imara mag april 2010

8/9/2019 Imara Mag April 2010

1/28

Clara Ng-Quin

MAKE-UP

FOR CHEAP:eauty Essentials fore College Budget

STAYINGFIT FOR THE

WINTER:ays to Stayexy and Fit

REA

TALKRihanna Expla

Her Side of t

Sto

AN INDEPENDENT WOMAN Doing It for the Community

December

TRONGER THAN A DIAMOND AND JUST AS PRECIO

April 20


2/28

IMARA MagazineEditor and Chief

KRYSTAL WILLIAMS

Co-Managing EditorDeborah Jack

Co-Managing EditorRosalind Usher

Co- Creative Director Ife Ikem

Co- Creative DirectorMarie Fleury

Executive EditorJacsymine Nsubuga

Assistant Executive EditorAlicia Adams

Director of Finance Angelique Boyer

Director of Publicity Chineze Ebo

STAFF WRITERS

Meave Otieno

Matilda Ceesay

Mackenzie McIntosh

Tommy Laymon

Melissa Hewitt

Desirree Pizarro

Devaneke Crumpler

Afua Adjei

Nicole BryantChi Ebo

Deborah Jack

Alicia Adams

Ife Ikem

LAYOUT EDITORS

Rosalind Usher

Malik Mack

Marie Fleury

Ife Ikem

Angelique Boyer

PHOTOGRAPHY

Tina Chou

Erinn Cawthon

Styling: Andrea Mayer

www.imaramagazine.wordpress.com


3/28

This month, we are excited to

bring to you our special Wom-en of Distinction issue. We

made stops all over campus

looking to bring you the sto-

ries of some of the most inu-

ential women. These young

women have reached their

eforescence in their respec-tive elds. The role models captured on the

pages of this months issue serve to inspire us

to push ourselves to be all that we can be and

show us that we all can make a difference.

Proud to be hailed as the one stop shop for all

things multicultural women, we are happy to

bring you new stories of everything from loveand relationships, entertainment, and even t-

ness and exercise. We left no stone unturned

with this issue and hope that you enjoy every

minute of our journey of strength and em-

powerment. Prepared to be inspired, awed,

educated, and enabled. We are Imara, we are

here for you.

Krystal Williams

Editor in Chief

we are imara Editors

April 20

Photo Credits: Tina Chou

Krystal


4/28

NewsandEntertainmentpg62009:AYearinReviewatCornellpg8RealTalk:RihannaGivesUsHerSideHealthandBeautypg20ShoppinginIthaca:onaCollegeStudentsBudget

pg21MinorityWomenandUniversalHealthcarepg22StayingFitDuringtheWinterpg22Fitness:GuidelinestoGettingStartedLoveandR

elationshipspg5DoingitforYourselfpg10IsLoveBlind:TheyDontCallitaTypefornoReasonpg26WhatYouWantedtoKnow,butWeretooAfraidtoAskFoodfortheSoulpg18Untitledpg19RequiemforaPinata/BatteredWomenTheCornellExperiencepg11WomenofDistinction:LadiesDoingitBigatCornellpg17EyeCandyoftheMonthpg9GreatBlackWomenWhoAttendedCornell

:ToniMorrison

pg24WariHouseInterviewpg27Reach

TableofConten

ts


5/28

Doing it for Yourself |Love and Relation

April 20

Its like one of those moments

when the world seems to just

standstill, and time, literally,

slows down , with one, long,

sultry, exhale. And you cant help

but smile one of those Damn

this is a good ass cookie type

smiles as your eyes slowly gaze

over the subtle beauties that surround you.

For just one instant, youre on top and in

control of all thats around you, and for one

moment, that dude, that chick isnt getting

on the very last nerve you have in your body,

just for right now your entire body slowly

melts, drips, and glides like honey into the

caressing arms of joy.

But how often does this really happen? Jug-

gling six classes, a

few extracurricularactivities, a job, a

man, and a fam-

ily who sometimes

forgets just how

much we need to

do up here in the

beautiful boonies

of Cornell, who has

time to sit back and

smell the ow-

ers, right? Wrong.For decades, we

women have made

strides in obtaining the freedoms and rights to pro-

vide for ourselves and to maintain the same level of

respect and independence as our male counterparts,

but somewhere along the way we utterly forgot how

to take care of ourselves, not economically or neces-

sarily physically but psychologically. On our way to

becoming big, important Ivy League graduates, we

need to remember that taking the time to stop, take a

breath, and notice ourselves, can potentially be morelife fullling than the our degree.

I denitely agree that making enough money to be

able to sustain yourself and your family in the future

is worth all of the hard work and stress we are going

through presently. And I also understand how

important it is, especially

in the black

commu-

nity, where

wealthis fairly

lim- ited, for

each genera-

tion to both reach a

level of success far above that of the

previous generation and to establish a rm foundation

for the next generation to do the same, but at what

cost? When we devote ourselves so completely to

the pursuit of nancial success, we ignore the person

we are doing it for,

ourselves. Then yearsdown the line, after

we have, or havent

obtained the level of

success that we are

reaching for, we are

lead to ask what was I

ghting for. After all

what good is a degree,

what good is all the

money in the world, if

you lose yourself in the

process.

--Desirree Pizarro

Doingitfor

YourselfForjustonein-stant,youreon

topandincontrolofallthatsaroundyou...


6/28

ews and Entertainment| A Year in Review

Imara Magazine

>>>Concerts/Shows

McFAB Trey Songz, Ma-

rio, & Fabolous Concert.

Trey Songz and his ne

self was at Cornell along

with equally ne brothas,

Mario & Fabolous. Like

always, McFAB put it

down! And the concert

was great. If you missedit, make it a point to

never miss a McFAB

concertwell unless its

for academic purposes or

an infectious disease.

A Benet Show for

Breast Cancer

The Devastating Divas of

the Mu Gamma Chapterof Delta Sigma Theta &

the Oh So Lovely Poo-

dles of the Lambda Omi-

cron Chapter of Sigma

Gamma Rho hosted a

Benet Show for Breast

Cancer awareness as part

of the many events they

hosted in support for

breast cancer awareness.

The benet aided them

in raising money for the

Susan G. Komen for the

Cure Foundation. As

always, the ladies hosted

a beautiful event for all

to enjoy, and at the same

time help out the commu-

nity. Way to go!

>>> MoviesGood Hair

Good hairits a topic

in most black womens

mind. Chris Rock trav-

els around as he hosts

a documentary on the

theory of Good Hair.

What is good hair? What

does it take to get this

supposed good hair? ItsChris Rock, so its funny,

its good, its real talk.

Precious

Precious. Box ofce hit.

The movie is based on

the book Push by Sap-

phire. The book was

great, the movie is great.

Worst Halloween mov-

ie?: Dawn of the Dead

was it even scary?

No, it wasnt scary. Just

gross, and dumb.

>>> TV ShowsAt Cornell, do we even

have time to indulge

ourselves into follow-

ing these TV shows? For

those of us who make

time, it does make life a

little rough sometimes.

Ode to Hulu and other

online methods that aid

in TV show watching.

The Game

So, The Game was

canceled on the CW.

Haters. Anyway, BEThas decided that it may

be picking up the show,

which is great for all its

ardent followers! The

Black Tribune mentioned

that Stacey Dash might

possibly be joining the

cast as Jasons new

distracter (*wink *wink),

then theres the whole

deal with baby. The new

season, on BET, could

be exciting. For now

though, we shall wait.

