Author: Frances Brogan

Campus Life

TikTok Trend Plagues Campus with Chaos and Confusion

The 2021-22 school year at McCaskey High School has gotten off to a chaotic start, to say the least. We’ve had bathrooms closed off with spiderwebs of masking tape, broken pipes, sewage problems, and hallways smelling like poop. We’ve had haphazard announcements from the administration explaining new policies. Why? Because of “devious licks.” The “devious licks” trend began on September 1st, 2021, when a student … Continue reading TikTok Trend Plagues Campus with Chaos and Confusion

Unknown's avatarFrances Brogan
Opinion

How do I Summarize a Year of Pain in 200 Words?

I’m not good enough. I’m not good enough. I’m not good enough. It used to echo in my mind all the time, this aggressive rhythm on a loop. Still does, when I’m walking around town or in my room alone staring at the ceiling, letting my mind drift. Less these days though, which is kind of ironic since this is the year our collective mental … Continue reading How do I Summarize a Year of Pain in 200 Words?

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Opinion

Pandemics: the New Normal?

“I can’t wait to go back to normal.” You’ve probably heard your friends and family say it a million times, putting on their masks with a sigh, longing for this amorphous concept of “normal.” But not only was normal unsustainable for anyone besides a privileged few, it’s also unlikely to be attainable.  The rapid proliferation of coronavirus variants, as well as alarmingly low vaccination rates, … Continue reading Pandemics: the New Normal?

Unknown's avatarFrances Brogan
Arts & Culture

Ginny and Georgia: Not the New Gilmore Girls

There’s a scene at the beginning of The Cat in the Hat when the cat, eager to entertain the two young protagonists, starts jumping on a ball and then adds a fish in a pot, a rake and a cake, books, a toy boat. For a moment, the cat balances, triumphant in his ability to juggle so much all at once, and then it all … Continue reading Ginny and Georgia: Not the New Gilmore Girls

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Opinion

Why Progressives Should Reject Cancel Culture

Early this March, Dr. Seuss Enterprises decided it would stop publishing six of the author’s books due to “hurtful and wrong” depictions of people of color in the illustrations. The decision was met with both praise and condemnation, bringing the long-simmering debate about cancel culture to the surface once again. It seems Dr. Seuss’s estate decided to stop publishing these books out of fear of … Continue reading Why Progressives Should Reject Cancel Culture

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Campus Life, News

What Happened to “Hairspray”?

On Friday, February 19th, district superintendent Dr. Damaris Rau cancelled the production of Hairspray, the scheduled McCaskey spring musical. But while this ostensibly came out of the blue, it was the culmination of a whirlwind student campaign to raise concerns about the racial dynamics of the work.  Auditions for the musical took place on Tuesday, February 16th. The following day, the callbacks list was posted, … Continue reading What Happened to “Hairspray”?

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Opinion, Politics

The Centrist Agenda: What Biden’s Done- And What He Could Be Doing

President Biden has made it clear that he’s sacrificing an opportunity for systemic change out of a desire to be palatable for everyone. As we celebrate the end of Trump, let’s not let cosmetically diverse Cabinet appointments distract us from the fact that Biden is a man who, a year ago, told billionaires that “nothing would fundamentally change” for them if he was elected. We … Continue reading The Centrist Agenda: What Biden’s Done- And What He Could Be Doing

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Opinion

Why Did This Happen?: The Psychology of the Capitol Riot

On Wednesday, January 6, 2021, as Congress performed the perfunctory procedure of certifying the electoral college votes that would confirm Joseph Biden as President-elect, an armed mob of thousands of Trump supporters who believed the President’s false claims that he won an election he decisively lost invaded the Capitol building. They were state legislators, veterans, conspiracy theorists, and members of dangerous, far-right organizations such as … Continue reading Why Did This Happen?: The Psychology of the Capitol Riot

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Opinion

All About the Sunrise Movement and How You Can Get Involved

Gen-Z is, without a doubt, the activist generation. You see it on your Instagram, where your friends and peers repost in support of Black Lives Matter and educate their followers on everything from Roe Vs. Wade to The Paris Climate Accords. You see it in the streets, too, according to Business Insider, nearly 77% of our generation participated in a protest this summer after the … Continue reading All About the Sunrise Movement and How You Can Get Involved

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Opinion, Politics

The Case for Prison Abolition

As a teenager, Brandon Bernard fell in with the wrong crowd, and at 18, he was an accomplice in the murder of two youth ministers, Todd and Stacey Bagley, setting fire to their car and possibly killing Stacey. Brandon’s age made him eligible for the death penalty, and he remained in a 6-by-8 foot cell on death row for 23 years, praying, crocheting, and playing … Continue reading The Case for Prison Abolition

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News

Lancastrians Gather to Protest Voter Suppression, Celebrate Election Results

On Wednesday, November 4, as Americans waited anxiously for election results, hundreds of Lancastrians congregated at Penn Square, protesting the two Republican County Commissioners’ decision to delay counting mail-in ballots. Many attendees wore sweatshirts, beanies, and masks reading “Count Every Vote.” Nearly all of the eight speakers, who consisted of local clergy, politicians, and organizers, decried voter suppression and excoriated what they saw as local … Continue reading Lancastrians Gather to Protest Voter Suppression, Celebrate Election Results

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Arts & Culture

The Queen’s Gambit – Making Chess Cool

When an older friend recommended I watch “The Queen’s Gambit,” the recent seven-episode Netflix series about a troubled female chess prodigy, I was skeptical. Chess? It sounded esoteric, boring. But I ended up bingeing the entire series in one weekend. I never expected a show about chess to be so utterly compelling.  Set in the 1960s, the show revolves around Beth Harmon – played by … Continue reading The Queen’s Gambit – Making Chess Cool

Unknown's avatarFrances Brogan1 Comment
Arts & Culture, Opinion

How do we honor identity in pop culture?

In this polarized political moment, when American diversity is under attack, we are ravenous for diverse representation in pop culture. But when we reduce art to its value in a particular political climate, and when we commodify identity, we compromise artistic integrity. As the first Indian-American led TV show, Netflix’s Never Have I Ever understands that. The demographics of this country are changing—people of color … Continue reading How do we honor identity in pop culture?

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Campus Life, Opinion

It’s Normal to be Unproductive During Quarantine

American is in crisis, and so are its teenagers.  We are used to having our entire lives planned out. Our public education system’s cult of productivity instills in us a sense of urgency about whatever is coming next. High school is all about getting to college. College is all about becoming a successful member of the workforce. We choose our extracurriculars not for pleasure, but … Continue reading It’s Normal to be Unproductive During Quarantine

Unknown's avatarFrances Brogan
News

Justice at Last: Weinstein Finally Convicted

This the story of the systematic destruction of 80 lives to assuage one man’s insecurities about his masculinity. On February 24, producer and film industry mogul Harvey Weinstein was convicted on two counts: one of first degree criminal sexual assault and one of third degree rape. Two predatory sexual assault charges against Weinstein were dropped, indicating that the jury did not believe actress Annabella Sciorra’s … Continue reading Justice at Last: Weinstein Finally Convicted

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