Saturday, July 26, 2025

Fighting for our furry friends

Saskia Chiesa poses with her four pet guinea pigs at the Los Angeles Guinea Pig Rescue in Chatsworth, Calif. on April 23, 2020. Photo by: Chelsea WestmanInside the Los Angeles Guinea Pig Rescue in Chatsworth, Calif. on April 23, 2020. Photo by: Chelsea WestmanPodrick is a black and white guinea pig that lives with four other males....

Home of the Free

The story is all too frequent. Natasha Perez, Irma and their mother Yrma wanted to leave a country filled with political unrest, hoping to find serenity, the proverbial “gold paved streets” and the freedom of living the American Dream. Like many of these stories, that path to U.S. citizenship has been filled with trials and tribulations. Yrma is half-Italian and half-Venezuelan,...

Greek Organizations: Lost In Translation

Decorum. Courtesy. Togetherness. Students have used these standards as the foundation to build the Greek system that is prevelent across U.S. colleges and universities. But as fraternities and sororities have blossomed, these ideals have been lost on many campuses due to hazing, vandalism and drug abuse. On Oct. 24, 2014, California State University, Northridge, shut down all activities that relate to Greek...

Right to Worship

It takes a moment to adjust to Rita Nisan’s heavy accent and soft spoken voice. As an adjunct professor of photography, students quickly learn to understand her, but they don’t really know her. That’s because she comes off as being shy and isn’t likely to discuss her personal work and accomplishments. In 1993, Nisan and her husband Shamuel Italiaie fled Iran,...

The Sun, the Moon, the Stars and your Dog: Dogstrology

Illustration by: Chelsea WestmanDog astrologer Yesenia Flores smiles with her dog Zeus. Photo by: Hannah Davis It was another Wednesday afternoon in Los Angeles, and the sun was blazing down as if it was deep in the summer. But it’s April 29 and in the middle of a pandemic, a dog...

Sole Searching

Stairs lead up from the garage to the main living area of the split level apartment. The color palette in the room is fairly neutral, from the white walls to the beige couch. However, in one corner near the front entrance, colorful shoes sit on display. Red, purple and green sneakers pop among the grey and white. This is...

Reaching Great Heights

There is a societal expectation of what we are supposed to look like and what is “normal.” But what if, since before birth, a person’s appearance has been genetically set? Dwarfism is an inherited genetic deviation. This gene can cause a person to be of short stature with shorter limbs. One in every 10,000 births will be diagnosed with...

Farewell, Little Pine

Little pine, a vegan restaurant in Los Angeles, Calif. Currently closed to the public because of the "Covid-19" Pandemic. Photo by: Adam BaronThe inside of Little pine, a vegan restaurant in Los Angeles, Calif. Currently closed to the public because of the "Covid-19" Pandemic. Photo by: Adam BaronLeslie Charles, the former manager of Little Pine, sits with...

Signs of Pride

  Imagine yourself at a young age, enjoying life. You hear everyday things, from the Sunday morning cartoons to the melodic tunes coming from the radio during drives with your parents. Then a strange fever makes you weak and sick. You go to the doctor to get shots, hoping for a cure. It gets even worse. Soon, all you hear is...

Building Better Bodies

The steady hum of treadmills fill the Los Angeles Pierce College weight room, broken up by the sharp metal clang of weights and the occasional grunts of those standing in front of the mirrors running along the walls from floor to ceiling. In the sea of machines and bodies, Sean Oliver is easy to spot. His well-defined physique...