By Gillian Lintz While not perfect, society has made leaps and bounds in the progression of body positivity and acceptance. Unfortunately, the entertainment industry has not exactly caught up yet. Most of the stars we see today, whether on TV screens, in movie theaters or on Broadway, seem to wear under a size 8, despite the fact that almost 70% of U.S. women wear a size 14 and up.  Children are growing up with an unrealistic idea of what the “right” body looks like, damaging their … [Read more...]

Guest Writer: Elisha Deluhery One of the only true glimpses a fan of the NFL will get into their favorite team’s franchise is the annual attraction of training camp. For years, franchises have happily opened their doors to fans in order to give them a raw sports experience unlike any other. During camps, football enthusiasts can find themselves mere feet away from their respective team’s roster, usually in a little-to-no cost endeavour, and in the dead heat of a professional operation. … [Read more...]

Guest Writer: John Hulstine Americans have witnessed a number of mass shootings in the recent past, bringing to mind the toxicity of nationalism and raising questions regarding the response of Christianity. Once President Donald Trump assumed office, numerous Christian leaders turned a blind eye, giving him a pass to controversial policies and statements embracing bigotry or which run contrary to Christian values. Whether it concerns the president’s policy on family separation, statements on … [Read more...]

Guest Writer: Isaac Derkach As a musical theatre major, it is expected of me to have some kind of summer acting work. Some go off to theme parks, others head for summer theatres and a few even land some purely musical gigs. Me? I get to spend my summers with some of the harshest critics and liveliest audiences. They are extremely demanding arts connoisseurs, but they pay well. There is no middle ground for them; you are either beloved or the scourge of the industry. Of course, I’m talking … [Read more...]

Guest Writer: Timothy Blaisdell In recent years, the fine arts programs in many schools including AU seem to be undervalued resulting in budget cuts, downsizing and in some cases, being weeded out altogether. At the end of my freshman year, several faculty members from various departments were let go; four of them were from the School of Music, Theater and Dance. I am a music composition major, so these cuts directly affected me since these were professors I studied under. I fully … [Read more...]

Guest Writer: Elli Brooks I have many fears. For instance, I am afraid of sharks, being buried alive, dying alone, sand and most of all, outhouses.  Outhouses haven’t always been a worry of mine until the summer of 2006 when I was around the age of six.  Let's start from the beginning. Every summer since I can remember, my whole family would go camping on my aunt and uncle’s farm. They lived on hundreds of acres of land, and they made a campsite off their creek where we would live off … [Read more...]

Guest Writer: Lucy Stultz Most developed countries have come to heavily depend on single-use plastic items. Water bottles, food packaging and countless other everyday objects are designed to be used once and then thrown away. However, these items will stay on Earth for centuries. According to National Geographic, “It’s unclear how long it will take for that plastic to completely biodegrade into its constituent molecules. Estimates range from 450 years to never.” Much of the plastic that … [Read more...]