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Local benefit concert raises funds for LA fire victims

Samantha Navarro
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Local benefit concert raises funds for LA fire victims

Long Beach locals joined together at Alter Society Brewing Co. for a benefit concert to raise funds for LA fire victims on Saturday, Feb 15.

Just from ticket sales, the concert raised $722, with 100% proceeds going to organizations such as Alta Dena Girls, Pasadena Humane, California Fire Foundation, and Habitat for Humanity which support those affected by the fires. 

The event was organized by Long Beach City College student Audrey Herold who has been organizing shows in the Los Angeles and Orange Country area for about a year.  

“Right when we saw the fires happening we were like, we got to do something,” said Herold. 

Fullerton band, Catammonia, headlined the show and received support from Lizi, The Anti-Groupies, Alyssad, Grimson, Azalea, and Another One of Your Tone Deaf Friends, making for a stacked lineup. 

Each band took the stage and shared their own stories about Los Angeles, and expressed how much the city means to them. 

Singer-songwriter Grimson shared that he was flying into LAX from Germany when the fires were taking place, giving him a bird’s-eye view of the destruction happening below.

Seeing the damage the fires caused only motivated him to help out anyway he could, bringing him to this fire aid concert.  

When choosing the lineup for this event, Herold decided to pull from her list of artists she had worked with before, most notably The Anti-Groupies. 

The Anti-Groupies, a female led rock band from Long Beach, have performed at four of Herold’s shows, becoming familiar faces in the Long Beach local scene.  

Following in the footsteps of artists such as Paramore, Amyl and the Sniffers, and No Doubt, the Anti-Groupies take most of their inspiration from female led rock bands. 

The Anti-Groupies drummer and LBCC student Kyla Foster says she feels most inspired by “The Beatles, Ringo Starr, and 60’s, 70’s rock.”    

All of these influences can be both seen and heard when they take the stage. 

Alongside the performances, the event collaborated with local art and jewelry vendors such as Tim Chadez, Artemist, Scarlet Redux, PoppyRu Jewelry, and Ahhdart. 

Ahhdart, a screenprinter and painter, finds himself most often selling his art at punk shows and underground raves. 

“I am inspired by life itself,” Ahhdart said.

Ahhdart’s love of science, math, the energy of the universe, and gaining new experiences are used to guide his artistry.

He feels most like himself in his art when he’s able to be as unique as possible, often not going in with a specific idea in mind, “It’s all momentary,” said Ahhdart.  

Both the lineup and various vendors helped bring in crowds from all over the Long Beach area to support those affected by the fires. 

Formerly incarcerated student rebuilds his life through art and education

Sofia Hopkins
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Formerly incarcerated student rebuilds his life through art and education

Formerly incarcerated LBCC student, Francisco Baldonado has rebuilt his life through art, education, and is now a featured artist in the new exhibit “Hope Restored: Justice Scholars Student Exhibition,” which opened on Feb. 13.  

The Justice Scholars program is a system of resources and community for formerly incarcerated students at LBCC pursuing a higher education, which supported Baldonado throughout his journey of self discovery.

Baldonado is now pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Studio Fine Art and a teaching credential at the age of 45, but none of it would have been possible without the help of the Justice Scholars, a program that raises awareness for formerly incarcerated students so that they are capable of getting a further education.

“Because my pieces are more graphic and uncommon images in academia, I want my pieces in the exhibit to have viewers who may have people in their lives, like their mom, dad, brothers, or uncles, or someone who could relate to my old lifestyle, realize that they can change and that the life I had before is way different than what I do now,” Baldonado said. 

Baldonado spent the majority of his younger years unsupervised and putting on different masks in different areas of his life.

He alludes to the fact that there was a lot of time growing up where he was left unsupervised, due to his parents always working to support him and his three siblings, leading him to make very poor choices at a young age, which ultimately led to him serving time in prison. 

Baldonado dropped out of school around the age of 15, and decided to pursue the workforce instead.

Once he started working and making what he called, “a decent amount of money,”  he soon realized that he didn’t have much interest in continuing his education. 

From then on, he was introduced to a life of gang culture and he spiraled into making choices that led to him serving time.

With much time to reflect on all his decisions up to that point, he realized that he would have to change his perspective on how he would live his life.

