Inside the newsroom

1563 Page St., San Francisco, CA 94117
The Urban School of San Francisco
January 2009
Meet zelda williams
A former Urban student talks
about life, work and creativity
– page 4
Same-sex marriage
A look into the new frontier
of the civil rights struggle
– page 13
Volume 10, Issue 2
Urban = Jewish?
Legendbusters cracks
pervasive urban legend
– page 7
eating on haight st.
Hattie's scoop on where
to get best, cheapest meals
– page 5
MLK assembly to focus on speakers, artists
by Madeleine May
and Taylor Bostwick
Staff Writers
What does civil rights mean to
you?
That question is the theme of
this year's Month of Understanding, which will include the Martin
Luther King Jr. Assembly on Jan.
15. Grammy-nominated singersongwriter Melanie DeMore, and
spoken word and hip hop artist
Ise Lyfe are scheduled to perform
at the assembly.
DeMore and Lyfe were chosen
by Urban's new dean of multicultural life, Ken Garcia-Gonzales,
along with Assistant Head for
Student Life Charlotte Worsley;
the Co-Curricular Diversity Committee; and six students who form
Charlotte
Worsley
Ken GarciaGonzales
the Multi-Cultural Team.
The two artists, who had been
interested in working with each
other, were recommended to
Garcia-Gonzales by the national
non-profit organization Speak
Out.
Scheduled five days before the
inauguration of the nation's first
African-American president, the
MLK assembly promises to be the
highlight of this year's Month of
Understanding, Garcia-Gonzales
said.
“Charlotte and myself, as members of the administration team, try
to have a big picture of how this
will fit and benefit the school,” he
said.
“We wanted to focus on civil
rights, especially in light of the
inauguration of Barack Hussein
Obama and also in thinking of the
California election in November
and Proposition 8,” Garcia-Gonzalez said.
“I think Martin Luther King has
been pigeonholed as an individual
who only worked on civil rights for
African-Americans. I like to think
that he was a much more complex
individual than that,” said GarciaGonzalez. “He was someone who
cared about civil rights for all.”
continued on p. 11
photo courtesy of Melanie DeMore
Melanie DeMore, scheduled to perform at Urban,
gets a hug from fellow singer and activist Pete Seeger
For seniors, college applications are a test of endurance
by Sam Kronish
Staff Writer
College applications: The bane
of every senior’s existence. How
do we survive them?
The answer seems to be: With
hard work, help from friends, and
a little luck.
Urban seniors applying to
college said that electronic complications, conflicting deadlines,
and factors beyond their control
heightened stress this season.
For example, the online Common Application used by many
students is eco-friendly and fast,
but often resulted in unexpected
problems.
“I was finally going to sub-
mit my first college application
through the website, the day before
the deadline,” said Rebecca Small
(’09).
“Everything was fine until I
got to the supplement section,”
Small said. “No matter what I did, I
couldn't get my responses to paste
in the boxes …. I was just about
to start (retyping) when a more
tech-savvy person told me that the
supplement section would only
work in Firefox.”
Deadline issues were common.
“I had been procrastinating a lot
on my UC application and ended
up having to do most of it in (Las)
Vegas,” recalled Justine Palefsky
(’09). She finally submitted her
UC application “while sitting in a
massage chair in a Brookstone in
the Venetian,” a Las Vegas hotel. “After I pressed submit, I got a
high five from the man who had
been sitting in the chair next to me
for about 20 minutes using a foot
massager,” Palefsky said.
But creative thinking couldn’t
solve some complications. A fire
alarm at The Bay School went off
during an SAT reasoning test last
December. Test-takers were forced
to shuffle on outside into the cold,
“It completely disrupted my test
zen,“ complained Noah St. James
(’09).
Former Director of College
Counseling Dan Murphy remembered past years as similarly hectic.
“One of my horror stories is a
student coming the day before an
application is due and asking for
essay revisions, and then the essay
is really awful — (and me) not
knowing whether the student is
coming for a blessing or the student
is really willing to go back to basics
and really write something.”
“I sleep better at night now
being removed from this process,”
Murphy said.
According to college counselor
Suzanne Schutte,the class of 2009 is
"the largest group of college bound
seniors ever," making the application process even more competitive. It is also Urban's biggest class,
with a whopping 90 students. For
teachers, that means a lot of letters
to compose. History teacher Leroy
Votto wrote 21 recommendations
this year.
Whatever the woes, Urban
senior Julia Evans is optimistic.
“The average life span for kids our
age is about 80 years,” she notes.
“High school is only four of those
80.”
Inside the newsroom
The Legend staff watches history unfold on Nov. 4
by Sam Kronish and
Alex Roncal
Staff Writers
photo by Isabel Moore
Steve Proctor, deputy managing editor of the San
Francisco Chronicle, showed the Legend staff around the
busy newsroom on the night of Obama's election victory
[email protected]
What would it be like to witness one of the most monumental nights in journalism history
from the frontlines? On Nov. 4,
members of The Urban Legend
found out when they journeyed
to the San Francisco Chronicle
to observe and learn about
what goes on in a professional
newsroom.
Steve Proctor, deputy managing editor of the Chronicle, kept
one eye on the flickering television screen as he answered the
questions of the Legend staff. It
was 6 p.m., and the results of the
presidential election were coming in fast. Although Democratic
presidential candidate Barack
Obama held the lead, the votes
of many important swing states
had not been counted yet.
In the hours before the real
chaos began, Proctor explained
how his college major in history
had helped him as a journalist.
“Good journalism puts events
in context,” he said.
Each Legend editor spent
30 minutes with a Chronicle
member who edits topics similar
to their own. Celine Buehl (’09)
and Allegra Gordon (’10) went
to the layout section, where
Tracy Cox and Frank Mina,
along with many other editors,
spend countless hours trying to
properly display each article in
a comprehensive way that will
please the reader.
“Think of the reader when
laying out,” Cox advised. Layout
editors try to avoid any visual
problems that would make the
my.highschooljournalism.org/ca/sanfrancisco/urban
readers stop reading the paper,
he said.
Just as Buehl and Gordon
arrived at his desk, Mina was
handing out copies of the five
possibilities for the front page
layout, which varied depending
on the outcome of the election.
There was a draft for if Obama
won in a landslide; there was a
design for if the two candidates
were closely matched until the
end; there was even a cover
finalized for the unlikely possibility that McCain might steal
the election. The layout editors
were well-prepared, so that no
surprise could hit them.
Isabel Moore (’11) met with
photo editor Dan Jung. He was
sitting at his desk, furiously
searching through photos that
had been taken minutes before
continued on p. 11
Please recycle
news
January 2009
Urbanitems
A quick look at
what's happening
in our community
Inauguration Fever
Washington D.C. may be
far away, but that isn’t stopping several Urban students
from attending the Presidential Inauguration on Jan. 20.
Alec Page (’11), Matthew
Heiden (’09), Rebecca Small
(’09), and Spencer Terris
(’10) will all be making the trip
with their families to witness
the historic ceremony. Clara
Hendrickson (’12) and Carla
Tamayo (’10), members of the
San Francisco Girls Chorus,
will be performing at the
ceremony. Although the rest
of us have school that day,
Assistant Head for Student
Life Charlotte Worsley has arranged a schedule change to
allow a school-wide viewing
of the live inauguration.
Urban presence
at annual diversity
conference
12 Urban students and faculty
attended the People of Color
Conference (POCC) and
Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC) that
took place this December
in New Orleans, Louisiana.
From Dec. 4 to Dec. 7, the
six Urban students joined
1,211 peers from around the
country at the New Orleans
Convention Center in the second biggest POCC/SDLC in
history. Participants attended
workshops, discussions, and
heard from speakers such
as Sidney Poitier, the civil
rights activist, Oscar winning
actor, and former associate of
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Green team contest winners
The school-wide Go Green
Challenge will finish up its
final week on Feb. 5. After
eight weeks of pledging to
reduce carbon emissions,
the class with the biggest
improvement will receive a
trophy plus some reusable
waterbottles.
Legend articles
recognized
Three articles from the last
issue of The Urban Legend
were picked up by the American Society of Newspaper
Editors (ASNE) National Edition, an online paper compiled
from student papers around
the country. The selected articles were written by Legend
staff members Adrienne Von
Schulthess (’11), Scott Lucas
(’09) and Justine Palefsky
(’09).
CORRECTIONS
In the article “Lean, Mean,
Green…and Polo?” (Nov.
2008), the Segway polo team
the Sacramento Gold Rush
was inaccurately referred
to as the Sacramento Gold
Rushers. The Legend regrets
the error.
The Urban Legend
How to fight the awful flu bug
Sarah Maccabee
Achoo,
Thus
Begins
The Flu
Staff Writer
It’s that time of year again…
coughs, sneezes and congested
sniffles are noises that populate
the air as frequently as car honks
or slamming doors.
In especially brutal past years,
the flu has spread like a wildfire of
contagion. However, statistics provided from a Google project that
tracks flu trends all over the United
States show that the effects of the
virus have been mild this year.
In California, there was minimal
infection throughout the summer
months and the rate has only risen
to a low level since September. Flu
trends can be tracked at http://
www.google.org/flutrends/.
Even with a mild virus trend,
illnesses such as the common cold
and flu can be like plagues for small
communities like Urban, and it
is important to take precautions
in such a high-contact environment.
Germs are picked up on the
hands and then transferred to the
face where they enter the body.
While washing hands frequently
and avoiding touching the eyes,
nose or mouth do act as safeguards,
doctors are introducing individuals to “Advanced Hygiene,” a more
intensive system to help avoid viruses. Advanced hygiene is proven
to be effective because it moves
past the simple stage of hand
washing, and improves hygiene
practices so the body is able to
focus more on sustaining the immune system. Advanced hygiene
recommends washing with natural
soap, a water, sea salt and dilute
iodine solution face wash and
fingernail cleansing. Advanced
hygiene kits made by Clenzology
This poster,
dating from
the 1930s, by
artist Robert
Storm Petersen,
is from the
National Library
of Medicine. It
appeared in an
exhibit earlier
this year at
the National
Academy of
Sciences in
Washington, D.C.
Photo courtesy
of National
Academy
are available for about $34.97 online at healthfoodemporium.com.
Or, you can build your own kit by
purchasing the items individually
at various health food stores.
Catching a bug causes a lethargic mood and interferes
with student’s and teachers busy
schedules. “It is almost impossible
to work when I am sick. If I am at
school, I am miserable. When I go
home it is hard to catch up,” says
Taylor Bostwick, (’10).
Although missing school and
getting behind on work can seem
overwhelming, it ultimately benefits your health. “In places that are
high-stress environments, people
don’t want to miss out on school,
but staying home when you’re
sick helps prevent the spread of
disease,” says Dr. Sara Buckelew,
a pediatrics specialist at UC-San
Francisco.
There are many misconceptions about what actually causes
sickness. Both the flu and cold are
caused by viruses, which means
they can only be passed from person to person. Buckelew cleared up
some old wives' tales about illness,
saying, “leaving the window open
and going out with wet hair don’t
actually cause sickness.”
In fact, studies prove that cracking open a window and allowing
in fresh air actually chases out bad
bacteria. Cool air also creates more
humidity in a home. Overheated
spaces generate dry air, which
is the ideal living condition for
viruses.
