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(04/30/21 10:18pm)
Fashion club has been vibing and thriving during the pandemic thanks to the Martens twins leadership. Skylar Martens, a senior at IUPUI, had the original idea to start a fashion club and her twin Hope hopped on the train for support.
Originally meant to begin last March, the fashion club’s foundation was delayed until the fall because of the pandemic. However, the Martens twins persisted and now have almost 50 club members.
The pair wanted to create a community within IUPUI to share their love of fashion and Hope believes they’ve achieved that. “It seriously has been such an amazing feeling being able to interact with our club members and just hype each other up,” she said, “I love the community that has been created.”
During meetings, which happen every other week over zoom, club members discuss seasonal trends, award show looks, any big news in the Industry, and tips & tricks to work in the fashion industry, according to Hope.
Their Instagram page, @fashionclub_iupui, showcases a variety of fashion-focused discussions and a holistic view of fashion. The conversations range from Grammy red carpet looks, to careers in fashion, and have even centered around sustainable fashion.
The two women have been interested in fashion for a long time, even running their own fashion Instagram @thepleatedstreet together for over two years. During their time at IUPUI they saw an opportunity and a desire for a fashion community at IUPUI.
“We knew there would be a market for the club once we got the ball rolling on the idea,” Hope said, “just from talking to peers and friends that go to IUPUI, there were so many positive responses.”
The twins also believe that IUPUI’s location makes it an optimal place for a fashion club. “Being an urban campus, I’m sure many IUPUI students are interested in fashion, whether it be on a career level, or just for the love of shopping,” Hope said.
Skylar and Hope took a grassroots approach to creating buzz around the club and gaining members. “Once we had fliers made up, we posted them in the library, Kelley School, Campus Center, and any other bulletin boards we saw,” Hope said.
Fashion Club has filled a niche not tapped into at IUPUI and the Martens twins are proud of the community they’ve created. “Sky and I are just happy we were able to create this community and see it grow,” she said, “It honestly feels like we are the Fashion Police sometimes, but in the best way.”
(04/21/21 8:27am)
Lil Nas X has created a conservative hurricane of outrage usually reserved for abortion and Hillary Clinton following the release of his new single. Lil Nas X’s music video “Montero” joins WAP and the MLB in Fox News’ basket of deplorables.The music video featuring Lil Nas X in tight black briefs, thigh high boots, and bright red braids down his back lap dancing on Satan in the temple of hell was replayed daily on Fox the week after its release. Conservative commentators foamed at the mouth about the death spiral of morality in America, as if their twice-impeached, thrice-married, double-digit sexual assault accused former President never existed. Despite the faux outrage, or perhaps because of it, the satanic “Montero” debuted as the number one song on Billboard’s Hot 100 Chart the week after Easter.Lil Nas X’s song earned the number one spot because Montero is a pure expression of Nas X’s authenticity and queerness; the message both unique and relatable.The music video is made up of three scenes depicting a classic gay journey to self acceptance. “Montero” begins with Nas X lounging under a glossy pink and purple tree in his interpretation of the Garden of Eden. We see a snake with lava-like skin slithering toward Nas, stalking its prey. The snake is revealed to also be Nas, but as a DRAG’d up snake with glittery 2-inch nails.Human Nas flees Snake Nas, but is eventually entranced and seduced by the eyes of homosexuality.This first scene harkens to a discovery of sexual identity. Gayness creeping up on you, an alien feeling that couldn’t be ignored. It started as a thought, an urge perhaps. And next thing you know you’re crying in the bathroom praying to God to make you straight, or maybe that was just me.The next phase of gay discovery, self persecution, is artfully showcased in the next scene as Nas in cotton candy pink is led in shackles to the center platform of a colosseum. Nas stands trial for the crime of homosexuality. The judges: five Lil Nases in denim power suits and blue Victorian wigs. The jury: a colosseum of marble and metallic Lil Nases jeering the gay man without reservation and pelting the pink Nas with rocks.As Nas falls to the ground unconscious he begins to ascend into heaven, and boop, he pole dances down to the depths of hell. His angelic visage seamlessly transforms into a demonic queer sex symbol as he gracefully works the pole like only the black gay hip hop artist could. I see this snap transition as the deciding moment when Lil Nas X accepts his queerness and makes it authentic to him. He then proceeds to grind on Satan, snap his neck, and become the new supreme. Provocative? Absolutely. Meaningful? No