

Students swipe to donate food By Chris Core STAFF WRITER

With fellow students struggling to afford enough food to eat, a new program will give other San Jose State students a way to help those in need. The Swipe Out Hunger program allows students to donate extra meals in their meal plans to students who do not have them. Students who want to donate can do so at the SJSU Cares website under the Swipe Out Hunger tab. “Students can donate up to five swipes out of their meal plan for a semester, which are put into a pool where students can request swipes where they can have access to the dining commons,” Marina Harrison, SJSU marketing specialist for Spartan Eats, said. Spartan Eats and SJSU Cares worked together to bring Swipe Out Hunger to SJSU for the first time this semester. The nonprofit organization started at UCLA in 2010 and now operates in more than 90 colleges across the nation. Harrison said that so far, Swipe Out Hunger has aided 75 students who faced food insecurity at SJSU. The 2019 Impact Report

• 90 colleges in the United States use Swipe Out Hunger • 75 students have used the program at SJSU • Nationally, 73% of students in the program feel less stressed and anxious about their next meal • 73% said that they eat more regularly with the program SOURCES: MARINA HARRISON, SJSU MARKETING SPECIALIST FOR SPARTAN EATS, 2019 IMPACT REPORT FOR SWIPE OUT HUNGER INFOGRAPHIC BY CHRIS CORE AND CINDY CUELLAR

for Swipe Out Hunger reported that 73% of students nationwide feel less stressed and anxious about their next meal and the same percentage of students said that they eat more regularly with the program’s aid. Although the program has been successful it does have boundaries of who can and cannot donate swipes for food. Currently any student who has an SJSU Tower Card can request swipes to receive a

free meal, however you must have a meal plan in order to donate swipes. Harrison said this is an issue the organization is aware of and plans to work toward fixing. “Down the line we are going to create a swipe fund so that students can use their Dining Dollars in order to donate meals that they can go to any of the locations to buy food from there easily,” Harrison said. Outreach to students

has focused a lot on social media, which Daniela Muñoz-Martinez, SJSU basic needs coordinator, said has not had the exact success she was hoping to achieve. “The students who follow us are the ones in need versus the students who don’t follow us are typically the ones who donate to us and that’s our challenge, how we reach the students that have the opportunity and resources to donate for students,” Muñoz-Martinez said.

The minimal social media presence of those who are willing to donate has been apparent when it comes to the requests to donations ratio. “There seems to be more requests than donations,” Muñoz-Martinez said. “So we are trying to figure out what we can do to have more outreach to students because our outlets are for students who are in need versus students who can give.” Despite a few struggles,

Swipe Out Hunger seems more appealing to students rather than the current situation in the dining commons. Business freshman Clarissa Buendia said that a lot of students refrain from doing this in the first place because it’s a hassle. “I’ve had a friend who tried to come and give swipes to her friend and a [Spartan Eats employee] said, ‘You have to use your guest swipes,’ which makes it a lot more difficult to donate to other students.” Buendia thinks that the program is a great step to help students in need. “This could help a lot of people, especially those who are not as fortunate and can’t get food more easily,” Buendia said. “It’s really important because once you get one swipe it can help a lot.” Follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisCore24

African American students revive Harambee Dinner By Mauricio La Plante SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR

In Swahili, “harambee” means “all put together.” The word encapsulated the mixing of food and ideas at the 2019 Harambee Dinner, organized to build a community for Black students at San Jose State. “It’s like a five senses event . . . I can see my Black people, I can smell the food from my culture and then I can taste the food,” economics freshman Jade Mahaney said. “I’m listening to good words from my Black people. I’m feeling the hugs, the love. It was just really cool in all aspects. I felt like it hit every point.” As the scent of kewty kewty doro and jerk chicken spread through the Student Union Ballroom, students mingled in line, waiting to scoop servings of Ethiopian and Caribbean food. “It’s also nice to see a large turnout of Black people,” radio, TV and film freshman Jaylen Williams said. “To see us in one room and just enjoying each other’s presence.” Organizers revived the dinner after a 3-year hiatus, Armani Donahue, 2018 psychology alumna and program coordinator for the African-American/Black Student Success Center, said. “After the last Harambee in 2016, there hadn’t been anything,” Donahue said. “We wanted to

I’m listening to good words from my Black people. I’m feeling the hugs, the love. It was just really cool in all aspects. I felt like it hit every point. Jade Mahaney economics freshman

bring that energy back.” The previous Harambee dinner had been a product of a task force’s work to improve the environment at SJSU from 2014-17. In November 2013, three students were charged with hate crimes and battery against a Black student in the dorms. After that incident, SJSU organized a special task force on racial discrimination and an African American Student Success Task Force to examine issues Black students face, according to a Spartan Daily article from January 2014. The incident highlighted tensions between the Black Student Union and then-SJSU President Mohammad Qayoumi. Students said the administration failed to alleviate CULTURE| Page 2

CHRISTIAN TRUJANO | SPARTAN DAILY

Lawson Fusao Inada, co-author of “Aiiieeeee! An Anthology of Asian-American Writers,” highlights the book’s importance for the Asian American community during Thursday’s event.

Writers trace back Asian American roots By Christian Trujano STAFF WRITER

Finding few Asian American poets and authors in the 1960’s and ’70s made it hard for people such as Shawn Wong and Lawson Fusao Inada to feel represented and to have any writers who inspired them. So they decided to take matters into their own hands and compile an anthology of Asian American authors who had published work that was hiding from the world. Laughter filled the packed second-floor room of the Martin Luther King Jr. Library as about 60 people listened to three

Asian American writers speak about their endeavors in the literary world. Poems and stories about assimilation, being the only Chinese American in a classroom and the struggles of exposing the world to Asian American literature are just a few of the topics discussed during Thursday’s “Aiiieeeee! An Anthology of Asian-American Writers” event. Aerospace engineering sophomore Jason Nguyen said he really connected to the speakers because he is half Chinese and half Vietnamese and learned a lot about his own history. “What I really liked is how

they made it really entertaining,” Nguyen said. “Like how everyone laughed along with it.” Hosted by the Center for Literary Arts, the event featured a reading of and conversation about the book, “Aiiieeeee! An Anthology of Asian-American Writers.” Published in 1974 by Frank Chin, Jeffery Paul Chan, Inada, Wong and other members of the Combined Asian American Resources Project, the anthology helped establish Asian American literature as a field. Inada, a Japanese American poet said the turnout LITERATURE | Page 2

sjsunews.com/spartan_daily

NEWS

TUESDAY, NOV. 26, 2019

LITERATURE Continued from page 1 surprised him and noted that his dad, who was an SJSU student in the ’30s, would be equally impressed. The age group of the listeners impressed Inada. He said times have changed since the ’70s and that the number of people of color in schools and the literary world is growing. The anthology was one of the first of its kind and was named after the limited self expression granted to Asian Americans in mainstream culture up to that point in time. The term Asian American was only about 5 years old when the anthology came out. The project helped reintroduce and posthumously republish older works by Asian American authors, such as John Okada’s “No-No Boy.” The 1957 novel tells the story of a Japanese American in the aftermath of the internment camps during World War II. Wong, a Chinese American author and scholar and co-author of the anthology said he and the other writers stumbled upon “No-No Boy” in a used book store. They bought the book for 50 cents and later found out it was

