Pictured are Esther Renee(Gr 12), Sabely Chavez(Gr 11) Savannah Hope (Gr 11) and Liyah Fearrington (Gr 10)
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There's No Debate when it comes to UHS's Debate team!
There's No Debate when it comes to UHS's Debate team!
On November 12th and December 10th, the Uniondale High School Debate Club boarded the yellow school bus and headed to tournaments at In-Tech High School in the Bronx and Martin Van Buren High School in Queens. The club members, along with Mrs. Saveth, the club's advisor, were excited about the possibilities that were ahead of them. Both days were long and competitive, but in the end, the team came home victorious!
Placing at these competitions requires dedication and a unwavering commitment. The club members put in countless hours in preparation for the competition. Over 100 students competed in the tournaments from fifteen schools!
For BEST SPEAKER, Uniondale took the top three places in their division!
First Place: Savannah Hope
Second Place: Liyah Fearrington
Third Place: Esther Rene
For BEST TEAM, Uniondale took the top two places in their division!
First Place: Savannah Hope and Liyah Fearrington
Second Place: Sabely Chavez and Esther Rene
Anyone who is interested in taking a go at debating, should stop by one of Ms. Saveth's meetings which are held after school every Thursday in Room 215.
Congratulations to the U.H.S. Debate Team.
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Photos by N. Saveth
The Impacts of Fast Fashion
The Impacts of Fast Fashion
By Mitchella Rose Simon
How Uniondale students feel about Fast Fashion
The impact of fashion is a very huge one, many teens are often conscious about how they look and dress. Over the years,fashion trends have been moving faster than anyone can keep up. Trend cycles are moving so fast, that people not only have to keep up with trends, but even micro-trend s as well, including singular items and small, obscure pieces. These days, clothes trend because they were seen in a viral 15-second video on TikTok, instagram or even pinterest. This is called Fast Fashion which can be described as cheaply made trendy clothes. Websites like Shein, Forever 21, and H&M are examples of where shoppers can get their dose of Fast Fashion.
In January 2022 , the Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act was unveiled and if passed,New York would be the first state in the U.S. to pass legislation to hold the biggest fashion brands accountable for their role in in climate change.The fashion industry needs to fundamentally change in order to mitigate the environmental impact of fast fashion, experts have said.
Mrs. Santella, fashion marketing and merchandising teacher at Uniondale High School, believes fast fashion is horrible for the environment and is causing devastating issues not only in the U.S. but overseas.
“Due to fast fashion, there's so many clothes that people just dispose of, so we can't even get rid of these clothes,” Santella said. “They're filling landfills and because they're not natural manding materials you can't recycle that. You can't do anything with them.”
In the past, the clothes were handmade in the “cottage industry’’ which was a time before the Industrial Revolution where people would produce and manufacture products at home rather than a purpose- built facility. They would hem and sew their own garments and provide repairs to any clothes that were ripped or torn. People owned just a few outfits to get by and would make the most out of these few outfits. There was no business model for clothing, because it took a long time to produce, and was a necessity that most people simply handled on their own.
The industrial revolution started and it changed everything. It paved the way for new technology that made making clothes much easier like the invention of the spinning jenny, it was one of the key developments in the industrialization of textile manufacturing during the early Industrial Revolution. Clothes became cheaper and easier to produce. Around this time sweatshops emerged containing grueling and dangerous conditions that are still seen today in sweatshops in the fashion industry.
WHY IS FAST FASHION BAD?
Since the 2000s, fashion production has doubled and it will likely triple by 2050, according to the American Chemical Society. The fashion industry consumes one tenth of all of the water used to run both factories and clean products. To put this into perspective, it takes 10,000 liters of water to produce one kilogram of cotton or approximately 3,000 liters of water for one cotton shirt. All the dye and toxic chemicals used eventually end up in the ocean along with microplastics. Approximly 20% of water waste worldwide is because of this. 35% of all microplastics are made from these synthetic materials used to make clothes. Most of these materials are made from polyester and plastics which release more carbon emissions than cotton. Plastic takes about 450 years to decompose which is very harmful for both the marine ecosystem and the human population because those microplastics end up in the food people eat, causing health issues. Fifty-seven percent of all discarded clothes end up in landfills
Exploiting workers
The first significant garment factory disaster was when a fire broke out in New York’s Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in 1911. It claimed the lives of 146 garment workers, many of whom were young female immigrants. Locations such as China, Bangladesh and Egypt where clothing manufacturing labor is cheapest,also tend to be locations with low safety or occupational hazard standards. Sweatshops are usually very crowded with very bad air quality from the chemicals being used and bad ventilation. The workers also get little to no breaks and very low pay as low as 3 cents per hour. They are forced to work up to 70 hours straight without any sleep and those who complain are beaten and abused. It is common and well-documented.
HOW FAST FASHION ATTRACTS TEENS
Many teens are aware of the negative impacts of fast fashion but don't feel the need to look into the details of the industry. “I know fast fashion is very controversial. In my opinion there are two ways to look at it. One, I do understand that the workers in these fast fashion warehouses are in extremely bad condition, and let's not forget how bad fast fashion is for the environment. But unfortunately fast fashion is what people can afford. It's the only thing accessible to them, including myself.” said Gabby Trejo Linares, a senior at Uniondale High School
IS CHANGE POSSIBLE?
“Thrift stores, it's the best thing I can think of to steer people away from fast fashion.