This led Baldonado to commit to sobriety and get more in touch with his inner faith.

He now uses this upbringing and life experience as the backbone of his paintings.

A portrait photograph of Francisco Baldonado, a formerly incarcerated student. Baldonado has artwork on display in the K building gallery room on LAC. (Kay Pham-Nguyen)

Going into prison, he considered himself to be more rebellious, but as Baldonado spent more time there he began to notice things– like how he would smoke and drink as coping mechanisms. 

He soon started replacing those habits with reading books on spiritual transformation, redemption, and the Bible. 

Baldonado’s time spent in prison was a period of realization and redemption for him. 

“My mom would come to visit me and every time she did, she would sing me worship songs and I guess that just started cutting into my soul, so I guess I just came to my senses,” Baldonado said. 

In 2022, he began to pursue his education as a part time student as a result of burnout from years of physical fieldwork, carpentry and masonwork. 

Out of curiosity, he began speaking to his professors and ended up having many personal connections with them as they constantly encouraged him to continue a higher education.

He had now felt more willing than ever to reach out to the resources he was given, such as the Justice Scholars. 

“Francisco came in as a shy and reserved person, not thinking [Justice Scholars] was for him, but as he got more involved he realized that he could do so much more. He has grown into someone who used to feel limited and now is going above and beyond,” Justice Scholars outreach and recruitment specialist, Rosa Martinez said.

These same feelings are also very apparent through many of the people that surround Baldonado. 

“When I think about Francisco, right off the bat I think about his skill level and the natural talent he has of creating a realistic visual of what he’s trying to represent. He doesn’t glorify gang life or prison, but he sets it up in a way that represents redemption, sincerity and authentic vision of how he is personally dealing with his life. His redemption is palpable,” said art exhibit curator, Alberto Lule. 

Baldonado hopes that he can use his talent and artistry to communicate what he can’t put into words into something people can understand visually. 

“I Surrender” 2023, a painting by Francisco Baldonado, presented in the “Hope Restored: Justice Scholars Student Exhibition”. (Kay Pham-Nguyen)

His paintings will be on display in the “Hope Restored: Justice Scholars Student Exhibition,” in the K Building on LAC from Feb. 13 through March 22.

Learn to outsmart AI at upcoming “Hack The Future” event

Samantha Navarro
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Learn to outsmart AI at upcoming “Hack The Future” event

In collaboration with SeedAI, LBCC will be hosting “Hack the Future: Long Beach” to promote and educate students on the basics of artificial intelligence literacy on Feb. 22 on LAC. 

The no-cost event will be an introductory overview for computer beginners to learn about AI use, both in and out of the classroom, especially for those traditionally left out of technological change.

“Hack the Future: Long Beach,” is available to the public and reservations are available through SeedAI’s Eventbrite page. 

SeedAI is a non-profit organization with a concern for literacy and safety of AI and cybersecurity working to make sure that AI benefits every aspect including those within policymaking, academia and daily use in communities. 

Michelle Hoang, SeedAI’s technical project facilitator and instructional designer, brought attention to how artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly apparent in main forms of media and daily life–such as autofill on Gmail. 

“As workplaces begin changing, individuals that are willing to understand and work with new advancements will be considered more adaptable and higher prospects for the workplace,” said Hoang.

As technology advancements begin to implement AI in basic tasks like data analysis, improved workflows, and task automation, an employee capable of utilizing AI properly becomes an asset to a company. 

Cybersecurity has always been an issue, but as AI development continues, the risk of a cybersecurity attack increases.

At the event, students can look forward to hands-on activities to familiarize themselves with AI programs, such as a red-teaming activity that simulates a cybersecurity attack between groups of students.

Members of the Cybersecurity Club are promoting the event as an opportunity to familiarize themselves with AI and how it can potentially be applied in future careers.

“As cyber security students, we like to figure out the weaknesses and systems to know how things work. AI is no different, and I know it has its flaws. There’s always going to be a need for security, both in tech and in AI,” said LBCC cybersecurity club member and event representative Edgar Montalvo. 

Although not immediately associated with AI, cybersecurity is one of many careers relying on AI to easily analyze data.

Assistant professor and cybersecurity club advisor John Sicklick clarified that the event encourages students to think outside the box using AI beyond a simple request.