No professor even mentioned the name of an Asian American writer, nor did they have knowledge of any American writer of Asian ancestry. Shawn Wong Chinese American author and scholar

one of only 1,500 copies published. “The novel struck a chord in my search for Asian American writing,” Wong said. No Asian American literature classes were offered at UC Berkeley in the ’70s, he said. “No professor even mentioned the name of an Asian American writer, nor did they have knowledge of any American writer of Asian ancestry,” he said. When the anthology was published, the editors continued to ask publishers to reprint other classic Asian American literature, but were rejected. The editors got 3,000 copies of “No-No Boy” printed by campaigning and pulling together their money out of their own pockets. “Before the book even came off the press, the entire first

CHRISTIAN TRUJANO | SPARTAN DAILY

Marilyn Chin, a Chinese American poet, writer, activist and feminist, recites her poem, “How I Got That Name” during Thursday’s “Aiiieeeee! An Anthology of Asian-American Writers” event.

printing was sold out mostly to Japanese American readers,” Wong said. After Inada and Wong recounted the history of the anthology, poet Marilyn Chin gave the audience a brief slam poetry session as she recited three of her poems. Chin is a prominent Chinese American poet, writer, activist and feminist who touches on the topic of identity through her work. “And there I was, a wayward pink baby named after some trag-

ic white woman,” she said in her poem, “How I Got That Name.” Chin continued with various other poems including a Bessie Smith-blues style poem and a raunchy “bad girl” poem which mimics a haiku, but doesn’t follow the spiritual Zen aspect. Wong said it’s gratifying as a writer to see a younger generation of writers who know the history of Asian American literature. He and Inada both said it’s great to see the awareness and education

their anthology inspired within the Asian American community. “We know there are flaws in this book, we are very well aware of them,” Wong said. “We also know that the people who point out the flaws in this book also got their first knowledge of Asian American literature from this book.”

Follow Christian on Twitter @ChristianTruja2

Crime Blotter

MAURICIO LA PLANTE | SPARTAN DAILY

African-American studies chair and professor Theodorea Regina Berry (left) hugs one of her students, African-American studies senior Aarron Booker (right), at the 2019 Harambee Dinner Thursday in the Student Union Ballroom.

CULTURE Continued from page 1 student concerns in 2013, despite inviting the NAACP to condemn the hate crimes at SJSU, according to previous Spartan Daily reporting. “We have a lot of Black groups on campus that are extremely active and we’re all adults who are capable of speaking for ourselves,” SJSU alumna Sasha Bassett said during the 2013 NAACP press conference. “We shouldn’t need someone to come from off campus to preach down the wisdom that we already know.” The task force was active until 2017 and rallied for changes at SJSU. The culture and energy of Black student life was thriving during the most recent Harambee Dinner in 2016, Donahue said, but there still was no student success center. As students dined, Jahmal Williams, the program director for the African-American/Black Student Success Center, pointed to one number on screen: 1,515. That’s the number of Black students at SJSU, he explained. “I tell every Black student that this is an amazing time to be Black at San Jose State because of the trajectory we’re going in,” Williams said to students in the room. “I see us doing some amazing things together.” While on stage, Jahmal Williams an-

nounced the African-American/Black Student Success Center staff members plan to change the name and hours of the center and redecorate the wall art. “We want our center to reflect the entire person, the breadth of Blackness and we want to represent the whole diaspora,” Jahmal Williams said. The night also marked a formal goodbye for Theodorea Regina Berry, African-American studies chair and professor. Berry described how “walking while Black, shopping while Black, all the things we do that make us hypervisible” are issues her students said they experienced far beyond the classroom. But she compelled students to think about everybody else not on campus with them. “You’re here and that makes all the difference in the world because lots of folks want to be here and they can’t,” Berry said. Despite Berry’s farewell, many at the gathering saw the dinner as a continuing opportunity to welcome students into a growing community. “From my perspective as a freshman, to me everything is new,” economics freshman Mahaney said. “With the bringing [Harambee] back thing, that’s cool for everyone else, but from my perspective it’s just cool as a first year to get that experience.” Follow Mauricio on Twitter @mslaplantenews

Petty theft less than $950 - misdemeanor Nov. 19, 2:02 a.m. at Student Union Adult cited

Petty theft less than $950 - misdemeanor Nov. 22, 8:55 a.m. at Student Union Information only

Vandalism over $400 - felony Nov. 19, 1:50 p.m. at Martin Luther King Jr. Library Adult arrest

Suspended license while impaired Nov. 22, 10:59 p.m. at East Virginia Street/South Sixth Street Adult cited

Loud/unreasonable noise at university

Nov. 19, 10:44 p.m. at Student Union Information only

Deface with paint/etc. Nov. 23, 8 a.m. at West Garage Information only

Violation of presidential directives Nov. 20, 3:38 a.m. at Art Building Adult cited

Auto burglary Nov. 23, 4:50 p.m. at South garage Information only

Theft of personal property Nov. 20, 10:02 a.m. at Koret Center Information only

Recovered outside stolen Nov. 23, 10:52 p.m. at Field House Information only

Rape of drugged victim Nov. 22, 1:03 a.m at Theta Chi Fraternity Information only

Agency assist - Grand theft Nov. 23, 11:37 p.m. at East William Street/South Sixth Street Information only