It's affordable and you can find a great deal of clothes” said Litzy, U.H.S. senior. “ I think it's definitely very hard to stay away from fast fashion, I would say as I get older and make money and get a job to invest in certain pieces that can last throughout a long period of time and only purchase certain things from fast fashion. tank tops, like little things that you don't have to spend a lot of money for. That's where I get everything, like my tank tops and everything from H&M, Forever 21 because they're inexpensive”.
The pull of fast fashion is a strong one. The serging cost of living has hit Americans in a most painful spot–their wallets. Cheap affordable trendy clothes are what most teens search for when shopping. It is easy to ignore the fact that fast fashion comes with a human rights price tag. Information about the horrid conditions that many of these companies support in the making of their clothing, needs more attention so that consumers can make an educated decision on whether or not they still will support the fast fashion industry.
Photo By: Chelsey Valentin
Honoring those who served
Honoring those who served
By: Chelsey Valentin
cvalentin2@student.uniondaleschools.org
On November 10th, Uniondale High School hosted its 2nd annual breakfast for veterans. It was orchestrated to make our veterans feel celebrated and to thank them for their service. The little theater was bustling with excitement that morning. In attendance were veterans, JROTC members; the Superintendent, Dr. Akil; the Assistant Superintendent, Ms. Taylor; the board president, Dr. Mary Bediako; the members of the cabinet, Dr. Mary Martinez Lagnado, Mr. Robert Rodriguez, and Mr. Matthew Ritter. Also in attendance were former students who served our country.
Major Foster, the army instructor for the JROTC, had cadets start by posting the colors and requesting permission from Dr. Akil. Then a student from the band played the National Anthem, and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
Cadets in JROTC delivered poems in honor of Veterans Day. Some veterans spoke about what the day meant, read poetry, or told the audience about their time served.
Ana Hernandez, a JROTC student, said she volunteered because she thought it was a great way to honor the veterans. This was her second time participating in the event, and she believes it is important to remember those who sacrificed so much for our country and our freedom.
Principal McCaw, also a veteran, believes it is crucial to recognize veterans' personal sacrifices. He mentioned that he served in the Army in 1991. He said he's most proud that he was able to do it. His hope for future veterans is not to have to go to war.
Uniondale's superintendent, Dr. Akil, said she had the idea for the event and worked with Mr. Jenkins and Major Foster, along with the staff, to make it possible. Dr. Akil believes it is essential to honor veterans because even though America is not a perfect country, it is a country worth fighting for, and we need to honor the people who protect us and keep us safe. Dr. Akil plans to continue to make this an annual event and expand the invitation to parents and more staff in the future.
A Sinking Feeling
A Sinking Feeling
An Article by: Marjorie Martinez
As humans we like to know it all and when we don’t, we create an explanation for it. However, a strange finding in China has no reasonable explanation for its cause leaving most with the uncomfortable lingering feeling brought by the unknown.
While conducting research on this phenomenon, it was strange to see that not many individuals knew about it. Here we’ll talk more about the findings and the opinions of staff and students at Uniondale High School.
For some quick insight the article titled, Ancient Forest Discovered in Sinkhole by Margarate Osborne states that on May 31st 2022 “a cave exploration team in China had discovered an enormous sinkhole with a well-preserved primitive forest at the bottom.” The team was said to have traveled 320 feet down the hole only to be met with trees that seemed to shoot
100 feet high.
“The forest likely contains a variety of species of small animals that are unknown to science," says George Veni, executive director of the National Cave and Karst Research Institute.
AP Bio teacher, Melissa Garland, agrees, saying that “While experts in the field may not find this discovery a surprise due to its location in China, I certainly find it incredible! The findings of the forest in China's sinkhole are simply fascinating and is one of the reasons why life and discovery can bring on so
many more questions."
She states “While observing the height of the trees located in this forest, I have to wonder about time - how long ago did this forest develop there (what was the starting point)? Where there is water, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and plant life, there is a definite possibility that new life may be there as well.”
All these questions are ones that many might hope to be answered. Though the topic isn’t widely known throughout the school, once made aware, many students find it fascinating. One student says, “I found it so cool, it’s almost like finding the upside-down (Stranger Things reference).” While another says “It seems cool, have they found animals?”
This shows that even students are left wanting to know more. One even went on to say how “This shows we don't know much about our world and how we should focus more on the undiscovered places on earth.” It leaves the question, what more is out there?
Photos by: Nachurel Mitchell
A Seat at a Shiny New Table
A Seat at a Shiny New Table
By: Nachurel Mitchell
On January 3, 2023, Uniondale students were welcomed back to school with a epic reveal of the new and fabulous lunchrooms. Construction crews put it together over break and gave the three lunch rooms a fresh coat of paint to brighten up our new college café-styled lunch rooms and socialization areas.
Our lunch rooms went from boring and drab to modern and hip. There were furnished with new booths, countertop seating, lounge couch seating, and tables to match. Students smiled and bonded with each other over these brand-new areas and enjoyed sitting next to each other.
The reveal of the new lunch rooms featured the school’s marching band, and a passionate speech from Mr. McCaw and other important administration, before the ribbon was cut. Student leaders, JROTC, and central administration got to see the rooms first and enjoy a fresh breakfast prepared by our Chef Jake and Chef Tony.
Later that afternoon, students were also delighted to enjoy Taco Tuesday with fresh vegetables, toppings, and meats. Students filled the new lunch rooms and socialized with their friends--all with smiles on their faces.
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