New Hope Solebury's Locker Crisis

Kayla Paul-Koch

Staff Writer

Just two weeks before the 2017-2018 school year began, students were hit with news in an email from Principal Seier that only underclassman would be receiving lockers automatically and that upperclassman would need to request a locker if they wanted one.

 In addition to needing to request a locker, many upperclassmen must also share one with a friend. This came as shock to the majority upperclassmen who felt as though they deserved the priority on lockers due to heavier course loads. Audra Moore, a junior at New Hope, said she was “angry and annoyed over the fact that I would not receive a locker because I use my locker all the time and go to it multiple times a day to store books and my lunch.”

 Due to construction, lockers are limited since there is no freshman pit or senior hallway which combined, contained enough lockers for nearly 100 students. Sophomore Adam Singer felt as though “freshman should be warranted the lockers because of being in a new environment that they’re still trying to get used to, but that it is not necessary for seniors to have them.” After a month of school, students are adjusting to the changes in lockers well and there has been minimal conflict on the issue.

Fall Fest to Happen on Friday Night Football Game

Chloe Miller

Staff Writer

At this year’s Homecoming football game, clubs and sports will be having their booths open for games, food, and activities. In other words, the annual Fall Fest will now take place during the Friday night football game rather than the next day before the Homecoming Dance. This year’s Fall Fest is on Oct. 13, and student government is hoping it will increase attendance to both the football game and the event.

 Each club and sports team is encouraged to have a booth at Fall Fest, where they can fundraise for and promote their club. Some  have games, while others sell foods.

 Student Government Vice President Bernadette del Prado shared her opinion in why the decision was made to move this event to Friday rather than Saturday: “I'm so excited for Fall Fest this year since we didn't have one last year [due to weather]. I'm excited to see how it's going to work out with the Fall Fest happening with the football game, but I'm hopeful that it's going to be very successful since so many people in the community and school come out to support during our homecoming game.”

 As far as the game goes, the football team will be playing Springfield with hopes for a weekend victory.

 Quarterback Nick Garritano said, “I’m glad because it will bring more people to our game and to support us.”

 The thinking behind this plan is that more people will attend Fall Fest and support the event if it is not on the same day as the dance. Many people are busy that Saturday morning and afternoon and simply do not have time to organize a booth or attend the event.

 Senior Charlotte Taylor agreed: “I think having Fall Fest during the game will bring more people because you won’t be getting ready for the dance, like doing your hair and makeup.”

 If you are a leader of a club or captain of a team, you are encouraged to come out to the game, support our football team, and open a booth to get people excited about your group. Go Lions!

Homecoming is Here

Blake Doherty

Staff Writer

The new school year is here, which means that homecoming is arriving very soon. For sophomores through seniors, this annual event is very familiar to them and they know what they are getting into. However, for our new freshmen, this is their first homecoming of their high school career, and it will definitely be one that they will never forget. Going to a friends house before to take pictures of all your peers in your nice dresses and ties is always a great way to start the night to come.

 For this year’s homecoming, there will be no theme for the dance, so we will just be dancing the night away to whatever great music is being played. Our DJ for this year will be the Senior Class student council president Kaylee Tao, making a great playlist based mostly on recommendations from our peers and great classic hits. Seniors Erica and Riley Brennan describe this playlist in only two words, “It’s lit!” The dance starts at 7 p.m. in the middle school gym on Oct. 14. This Saturday will be the day after fall fest and the homecoming football game.

 Fall fest is where all of our schools clubs will get together at the game to set up activities. We were not able to have our fall fest last year due to weather and communication, but everyone is excited to have it this year. For the football game, on Oct. 13, our Lions will be facing Springfield Township, looking for another big win. This will be a fun-filled weekend, and we here on the Lions Tale are looking to see everyone out on Friday and Saturday.

Chechnya’s government is rounding up gay and bisexual men

Lauren Walinski

Staff Writer

Gay and bisexual men in Chechnya, a Russian republic, are being arrested by Chechen authorities and sent to camps to be beaten and tortured. Men who have escaped reported being taken to camps where they were beaten. They have also reported being shocked repeatedly while being interrogated. Authorities reportedly wanted the names of other gay or bisexual men.

 Authorities are said to be posing as gay men online to lure out others, meeting with them in order to arrest them. The Novaya Gazeta, the paper which originally carried this story in April, reported that over 100 men had been arrested and at least three were dead. More recently, the death toll has risen to at least 26 with even more arrests. Many of these deaths have come from “honor killings” by families, where men are released only to be killed by relatives for their sexual orientations. These killings have been encouraged by authorities.

 When asked about the torture, Alvi Karimov, the spokesman of Chechnya leader Ramzan A. Kadyrov, claimed there was no were no camps because gay people did not exist in Chechnya. Kadyrov himself called these reports “libelous.” Dmitry Peskov, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Press Secretary, claimed the reports were false because no one had officially reported the attacks to Chechnya police, though human rights activists have pointed out people weren't likely to come out as victims to police for fear of arrest. Despite the denial by authorities, the truth of the reports has been confirmed by groups such as the Human Rights Watch and the United Nations.

 The Russian LGBT Network has been working on treating injured people and helping them escape Chechnya, but they do not have the funding they need to help everyone. The only action the United States government has taken in response to this violence has been to deny visas to gay men fleeing prosecution. President Trump has been silent on this issue, though a spokesman of the State Department released a statement saying the United States is “concerned” about the situation.

