Princeton Summer Journalism Program

By Abednego Togas Before COVID-19 (SARS-COV-2) made its way to the United States, teenagers like seventeen-year-old Althea had much to look forward to: learning how to drive, an incoming sports season, hanging out with friends, all of which were either interrupted or suspended indefinitely by the pandemic. In April of this year, Althea’s mother contracted the virus⁠—presumably from her workspace⁠—and had to self-isolate at home. (To read Abednego Togas’s full piece, click here.)

By Stephanie Garcia It is almost human nature to question what is around us, to discover and understand the unknown. In the ancient world, questioning and seeking for answers to life’s mysteries was met with mixed opinions. Nonetheless, the contributions of these philosophers are valuable to our contemporary society. They ultimately paved the way for intellectual curiosity. The practice of philosophy is no longer as frowned upon as in the past, but there are still problems with the old practice. The main issue is whether or not the study of philosophy is still relevant in our science-based society. After all, philosophy is no longer as prevalent in our society, but does that mean that it should die off? (To read Stephanie Garcia’s full piece, click here.)

An Immigrant’s StoryBy Maggie SalinasMy father, Carmelo Salinas, immigrated to the U.S. in the 1970s when he couldn’t find work in Mexico. He was only 17, and he supported himself by picking pears in Southern California. We recently discussed how hard those early years in America were after he kept his experiences silent from everyone for years. (To read Maggie Salinas’s full piece, click here.)

By Stephen Kim and Sarah Furtado(Photo by Gage Skidmore via Flickr)Mention Joe Biden to teenagers, and prepare for a geyser of vitriol and disgust. “I think Biden is a racist… he is no better than Trump,” said Perla Duran, 16, of Newark, NJ. Duran, who identifies as a political independent, pointed to comments she found offensive, such as when Biden recently said Black people are “not Black” if they have trouble choosing between him and President Trump.The former Vice President and Delaware Senator has a long way to go with young people, according to several interviews with high school students. Many were rooting for progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to win the Democratic nomination instead. Kaysia Harrington, 17, of Owensboro, KY, called Biden a “centrist coward” who was unlikely to push for policies like universal healthcare. In her view, Biden failed to deliver for people of color throughout his career; for example, he helped write the “tough on crime” Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, which activists say fueled the mass incarceration of Black Americans in the decades that followed.Biden’s victory in the Democratic primary, Harrington said, proves that those who are “a part of the establishment remain in power.”It’s not that these students are Trump supporters — if eligible to vote in November, many would support Biden. Rather, they felt the upcoming election was proof that the current political system, which according to the students gave voters two flawed candidates, is untenable. Abednego Togas, 17, of Silver Spring, MD, said he was “disappointed but really not surprised” that Biden became the presumptive Democratic nominee. “People in power maintain their position,” Togas said.Crystyna Barnes, 17, from Elm City, NC, agreed. When asked about her party affiliation, she said, “I’m independent, because I think both parties are basically the same. One just tries to look nicer.”Barnes said that Biden “reminded [her] of a Republican,” but might win her over if he supported free public college, universal health care, and higher tax rates for the wealthy, like Sen. Sanders. Harrington agreed, saying that her opinion on Biden will not change unless he promotes more “progressive legislation.”But despite their disdain for the Democratic nominee, the students made it clear that they still think President Trump is the greater threat. Come election time — however reluctantly — they’ll settle for Joe Biden.