Greys Anatomy/House/

ER/ Scrubs

Wait, ER & Scrubs dont

have new seasons or epi-

sodes anymore, right?

Favorite: ScrubsEveryone elses favor-

ite: Greys vs. House

whats your pick?

It seems that people

who watch House enjoy

Houses cynicism and

the cool cases. Greys

folk enjoy the drama of

the characters everyday

lives, the cases? Eh, not

so much.

ER, is just a classic,

enough said.

For all this show, the

diversity of actors & ac-

tresses playing the roles

are worth mentioning.

There was a day when

certain ethnicities were

not given such roles,

A Year in Review

at Cornell2009


7/28

A Year in Review |News and Entertain

April 20

especially as doctors.

>>> BooksPush by Sapphire

If you havent read it?

You should, its worth it.

IMARA summary: A

story about a young Har-

lem raised girl, Precious,

who grows

up with a

life of rape

and neglect

from her

mother

and father.

Her father

gets her

pregnant twice, once at

12, then at 16. However,shes given a second

chance at an Alternative

school where she meets

a group of girls who will

change her view about

herself and her world.

Ladies, and gentlemen

alike: You might

cry when she cries, get

pissed when shes pissed,

and smile when shes

happy but overall

youll feel the book, the

story, and the issues it

discloses

Ms. Rain say write our

fantasy of ourselves.

How wewould

be if

life was

perfect. I

tell you

one thing

right

now, I

would

be light skinned, thereby

treated right and loved by

boyz. Light even more

important than being

skinny; you see them

light-skinned girls thats

big an fat, they got boy-

friends. Boyz overlook a

lot to be wif a white girl

or yellow girl - quote

from novel Push by

Sapphire

What is normal life?

A life where you not

shamed of your mother.

Where your friends

come over after school

and watch TV and do

homework. Where your

mother is normal looking

and dont hit you overthe head wif iron skillet.

I would wish for in my

fantasy a second chance.

- quote from novel

Push by Sapphire

I ain no white bitch.

I understand that now.

I am not white bitch. I

am not Janet Jackson or

Madonna on the inside.

I always thought I was

someone different on the

inside. That I was just

fat and black and ugly to

people on the OUTSIDE.

And if they could see

inside me they would see

something lovely and not

keep laughing at me

I ain no whitebitch. I

understand that now.I am not white bitch.

--Sapphire

that Mama and Daddy

would recognize me

asPrecious! But I am

not different on the in-

side. Inside I thought was

so beautiful is a black girl

too. - quote from novel

Push by Sapphire

>>> MusicThe names Sloppy Joe.

Mixtape out, by OUR

one and only Sloppy Joe,

better known as Joe Jack-

son, Cornell 2010.

He has a facebook fan

page, a facebook group,

a myspace page, a twit-

ter, and a blog. You haveno excuse to not check

him out, especially while

wasting time on any of

the above mentioned so-

cial networking websites.

Enjoy.

--Meave Otieno


8/28

Many of us watched the YouTube video. Chris Browns

apology? Who believes it truly came from his heart,

unrehearsed, well-thought-out, and not a cop-out to save

his career? Maybe some portion of it did, but overall it is

hard to believe any of the above.

When news was rst released about Chris hitting Rihan-

na, it was difcult to fathom that that young, ne, light-

skinned boy, Michael Jacksons dance protg, blessed

with a y voice could horrically assault such a gorgeous,

high achieving, beautiful young girl and leave such re-

pulsive wounds on her face. I mean, fans all over country,

and the world even went as far as to blame Rihanna for

Chriss actions! To make matters worse, Rihanna returned

to Chris after the whole debacle, confusing fans even

more.

The media has followed this saga ever since that police

call from worried bystander that possibly rescued Ri-

hannas life. Rihannas ordeal reiterates that domestic

violence is real and it can happen to anyone despite age,relationship status, socioeconomic status, or attractive

status. She was 19 years old when she was beaten

physically and mentally scarred. Rihanna was one of us, a

young very successful adult woman. She was an epitome

of Neyos Miss Independent! Yet as strong as she is,

beautiful as she is, powerful as she is, she was a victim of

domestic violence.

For Rihanna, this adversity has been a learning experi-

ence, a tough lesson she unfortunately did not learn from

her mother, and the domestic violence present in her

childhood. The fact that she is in the spotlight will de-nitely prevent her from making awful decisions as far as

reengaging in abusive relationships. However, that cannot

be said for all womensince were not all followed by

paparazzi. Rihanna, though, will serve as an example for

women in domestic relationships, letting them know, if

Rihanna can leave Chris Brown, young mama, you can

leave your no-good woman-beater of a partner too.

With that said we college women can become victims of

domestic abuse. In addition, its important to note that

ews and Entertainment| Rhianna Gives Us Her Side...

Imara Magazine

Taking a look at Rihannas Side

domestic abuse comes in many forms from full-out physi-

cal abuse, mental abuse, all the way to stalking. If anyone

thinks that she is suffering from domestic abuse, get help!

From friends, counselors, or family. No one should have

to go through its repercussions alone. That is, abuse of any

sort should never be hidden in a secret box away from oth-

ers knowledge. The only way for real help is to break the

silence, if not stop the silence.

What about Chris Brown? How can we predict his future

now that Rihanna has broken her silence? All I can say

is that he will need some serious rehab and some intense

change in his life. To better grasp what Im asking for, he

has to transition from Bobby Brown to Luther Vandross if

he wants to gain back respect. His celebrity status shouldnot excuse him from what he did, and who he is for as long

as he is capable of beating another woman. I do not care

that he was allegedly raised in an abusive household. Like

Rihanna said in her interview, he has to grow up, face this

adversity like a man, and realize that like Rihanna, he is a

role model to young men everywhere.

--Meave Otieno


9/28

Spotlight | The Cornell Exper

April 2

T

oni Morrison, originally

named Chloe Anthony

Wofford, was born in

Lorain, Ohio in 1931. One of four

children, she was brought up in a

working-class, religious family, and was

constantly exposed to the proud heritage

and storytelling of her family. Early in

her life, she showed particular interest

in literature and reading and became

motivated by authors of the books she

read. After her primary schooling, Mrs.

Morrison attended Howard University

in 1949 to pursue her interest in Eng-

lish. It was at this time that she changed

her name to Toni because of the difcul-

ties people had pronouncing her name

. Also, during her time at Howard, she

joined a theatre group that worked on

illustrating the lives and cultures of Af-

rican American people. After graduating

from Howard with a bachelor of arts

degree in English, Morrison went on

to attend Cornell University, receiv-

ing a masters degree in English. Then,

in 1955, Morrison took up a teaching

job at Texas Southern University, and

also returned back to Howard to teach.

She also became an editor for Random

House company, helping to publish

books for Black writers.

Toni Morrison is best known

for her masterpiece entitled Beloved,

which came out in 1987. For this piece

of work, she won the Nobel Prize for

Literature in 1988, making her the rst

African American woman to receive

this award. She has also written many

other works, including The Bluest Eye

(1970), Sula (1973), Song of Solomon

(1977), Jazz (1990), Paradise (1998),

and Love (2003). Most of her work em-

phasizes the importance of the African

American experience and enhances the

importance of self . She has also com-

posed a number of children novels, in-

cluding The Big Box (1999), The Book

of Mean People (2002), and The Ant or

the Grasshopper? (2003)2. Furthermore,

her novel Beloved was noted to be one

of the of best novels of the past 25 years

by New York Times Book Review in

2006. Toni Morrison is an intelligent,

inspiring, and inuential woman of

color, and should be acknowledged for

all of herachievements. She has

been a hero for most, a leader to

others, and it is with immense

honor that we recognize her as a

great Black woman who attended

Cornell University.

