Popular professor returns with doctorate and philosophical discourse

Share: “I don’t know what it means to be a professor,” Shane Underwood told me. We were sitting in his office on an early afternoon of spring semester 2017 with about four other students crowded in on whatever available chairs they could find. Others stand in the doorway or spill out into the hallway, playing live action Frogger trying to stay out of the way of the passing professors. The low light from the desk lamp, the mini fridge and TV monitor on the walls …

Big L.A. Portrait, Small Affair

Share: Don’t come to the Big L.A. Portrait Gallery under the impression that there will be swarms of people, booming music and too many art installations to see. This isn’t the event in which others’ fever about an artwork spreads and makes everyone feverish before they can even judge it themselves. This isn’t an event to meet people or be seen; it’s a chance to appreciate art while being in a state of relaxation—appreciation in a purer form. Follow:

Voting should be (and can be) thrilling

Share: 750,000 people flooded the streets for the Women’s March in January 2017; however local elections struggle to obtain the same political interest. Participation impact in local elections can be just as large, if not more significant than participation in a protest. Now it’s time to put all that into action into voting for the candidate that represents whatever ideology you believe in as the November 6 General Election races forward. Follow:

Do we really need pageants anymore?

Share: On Monday May 21, a new Miss USA was crowned: Sarah Rose Summers. It’s easy to see why she won; she’s a country girl who grew up in Nebraska, earned two degrees from Texas Christian University in strategic communication and child development, and is certified to be a child life specialist. She’s the exact kind of person that pageants look for. But this poses the question, should pageants still exist in 2018? My answer is, well, kind of. Follow:

Blame it on the Ambien: Our problems are bigger than Roseanne

Share: Beloved and acclaimed media company, Disney, has had its share of racially and ethnically problematic portrayals. Perhaps the most distinct manifestation can be seen in the 1941 film Dumbo. Jim Crow and his group of friends are black crows who don tattered clothing and speak with a long, southern drawl. To match the look, they are depicted as lazy, poor and uneducated, exhibiting stereotypical traits that have long plagued African Americans. Even through the doe-eyed animation, the racial stereotyping and its call to minstrelsy …