There are a small handful of people at IHS who know about a very small, very pink room at the very end of the E-wing. Although small and unassuming, this room is the deepest one can go into the chronicles of IHS. In that room, there are four average-looking filing cabinets that contain annals of IHS Tattler history, dating back 126 years. Here follows a selection.
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Note: The current Tattler does not necessarily endorse the opinions published in historical Tattlers.
November, 1989
Excerpt from HOUSING NOW!
By BECKY TOBIN
It all started at 1 A.M. on a Saturday morning in the parking lot of Woolworth’s Department. The National March for Housing Now! took place in Washington D.C. October 7, 1989, and was attended by approximately 250,000 people. About 25 of those people were Ithaca High School students chaperoned by IHS vice principal Patrick Letourneau and Social Studies teacher Otto Salsbury.
Once we started moving though, I got caught up in the spirit of the march. We ended up in a group of college students carrying musical instruments and making up impromptu songs. As we turned the corner and came in sight of the capitol, everyone started cheering.
At the rally, there were speeches by Jesse Jackson, Coretta Scott King, actors Gregory Hines and Lou Gossett Jr., and actress Susan Dey. There were also performances by Tracy Chapman, Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary, Mary Wilson of the Supremes, and Richie Haven, who performed at Woodstock and is a staple of capital city rallies.
Other powerful speeches came from members of the New Exodus Movement, a group of homeless who had walked 250 miles from New York City, braving bad visions to join the rally. They were joined in Washington by a similar but smaller group form the South. These groups overcame and conquered awesome obstacles to reach their destination. Members of the movement related stories of women having miscarriages and high winds and rain from the tail end of Hurricane Hugo. The group from the South was pursued by members of the Ku Klux Klan. One might wonder why people would bear these hardships to attend a march. “This proves homeless people aren’t just lazy,” said one of the marchers.
November, 1988
Excerpt from Halloween LXXXVII
By JEREMY BLYTH
Over the years, Halloween has been a day associated with fun, trick-or-treating–and vandalism. Vandalism has been the subject of a great deal of discussion during recent years.
Police Response
In the last four to six years the Northeast area on Halloween has become a battleground for students equipped with shaving cream and eggs. It is a tradition that most students at IHS will participate in at least once in their four years at Ithaca High. Most students know that if they go they will be involved in a messy war. Because of the complaints of Northeast residents, a good portion of the Ithaca police force is in this area at the time.
Police officers in the area have the goal of breaking up groups and sending people home. Chief Wall noted that everyone who participated at Northeast could be charged with disorderly conduct and criminal mischief. In fact, only two students were taken in for questioning about the Northeast area. Another major concern that Chief Wall had was the use of paint gun toys. Their use is dangerous, since a police officer cannot tell when a weapon is a toy or real gun.
Overstepping their bounds
While the need to protect the rights of individuals is indeed a great responsibility, do police officers have the right to be excessively violent in their efforts to subdue suspects? While only two arrests were made in the Northeast area many people feel that they were searched in an illegal manner or that the police officer in question vented his frustration on them. No formal complaints have been made to the Cayuga Heights Police Department, but many have claimed that their rights were infringed upon.
November, 1998
College Essays Made Easy
By Erin Whipple ‘99
Do you have writer’s block when it comes to your college essay? You are not alone. Many seniors are now facing a difficult task, and fortunately, we have been given some sound advice.
On October 8th Ken Gabbard, Dean of Freshmen for the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell University, made the trip down the hill to talk to students during lunch periods about the composition of the college essay.
He began his presentation with a few basic guidelines: In general, the essay should be from one to two pages long. The topic should be something that is important to you, that you are able to write about with passion. The most common topics he referred to as the Three D’s: drugs, divorce, and depression. Gabbard made it clear that you should by no means shy away from a topic because you are worried about offending the admissions staff. Your opinion does not matter; it is how you present your ideas, your thoughts and creativity, how well you represent yourself through your essay and your style of writing, that are important.
In terms of physical appearance, the essay should be neat, and spelling and punctuation should be correct. Gabbard agrees that using the computer spell-check doesn’t catch everything. For example, “Cornell” is not spelled D-U-K-E… It is necessary to proofread your essay after you print it out, in order to catch such mistakes. Gabbard suggests proofreading backwards. He feels that “although it may seem kind of nutty,” it is very effective.
As part of his presentation, Gabbard brought in a packet of essays to share with students and he discussed their strengths and weaknesses. For the most part, the essays that he considered to be strong were those with a focused topic, where the attitude of the person was really reflected in the writing. The essays that were considered to be weak were more general, and lack substance.
The college essay is a big deal, but try not to stress too much. Don’t procrastinate! Get started now! Have people that you trust (parents, teachers, friends, etc.) read your essay and make comments. Improve it, if you think you need to. Remember, your essay represents you. Send something you’re proud of.