"News is the first rough draft of history."

The Voice of the College at Florham

"News is the first rough draft of history." - The Voice of the College at Florham

Tag Archives: a. sendrowitz

Campus groups put new spin on ‘Vagina Monologues’ at recent even

ANNIE SENDROWITZ
Staff Writer

April is Sexual Assault Awareness month, and it is important to keep in mind that sexual assault is happening whether we hear about it or not.

To boost awareness, members of the College at Florham community staged “The Vagina-Penis Monologues.”

Usually, “The Vagina Monologues” is performed with only women speaking. But Brittany Coleman of Phi Sigma Sigma decided to include men in FDU’s version.

“I wanted to include men’s monologues because I think that there is a lack of dialogue between men and women about issues of sex, relationships and rape,” Coleman said. “If men are able to have an open conversation with women and other men about these issues then there is a greater chance of both groups learning from each other.”

Coleman explained that the event was meant to promote knowledge about sexual health, raise awareness about sexual assault, showcase creative writing on campus and highlight diversity among the student body involving issues such as sexual orientation.

The event featured members of Phi Sigma Sigma, Phi Sigma Kappa and FDU’s Straight and Gay Alliance (SAGA).

Coleman said participants read original content dealing with sexuality and relationships; after that, there was an open forum between the audience and performers.

“The purpose of this event was to help educate and open up dialogue regarding sexual and relationship issues that relate to campus and personal life,” she said.

The event turned out to be a successful way to raise awareness of the topics of sexual assault, rape and relationship issues.

As Black History Month ends, Women’s History Month begins

ANNIE SENDROWITZ
Contributor

On Feb. 28, three groups on campus held an event called “The Auction Block,” which addressed slavery, in Twombly Lounge.

To avoid graphic and gruesome detailed images of how slaves were treated in reality, the actors and actresses during the event were dressed in black and recited poetry and excerpts from books, making the presentation tasteful.

Brittany Coleman, multicultural and diversity chair of Phi Sigma Sigma, said she wanted to give Fairleigh Dickinson a look at black history in a different way.

“I wanted it to be something where people feel involved in it,” she said.

Along with Phi Sigma Sigma, Tau Kappa Epsilon and the Association of Black Collegians sponsored the event.

The event included a question-and-answer period about slavery, as well as Black History Month. That discussion was moderated by Professors Katie Singer, Sarah Crabtree and Denise Lewis.

Now that Black History Month is over, the College of Florham is ready to highlight women’s history.

March is Women’s History Month, and Coleman will be putting on some more events on behalf of Phi Sigma Sigma.

Coleman has many ideas to get the student body involved, including a panel discussion about women’s rights across the world and another about literature and women.

She also hopes to have screenings of “Hurt Locker” and “Pride and Prejudice,” and discuss how women are portrayed on the screen.

Another event that may take place this month includes readings from “The Vagina Monologues.”

Last week, the Politics on the PublicMind series featured a presentation, “Like Mother, Like Daughter: Gender Role Socialization in the Post-Women’s Movement Years,” by Professor Krista Jenkins.

Other Politics on the PublicMind events include one scheduled for today, featuring Shavonda Sumter, an assemblywoman and FDU alumna, and another planned for March 29, featuring Helen Le Frois, director of development for the Jersey Battered Women’s Service and mayor of Newton, N.J.

On Tuesday, a Hot Topics event asked the question, “Does it matter that we have so few women in Congress?”

For movie lovers: Why the campus should have a Redbox

ANNIE SENDROWITZ
Contributor

For those of you who are movie lovers, you may have noticed that many of the local movie stores have been going out of business.

The Blockbuster located on Main Street in Madison will be going out of business this month. This brings disappointment to many people who rely on movie rentals as their source of entertainment.

Luckily, there are ways to get around this dilemma.

There are movie channels on TV, as well as On Demand movie rentals, Netflix, and other services. But what about college students who are living in residence halls? Many of the movie channels and On Demand services are not available through the campus TV systems, and not everyone has access to Netflix.

Recently, a solution to this problem was discovered. Redbox machines were invented. For those of you who are unfamiliar with what a Redbox machine is, you may have seen them outside your local convenience stores, such as 7-Eleven, or Wal-Mart.

Redboxes have become the new source for previewing and renting DVDs, Blu-rays and video games. Redbox movie rentals are much cheaper, too.
Some of these other rental services can run you $5 to $6 a movie or a ask you for a monthly subscription.

For Redbox, all that is needed is a credit card, and it only costs $.99 each rental day. The credit card is charged each day that the movie is kept out of the Redbox, and the movie may be submitted to any Redbox location for returns.

With access to the Internet, you are able to go online and search your local Redbox to view the movie listings available in that particular location.
How great would it be if FDU provided its students with a Redbox machine?

This would allow students to watch the latest movies on campus, without having to illegally download them, which often can cause viruses in people’s computers.

We could have a Redbox located in the Student Center, which would allow access to everyone living on the College at Florham campus.

“I think that it would be a great idea. I love Redbox. It’s easy to use, and a lot more convenient than illegally downloading a movie on the computer,” said one FDU student.

Although there are local Redboxes located outside of many stores in the communities around us, they are not always convenient, or accessible, especially for college students without cars.

It is also important to keep in mind the interference of weather. Although we have been lucky so far and have not had a lot of snow this winter, snow storms and heavy rain often makes people stay on campus, making it difficult to get to an off-campus Redbox machine.

If we could get a Redbox machine here on campus, students would never have to travel off campus to rent a movie!

I think that if we could spread the word, and get the idea out there about getting a Redbox on our school’s campus, we could make this idea a reality. It would be a great addition to our school’s recreational opportunities.