Toni Morrisonby Chi Ebo


10/28

Idont know why. Its just something abouthim. Think back to how many times youve

heard this expression. Perhaps by your BFF?

Your relative? Maybe it was you! We are all very famil-

iar with the classic signs of emanating love and budding

romance-the LOL, smiley faces, late night text conversa-

tions, mid-afternoon lunch dates at the Ivy Room. If you

havent experienced these subtle expressions of prospec-

tive amor, you more than likely know someone who has

(and its a probable chance that youll be there soon). But

what does it all mean?

For many of us, the feelings are denite. We are certainas to how we feel towards our signicant other but dont

have the slightest clue as to why. Evidently, we chalk it

up to chance or the random tomfooleries of that little blind

fellow named Cupid. Yet, is love in fact random? Do we

fall for the people that we do because we happen to be in

proximity, and we happen to converse and

we happen to enjoy each others company?

If this were entirely the case, then its fair

to argue that we may as

well be in love with the

Jades Garden delivery

man who we happen

to order from quite fre-

quently. Fortunately, as

luck should have it, this

seldom ever appears to be the case. Be-

ing in proximity to another individual

most certainly triggers those feelings of

closeness associated with falling in love, but there seems

to be more occurring, leading to the harsh reality for some

romance acionados that love is in not in fact blind.

As several biological and psychological theories have

proposed, the people who we are likely to fall in love withreect our inner desires more than our conscious efforts.

Before you jump on the defense, this isnt to say that you

are romantically attracted to your parents (e.g. Freuds

Oedipus and Electra Complexes). It is simply suggesting

that the individuals we are usually attracted to and most

likely to develop loving feelings toward is a reection of

our unique biological and psychological make-ups, most

commonly unbeknown to ourselves.

To spare you of the scientic jargon but still provide sus-

tentative insight into the argument that love is not blind,

random and/or a product of chance, it is appropriate to

analyze Hateld & Walsters Three Factor Theory of Love

(1981). From this psychological perspective, love is the

product of cultural exposure, physiological arousal and

the nding of a suitable love object. Essentially Hateld

& Walster argue that while the three components of love

may occur in isolated episodes, it is not until the proper

combination of the three unite that we experience love and

romance. Whether you choose to agree with Hateld &Walster or cling to the fairy tale notion that love is fero-

cious and unbiased, just ask yourself do you have a type.

Is there a particular kind of person, dress, or swag that gets

your blood pumping? Be honest.

If you answered yes, this is just a tip of the iceberg hint-

ing that in terms of nding a suitable love object, we are

a little on the subjective side. If love

were truly blind then we could possibly

fall in love with anyone, regardless of

sex, gender, age, location, etc. This is

far from the truth because all is not fairin love and there doesnt appear to be such a thing as equal

opportunity.

Furthermore, for all of us who have taken some form of

Intro Bio, weve heard the idea that as human beings we

possess pheromones that attribute to our at-

traction to one another. Resultantly, our bod-

ies are in pursuit for those individuals who

possess the pheromones that trigger feedback

systems in the mind which tell us we are in

love.

Before this argument is pressed any further, it

is important to acknowledge that the people

who we are both psychologically and biologi-

cally drawn to may not necessarily be the ones we form in-

timate relationships with nor may they be the ones we end

up sharing our lives with. After all, whether love is blind

or has 20/20 vision, we are ultimately the ones in control

of our lives, right? Nonetheless, it is crucial to understand

that when it comes to matters of the heart, you cannot ex-

clude the mind and body. They all work together.

So maybe now the next time you hear someone say I

dont know why. Its just something about him, you can

attribute that something beyond Cupid or chance or a

random sequence of events. And maybe next time you nd

yourself head over heels for the guy who looks, dress and

acts exactly like your much despised ex you can stop and

ask yourself: Do I have a type or Is love blind?

--Devaneke Crumpler

ve and Relationships| Is Love Blind

| Imara Magazine

...is love

in fact

random?

Is Love Blind?: TheyDont Call it a Type For

No Reason

I dont

know

why. Its

just some-

thing about

him.


11/28April 201

Photo Credit: Tina Ch

IMARAhas the inside scoop on some of the most involved womenon campus. You want to know their gulty pleasures or what they thin

of the male species? Then you are in for a treat! From theatre to biol

ogy, we have brought you a diverse group of women who have made

a name for themselves here. Enjoy!

/Women of Distinction:

Ladies Doing It Big At Cornell


12/28

AllWomenofDistinctionPhotosTakenby:TinaChou

Clara Ng-QuinnClass:Senior, 2010School CALS

Major:English

Organizations:Asians Pacic Americans forAction (Last year was Presidentand this year is Vice President/Senior AdvisorSKGAsian and Asian American Cen-ter of the Task Force CommitteeCornell Lion Dance

Biggest accomplishment:

Establishing the A3C-the Asianand Asian American Center, ofwhich shes been a part of sinceher sophomore year. Ive beenworking on it for a majority ofmy time here at Cornell and it hasbeen a lot of work. And it has def-initely a very emotional journey.

Ivy Room or Okenshields? :If it was Ivy Room with the mu-sic from Okenshields, Id chose

Ivy Room.One thing learned about themale species:Theyre dumb! No, Im justkidding. They can still be cool--if their feminine. Males can bepretty too!

One thing to accomplish beforegraduating:She wants all the issues that shehas been advocating for, for A3C

and Students for Ken Glover, to be achieved. I denitely dontwant to see Ken Glover move out.Also, I would like there to be anestablished long term vision forthe A3C, in that Asian and AsianAmerican community is more co-hesive and less fragmented.

Happiness in Ithaca is:The warm weather!

Most rewarding or life changingexperience:Just being at Cornell! I know Icriticize Cornell a lot and I do liketo raise a lot of ruckus on campuslike rallying, but at the same time,

I wouldnt be doing all this stuffif I didnt love Cornell. I wouldnt be trying to x its problems if Ididnt care.

Biggest hurdle that was over-come: Learning how to be orga-nized and getting over her shy-ness. I guess just overcomingsome shyness and learning how touse my awkward personality forgood.

Biggest hurdle that wasovercome:Learning how to be organizedand getting over her shyness. Iguess just overcoming some shy-ness and learning how to use my

awkward personality for good.

Advice offered to the women of2013:Get sleep. And I guess I wouldjust say be really open too becauseyou dont know whats going tohappen, and you think you knowwhats going to happen but youcould be completely wrong whenyou get here.

e Cornell Experience| Women of Distinction

| Imara Magazine


13/28

Patricia

Patti GreenClass: Senior, 2010

School: CALS

Major: Biology

Organizations:

Mentorship program for

Young Men and Women

Festival of the Black

Gospel

Biology Scholars Pro-

gram

Ujamaa Work Study

One thing to accomplish

before graduating: To

nish her senior thesis

project and also develop

a relationship with the

Southside community

center in downtown Itha-

ca. After I leave, I want

a bond to still be there.

Ivy Room or Oken-

shields? : Okenshields.

Toast bread-nutella..

yumm!

If you were an animal,

which would you be?: A

sh because they can swim

and she cant therefore she

wouldn`t drown!

Guilty Pleasure: Cheese!

One thing learned about

the male species: That you

can actually have males

who are just friends, con-

trary to popular belief.

Biggest hurdle that was

overcome: Procrastina-tion! A work still in prog-

ress, but shes getting

better at it!