Corrections On Thursday, Nov. 21, the Spartan Daily published a story titled, “High food prices prevent healthy eating habits,” in which the daily $1.50 increase should have been around $45 a month and around $547 a year. On Thursday, Nov. 21, the Spartan Daily published a story titled, “Pence isn’t the president Democrats want,” in which The Indianapolis Star was misidentified. On Thursday, Nov. 21, the Spartan Daily published a story titled, “Veterans see both advancements and regressions,” in which Kim Jong Un was misidentified. On Thursday, Nov. 21, the Spartan Daily published a story titled, “Protesters need clear mission,” in which the quote, “[There’s] this goofball notion that rebellions following the murder of people by police officers somehow don’t go anywhere and don’t work, and that’s complete bullshit,” should have been attributed to justice studies professor William Armaline. On Thursday, Nov. 21, the Spartan Daily published a story titled, “ ‘Friends’ wins the sitcom battle today,” in which Courteney Cox was misidentified. The Spartan Daily regrets these errors.

sjsunews.com/spartan_daily

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

TUESDAY, NOV. 26, 2019

The graduation process at The wheel of violence SJSU is poorly managed will continue to turn Dear editor, After 5 years of attending San Jose State University, I am finally submitting for graduation, which you would think to be a relatively simple process given how well SJSU students know the school wants us gone to make way for others, right? In my experience, each department has felt so entirely separate from one another that I am still unclear if my graduation paperwork has been completed 100% correctly, and I graduate this December. As a student with a major and two minors, you wouldn’t believe how many different ways each department handles their paperwork. Some departments handle everything via email but at the worst, you need multiple signatures, deliver them to multiple places, then seal it all in a confidential envelope to submit to the Registrar. While SJSU does have higherlevel advisers emailing you directly if there is anything you need to fix, they often don’t take the time to explain the issues they’ve outlined,

causing more confusion rather than addressing the concern. In the future SJSU should provide a checklist for graduating students by simply streamlining the needed paperwork, cohesively agreeing what each department needs to provide. Secondly, departments handling the process differently is a problem, if documents need to be signed and sealed, the school should require it of each department. Third, all of the paperwork should go to one final place, ensuring the student knows everything has been completed and turned in. Lastly, the fact that nothing is done online is just ridiculous considering the school itself should be teaching the newest methods of technology, so much time and confusion could be saved if the process was simplified and put online – for both students and the school itself.

Dear editor, Like Chris Core (“Assassinations do not prevent terrorism,” Spartan Daily, Nov. 19, 2019), I am also a skeptic. The U.S. assassination of al-Baghdadi, the ISIS leader, does not put an end to ISIS. No one likes ISIS; it does not fight for anyone or anything, for that matter, save for the Caliphate that no one in the region seems to want. Taking out the Caliph, therefore, very likely disrupted the ISIS network, perhaps even the momentum (if any of it was left), which is an accomplishment of sorts.

The article, however, does not mention Israel’s more recent targeted assassination of the Islamic Jihad chief, Baha Abu al-Ata, in Gaza. Here, that “assassinations do not prevent terrorism” is actually demonstrated by the ensuing cycle of violence (yet again). Here, anger is deep-rooted, irrespective of religious fanaticism. Terror beget terror. Sincerely, Ignat Ayzenberg Jewish studies program coordinator history lecturer

Sincerely, Mykala Castro design studies senior

stay connected FACEBOOK: spartandaily

INSTAGRAM: @spartandaily

TWITTER: @spartandaily

YOUTUBE: spartandailyYT

Have a story idea?

CLASSIFIEDS CROSSWORD PUZZLE

– send a letter to the editor – Letters to the Editor may be placed in the letters to the editor box in the Spartan Daily office in Dwight Bentel Hall, Room 209 or emailed to spartandaily@gmail.com to the attention of the Spartan Daily Opinion Editor. Letters to the Editor must contain the author’s name, year and major. Letters become property of the Spartan Daily and may be edited for clarity, grammar, libel and length. Only letters of 300 words or less will be considered for publication. Published opinions and advertisements do not necessarily reflect the views of the Spartan Daily, the School of Journalism and Mass Communication or SJSU. The Spartan Daily is a public forum.

SUDOKU PUZZLE Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains every digit from 1 to 9 inclusively.

JOKIN’ AROUND What concert costs 45 cents?

50 Cent featuring Nickleback.

SOLUTIONS

ACROSS 1. Blunders 6. Not closed 10. Anagram of “Crab” 14. Circumscribe 15. Russian parliament 16. Part of a foot 17. Stroll 18. Colored part of an eye 19. Operatic solo 20. Australian kingfisher 22. Near 23. Flee 24. Burdened 26. Afternoon nap 30. A very short time 32. Mentally prepare 33. Diaphanous 37. Winglike 38. Drench 39. Midmonth date 40. Muscular person 42. Bobbins 43. Embankment 44. Colorful wrap 45. Negate 47. Band booking 48. Killed

49. Minstrel 56. Relating to aircraft 57. Deputy 58. Body 59. Den 60. Frosts 61. Thick woolen fabric 62. Journey 63. In order to prevent 64. Positive pole DOWN 1. Antiaircraft gun 2. Large luxurious car 3. Part of an ear 4. Defraud 5. Avoiding detection 6. Ignominy 7. Happy cat sound 8. Arab chieftain 9. Speak through the nose 10. Branched lighting fixture 11. Eagle’s nest 12. Rule 13. Ho-hum 21. Bleat 25. Card with one symbol 26. Unwanted email

27. Small island 28. Nestling hawk 29. Fancy designs in wood 30. Brownish gray 31. Hurry 33. Pierce 34. Notion 35. Large brown seaweed 36. To be, in old Rome 38. Fit together tightly 41. Japanese apricot 42. Sailing competition 44. Bro or sis 45. Tired to the point of exhaustion 46. Creepy 47. Visitor 48. Sodium chloride 50. Type of cereal grass 51. Poems 52. Not up 53. Chocolate cookie 54. Previously owned 55. Was a passenger

11/21/2019

PLACE YOUR AD HERE Place your Classified Ads Online at Spartandaily. CampusAve.com

SpartanDailyAdvertising @gmail.com

Visit our office at DBH 213 Office Hours: 1:30 - 4:15 P.M.