By Finley Williams and Maggie Salinas(Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash)When Brianne LaBare, 18, realized that Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election, she was disappointed but hopeful.“I remember thinking, ‘Okay, in four years, hopefully, there’s an amazing Democratic candidate that I am so secure in. Or maybe hopefully there’s another Republican candidate who sweeps Trump out of the way and he’s amazing,” LaBare said. “And whichever one I feel will truly make this nation better is the one I’m going to vote for.”Four years later, as the reality of the 2020 election set in, LaBare’s outlook changed.“When I was watching these debates — and I did watch them — I was thinking to myself, ‘If I had to choose, personally, who would I choose?’ And I find myself pretty much being uncomfortable choosing anyone,” she said.This “lesser-of-two-evils” mentality, especially among proponents of former Vice President and presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden, has resulted in a lack of excitement in his base: An ABC poll found that “strong enthusiasm” for Biden among his supporters is only around 24%, 29% less than strong enthusiasm among Trump’s supporters. Because high enthusiasm can often increase voter turnout on Election Day, the analysis found, this disparity could result in another Trump victory in November.According to findings in an NBC focus group, young voters consider supporting Biden exclusively as a means to bar Trump from a second term, which could contribute to the lack of excitement among Biden’s supporters.“Many of these voters preferred Bernie Sanders in the Democratic primary and perceive Biden as a blank slate,” the report continues. “They aren’t sure that he’s a change agent or that his policies match the scale of their problems. Some worry about his age and fitness.”Daniel Sanchez, 16, echoed this sentiment.“I would say that I dislike [Biden’s] treatment of police brutality,” he said. “Instead of full-scale police reform, he prefers to tweet the issues already occurring in the criminal justice system. I think he’s not consistent with how he votes for different issues — like, if it’s politically correct to vote for an issue, he sides on that side of the spectrum.”Hana Hammad, 17, says that though she does not vehemently support Biden, she will still vote for him.“My first thought is that I wouldn’t vote for Trump at all, so I would vote for Biden. I wouldn’t want to vote for a third party because I feel like my vote would go to waste, so I’d vote for Biden,” she said.Biden has maintained a sizable lead over Trump in at least nine swing states, and performs better in polls nationally, which is probably fueled in part by Trump’s low approval rates and young people’s support for Biden.It remains to be seen if this demographic will turn out on Election Day and carry Biden to victory.

By Kaysia Harrington and Abednego Togas(Photo by Gage Skidmore)After a heated presidential primary season, in which over 20 candidates ran extensive campaigns for the Democratic nomination, former Vice President Joe Biden secured 1,991 delegates and, with them, the title of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. The news of Biden’s nomination, however, has spurred conversation on the sincerity of his progressive stances, his appeal to youth voters, and his ability to defeat incumbent President Donald Trump in November 2020. After growing public concern regarding President Trump’s handling of race relations and the Covid-19 pandemic, June polls showed Biden with a commanding lead. But with months to go until November, students at the Princeton Summer Journalism Program indicated that Biden may have trouble winning over young voters.“I just think that it’s kind of getting terrifying that we come to a point where we’re just voting for the lesser of two evils,” said Anne Tchuindje, 17, a high school student from Washington D.C. Tchuindje expressed concerns not unlike those that overwhelmed many Americans during the 2016 election. High school students attending the Princeton program characterized Biden’s campaign as being designed to defeat Trump, rather than present policies.“His main schtick is ‘I’m not Donald Trump. I’m a good guy. I was Obama’s VP,’” said Stephanie Garcia, 16, of New York. “I feel like that in itself is a problem because, as a candidate, we have no clear view as to what he wants to do with America.”While some do not see Biden’s vision for the future, other students are worried about Biden’s past. For Alexa Figueroa, 17, of Maryland, Biden’s history as Vice President under the Obama administration and as the former U.S. Senator from Delaware has been too deleterious for minority communities to ignore.“In the past, he’s been anti-immigration, anti-imposing policies that will benefit the immigrant community, and now he is trying to say he is shifting into helping a better pathway to citizenship,” she said. “He’s pushing toward more reform and for making things better, but I think that contradicts with what he stood for before.” Tchuindje agrees. Biden’s past decisions, such as writing the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, left her wondering if his progressive image is a front. Students also say Biden’s missteps on race are not just in the past.“If you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t Black,” Biden said on the popular radio show “The Breakfast Club” on May 22. Asked about the comments, Tchuindje said that Biden and the Democratic party, in general, tends to pander to Black voters but affect no real change. “They only ever really talk about things that affect black people when it’s election time,” said Tchuindje. “They make all these promises… only to create policies that hurt more and more Black people.” But despite the students’ concerns about backlash against Biden’s win and skepticism about his new progressive stances, it appears as if the Princeton program’s youth are still hopeful that ongoing social movements and those accepting “the lesser of two evils” will sway Biden into actually imposing progressive legislation. “I know that Trump and him are similar in many ways, but he’s still a Democrat and he still has some type of progression in him,” said Figueroa. “And [those] policies are something that we need over Trump, who is just ruining everything.”

The Princeton Summer Journal: This year’s Princeton Summer Journal is now online! Click on the link here to read the paper our students put together this summer.