doubt. Lil Nas X says to the bigots—if you’re going to demonize me, I’m going to be that demon. Not out of spite, but because it is who I am.His authenticity and devilish side, also come out in the way he’s marketed his music video. Nas is notorious for his ability to shut down trolls on Twitter. Conservative nuisance Kaitlin Bennett, better known as “gun girl,” tweeted after the release of the music video, “It’s weeks like these that I’m thankful to be blocked by Lil Nas X.”Nas X quote tweeted it saying, “I still see ur tweets shitty pants.” Bennett is often mocked for allegedly pooping her pants at a party at Kent State University, she has denied this claim.Nas X also fired back at South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem who tweeted Bible verse Matthew 16:26 at him. He responded, “Shoot a child in your mouth while I’m ridin’ - Montero 1:08.” This of course being a lyric about gay sex from his new song.As if a song about gay sex and devil grinding wasn’t enough to shake conservative pundits to their core, Nas came out with a limited supply of satanic shoes. The shoes, which have now been barred from distribution after a lawsuit from Nike, all black with red detailing, the number 666, and a pentagram also contain a drop of human blood.As insane as it sounds, Nas X’s marketing skills are brilliant. He has taken conservative meltdowns and redirected the flow into streams of sales. His strategy works because it isn’t a strategy This is who he is: a fighter for his queer identity, an impenetrable wall of nonsense unshaken by his critics.The day after Nas X’s song went live, he tweeted a letter he wrote to his 14-year-old self. It reads, “dear 14 year old Montero, I wrote a song with our name in it. It’s about a guy I met last summer. I know we promised to never come out publicly, I know we promised never to be ‘that’ type of gay person, I know we promised to die with the secret, but this will open doors for many other queer people to simply exist. You see this is very scary for me, people will be angry, they will say I’m pushing an agenda. But the truth is, I am. The agenda to make people stay the fuck out of other people’s lives and stop dictating who they should be. Sending you love from the future.”He understands his role and the impact his courage can have on queer people everywhere. Lil Nas X should be an example to everyone: live your truth and allow others to live theirs.
(03/29/21 4:49pm)
Four servers at BrewDog Indy located in Fountain Square, allege they were fired on the basis of gender, earlier this month. Three women and one nonbinary person were fired by their male general manager who cited a “change in culture” as the reasoning, according to the former employees.
Brewdog had been closed since December because of COVID-19 restrictions, and plans to reopen were set in motion in March. On March 8, the four were told the entire serving staff would be laid off, however, they later discovered that only the four of them were fired and none of the male serving staff were fired.
Jordan, one of the employees fired by BrewDog, said they never experienced any discrimination before the restuarant temporarily closed in December. “It was an inclusive environment when we worked under two women, our general manager and head chef, until they were fired without explanation in January,” they said.
In response to the allegation and tweets made by Jordan and the others, Jason Block, CEO of BrewDog, “We are investigating this,” Block said. “What is claimed is completely at odds with our values.”
Block later claimed in a statement that the four were fired “because of prior performance issues.”
On March 10 the four former employees Erica, Kyrrha, Leah, and Jordan released a joint statement via social media combatting the claims made by Block and other BrewDog higher ups that the decision was performance-based.
“None of us were ever written up, given a documented verbal warning, or had any issues at all with our performance during our many months working at BrewDog,” they said.
In their statement, the four asked for documented evidence that there were performance issues among them and that it was the cause for firing.
The four also provided their own evidence disputing the claims. According to them, Erica won a customer review competition in October for receiving the most five-star reviews and Leah was a close second place.
Additionally, their former general manager, unnamed, supports their claims. “Our former general manager, also a woman recently fired by corporate, supports claims that she never had to provide any disciplinary action for performance,” the four said in their statement.
Brewdog still maintains that the firing was performance based. We reached out to Kevin Groover, assistant general manager of BrewDog Indy, for comment on the allegations and received no response.
(03/23/21 4:19pm)
The staples of IUPUI’s buildings and events have been translated to paper in the student-illustrated coloring book titled “Color Your Campus- IUPUI.” From the towering campus center to the Regatta, Herron illustration students filled the 88-page book with drawings of the university to color.
