We really aren’t the “Land of the Free”…

Posted on May 30, 2020 by Guadalupe Dominguez in Op-Ed

Guadalupe Dominguez

Chronicle Reporter

It was 5:06 p.m. when I heard approximately sixteen LAPD vehicles.  I already knew where they were headed: the Fairfax District. Not even a minute later I heard the sirens of ambulances and the chuff of the helicopters above. I have lived in Mid-City for seventeen years and in all those years never have I heard the sirens for LAPD vehicles for more than ten minutes,today was different.

May 25th was the day George Floyd, an African American man died under the knee of Minneapolis policeman Derek Chauvin, for an alleged “bad check”(keyword: alleged). For many black people, African Americans, and people of color this was the last straw. In the past years many can assure you more than a hundred African Americans have been killed unlawfully.

May 29th I scrolled through Twitter like every other day and came across the trending words “Pan Pacific Park”. Clicking on it I saw the poster of the peaceful protest planned out for May 30th at 12 p.m. to bring attention to the unjustified death of Floyd.

May 30th and here we are, all news channels ,english and spanish, are reporting on the protests in Los Angeles. “Violence erupts in Los Angeles amid protests over death of George Floyd”, ABC 7 reports while KTLA reports “Here’s video of the police car burning in the Fairfax district area”. But not a single report shows how the protests began, not a single news channel reports on the thousands who took a seat in the Fairfax district area and had their fists up 

 while chanting “Black Lives Matter Here”. And that is the problem with today’s world. Our so called leaders,our so called voices in the media only show and see one side of the problem. It may have started to bring justice to the family of George Floyd but today we see that we are once again raising our voices to bring attention to the fact that racism is still a virus among us. These protests are necessary because we may be in 2020 but the laws, views, and our president seem to be stuck in an era of inequality. The system was made to serve those who created it. 

Today I am skeptical about the real intentions of the Mayor, who in response to the protests has closed down COVID-19 testing sites and has created a curfew for the city of Los Angeles. Today I lost the remaining respect I have for LAPD officials, you may say you protect us but in reality you are at fault for this chaos. Today I came to the realization that in order to maintain power over us you play the victim. Today I believe that at this point protesting peacefully isn’t enough. Today I realized that in the year 2020 we aren’t as progressive as we say.Today I realized that America isn’t “The land of the free”.

Today I ask the community that is Hollywood High to educate yourselves. We may be teens but we can be the beginning of the end of racism.

I am writing this to say that as a first generation Mexican American I am with my Black/African American peers at school, in my community, in my state, and in my country because Black Lives Matter. And I am hoping you will stand for those who suffer everyday and whose voices aren’t heard. We need to take action because any of our names could be on the posters of protesters.

It’s 7:09 p.m. as I finish writing this and I can still hear the sirens of LAPD vehicles.

If you could not go out to show your support the BLM movement feel free click the following link which includes petitions to sign, other links to donate, resources, and information for protesters:

https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/

One more show to add to your must-watch list

Posted on May 4, 2020 by Guadalupe Dominguez in Entertainment, Op-Ed

Guadalupe Dominguez

Chronicle Reporter

The world may be at a halt but Netflix continues to entertain us with new releases. On Mon. April 27 the Netflix original created by Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher, Never Have I Ever, premiered worldwide. 

Never Have I Ever follows the life of Devi Vishwakumar, played by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, who is a first-generation Indian American attending high school in Southern California. Though Devi doesn’t have much to worry about when it comes to school, as she is a straight-A student, losing her virginity and climbing the social ladder at school becomes her obsession. While going through with her obsession she also tries to block out her father’s sudden death at her school concert which left her paralyzed from the waist down for weeks.

The show based on Mindy Kaling’s childhood did not disappoint. It was well casted with actors fitting the diverse characters. Never Have I Ever is not only relatable to first-generation Indian Americans but all children of immigrant parents. Like many first generations, there is a period in which we either deny or don’t appreciate our culture. The show also focuses on mental health and attending therapy, a known ‘tabu’ in immigrant culture. After finishing the show it is safe to say that everyone can somehow relate to one character, if it’s not Devi, there is Fabiola Torres who throughout the season struggles to come out to her parents, and Eleanor Wong whose mother left her twice throughout the season to pursue her acting career. From my point of view Never Have I Ever not only follows the life of Devi but also the life of every first-generation child of an immigrant.

If you are looking for a relatable teen drama, Never Have I Ever is definitely your best choice.

The AP Exams are here

Posted on April 16, 2020 by Guadalupe Dominguez in Announcements, News

Guadalupe Dominguez Trujillo

Chronicle Reporter

LAUSD’s Superintendent Austin Beautner has announced that all schools are to remain closed until health officials decide that it is safe for us to come back. With that being the situation across the nation, College Board has released a new AP testing schedule. If students feel like they are not ready to take the exam the weeks of May 11th and May 18th they can make up for it the week of June 5th.

