Ke Alaka'i Homepage

Although last year’s Academy Award’s best picture recognized black filmmaker Steve McQueen for his production of 12 Years a Slave, this year’s nominations are exclusively white. USA Today reporter Bryan Alexander, said for the first time since 1998, “the 20 contenders for lead and supporting actor and actress are all white.” Additionally, no women were nominated for the directing, writing or cinematography categories. After the announcement on January 15th, #OscarsSoWhite became a trending hashtag on Twitter, sparking a national debate on diversity, or in the case of the Oscars, the lack thereof.In reaction to the Oscar nominations, Lanae Harris, a freshman from Riverside, CA, commented, “I think that it’s more than there not being any people of color nominated. It’s that we know there is so much talent in the industry contributed by people of color in more dynamic roles than the help, a slave, or a prison inmate, and it’s going unrecognized. It’s almost as if they didn’t try to hide the fact that we—people of color—don’t matter.” Emery Adona, a freshman from Northern Idaho gave an opinion at almost the opposite side of the spectrum from Harris: “I think all the nominees deserve it, and color had no hold on the Academy’s choices.” Adona’s comment brings up the identity of the nominators. Reports from the Los Angeles Times shed light on this topic. The LA Times found “Oscar voters are nearly 94% Caucasian and 77% male… Blacks are about 2% of the academy, and Latinos are less than 2%. Oscar voters have a median age of 62, the study showed. People younger than 50 constitute just 14% of the membership.” Maya Thomas, a junior majoring in anthropology, stated, “I don’t know how they vote, what the criteria is, or why this year’s nominee list was all white. What I do know is that when I see someone who looks like me, with my same skin on screen and being recognized for their phenomenal acting, I swell with a sense of pride.” Thomas continued, “Diverse representation in filmmaking is so important because kids just like my little sisters have someone they have a connection to in other occupations than a football player.” The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce the final picks for the 2015 Oscars on February 22nd, 4pm PST. For more information on nominees in all categories, visit http://oscar.go.com/nominees.

Shocked by the amount of added sugar in their favorite snacks, BYU-Hawaii said they were going to be more mindful about what they are eating.Zachary Giles, a junior ICS major from England, said he unconsciously consumes at least twice the recommended amount of sugar when eating the candy Hi-Chews. Hi-Chews have 31 grams of added sugar for every 10 pieces. Giles admitted, “I had no idea. At the end of the day, I’ve probably eaten a 100 grams of sugar.”In the United States, the average consumption of added sugar per person is 90 grams in one day, reports Kitchen Daily. According to the American Heart Association, eating that much sugar daily is problematic. Added sugar, says AHA, is sugar put in foods in addition to any natural sugars present. Sucrose and high fructose corn syrup are common examples of added sugar.The AHA says men should consume 36 grams of added sugar daily and women should consume 24 grams -- not including natural sugars in fruits and vegetables. Like Giles, Alison Reece, a sophomore hospitality and tourism management major from Utah, also said she had no idea her favorite snack was saturated with so much added sugar. Packed with 15 grams of added sugar per ounce, the Zebra brand chocolate-covered popcorn is Reece’s favorite snack. Reece said, “Knowing that I should only eat 24 grams of added sugar daily, I am now going to have to be more aware of what I am eating.”BuzzFeed Life staff member Christine Byrne writes, “The problem with sugar is that it just makes you crave more sugar.” Byrne continues, “Sugar triggers your brain’s reward center . . .the problem is that constantly eating too much sugar dulls this feel-good response.” According to Byrnes, this means a person will likely eat more because it takes larger amounts of added sugars to meet those feel-good responses. Internationally, Brazil has the No. 1 highest consumption of sugar in the world at 152 grams per person per day, says Medical Daily. Russia falls right behind Brazil with 108 grams of added sugar per person per day, which adds up to one forth of a pound. By contrast, Indonesia and Pakistan each consume 62 grams, India follows with 58 grams, and China consumes about 33 grams per day. Juliana Dicenzo, an exercise and sports science major from Utah, said from her experience visiting family in Brazil, she was not surprised Brazil is No. 1 in the world for individual sugar consumption. Dicenzo said her favorite snack she gets when visiting Brazil is Brigadiero. “It’s a rich, carmely chocolate ball, and in Brazil they have a bunch of different toppings like sugar.”Uploaded Feb. 2, 2015

Sierra Phillips, a sophomore from California studying psychology, spent the last four and a half months teaching English to elementary school aged students in Nanjing, China, a city with a population greater than New York City.Phillips asserts the biggest and most memorable thing she learned during her trip was, “sometimes the smallest minds are your greatest teachers, and the brightest students are those who are the most eager to learn.”Phillips explained, “I worked with a program called the International Language Program teaching English to six second grade classes and three fourth grade classes on top of additional classes like art, drama, kitchen and shop.” Phillips said she heard about the program through a friend who taught in Ukraine through ILP.The program used full immersion to teach the children the English language, meaning that, even though Phillips taught on a Chinese campus, she was only allowed to speak English with the students. However, if students were struggling enough, Phillips would address the questions to the students in both English and Mandarin. “I spent a short amount of time studying the language with a good friend of mine before I left to Nanjing,” Phillips stated. “Fortunately, I was able to arrive with a little background on the language. It was difficult at first, especially when it came to asking for directions.”To overcome these difficulties, Phillips explained using visual or hand gestures was the best way to express what she was trying to say when she was at a loss for words. Along with teaching, Phillips was able to explore some of the culture and beauty China had to offer. On her off days, she would find herself riding down a river on a bamboo raft, surrounded by mountains on all sides filled with dips and twists, creating a silhouette on the horizon like that of a rollercoaster, she said. “The mountains are known by many residents as the ‘Dr. Seuss Mountains’ and I can truly say that after being there I felt like I was in one of his books,” Phillips stated. “At night the residents would throw lights into the sky and everyone would be out on the streets singing and playing flutes into the night air. The whole city was very surreal.”Uploaded Jan. 29, 2015