Resources:

• https://nytimes.com/2017/04/21/world/europe/chechnya-russia-attacks-gays.html?_r=1&referer=
• https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/chechnya-gay-men-russian-reporter-hiding-detention-torture-elena-milashina-novaya-gazeta-100-men-a7703471.html
• https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2017/05/26-gay-bi-men-killed-chechnya-investigators-told-police-deny-abuses/
• https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2017/05/u-s-denies-visas-gay-bi-men-fleeing-abuses-chechnya/
• https://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2017/04/269628.htm
• https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/04/04/anti-lgbt-violence-chechnya

Senate receives classified briefing on North Korea

Owen Roberts

Staff Writer

In an unusual move on Wednesday, April 26, the White House hosted the entire Senate for a top secret briefing on North Korea. This comes after a time of increased tensions between the United States, North Korea, and China. North Korea has been increasing the speed and intensity of its missile production and missile tests since the inauguration of President Trump, who has promised to take a stronger approach than the Obama Administration.

 Senate briefings on important issues are common, but are not often hosted at the White House, which lacks the kind of secure conference rooms required for such briefings. The senators were bussed to the White House from the Senate in the morning. Key members of the cabinet, including Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson briefed the senators, and President Trump himself also made an appearance.

 Tensions with North Korea have been rising since the election. The new administration is moving away from what it calls the “strategic patience” of the Obama White House. After meeting with President XI Jinping and chinese officials, the president claimed they had talked about North Korea. The US and China seem to increasingly be finding common ground on China's longtime ally, with China stepping up sanctions on the rogue nation. Despite this, the DPRK is not backing down. It recently celebrated its seventieth anniversary since its founding with a parade and a massive artillery drill that included over 300 long range guns.

 Despite this, most senators coming out of the briefing were not impressed.

 "We learned nothing you couldn't read in the newspaper," said Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon.. Bob Corker, Republican from Tennessee, said it was “Okay,” while John McCain said: “Nothing New, but still very serious.”

Students enjoy Q&A with Congressmen Brian Fitzpatrick

Riley Brennan

Features and A&E Editor

Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick came to visit New Hope-Solebury High School, Tuesday, April 18. At this visit he spoke to students about Congress, and the current political climate, before opening the floor up for a Q&A session. The questions asked by students from a variety of different classes, with varying political opinions, created a great conversation, and allowed everyone present to get a better sense of their congressman. Questions ranged from his opinions on government involvement, healthcare, “career” politicians, immigration, fake news, cutting welfare programs, the internet privacy repeal, and much more.

 New Hope students enjoyed getting to hear from their representative, as well as participating in a group selfie that was later posted to his personal Instagram.

 Junior Chloe Miller was pleasantly surprised by what he had to say: “Congressman Fitzpatrick was really interesting to listen to and his stances were much more moderate than I expected. I like that he talked about how Congress should focus on the bill at hand, not who proposed it and what party it came from.”

 During the Q&A, students were able to learn more about the man representing them in Congress and his own views. He really stressed the idea of focusing on ideas and solutions rather than focusing on political parties and voting to “fit a party.” This pleased Junior Bernadette del Prado, who said: “I like that he didn’t feel the need to use labels like Democrat or Republican for everything, and that his goal was to satisfy everyone’s political ideals and not just his own party. Especially because Bucks County is very mixed, politically.”

 Bucks County happens to be very evenly split between Democratic and Republican voters, making it one of the true swing areas in the U.S.  

 Fitzpatrick’s visit was written about in the Intelligencer, where New Hope students were quoted, as well as the organizer of the event, AP Government and Non-Western World teacher at New Hope, Mr. Nord.

 Not only did Fitzpatrick’s visit further inform everyone present, but hopefully helped to inspire students who make up, or will soon be a part of, the population of young voters; whether it be to get involved in politics/political science, to vote whenever they have the opportunity, develop stances on issues facing the country and become more informed about them, become an advocate for a party, candidate, or issue, etc.

Seniors prepare to leave for APEX

Alexandra Buchler

Staff Writer

On May 12 the seniors will depart the high school and begin their APEX projects. All of the seniors will begin doing things such as community service, volunteer work, or working at a small business in order to be exposed to work. Many of the jobs that seniors are leaving for include construction, pharmaceuticals, physical therapy, and entrepreneurship.

 “I am jealous that they get to leave school early!” sophomore Kelly Hauch said.

 Once the seniors have left, however, there will be some negative repercussions along with the benefits. Unfortunately, many classes will be soon emptied or nearly emptied with the lack of these seniors. Also, many of the sports team who have seniors on them may be missing key players at times. Due to their volunteer requirements they must meet, some seniors may not be able to make some of the practices and some of the sports events, which may be an unfortunate thing for some of our sports teams.

 On the flip side, the hallways and lunchrooms will be less crowded and teachers may be able to have more one on one time with students who are left in empty classrooms where seniors used to be. The seniors will return in June to give short presentations about their APEX experiences and share what they learned. Students will be able to sign up for which presentation they want to see. The underclassmen all wish the seniors the best of luck!

 Sophomore Claire Ullom says, “I'm glad the halls and cafeterias will be less crowded!” On the other hand, senior Dave Shonis claims, “It's sad that I get less time with my underclassmen friends, but I'm happy that I get to leave!”