College Board has cut down all exams to 45 minutes as students will only be given the Free Response portion of the test. Students have two options when it comes to completing the exam. The first option is to type it and submit it using any device that has an internet connection. The second option is to handwrite it, take a picture of it, and submit it using any device that has an internet connection. College Board is recommending students to sign in to their account 30 minutes before the testing time in order to have time to work out any technology-related issues.

If you do not have a device to take and submit your exams, College Board will provide you with one as long as you fill the following form by April 24, 2020:Device Request Form.

The following charts are the testing dates and times for this year’s AP exams.

AP Exams Dates and Times

Makeup AP Exam Dates and Time

Links:

Updated AP Exam Schedule: AP Exam Schedule 2020

Updated Makeup AP Exam Schedule: Makeup AP Exam Schedule 2020

Device Request Form: https://collegeboard.tfaforms.net/74

One less thing to worry about

Posted on March 26, 2020 by Guadalupe Dominguez in Announcements, News

Guadalupe Dominguez Trujillo

Chronicle Reporter

This period of quarantine to stop the spread of COVID-19 has caused the student body to worry not only for their grades but the AP exams. For precaution, all LAUSD schools will remain closed until May 1. Meaning the doors of Hollywood will open just days before the AP exams start taking place.

The College Board has decided not to postpone the AP Exams. Instead, they have shortened all exams to a  45-minute free-response exam. It was also announced that students will only be tested on what they learned prior to the closure of there, meaning everything learned up until the first week of March. In addition to that, a second test date will be added. So students can either pick to take the exam the date set before the closure of the schools or take it at a later date.

In order to prepare students, the College Board has set up online classes. They will be covering all AP courses from AP English Literature to AP Biology. For the schedule of these courses visit the Advanced Placement Youtube channel linked below. If students still feel unprepared they will be allowed to not take the AP exam with no penalty.

For more updates on the AP exam click on the following links:

Information for AP students-https://apstudents.collegeboard.org/coronavirus-updates

College Board Instagram- https://instagram.com/collegeboard?igshid=1wbhtqu2oth8g

Advanced Placement Youtube Channel- https://www.youtube.com/user/advancedplacement

Saying goodbye to the track

Posted on March 19, 2020 by Guadalupe Dominguez in Sports

Guadalupe Dominguez

Chronicle Reporter

COVID-19 has brought discouraging news to Hollywood. On the night of Mar. 12 assistant principal Pacino Furioso announced the cancellation of all athletic games and practices. This news left Hollywood’s track team heartbroken. 

It had only been a week since they hosted Belmont, Miguel Contreras, Roybal, RFK, Mendez, and Downtown Magnet High school for the last preseason meet.After having won the Central League Championship in 2019 Hollywood track and field team chances of winning again were looking good for this year’s team. But they were met with the news that they no longer would have the chance to defend that title because LAUSD had decided to cancel all meets in order to prevent COVID-19 from spreading throughout the different participating campuses.

Track and field members graduating this year were left disheartened and shocked. “It does suck and it’s pretty unfortunate because we have been working really hard”, said Andrea Henao, SAS senior.

The team had already been practicing for about a month and a half. This included long hours of running, practicing hurdles, and much more. Rusty Alquiza, SAS senior, stated “Because it’s our senior season I’m really disappointed. I mean coping with it, has not been easy because I was really excited for this season.”

The rest of the team who will be participating next year is hoping to win next year for the seniors who were denied the chance to play their last season.

Making it to 1600

Posted on March 5, 2020 by Guadalupe Dominguez in Op-Ed

Guadalupe Dominguez

Chronicle Reporter

Recently the class of 2021 took the SAT and for many it was their first time. The room was filled with nervous teens who knew they would probably have to take the test once again. Every junior dreads the day they have to take the SAT. The test that for most decides their future school. Ideally each student wants to receive a 1600 on their exam.

Standardized testing doesn’t show the true ability of a student. It shows how much a student can remember in the weeks before. The SAT as we know it doesn’t even test us on what we have been learning, it focuses on the previous semester of math. While the english portion is basically a race, whoever finishes the reading section and answers the quickest wins.

Behind the 1600 are hours of studying both math and English. Cramming the formulas, key words, etc just means the student never really learned anything. They spend their entire junior year cramming instead of actually learning the material they will be tested on. The topics they are being tested on are usually topics from a semester before meaning we have all forgotten it and have to put our current learning on hold to be able to remember what occurred last semester. 

From AP classes to extracurriculars it is likely for a student to take the SAT multiple times and end up disappointed thinking they are not capable of applying and making it through college. The SAT shouldn’t be pushed onto students who are already knee deep in work.

