It was 2:30 p.m. on Valentine’s Day. A fire alarm rang through the halls of Majory Stoneman Douglas High School, followed by gunfire. That gunfire left 17 kids dead and the shooter with 17 murder charges. Here are 17 figures from Vox Media indicating that America has a gun crisis: 1: Between the years 2000 and 2014, the U.S. had 133 public mass shootings; that was more than Germany’s six and Canada’s three. 2: The U.S. has a bigger population than Germany or Canada. For every 1,000 … [Read more...]

It’s 11 a.m. You, like most AU students, have probably endured a whirlwind of a morning that began with a thrice-snoozed alarm, lectures, possibly a presentation or two and have ended here—in the audience of Reardon Auditorium. Of course, your first impulse after sinking into your cushy seat is to check your phone. Who knows what you could have missed on Twitter this morning while you were confined to the classroom? It’s only natural to scroll through social media, reply to a text or … [Read more...]

As the Academy Awards approach, I have committed, alongside my friend Sam, to watching every film, documentary and short nominated for an Academy Award. Here are the highlights from the nominated films and shorts I have watched so far. This is an open invitation for you to watch them and disagree with me. Don’t Skip Out On (Full Length Films): “Lady Bird”: As Saoirse Ronan, the actress who plays Lady Bird, said in an interview, “I didn’t realize…how starved we are for female … [Read more...]

I first remember recognizing race in kindergarten. Obviously, I was not thinking about inequality derived from a superficial characteristic society deems valuable, yet struggles to define; however, I did befriend a black boy named Malachi. Juxtaposed with my own, Malachi’s life was strikingly different. We clearly differed in race, and the only commonalities we shared were our gender and a love for turtles. Yet, we were best friends. The concept of race, this time maladaptive, … [Read more...]

In 2016, a Pew Research Center survey found that 26 percent of American adults had not read a single book in the previous year. The survey results were broken down further by the research center, stating that men were less likely to have read a book than women and that people in lower income households were less likely to read than those with higher incomes. Younger adults were more likely to have read than older adults, with 23 percent of respondents in the 18-49 age range not having read … [Read more...]

Guest Writer: Erin Holloran They say the best step to recovery is to first actually admit you have a problem. My problem is that I’m a perfectionist. In fact, I’m a neurotic perfectionist. For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted only one thing: perfection. I wanted to be known as a perfect student, the perfect artist, the perfect friend, the perfect Christian. I wanted to be absolutely perfect in anything I decided to pursue. But, I’ve always wanted everything perfect in my way and … [Read more...]

An emergency alert notification was sent out to all of Hawaii on Saturday, Jan. 15., evoking panic and affecting everyone involved. The emergency alert read, “BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.” The warning was immediately deemed a mistake, and the governor of Hawaii claimed that an employee pushed the wrong button. The man intended to press “Test missile alert” instead of “Missile alert,” as the drop-down menu contained only these two … [Read more...]

It was spring 1998 when young high school senior Jules Woodson was sexually assaulted by her youth pastor, Andy Savage, inside his truck on a lonely dirt road. Prior to the assault, Woodson had confided in Savage, trusting him as her pastor, with some of her burdens. What Savage now describes as a ‘sexual incident’ was coerced oral sex from a minor while he was in a position of leadership at Woodlands Parkway Baptist Church; this was a serious abuse of his power. “I remember feeling that … [Read more...]

In the last several weeks, the only things that have gotten me through are cheesy Christmas movies, staring at pictures of my dog and hot cocoa. Without these things, this semester would have done me in. Truly, I have never been so thankful to see a semester come to a close. The grown-up world is tiresome, and college is no exception. I am grateful for this place and for the people who make AU everything that it is. I am thankful that Christmas vacation is upon us, and I wish everyone a safe and … [Read more...]