Advice for 2013: Have

fun at Cornell, but make

sure to do your work. Its

important to nd time dur-

ing the week to do some-

thing not related to school.

Cornell is great!

Happiness in Ithaca

is: Walking outside andadmiring the beauty

JillianGreenawayClass: Senior, 2010

School: Human Ecology

Major: Human Develop-

ment

Organizations:

Co-President, Cornell

Caribbean Student Asso-

ciation Dance EnsembleOfce of Minority and

Educational Affairs Peer

Mentor

Urban Environment

Mentor

Cornell Tradition Fellow

Biggest accomplish-

ment: Surviving four

years at Cornell/Ithaca

and being able to gradu-

ate!

Ivy Room or Oken-

shields? Ivy Room!

Okenshields is horrible!


which would you be?

A catI love them. And

they have nine lives!

Guilty Pleasure: TV! Es-

pecially General hospital.


the male species: That

they are useless!

Most rewarding or life

changing experience:

Volunteering for Alterna-tive Breaks at Tangelo

Park in Florida, working

with children and helping

them with assignments.


overcome: Being away

from 3 year old nephew

and fearing that he would

grow up not knowing her.

Advice for women of

2013: Stay focused.

Dont be discouraged by

Cornell because it is a

big transition. You were

probably brilliant in high

school and coming here,

you are not the only bril-

liant person.

Women of Distinction |The Cornell Exper

April 201


14/28

Tia HicksClass: Junior, 2011

School: AAP

Major: Urban and Re-

gional Studies, Architec-

ture and Planning

Organizations:

Black Students Union,

Executive Board Member

nto the Streets, Execu-

tive Board Member

Student for Ken Glover

leaderDiversity Intern in Cam-

pus Life

Biggest accomplish-

ment: Getting into Cor-

nell because she is one

of the rst people in her

family to get into college.

Guilty Pleasure: Watch-

ing MTV and BET.



they are really ignorant.

They dont have a clue

as to how females feel

about a situation. Theres

good men out there

though; not all of them

are bad.


overcome: . Im always

thinking of how others

will perceive what I say

or how people view me,

so this year I have been

working with that a lot.

Advice offered to thewomen of 2013: I

would say to just stay

true to yourself. It may

sound very clich, but in

Cornell, you tend to lose

yourself in culture and

whats popular, or what

people expect you to do.

Stay rm in your beliefs,

because sometimes youll

go through a lot only tocome back to what you

already were.

Ivy Room or Oken-shields?

Okenshields on abroke day!

Amanda IdokoClass: Senior, 2010

School: Arts and Sciences

Major: Theatre Arts

Organizations:

President of Schwartz

Center Ambassadors

helps to market and

promote the shows

Whistling Shrimp Mem-ber- Cornell improv

comedy troupe

Actress in various plays

in the Schwartz Center

Biggest accomplish-

ment: She is proud that

she left her safe path-

way as a pre-med student

to pursue something that

she was truly passionate

about.


which would you be?: A

cheetah, because they are

fast and erce.

Happiness in Ithaca

is: The cool commu-

nity and the environment.Going downtown is fun,

and Ithaca has a funky

community.

One thing learned

about the male species:

Theyre fun to hang out

and talk with when there

is nothing else going on,

like when you have a re-ally cool friend, they are

fun to talk to. But besides

friendships, when you go

into that relationship, it

gets a littleyou know.

But guys are cool!

Advice to the women of

2013: Dont get trapped

into doing one thing. Take

a lot of different classesand be involved with a

lot of different things.

And above all, do what

you love to do; dont hold

yourself back or let any-

one else hold you back.


| Imara Magazine


15/28

Osarieme

EvbuomwanClass: Junior, 2011


Major: Sociology and

Inequalities Studies

Organizations:

President of Nigerian

Students Association

Vice President of Inter-

nal Operations, CUTo-night

Ofce of Minority and

Educational Affairs Peer

Mentor

CCSADE Musical Tech-

nican

One thing to accom-

plish before graduating:

Wants to do more with

Nigerian Students Asso-ciation, such as a service

project that will effect

change in Nigeria and the

education/health system.

Ivy Room or Oken-

shields? : Okenshields

because of the sh and

chicken sandwich.

If you were an animal,which would you be?: A

gazelle, because they are

quick and glide.



not all guys are all about

sex. Some guys have

emotional sides and more

to their personalities.

Advice offered to the

women of 2013: Dont

be afraid to admit that

you cant do something.

If you arent good at one

thing, you have to take a

step back and see what

else you are good at. Life

is not about regrets; it

should be about learning

from mistakes and grow-

ing.

Guilty Pleasure:Taking illegal roadtrips without telling

her parents!

Women of Distinction |The Cornell Exper

April 201

Melissa HewittClass: Sophomore, 2012


Major: Sociology

Organizations:

Cornell Track team

Biggest accomplishment:

Winning the HEPS (Ivy

League Championships)and breaking her old re-

cords.

One thing to accomplish

before graduating: I

want to try and break as

many records as possible,

not just in the Ivies. I want

to go to the NCAA.

If you were ananimal,which would you

be?: Cheetah-theyre fast,

erce and feared.


the male species: Noth-

ing I didnt know already.

They dont always turn out

to be how they seem. I just

want a guy whose honestwith me at all times!

Most rewarding or life

changing experience:

The fact that she is mak-

ing her mother proud.

She talks about me so

highly to others.


overcome: Adjusting toeverything here. Its a

world of pressure here,

always surrounded with

drinking and things that

I try to avoid. Its get-

ting easier now, because

I know what I want and

I wont compromise that

for anyone.

Advice offered to the

women of 2013: Dont

put so much pressure

on yourself. You wont

always be liked by ev-

eryone, and you wont

always do as well as you

want, but its important to

have fun.


16/28


| Imara Magazine

PhotoCredit:AndrewIntihar

Alyson IntiharClass:SeniorSchool:CALSMajor: AEM

Organizations:Captain of Softball teamCo-President of Red

Key Honor SocietySecretary of SAACMeinig Scholar

Biggest accomplish-ment:Winning the Ivy-Cham- pionship last year . Theshared experience [withteammates] was amazingand created an unbreak-able bond.

Ivy Room or Oken-shields? :OkenshieldsbecauseHappy Dave is alwayshappy!

Happiness in Ithacais:Waking up in April andit not being -20 degrees.

One thing learned aboutthe male species:

They cant multitask.They have a one-trackmind set.

Most rewarding or lifechanging experience:

She did a volunteer pro-gram in Ecuador thesummer between sopho-more and junior year. Shehelped the Quechua com-munity, and was involvedin activities such as build-ing medicinal garden andteaching. I enjoyed thisexperience because of the people and close interac-tion.

Advice offered to thewomen of 2013:Natural ability in any-

thing can only take youso far, but hard work and perseverance will takeyou the extra distance. Emily Cohn

Class: Senior, 2010School: Arts and Sci-encesMajor: Communication

Organizations:Editor in Chief of theDaily Sun

Biggest accomplish-ment:Getting involved withthe Sun early on. Shestarted as sophomore re- porter, asking pressingquestions and pissing people off. Im proudof being able to press

[for answers] whereneeded.

If you were ananimal,which wouldyou be?:Bird in order to see theworld from a differentperspective. Birds seemso care-free.

Guilty pleasure:Ill eat a tray of brown-ies and not feel guiltyabout it.


overcome:Time management andlearning to cope with notgetting enough sleep. Ialso had to learn howto be a better people person. Working at theSun, Im surrounded bystudents who are overworked, under slept andin need of an upper, andI had to learn how to bethat upper.