School counselor Kaern Kreyling’s beliefs about “mind and
body wellness” delve further into
the idea of taking care of oneself
in the most basic ways.
Attending to sleep a little more
consciously and “getting to know
one’s own sleep patterns” can really influence the way you feel,
Kreyling says, adding that it’s
“the simple stuff” that helps out
most.
her for our oral history civil rights
project. We all had the privilege
of working with Howard Levin,
who is the director of technology at The Urban School of San
Francisco. This collaboration was
outstanding and was one of the
best experiences I have ever had
as a student.
I have lived in the small town
of McComb, Mississippi for most
of my life. I never knew so much
history could exist in such a small
town. There are so many elders
who have stories that go along
with history that people, especially
young adults like myself, need to
hear.
The history here, as well as
across the country, is important
to students and needs to be docu-
mented as well as learned. What
better learning experience than to
learn it with hands-on activity? It
really puts learning into a whole
was 13, I moved to McComb and
entered Denman Junior High
School, which is the local junior
high school for the McComb school
district.
I had always felt like I was different. I felt like I could not hold a
friendship with those of any other
race except my own. Growing up
in the South, segregation is not
a secret, unfortunately; it is still
shown each day. Racism is not an
instinct; it is learned. You are not
born with racism in your heart.
Racism is learned from what you
are exposed to.
At the beginning of my junior
year, I joined Mrs. Malone’s
second-period local culture class. I
was informed that seven students
Young oral historian explores race in South
by Sarah Rowley
Guest Writer
Howard Levin, Urban's director
of technology, is "on a mission" to
teach high school students how to
take oral histories of people in their
communities. In November, Levin
traveled to McComb, Miss., to work
with Teacher Vickie Malone's class,
including student Sarah Rowley, a
high school junior. Below is an essay
she wrote, describing her experience.
Read more about the Oral History Archives Project at www.tellingstories.
org.—The Editors
On Nov. 13, I stepped into the
home of Mrs. Patsy Ruth Butler,
along with my fellow classmates.
We had the honor of interviewing
This issue's internet find
2
Dig This
Urban student Asher King Abramson ('09) created his own
sports comedy site. Check it out at http://www.freewebs.com/
triberocks4/
"Growing up in the
South, segregation is
not a secret ...
it is still shown each
day." —Rowley
new category. It makes learning
fun and exciting.
My early years in school were
spent in a small private academy in
Brookhaven, Mississippi, and were
extremely sheltered. I never talked
to anyone of a different race until
I was about 13 years old. When I
continued on p. 11
Sideline is a sports website you can't miss.
Football can be brutal. The competition brings viewers to the edge
of their bleachers as they cry, applaud, and boo for their teams.
However, football has another aspect that is hardly ever explored:
the humor underneath the competition. Asher King Abramson (’09)
says “in August of 2007”, he was inspired to fill this gap. He tells
me, there was already a “Baseball Dugout…but none for football
and I was a reasonable football fan.” The authors of the “Baseball
Dugout” created the website intending to bring humor to a game
that is often met with scandals involving love affairs or steroids. Just
like this format, Asher’s new website, Sideline, finds the humor in
every new football tabloid. And it does jostle the funny bone. Asher
says he will sometimes “just browse ESPN or other newsworthy
sources” for inspiration to create the comical piece in the form of an
instant message dialogue, complete with pictures, screen names,
and fun.
by Alan Hsiao
Staff Writer
January 2009
News
The Urban Legend
3
The end of the road
A slip of paper documenting votes
records Haight’s hopes for change
Pollworker Amelia Koster (‘09) holds a receipt listing votes
cast at Urban. —Photo by Isabel Moore
The 2008 presidential race was one of
the longest this country has ever experienced. Almost two years and 1.5 billion
dollars after the race’s inception, the
people of America came out to the polls
and elected Senator Barack Obama as
the next president. The road was long,
carefully orchestrated, and extensively
financed, but what any election really
comes down to is each individual
vote cast in local polling places
throughout the nation, from
Washington D.C. to Haight
Street.
Chris Shaheen, 45, was
using a big red plastic
jug to fill up his white
Ford pickup truck at
the corner of Oak and
Ashbury streets in
San Francisco’s Haight
Ashbury neighborhood.
Having run out of gas, he
was anxious about getting to a
polling place in time to vote for the
next president of the United States.
It was after 8 A.M., and Shaheen was
already late for work.
“I am thankful that I live in a blue
state,” said Shaheen. “I tell you, I have a
brother who is ex-Marine jarhead and he
will probably always vote Republican.”
Shaheen was one of an estimated 13.8
million Californians who made their
way to the polls on Nov. 4. Exit interviews with voters in the Haight showed
that the local public leaned mostly
toward Obama.
Nicole Wuthe, a student at USF,
reflected the enthusiasm of her younger
age group. “There are Obama posters
in every window of my dorm,” said
Wuthe, 19. Moreover, she believed
that most of her school was voting for
Obama; she knew only two McCain supporters.
Maria Ramona Sanchez, 32, offered
a fresh perspective on the election, one
that differed from the typical Haight
street dweller.
Sanchez claimed that she doesn’t let
her opinion depend on the candidates
promoted by the media. She voted for
Cynthia McKinney, the Green Party
presidential nominee. “They say Obama
is change,” she smiled. “I think (McKinney) is real change.”
On the corner of Haight and Cole, a
man who identified himself only as Bob
calmly walked away from the hectic
polling station.
Bob, 18, was in a serene mood
while people ran frantically around
him. People were rushing to work, but
Bob didn’t care if he was late. He had
decided to take his time, and to vote for
Ralph Nader.
“I don’t agree with either Barack
Obama or John McCain,” said Bob. “I
feel that Nader is the best choice.” Bob,
who calls himself a libertarian, said that
he believed that “Nader is the only good
choice out there.” Bob also said that too
many people agree only partially with
one of the major candidates and have to
compromise their ideals.
Although most of the attention
seemed to be directed towards the presidential election, several propositions on
the California ballot also were on voters’
minds. Among these propositions were
ones that banned gay-marriage, prohibited the cruel confinement of California’s
pigs, cows and chickens, and demanded
parental notification on teenage abortion.
While the propositions confused
many with their complexity, some voters
were glad to have the chance to vote
on the issues. “I used to be registered
in Connecticut where you didn’t have
all the propositions,” said a 25 year-old
Haight resident who identified himself
as John. “Even though (the propositions)
are more minor than the election, we do
have the chance to make a difference in
our own state.”
“No on 8” campaigner Kerry Egdell
also was more concerned with propositions than presidents.
On election day, Egdell was standing on the corner of Oak and Masonic
streets, holding a “No on 8” sign in one
hand and waving at cars with the other.
In a blue state where there is often
little doubt about who will win the presidential vote, the real nail-biters during
California elections are often the propositions. Egdell is an openly gay man
who has been married to his husband
for 35 years. They are legally married in
Canada. He was scared that Proposition
8, which bans gay marriage in California, would pass, noting that “there is a
lot of passion among the fundamentalist
Christians” whom he calls “irrational”
and “psychotic.”
Egdell also said that “money wins
elections,” but that the controversy over
Prop 8 proves that you “can’t stop an
idea” and that he plans to continue his
work for marriage equality.
Even with the record turnout, there
were still some people who decided
against voting. Two men at the corner
of Haight and Masonic, who identified themselves as Elijah and Morgan,
explained that they did not vote in this
election for ideological reasons.
“I am an anarchist,” said Elijah, pointing to the “A” symbol drawn on his
ripped jeans. “I don’t believe in voting.”
Morgan, 21, petted his panting dog as
he explained why he intended to withhold his vote. “We don’t even choose the
electoral college,” he said, “and there’s
something wrong with having only two
parties.”
Still, for most voters, Nov. 4 was a
day to express their San Francisco beliefs
on a national scale.
Jose Guardardo, a 28-year-old man
from the Haight, said that this was only
his second time at the polls. “Voting
is so important on a conceptual level,”
he said. Like millions of other Americans on this historic day, Guardardo
believed his single vote would make a
major difference “(This is) probably the
most important election in my lifetime,”
he said, with a smile.
—This article was reported by Taylor
Bostwick, Madeleine May, Celine Buehl,
Tobyn Smith, Sarah Maccabee, Lizzie Logan,
Justine Palefsky and Allegra Gordon, and
was written by Justine Palefsky and Tobyn
Smith.
January 2009
features
by Sebastian Gutierrez
In a fetching black jacket and jeans, with
shoulder-length hair, Zelda Williams strolls
into the place that served as her high school
for two years.
Williams recently visited Urban during a
press tour for her new film, Were The World
Mine. She was nice enough to take time out of
her busy schedule to talk to the Legend about
the movie and her memories of attending
Urban.
Zelda Williams, the daughter of Robin
Williams, had a shortened high school experience. She had missed a good portion of her
freshman year to shoot a film with her father,
which contributed significantly to her decision
to leave school early.
Williams went on to travel with her family, but she got a lot out of her time at Urban.
More than anything, she said, she loved how
the school embraces individuality and people
who love to do different things. She especially
loved the photography class, taught by Chris
McCall.
Williams' approach to life has been a case
of learning by doing. She has moved into a
apartment in Los Angeles, where she is keeping
busy with acting jobs, as well as representing a
fashion brand, and getting a fledgling production company off the ground.
She also plans to complete her education.
As she puts it, “You’re never not gonna have
anything to learn.”
Her new movie, Were The World Mine, is a
by Sarah Maccabee
fantastical and musical take on Shakespeare’s
A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It focuses less on
the plot of the play than it does on the aspect
of Puck making people fall in love with each
other, causing general mischief. In the movie,
the role of Puck falls to Timothy, an openly
gay high school student in a narrow minded
all boys school. Timothy is played by Tanner
Cohen. Williams plays his “heteroflexible”
best friend, who lives by herself and always
carries her guitar.
One day, while rehearsing for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Timothy has the brilliant,
if ill-advised, idea to turn his entire town gay
so that they can walk around in his shoes for
a little bit.
photo by Isabel Moore
Williams is adamant that the film is not Two makes trouble Zelda
preaching to a particular choir. It’s just tryWilliams and co-star Tanner Cohen strike
ing to tell a sweet and innocent love story.
a pose in the Student Center at Urban
It was apparently very close to director Tom
Gustafson’s heart, seeing as it is based on a
to two books, the titles of which she could not
short film that he also directed.
Were The World Mine has played a quite a few disclose, and she is working at her job at the
festivals world wide, and has won numerous fashion brand.
It seems certain that Williams will be busy
awards, including the top prize at Outfestival
in Los Angeles. As of press time, it has been for the foreseeable future.
made available to the general public in limited
release.
GOT IDEAS?
As the interview wrapped up, Zelda was
If you have suggestions for future
anxious to walk around and see everyone
articles, or are interested in writing
from her time at Urban. Her hectic life doesn't
an article, don't hesitate to email
leave her much time for catching up with old
Features Editor Céline Buehl:
friends: She has recently finished filming three
more movies; she has started a production
[email protected]
company, for which she has bought the rights
Asia meets Islam at Sunset eatery
by Sam Kronish
Staff Writer
Onion pancakes. Hot Braised Gao Lamb Ribs.
