The Art of Being a Teenage Girl in 2023

By Nachurel Mitchell

Being a teenager is supposed to be a moment of freedom and endless memories, but it can be the complete opposite for most teen girls. Insecurities, fear of failure, toxic friendships, and changing family dynamics while trying to learn and understand yourself can be challenging.

Primarily social media and this huge virtual fear of missing out and unrealistic standards that are now constantly accessible can stress a teenager out. Most importantly, due to the age gap in generations, there is often a disconnect between older and younger generations, significantly since most Gen Z grew up having unlimited access to social media, which opened Pandora's box of good and bad things.

The way most teenage girls cope with these overwhelming feelings is through art. Whether it's dance, drawing, painting, makeup, video creation, etc. The way most young ladies cope is through self-expression. Self-expression as a teenager is essential because the need for a creative outlet can feel freeing due to challenging family dynamics and often not having space for themselves.

To showcase this importance to give readers of all ages an understanding of some teenage girls and help other teen girls feel seen and heard, I interviewed three teenagers who use art and their willpower to navigate their teenage and early young adult years.

Quemisha Hughes Age: 17

Being a teenager in many black households can be enlightening but also paralzing. Trying to grow into your person while facing stereotypes and double standards of a black woman can feel like a never-ending struggle.

Quemisha is the middle of 3 children; she resides with her uncle and aunt. Although she plans to attend nursing school, her true aspiration is art. Hughes has always loved art, but to her family's disapproval, she shifted her dream since, in their eyes, it was her job to "use the money she makes to take care of her siblings."

"It's unfair that I'm expected to take care of them. . . I have dreams and a life that I want to live too." To combat this, she plans on using her hard-earned money to open up her art studio, specifically to teach art classes. Her love and talent for art always sticks with her "I know that with art I can always come back to it; the skill will never leave me." Hughes considers the goal of opening up her art studio to honor her talents and grow as an individual.

Although Hughes has more life lessons to learn, the most significant one that she has figured out is that she wants young ladies to "prioritize themselves…and not to be afraid to take up space." Quemisha said that having her own space and room to be creative and having a decorating ability helps keep her motivated. Her older cousin Brianna is her biggest role model because she loves her spontaneous energy and carefree attitude.

Quemisha has dreams of taking up space, especially in the art world. When her dreams of opening her studio are complete, she can finally reflect and relish in her accomplishments. Not being afraid to take up space is a hard lesson to learn for many women, especially for black women.

Marjorie Martinez Gomez: Age 17

Growing up in a Hispanic household can be challenging yet beautiful. From the cultural aspect, there are many things to be proud of. But looking at the misogyny and disconnect between generations, often peppered in between the happy moments, can be a hard adjustment for many teenagers and young adults, which can be highly conflicting regarding self-discovery. Marjorie Martinez Gomez is a senior in high school born to a family with a background in Honduras. Being the middle child of three children allowed her time to think about her future and how she plans to achieve greatness. " My biggest hope is to create a future to sustain myself. I hope to buy a house for my parents on a hill and supply everything they need. I want to be able to let them rest. As much as my family has hurt me, I can never forget all the sacrifices they have made for me. It's a conflict all on its own.".

Art and writing were the sparks that gave Marjorie a glimmer of hope and a voice that she used to motivate herself and others. Understanding your feelings can be very difficult because there are so many emotions that one could be feeling, and sometimes they don't make sense until they are visually put in front of you. "My art allowed me to discover what I was feeling before I even knew it myself. . . I'd feel down, and I never knew why till I created a piece that showed my struggles".

Although art helps Marjorie understand her emotions and thoughts, she is still a teenage girl in a Hispanic household, where the pressure to be ladylike while also being independent and successful creates a constant tug of war and a disrupted sense of identity both culturally and internally. The judgment of expressing this struggle to her family, especially the older women, often results in dismissal. "It's harder to receive advice. I always hear "We went through worse" from older women mentors. They still determine if it's a Hispanic thing but quickly invalidate younger girls' feelings. They're also almost always so close-minded. It's come to the point where I'm annoyed when an older woman gives me a life lesson as I've only ever had bad experiences".

