![IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Junior Zalie Mann performs “I Love to Cry at Weddings,” an ensemble piece from the fall musical Sweet Charity, to prospective students during the Fine Arts Showcase on Wednesday, Nov. 8. The showcase is a compilation of performances and demonstrations from each fine arts strand offered at McCallum. This show is put on so that prospective students can see if they are interested in joining an academy or major.
Sweet Charity originally ran the weekends of Sept. 28 and Oct. 8, but made a comeback for the Fine Arts Showcase.
“[Being at the front in the spotlight] is my favorite part of the whole dance, so I was super happy to be on stage performing and smiling at the audience,” Mann said.
Mann performed in both the musical theatre performance and dance excerpt “Ethereal,” a contemporary piece choreographed by the new dance director Terrance Carson, in the showcase. With also being a dance ambassador, Mann got to talk about what MAC dance is, her experience and answer any questions the aspiring arts majors and their parents may have.
Caption by Maya Tackett.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/53321803427_47cd17fe70_o-1-1200x800.jpg)
![SPREADING THE JOY: Sophomore Chim Becker poses with sophomores Cozbi Sims and Lou Davidson while manning a table at the Hispanic Heritage treat day during lunch of Sept 28. Becker is a part of the students of color alliance, who put together the activity to raise money for their club.
“It [the stand] was really fun because McCallum has a lot of latino kids,” Becker said. “And I think it was nice that I could share the stuff that I usually just have at home with people who have never tried it before.”
Becker recognizes the importance of celebrating Hispanic heritage at Mac.
“I think its important to celebrate,” Becker said. “Because our culture is awesome and super cool, and everybody should be able to learn about other cultures of the world.”
Caption by JoJo Barnard.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/53221601352_4127a81c41_o-1200x675.jpg)
Opinion: Violence at Capitol shows Trump at his worst
January 7, 2021
On Wednesday night in Congress, senators voted 93-6 to reject the challenge to President-elect Joe Biden’s victory after immense pressure from President Donald Trump to sway the election. House members voted early this morning 303-121 to accept the results.
These votes came after the violence at the U.S. Capitol building, in which rioters took over the building to stop the Congressional voting, leading to Vice President Mike Pence being evacuated for his safety. The support for overturning the election results dropped from about a dozen senators to six after this barbaric protest.
The riots, in which a woman was fatally shot, are an ugly display of right-wing terrorism that only brings out the hypocrisy of the right. Months ago during the Black Lives Matter protests, these same people called peaceful protesters thugs, but Wednesday’s protesters were able to storm the Capitol with guns and hate symbols and receive praise from the president.
The violence has led to talk of enacting the 25th Amendment, which would forcibly remove Trump as president and put Pence in charge until Jan. 20.
Many people are angry because most Black Lives Matter protesters were not violent but received much worse treatment from law enforcement on the scene. This is what unchecked racism and bigotry looks like.
The difference in Trump’s tweets about these protests shows the full hypocrisy of the president and his supporters. On May 29, 2020, the President tweeted, “When the looting starts, the shooting starts.” But on Wednesday he tweeted, “Go home. We love you.” Three of the president’s tweets were deleted for violating Twitter guidelines, and his Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts were blocked.
President Trump called for the overturn of the 2020 election results in an attempt to destroy the basic principles of democracy. Many Trump supporters still believe that Biden lost the election, despite the fact that Trump lost both the popular and electoral vote. Regardless of Trump’s many attempts to take the election, Joe Biden will be the next president.
Due to the violence incited in the Capitol, among other acts, the president is losing support — even, it seems, from his vice president. Pence sent the National Guard to the Capitol and made statements on Twitter condemning the violence that took place on Wednesday. In an act of solidarity, Pence changed his Twitter header image to a picture of Biden and Harris.
The violence has led to talk of enacting the 25th Amendment, which would forcibly remove Trump as president and put Pence in charge until Jan. 20. It’s hard to say if this would be a good idea, as it may cause further violence, but removing a fascist from office is probably the better route
All of the commotion at the Capitol on Wednesday put a damper on the outcome of the Georgia Senate run-off elections. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff were victorious in turning Georgia into a blue state.
These victories come as a historic win, as Ossoff has never held public office, and Warnock will become the first Black senator in Georgia history.
With these wins, Democrats gain control in the Senate, as a 50-50 split means the deciding vote will fall to the vice president, who will be Kamala Harris after the inauguration on Jan. 20.
Democrats now hold slim majorities in both houses of Congress. Under Democratic control, it will be much easier for Biden to push his legislation without needing Republican support.
History was made on Jan. 6, 2021, but it will not be remembered with dignity. Trump will likely go down as one of the worst presidents in history, because of his superiority complex that has put the basic principles of American democracy in dire danger.
This story was originally published on Purbalite on January 7, 2021.