Special Hot Pot Lamb with Green Onion: These
Asian dishes sound familiar, but at one San
Francisco restaurant, they’re served up with a
Middle Eastern twist. The result is a surprising
fusion that piques the palate even in a city that
prides itself on culinary diversity.
Old Mandarin Islamic is a tiny MuslimChinese fusion restaurant tucked away in the
outskirts of the Sunset District. At first, the small
shop is easy to miss, blending in with the many
other family restaurants populating the avenues
near Ocean Beach. I discovered the restaurant
by chance, ducking in when a freak hailstorm
hit during a weekend walk. Old Mandarin exudes a warm, friendly family feel, and the noise level is never disruptive.
Stop in at the end of the day, and you might see
the famous Ocean Beach sunset from the front
window, casting a mellow glow over the tables.
Those who see the Middle East solely in terms
of its fiery political relationship with the U.S.
should stop into Old Mandarin for a wonderful little wake-up call. No matter who you are
or what your nationality, the place couldn’t be
more welcoming and hospitable.
Political digressions aside, the service is fast
and the prices affordable. Despite the fusion approach, traditional Chinese dishes still dominate
the menu (just don’t make the mistake of asking
for Mu Shu Pork). Yet each gets a fresh spin that
sets it apart from run-of-the-mill restaurant
food.
The chicken chow mein, with its thick noodles
and chili oil, is particularly savory. And the two
signature lamb dishes — Mandarin Cumin Lamb
and the West Lake Lamb Dumpling — are
well-worth ordering. The Cumin Lamb offers an intense, stir-fried salty experience
accentuated by green onions, with the cumin
supplying heat and echoing Middle Eastern
and even Indian cuisine. The dumpling is
juicy and lightly spiced, though the broth
in which it’s served is scathingly hot. Thin
stuffed pancakes, which come in three variations — original, onion, or beef — are a tasty
accompaniment.
The Sunset can be cold and grey in winter,
but this restaurant is definitely worth the trek.
Whether you’re looking for a unique dinner
experience, unusual take-out or a safe place
to take refuge from a winter storm, this warm
and affordable eatery is a great destination.
Where: Old Mandarin
Islamic, 3132 Vicente
(between 42 Avenue and
43 Avenue)
Dishes to try: Stuffed
pancakes, lamb dishes
Watch out for: Rice not
included with the meal
Quality of service: Fast
and attentive
Price: Appetizers from
$6, entrees from $10
4
Urban Author
Traces Gold
Rush Roots
Zelda Williams Visits Urban
During Press Tour for Film
Guest Writer
The Urban Legend
“This place offers up salty
deliciousness. The perfect
cure for super-cold
San Francisco days."
– Graham Wong, Diner
Do salivate
Mongolian Chicken (at top) and Spicy
Chicken Chow Mein (bottom) pique
the palate (photo by Sam Kronish).
Staff Writer
On a chilly evening in November, a modest crowd gathered at the California Historical
Society in San Francisco to hear
Frances Dinkelspiel discuss her
new book, Towers of Gold, How
One Jewish Immigrant Named
Isaias Hellman Created California.
Dinkelspiel, an Urban alumna,
was enthusiastic to share the
hard work she’d put into her
book over the past several
years.
Isaias Hellman is Dinkelspiel’s great-great-grandfather,
and Towers of Gold is about his
influence on the life and modernizing of Californian finance.
“The drive to understand where
we come from is very strong in
this country,” said Dinkelspiel
at her book reading. Hellman
founded Wells Fargo Bank, and
helped tame and shape California’s “wild financial west.”
Hellman was part of a group
of Jews from Central Europe
who immigrated to California
in 1859. He began with a dry
goods store that provided a
small bank in the back area for
customers. He proceeded to
establish a banking company
called The Farmers and Merchants Bank. Hellman offered
low interest rates, and it wasn’t
long before men began placing
their money with him.
This first successful banking
endeavor was the beginning of
Hellman’s career in Californian
industry. He purchased more
banks and became a builder, an
investor and a philanthropist.
He built up a reputation of
reliability and trustworthiness,
and transformed the previously
“agricultural California” into a
profitable and thriving industrial state.
When asked whether it was
emotionally difficult for her
to research and write about a
member of her own family, Dinkelspiel answered that she had
been a journalist for 20 years,
and “loved dirt.” However, she
said she was not attempting to
write a hagiography. Being a
relative rather than a scholar
gave her different insight on
the story, and also served to
place herself in the narrative,
she said.
Dinkelspiel is an Urban
alum (’77) who recalls the notable Dan Murphy. She found
the teaching at Urban to be
inspiring in general, because
it encouraged independent
thinking.
What advice does Dinkelspiel have for aspiring writers? Write as much as possible
through journal entries, newspaper articles, and blogs: “The
more you write, the better you
get.” She suggested recording
as many life experiences as possible. Anything, from travels
to volunteer work to simply
taking a walk can be turned
into essays or fiction.
Towers of Gold is published by
St. Martin’s Press and is available at bookstores for $29.95.
5
January 2009
features
The Urban Legend
Fast, Cheap and Toasted
Introducing Hattie on Haight, our bagel-savvy consumer sleuth
A
nd now, in conjunction with
common knowledge guru
Hattie McHaightStreet, The
Urban Legend is proud to present a
series of tips designed to help you
eat well on Haight Street.
What? What did you just say? You
say that you don’t need any tips?
That after going to this school for
some odd years you know all you
need to know about Haight Street
dining and have no use for our list
of tips? That unlike everyone else in
this economic downturn, you have
plenty of dollars to spend on whatever you desire?
Well, riddle me this: Where would
our world be without tips? Would
our great country have won its battle for independence without Paul
Revere’s ever-so-helpful tip that
the British were coming? And who
knows what would have happened if
Richard Nixon’s secrets hadn’t been
revealed in Deep Throat’s late night
… what’s the word again? Oh yeah,
TIP!
Think about it, we tip everything
from cows to icebergs to waiters
… which brings us back to Haight
Street. So, without further ado, we
now present the first segment of Tips
with Hattie McHaightStreet.
First, however, you probably
want to know: Who is Hattie? Hattie
McHaightStreet is a teenager just like
you. She likes hoodies, Tetris, and
composting. And she loves to eat out.
If you have discovered a wondderful Haight Street eatery or would
like to suggest a topic for Hattie’s
next set of tips, let us know! You can
write to Hattie’s Urban Legend liasons, Taylor Bostwick and Lizze Logan, at [email protected]
and [email protected].
URBAN: All of my friends like to eat on Haight Street, but I just don’t have the financial
means to do so. What can I do?
Hattie: Dear reader, don’t fret. You can get a bagel with butter and jam for under $2 at both
Squat & Gobble and Bluefront Café. A cup of soup at Squat & Gobble is $3.75. Get something that comes with chips or fries, they make great snacks later on!
URBAN: Oops! I forgot to buy a snack for my sports team/advisory/strangely-themed
club! Where can I buy in bulk?
Hattie: If you want this group of people to really appreciate you, check out the in-season
fruits at the Haight Street Market. If you don’t want to pay that much, most people like
Doritos from New Lite Market (the corner store). A bag of Doritos will run you 99 cents
and oranges will run you $1.99 per pound.
URBAN: I’m a vegetarian/vegan/lactose-intolerant/super-picky. Where can I get something with no animal products?
Hattie: Bluefront has salads starting at $6.45, all of which come with bread, and an entire
vegetarian menu starting at $4.95. El Balazo can make a bean and rice burrito for $5.45.
For those of you who like tofu, check out Best Of Thai Noodle, or Asqew Grill’s marinated
tofu.
URBAN: That healthy stuff sounded disgusting. When is dessert?
Hattie: If your sweet tooth has grown into an entire set of teeth, there is no place like Ben &
Jerry’s. Remember to ask for samples. Best Of Thai Noodle has desserts that aren’t found
everywhere, like fried banana with ice cream for $4.95. For sweet and really cheap, there
is nothing like a 37-cent Lindt truffle from the Student Center (swallow your pride, upperclassmen, you used to hang out there, too). Crepes A Go-Go is good-good too, especially if
you like Nutella. Mmmm … Nutella … what was I talking about, again?
URBAN: Food. Hattie, you have just been so helpful for finding what to eat on Haight
Street! What else can you tell me that will help me make the best culinary decisions possible?
Hattie: A few things to remember: Coffee To The People’s sizes are small, medium, large. If
you say “tall,” “venti” or “grande,” they will death-glare you all the way back to the Starbucks in Laurel Village. Also at CTTP, the orders aren’t shouted out very often, so listen
closely. This is also true at Bluefront, where your orders are not always ready in order, so
listen for your number. And keep exploring! This was only a sampling of the foods readily
accessible within the one-block radius of the school, but there are others, like Massawa, the
Ethiopian restaurant. And remember to share!
illustration by Alan Hsiao, Céline Buehl, Lizzie Logan, and Justine Palefsky
6
January 2009
Features
Speaking truth to power
The Urban Legend
Historically, the president-elect has chosen a poet to write a poem and read it at the inaugural ceremony, on the day
that he is sworn into office. The words of a presidential poet often act as an introduction to a new president’s deepest thoughts. John F. Kennedy chose Robert Frost, whose poems elevated the common man; Bill Clinton chose Maya
Angelou, who chronicles black America. This year, President-Elect Barack Obama chose his friend, Elizabeth Alexander. As well as being a published poet, Alexander is a professor of African-American studies at Yale University.
Her poems often deal with issues such as race, gender and politics. Below is one of her poems. —Nora Lalle
Ars Poetica #100: I Believe
Poetry, I tell my students,
is idiosyncratic. Poetry
is where we are ourselves,
(though Sterling Brown said
“Every ‘I’ is a dramatic ‘I’”)
digging in the clam flats
for the shell that snaps,
emptying the proverbial pocketbook.
Poetry is what you find
in the dirt in the corner,
overhear on the bus, God
in the details, the only way
to get from here to there.
Poetry (and now my voice is
rising)
is not all love, love, love,
and I’m sorry the dog died.
Poetry (here I hear myself
loudest)
is the human voice,
and are we not of interest to
each other?
—Elizabeth Alexander
Illustration by Anneli Eddy (‘10)
Features
January 2009
The Urban Legend
7
The Urban Legend takes on, well, urban legends
Lizzie Logan digs for the truth behind a rumor:
How many Urban students are Jewish?
In a small school like Urban, rumors spread
quickly and turn into the stuff of legend. Often, we
accept commonly held beliefs as fact. But we are not
naïve. There’s truth and error out there, and it’s the
job of the paper, your news source for what’s true at
Urban, to figure it out. So, legends — prepare to be
busted.
The legend: Urban’s student population is
overwhelmingly Jewish. According to the “You
Know You’re From Urban When …” Facebook page,
“You’re Jewish. Regardless of what your parents
told you, you’re Jewish, damnit.” At the beginning
of this year, Head of School Mark Salkind had to
remind us that Urban is not, in fact, religiously affiliated, and that cancelling school on some Jewish
holidays was a logistical decision based on expected
attendance.