Even when things get tough, and the advice that Marjorie seeks seems impossible to receive, she still stays motivated. But the best motivator you can ever have is yourself, "I motivate myself. Whenever I feel like I can't do it, I remind myself of how far I've come and what it will take to reach my goals in life. Just thinking about that allows me to keep going". Although Marjorie has had difficulty taking advice from older women, she can't help but admire and appreciate her older sister. Stating, "My sister has worked so hard, and I look up to her. She has been through much worse than I could ever imagine and still pushes through. She never invalidates her younger sister's feelings and will soon accomplish her dream. I have never met anyone more dedicated than my older sister."

Being a teenager is not easy and having a different cultural background can make it harder to navigate at times. But some blessings come out of this struggle. Marjorie is an independent artist with dreams of becoming a journalist. Shining light on the truth through writing and art has granted her the peace of mind and freedom that she seeks to honor her family but, most importantly, herself.

These are just two stories of how coping through different art forms allows young teenage girls to confront the challenges of growing up, misogyny, and social media. The growth of a young woman is unstoppable when she pours the love she gives the world into herself. Art tells a story that allows all voices to be heard and seen.

Gamers who have game, should be paid

By: Brandon Reyes

Video games have consistently gained the interest of many ever since the first game was created in the 1950s. In today's age, video games are top-rated among many in different forms, such as consoles, computers, and even as simple as an app on someone's phone.

There are roughly 3.24 billion gamers out of the 8 billion people in the world, meaning about 41% of Earth's population plays video games, and is only set to keep increasing. Video games should be considered a sport since they can be played competitively and create many opportunities for people depending on how good someone is.

Many factors go into playing video games, just like many other sports. For example, it requires physical coordination like hand-eye coordination, fast reflexes, and reaction time. It also takes mental skill because decisions will always be necessary, and if someone has good decision-making, it will benefit them regardless of their situation.

Since there are so many talented and skilled players worldwide, there are big organized competitions and various leagues for them to compete in for things like championships, cash prizes, or both. There are also smaller leagues for anybody interested in trying it, so it is open to anyone.

Many of these big-name players get popularized from how good they are and build a fan base, the video game itself, and the competitions. These fan bases are made from people streaming their games to watch and interact with their community and the game's community in general. This is how the Esports leagues get so popular and have so many people watching them.

Many of these gamers pull in a considerable income that most people would be surprised to see the number. N0tail (Johan Sundstein) is the number one paid gamer, with a gain of 7.18 million dollars. The other top five most-paid gamers' incomes are 6.49 million, 6.02 million, 5.82 million, and 5.69 million. These numbers can be pretty surprising, considering they are just playing video games at the end of the day.

Many people are interested in watching the skill used in their gameplay. Some people like watching for their favorite players they support or simply because they like the game and how much it gets advertised. Just like in regular sports, these players get signed to professional teams and organizations that have them sign contracts so they can get paid to be on that team. Since these players have such big fanbases, they'll also get sponsorships, advertisements, and commercial/ad recognition. The opportunities are made possible for these big-name creators because of the amount of support they get.

Esports is very similar to regular sports and should be considered an actual sport just like the rest.

Censorship or control?
By: Marjorie Martinez

Have you ever been in an English class where the book you're reading is banned in many other states? Have you ever wondered why? Well, an organization entitled Banned in the USA decides what is appropriate for students to read.

As stated by St. Claire's Community College library, the bans are motivated by "a desire to protect children from "inappropriate" sexual content and "offensive "language." However, specific book bans only shelter students from the world's reality.

Why are books such as Speak and We Are the Ants are banned from certain high schools? These books speak on prevalent situations that happen in our world.

Speak is about Melinda's life and how it is torn apart after being raped. Melinda is outcasted after calling the cops on a party. Everyone believed she snitched on them; however, she was calling the cops after being assaulted. This book shows her process a year after the event and how drastically her life has changed. More importantly, it shows the realistic components, such as acceptance, healing, and how badly rape can hurt someone's life. Many teens may be familiar with this book. Though it is banned in certain states, many schools, including ours, have it on their booklist.

Another example of a banned book is We Are the Ants which speaks of a love between two boys, only for one to take his own life. This book follows Henry's life after his boyfriend, Jesse. Henry deals with guilt, bullying, loss, etc. Throughout the book, aliens give Henry a chance to save the world; however, his biggest struggle is finding a reason to keep it. Reading this book, the reader follows Henry through a path of heartache, love, healing, and acceptance. When reaching the end, the reader realizes it's much more than just a sci-fi book about aliens but about life itself. The language can be vulgar at times; however, I believe most teenagers can handle the language.