Advice offered to thewomen of 2013:Do not think aboutgraduation until it isthere and value yourtime at Cornell. Despitethe economy, you willget a job! Treasure theacademic environmentthat is here.


17/28

Pho

toCredits:TinaChou

What is your favorite feature infemale?: Her smile; nice smiles win over anyone. I also like a girlwith nice eyes, or at least girls whcan make good eye contact.

What do you think makes youappealing to women?: Im warm

fun-loving, and I have a solid belisystem. I have morals and can putthings into perspective. I can treata women like a queen if I feel shedeserves it.

Whats the worst characteristicfemale can have?: I dont like awith a bad attitude. Being pessimis a turn off; I dont like to be arounegative energy.

What is your ideal date?: May

going to the Boatyard Grill for dinner. Something real ofcial, likeher wearing a dress, and Ill wear blazer. Itd be a candlelight dinnethe lake. I like being spontaneousromantic at the same time.

Are you currently involved withsomeone?:No, Im not in a committed relationship.

What is your guilty pleasure?:Getting lost in the moment; just

ing random!

If you were an animal,which woyou be?: A lion, because I havelot of Pan-African views. They hadeterminism and their at the top othe food chain.

One thing learned about the femspecies:I feel like a lot of girls sfer from lack of male interest. Bufeel like they just want to be apprated. Its hard though, because heour multicultural community is relimited, so people become close-minded and miss out on a lot of gthings.

Advice to 2013 men:If you ndgood girl, hold onto her. Theres aof high caliber people here.

Khaleel AtivyehClass:Senior, 2010School:College of Arts and Sci-encesMajor: Urban and RegionalStudies

Organizations: MOAPP President Morterboard National Honor

Society (organizes last lecture,used to be secret society, philan-thropy) Meinig Family Cornell NationalScholar Starting a trendy, cultural fash-ion line

Description:6 foot 5 browneyes, athletic build; tall, dark, andhandsome.

What type of girl is ideal foryou?: Michelle Obama. Ahighly intellectual, compassion-ate, motivated female, who hasyour back. I want a girl with in-ner beauty.

What physical characteristicsdo you look for in a female?:Im a global citizenI like allraces. Looks arent that importantto me though; I appreciate peoplefor who they are, their innerbeauty. I look more at character.

What catches your eye in a fe-male?: I like a stylish and wellkempt female. Girls who carrythemselves well is a plus.

Eye Candy of the Month |TheCornell Exper

April 201


18/28

Untitled

By Afua Adjei

Sixteen girls and Isit on my grandmothers brown couch

in matching pink puffed dresses.

My legs itch from the wireswrapped around my calf.I am the last one to put on my black shoes.

She stares at me embarrassed.I sat in front and fell asleep.So she grabs my wrist as if todismember it from the rest of me.She pulls me into a damp room of 200complacent black faces. Each of them a proudlamb. No one is shocked.

The girl from the fatherless tribeis being dragged against the cement ground.I look for herbut my grandmothers head is bowed.There are tears on the blue skin of her new testament.

She gives me back my hand once she sees the sun.Blood trails aroundmy ankles, sweat is swimmingthrough the thick rolls that surround her neck.She says and repeats; legs.legs.legs.

When she realizes I do not understand, she kneels infront me,grabs my knees and presses them together.

I am left to stand outside.And I watch my skin blackenlike a man gradually losing his sight.

Im obliged to present to you theFEATURED POETRY section of

Imara! Allow the words to let you ponder. In each issue we hope to showcase poetry written

by women or about womens issues. If youd like to share some of your own poetry or have

been inspired by a particular work of poetry that youd like to see featured please contact me

at [email protected]. For this issue Id like to include an untitled poem written by Afua Ad-

jei and one of my own devising called Requiem for a Piata/ Battered Woman. Until then,

allow the words to let you ponder. Indulge your poetic senses. Hmm and dont be afraid to

dip your pen into the ink too

- Nicole Bryant

od for the Soul|Poetry Corner

| Imara Magazine


19/28

RequimforaPi

nata/BatteredW

oman

ByNicoleBryan

t

Wham!

Mycontents

spilltotheoor.

everygush,

everygaw

everysilent

caress

splayedbefo

reme

Inacollage

ofred

andshattere

divory.

Ipickpiece

s

of

my

jaw

offthewood

enoor.

Incredulous.

Lastmonth

myseamsb

ulged

withthewe

ight

ofgumdrops

andlollipop

s.

Soengorge

dwith

sugarydecad

ence

thatcavitie

s

(incubated)

inmywomb

Idrewhimi

n

pullingath

ispenchant

forquickth

rills

andinstanta

neousrewar

ds.

Stringingm

yselffromt

herafters

Iswung

inandout

and

inand

out

ofhisgaz

e

TapTap

Knockingint

omysenses

,

heismysixth.

Indentation

sspeak

Hisngers

werehere

Hetouched

methere

Crack

Theimpact

beatsbackt

hetears

pushingagai

nstmylids.

Doesnthek

now

Iwouldgladl

y

peelbackmyinside

s

andthrustfo

rth

aharvestof

candybars,

sweet

tarts

andjellybe

ans?

ButthenIta

steit

SourSkittles

.No!

Bitter.

Wham!

Wordstousle

inmyfracturedmou

th.

Ibenddown

topickupm

ytooth

andthewoo

denoorbo

ards

catchmybr

okenface.

Heavedinto

thetrashbi

n,

Imeltintot

heblackpla

stic

asmytears

mixwithsaw

dust.

Poetry Corner |Food for the

April 201


20/28

With class-

es, work study,

extracurricular activities

and trying to maintain a social life.

Most Cornellians look for shopping

outlets outside of Ithaca. In addition

to the lack of time, most stores in

Ithaca are not worth the bus ride. The

Cornell woman needs easy, efcient

and most importantly cheap (we all

know that times are hard) ways toget all her beauty and fashion sup-

plies. The Internet has two hidden

secrets that will help satisfy all your

beauty needsone is called eye-

slipsface.com and the other is called

amiclubwear.com. Eyeslipsface(Elf)

is the place to get all your makeup

and beauty supplies and you can nd

clothes and shoes on Amiclubwear.

Eyeslipsface is a website that sells

quality makeup starting at $1 each.

The products on this site are starting

to get noticed by everyone. It is be-

ing talked about in major magazines

from InStyle to Seventeen to Elle. All

the makeup is very pigmented and

applies beautifully to the skin. Elf has

three lines of make including: their

regular line, studio line(professional

line) and mineral line. All items in

regular line are $1. The items on

the regular line are

cheaper and bet-

ter quality than the

makeup you nd at

your local store, sosave yourself the trip!

Most items in the studio

line are $3 each.The stu-

dio line is made to knock off pro-

fession makeup lines likeNARS and

MAC and at very good deal, consid-

ering the price. Items in the mineral

collection range from $3 per item to

$20 for a complete face kit. These

items hold their own when compared

to any other mineral makeup on the

market right now. Best of all, ship-

ping is set at $6.95 no matter how

much you order and free shipping for

orders over $75. Now you will never

have to sacrice beauty for budget!

We all know you cant walk around

with just makeup on, thus its now

time to learn where to get clothes

and shoes for a great price! On Ami-

clubwear.com, one can nd great

deals on clothes and shoes. Cute

dresses and tops can be found start-

ing at $9.99. Sweater dresses for the

Ithaca weather starting at $12.99.