sjsunews.com/spartan_daily

OPINION

TUESDAY, NOV. 26, 2019

Spartans, start supporting SJSU sports

ERNIE GONZALEZ | THE SPEAR ARCHIVES

Christian Trujano STAFF WRITER

College sports and fun are two things I never thought I would associate with each other. Especially when talking about San Jose State athletics. I always thought, “It’s college sports, who cares?” But with a fall semester filled with so many ups and downs in various sports including football, soccer and basketball, it’s hard not to pay attention to these teams. Why should you care about watching other

students playing sports that you could watch professionals play on TV? Especially at a commuter school such as SJSU where the bleachers and stands are mainly filled with parents and family members of the players and bored students. Despite lack of attendance, this was an exciting time for many fall teams including football. Early in the semester when the team headed

into its sixth game of the season, they led the NCAA in turnover differential. Yes, you heard right: SJSU actually led in something besides sucking. Since then, the team, (4-7, 1-6 MWC) struggled through each game, but the passion to win is still there. In its recent 38-35 loss to University of Nevada, Las Vegas, which sat dead last in the Mountain West and lost four consecutive games prior, SJSU still made the game fun to watch. Not because you expect SJSU to lose, but because sometimes it’s just fun to watch the team lose. It’s like an old

Political social media ads need regulation Chris Core STAFF WRITER

With the 2020 presidential election on the horizon, the social media giants are beginning to take extreme precautions when it comes to political advertising. Facebook cofounder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey have both received backlash over both platforms’ problems with political advertising. To counteract the criticism, Facebook announced it will not regulate any political advertisements, while Twitter will not allow any political ads to be on its site. These choices are drastically different, but neither seems to be a good solution to the problem. In October, Zuckerberg appeared in front of Congress to discuss the decision to not regulate political ads. During the hearings, Zuckerberg’s idea was especially scrutinized by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. She asked him if uploading wrong election dates or targeting ads at specific demographics of people would be

prohibited on Facebook, Zuckerberg responded, “I think lying is bad and I think if you were to run an ad that had a lie in it, that would be bad.” The point he was trying to make was that as long as the ads do not incite violence, they are fine. It is more so an issue regarding the morality of the candidate rather than a problem Facebook needs to address. Zuckerberg said he thinks that people should look into the ads that politicians run and if they see that someone is lying, then they shouldn’t vote for that person. Sounds simple and straightforward, but people are normally extremely lazy and will not look into these ads, thus making all the lies their truth. Facebook’s plan is extremely foolish and allows “fake news” to be spread even more than it is now on the site. Twitter’s plan on the other hand is ignorant for the opposite reason. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey tweeted, “While internet advertising is incredibly powerful and very effective for

commercial advertisers, that power brings significant risks of politics where it can be used to influence votes to affect the lives of millions.” Originally this decision seemed like the safe route to travel, but conservatives were quick to criticize the choice. Brad Parscale, Trump’s digital campaign manager, said that “This is yet another attempt to silence conservatives since Twitter knows President Donald Trump has the most sophisticated online platform.” Parscale’s gripe is valid, considering the popularity of the president’s Twitter. Beyond just conservative opinions, the United States Supreme Court has supported political speech as one of the most important to defend. In Citizens United v. Federal Election Committee, the Supreme Court decided “The majority maintained that political speech is indispensable to a democracy, which is no less true because the speech comes from a corporation.” The court’s ruling holds the importance of political speech, which can go hand in hand with political ads themselves. Follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisCore24

meme; you expect it but watching it again still adds to the humor. Despite a season filled with a bunch of losses, the team did have some shining moments. Although SJSU lost to the University of Hawaii, SJSU still managed to put on an impressive game. The team had its most effective running attack during conference play, led by senior running back DeJon Packer. The Spartan scored on runs of 6 and 20 yards in the first half and finished with a career-best 112 rushing yards. SJSU needed to win their final two games of the season, but because of the loss against UNLV

on Saturday, the team is not eligible for a bowl game. That means the home game against Fresno State this Saturday should be an exciting match as the Spartans look to end the season on a better note. With ESPN2 televising the game, the pressure is on to take that final home game win. Now you tell me that isn’t some exciting stuff. Granted, the entertainment doesn’t really compare with NFL games. But college sports are becoming more popular than you might think. The National Football Foundation and the College Hall of Fame found that in the 2018 college football season, millions of fans across the country followed college football. This included 56% of U.S. adults who called themselves college football fans in a Gallup Poll, a higher percentage than fans of professional baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer. According to the National Football Foundation, more than 163 million fans watched 77.6 billion minutes of college football games on ESPN and its family of networks during the 2018 regular season. But, football isn’t the only sport to pay attention to at SJSU. The SJSU women’s soccer team also stood out

among the many sports this semester. Its season came to a heartbreaking end in a loss to the University of New Mexico by one goal in overtime. The Spartans finished the season 7-9-4 after making their fifthstraight Mountain West championship tournament. This wouldn’t mean much to those who didn’t follow the entire season, but to those who did, the loss follows a season of wins in the final minutes that made for amazing games. There is still an opportunity to begin your journey into appreciating college sports with women’s basketball. Coming off four consecutive wins, the team is back and eager to win. The team improved its winning percentage to .714, which is the first time it went above .500 since 2015. The Spartans are now 5-2 overall and have many players scoring double-digit figures every game, which makes for entertaining games. So take some time out of your day, take the light rail a little later than you usually would or watch some games from your laptop. Who knows, you might end up rooting for your school. Follow Christian on Twitter @ChristianTruja2

sjsunews.com/spartan_daily

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

TUESDAY, NOV. 26, 2019

My cold heart melted for ‘Frozen 2’ By Chris Core

It will not dazzle audiences like the original. However, it will supply some mindless laughs to go along with some heartfelt moments.

STAFF WRITER

The kingdom of Arendelle has flourished under the leadership of its new Queen Elsa. The land is nearly perfect with everyone living their lives happily except for the leader herself who can’t sleep at night because of a faint singing she hears calling her. “Frozen 2” is the sequel to the Disney animated-hit “Frozen” and very much feels like an extension of the first but lacks the catchy musical scores or new-film feeling that made the original so popular. This is not to say the second film is bad, because it is very enjoyable, but do not expect to be blown away by a groundbreaking movie. “Frozen 2” works out well for those who have not seen the first film because it can stand alone quite well and even within the film, the characters do a fantastic job of summarizing the events of the first “Frozen.” The movie is structured like an animated musical that has all major plot points emphasized by a song. If someone dies, they sing. If someone is happy, they sing. It’s a whole lot of singing, which isn’t necessarily bad, especially when the film caters some of the songs to an older audience. There is a specific scene where the character Kristoff sings an ’80s era

PHOTO COURTESY OF DISNEY

Princess Anna (left) and Queen Elsa star in Disney’s ‘Frozen 2,’ which premiered in theaters on Friday.