The facts: In an effort to examine this legend, we
polled Urban students about their religious affiliations. The poll was open to all students from Dec. 17
to Dec. 29. Respondents included 39 ninth graders,
41 tenth and twelfth graders and 49 eleventh graders, or about 60 percent of the student population.
According to the data (see box at left), it is clear
that Jewish students do make up a substantial minority of respondents, though not a majority of the
student body.
The fact that Jews make up a sizeable minority
at Urban is not a result of admissions decisions,
according to Liz Wiebe, assistant director of admissions.
Wiebe says that the department “does not track
(Judaism)” and that the optional ethnicity section
of the application “is not a big factor” in reviewing
applications.
And students seem to be exploring as well as
identifying with religious beliefs, no matter how
they grew up or what faith their parents follow. In
How much do YOU know about the Secret Life of
the poll, the “what are your religious beliefs?” question drew answers ranging from “Quakerism” to
“atheist” to “alien conspiracy.” Clearly, Judaism is
not the only faith tradition represented at Urban.
The bottom line: Urban’s more diverse than some
think. And while religion is always a sensitive topic
for schools, it seems clear that Jews at Urban are just
part of a religious mix.
Following are comments from students who
responded to the survey:
• “It’s not that big of a deal. I don’t
think it matters.”
• “Sometimes it feels like it’s “uncool” to be religious.”
• “At Urban, I feel like it’s better to
be Jewish. It almost includes you more.
And talking about Christmas here feels
awkward.”
• “Yes, we miss school days and hear
jokes in the hallways, but I haven’t ever
experienced it in any hugely divisive
way. (But I am a Jew. Maybe it does affect people and I just don’t know it.)”
• “People get pretty upset if you say
the wrong thing.”
• “If given the opporunity, people
with other beliefs might feel there is a
little more free space to express their
own personal heritage, and perhaps as
a whole the school could feel rich with
heritage(s) of many types.
• “Does it really matter?”
Got any myths to bust? Email Lizzie Logan at
[email protected]
Greg Monfils?
We asked Greg Monfils to answer 10 questions about himself. Then, we asked his student-friend, Emma Cornwell, his advisee, Lucas Todd, and his office-sharing
buddy, Laurie Williams, the same 10 questions to see who knows Greg the best. Look below to see how it played out!
TOPICS
Greg Monfils
Typical lunch
Leftovers from home
Superpower he’d like to have
Emma Cornwell
Laurie Williams
Luke Todd
Sandwiches
Never brings lunch
Get off butt and do something for Ability to read minds and be
loved ones
invisible
The power to know everything
Already has superpowers
Celebrity crush
Peggy Lee (when he was young)
Penelope Cruz
Judi Dench
Not too impressed by celebrities
Favorite fruit
Pears, mangoes, tomatoes
Tomatoes
Apples
Never seen him eat one
Favorite Urban events
One Acts, Peer Ed Theatre, con- Winter Production, One Acts
certs, first and last days of school
Peer Ed Theatre
Performing with Rock, Paper,
Death
Three words to describe Greg
Still ... Not ... Sure
Jolly, pensive, generous
Funny, clever, ancient
Gregarious
Favorite Greek myth
Prometheus and Icarus
Oedipus
Gilgamesh, Oedipus Rex
He has many
Favorite aspect of Urban
The kids
The student-teacher relationships
The students
The kids
As a kid, I wanted to be ...
Superman
A bus driver
A lawyer
A grownup
Perfect Sunday
Breakfast in a cafe, hike, eat dinner, play piano and read
Sleep, eat, breathe, read
Reading, walking, contemplating
things, being an intellectual
Being a good person, and enjoying good food and good friends
Results
100%
40%
30%
10%
Chocolate
arts
January 2009
The Urban Legend
8
In Gonzo, the Doctor Is In
Documentary profiles journalist's work, lifestyle
by Tobyn Smith
Staff Writer
The theater is quiet. Devoted
fans are dressed in classic Hunter
S. Thompson attire: White bucket
hats, Hawaiian shirts, and lightgreen aviator sunglasses. Then the
good doctor appears on screen,
not “advocating drugs, alcohol,
or insanity for anyone” and the
audience erupts in laughter. Actor
Johnny Depp begins to narrate
the fantastic story of Hunter S.
Thompson.
The documentary is called
Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr.
Hunter S. Thompson. Its director is
Alex Gibney (Taxi to the Darkside
and Enron: The Smartest Guys in
the Room). It premiered on Jan. 20,
2008 at the Sundance Film Festival.
I had to wait until September to
take a glimpse of this unbelievable
documentary; I saw it at the Red
Vic on Haight Street. Fortunately,
it's now out on DVD.
Dr. Hunter S. Thompson was
born July 18, 1937 in Louisville,
Ky. In school he excelled in sports
and writing; his favorite sport was
baseball. Along with sports and
writing, Hunter’s other pasttime
was getting into trouble. He was
often called out for his behavior
and disrespect towards authority
figures. Thompson’s journalistic
career took flight after a threeyear stint in the U.S. Air Force.
Senior
winter art
show
WHO
21 participating seniors approximately 22% of the
senior class
WHAT
An outpouring of art that
includes everything from
frog brains to gingko leaves
where
The second-floor hallways
of Urban
WHEN
Feb. 12
3:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m.
He was later ‘recommended’ for
an honorable discharge after his
commanding officer wrote in a
personal memo that “this airman, although talented, will not
be guided by policy.” After his
discharge, Thompson wandered
from job to job.
For a short time, he worked
both at Time magazine and The
Middletown Daily Record. He was
fired from both; Time because of insubordination, and The Middletown
Daily Record because of recklessness , including destroying office
equipment and arguing about
certain advertisements that were
being presented in the paper. Frustrated with New York, Thompson
traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico
to work as a sports reporter at El
Sportivo, a local paper. Later, El
Sportivo collapsed and Thompson
was left without a job. He became
a freelance journalist who submitted many of his articles to the New
York Herald Tribune.
While living in Glen Ellen,
Calif, Hunter was approached
by editors from The Nation, who
asked Thompson to write a story
about his experiences with the
infamous Hells Angels motorcycle
gang. Thompson spent the next
year chronicling his encounters,
although the relationship fell apart
after the Angels beat up Thompson
over allegations that he was profiting from his work.
Photo courtesy of Magnolia Pictures
Despite the ”stomping,”
Thompson’s story made journalism history by introducing a new
writing style called gonzo journalism, in which a writer combines
objective reporting and firstperson storytelling. The author is
constantly present; in fact, gonzo
stories often pay more attention to
what the author is doing than to
the events that are taking place. A
famous example of gonzo journalism is Thompson’s famous novel:
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A
Savage Journey into the Heart of the
American Dream.
Thompson died at the age of
67 by a self-inflicted gunshot to
the head. Despite his early death,
he influenced many writers. Steve
Proctor, deputy managing editor
of the San Francisco Chronicle, said
that Thompson’s death was “a
departure as loud and aggressive
as his arrival.” For many, the good
doctor will be forever missed.
I thoroughly enjoyed this film.
The narration was great and the
movie informative. My favorite
scenes were when Hunter followed
the Hell’s Angels, and Hunter’s
campaign for Aspen sheriff. Both
scenes allow the viewer to have
a closer view of what Thompson
was all about. All of the footage of
Hunter explaining his campaign is
quite hilarious.
Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr.
Hunter S. Thompson is a fascinating
look at the many different views
on the life of Thompson and his
career as a journalist/writer. The
film coincides with the release of a
book under the same name as the
film.
I give this film five stars and
hope everyone gets a chance
to watch Hunter’s antics themselves.
Oscar Buzz Centers on Streep, Ledger
by Sebastian Gutierrez
close to touching him.
Special to the Legend
Best Supporting Actress: This
one is probably the hardest to
call. There are a myriad of people
who could be contenders. Penelope Cruz ("Vicky Cristina Barcelona"), Amy Adams ("Doubt"),
Viola Davis ("Doubt"), Kate
Winslet ("The Reader"), Maggie
Gyllenhaal ("The Dark Knight"),
Taraji P. Henson ("The Curious
Case of Benjamin Button"), and
Rosemary DeWitt ("Rachel Getting Married") are all worthy of
recognition.
It is that time of year, the time any
critic looks forward to with bated
breath: Oscar season. The influx of
quality movies is astounding, and
this year is no exception. Last year
was a fantastic year for movies,
and this year’s Oscar awards will
be some of the most competitive
ever. Here are my predictions of
what will be nominated come Feb.
22. Seeing as a few of these movies
haven’t been made available to me
at the time I am writing this, this
is my educated guess. These are
my predictions based on what the
critics are saying and the history of
Academy choices.
Best Picture: If I know anything, I
would put my money on "Frost/
Nixon", "The Dark Knight", "The
Curious Case of Benjamin Button",
"Milk", and "Doubt" getting nominated. If I was running the show, I
would put "In Bruges" and "WALLE" in there, but don’t bet on it.
Best Director: Ron Howard gives a
political drama unlike any we have
seen in "Frost/Nixon". Christopher
Nolan makes the best superhero
movie ever as well as a crime epic
good enough to stand with "The
Departed": "The Dark Knight". Gus
Van Sant gives us the most well
crafted movie of his career with
"Milk". David Fincher brings his
unique visual sense to a moving
fairy tale with "The Curious Case of
Benjamin Button". Andrew Stanton
told a fantastic love story of the year
that also happened to be the best
Photo courtesy of mctcampus.com
animated movie of the year with
"WALL-E". These are shoo-ins for
best director noms, for sure.
Best Actor: Frank Langella is the
easy favorite with his powerful
portrayal of Richard Nixon in
"Frost/Nixon". Other favorites include Mickey Rourke as a washedup wrestler in "The Wrestler", Brad
Pitt as a man who ages backwards
in "The Curious Case of Benjamin
Button", Sean Penn as Harvey Milk
in "Milk", and Clint Eastwood as
an angry senior in "Gran Torino".
Probable snubs include Colin
Farrell for his troubled hitman
in "In Bruges", Christian Bale as
the caped crusader in "The Dark
Knight", Leonardo DiCaprio as
an unhappy suburban husband
in "Revolutionary Road", and Josh
Brolin as George W. Bush in "W".
Best Actress: Meryl Streep has
been getting a lot of buzz for her
role as a vicious nun in "Doubt",
and since Academy voters love
her, they expect to see her name
on the list of nods. Other possibles
include Cate Blanchett ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"),
Kate Winslet ("Revolutionary
Road"), Anne Hathaway ("Rachel
Getting Married"), and Angelina
Jolie ("Changeling")
Best Supporting Actor: I could go
on all day about Philip Seymour
Hoffman ("Doubt"), James Franco
("Milk"), Emile Hirsch ("Milk"),
Robert Downey Jr. ("Tropic Thunder"), and Brenden Gleeson ("In
Bruges"). But there’s no point. This
Oscar belongs to Heath Ledger
("The Dark Knight"). No one comes
Best Animated: Like Best Supporting Actor, this one has
already been won. Sure, "Kung
Fu Panda" was a lot of fun, and
yes, "Madagascar 2 "and "Bolt"
were decent enough. But come
on. How can a fat panda, a talking lion, and a dog with identity
issues compete with the genius
that is "WALL-E"?