By Laila Nasher (Detroit, MI) After up-and-coming musician Halle Bailey was chosen as the role of Ariel for Disney’s live action movie “The Little Mermaid,” casting critics took to social media to discuss their personal concerns with Disney’s decision. It started on Twitter, as most “intellectual” conversations do, and exploded with the hashtag #NotMyAriel. People had a serious problem with Bailey, a woman of color, playing Ariel, a white mermaid. I tried to understand why this was such an issue to certain people (white people), and each argument I’ve come across was worse than the last.  Argument #1:The story of the little mermaid was written over 100 years ago, with Ariel as a white woman. We can’t change tradition!Hans Christian Andersen, a Danish poet and author, published the original little mermaid story in 1837, and yes, she was a blonde haired, blue eyed white woman. But here’s a quick Little Mermaid history lesson: In Andersen’s original rendition, the Little Mermaid still fell in love with the prince, but the evil witch stole Ariel’s tongue, and made her feet feel as if they’re constantly being stabbed with each step she took. And at the end of the already horrific story, the Little Mermaid, who wasn’t named, didn’t get the prince and was forced to make the decision of either killing him, or turning into sea foam. She chose the latter. You won’t find any of those details in the Disney version.If you’re a tradition nut, and stress over the tradition of a white Ariel, then you should want to follow its true plotline.  Ariel suffered terrible pain, failed to win over the prince and at the end turned into sea foam. I do find Andersen’s original ending much more interesting, though it won’t make much for a bedtime story. Argument #2:Well, what if Disney made the live action films of Jasmine, Tiana, and Mulan played by white women? This is reverse racism.The ethnicities and cultural backgrounds of all the characters listed above are central to their story line. The story of Aladdin was part of a series titled 1001 Arabian Nights, and Jasmine’s leadership and struggles are correlated to where she’s from as a Middle Eastern women, in the make-believe region of Agrabah. Tiana, from the Princess and The Frog, lived in New Orleans during the Jazz Age, and her life was significantly impacted in this era by being a black woman in the United States. In Mulan, her role as a daughter in imperial China prompted her sense of identity. If any of these princesses were white, and based in European countries, the entire plot would be altered.Whether or not Ariel is white doesn’t matter. Ariel is a fish. There is no cultural identity behind her being European. Nothing would change in the story if Ariel had brown skin, because Ariel is literally a fish. Just imagine if the Little Mermaid movie you love so much had a darker-skinned lead character. Would anything change?Argument #3:It would be scientifically inaccurate for a mermaid to have dark skin. There is limited exposure to sunlight under the ocean and since melatonin levels in skin are produced over generations based on geographic location and exposure to sunlight, it would make absolutely no sense for a mermaid to have dark skin.This is my favorite argument because it’s so unbelievably stupid. How desperate does some dude on Twitter have to be to comeup with that idea?First off, I want to find this guy and have a serious discussion with him. Someone needs to take away his cell phone. Where is the science behind a singing, Jamaican crab playing the drums in the middle of the ocean? Or of an evil octopus who steals souls, and uses black magic to hustle people out of their voices? Mermaids don’t exist. There is no such thing as mermaid science, so this last-resort debate point has no basis in reality, is contradictory, and point-blank stupid.No matter what excuse you want to use to stop a woman of color from taking this role, here’s some advice: Stop trying to find something to be mad at. Watch the movie, or don’t, enjoy Halle Bailey singing, and be glad that no one is turning into sea foam.

By Laila Nasher (Detroit, MI) In a light yellow dress shirt and khakis, New Jersey state assemblyman Andrew Zwicker strode into a basement-level classroom at Princeton University to face a group of student reporters and teachers. When he entered the room, Zwicker did something that many high school students do on a daily basis: He tried to take a selfie (with us). He said he wanted to post the picture on Facebook.Zwicker, who represents New Jersey’s 16th legislative district, seems like a hard-working politician. A scientist by training, his policies are moderate, and he steers clear of media controversy. However, as the press conference unfolded, I couldn’t help wondering: Was Zwicker taking us seriously as journalists? Over the span of multiple questions and occasional applause, I came to think of some of his actions — however well-intentioned — as part of a worrisome trend in the way adults often treat young people.The attempted selfie was ultimately prevented by one of the adults in the room. But it made it seem like there was a gap between how Zwicker perceived the event and how we did. He may have looked at it as a class of high school students, but we looked at it through the lens of journalists.Along the same lines, the press conference began in a different way than many of the journalists in the room expected. In a reverse fashion, Zwicker asked the crowd, by a show of hands, who wanted to pursue journalism in the future. Then he asked for our names, ages, cities, and on a more personal note, why we are interested in journalism. “Here’s how it’ll work: I’ll ask you guys some questions, then you can ask me some,” he said. But weren’t we supposed to be conducting the press conference?Despite my reservations about Zwicker’s press conference, it is clear that he has put impressive work into legislating. In three-plus years, Zwicker has helped sign more than 30 bills into law. The topics have ranged from a loan forgiveness program for STEM graduates to amending birth certificates for trans individuals, and they all appear designed to create a better New Jersey for everyone. Zwicker has also sponsored 185 bills, with many focused on assisting the underprivileged: creating a science fellowship program for low-income high school students, helping restrict isolated confinement in prisons, and combating climate change.Indeed, my criticism here isn’t really about Zwicker himself. I’ve noticed in other settings that professionals, no matter the field, often don’t take students as seriously as we deserve to be taken. It’s a problem that I wish adults were more aware of.After the events of the day, Zwicker came back in to grab his forgotten car keys. I like to think it was because we frazzled him with our tough questions.