Books such as these discuss actual events and show teens what can happen. It shows them real situations that can occur. This is crucial for teens to know as they can learn from such books. Teenagers, however, now have access to whether they'd be banned in their state. It, however, is different for younger children. It is reasonable for children in elementary and maybe even middle school, to be sheltered from sexual content; however, at some point, it becomes an abuse of power.

Children's books such as And Tango Makes Three and My Princess Boy are banned in Texas and Florida. Both books speak on LGBTQ topics and are catered to kids; however, they have been banned for being "inappropriate." It's not just LGBTQ subjects getting censored like this, but so are books revolving around racism, misogyny, and more.

According to an article by Jennifer Martin, "During the 2021-2022 school year, more than 1,600 books were banned from school libraries. The bans affected 138 school districts in 32 states, according to a report from PEN America, an organization dedicated to protecting free expression in literature." 50, which are considered controversial due to being about racism, LGBTQ+, misogyny, and assault.

Banned in the USA needs to think about why it's fundamental for students to have access to certain books. Students deserve to know the truth about our world and how to deal with it. So is it really about censorship or controlling the youths' minds?

Reducing School Violence

By Brandon Reyes

School violence is something that most people should beware of, whether it's you who is in school or you have kids in school or family or friends. Even in the safest and most expensive schools, run a risk of having conflicts that occur, which can be verbal or even physical. Physical altercations are what to look out for the because it automatically puts you or someone you know in danger. Of course, there is always a sense of conflict because that's inevitable, but there are also times when too much is too much.

In Uniondale High School, there are periods when there is a rise in fights, which happens multiple times a day. There isn't a way to completely prevent them from happening, but there are ways to stop them as fast as possible. One is to add more security officers around the school to break them up. Our security staff can be spread too thin at times, making their job extremely challenging. When an altercation does break out, teachers are often the first responders. This should not be the case. If the district added more security personnel, this would greatly help to diffuse physical altercations quickly and efficiently.

Another thing that wouldn't necessarily prevent fights from happening, but have individuals second guess whether they want to go through with it, is to have consistent long-term consequences in place. If a student gets into a fight, they'll most likely get a suspension. When they get that suspension, it can lead to colleges second-guessing if they want to take them as opposed to someone who doesn't have any fights on record . This can be even more serious for seniors because they can be on the road to going to college and could jeopardize their acceptance.

There are a lot of bad outcomes when it comes to someone fighting, and it could change a lot for the rest of someone's life, so maybe students should think twice before putting themselves and others in danger. Hiring more security personnel and have clear and consistant consequences are steps in achieving a safe environment for students and staff.

My Life as a Dog Mom

By Maydelline Mejia

Being a pet owner is not easy; it's like having a child. I am a dog mom to Russo and with that title comes a lot of responsibility. I must ensure my dog eats, goes on walks, and is trained. Even making plans to go out is difficult when having a pet; they have different needs, so some pets need someone to watch over them, and some don't need someone to watch over them. Russo needs attention and a lot of it.

As a dog owner, here are the challenges I go through. I wake up early to get ready for school and to take care of him. The last thing I see when I leave my home is the puppy eyes Russo gives me before I leave; seeing that face is not easy and it hurts my heart to leave him. If I had the choice between staying home with Russo or going to school, I would stay home with him.

As much as I love Russo, there's so much I have to worry about. For example, making sure he has all his vaccines, making sure he eats, making sure he doesn't run away, making sure he goes outside to use the bathroom, and making sure he doesn't stay home alone. Most dogs can stay alone without a problem, but Russo gets anxious when he's alone. When I am not home, my grandmother is usually home and is always there to watch him and makes sure he eats throughout the day while I am at school. When I go to sleep, Russo is right by my side. It's not easy because he's enormous and likes to take up all the space on my bed, usually he wants to sleep on top of me because he thinks he does not weigh 90 pounds.

As much work and all the sacrifices I have to make when being a dog mom, it's so worth it in the end. Russo is such a loyal pet and friend. He is always there to comfort me or show me love and to make me feel better when I am having a bad day.

Russo is a pit bull mixed, so he holds a lot of energy. Unfortunately, when people come over, we have to keep him upstairs because he is intimidating to others because of how big he is and also because of how energetic he is around people. He gets overly excited when he meets new people, or sometimes he can get aggressive if he is around someone he does not know.

In the end, I would not have it any other way. I hold my dog mom title close to my heart.

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