Best Adapted Screenplay: Yet
another category with too many
great choices to pick just one.
Expect "Doubt", "The Curious
Case of Benjamin Button", "Revolutionary Road", "Frost/Nixon",
and "The Dark Knight" to grace
this category.
Best Original Screenplay: Hopefully, the Academy will wake
up and nominate "In Bruges"
here. "The Wrestler", "WALL-E",
"Rachel Getting Married", "Vicky
Cristina Barcelona are" also
strong contenders.
9
January 2009
Arts
The Urban Legend
Behind the Scenes with Zelda Williams
So, what’s the movie
about?
ZW: Well, it’s based on
A Midsummer Night’s
Dream, less so on the
actual plot of the play
and more on the idea of
Puck making people fall
in love, causing general mischief. And they
actually perform small
amounts of the scenes
from the play in the
movie, but it’s a musical. It’s primarily about
Tanner Cohen, who
plays the Puck character
(and) who figures out
he can make everyone
fall in love with each
other. He’s out as gay,
and he’s been getting a
lot of s**t for it. So he’s
been being ridiculed
at his all boys’ school,
(and) he decides to turn
his town gay, so that
they can walk in his
shoes for a little bit. I’m
actually one of the few
people who doesn’t get
photo by Isabel Moore
Zelda Williams, former Urban
affected by his magic,
student, actress, and daughter of actor because I’m his best
Robin Williams, was in town recently,
friend and he tries to avoid using it on
doing publicity for her new film, Were
me.
the World Mine. I had the opportunity
to talk with her about the film, her life So, how do you connect your Urban
and her memories of Urban. Below is
education to the rest of your career?
an edited transcript of our conversation.
ZW: Well, the great thing about Urban
—Sebastian Gutierrez
was that it was — it is — really accepting of people who want to do different
things. It’s just a really creative school.
I mean, more then anything else is that
it encourages you to try new things.
With me, even with just the two years
here ... even though I was leaving
school early, it helped me figure out
what I wanted to do. I mean, they
didn’t really have so many qualms
about you trying different things.
Circus Club was a great club here.
It was fantastic. I mean, there are so
few schools were you can walk and
say, “Yeah, I wanna learn Mandarin
or Japanese, and I’d like to do Circus
Club in my spare time.”
Cool. You probably get this question a lot, but, do you (succeed) in
the business because of your dad?
Like, do you get called for auditions
because of your dad?
ZW: Um, no. It’s surprising. It’s a little
bit of … the nepotism assumption is
a very easy one to fall into, and I get
it a lot. You know, it’s like, with Will
Smith. He actually started a company
called Overbrook Entertainment,
and they’re remaking The Karate Kid,
specifically as a vehicle for his tenyear-old son.
I mean, that’s one where it’s like,
you know, (the) son is really too
young to have asked for any of that,
but that is viewed as nepotism because he’s creating it specifically for
him, whereas, with my dad, there’s
no amount of training that could help
me imitate what he does, so there’s
not really anything I can do about
it. In more cases than not, (I) kind of
get the short end of the stick, because
people assume that I’ll be like him. I
tend to be more drawn towards (the)
dramatic, and, you know, the best that
you can do is, put yourself out there,
do your best, and when they have an
assumption about what you’re gonna
be, you know, you can just try, and,
whether or not you’re right for it,
that’s what they decide from then on.
But, no. Dad’s never … I don’t
think he could actually get me an
audition. Directors don’t generally
put themselves at risk by doing that
kind of stuff, because they have to
choose the right actor for the part, and
if you’re not right, then they’re risking
their career and millions of dollars.
I don’t think people realize how one
character can affect how a movie gets
made. You know, the same thing has
happened before with some of the
other kids of actors. The only one that
I can think of that kind of defied all of
the odds is Angelina Jolie and Jon Voight. At some point, you do either have
to admit to the fact that you’re always
gonna have your dad’s name attached
to yours, or you can try harder, and
that’s what I plan on doing.
To read more of Gutierrez’s
interview with Williams,
please visit the Legend Online. It’s just a click away:
http://my.hsj.org/ca/sanfrancisco/urban
Were the World Mine lights up screen
by Sebastian Gutierrez
Special to the Legend
Wow. It would appear as if I have
gone soft. Really. I just got out of Were
the World Mine, and I actually felt
happy. I never feel happy after I leave
a movie. I am usually brooding on the
film’s deeper meaning, or I’m in a fit
of rage that I have just spent $10 on a
piece of garbage.
But Were the World Mine is the exception. All it is is a small love storyslash-musical that left me with a smile
on my face. It has its problems to be
sure, but they don’t detract from the
overall giddiness you’ll feel when you
leave.
Let’s begin with Timothy. Timothy
is having hard times at school, hard
times at home, just hard times in
general. Most of this stems from the
fact that he is out as gay, which made
his father leave him and his mother,
and gives the boys in school a chance
to harass him. If it weren’t for the fact
that he had two really good friends,
he would probably be pushing up
daisies.
Timothy also is prone to delving in
musical daydreams, usually involving the topless figure of his crush, the
school’s star rugby player. When the
Shakespeare teacher casts him as Puck
in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, he gets
a bright idea. He is going to pull a
Puck, and make everyone in town fall
in love with each other, only there’s
a catch. Everyone is gonna be gay, so
they can walk in his shoes for a little
bit. Mischief ensues.
Tanner Cohen plays Timothy. He’s
fairly unknown, like everyone in this
film, so it’s easy to accept him as this
particular character. He does a good
job, bringing some real emotion to a
character that could have easily been
exploited.
Zelda Williams plays Timothy’s
best friend, Frankie. She is a self
described “heteroflexible”, meaning,
she’s straight, but stuff happens. She
has been legally emancipated at the
age of fifteen, and as such, spends
most of her walking around with her
guitar. Williams is very good as this
spunky, cool kid. It doesn’t hurt that
she writes good songs.
The other main role falls to Wendy
Robie as the Shakespeare teacher/
play director. She is sensational. Like
Steve Coogan’s drama teacher in
Hamlet 2, Robie bears a striking resemblance to any theater teacher who
loves what she does. She has many
lines that could’ve come off as insipid,
but in her hands, they strike gold.
Director Tom Gustafson has one
wild imagination. Seeing as how
most of the musical numbers are in
Timothy’s head, the director is free
to go nuts and deliver scenes unlike
any we’ve seen before. They are all
very flashy and frenetic and you can’t
help but love each and every one.
Now, you may think that with all the
emphasis put on the musical numbers,
the heart-to-heart stuff and the regular
dialogue would fall flat. Not so! The
characters are given all the space they
need to round out. We really sympathize with them in the end.
Now, onto the most important part
of a musical: The music. The music
in Were the World Mine is not going to
win any awards, but it will keep you
entertained. Most of the songs are well
written, with many of them borrowing actual text from Shakespeare himself. Does that sound crazy? I thought
so too, but it works to an alarming
degree. Since most of the music is
great, it’s a shame that the finale (sung
by Williams, no less) fails to deliver
the punch that a finale requires.
There are a few other flaws. First
off, there’s pacing. The movie starts
off great, with a dodgeball game
turned into an operatic daydream,
and then it just stalls for 45 minutes
while we get to know everyone
around Timothy. Timothy doesn’t engineer his brilliant scheme until about
an hour into the movie, and that,
in turn, makes the rest of it seemed
rushed. I wish they had spent more
time with everyone falling in love
with each other, rather then dwelling
on Timothy’s mom and her pathetic
attempts to sell beauty products.
Also, some of the supporting char-
acters are way too over the top and
clichéd. Some include a homophobic
gym teacher, and a Bible verse-spewing parent. They don’t read as real
people but rather as archetypes that
you need to put in a story like this so
you can have someone to hate.
And don’t even get me started on
the ending. Let’s just say that there
was only one way this movie was
going to end, and that’s how it turned
out.
But the main thing that might
dissuade people from seeing “Were
the World Mine” is actually one of its
strong points, and that is that the film
contains gay characters. This isn’t a
problem at all, but, well, let’s just say
that there are a lot of scenes involving
dudes in tight shirts and glitter.
Personally, I loved this, seeing as
how it was something I usually don’t
get the chance to experience. But there
are people out there for whom this
could be a deal-breaker. In this day
and age, you’d hope that most moviegoers can handle a movie that deals
with something a little outside their
comfort zones.
Were the World Mine is a movie that
I think people will understand and
enjoy. Whether you are gay, straight,
or somewhere in between, you should
seek out this movie. You will thank
me later.
10
sports
January 2009
The Urban Legend
la-crossing the line
Urban's new lacrosse team is ready to bleed blue
by Scott Lucas
Staff Writer
After two years of organizing, Brendan Blakely,
Urban’s athletic director, is about to launch Urban’s
first men’s lacrosse team.
The new lacrosse team will be in the Bay Counties League (BCL) and will be competing against
University, Marin Academy, Lick-Wilmerding, Head
Royce, Bentley, Stuart Hall, Sonoma Academy, and
Cardinal-Newman high schools.
“Lacrosse is a sport that has been growing a lot
and we wanted to give an opportunity for our kids to
play for their school,” said Athletic Director Brendan
Blakely. That said, Blakely wants Urban’s lacrosse
team to be competitive: “The expectations will be
the same as (for) every other Urban sport in terms
of commitment level and dedication.”
Asked why he decided to create an Urban lacrosse
team, Blakely said that “interest from the student
population was enough to make lacrosse an Urban
sport.”
Student Alex Wong (’09) agreed. “(Urban) has
always had people with a passion to play, but now
with the school expanding, there are more students
willing to play,” said Wong. Even though the team
has yet to be selected or to play its first game, Wong
believes that Urban’s lacrosse team is here to stay and
that this is more than just an experimental year.
Sam Cash (’10) has played lacrosse since middle
school and he is excited for the chance to play for an
Urban team. “I think lacrosse will become really big
at Urban and will become a true powerhouse,” said
Cash.
Cash describes lacrosse in a way that’s both poetic
and potentially frightening. “Lacrosse is like heaven
on a field and you get to go to war,” said Cash, whose
experience will likely make him a keystone player for
Urban who will make some noise around the BCL.
Lacrosse has a pedigree far beyond the East Coast
colleges whose teams have made it an Ivy League
sport. Dating back to the 1100’s, an early form of
lacrosse called stickball flourished among the Native
Americans. Games were huge events, lasting several
days and involving hundreds of men. Stickball was
photo by Isabel Moore
Sam Cash and Katherine Coppe are
looking forward to trying out for lacrosse
played throughout the United States and Canada.
Immigrants from Europe modified the sport over
the years until it became the sport that we recognize
today as lacrosse.
Lacrosse is a full-body, contact sport, demanding both upper body and lower body strength. The
fast-paced style of lacrosse makes it an entertaining
sport, and the abundance of goals in a typical game
puts hockey to shame. Like all contact sports, lacrosse
leaves welts and bruises that last for days, though
players wear protective gear. Typically, a lacrosse
player wears shoulder pads, elbow pads, gloves, and
a helmet. The position on the field determines how
much a player will run and which lacrosse stick they
will use; for example, a defender will have a longer
stick to check other players with.