movie review

ditty that is highlighted by a nod to the 1974 album Directed by: cover of “Queen II,” which “Frozen 2” Chris Buck, was totally rad. Jennifer Lee It is references such as Rating: Starring: this and jokes targeted at Kristen Bell adults throughout the one Genre: hour and 50-minute run Drama/Fantasy time that make the film so enjoyable and relatable – for not only kids, but the parents who bring them to the company and this title giggles followed in other the theater. is no stranger to it. scenes from children. The Disney charm has Laughs constantly filled All around everyone in existed since the creation of the theater from adults and the theater seemed to be

having a great time, so the movie did its job well. The all around likeable nature of the film makes it difficult to find downsides, but there are a handful. The plot itself is fine, but toward the end of the film things get very confusing and rushed. I was actually lost and hoped I could follow the plot better than the 6-year-old behind me. The movie itself did not

feel forced as a sequel, but the predictable ending sure did. Once I was able to look past the confusion that clouded my thoughts, I knew exactly where the film was headed. In hindsight, this is fine since it is in fact a film for kids, but Disney is better than this and has proven that time and time again. In the end, “Frozen 2” is a lot of fun for just about everyone. It will not dazzle audiences like the original. However, it will supply some mindless laughs to go along with some heartfelt moments. Do not expect to walk out and feel like you just saw “The Lion King” for the first time, but know that it’ll entertain you nonetheless.

Follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisCore24

sjsunews.com/spartan_daily

SPORTS

TUESDAY, NOV. 26, 2019

Senior Day ends in bittersweet defeat By Chris Core & Brendan Cross STAFF WRITERS

The San Jose State women’s volleyball team dropped its last two games of the season on Thursday and Saturday night, losing 3-2 in sets to No. 11 Colorado State University and 3-0 to the University of Wyoming. The Spartans’ (10-19, 5-13 MWC) first match of the weekend was against the Rams (28-1, 18-0 MWC) Thursday night where SJSU lost in five sets. The Rams came in undefeated in conference play, riding a 26-game winning streak. Although Colorado State had a lot of success during the season, SJSU head coach Jolene Shepardson had high hopes for the matchup. “We beat them in the past,” Shepardson said. “The last two times they’ve been here we’ve beat them in five, so I think they were already a bit nervous and on their heels. And it allowed us to come out and supply that pressure repeatedly.” The Spartans came ready to upset Colorado State, starting out in the first set strong winning 25-18. “The whole team was ready to go after them and not really caring if they are No. 11 or not,” senior outside hitter Fernanda Vido said. The fast start by SJSU was followed by back-toback set loses, though, with a 25-17 defeat in the second set and another loss in the third set 25-22.

BRENDAN CROSS | SPARTAN DAILY

Senior outside hitter Fernanda Vido goes up for the spike during the Spartans’ match with the University of Wyoming Saturday.

The Spartans refused to give up and battled for a 25-17 win in the fourth set. Freshman outside hitter Makalya Lewis shined throughout the matchup, putting up 13 kills and 16 digs in the match. “I wanted them to serve me the ball,” Lewis said. “I just kept saying through the net, ‘Just serve me the ball, I’ll take it.’ I didn’t care, I was going to do whatever I had to do to get the pass.” The final set was too much for the Spartans though, as they lost 15-11.

The loss did not discourage the senior players from looking forward to the final game of their SJSU careers. “I honestly just want to have fun and build more memories with my team,” Vido said. “It’s my fifth year and I really love all my teammates and I want to play for them and finish on a high note.” The Spartans had another tough test against Wyoming (21-8, 16-2 MWC), winners of seven games in a row. SJSU held tough in two of the three sets, dropping the first 27-25

and the third 26-24, but ultimately fell short. The loss didn’t derail the postgame festivities, however, as five seniors were honored after their last game donning the blue and gold. Middle blocker Thaliana Grajeda, setter Kaitlynn Zdroik and Vido played in the game while outside hitter Caitlin Bettenay and middle blocker Laura Parts did not hit the court. “There’s for sure a lot of emotions going on, especially being here for four years, it’s been a long ride,” Parts said.

“Everything I got from here has been making me the person I am today.” Vido said that her five years at SJSU went by quickly and that she’s proud of her team. “Being a [Division I] student-athlete is definitely not easy,” Vido said. “There’s a lot of ups and downs and it’s amazing . . . the feeling of accomplishment that I feel and I’m sure a lot of the seniors feel.” Shepardson said the day was bittersweet but that she and the team are looking forward to the next season, despite losing the seniors.

“I think we can knock some people down next year, but we gotta earn it,” Shepardson said. “We had a lot of good talent in the gym this year and we didn’t earn those matches so we have to come with the right attitude into next preseason.” The Spartans finished the season ninth in the 11-team Mountain West Conference.

Follow the Spartan Daily on Twitter @SpartanDaily

Basallo lights up San Diego for 33 points By Jozy Prabhu COPY EDITOR

The San Jose State women’s basketball team extended its winning streak to four games after defeating the University of San Diego Saturday, 88-82, off the back of sophomore point guard Ayzhiana Basallo’s 33 points and 9 assists. “It was a good win,” junior forward Tyra Whitehead said. “It was a win that we really, really wanted.” T h e SPARTANS g a m e was a tale of two halves, h e a d c o a c h J a m i e TOREROS Craighead said. T h e t e a m picked it up in the second half because she told the team during halftime to adjust to how the Toreros played and how the referees were calling the game Craighead said. “I felt like if we could just eliminate those second-chance points and not turn the ball over that maybe we could see a change in the second half,” Craighead said. “Those are things that you as a team can control. You can box out.” The first half was rough for the Spartans, as the

88 82

JOZY PRABHU | SPARTAN DAILY

Sophomore point guard Ayzhiana Basallo (left) faces oﬀ against San Diego senior center Leticia Soares (right).

Toreros led by 7 points, 31-24, and built their advantage from having 11 more points off of turnovers and 12 second-chance points from offensive rebounds. “It was a dogfight and it challenged our toughness, and in the end, we won. So it was ugly but it was a win,” Basallo said. Basallo spoke about the team’s strategy in the second half, which ultimately propelled it to the win. “Coach got on us and said we needed to get stops, we needed to get on the boards,” Whitehead said.

It lit a fire in me to play harder because I knew they were gonna throw a punch, and I needed to be able to take the punch and throw one back. Tyra Whitehead junior foward

“That’s a big part of our game, is those rebounds, which is mostly my fault. So that was hard, rebounding second-chance points.” Basallo also recognized the team’s weaknesses during the first

half of the game. “We were just giving them open looks, [so] we tried to tighten our defense up,” Basallo said. “[We] made little adjustments on offense and that’s how we went and took the lead.”