Hijabi Badminton: A multimedia project on Muslim women in sports: Created by Nellie Ghosheh (Burbank, IL), Sarah Wang (San Gabriel, CA), Bryan Ventura (New Brunswick, NJ), Angela Nguyen (Pennsauken, NJ), Savannah Joyner (Barnwell, SC), Farinna Izquierdo (Hialeah, FL)

By the Staff of the Princeton Summer Journal and written by Jhoana Flores, Jarlem Lopez Morel, and JC Villon.  New Yorkers don’t want their mayor running for president in 2020. In a survey of 154 New Yorkers, nearly three out of four voters said they are not happy Bill de Blasio is participating in the […]

This story was reported by the staff of The Princeton Summer Journal and written by Emily Barrera Cedeno, Jasmyn Bednar, Justin Fajar, and Angela Nguyen. Children’s ibuprofen. Pepto Bismol. Contraceptive sponges. These are just a few of the expired products found in an investigation by reporters of The Princeton Summer Journal on the shelves of […]

  By Laila Nasher Detroit, Mich. Acclaimed author Toni Morrison passed away in a hospital in New York on Aug. 5. Over her career, she took readers on countless journeys—from the exploration of the devastating effects of racism and sexism in “The Bluest Eye” to the narration of the extreme psychological effects of slavery in […]

By Audry Themen Jersey City, N.J. On a recent afternoon, reporters from The Princeton Summer Journal scoured the town for opinions on the current 2020 Democratic presidential candidates. Though the youth interviewed had varied opinions on which candidates appealed to them, many of the students also had a limited understanding of the candidates’ proposals. Sophia, […]

By Jarlem Lopez Morel and JC Villon New York, N.Y. and Brooklyn, N.Y. Two sets of Democratic debates and countless candidate interviews have sought to clarify the candidates’ stances on various issues. Yet some Princeton residents interviewed this month said they are still unsure what the 2020 hopefuls believe and what their policies and plans […]

By Rabeya Sultana Bronx, N.Y. Sam knows who he’s voting for in 2020—anyone but President Trump. “Trump doesn’t have anything in his head,” the 48-year-old Princeton resident said. “He cut taxes from us even though he himself doesn’t pay taxes, and most importantly he is racist.” Sam’s views are similar to those of several Princeton […]

  By Jhoana Flores  Queens, N.Y. The election of President Donald Trump in 2016 raised alarm over whether he is qualified for the position because he was a businessman with no political background. However, other elected officials also have no political experience. New Jersey Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker, a Democrat who represents the state’s 16th legislative […]

By Emily Barrera Cedeno  Miami Lakes, FLA. President Trump may be the first person who comes to mind as a politician with zero political background, but the phenomenon started earlier than his campaign. Until 2014, the thought of getting involved in politics had never crossed Andrew Zwicker’s mind. But one day, the physicist’s boss at […]

By Kesia Oliveros Doral, Fla. OBJECTIVE: To find the results of the election of a representative with a doctorate degree in physics and a career as a physicist to the highly energetic environment of the state legislature as well as to determine the effectiveness of experimentation in this environment. THEORY: If one elects a scientist […]

Priya Vulchi (left) and Winona Guo co-founded CHOOSE, which aims to build racial literacy among students. Photo credit: Brenna Kennedy-Moore By Nellie Ghosheh and Yelena Serrato  Burbank, ILL. and Floydada, Texas While walking laps around their high school’s track during gym class, Winona Guo and Priya Vulchi began a conversation that exposed a deep interest in […]