Katherine Coppe (’11) will be one of the few girls
at Urban trying out for the lacrosse team. “I play with
my cousin for fun in the park, but I’ve never played
real lacrosse,” she said.
When asked what she thought about playing on
a men’s team, Coppe responded, ”I think it will be
hard at first. My teammates and the people we play
will have a lot of issues, but they will get over it.”
She explains, “it is a guy’s team, but the sport isn’t
offered for girls,” which is why she is trying out for
the men’s squad.
Urban’s new lacrosse team will be playing in a
men’s league, which means the rules will be different
compared to women’s lacrosse, which limits checking
and hitting. Blakely said he is still in the process of
hiring two coaches for the team.
Tryouts are scheduled in February; the date is to
be determined. Everyone is welcomed to try out,
according to Blakely, and no prior knowledge of the
sport is necessary. The only requirement is to come
ready to play with an open mind and the willingness
to learn.
Athletics Online
www.urbanschool.org/ page.cfm?p=5
Athletics Office
415 593 9530
for more information
Urban athlete signs Division 1 Letter of Intent
by Alex Roncal
Staff Writer
Women's basketball at Urban
may never be the same, with one of
the squad's most powerful players
heading East for college.
On Oct. 19, Rachael Pecota (’09)
signed a Letter of Intent to play
Division 1 college basketball at the
University of Rhode Island.
Initially, Pecota had official
visits scheduled at Utah State
University, Boise State University,
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
(UNLV), Fordham, and University
of Rhode Island (URI).
However, she canceled visits
to Utah State and Boise State after
visiting UNLV, Fordham, and URI.
Pecota also made an unofficial
visit to nearby University of San
Francisco.
Her official visit to URI was
the third and final official visit.
She was immediately impressed
with the atmosphere and culture
at URI. "(I) just felt at home when
(I) was there," Pecota said.
Pecota also liked the fact that
URI had a male coaching staff.
"There are not a lot of male coaches
on the Division 1 level for girls,"
she said.
Pecota came to Urban at the
start of her junior year, transferring
By the
Numbers
1
Number of
Freshman on Men's
Varsity Basketball
2
Number of times
Connor O'Callaghan
('09) beat David
Boddy ('09) in
an arm wrestling
contest
3
Number of Urban
Girls performing for
ODC on Jan. 31
5
Number of threepointers Ian Paratore
('09) made against
Cloverdale
5.2
Number of assists
Shaunré Clendinen
('09) averages per
game
21
from Palo Alto High because she
“wanted better academics in the
classroom … and a better support
system in athletics.”
She had an immediate impact
on the basketball court, averaging
17.2 points per game, 8.1 rebounds
per game, and 2.3 assists per game.
This year, she is averaging 17.0
points per game, 9.8 rebounds per
game, and 3.2 assists per game.
Signing her letter of intent concluded a long process for Pecota,
which started when she was in
seventh grade after receiving a
letter of interest from a college
recruiter.
Pecota has received so many
offers that she cannot distinguish
one from another. With the Bay
Counties League (BCL) season in
full swing, Pecota and her senior
counterpart Shaunré Clendinen
will be leading the Urban Blues
to another championship.
In related news, Scott Lucas will
be joining the Hamilton College
soccer team next fall, and Mallory Mendelssohn will be joining
the Skidmore College volleyball
team.
Go Blues!
Number of
recommendations
LeRoy Votto wrote
for students to
colleges
167
Number of total
rebounds Girls
Varsity Basketball
has accumulated
over 6 games
215
Number of push-ups
Joren Dawson ('09)
can do in a row
photo by Isabel Moore
January 2009
The Urban Legend
Race as history
New approach
to all-school
meetings: guest
performers
continued from page 2
Mrs.
Butler
“Whenever
we entered
the home of
Mrs. Butler, I
felt so out of
place. I had
this feeling
in the pit
of stomach
like I was
somewhere
I was no
supposed
to be, but I
knew I was
supposed to
be there. I
knew what
my class and
I were doing
was important
and was
going to be
worth all the
hard work”
Sarah Rowley
student at
McComb High
School
and I would be interviewing and documenting the
stories of elders in our community that experienced
the civil rights movement first-hand in McComb.
I was horrified! I was so scared about how my
parents would react. I was sent to private school my
whole life so that I would not be exposed to that sort
of thing and now I was in a class whose job it is to
study equal rights for all races.
I was not too interested in the course or the project. I even considered withdrawing from the course
and taking another class, but I decided to stay. Mrs.
Malone encouraged me to read some books and do
some research, and within less than two weeks I felt
a fire burning inside me. I wanted to do this project
and be a part of the whole activity. When I heard that
Mr. Howard was coming to McComb to assist us with
the project, I was thrilled. I knew we needed his help
and I wanted him to experience the project with us.
For weeks at a time we read, researched, watched
movies, and debated on race and racism in the South.
The things I read and saw within the books and movies shocked me and mostly hurt me.
From then on, I was so excited to do this project
and inform the community of Mrs. Butler and Mrs.
Lillie Mae Carstarphen’s stories. These two ladies are
assets to the McComb community, and are still, to
this day, passionate about the work they did during
the 1960’s and in the civil rights movement. Without
people like them, the United States would probably
still suffer today and be corrupted by people with
racism in their hearts.
Whenever we entered the home of Mrs. Butler, I
felt so out of place. I had this feeling in the pit of my
stomach like I was somewhere I was not supposed
to be, but I knew I was supposed to be there. I knew
what my class and I were doing was important and
was going to be worth all the hard work.
Both ladies supplied us with numerous stories and
answered many questions from each of my classmates
as well as myself. We really got to dig deep and hear
how things were back in the 1960’s. I was honored to
hear … about their personal experience of Dr. Martin
Luther King’s assassination. With all that information
on camera, we really got a full view of their lives and
what they experienced.
I felt like when I left their homes I could write a
full biography of their lives, but I knew one thing I
could not relate to, and that is how they felt. I thought
to myself, how would I feel if just because of my skin
color I was unable to do normal things that any United
States citizen has every right to do?
Entering this project, I was extremely hesitant.
I was not sure what to expect or how to react. This
project will stay with me for the rest of my life. This
whole experience was so moving and life-altering. I
continued from page 1
Photo by Howard Levin
Mrs. Butler tels her life story to students at
McComb High School in McComb, Mississippi
had an inner ‘demon,’ so to speak. There has always
been a part of me that wanted to know the whole
story and not just what I heard at home or at school.
Hearing these ladies’ personal experiences really
made my whole outlook on the civil rights movement
change.
Without this experience that the McComb School
District provided me with, I would still have the
certain mindset that there was indeed a difference in
races. The stories that I heard were so intense, and
all I want now is to share their stories with the rest
of the McComb community and hopefully the rest
of the world.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said in his famous
Letter from the Birmingham Jail that “An unjust law
is not a law at all.” That made me think, was the idea
of “separate but equal” right? Were the Jim Crow
laws legal?
The answer is no. What this country allowed
to happen was unjust and wrong. In this country
founded under God, what a poor representation we
were showing as a country. We are better than that
as a country.
This oral history archives project shows exactly
what two women in a small town in southern Mississippi had to endure just to become an equal citizen
in this country.
Legend Visits the Chronicle
continued from page 1
by photographers who were at the scenes of the historic
election. Thousands of photographs of Obama, McCain,
and their wide range of supporters were reflected on the
screen of his computer. Jung’s job perfectly demonstrated
the excitement and hastiness of a professional newsroom:
Each journalist puts effort into creating one final masterpiece
that she or he can be proud of for a moment, before going
back to work to create another.
As the Legend staff was weaving through the maze
of crowded desks and exploring the inner workings of a
professional newspaper, the constant hum of the newsroom
suddenly quieted. Reporters and students alike turned their
attention to Michael Collier, deputy metro editor, who gave
the pre-deadline talk to the news staff. Standing in the center of the newsroom, Collier applauded the work that Chronicle journalists had done during the
long campaign, and the work that was yet to come. “This is the largest gathering of Chronicle writers for an
election ever,” he said.
Indeed, writers and editors who usually had nothing to
do with the election, or even politics, had been called in to
help out. The issue that was to be sent out in the morning
would be “the best looking election issue I’ve ever seen,”
Collier predicted. Proctor agreed: “It’s a rare privilege to
produce a paper of this magnitude.” As 8 p.m. approached, it was almost time for the Legend
to leave. As staffers gathered their belongings, CNN sud-
11
denly declared Obama the victor. Reporters on
both sides – the Legend and the Chronicle – fell
silent, awed by the moment. Chronicle editors
quickly made their front page choice, a full-page
photo of Obama in a dark blue suit, smiling as
he acknowledged the election results.“Going to
the Chronicle showed me the ultimate reward
and the hardships of being a journalist,” said
Alan Hsiao (’09). “It’s difficult financially to be a
journalist, but the truth that you can uncover is
revolutionary.”
—This article was written by Alex Roncal and Sam
Kronish, and reported by the Legend staff.
The Urban Legend would like to give a special
thank you to Chronicle Editor-at-Large Phil
Bronstein for his influence in making this trip
possible; Deputy Managing Editor Steve Proctor
without whom without we would never know
the inner workings of a newsroom; Deputy
Metro Editor Michael Collier, for his memorable
speech, and the entire Chronicle staff for pizza
and an unforgettable, unique, once-in-a-lifetime
experience!
Thank you!
Following this year's assembly, there will be
an advisory period to allow further conversation among students and teachers about civil
rights and how they apply to Urban. In creating
the new format, Garcia-Gonzales and Worsley
talked with students to see how the assembly
could be improved, and found that many wanted a safe space
to discuss the
assembly with
"The goal of
advisors and
fellow advisees,
this assembly
within the school
day.
is to honor
The format
of this year’s
MLK assembly
MLK as a civil
and advisory is
a break from the
rights leader"
past. Over the
last few years,
-Charlotte
the content of
the MLK asWorsley,
sembly has gone
from facultyasst. head of
read speeches
to writings and
speeches by
student life
various students
of color. The
Students of Color
(SOC) club was in charge of the assembly, but as
the subject matter of the MLK assembly became
more and more personal, Urban administrators
began wrestling with what kind of expression
is appropriate for a whole school setting that
includes students of various colors and cultures.
According to Worsley, the student writings
and speeches presented at the MLK assemblies
were “not always successful for everyone” and
were met with “mixed feelings” by the rest of
the student body.
Asked what their favorite part of the MLK
assembly was, students had varied responses.
Urban Junior Haley Pacheco said that “the
student-written speeches” were the best part.
Anneli Eddy and Adrienne Shannon, also
Urban juniors, agreed with Pacheco, saying that
they looked forward to the “poems the kids
write.”
Xander Walbridge (‘09) said he has “always
looked forward to the MLK assembly” but
prefers performances or a speaker from outside
Urban. “The speaker is always very thoughtful,” said Walbridge.
Andrea Ceballos (’10), a member of SOC,
looks forward to the “sense of togetherness”
that the MLK assembly can bring. But she
acknowledged that communicating deeply felt
beliefs about racism and civil rights in a diverse
setting is not easy. “(It’s) kind of awkward,”
Ceballos said. “It’s hard knowing what or what
not to say.”