The idea began with IU first lady, Laurie Mcrobbie, was taken up by Herron’s interim dean Greg Hull and then put into action by professors Lowell Isaac, Kyle Latino, Jingo de la Rosa, and department chair Vance Farrow, according to Farrow.
Students were chosen to draw for the coloring because, as Farrow puts it, they wanted to capture the “vibe” of IUPUI. IUPUI is a diverse campus and they wanted to illustrate this through the diverse viewpoints of the Herron students.
Faculty that helped with the coloring book believed that student illustrations would better represent IUPUI. Isaac, who helped guide the students through the process, believes that this approach hit at the core of what the school of art is trying to do.
“That is the central guiding philosophy of our program; we want to help students find their own voices, and avoid encouraging a homogenized aesthetic,” Isaac said.
In addition to a range of viewpoints, faculty also thought having student illustrations would be an excellent development tool for their students. They wanted “to offer students an experience that mirrored professional practice, and expanded their repertoire into new territory.”
The project gave students an opportunity to work with client-specific criteria and create coloring book illustration, which many of the students had not done before, according to Farrow.
The opportunity was a valuable experience for the student illustrators and it will have value for future drawing and illustration students. The money generated from the coloring book will go back into the program according to Isaac.
“It is a way for us and our students to invest in future students,” he said.
Faculty is happy with the end result and the illustrations by the students.
“Some of the drawings are fun and loose, others are very impressive technically, while still others are unique in their approach to the coloring book aesthetic,” Farrow said.
Farrow hopes that colorers will enjoy the experience. “It’s a collaboration of sorts between the illustrator and the colorist. When both play their parts, each page can be realized in new and unique ways,” he said.
“Color Your Campus- IUPUI” can be bought from the campus bookstore, amazon, or from the iupress.org. You can use discount code “coloring” for 30 percent off on iupress.org. The discount code is available until April 1.
(03/04/21 8:35pm)
Rush Limbaugh lost his battle with lung cancer on Feb. 17, his wife Kathryn Adams Limbaugh announced on his radio show that morning. Soon after, “Rush Limbaugh” and “Good Riddance” were trending on Twitter.If you’ve heard of the controversial conservative radio host, it’s likely that you have a strong opinion of him, good or bad. And that opinion is probably well deserved.Limbaugh rose to prominence in the late 1980s and early 1990s via his conservative radio show and has been the pinnacle of conservative media and the alt-right movement, commentating from the sidelines. His broadcast of the Rush Limbaugh Show regularly garnered an audience of 15 million listeners, overwhelmingly older white men, according to an article in Forbes.Limbaugh’s power and popularity among conservatives came from his ability to empower and persuade his audience. Dr. Aaron Dusso Ph.D., Chair of Political Science at the IUPUI School of Liberal Arts, believes Limbaugh had the ability to “teach” his audience. “Limbaugh’s ability to teach his listeners how to think about issues so that they could understand the logic of it was empowering to them,” Dusso said.He gave a voice to a demographic that now commonly believes they are the oppressed population, the white man. “One could tune-in to Limbaugh’s show and be entertained, while feeling like one is gaining knowledge of current events and gaining the skills necessary to understand it,” Dusso said. “That is powerful.”Empowering and tapping into the anger of white people has become the blueprint of the Republican party, and no one showcased it better than Limbaugh. And like ducklings waddling behind their mother, conservative media fell into line. “The dozens of right-wing radio programs that followed his lead and even Fox News owes, at least in part, its existence to Limbaugh,” Dusso said.Limbaugh showed that one could outwardly and proudly espouse hate speech and a sizable chunk of Americans would applaud and defend you to the very end. Dr. Chris Lamb Ph.D., professor of journalism in the department of journalism and public relations at IUPUI, would likely agree with this sentiment. “His followers – ‘dittoheads,’ as they were called -- found in Limbaugh an inspirational voice who entertained them and they cheered him in return,” Lamb said. Twice-impeached former President Donald Trump also owes his success, in part, to Limbaugh.“To his critics, he was a bigot, a misogynist, and a callous SOB who taunted blacks and feminists and danced on the graves of gays dying of AIDS,” Lamb said. And this glass slipper of hatred seems to also fit Princess Trump, and was a key to Trump’s road to kinghood. In a world without Limbaugh, perhaps there wouldn’t be a Sean Hannity, a Tucker Carlson, an Alex Jones, or a President Trump. And perhaps a better world. Hours after Limbaugh’s death was announced, and twitter champagne bottles began to pop off, conservatives, and even some liberals, bit back at the celebration. Articles in the Atlantic and USA Today argued that liberals should be better than Limbaugh and avoid the gleeful grave dancing. These cries reek of nostalgia for civility in politics, civility of which Limbaugh championed the degradation.How can you ask a gay person to be civil to a man who had a segment on his show called the “AIDS Update” where he would read off the names of gay people who had died of AIDS and mock them?How can you ask a black person to be civil to a man who once said "I think it's time to get rid of this whole National Basketball Association. Call it the TBA, the Thug Basketball Association, and stop calling them teams. Call 'em gangs."How can you ask a woman to be civil to a man who once said, “I love women. I don't know where all this got started. I love the women's movement, especially when walking behind it."Civility was not a tool Limbaugh used. Fighting fire with fire only burns down the world, but the world is already in ashes, so fire away. I can only imagine the field day Limbaugh would have today with the Potato Head story. I can hear his crass and condescending voice aggressively arguing gender is under attack because his favorite vegetable toy has been castrated, and I take a sigh of relief that his broadcasting days are over.