Members of the Laie community and any travelers of the Kamehameha Highway can experience what life was like in Laie during the plantation era right outside the Polynesian Cultural Center with the opening of Hukilau Marketplace.The name of the marketplace, “Hukilau,” comes from back when fishermen in Laie would “hukilau” or “throw nets around schools of fish” and “bring them to the shore for the community to enjoy,” according to a press release from the PCC. This practice became very popular, and visitors to Laie would come to watch and enjoy the music and food afterwards on the beach alongside the community members.The marketplace includes a variety of shops including retail, fashion and food. The marketplace has historical significance and some shops have a story behind them. According to David Fonoimoana, who was the retail assistant merchandising manager at PCC and now the manager of the BYU-Hawaii Bookstore, the Laie General Store is a souvenir shop created after the legacy of the Goo family in Laie. The Goo family owned a plantation store in Laie that was closed down in the 1980s.“The décor and memorabilia are reminiscent of … family-run community stores ... including an exact working replica of the old jukebox that sat in front of Goo’s Store for many years,” says PCC’s website.The fashion store, Nona’s Tropical Threads, is named after a seamstress who was well known in the Laie community for 50 years, said Abby Carlson, retail assistant operations manager. “The story behind her is that she was able to look at people, know the size and cut the fabric,” said Carlson. “She was a really awesome and talented lady.”The marketplace is aiming to stay true to the community with specialized food, products and entertainment. Along with different shops, the marketplace will also have about five carts and kiosks, said Fonoimoana.The marketplace is open to the public and parking is free. “It is a huge feat for the PCC that people can come and experience the marketplace without having to pay admission,” said Alfred Grace, PCC president, in a press release about the marketplace.The main purpose behind opening the Hukilau Marketplace is to get repeat customers, Fonoimoana said. “A lot of people think, ‘I’ve already been there so I’ve already seen it,’ but now people can stop for lunch or stop for an hour and then head on. They don’t have to commit the whole day,” he said.Eric Workman, executive vice president of the PCC, said, “Hukilau Marketplace is bringing together in one location goods, activities, and special foods associated with the heritage of Laie, the North Shore and Polynesia. It’s exciting to see this new, fun, family-friendly gathering place come to life and give residents and visitors another reason to enjoy the North Shore.”The marketplace is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Grand Opening for the Hukilau Marketplace is scheduled for Feb. 20, says PCC website.Uploaded Jan. 29 2015

Newer BYUHSA clubs said their membership has gone up during the Winter Semester World Fest club sign-ups where every chapter and club has its own table to promote itself and its purpose. This gives students the opportunity to see the diversity of BYUH and allows students to be a part of several chapters and clubs. The event, which was held all day on Jan. 22 and 23, was located in the Aloha Center. Hailey Rice, a senior in biology from Canada, said she really enjoyed World Fest. “Everything is very exciting here. Being a biology major, I am always a part of the Health Care Professionals Club. I want to pursue a career in medical care.”A few of the smaller known clubs on campus were glad to report there was an increased interest in their clubs this semester. For example, just three-semesters old, one of the new clubs this year is the Baseball Club. Current member Kemjai Koide, a sophomore math major from Japan, described how the club was born when he said, “Two students started to play catch together in the fields in front of campus. They played catch often and started thinking it would be nice to have a baseball club because there wasn’t already one in existence.” Koide also said he never had the opportunity to play baseball in Japan, but he always wanted to play. The Baseball Club gave Koide the chance to play. Because the club is a mere introduction to baseball, Koide said, “You don’t have to be good to play.” Another relatively new chapter added to BYUHSA is the Native American Chapter. This chapter is going on its second semester, according to Adam Conte, a sophomore in EXS from Arizona. Conte said, “Fall Semester was our first time, so we didn’t really know what to expect and kept things very simple.” The chapter hopes to grow this year, although Conte pointed out that Native Americans are a minority on campus. He said they are trying to create a club that everyone wants to participate in although they may have no cultural bonds to Native Americans. They look forward to making a new video and beating their $500 raised at last year’s Food Fest with their Navajo taco sales. One of the busier tables at World Fest, crowed with TVs, gaming systems, and students, belonged to the Gamers Club. Sitting behind the table as a representative was Sydney Diamond, a senior art major from Utah. According to Diamond, the Gamers Club meets every Thursday night from 7-11 p.m. to play games with each other. Diamond said everyone brings whatever game they want to play. “On a weekly basis, 20 to 40 people show up. It also depends if we are having an event or not.” About 100 students come to the club when there is a tournament, she said. Last semester, the club has a League of Legends tournament, and 80 people were there to compete. Like any other sport, Diamond said, “For the tournaments, they usually form some sort of team and there is usually someone in charge. Within teams there are rankings and stuff. Everyone gets together and we give out prizes.”Uploaded Jan. 29, 2015