“[The event] is all about finding a way around the parameters set by the AI; to make it work for us instead of the other way around,” said Sicklick.

Free reservations and more information about the event can be found at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/hack-the-future-long-beach-tickets-1205678780689

Anti-ICE protesters take to the streets at Mariachi Plaza

Sofia Hopkins
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Anti-ICE protesters take to the streets at Mariachi Plaza

Over a thousand protestors took to the streets of Boyle Heights and East LA on Feb. 8 against the recent Trump Administration attacks on immigrants.

The protest followed a week of walkouts after what was dubbed “A Day Without Immigrants,” on Feb. 3.

“He’s attacking the whole immigrants whether they are Guatemalteca, Mexican, from Haiti, he has in his mind that everybody who’s an immigrant is a criminal,” said protestor and Centro CSO organizer Julie Regalado.

Centro CSO was originally founded as a civil rights activist group and has continued to organize protests in support of immigrants.

The march, organized by Centro CSO, started in the historic Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights and was led down the road to LA City Hall and the LA Detention Center.

Selena Carrera holds a half-Mexican, half-American flag as she stands with her mother waiting for the march in Mariachi Plaza, Boyle Heights. (Sam Villa)

Regalado was one of the many who have been protesting Trump’s policies with CSO since his first presidency.

“We started (protesting) with the privatization of public schools around the time Trump first came to office. He wanted to dismantle public education and deploy everybody who was here from another country,” said Regalado.

Many protestors, while coming from Mexican backgrounds, also emphasized the support for Cuba, Sudan, and Palestine, as well as other immigrants in the city.

“LA has a very big pro-immigrant rights community because a lot of folks here come from immigrant backgrounds,” said protester Karina Lopez. 

Los Angeles is estimated to have a population of 3.5 to 4.4 million immigrants, or approximately 33% of the population.

“We want to draw ties with immigrants from other countries as well, because they are also under attack, they are a part of the working people too,” said Lopez.

“We are calling for an end to deportations, calling out the Trump Administration for ending TPS (Temporary Protected Status) for Venezuelans and not renewing it for anyone, these all acts to put these communities in fear,” said protestor Chris Bernadel.

Multidisciplinary Success Center provides opportunities for students

Samantha Navarro
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Multidisciplinary Success Center provides opportunities for students


The Multidisciplinary Success Center (MDSC) can be easy to miss as it’s tucked away on the third floor of the L building at LAC, yet the center has a multitude of different resources that could help students academically. 

Many students are only familiar with the center due to the fact that they’ve had to visit to complete a DLA for various classes such as Learn-11, Sociology, Nursing, or even culinary courses. 

DLA assignments, or, “Directed Learning Activities” require students to complete a set of questions which are related to the course material of the class it’s assigned for and requires a follow up with a DLA tutor to discuss their responses.  

Not only are there opportunities to work with DLA tutors, but students also have access to study rooms and computer access upstairs in the main center.

A consistent visitor of the Multidisciplinary Success Center, Reyonna Hancox, believes that the center is a great tool for students.

Hancox describes the Multidisciplinary Success Center as “One of the top spots to do work,” because the atmosphere of the center is  “…very chill, not very loud.” 

Just downstairs from the center, on the second floor of the L Building, resides the Multidisciplinary Success Center’s tutoring center. 

As of right now, they offer tutoring for a hundred different courses. 

The most common subjects that students come in to receive tutoring for are chemistry, accounting, life sciences, japanese, economics, and physics. 

Although, they also have tutoring for anthropology, art, communications, computer science, history, math, and many more subjects. 

Students can access the tutoring schedule and view all the specific classes available by searching “LBCC MDSC Tutoring” into their search browser, clicking on the option labeled “MDSC Tutoring” and clicking the red button labeled “MDSC Online and On Campus Tutoring Schedule.” 

If students fail to schedule an appointment for any reason, the center is usually highly accommodating to walk-ins, although it is important to mention that tutoring appointments are capped out at approximately thirty minutes per student. 

However, front desk assistant Gabriel Marquez said, “We can help you for longer if we’re not that busy.”  

The tutoring sessions are also very accommodating to disabled students who are a part of the Disabled Students Program & Services (DSPS), giving them forty-five minute tutoring sessions as opposed to the regular thirty minutes. 