(02/19/21 1:45am)
“It is not an exaggeration to say that many members of the House were nearly assassinated,” Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said recounting the insurrection at the capitol over Instagram live, Jan 12.
Trump supporters infiltrated the Capitol Building on Jan. 6 in an attempt to stop the certification of the 2020 presidential election results.
Many stories are still coming out about what took place on that day, and we’re seeing a detailed account being presented by House Impeachment Managers in the trial of former President Donald Trump. One of the most detailed and vulnerable stories we heard was from a member of congress, came from Ocasio-Cortez on her Instagram Live on Feb. 1.
Ocasio-Cortez and her legislative director Geraldo Bonilla-Chavez, who she calls G, were in her office at noon on Jan 6, one hour before insurrectionists breached the capitol, according to reports. At around 1 p.m. Ocasio-Cortez and Bonilla-Chavez hear pounding on her office doors and no voice identifying itself.
The two quickly hid. Ocasio-Cortez hid in her office bathroom, but quickly realized it was not a secure space. They then tried to hide in the nearby closet, when she heard a masculine voice shouting, “Where is she? Where is she?” Ocasio-Cortez recounts.
There she was, pressed up against the wall hiding, she could see a white man in a black beanie through the crack in the door. She believed she was going to die.
“If this is the plan for me,” Ocasio-Cortez told the Instagram Live audience, “then people will be able to take it from here. I had fulfilled my purpose.”
Seconds or minutes later, she said that time seemed to lose meaning and context, her staffer G called out, “It’s okay, come out.”
Reluctantly, Ocasio-Cortez stepped out to see an angry capitol police officer who told her to run to an undisclosed building. She and her staffer ran.
What Ocasio-Cortez, and many others working in the Capitol Building, experienced was trauma. And, as she said in her Instagram Live, “Trauma compounds.”
At the beginning of her Instagram Live, Ocasio Cortez came out as a survivor of sexual assault. She compared the reaction to the insurrection from conservatives to the reaction that sexual assault survivors experience receive from abusers or others.
They don’t believe you and then they try to deny your experiences. Representative Chip Roy (R-Texas) had the audacity to demand an apology on twitter from Ocasio-Cortez for making her experience public
I am thankful Ocasio-Cortez shared her story. It was an act of truth telling, bravery and vulnerability.
In a society where truth telling from public officials has not been the norm, In a society where Republicans bend the knee in cowardice to Trump and his violent mob of supporters, In a society where expressing emotions on a public platform is scrutinized, Ocasio-Cortez is breaking the norms.
I, like Ocasio-Cortez, have experienced those same feelings of impending doom. To see her, only 31-years-old, explain this traumatic experience in front of thousands of live viewers and later over one million, is inspiring.
Ocasio-Cortez understands what it means to be a leader. She understands that she has a job legislatively, but of equal importance, she has a job to lead people into a better future.
By recounting this difficult story, and tearing up many times during the video, she has shown that talking about emotions brings people together and we need each other now more than ever.
At one point during her Instagram live, Ocasio-Cortez said most people live with trauma and there is a community of people like you who can understand your experience. Trauma affects people of all political beliefs, and it doesn’t need to be an isolating experience.