With Ithaca weather everyone needs

boots, which are usually very expen

sive. Amiclubwear has quality winter

boots starting at $12.99 and rainboot

starting at $22.99. Regular shoes and

sandals can be found starting $1.99

Shipping is free for orders over $50

Grab a friend or two and send in an

order together to get free shipping

Bonus information time! For reading

to the end of this article I have a gift

for you! Both websites offer coupons

so you can get discounts on the al-

ready ridiculous cheap products. Eyes

lips face always has several coupons

going on at the same time, from free

shipping to item discounts. Examples

of coupons in the past include 75%

off mineral makeup, 50% the regular

line and buy one get 75% off the stu-dio line. Coupon codes can be found

by simply googling coupon codes fo

elf or Amiclubwear. Amiclubwear also

has coupons but they usually only have

one coupon going at a time. None the

less, in October 2009 they had a cou-

pon for an extra 30% off the total order

--Matilda Ceesay

Most Cornellians lookfor shopping outlets

outside of Ithaca.

ShoppinginIthaca:OnaCollegeStudentsBudget

| Imara Magazine| Imara Magazine


21/28

OnSaturday, November

7th, 2009, the House

of Representatives

passed a historic bill, the Afford-

able Health Care for America Act,

which would be the rst step in

acquiring universal health care in

America. Many are skeptical as to

how this act will affect Americans

nancially. Of course, certain taxes

will be put in place in order to af-

ford this new form of health care.

However, it will be provid-

ing a great benet to a great-

er number of Americans.

Minority women in

particular will be greatly af-

fected by this new health

care reform in many positiveways. The fact of the mat-

ter is that women of color in

America are often underrep-

resented and ignored. Many

women of color, including

African American and La-

tino women, who represent

a large portion of the lower

class or upper lower class,

are unable to receive the health

care that they need due to their so-cioeconomic status, often allotting

any funds that they have to their

familys health care instead of their

own. The passing of this bill in both

the House and Congress will pro-

vide more affordable services and

preventive care to womens health

issues such as breast cancer, HIV/

AIDS, and hypertension, which

is killing more and more minor-

ity women every year. These are

diseases that, with the availability

of quality care, can be prevented

and treated for a healthier America.

When interviewing stu-

dents on campus about this

change in health care, some

Cornell women had this to say:

Its a good thing because its ri-

diculous that 47 million Ameri-

cans are without health insur-

ance and contrary to popular

belief these are people who actu-

ally work. They are playing with

life and death. Hopefully now

the whole medical industry will

move from reactive to proactive.-Shannon Edwards 10

I think its gonna help Black

women because its gonna help

with the whole demographic of

lower class and upper lower middle

class. A lot of times black people

fall into this category. It will help

alleviate nancial issues concern-

ing health insurance and taxes.

-Alumni Morgan James 09

I feel like everyone should have

it regardless of who they are. Ev-

erybody should have equal ac-

cess to health care if they need it.

-Imani Day 11

Well in terms of black women's

health issues, I think the increased

access to health insurance will have

a positive affect on black women's

health. The fact that insurance will bemore widely available and easily ac-

cessible will encourage black wom-

en to visit the doctor more often.(Al-

most) all barriers will be removed.

-Anonymous

It is clear that many students

feel that universal health care wil

be a benet to all women of color

I will help alleviate nancial is-sues, providing quality care, and

removing social barriers that could

be preventing women from visiting

their physicians. Although i

seems like this reform was

created by the Obama admin-

istration to help mitigate the

growing economical issues

of the American people, it is

important to take into con-

sideration many of the consas well, including govern-

ment controlled health care

and a possible raise in taxes

for middle and upper middle

class Americans. As citi-

zens and beneciaries of this

health care reform we need

to know as much information

as provided so that we, the

people, can make sure that the right

decisions are being made for us

For more information on the Af-

fordable Health Care for Amer-

ica Act please visit this website

h t t p : / / w w w . t h o m a s . g o v /

--Makenzie McIntosh

MinorityW

omen

and

UniversalHeal

thcare

Health and B

April 201


22/28

Geng exercise when the weather is nice, is easy

for anyone to do. But once that Ithaca winter rolls

around and lasts for about 6 months, we stop walkingto class, stop jogging, and try to spend as lile me

outside as possible. We would rather take the bus

and be warm then walk to central campus and freeze.

By taking the bus, we are depriving our bodies of

vital cardiovascular exercise that is needed to stay t.

However, there are some exercises you can do in your

room to stay t and stay sexy in the winter me.

NOTE:

Here are some addional opons to staying t dur-

ing the winter!

-Buy a rubber band resistance kit and following

workouts (around $10)

-Watch pilate and abdominal workouts on youtube

and follow along

-Get a Cornell Fitness Centers gym membership

(about $90 per semester or $145 for the year)

EASY WINTER TIME WORKOUT:

Focus on these three areas and aempt to do

3 sets of 15 reps for each exercise

-Abdominal Workouts

Crunches

Plank

Sit-Ups

-Leg Workouts

Squats

Lunges

-Upper Body Workout

Push-Ups

**For more informaon about safe ways to do these

exercises, please head over to imaramagazine.word-

press.com

--Tommy Laymon

Staying Fit During The Wint

FITNESS:

Guidelines to Getting Started

| Imara Magazine

have a car on campus you wont

even think about making the 10

minute walk from collegetown to

the commons, even if it means sit-

ng in trac); you can even try a

kick boxing or dancing class! The

possibilies are (virtually) endless.

If you nd yourself wanng to run

(you know its only because you feel

le out because everyone else is

doing it) do not feel discouraged if

you nd yourself unable to run

as fast or as long as your friends

who have been running for a

long me. The most eecve to

way to start and sck to an exer-

cise regimen is to do something

that works best for you. Here are

some simple guidelines for the ful

me couch potato looking to of-cially abandon his/her old ways

1. Figure out what is holding you

back and get rid of it! If its me you

dont have, you can start out by be-

ing acve for 10 minutes a day for

a couple days a week. If thats sl

too much, you can always resort

If you are one of those people

who is thinking about adding

physical acvity to your life and

is unsure of where to start, this

arcle is for you! The rst step

may be the hardest one to make.

But once youve made the leap,

everything else comes naturally.

Running is the most popular form ofphysical acvity for non athletes, al-

though there are many other ways

to get and stay t: biking (when the

weather is good everyone knows

Ithaca has only two seasons: winter

and July); walking instead of driving

(come on, we all know that if you


23/28

to rummaging through your pile

of junk and nd the Britney Spears

or Backstreet Boys CDs (guys, stop

shaking your heads you know

you owned one of the two at

some me or another). What bet-

ter than blasng your stereo anddancing the night away to Oops I

Did It Again while burning calories

at the same me? It all adds up.

2. Another easy way to get t is to in-

corporate lile workouts into your

daily roune. When youre at home

watching The Oce on a Thursday

night, do some sit ups or pushups

in front of the TV. If you feel likethat takes away from the Laugh Out

Loud experience, thats ne, you

can do it during the commercials.

3. Last but not least, with all this

physical acvity, your body will

need fuel. This means you will have

toeat more food not the bad kind,

but the good kind (yes, cheesecake

is bad. Just because it has cheese

does not mean it counts toward

your daily intake of dairy products).

Whatever you decide to do, make

sure it is something you enjoy. That

way you do not get bored easily.

Remember, life is short. MOVE IT!

TOP 5 ABDOMINAL EXER-

CISES: PT. 1

Bicycle Exercise

1. Lie face up on the oor and lace

your ngers behind your head.

