Teachers just don't understand
by Charniece McGregory

Do you think your teachers understand where you're coming from? Well I know that I have and you would be surprised to know how some of the teachers right here at EOC acted when they were in high school.
One 10th grade teacher at EOC who was arrested and disrespected by OPD (Oakland Police Department) during his senior year at Oakland high school says that he never felt like dropping out because “I understood why I needeed to complete my schooling and how it was connected to the things I wanted to do in my future, and I also had supportive parents that allowed me to relize my purpose,” he says. He also says that he sometimes ditched school because he felt like he was being challenged or respected as a person that he appreciated the teachers that gave him respect. The teachers that didn't respect him didn't get any respect from him.

One 11th grade teacher at EOC says that there were just as many drugs and violence in her school as there is now. In her sophomore year she thought about dropping out mostly because she didn't see the point to school and she was failing her classes.She didn't like the teachers that disrespected her. She said that she had teachers that didn't even know her name half way through the year and teachers that questioned her abilities as a student, “they assumed that I was a gang banger and I couldn't read,” she says. The teachers she liked had a good sense of humor, respectected her and didn't question her intellect.

I know that I like teachers that relate to me in the classroom and have a sense of humor. It is important to know that your teachers went through the same stuff that you went through in high school and that they can relate to you in the classroom.

Raised in a War Zone
by Freddie Dupree

D-town was murdered in October of 2006 but to this town he is just a number. Since I was born in 1991 there have been 1,648 people murdered in Oakland, what we call town business. Too many people have died since I was born. 1995 had the most murders in Oakland in 40 years hitting153. So we were all born into a hateful world.

In 2006 there have been 44 more murders then last year. Oakland has turned into a killing zone. Oakland is getting to the point where people in there community feel like to have to carry a gun on their waist. We need more jobs in the community and better schools. Maybe then we’ll start seeing some peace.

The Opinion!
by Nora Garcia

Do most people know what pro-life vs pro-choice is?If you are pro-life that means you are a against abortion,if you are pro-choice you are for abortions. I interviewed three Latino malesat East Oakland Community High School. I wantedto know what the perspective of young men on abortion's.

During the interview I realized that abortion is a big issue for youngsters specially in males. Two of the guys I interviewed said they are pro-choice only one said he is pro-life. I think that they have a really good perspective about abortions but I do not totally agree with them. Some of the guys said that girls should be responsible for their actions. What I really think is that a relation ship is about two people not only about one.

the dead

Day of the what?
by Melissa Mora

Zombies, Cemeteries, ghost, and spirits, is that what the day of the dead is all about? No, it isn't! The day of the dead is a celebration with a long history behind it. Indigenous communities in North, South and Central America have celebrated the day of the dead for many, many years.

Both Aztecs and Mayans celebrated the day of the dead by honoring all of their loved ones who had passed away. Death wasn't seen as a horrible and negative, the indigenous people's way of thinking about it was that death was just another part of life. The way they kept the spirit of their loved ones alive was by remembering them and keeping them in their hearts. Fall was when the Day of the Dead was celebrated; the reason for this is because that was when all of the new crops were harvested, and that symbolized life.

Day of the Dead was celebrated by feasting for three months straight. In Mexico the flower sempasuchil which is a marigold was used in the cemeteries, because it is believed that the dead follow the scent of the flowers. Copal a hard, milky, sticky substance, like resin is also burned so that the space is cleansed from negativity and bad spirits and the dead could also follow the scent. So next year when the Day of the Dead comes around remember that it's significant to those around you. Honor your loved ones who have passed away and be a part of the celebration.

the game

Ballin'
by Fernando Hernandez and Luis Felix-Rivera

The Olmecs is an ancient civilization of the Americas that created the first writing system and large stone carvings of African heads. They also invented the ballgame that soccer and basketball come from.
After colonization the British took the Mesoamerican ballgame that the Aztecs, Mayas, and Olmecs played with their hips. They used their hips to hit the ball. If they hit the ball wrong they could break their hips. They played with a rubber ball weighing 5-8 lbs.

The ballgame was originally called “ulama”. Ulama comes from the Nahuatl word ullamaliztli, meaning ballgame. The ballgame was also influenced by an Aztec game ritual. The goal was to make the ball pass through one of two stone rings that were placed on each side of the court.

Two individuals or two teams often played the ballgame. The game was also influenced by a ballgame played by the Gods of the Sky and the Lords of the Underworld. On earth a loser's skull might be used as the core around which a new rubber ball would be made.

Truancy!

Truancy!
by Ivonette Aguilar

Does the Oakland Police Department really want you in school? Why does the truancy center exist? Instead of sending you to school the police treat you like you're a criminal. They put you through a humiliating process and take you to the truancy center in downtown Oakland.

In the truancy center the police sit you down and make you sign a paper saying you will obey their rules. Police officers call you up one by one. You have to give up your backpack. They search you in front of everybody in the room. They make you spread your legs, they take your jewelry, cell phones, everything. Why? Because they won’t let you in the “classroom” with your stuff. You can't take anything inside but yourself.

