Online Club Events Provide Socializing While Social Distancing
(Photo Credit: Freepik)
By Kadija Doumbia
“We try to have Zoom calls every week with my members on a group basis,” said Lehman club president of the African & Caribbean Association Anna-Maria Jack, senior anthropology and Earth Science major. “I think these events help students with de-stressing and being connected with one another. Even though it is not an ideal situation, the events at least allow us to stay connected at these times.”
Club life is an important aspect of being a student at Lehman. Based on statistics from the Lehman website, an estimated 2,000 out of 14,787 students belong to a club. Lehman has over 50 student clubs available, based on a range of social, personal hobby, academic and religious interests. Club events were typically held in person for both club members and non-affiliated students to attend. But with Zoom now being the new normal, only a few clubs at Lehman have made the transition to hosting online events. As COVID-19 quarantine continues into its fourth month, online club activities give students the chance to reconnect with others.
The Intervarsity Christian Fellowship Club (CCSD) and the Muslim Student Association (MSA) conduct weekly recurring events, with the CCSD hosting online evening Zumba classes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and the MSA hosting Tuesday evening trivia sessions.
The Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA) have also been conducting weekly events in addition to providing students professional lessons and providing business opportunities.
“We’ve talked about resumes and interview tips,” said 21-year-old grad student Sarah Persaud who is pursuing a master’s degree in accounting. “During the past months we’ve advertised on our social media about main events such as our Live Mock Interview and Budgeting Workshop.”
“My favorite aspect about ALPFA’s virtual club events was that it was easier to access professionals in Fortune 500 companies who could easily attend our events from their living room,” Persaud continued. “Our members gave feedback that the weekly meetings have helped them at the beginning of Quarantine. Our members were happy to be able to see each other and engage in conversations.”
According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, video conferencing is one of the richer forms of telecommunication since it provides a window onto speakers’ environments and facial expressions while reconnecting those separated by different locations or job times.
Nonetheless, most social clubs at Lehman have closed as a result of the spread of COVID-19 reaching New York City. Subsequently, the campus has been closed in an effort to reduce the spread of the virus.
“COVID-19 pretty much ended the nutrition club. We had many things planned for the nutrition club but because of the unexpected virus we had to cancel all of our events,” said 21-year-old senior club president of the Nutrition Club and dietetics, foods, and nutrition major Adrian Henriquez.
With the prospect of distance learning extending into the fall semester, according to CNN, existing clubs at Lehman may now have to make the transition to online hosting if they want to keep their activities going into the next semester and beyond. In the meantime, online socializing and video conferencing continues to be a means of keeping Lehman students together, while they remain apart.
Pandemic Fallout Leaves More Students Hungry
By Kadija Doumbia
Economic hardship from COVID-19 policies puts more students at risk of going hungry, making an already present problem worse. About 48 percent of CUNY and 55 percent of Lehman students had experienced food insecurity within the past 30 days, according to the Bronx Free Press.
“We do not have concrete numbers of how much the COVID-19 crisis is affecting food insecurity among Lehman students,” said David Charcape, Assistant Director for the Office of Campus Life. “However, testimonials from students using the pantry tells us that they are struggling to make ends meet more than ever before.”
“Before COVID-19, I was going to the Lehman pantry every week, which was a great help. Thanks to the Lehman pantry, in the time that I have been studying, I have not had a food insecurity problem,” nutrition major Mary Morfe told the Meridian.
“Before the Coronavirus happened in New York, we always had students coming into the food pantry,” said Suzette Ramsundar, associate of campus life. “When we started this food pantry, we had about 50 students per week. Late last year, our numbers really increased to where we had 80 to 100 students per week.”
A 2018 survey from the Hope Center reported that Lehman has a higher than average food insecurity rate, with 75 percent of Lehman students facing food insecurity, and 61 percent unable to afford a well-balanced meal. This means that even before the pandemic, students often skipped meals to stretch their limited food supply into the next day.
Now with increased unemployment rates comes greater need.