2. Bring the knees in towards

the chest and li the shoul-

der blades o the ground

without pulling on the neck.

3. Straighten the le leg out while

simultaneously turning the up-

per body to the right, bringing the

le elbow towards the right knee.

4. Switch sides, bringing the right

elbow towards the le knee.

5. Connue alternang sides in a

pedaling moon for 15-20 reps.

STRETCHING TIPS

Why is Stretching Important?

1. Improves range of moon

2. Reduces muscle soreness

3. Improves circulaon

4. Decreases muscle tension

just to name a few

STRETCH OF THE

MONTH

Quads

The quadriceps (quads) is the mus-

cle in the front of the thigh. To do

this exercise while standing, simply

grab hold of a staonary object for

balance with one hand and use

the opposite hand to grasp the leg

around the ankle, liing it toward

your buocks. Be sure to keep your

back straight and not allow the knee

to dri forward ahead of the stance

leg. Also, try not to slouch forwardThis negates the stretchs eecve-

ness. An even more eecve way to

do this exercise is to posion your-

self on the edge of a bench with

one leg on the oor (knee bent,

leg relaxed) with the other behind

you resng on the bench. On the

leg resng on the bench, grasp

the ankle to pull your foot toward

your buocks. Hold the stretch on

each leg for about 10 seconds and

repeat as many mes as needed

--Melissa Hewi

Fitness: Guidelines to Getting Started |Health and B

April 201

PhotoCredits:TinaChou


24/28

e Cornell Experience| Wari House Interview

| Imara Magazine

Nestled along the street of Dearborn Road, a house stands with the number 208 in bold black numbers. To many others that aresimply walking down the road, this house holds no history or signicance. Yet as I entered and talked with the residents, I wasable to unearth a history of activism, community service, and compassion for the multicultural community. Founded in 1968, duringthe times of racial tension among Cornells campus, Wari House offered the Black community a way to simply get away from the

misunderstanding and animosity from the white community. And still standing today, Wari house has grown and progressed beyond

measure. And the members have remained glued to their ideal purpose of bettering the condition of Black women on campus, in the

community, and around the world.

Deborah Jack: How did Wari House get started? What is the

history behind it?

Kristina: the House was founded in 1968 amongst racial ten-

sions on campus. There was one student named, Alicia Scott, and

basically she was living in Balch and she had a very hard time

adjusting there because the white women in Balch were very

nasty and they just really misunderstood her. They accused of

her , and some other black girls, of smoking weed , or marijuana

the politically correct term, when the only thing they were doing

was hot-combing their hair. There was just a lot of incidents like

that, cultural misunderstandings, and it just led her to feel really

ostracized in the Balch community and she was actually taken

to a hospital for being mentally unstable when it was just a

lot of emotional issues for her because she felt misunderstood.

So Irene Smalls, which was one of our founders, and some other

black women on campus actually fought for a space that could be

created where black women could feel comfortable and that theyexpress their cultural heritage without misunderstanding. Its just

a positive environment, overall to feel safe and be ourselves and

celebrate who we are and all that greatness. So yea, were 41

years old. And Wari, we started being called Wari House, which

is a Swahili term for ? but now our ofcial name is Wanawake

Wa Wari and that was changed later on. It basically means

Young Women Preparing for the World.

DJ: Was Wari started during the Willard Straight Takeover?

Kristina and Francine:It was before

Kristina: Willard Straight Takeover was 69 actually weve been

told, that some of the meetings were actually held here to talkabout and to plan the takeover. We predated Uj about 4 years so

this was like the black club on campus.

DJ:What are the ideals of Wari House? And are they still

alive today?

Kristina: Uh, basically our house has always done culturally cen-

tered programs specically about the plight of black women not

only at Cornell and the Ithaca community but also nationally and

globally. Our house has always had a very strong tie to education

in the black community. It provides another environment where

black women can come and have a home as well as other people

of African descent, which is why we have an afliation with

Ujamaa. Their actually like our brother.

Seeing Cyre leafng through a red book, I asked her what it was.

Cyre: This is, for the 25th anniversary, the ladies of the house

compiled all the different documents and letters that they wrote

out to get this house established and all the things that Kristina

was saying is in here. Newspaper articles, likes its very very

important.

Francine: In the back of it, they have

short essays and poems, that they feel

embodied the spirit of Wari that they

included.

DJ: What Community Service do

you do?

Francine: Well, typically we go to

Lansing which is a detention facil-

ity for young women. And we do a

group mentoring session so we talk

to them about whatever they want to

talk about, self esteem, body im-

age, you know, getting their GEDs,

looking to go to college. Things of

that sort. Last year, we did just a fun

thing. They had a talent show and we

taught them a step. And we brought

people from Phenom .So just going down there and building a

relationship with them. Thats what we do as a house. But wetypically like individuals in the house volunteer.

DJ: I heard that you guys also do you fund for a student in

Ghana?

Francine: Ohhhh yea. We also have a scholarship that sends a girl

to secondary school because typically girls have to stay home

and help the families so they lose out by having the daughter go

to school. So this [scholarship] helps support the family while

the daughter goes to school. We do have one student, whos

currently in secondary school, and were raising funds to send

WANAWAKEWAWARIHOUSE INTERVIEW

WITH KRISTINA WEEMS, FRANCINE MITTO, AND CYRE GUADALUPE


25/28

Wari House Interview |The Cornell Exper

April 201

another girl to secondary school.

Kristina: We wanted it to be annual but

given the economic hard times I think

were gonna make it every two years.

Because its $800 for four years.And thats

a lotta fundraising.Information about the

scholarship and the girls prole is all on

the website.

DJ: So you fund for a new student eveytwo years?

Kristina and Francine: Yeah

Kristina:Our rst scholarship went out

last year.

DJ: Oh , your rst scholarship ever?

Kristina:Yea.So we just created it. And

we partnered with the Ghana Health and

Educatoin Initiative. They actually make

sure our funds actually go to a girl that ts

our criteria because girls have no prob-

lem passing school. But its what Francinewas mentioning, girls have housework to

do and boys dont so boys typically have

more time to devote to school so they

get higher grades when it comes to take

the tests to

makes sure

you can get

into second-

ary school.

So when girls

actually do

pass the tests

to get intosecondary

school theyre

confronted

with that -

nancial barrier

becase theyre

from a small

village, Hum-

jimbre Village

in Ghana. And

the secondary school is usually miles and

miles away. So that money helps out with

room and board and that educational cost

for 4 years.

Cyre: Also I wanted to add about the com-

munity service. Were looking into doing

other community service projects in the

area like maybe volunteering at Bridges.

Were trying to do Into the Streets this

year.

DJ:How did you guys get interested in

the scholarship?

Kristina: One of our members went to

Ghana through Cover Africa and she just

saw, even though they were there for like

malaria and this health focus, she just saw

this disparity in education and how it was

just really unfortunate for some girls who

really wanted to go to school but either

couldnt afford it if they passed the test to

get into secondary school. We were just

talking about possibly contributing to itin some capacity to GHEI because they

do try to fund to help cover the cost for

children who cant go.And we thought it

be a good idea to create a scholarship for

it because were all about education and

women empowerment, especially women

of African descent. So it just went well

with the ideals of the house so we just

contacted with them and made sure that

the money goes specically to a girl.

DJ: I also wanted to ask how do you

think the community views you?

Kristina: Um, I dont know. I think its

denitely changing, I can tell you that

much.From a, I would say, I dont wanna

misjudge previous years , but I would say

that it was more so that the people who

knew about the house were the people

who lived in the house and their friends.