Hollywood Sheiks welcome the CIF Cheer Championships

Posted on February 20, 2020 by Guadalupe Dominguez in Sports

Guadalupe Dominguez

Chronicle Reporter

Hollywood High will be welcoming the CIF Cheer Championships on Feb. 21. The cheer team will be presenting the next winner of the annual CIF Divisional Cheer Competition.

After a year of anticipation, our cheer team will be welcoming nine cheer teams from across the Los Angeles City Section. These include Arroyo, Belmont, and SotoMayor High Schools. Hollywood High will be opening its gym doors since they are the current holders of the  CIF Divisional Cheer Competition award. 

Unfortunately, the cheer team will not be among the cheer teams competing because of the unforeseen loss of their cheer coach. But assistant principal Pacino Furioso has hope for next year saying, “We do have a cheer coach coming to meet the team on Friday. Hopefully, they are going to be able to regroup with the new coach and in the future be able to compete again.”

If you are looking forward to being present at the ceremony tickets are going for sale with ID for only $10. It will be taking place in the big gym on Feb. 21 from 6 pm to 8 pm. The cheer team hopes to see you there.

Presenting their dream homes

Posted on February 6, 2020 by Guadalupe Dominguez in News

Guadalupe Dominguez

Chronicle Reporter

Jane Shen´s mandarin class welcomed the semester with the production of their Dream House.  After weeks of hard work the classes presented their houses yesterday Feb. 5. But there was a catch when presenting the students were asked to give others a ¨house tour¨ in Mandarin.  

The Mandarin students were given a rubric with the rooms they must include in their home. Even though it may have seemed simple but Kaleb Valdez thought differently, ¨I like the details of the house but adding the tiny details took a long time¨. To the students it seemed like an eternity to make their house picture perfect.

The main goal set by Ms.Shen was to have the students learn the vocabulary and sentence structure¨ of Mandarin and ¨connect their interest and their learning¨.  The houses, according to those who went to see the physical projects, turned out great. Both the physical houses and houses made on Minecraft had details many were pleased to see.

Time is ticking for the class of 2021

Posted on January 23, 2020 by Guadalupe Dominguez in Announcements

Guadalupe Dominguez

Chronicle Reporter

Time is ticking as the first SAT of the semester approaches. For many who are in the class of 2021, it will be their first time taking the SAT. This year an in-school testing day has been arranged by the administration and with large help from Alyssa Pinedo, the college counselor.

The class of 2021 will be taking their SAT with essay on Feb. 4th. Leaving juniors with approximately a month left to study. Ingrid Muniz, SAS Junior, says, “I feel very nervous but not too nervous because I know I can retake it when I am a senior … I am hoping to at least get a 1300 or more.”

If you are still trying to look for practice or tips here are a few:

1. SAT practice booklets are available in the college center.
2. There is an SAT app available which lets you practice both ELA and math questions on your mobile device allowing you to practice on the go.
3. Khan Academy is also one of the most used websites to practice for the SAT.
4. Diagnose your skills by using a practice booklet beforehand so you are aware of what you need to work on.
5. Take at least two full practice SAT tests and try to make one of them on paper just to get familiar with the atmosphere.
6. DO NOT STAY UP THE NIGHT BEFORE YOUR TEST! This will not be the last time you take it, there are already future dates coming up.

For more read Ms. Pinedo’s updates on Schoology and visit Khan Academy’s “Planning your SAT”.

The Fine Line era begins

Posted on November 14, 2019 by Guadalupe Dominguez in Entertainment

Guadalupe Dominguez

Chronicle Reporter

It has been a year since Harry Styles was last seen on stage. The Met Gala 2019 host went MIA on all social media platforms until October 10 when he announced the release of his new single Lights Up. After almost a month of releasing Lights Up the former One Direction member announced both the name and release date of his sophomore album, captioning a picture on Instagram he wrote, “FINE LINE. THE ALBUM. DEC 13”. 

 As if fans were not already going crazy with the release of his album, Styles announced a one night show at the Forum on Dec. 13. Thousands were left without a ticket after scalpers bought the $25 tickets and started reselling them for outrageous prices, the highest going up to $9,900. 

Everything changed for the fandom yesterday though. Harry Styles and his team released tour dates for both the European and North American legs of the tour. The openers for the North American tour are Koffee and Jenny Lewis while the European shows will be expecting King Princess.

Tickets go on sale on Ticketmaster for the North American Tour on Monday at 10:00 am for American Express cardholders and verified fans, ending on Thursday Nov. 21. While the general sale starts Friday, Nov. 22nd at 10:00 am.

Elan Bernardo, SAS junior and Harry Styles fanatic, said, “I feel like his influence was very present in our childhood. I wanted to go to the last tour, but couldn’t.”