Basallo scored a season-high 33 points. As a result of her aggression, she went to the line 18 times and made 16 of her free throws. In the second half, San Diego head coach Cindy Fisher got ejected from the game for yelling at the referees as the Spartans went on a run. “I know it was a downfall for them and that’s when momentum changes, so that was what I was thinking,” Basallo said. Whitehead knew this would give the team renewed motivation to

win, and knew they’d have to combat that resolve. “It lit a fire in me to play harder because I knew they were gonna throw a punch, and I needed to be able to take the punch and throw one back,” Whitehead said. Compared to the previous game against the Buffalo Bulls, Craighead knew the Toreros would be a more difficult challenge for the Spartans. “We took care of the ball whereas we didn’t turn it over against Buffalo, and it was more about getting to their shooters,” Craighead said. “But this is a grind-it-out team, it always has been.” Last year, Craighead said the Toreros out-rebounded SJSU by 40. “I’ll take this minus 7,” Craighead said. Craighead also commented on the shots made, with SJSU taking 51 shots while the Torero’s took 77. “The stat; that’s crazy to me,” Craighead said. “That’s a big shot differential, to think that we obviously shot the ball really well.” After the game, Craighead expressed pride in her team. “I think we have a really good basketball team,” Craighead said. “I think that’s what we’re learning.” SJSU hits the road to take on Cal State Bakersfield on Friday. Follow Jozy on Twitter @prabhujoanna

elespartanonoticias.com

EL ESPARTANO NOTICIAS

MARTES 26 DE NOV. 2019

OPINIÓN

Recuerden la historia del asentamiento Mary Ayala REPORTERA

Siendo mexicana, la fiesta del Día de Acción de Gracias es especial para mi porque es un día que celebramos la familia y la vida. Nací y viví parte de mi vida en la ciudad de Pénjamo, Guanajuato, México. Aun recuerdo mi primera vez festejando el Día de Acción de Gracias durante el año 2004, que fue el año que vine a los Estados Unidos. Tenía siete años y no tenía idea de lo que hacia este dia tan especial, porque en México no se celebra y tampoco me habían enseñado sobre la importancia que tiene en los Estados Unidos. Recuerdo que fue un día repleto de sonrisas y todos mis tíos, tías, primos y amistades estaban presentes en un pequeño hogar. De comer, habían tamales, pozole, champurrado y atole. El significado del Día de Acción de Gracias que aprendimos en la escuela se relaciona con un evento que tomó lugar en la plantación de Plymouth en Massachusetts durante el año 1621. La historia va así. Los nativos de la tribu Wampanoag le enseñaron a los colonos españoles cómo pescar. Les dieron

semillas para sembrar ya que al principio, la colonia de Plymouth no tenía suficiente comida para alimentar a su gente. En 1621, los colonos británicos organizaron un banquete para celebrar una cosecha exitosa durante el otoño. Esta celebración fue un resultado de la ayuda que los nativos de la tribu Wampanoag le dieron a los colonos españoles, según la Universidad de Illinois. Realmente, la historia de este día festivo es mucho más oscura de lo que ilustra el sistema educativo de los Estados Unidos. Aunque no hay tanta evidencia debido a que tales encuentros fueron durante el siglo decimoséptimo, hay teorías que el Día de Acción de Gracias fue establecido por los colonos británicos después de haber matado a cienes de hombres, m u j e r e s y niños nativos. Este día aún es recordado por gente indígena que se reúne cada año en

ILUSTRACIÓN POR NAC

HAELA FLORES

el monumen monumento de Chief Massasoit d de la tribu Wampanoag en la Wampano rroca ro occaa d de Plymouth paraa lamentar la matanza teórica mata de los seres indígenos que ind ayudaron le colonos a los l españoles, según The New segú York Times. A pesar de historia y la controversia que carga día eeste f e s t i v o, eeste día es celebrado por familias diversas divers rsa a través de rs Norteamérica. Nortea e am ea El día d ía festivo es reconocido reconoci i do d como un genocidio cultural genocid dio por algunos allgunos y ha causa tristeza para muchos, triste e z a par pero o los latinos latin tienen un significado sign g nificado más gn m positivo para pa ara el Dia de d Acción de Gracias. G racias. La verdad ees que nuestro festejo no tiene nada que ver con los colonos españoles de 1621. Hemos una parte de adquirido un la cultura americana, interpretandola con interpretand costumbres para nuestros cost nuestro propio darle nues propósito. Jullian Rodríguez, estudiante de un estu de segundo año aviación, pertenece aviació a una un de estas familias latinas. famili Los padres de Rodríguez son Rodr Puerto Rico. de P Él es segunda

generación americana. “Lo que hace el Día de Acción de Gracias especial es pasar el tiempo con tus seres queridos y disfrutar ese tiempo que están juntos,” Rodriguez dijo. Varias personas tienen experiencias diferentes en este día festivo y muchos celebran con tradiciones de su propia cultura. Para Rodríguez, quien tiene raíces puertorriqueñas, el Dia de Acción de Gracias es para convivir junto a su familia y alejarse del trabajo y la escuela. En su hogar, es un día para disfrutar una cena que incluye un pavo con relleno, salsa de arándano, huevos a la diabla y tarta de calabaza. Rodríguez no piensa que su familia celebra el Día de Acción de Gracias por su papel en la historia americana. “Oh no, nunca,” Rodriguez dijo. En cambio, Rodríguez y su familia le han dado su propio significado a la celebración de este dia. El Dia de Accion de Gracias, o el Día del Pavo, como le llama mi familia, es un día festivo de la cultura estadounidense y también de muchos hogares latinos en este país. Nosotros los latinos tenemos nuestra propia interpretación de este día sin olvidar de incluir elementos de donde venimos.