Once your in the “classroom” the “teacher” will give you a folder and you have to write about your life family, friends, etc. The “teacher” in the truancy center doesn't teach you anything. You sit there watching time go by. Why can’t the police just take you back to school? 80% of money for schools comes from attendance.
Maybe they just want us to get used to getting treated like criminals. California laws clearly state that all students must attend school from ages 6-18. If that’s true then what’s the point of truancy centers? But, becareful If truancy catches you more than once you're drivers license might get delayed or revoked. Your parents can be jailed or fined up to $2,500. If they really want kids to stay in school then why do they make centers like truancy?

Thizz and Die!

Thizz and Die!
by Rhea Johnson

You feel like your floating, you can’t stop talking, your pupils get dilated, you break a sweat, every thing you feel, smell, hear, and even taste is enhanced.

While your feeling so intense inside slowly but surely your poisoning yourself. People pop pills for many different reasons: to have fun, go dumb (get hyphy), and run away from their problems.

In separate interviews conducted with two 16 year old young women they described their reasons for choosing to pop and choosing not to pop. One of the young woman confided that she pop pills because it makes her “feel good and let off some steam”. In a second interview with a young woman who doesn’t pop she said she doesn’t pop because “there’s no reason to”. Her biggest concern is that it messes up your body.

Ecstasy is a street drug and so its production is not regulated by any organization. In an interview with an ecstasy dealer he described how ecstasy manufacturers are using Pinesol and other cleaning products to make it. Research conducted by the government has shown that pills contain salt, cleaning products, lithium from camera batteries and cold medicines.

Ecstasy causes damage to the brain affecting neurons that use chemical serotonin. Neurons are nerves cells that transmit information to your brain. Chemical serotonin is a juice that’s in your brain it controls your body temperature, mood, sleep, vomiting, sexuality, and appetite. The immediate side effects of ecstasy are body temperature changes, muscles cramps, and blurry vision. If you use ecstasy over a long period of time some side effects are confusion, depression, sleeping problems, drug cravings, and paranoia. So if your that person that likes to get on you better think twice about what your putting in your body.

ASK LADY DEE!

I got this problem with my best friend’s girl because she thinks that I like him but that’s just my best friend. I don’t see him that way so what should I do?

Tell her straight up what you think. Just tell her. Be like “you got me messed up. That’s my best friend I see him as a brother or what ever”. If she wants to fight you tell her straight up I’m not going fight over unnecessary reasons. If your best friend really cares about you he wouldn’t let any thing happen to you. If both you and your best friend really care about each other’s friendship both of you wouldn’t let nobody get in between your friendship. It’s not worth fighting over unnecessary reasons. Talk to both of them. Talk to your best friend tell him what’s up with his girl. Then talk to your best friend girl or sit them both and tell them straight up it is not worth your time fighting over unnecessary reasons and jeopardizing your friendship.

Mistakes

“Everyone pays the price for the mistake of one person” -Cesar Cruz
By Nidia Padilla and Nora Garcia

On September 14 2006 Cesar Cruz’s laptop was stolen. The laptop was left alone in the cafeteria during advisory. The student that stole the laptop was not arrested; he was taken to the police station to fill out paper work. Cesar Cruz is a school counselor, in the interview he said: “My heart was broken when I found out it was a Mexican-American student that I had helped a lot”. Cesar would like to appreciate all the students that helped him find his laptop.

Did you know that there’s cameras everywhere in EOC the district and parents decided to install over 40 cameras instead of other important resources we need. By installing cameras they are trying to control us. They are making us feel like criminals.
Putting cameras in the school is not going to solve any problems. It is just making us look like criminals. Instead of going to school we are attending a prison.

The Reality of HIV and AIDS in Our Communities

The Reality of HIV and AIDS in Our Communities
By Charniece McGregory

Today we live in a world where HIV and AIDS are common in our black and brown communities all over the world. In certain places of Africa’s 3 out of 4 people are infected with HIV. That’s about 24,500,000 people out of 749 million people are infected with HIV and AIDS. In the U.S 1 million people are infected with HIV and AIDS and about 40,000 people are newly infected each year.
In Alameda County, 13% of the population is African American and Latinos are about 18% of the population.. African American men, who are less than 5% of the population in the county, make up the largest number of people who are infected with HIV and AIDS. Especially, African American and Latino men who have sex with men make up 42% of people who have HIV and AIDS in Alameda county. This affects people of color because we are the fastest growing population of HIV and AIDS infections. We need to understand how we can protect ourselves and our family, friends, and community from getting HIV and AIDS.
A large portion (17%) of men get HIV from having sex with women and 19% of males get it by injection drug use. 73% of women living with HIV and AIDS contract it from their male partners. 23% of women get it from injection drug use and 3% from other. We need to know that HIV does not exclusively target the gay or drug using communities. Since there is no cure for HIV and AIDS you can prevent an infection through practicing safe sex, abstinence, and using clean needles. HIV is only transmitted through blood transfusions and sexual contact.
If you have sex use latex condoms. Women are more likely to contract HIV through vaginal sex with males. At least 20,000 people of the 40,000 infected people are younger than 25. Every hour of everyday 2 young African Americans and Latinos are infected with HIV. The only way you can be sure if you have HIV is to get tested regularly.

The Crew

Welcome!

We, the journalism class at East Oakland Community High School, have created this site to:

Represent ourselves and the East Oakland Community. We will do this by submitting pictures, articles, essays, and poems by students in this class and in the school. We also want to provide help to the community (counseling) for drug addiction and family problems. Finally we want to show how students work to help the community at EOCHS.