And not necessarily a wider range of

people in the black community but I feel

like because every single member here

for the most part is really out there and

whatever elds they might be in is here.In addition to our friends, we also have

afliations with different organizations

and sometimes those organizations come

here, like Phenom held their meeting here

and NSBE has had their meetings here.

Cyre: Les Femmes de Substance

Kristina: Les Femmes uhBWSN has

had their meetings here. It just increases

awareness of our house and we just really

been trying to do that through co-pro-

gramming and just inviting other black

organizations here to get the word out.

But I would denitely say that people, I

dont know.

Cyre: well you can even tell with just the

increase in applications for Wari. So much

more females on campus know more

about Wari as opposed to my freshmen

year.

Francine: I agree. I didnt know about

Wari for a very long time. Until last year,

right before I applied. So I think that

awareness about the house is the thing

that is changing the most.

Kristina: Well, especially like, also Uj.

Helps out a lot. They give us shout outs

like every week at Unity Hour particularly

because the rst Unity Hour is about the

assessment of Uj and the Willard Straight

Takeover and Wari is very central to all of

that. They do mention us and we always

send representatives to Unity Hour every

week. So even they do mention Wari

people can connect our house and ourhistory to current faces. And like, we have

so many advocates in the community like

Ken Glover, Professor Turner, Dr. Renee

Alexander, they really put it out there

for other students that we probably dont

reach.

DJ: My last question was what is the

future for Wari House? Are you all

seniors?

Kristina and Francine:Yea

Cyre: Im a junior.Francine: we currently have two sopho-

mores, two juniors, and 6 seniors. But for

the past two years that I lived here, thats

how the numbers have been. And every

year we have an inux of applications and

I think that people love living in Wari and

you kno, its a very friendly atmosphere

and in addition to that, its like the best

deal for campus housing. Theres no bet-

ter place on campus to live.

Kristina: Once you get into the house

you can stay here until you graduate. So

thats why we have such a high numberof seniors most of the time. I know I got

here my sophomore year and I never

left. And other people do the same thing.

They might come sophomore year and

junior year and stay. So we tend to have

more upperclassmen depending on those

numbers. In the future I just see more

awareness and more connection to the

black community and all the communities

of color as well.

--Reported by Deborah Jack

For more information about the Wan-

awake Wa Wari, you may visit http://

www.rso.cornell.edu/wari/index.html


26/28

Dear Loveless,

Okay girl, as far as I am concerned,love is blind. The question you should be

yourself right should be whether or not you could see yourself with this guy and n

your friends are going to react. Youre not going to be dating this boy for your frien

are you? If you think this guy can really make you happy, then I would tell y

for it. Dating out of your race can be hard for some people, but whats importan

the color of a persons skin but their personality, and how they make you feel. H

never know he might do it better than all of your exes!

--Au

Dear Auntie I,

I am West Indian and I have been looking for someone for

a while. Recently, a white guy has now been trying to talk

to me. I have never actually considered dating out of my racefore but I feel as if things could go somewhere with him. The

nly problem is I am not sure how my parents or friends here

t school would react or feel about the situation. I was going to

ose this question on the BWSN listerv but was not sure the

reactions I would get. What should I do?"

-Loveless in Ithaca

To anonymously ask your questions,go toimaramagazine.wordpress.com fo

more infomation!

What you wanted to know,

but were too afraidto ask....advice from auntie i

r the Imara Woman| Advice

| Imara Magazine


27/28

REACH

Out

If you are ever looking for a way to

volunteer your me, tutoring is a great

way to do this. The achievement gap is

one of the most frequently discussed

issues in American educaon. The

term achievement gap refers to the

disparies in aspects of educaon

such as standardized test scores,

grade point average, drop out rates,

and college enrollment among

students of dierent race, ethnicity,

or socioeconomic status. According

to Gloria Billings, author of the 2006

arcle from the Educaon Researcher,From the Achievement Gap to the

Educaon Debt, the achievement gap

is a maer of race and class. The vast

majority of students that suer from

the achievement gap are from urban

or metropolitan areas. According

to Billings, in 2005 the Educaon

Commission of the States reported

that the gap between black and

Lano fourth graders and their white

counterparts in reading scores was

more than 26 points. In mathemacs,the gap was more than 20 points.

Some historical factors that have

aected the gap include the fact

that educaon was forbidden during

enslavement. Aer the emancipaon,

freedmens schools were formed with

the purpose of maintaining a servant

class. During the legal apartheid,

black students were given

old text books and

materials

f r o m

w h i t e

s c h o o l s .

B l a c k students in the

S o u t h who had to work on

farms did not experience universal

secondary educaon unl around1968. Economic factors play an even

larger role in the achievement gap.

Urban areas have less money to provide

to their school districts because the

residents incomes are not as high as

those residents in rural areas. This

means that there are less tax dollars

being allocated toward educaon.

To make training and movang

tutors easier, the Public Service

Center began the REACH fellowshipiniave in 2000. This program

would enhance and add structure to

the already exisng programs. The

purpose of the REACH Fellowship is

to recruit, mentor, coordinate and

unify a diverse group of tutors, so

they have the necessary resources and

peer support to make the program

eecve. During the spring semester

of 2000, seven REACH volunteers

served in a leadership capacity at sites

around Cornell to create curriculum

and coordinate the eorts of tutors

According to Barbara Wasik, author of

the 1998 review Volunteer Tutoring

Programs in Reading, from the Reading

Research Quarterly, one-on-one

tutoring can be an extremely eecve

form of instrucon. The primary

drawback is the high cost of providing

these services to children. They cannot

aord to pay for extra help. Although

REACH tutors can choose to be paidfor their services through work study

the students they tutor do not have

to pay because the program is funded

by AmeriCorps. Children should not

be denied educaonal opportunies

because of historical or socioeconomic

factors. These factors may also have a

psychological impact on a childs will to

succeed. Their movaon is weakened

because of their external environment

Ecacy is low, meaning that they have

lower expectaons about the rewardsfrom graduaon. Tutors can help alte

these atudes. You dont have to be

a teacher; all you have to do is help

movate kids by showing them that

they can succeed. Somemes people

in college can relate to these students

beer than their teachers and parents

can. REACH can expand with you help

--Alicia Adams

"You dont have to bea teacher; all you have

to do is help motivate

kids by showing them

that they can succeed"

And Lend A Hand

Reach Out |TheCornell Exper

April 201


28/28

IMARA is an independent student organizaon l

at Cornell University, produced, and is respo

for the content of, this publicaon. This publ

We Would Like To ThankSlope Media

Cornell Design League

Dr. Renee Alexander

Kenneth Glover

Matilda CeesayTina Chou

Erin Arnette

Malik Mack

Makenzie McIntosh

Professor N'Dri T. Assire-Lumumba

And everyboy else that helped

to make this issue a sucess!

nd Lets Not Forget...

Want To Be Part of Something Great?

Than IMARA needs YOU!

e need photographers, writers, reporters, make

up arsts designers

The IMARA woman is...

Cosmopolitan by nature

She is modern by choice

She is a queen by birthright

She holds thepuissance of CleopatraThe condence of Nefertiti

The allure of Aphrodite

She embodies the Agape Theon

She is the progeny of Isis

She isfervent and resolute

She is strongerthan the strongest diamond

And just asprecious

She is irty, fun andeeting

She is a scholar, an athlete and a leader

She excels, she succeeds, she overachieve

She is the personication of IMARA

Do you have what it takes for IMARA?

imara mag april 2010

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