Sigue Mary en Instagram @maryy.ayalaa

NEGOCIO

Futbolista convertido en propietario de bebidas Por Andrea Briseño REPORTERA

Después de que terminó el juego de fútbol, los espectadores se fueron y las luces se atenuaron y una oferta sorpresa le esperaba a Leonardo Hernández. Mientras jugaba el deporte en Mount Pleasant High School en San José en 2010, Dimas Hernández, el padre de Leonardo, contactó un reclutador para que viniera a ver a su hijo jugar. “Creo que él vio cualidades en mí que podía jugar profesional,” Hernández dijo. Jugando fútbol profesional para Leonardo Hernández fue más que un sueño. Se hizo realidad cuando tenía 16 años. La Liga Mexicana le ofreció a Hernández la oportunidad de jugar fútbol para el equipo piloto de Toluca. A pesar de ser menor de edad, sus padres permitieron a Hernández que se mudara a la Ciudad de México donde vivió temporalmente con un tío. “Tenía un tío allí y él me enseñó cómo pasar del punto ‘a’ al punto ‘b’ al principio,” Hernández dijo. “Después, tuve que hacerlo yo mismo.” Hernandez creó su propia mezcla de michelada, y en los veranos cuando regresaba a San José, vendía cervezas heladas y decoradas con salsa picante, camarones, pepino y cebolla. “Me gustaba preparar micheladas con mi familia, en fiestas familiares.” Hernández dijo. “A toda la gente le gustaba.” Pero la vida de Hernández cambió cuando se lastimó su pierna. Hernández dijo que a menudo comenzaba a jugar sin estirarse y sin calentar. Por eso, un día cuando se fue a práctica, solo tomó una patada para que se lastimara. “Mi carrera se acabó en el fútbol,” Hernández dijo que pensó en ese momento. Después de su lesión, Hernández voló de regreso a San José para recuperarse. Sus gerentes le dijeron que regresara dentro de cuatro meses. Hernández miraba sus amigos jugar fútbol para Evergreen Valley College y quería ser parte del equipo.

Hay mucha gente que no puede regresar a su país y probar lo que es una buena michelada. Pero una prueba de Leo’s Micheladas Mix es como una probada de México. Leonardo Hernández Dueño de la compañia Lot’s Miches, LLC

Cuando Hernández mejoró, se unió al equipo y comenzó a jugar de nuevo. Consciente de que necesitaba regresar a México dentro de cuatro meses, Hernández desafió las reglas y se quedó en San José para completar la temporada de fútbol. Era buen jugador y podía hacer lo que quería, Hernández dijo que pensó cuando decidió violar su contrato. Hernández de nuevo empezó vender micheladas en reuniones familiares y de amigos mientras jugaba fútbol para Evergreen Valley College. Un toque único a su mezcla original de michelada es que no contiene tomates, para atraer a los clientes que no les gusta ese sabor. Muchos clientes comenzaron a felicitar a Hernández por sus bebidas, incluso animándolo a que comenzara su propio negocio vendiendo este producto. Sin embargo, después de que la temporada de fútbol terminó en Evergreen Valley College, Hernández voló a México para continuar su carrera en Toluca. Después de dos días de práctica, Hernández dijo que los entrenadores le dijeron que tenía que irse del equipo por violar su contrato previamente. Cuando su tiempo con Toluca llegó a

ANDREA BRISEÑO | EL ESPARTANO NOTICIAS

Leonardo Hernández, un futbolista anterior y ahora creador de Leosmicheladas Mix, entrega su mezcla de michelada embotellada a una tienda de 7-11 en San José.

fin, Hernández regresó a San José y comenzó a trabajar en construcción como su padre. “Después con el tiempo me fue afectando mucho, porque fue lo que realmente quería ser en mi vida,” Hernández dijo. A través del trabajo en construcción, Hernández se dio cuenta de que lo quería más en su vida. Animado por el dinero que ganaba con sus bebidas, él se dedicó a desarollar su pequeño negocio. Ahorraba cada dólar que recaudaba con su venta de bebidas para que su negocio fuera legítimo. Hernández estableció Lot’s Miches, LLC en abril. Sin embargo, una llamada telefónica inesperada de un reclutador le ofreció a Hernández la oportunidad de jugar fútbol una vez más para La Piedad en Michoacán, México. El dinero y la pasión no eran iguales comparado con las del equipo de segunda

división, donde entrenan los jugadores para jugar al nivel profesional. Hernández era mayor en edad y quería ganar más dinero entonces dejó de jugar y invirtió en su negocio. La mezcla de michelada se vende por botella en sabor original, mango y tamarindo. Se puede encontrar en tiendas en San José y ciudades circundantes, como Mi Ranchito Market, El Dorado Food and Liquor y 7-11. También toma ordenes por Instagram @Leosmicheladas, donde publica más información y fotos de sus productos y servicios. “Hay mucha gente que no puede regresar a su país y probar lo que es una buena michelada,” Hernández dijo. “Pero una prueba de Leosmicheladas Mix es como una probada de México. Sigue Andrea en Twitter @Andrea_Briseno_

sjsuaccessmagazine.wordpress.com

ACCESS

TUESDAY, NOV. 26, 2019

Meet the cosplayers of SJSU Words by Hugo Vera

School Host Club” comics is a shy, butt beautiful schoolgirl trying to navigate thee social struggles of high school while going on n mischievous adventures. An avid anime fan, Medina said she’s lovedd reading and watching these characters developp over the years, which is why she dresses up ass them at events such as FanimeCon. For other cosplayers, their physical abilityy to resemble a varietyy of superheroes p iss what w inspires them to cosplay. “ “My favorite characters to coosplay as are Spider-Man, cosplay Bru uce Lee and Ultraman,” Bruce an nimation senior Justin animation Bru uce Lee said. Bruce “ “I love being these ch haaracters because as a kid, characters th heyy all inspired me to be who I they am m right now. I relate a lot with them th hem and my body physique matches m tches with the character.” mat

erhaps as far back as 10 years ago, it would have been considered social al suicide to dress up as a belovedd comic book or pop culture character on anyy day that wasn’t Halloween. Today, the growing trend of “cosplay” has as spawned a whole new culture. Cosplayers unleash their creativity as theyy build and alter costumes to resemble theirr favorite fictional characters. They dress as everyone from Iron Man to artist Bob Rosss and some even blend genres together as sevidenced by the growing theme of Star Warsinspired Disney princesses. h Around San Jose State, annual events such n as Silicon Valley Comic Con and FanimeCon m draw hundreds of participants, many of whom come dressed to flex their finest cosplay. Analise Medina transforms from a forensicc science senior to a magical crime-fightingg heroine and a teenage adventure seeker when n PHOTOS COURTESY OF she cosplays as her favorite anime characters. JUSTIN BRUCE LEE “Initially my friends were into it, but now it’s become more of an outlet of expression for me,” Medina said. Some of Medina’s favorite characters to cosplay as include anime icons such as Chise Hatori and Haruhi Fujioka. In their respective comics, Hatori and Fujioka have wide eyes, slender forms and their hair is brightly colored. When cosplaying as the characters, Medina sports either navy blue or sapphire wigs and she alters everyday skirts and shirts to resemble that of Japanese school uniforms. “The biggest cosplay challenges were learning to sew and read sewing patterns,” said Medina. “Just being self-taught in general was the challenge.” Through the manga comic “Ancient Magus’ Bride,” Hatori has become a symbol of female empowerment as readers have seen her grow from a child slave to sorcerer’s apprentice and eventually a magical crime-fighting heroine herself. Though not as dramatic as Hatori, the character Fujioka from the “Ouran High