Though changing the format has prompted
criticism among some students, Worsley said
that Urban has undergone a process like this
several times and that the new format will put
more emphasis on the history behind the King
holiday.
“The goal of this assembly is to honor MLK
and his work as a civil rights leader," says Charlotte.
Over the next two weeks, the Urban affinity clubs SOC, Gay Straight Alliance (GSA),
Students for Women’s Equality And Rights
(SWEAR) and Asian Cultural Diversity Club
(ACDC)will host meetings to further discuss
this year’s civil rights theme.
This month, Garcia-Gonzalez expects that
“what does civil rights mean to you?” will
become more than just a simple question.
"I hope the students and faculty will engage the
question, be self-reflective, and … have a desire
to affect positive change, whether that be at Urban, in one's own life, gaining knowledge about
a particular issue, or getting involved in a local
project to pursue this further,” he said.
GO GREEN
GO BLUE
SIGN UP NOW AT: http://gogreenfoundation.com/
13
opinions
Janurary 2009
Am I global or local?
by Celine Buehl
Staff Writer
The sky is a bitter gray and it is drizzling. There
are 210 of us, standing in a line outside, getting wet.
I am participating in a compulsory procedure that is
emblematic of a lifelong clash between my American
self and my French roots. Clutching my French passport, I am forfeiting a Saturday to attend a mandatory
training for my French National Service. I am unsure
what this requirement entails, but I know it is my
duty as a citizen. A French citizen.
Everybody seems unhappy. It is early and cold,
but we will all lose our French citizenship if we do
not complete our service before we are twenty-five
years of age. The event is officially known as “Service National : l’appel de préparation à la défense
(APD)”, a call to prepare for the nation's defense. I
am nervous. In fact, my mind is a mix of anxiety and
excitement, obligation and curiosity, disapproval and
patriotism.
The day is divided into two modules: Citizenship, and the military. We begin by learning about
our rights and obligations as French citizens, and
what privileges accompany our membership in the
European Union.
The military instruction is intimidating. A French
captain currently living in San Diego lists the “menaces” to France, ranging from weapons of mass
destruction to drug trafficking and cyber-terrorism.
Over a period of several hours, I learn the details of
the military’s structure, its mission for “protection
and projection,” and its strategies for “prevention
and dissuasion” (including how to drop an atomic
bomb).
I can’t help but wonder what I’m doing here; then
I remember my roots. Born and raised in Paris, my
mother has taught me the disciplines and assorted
traditions that accompany French culture. Her ideals
and expectations often clash with those of my father,
a New York native raised by his Swedish mother and
German father. My life has been a battle between
nationalities, as I struggle to find a balance in my
loyalties.
This internal, moral discrepancy has now become
political, as manifested through government letters
and official notifications. As a graduating senior, I get
the same college literature as everyone else. But my
mailbox is flooded with Army recruitment pitches
Letters to the Editor
Okay, so the Legend looks different.
What's your take on the new paper?
Dear Editor,
Congratulations on publishing a wonderful paper-- everything
about it drew me right in. I was in a meeting when (Alex and
Justine) delivered it to me and I could not keep from sneaking
glances at the pictures and stealthily reading pieces of the article
as I was sitting there supposedly concentrating on what the other
people with me were saying. Very, very nice. Suzanne Forrest, Assistand Head for Academics
photo by Véronique Fourmet
Celine Buehl stands on a patch of soil
where her two cultures rest side-by-side
from both the United States and France.
I find myself trapped in the midst of an international political war. I am the channel between two
governments whose idea of what might makes right
would clash. And I do not believe there is a handbook
to instruct me should there be a United States draft
for a war firmly opposed by France.
Weeks after the training, I paid a visit to the War
Memorial buildings by City Hall. Sandwiched between the Opera House and the Veterans Building sits
a sacred patch of grass. I make the excursion with my
French grandmother, who listens intently as I describe
how the plot contains soil from every battlefield in
France where U.S. soldiers fought and died through
World War I. It is nothing extraordinary: a muddy
lawn bordered by scratchy shrubs and rows of leafless trees. But this quiet, shaded earth is a comfort.
It represents a place where my histories connect and
rest in peace.
Being a global citizen is more than juggling two
passports. It's tolerating the myriad of cultures that
merge when far-flung people like my parents fall in
love. I accept the duty to preserve that history, all of
it. So I am nervous about turning 18 and being asked
to renounce one of my nationalities. When the time
comes to choose, I don’t know what I will do. For
now, I'm deciding not to decide.
Calling all youth: Same-sex marriage
must be the next civil rights struggle
by Adrienne
von Schulthess
Staff Writer
My parents have been married
twice and may have to get married
a third time. I don’t come from a
broken family; my parents love
each other and always have. The
only problem is, they’re lesbians.
In May of 2008, the California
Supreme Court ruled that samesex couples could wed. More than
18,000 same-sex couples, including
my parents, were married.
However, in November, voters passed Proposition 8, which
amends the California constitution
to “eliminate (the) right of samesex couples to marry.” Now a legal
battle is being fought to determine
if voters can alter the state constitution in such a drastic way.
It is not only the attack on civil
rights that is offensive to me, but
also the misleading methods the
supporters of Prop 8 employed.
They used children, highlighting
them continuously, but giving
them no voice. Supporters of Prop
8 used children’s images in campaign videos without permission,
and argued that same-sex marriage
would be taught in schools. In reality, “nothing mandates teaching
(same-sex marriage),” says Kate
The Urban Legend
photo by Adrienne von Schulthess
Urban's GSA protests
against "Yes on 8" campaign,
saying that all love is love
Belcsak, co-president of Urban’s
Gay/Straight Alliance. Unfortunately, “there was no (public)
response to the scare tactics," said
Boone Epstein, GSA co-president.
Children of gay parents need to
“come out and say they are regular human beings, and not some
devil’s spawn.”
After Prop 8 passed, outrage
generated demonstrations across
the country.
I went with my family to a rally
in San Francisco. Protesters carried
signs with slogans such as, “Don’t
mess with Dumbledore’s rights,”
or “No more Mr. Nice Gay,” and
“Get your church out of my state.”
Members of Urban’s GSA were
at the rally. They came out on a
Saturday for an issue that is more
important than a day off from
school.
Many families had brought
their children. I talked with a gay
couple and a lesbian couple who
are raising a child together; their
love for the child was clear.
Another heterosexual couple
talked about their anger that their
gay and lesbian friends could have
this basic right taken away; their
ten-year-old son called the Prop 8
campaign “lies.” Urban Spanish
Teacher Esteban Speir agreed,
saying, “It was a scare tactic used
by the right, that we were going
to teach gay marriage as a unit in
social studies.”
My moms are amazing, and
I know how much it hurts them
every time people are homophobic. I see this issue as simple. It's
a civil right: My parents love each
other, and they want to marry in a
country that says everyone is equal
under the law.
As their daughter, I am standing up and saying that there are
no reasons that could be argued
in a courtroom that could stand
against the undeniable fact that
we are a family, like any other.
Dear Editor,
After reading the first edition of the Urban Legend this year, I
was surprised and appalled to find it absolutely devoid of any
personality whatsoever. There is no "Urban" in The Urban Legend,
just lackluster stories about Sarah Palin's daughter's pregnancy
or how the economy is tanking. The stories I read in the Legend
have no Urban input, do not hold my interest, and have no sense
of humor. I prefer(red) the Legend when it had flair and integrity.
I remember stories that explained why Jeremy Pearce was a stud
and stories that rated teachers on how much they looked like
Harry Potter. I remember the "Ask Alan" section, which many
students considered meaningless to the rest of society, but was
a main source of humor months after the Legend printed. The
Legend printed stories relevant to Urban, even if they didn't pertain to the rest of the world. I understand that the Legend wants
to strive to become a professional-style newspaper, and I respect
that decision. I think, however, that it has tried to transition too
much. It has lost the voice of its readers and has become a runof-the-mill, unreadable newspaper. The Legend needs less structured, more student-driven content, and it has to take account of
its purpose. If I want to read about the impacts of the economic
recession, I have the Associated Press.
Asher King Abramson ('09)
Dear Editor,
Congratulations on your first issue of the Urban Legend! I thought
the overall quality of the paper was superior ...
Mark Salkind, Head of School
Dear Editor,
Wow! It's beautiful. What a great combo of great, big color photos and type and white space and content. The whole package.
Story selection. Writing. I know this quality of work doesn't
come easy. This is a great publication, one I'm sure your community is agog about. Congrats to you and your students!
Paul B. Kandell, Adviser, Paly Voice, Palo Alto High School
Dear Editor,
It was a delight to have you [visit on Nov. 3] -- especially given
that a group of aspiring journalists got a chance to witness one of
the most remarkable nights in the nation's history and to experience the electricity that courses through a newsroom on such an
occasion. Your students were genuinely impressive -- intelligent,
articulate, personable -- and they handled themselve beautifully
throughout the evening. I've also had a chance, in the intervening days, to read the newspaper you left for me. It's excellent, so
congratulate the class for me. All the best.
Steve Proctor, Deputy Managing Editor, San Francisco Chronicle
Dear Editor,
The “Can Art Disappear?” article by Justine Palefsky really stood
out in last month’s newspaper. It was an extremely interesting
and well-written article about the abandoned hospital in the
Presidio, and the art that sprung up there. I had never heard
about the Public Health Services Hospital and found Erin Wallace’s descriptions of the building and its art intriguing. It was
nice to hear about the life of an Urban student outside of school.
I would be interested to hear more about Urban students lives:
their secret passions and interests and things they’ve achieved.
This article really inspired me and I hope there are more like it
the future.
Oona Robertson ('11)
Dear Editor,
Thank you for sending me the November issue of The Urban
Legend. I enjoyed its lively writing and relevant articles. Good to
see the paper's political involvement, and the fact that the staff
had an editorial endorsement. The photography is excellent;
many schools would envy it. My compliments to the whole staff,
and special notice to Adrienne von Schulthess for her politics
and laughter piece; the sportswriters for their writing; Sebastian
Guitierrez for the verve of his entertaining movie commentary.
The writing, overall, is quite good throughout. The letters to the
next president was an excellent idea .... Looking forward to your
next issue.
Robert Greenman, Educational Consultant, The New York Times
opinions
Janurary 2009
Give teens say on drinking
by Mallory Mendelsohn
Guest Writer
Mallory
Mendelsohn ('09)
“Do not tell
American
teenagers that,
when they turn
eighteen, they
are almost,
but not quite,
adults.”
T
Throughout the life of a teenager, seemingly arbitrary numbers dictate what one can and cannot do.
These numbers have been haphazardly designated
by authorities who, it seems, could not agree on the
age of adulthood.
At sixteen, one can drive but not in all states. At
eighteen, one can fight for his country but cannot
consume alcohol. By twenty-one, one can assume
most responsibilities with the apparent exception of
renting a car. In the United States, the legal marker of
adulthood is eighteen, the age when teenagers take
formal responsibility for their actions. This entry
into adulthood is conditional because the rights that
accompany adulthood have not been granted by age
eighteen.
Conspicuously absent from this list is the right
to legally consume alcohol. Alcohol in the United
States is marked by a tumultuous history that has
been complicated by religious conflict and a period
of prohibition; even now, the American government
and its citizens seem to have an uneasy relationship
with alcohol. But the fact that this history is convoluted
does not justify the present situation, which displays
the same confusion.