“It’s been a great experience, they give me extended time because of DSPS,” said Jay-R Garcia, a DSPS student at LBCC.

Garcia also mentioned that the coordinator of the MDSC tutoring center, Sean Dominguez, is open to trying to meet the needs of all students. 

Students should note that the tutoring center usually gets the busiest the week before and of finals, so students should plan accordingly when scheduling their appointments.  

Although there are many places to study on campus, the Multidisciplinary Success Center proves itself as an ideal place to retreat to when the library or other centers get too overpopulated to focus.

Hope Restored: New exhibition highlights art of formerly incarcerated students

Samantha Navarro
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Hope Restored: New exhibition highlights art of formerly incarcerated students


Students, staff, and family members all came out to support the Justice Scholars program and their art at the opening ceremony of “Hope Restored: Justice Scholars Student Exhibition,” on Feb 13.  

The purpose of this exhibition was to bring recognition to a group of people who were formerly incarcerated and give others the opportunity to feel and connect with their artwork.

The event curated by Summer Bernal and Alberto Lule involved a community of people on campus who gathered to support, learn, connect, and enjoy art while understanding its impact.

Bernal and Lule explained what the event meant and the significance it holds in highlighting the artists who were able to attend. 

Edward Vejar (left to right) talks to the exhibition curators, Summer Bernal and Alberto Lule at the opening ceremony of the exhibit. (Samantha Navarro)

Artist Juanita Diaz did a brief introduction about art and what it means to her. 

“Art for me is therapeutic and helps me to escape,” said Diaz.

As the event kicked off, people were able to admire the art, take pictures, and converse with the fellow artists. 

Artist Mia Hoffmaster spoke about her artwork and how she learned to create different pieces.

“My dad was a tattoo artist and as a child overtime I learned how to draw and overtime improved,” Hoffmaster said.

All the art conveyed a different meaning and each piece had its own story, some were rather emotional. 

Artist Miguel Zavala Lopez mentioned his art can take on average up to a few weeks to a few months, the process of getting the supplies and thinking of what to create is the longest process.

“It depends on the art and how big it is and the materials I use, which can depend on how long it takes,” Zavala Lopez said.

Every art piece had a variety of different colors, patterns, and textures alongside its own way of being portrayed by the audience. 

Some pieces were created using different items and materials, rather than a singular artform.  

“I use a mix between clay, family heritage pieces, and other items,” said Zavala Lopez.

Bernal explained how important it is that communities support one another, especially in spaces where they might feel out of place. 

“It’s important to have students and friends that encourage you to pursue your passions and what is meditative for you. That’s my outlook on art,” said Bernal. 

Bernal and Lule felt that it was their job to help tell the stories behind each piece, and they encapsulated exactly what they wanted: transformation and redemption. 

This exhibition will be open for viewing at the art gallery in the LAC campus in Building K until March 22, 2025. 

LBCC honors Black leaders with kickoff event for black history month 

Isabel Murty
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LBCC honors Black leaders with kickoff event for black history month 

LBCC celebrated Black History Month at LAC last Thursday, Feb. 6, to honor its Black leaders, students, staff, and ancestors through song, dance, and musical instruments. 

The event’s theme was Black Labor: Celebrating strength, resilience, and legacy.

Starting off with the raising of the Pan-African flag, the party began with a memorable moment in LBCC history, only amplified by the fact that LBCC has not gone through with this tradition in a long time.

Jerome Hunt, academic senate president and associate professor of political science, raised the flag, and Carl Kemp, executive director of public affairs and marketing, opened the event with a speech.

The native sounds of Africa filled the event as drums called “Djembe” and the “Dundun” were played by the African drum ensemble, “Dembrebrah.” 

M’Baye Kante playing the drum called the Djembe, which originates from West Africa at the Black History Month Kickoff. The kickoff included performances and food for students. (Isabel Murty)

Drummers for “Dembrebrah” included Terence O’Bryant II, Adama Diouf, Saliou M’Bopa, and M’Baye Kante.

The four drummers played with the LBCC crowd behind them, leading them into the T building at LAC where the dining took place.