It’s without question that Lee epitomizes those he cosplays. In addition to being named after legendary action actor Bruce Lee, he is trained in southern shaolin, wushu, wing chun and judo. His chiseled physique gives him a resemblance to Tom Holland’s SpiderMan, who Lee often cosplays. For Medina, the concept of relating to the characters you dress up as isn’t foreign. As a longtime member of the SJSU Poets and Writers Coalition, Medina has developed an affinity for manga and other anime comics that are rich in quality storytelling and character development. Another component that differentiates cosplay from merely dressing up as a character is the cosplayer’s ability to design and construct the most wonderfully ludicrous costumes. At the Silicon Valley Comic Con which runs every mid-August, cosplayers arrive with everything from Iron Man suits with light-up features to 7-foot cardboard swords made to look like the fictional

k keyblades from the “Kingdom Hearts” video ggame series. For even the most devout cosplayers, tthe engineering of such costumes can be a m major struggle. “I tried to do an armor build from scratch oonce. Big mistake. I was also making blazers,” ssaid Medina. SJSU student cosplayers such as Medina aand Lee are not outliers. The interest of cosplaying on and around ccampus has only intensified with the rrelease of blockbusters “Captain Marvel” aand “Avengers: Endgame” earlier this year. T The growing demand for screen-accurate m materials has prompted art materials rretailers such as Joann Fabrics to sell entire ccollections devoted to cosplay. Cosplay, which at one point might h have been considered a social taboo, is u undisputedly becoming a national pastime tto participants such as Lee and Medina. With a growing number of cosplay groups such as tthe Star Wars fan group, 501st Legion, it’s bbecome the norm to see people in exotic ccostumes at any array of conventions. “When I wear costumes, it makes me feel llike the characters I love,” Lee said. The constraints of everyday life confine u us to only one version of ourselves. But for tthose who cosplay, you can channel the eenergy of your most beloved characters from movies and television and in the process you can turn mundane real life into your own superhero story.

Follow hugo on Twitter @HugoV _ II Background photos courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Mariachi OroAzul Six SJSU students bond over a love of traditional Mexican music Words and photos by Nora Ramírez MATTHEW CARSON

oulful cries, resonant singing and strumming of guitars can be heard within the walls of the School of Music and Dance building at San Jose State. The traditional Mexican music is played by Mariachi Oroazul, the first student-run mariachi group in the history of the Spartan community. Founded in spring 2016 by a group of college friends who shared their love for music, Oroazul had a rocky start. “We were college students and had to focus on our own responsibilities,” said Jose Sanchez, one of the founding members. Now the current director of Oroazul, Sanchez has managed to guide the organization and book various events and concerts. “It didn’t fully take off until last semester, we had our first concert and that was great,” he said. This semester, Oroazul gained new members. Some are new to the genre, but others bring years of experience under their belts. Accounting sophomore Alfonso Lopez has been playing the guitar since middle school. He has since learned to play the “guitarron” which is the bass for mariachi, and the “vihuela,” a small

JOSÉ B. SANCHEZ

BETSABE LOPEZ

ANGEL ORTEGA

acoustic guitar. ALLEN Thanks to a flyer he saw posted PACHECO around the SJSU campus, he decided to join Oroazul. “They were having a concert, I culture so they can have a little thought ‘Oh wow, I’m going. I’ll try to join,’ ” he said. “They were having a taste of it, to me that’s amazing and I just love people who are As a member of Oroazul, concert, I thought open-minded and can appreciate Alfonso Lopez is amazed by the fact that they are just a ‘Oh wow, I’m going. I’ll other cultures as well,” Betsabe Lopez said. few rehearsals in and they’ve Callie Welch, a music already been booked to try to join.’ ” education senior, decided to perform. join Oroazul because of her “It’s special, no one Alfonso Lopez friendship with Sanchez. [Oroazul’s members] has accounting sophomore played in mariachi for 30 This is the first time she has years,” Alfonso Lopez said. “As played in a mariachi band. She students, we all pitch ideas, unlike claims that the hardest thing she other mariachis.” makes Oroazul special. has encountered was picking up on Psychology sophomore Betsabe Betsabe Lopez likes the fact that the stylistic nuances while watching Lopez joined Oroazul because Oroazul musicians take the time other members naturally playing. Alfonso Lopez pushed her to get to learn something so unique to Welch is the only non-Latinx out of her comfort zone. Mexican culture. musician in Oroazul, however, that She had previous musical “Not many people are super hasn’t stopped her from playing experience with her high school fans of cultural stuff and I really Mexican mariachi classics such as mariachi group, but has been singing appreciate how they take their time “Cielito Lindo” and “Si Nos Dejan.” since she was in kindergarten. to do something like mariachi,” she “I’ve felt welcomed, absolutely,” “I like singing and I feel like said. she said. that’s what really made me join Director Sanchez said that In the upcoming years, its the mariachi, that’s where my real Oroazul is open to anyone who members hope to see Oroazul is passionate about music and available for students as a class, passion is,” Betsabe Lopez said. The professionalism, stage willing to learn the art of mariachi, not just an organization. Mariachi is currently not an available course delivery and passion for keeping regardless of ethnic background. “I love bringing people to my at SJSU. Mexican folk music alive is what

ALFONSO LOPEZ

“Even if they don’t have experience in music and you just want to sing, it would be nice to have a beginning course, advanced or intermediate,” Alfonso Lopez said. “Musical schools are very strongly just classical and jazz so folk traditions would be great to see as a program that has funding,” Welch said. Alfonso Lopez said he believes it is important to have student organizations like Oroazul to help represent the Mexican population on campus. “For me, it’s like starting a community with the people that share or have the same passion that you have,” he added. Mariachi music is very meaningful to these Spartan musicians, as tradition and culture are embedded in the music, lyrics and classy charro outfits.

Follow Nora on Twitter @noraramirez27