"I live in a household of five, so it never covers all of us, but if I am cooking just for me it lasts over a week. I go whenever I really need it, maybe once a month,” said 21-year-old sophomore studio art major Sharaah Aquino. “Me and my mother work in beauty salons, which are now closed, so we did lose our jobs temporarily. My dad fell really sick earlier this year so he’s been out of his job for a while.”
Since March 17, Lehman’s Food Bank has changed its schedule to maintain social distancing, with students now only allowed to come by appointment on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Prior to the change, the food bank was open three days a week, on Mondays from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., and Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Student volunteers and workers still work for the food bank remotely.
“I usually work for the food bank during the semester as a paid position, not a volunteer,” said political science major Alicia Rodriguez-Allie. “However, due to the circumstances surrounding COVID-19, I have been working for the food bank from home assisting students virtually in support of the employees who are still going in person."
As of April 9, the Lehman Food Bank announced via e-mail that their physical pantry service was switching to a digital service by offering students e-gift cards to supermarkets such as Target and registrations to Fresh Direct’s five-borough food drive. This lets students shop for food online and receive it to their homes, rather than taking the trek to the campus to get their food.
Students can also apply for greater relief sources such as the Lehman Cares Student Emergencies Fund and the Carroll and Milton Petrie Student Emergency Grant Fund, which gives up to $500 to cover basic needs. Multiple relief sources also let them know when the food is available in their neighborhoods.
“It is a fulfilling job knowing that what I am doing is directly benefiting the students,” said Rodriguez-Allie.
40 Years Later, Stephen King’s ‘The Shining’ Sequel is a Chilling Scare
By Kadija Doumbia
Nearly 40 years after the release of the cult classic 1980 horror film, “The Shining” (directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Jack Nicholson), its sequel, “Doctor Sleep,” does a fantastic job of balancing the “original book” story while maintaining the same eerie tone, horror sensibility and creative liberties that helped “The Shining” reach its notoriety 39 years ago.
The original film is based on the 1977 book by critically acclaimed horror fiction author, Stephen King, and has been distributed worldwide since its U.S. release; it was registered to the National Film Registry last year for its cultural influence.
In “The Shining,” Jack Torrance is a writer recovering from alcoholism, who applies for a job at the isolated Overlook Hotel and moves in with his family. At the hotel, strange occurrences cause Jack to slowly lose his sanity.
Doctor Sleep movie poster. (Photo Credit: IMDb)
“Doctor Sleep” takes place 31 years after the original movie’s premiere. The new film also adds some of its own flare, which results in an easy to watch stand-alone movie. It follows the story of Dan Torrance, Jack’s son. Dan (played by Ewan McGregor) has returned to the Overlook Hotel after surviving his father’s attempted murder in the previous film. Scarred by the incident, in adulthood, he has turned to alcohol to cope.
But his life turns around because of his friend Billy Freeman, who helps him find an apartment.
Dan later lands a job at a hospital as a hospice worker who puts people at ease when they are dying.
Dan’s alcoholism adds a relatability to the character, in the sense that facing a traumatic event, can cause an individual to turn to drugs and alcohol in order to numb the pain of living through that event. It also extends to other self-harming activities as well. The job at the hospital and getting an apartment set up the building blocks to his redemption.
The audience learns that Dan has spent years suppressing supernatural abilities called the shining, which allows him to read people’s minds and emotions. Upon meeting Abra, a young woman with similar powers, the two form a friendship over their shared abilities.
One of the most gut-punching movie scenes is the introduction of the film’s antagonists led by Rose the Hat and her subordinates, Crow Daddy and Snakebite Andi. A cult that feeds on the mysterious life force of “steam” from children, the “True Knot” seeks to extend their natural lifespan. In a shocking twist, a young boy named Bradley falls victim to the group.
Audiences could only watch in terror as his “steam” was sucked from his body by the group. The visceral depiction of the child’s on-screen death is a testament to the film’s commitment to instilling fear in its viewers.
A similar scene can be recalled in “The Shining,” when Jack’s wife, Wendy, is almost strangled by the ghost of a woman haunting the Overlook. Jack refuses to believe her and accuses her of making the story up as a product of her neurosis, a consequence of living uneasily in the abandoned property. In general, being forced to live in a neglected building with daily supernatural occurrences can make anyone feel uneasy.