Performer Terrance O’Bryant II playing the West African instrument called the Dunun. (Isabel Murty)

Two dancers, N’Della Davis’Diassy and Amaya Rayne, put on quite a performance with a Native African dance called “Kukuwa” lining in synchronization with the beat of the drums

A multitude of different cultures sat together to enjoy food with each other, giving a sense of belonging to all those who attended.

Amaye Rayne performing a traditional African dance called” Kukuwa”. The Kukuwa dance originated in Ghana, West Africa. (Tenoa J. Stewart)

After the first performance, Uduak-Joe Ntuk, trustee for area one, gave a speech about Black History and the importance of celebrating success. 

“Black Labor strengthens our institutions and communities and we want every student to do well at LBCC. If you go here you can go anywhere, aim high,” Ntuk said before exiting from the podium.

Ntuk is Black history in the making, with him becoming the first African American man to be elected in his position on the board of trustees since LBCC was founded in 1927. 

“Before I got on the board we didn’t raise the flag, when I was vice president we didn’t recognize Black History Month. On the board of trustees, it’s a conservative effort to be more inclusive, still that isn’t enough,” Ntuk said.

Nico Titsworth, a Umoja club member, was cheered on tremendously by the crowd as he gave a heartwarming performance at the end of the kickoff that he dedicated to his dog “Shadow,” who had recently passed away.

The crowd was deeply moved as Titsworth performed a self-choreographed dance in Shadow’s memory.

“I’m heavy on my emotions. I feel great and energetic and representing the people , I’m heavy on it. I pay my respects to my ancestors who passed, Martin Luther King Jr., George Floyd, and always be fearless,” Titsworth said. 

Arizona State University Local was among one of the groups that came to support the kickoff event.

“We came to support and celebrate Black History Month and to let people know that there are options to continue with school after LBCC without leaving,” said Marleigh Hurlburt, the site manager for ASU Local.

ASU Local is a program that allows students to earn their bachelor’s degree online without having to move to Arizona. 

“We had one kid come over a little bit ago to ask what ASU Local is and we got to talking. He said he was going to cry because he wants to stay in Long Beach and at LBCC and didn’t think it was possible to do so,” said Hurlburt. 

Another group that came to support the kickoff event was the SAGE membership program, which is dedicated to empowering African American scholars at LBCC. 

“We’re making history, the Pan-African flag being put up is something that I don’t think has been done in LBCC history, and us having both a Black president and a Black vice president is a beautiful thing. We’re just here to represent and just show that we’re here for all of our students,” said LBCC student and member of SAGE, Lundan Wingfield. 

Film Screening spotlights Black Labor during Black History Month

Isabel Murty
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Film Screening spotlights Black Labor during Black History Month

In celebration of Black History Month, LBCC’s Black Student Success Center hosted a film screening of “10,000 Black Men Named George,” on Feb. 11.

Labor center coordinator Valentina Flores organized and collaborated with the Black Student Success center for the event and provided an introduction to the film.

Directed by Robert Townshend, the film portrays the history of the first Black led union recognized across the United States. 

Flores chose the film to best highlight lesser known parts of American labor history and specifically Black labor history.

“I think we often forget a lot about how much Black history goes into labor because many times the stories aren’t told and the history is removed.

“So I wanted to make sure that we were able to put on an event that would be able to look back at the history that we do have and raise those kinds of voices,” said Flores. 

Flores seeks to grow the in person outreach of the labor center this year as it was focused mainly online when it first opened in 2020.

With their only office being on TTC, the labor center works with students in trade programs but as part of their outreach seek to work alongside professions with prominent unions such as education and film. 

Student worker Londan Wingfield helped set up the event which provided additional insight on the importance of highlighting marginalized voices and combating stereotypes.

“It’s not only beyond important but it’s also feeding how we interact with our people because we’re educated. We understand different things, we understand stereotypes because we know that they’re not true…it provides a lot of context,” said Wingfield. 

President of BSSC Jonathan Brown, also helped set up for the event, describes the center as having a communal environment.

“It feels like a community, where I belong, where I can meet friends, fellow people, we can do our homework here, eat here, we can chill, we can laugh,” said Brown. 

Free refreshments were provided for all in attendance of the screening as well as an open space to catch up on school work. 

The Black Student Success Center plans on hosting more events for Black History Month, including another film screening with more details to come. 