Do not tell American teenagers that, when they turn
eighteen, they are almost, but not quite, adults. Give
them their rights and their responsibilities and allow
them to exercise their adulthood without question.
You will find that handing eighteen year olds their
adulthood fully will ingrain more trust into society
and create more honest, responsible, and law-abiding
citizens.
Just as telling a teenager that he/she is only an
“almost-adult” will create reckless teenagers who are
indeed “almost-adults,” so will telling an eighteen
year old that he/she is a full adult create a more
responsible citizen. Trust begets responsibility.
Indeed, studies have demonstrated that many of
the behaviors commonly associated with “drunk,
reckless teenagers” are more common in countries
where alcohol laws are stricter. For example, teenagers in European countries, where the drinking age is
eighteen or younger, get in fewer alcohol-related car
accidents. If an eighteen year old in the United States
drives to a party and drinks irresponsibly, frequently
he/she will feel the need to conceal this mistake from
his parents and will thus drive home. Teenagers who
are told that they are not quite adults will act accordingly. Since they are not yet given full responsibility,
they believe that they can still be excused from their
mistakes or saved by their parents. If teenagers feel
certain that responsibility rests on their shoulders,
they will not gamble so recklessly. Teenagers experiment with alcohol everywhere, but the goal should
be to create an environment where teenagers take
more responsibility for their actions. Giving them
their adulthood with all of its concurrent rights at
one set age sends the message that we, as a society,
trust young adults to make the right choices.
Awarding teenagers their rights in a haphazard,
senseless manner sends them the message that the
government only gives in order to take. It is fitting
that, in a country without an active draft, the fighting age is eighteen. Do not send the message that the
government gives rights only when it is convenient.
Rather, hand teenagers adulthood as one complete
package and invite them to be full citizens. Ask
them to participate in government in exchange for
their receipt of all the benefits of being an American
citizen. The arbitrariness of the current system does
not engender willingness or enthusiasm to participate
in the duties of citizenship. Instead, teenagers can
only perceive that they can join the military, be tried
as adults, and participate on juries but not that they
can make choices about what they consume. If the
government chooses to invite teenagers to participate
in the responsibilities and benefits of being a citizen
at a set age, these young adults will happily take the
reins of citizenship.
Some teenagers are indeed irresponsible, and a
major question is “at what age does one become
‘responsible’ enough to make one’s own choices?”
Although age seems to be an arbitrary marker of
maturity, which varies with each person, it is fundamental that the legal process of designating adulthood
happens at one specific age. Consider the logic of
the current drinking age. It gives the impression of
control or of concern for safety. Then consider that
underage drinking is what is frequently out of control and more dangerous. The logic of raising adult
citizens rather than mistrustful teenagers is certainly
more compelling.
Comments? Thoughts? Opinions?
You can write to us at:
[email protected]
We want to hear from you.
The Legend
he Urban Legend is a vehicle of student freedom of expression and a public forum for The Urban School community.
It is produced several times per year during the academic
term by the journalism class. We also publish an online version
of the Legend courtesy of the American Society of Newspaper
Editors at myhighschooljournalism.org.
We welcome feedback about our articles and we also encourage readers to contact us directly with tips or ideas concerning
future coverage.
The Legend publishes letters on topics of concern to the Urban
community. Letters must be signed; requests for anonymity will
be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Letters may be sent electronically to urbanlegendstaff@gmail.
com. Hard-copy letters may be sent to the Legend care of The
Urban School, 1563 Page St., San Francisco, CA 94611. Guest
opinion columns also may be submitted electronically or in hard
copy. We reserve the right to edit for space and language.
Signed articles or opinion pieces represent the views of the
writer only. Unsigned editorials reflect a consensus opinion of
the newspaper staff.
Editors in Chief:
Justine Palefsky and Alexander Juan Roncal III
Managing Editor:
Nora Lalle
Assistant Managing Editor:
Madeleine May
Opinions:
Alan Hsiao and Sam Kronish
News:
Justine Palefsky
Features:
Celine Buehl
Arts:
Phoebe Winn
Sports:
Scott Lucas and Alex Roncal
Spread:
Allegra Gordon
Photo:
Isabel Moore and Lizzie Logan
Staff Writers:
Taylor Bostwick, Lizzie Logan, Sarah Maccabee
Tobyn Smith and Adrienne von Schulthess
Adviser:
Beatrice Motamedi
The Urban Legend
14
Editorial:
Hang onto your
hard copy —
we're going green
On the first day of his Advanced Environmental Science class, Urban Teacher Geoff
Ruth offered students a series of statements. If
they agreed with the words they saw, he told
them, move to the left side of the room. If you
disagree, move right.
Ruth clicked a button on his computer and a
statement appeared: “I think that environmental problems are THE most important issues
facing humanity.” More than half the class
moved left—a surprising result that saw the
environment topping a list of world woes, such
as war, genocide, AIDS, and the economy.
There’s no denying that environmental problems are some of the most complicated, threatening and powerful problems that we face. As
more predictions
surface, warning of melting
ice caps, water
"Just (being) on an
shortages and
rising temperatures, we realize
environmental club
that something
needs to be
done. Green
helps you notice
movements
have sprung
up all over the
small things that
world, from Piedmont to Peru to
the halls of The
you can change
Urban School.
Over the past
several years,
in your own life."
Urban has made
it a priority to
introduce enIan Paratore ('09)
vironmentally
conscious school
initiatives to
reduce our impact. Our laptop
program has
significantly cut
down paper usage. The student-led Environmental Club provides bins for recycling and
composting, and also identifies energy efficient
lighting options. Urban’s Curriculum Committee
is currently working to make sure that teachers cover topics of environmental sustainability
in their lessons, and Urban’s strategic plan,
adopted in May 2008, has created an Environmental Council to plan and carry out methods
to make the school a more sustainable institution.
The Green Team, created this year by Ruth,
gets interested students involved in green
projects around the school. One of the Team’s
new projects is the CSA (Community Supported
Agriculture) program, in which local farmers
can sell their produce at Urban to people in the
neighborhood.
Ian Paratore, an Urban senior and a member
of the Green Team, says that being involved
has showed him how “it’s possible for people
our age to get stuff done.
"Just knowing that you’re on an environmental club helps you notice small things that
you can change in your own life, whether that
means turning off a light or stopping at the
trash bins to organize your stuff," Paratore
says.
Ruth’s efforts have put the environment on
Urban’s agenda, but it is equally important for
others to lead on environmental issues. And
that includes the Legend. Beginning with our
November issue, we’ve made several moves to
cut down on our paper’s carbon footprint.
First, we’ve switched printers from a company in New Jersey to the Howard Quinn Co.,
located in San Francisco’s Mission District.
Quinn offers soy-based inks, which are “not
petroleum based, and better for the environment,” according to Account Manager Lori
Lusted. And Quinn’s green philosophy means
that the Legend is printed with a minimum of
waste.
“We use recycled paper, and all the waste
that we make gets recycled,” says Lusted.
“Even used ink gets recycled here.”
Second, we’ve reduced the copies we print
from 1,000 to 500, and we’ve taken the Legend
online by posting our content on the American
Society of Newspaper Editors’ website at http://
my.hsj.org/ca/sanfrancisco/urban. In fact, our
February issue will be online only, an environmental first for us.
We’re working on becoming even greener,
but some of our initiatives may be so small you
don’t even notice them.
This editorial, for instance, is being printed
in ecofont, a new typeface that’s like Swiss
cheese, embedded with dozens of small holes.
See them? Probably not; but publishing this article in ecofont means that we’ve already used
20 percent less ink.
Although we’re committed to environmental
sustainability, compromises are inevitable. The
Legend believes in the tangible value of the
newspaper — something in ink and paper that
you can hold in your hands and flip through
wherever you are. Continuing to print papers
will take its toll on the environment, but we are
working hard to discover new ways in which we
can lessen our impact.
The goal is to strike a healthy balance between green leadership and journalistic responsibility. And every ecofont counts.
15
January 2009
The Jimmy
Sports
The Urban Legend
It was the kind of event that Jimmy loves. On Jan. 5, Urban’s fan club held a pep rally
event called “The Jimmy.” During the all-school assembly on Monday morning, the
school gathered in the gym to heighten spirit and enthusiasm for Urban’s varsity basketball teams. The Jimmy included warm-up drills from the varsity teams, three-point competitions between faculty members and student fans, and half-court shoot-outs.
The Jimmy started in 2007, but Urban skipped the event last year. “Urban tried to have
their first fan club, but it died because there was a lack of organization and school planning,” explained Shaunré Clendinen (’09), the current co-head of the fan club. Among the
issues that needed to be worked out was a name. “Urban wanted to have a pep rally, but
could not come up with a good, catchy name to call it.”
Enter Jimmy. Urban’s biggest sports fan is not a student, teacher, parent, or alumnus.
He’s a Haight resident who is known to students simply as Jimmy. Even though his
last name and other details are fuzzy, his signature yell is loud and clear: “GOOOOOO
Urban!” Jimmy attends all of the varsity volleyball and basketball games, and is more
dedicated to our sports teams than many other Urban fans.
Jimmy, wherever you are, this one’s for you. —Allegra Gordon
Photos (clockwise starting upper right): Photography teacher, Chris McCall, shoots a three pointer; the dance team
shows off their talented moves; Xander Walbridge (‘09) shoots a three-pointer in the competition; Freshman star, Stephen Golden, attempts a dunk; Varsity girls’s team huddle together; Freshman, Nate Stern, plays knockout. All photos
by Isabel Moore.
January 2009
Caboose
Urban Legend
[email protected]
Looking Closer
Urban Events
SAY
CHEESE
On Nov. 7,
Grandparents
and Special
Friends Day
drew visitors
from all over
photo by Isabel Moore
photo by Céline Buehl
Winter concert 2008
A note from Jazz Lab Band Director Kirk Hamilton
On Dec. 14, Urban's musical ensembles - the Chamber Orchestra, Urban Singers, Lab Jazz Band,
Jazz Combos, and Advanced Jazz Band - took to the stage before a nearly at-capacity crowd at San Francisco's historic Herbst Theatre for the annual Urban School Winter Concert.
Highlights from the first half of the program included the Chamber Orchestra's performance of
an original Klezmer piece, The Walls We Live, by local composer Dan Cantrell, as well as the Urban Singers' performance of Praetorius's Es Ist Ein' Ros' Entsprungen, accompanied by the strings and reeds of the
chamber group.
After a brief intermission, the Lab and Advanced jazz big bands tore through a diverse sevensong set, with the Lab Band performing a standout original arrangement of Herbie Hancock's Watermelon
Man and the Advanced Band bringing the show home with the John Clayton/Jeff Hamilton big-band
arrangement of Horace Silver's The Jody Grind.
From downbeat to curtain, Urban's student musicians lit up the Herbst's magnificent stage, delivering a eclectic program of melodious, swinging music that satisfied every music-lover in attendance.
photo by Igor Zagatsky
photo by Igor Zagatsky
photo by Igor Zagatsky
photo by Igor Zagatsky