In both films, Room 237 is a source of misery for the main characters. The room is also an important plot device that propels Dan and Abra forward as they try to solve the mystery behind the source of their family’s pain.
Danny Torrance looking at the infamous "REDRUM" through a mirror. (Photo Credit: IMDb
King’s uncanny ability to incorporate supernatural elements into the lives of ordinary people is why he has remained the undisputed king of horror novels. Both “Doctor Sleep” and “The
Shining” display the psychological breakdown of a parent and child who are confronted with powers and situations that they can’t hope to understand.
The introduction of Abra into the story’s mythos was also a smart choice by the filmmakers.
Audiences find themselves fully invested in her journey, as she works to uncover her roots, discovers the potential of her psychic abilities, and learns the details of her family’s history. Overall, the film more than lives up to the high expectations of book and movie fans alike, and is worth seeing by anyone who pursues a good scare.
“The Testaments” Proves Margaret Atwood Still Has What it Takes to Enthrall Readers
“The Testaments” (Photo Credit: Penguin Books)
By Kadija Doumbia
While Margaret Atwood’s, “The Handmaid’s Tale,” remains successful both in bookstores and on screen, its sequel, “The Testaments,” also continues to gain mass critical acclaim, selling over 120,000 copies since its release two months ago. Fans of dystopias and realistic horror novels, or even casual readers will likely find this book a worthwhile read, and those who waited anxiously with high expectations of the book will not be disappointed.
In both, “The Handmaid’s Tale,” and “The Testaments,” handmaids and other women are second-class citizens in the Republic of Gilead, expected to bear children for the infertile wives of powerful men, in a world ravaged by toxic wastes from nuclear fallout.
Conventional styles suggest reading “The Handmaid’s Tale” first works best, but reading “The Testaments” as a stand-alone novel promises fun as well. The sequel conveys the hopelessness its protagonist Offred feels about her new world and carries a more positive tone, focusing on the promising future Agnes and Daisy represent.
“The Testaments” continues from the ending scene of “The Handmaid’s Tale,” where Offred escaped Gilead with Nick alongside a group of men posing as “The Eyes,” the states’ secret police. The plot picks up 15 years after and follows the story of two half-sisters named Daisy and Agnes who were raised in completely different worlds.
Atwood gives the sisters an agency that Offred did not have as a Handmaid; their personalities and environment gives life to the story and reveals the characters’ differing attitudes and actions. While Daisy grew up in Canada with her adoptive parents among women who benefit from human rights and privileges, such as reproductive freedom, Agnes knows no liberty living in Gilead, the same society as her birth mother.
One of the most surprising moments of the book takes place in chapter three, where readers are given an inside glimpse into the life of the mysterious Aunt Lydia.
Throughout the series, Aunt Lydia, who is responsible for disciplining and training the handmaids on childbearing duties, served as a source of terror more than an instructive figure. Her character exists to prove that women, too, are complicit in their own oppression within Gilead.
In “The Testaments,” she describes herself, “I’m a bugaboo used by the Marthas to frighten small children - if you don’t behave yourself Aunt Lydia will come and get you! I’m also a model of moral perfection to be emulated.”
Aunt Lydia is one of the most powerful women in her society, and seeing the world through her image within the novel is a fascinating experience. Her legendary status is addressed when a statue is erected in her honor, which both terrifies and flatters her.
At almost 80 years old, Margaret Atwood has demonstrated through “The Testaments” that she still has what it takes to turn fictional accounts into hot topics of the 2010s. Indeed, Atwood won her second $50,000 British pound Booker Prize for Fiction in London on Oct. 14 this year, sharing the award with Bernardine Evaristo, who released her novel “Girl, Woman, Other.”
Margaret Atwood (Photo Credit: Wikipedia )
With her latest fantasy of a dystopian world with a realistic twist on our present-day world, it’s no wonder the book has gained such traction in such a short time. “The Testaments” is an emotional rollercoaster readers won't want to miss.