LBCC’s women’s basketball defeat Compton 66-43 in last home game of the season

Isabel Murty
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LBCC’s women’s basketball defeat Compton 66-43 in last home game of the season

The Vikings defeated Compton College in their last home game of the season 66-43 on Wednesday as wing player Kyla Sawall scored the last two points via a layup.

Before the game started the Vikings honored all the sophomore players as the team celebrated sophomore night.

The players were joined with their families and were given flowers, balloons, and gift baskets as the announcer read their names aloud. 

“It was a huge honor, especially playing for LBCC. Right now we’re close to getting to playoffs, so right now we’re going to focus more and be a little better in practice,” point guard Kimberly Cruz-Martinez said.

In the first quarter the Vikings started the scoring off with a two point jump shot from forward Brillana Boyd however Compton would later tie the game with a two point jump shot of their own. 

The first quarter continued to go back and forth between both teams until wing player Yesenia Garcia scored two points on a defensive rebound to tie the game at 8-8, and Brillana Boyd made another two point jump shot as the Vikings took the first quarter 15-10.

Compton started off the second quarter with a two point jump shot of their own until center, Taylah Paepule, scored two points to give the Vikings a five point lead, making the score 15-12. 

“They’re not getting any points and to block every single one of them and just to play hard and go straight up,” center Taylah Paepule said.

The Vikings took over for most of the quarter as they scored 21 points and only allowed Compton to score 13 points and went into halftime with a score of 36-25. 

The Vikings scored 14 points in the third quarter while Compton had only 8 points with a score of 50-33.

The fourth quarter continued in their take over as the team scored 16 points while Compton only scored 10 points which led to the Vikings to win the game 66-43.

The Vikings had 43 rebounds, made 20% of their 3 pointers, made 36.8% of their free throws, had 22 assists, and nine turnovers.

“Defense. Defense and decision making, we will work on that. We’re coming up on the playoffs soon, so we got to really tighten up on some things execution wise, on offense and on defense but we will be ready to go,” said head coach Dominic Freeman when asked about what the team needs to work on.

After this win, the Vikings advanced their overall record to 19-7, and their conference record to 6-0 with hopes of making it to the playoffs.

The team’s last two games of the season are away against Cerritos and L.A. Harbor on Feb. 19 and Feb. 21 at 5 p.m. 

Baseball loses against OCC 16-4 in their 10th game of the season

Isabel Murty
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Baseball loses against OCC 16-4 in their 10th game of the season

In the 10th game of the season, the Vikings lost against the Orange Coast College Pirates, with a final score of 16-4 on Tuesday. 

Pitcher Logan Carr plateaus the momentum in just the first inning leaving OCC’s Tyler Covington on the board within the first 10 minutes. 

By the end of the third inning, the team was still struggling despite a few quick saves from outfielder Eshua Desai. 

The Vikings finished the third inning with a score of 5-1. 

“Our hitting wasn’t the best and so was our pitching, but I think once we get going, clean some stuff up, we’ll be good to go for when conference comes around,” said Carr, in reference to what he feels needs to improve in the next few games.

Coaches switched between various pitchers including Carr, Adrian Arellanoo, Marcos Orizaba, Dylan Burton, Kethan Vaquera, and Alejandro Rosas throughout the game. 

“Well yeah the pitchers.. Myles Dismute is lined up to start the next game,” said head coach Casey Crook in terms of changes to the lineup in upcoming games.

It wasn’t until the bottom of the fourth, second baseman Cross Stephens got LBCC’s first run on the board. 

Stephans had great moments throughout the game; his swings started to rack up some bases, with hopes to bring them home. 

“You know, just kinda trying to stay simple and stay calm up there,” said Stephens, sharing the mental approach he hopes his teammates will take as the season goes on. 

In the bottom of the eighth, first baseman and infielder Kyler Gloth was able to send the ball out to right field, buying some time for Sabin Tomlinson to score. 

Outfielder James De La O, sent it to leftfield, bringing players Erik Espinoza and Myles Fenfrick home. 

This brought the score to its final 16-4. 

“Well..fundamentally… there’s lots of little fundamental things we’re always talking about and that we need to continue to work on,” Crook said, discussing the improvements to be made to the team’s game play as the season progresses. 

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