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Midterm Votes 2018

Eyes watching, heart racing and nail-biting occurred during the panic-inflicted midterm elections. The thought of Texas classified as a “toss-up state,” according to the New York Times, only amplified the tension. Now that the dust has settled, here is a summary of the 2018 elections.

Written & Video by Nalani Nuylan

Beto v. Cruz

Beto caught Texas by storm. Nobody knew that the El Paso Democrat, Beto O’Rourke, could give the Republican Senator, Ted Cruz, a run for his money.

Originally a businessman, O’Rourke began his career as a politician in the El Paso City Council in 2005. After gaining popularity in El Paso, O’Rourke was elected to join the House of Representatives in 2011.

During the 2018 elections, O’Rourke used social media to gain traction for his campaigns, gaining popularity among youth voters. Also, for the first time in Texas history, O’Rourke visited every county in the state. O’Rourke was advertising a progressive agenda with universal health care, education reform, dream citizen statuses, criminal justice reform and legalizing marijuana.

On the other side of the ballot, Cruz was originally was elected into the United States Senate in 2012. As a former professor at the University of Texas in Austin, Cruz ran for the Senate to replace Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison.

For this past season, Cruz campaigned to Republican voters of older generations, promoting conservative ideologies as well as President Trump, a strong economy, and increased border security.

During the first debate in Dallas on Sept. 22, the two candidates disagreed on every topic asked by the monitor. Cruz dominated most of the debate, providing lengthy opinions on controversial topics while O’Rourke, mostly, remained within the allotted timeframe.

At the end of the debate, the monitor asked the candidates to vocalize what they admired about each other. Both candidates expressed the amount of commitment they had towards their families and for the greater good of the State of Texas.

The Election

As Nov. 6 drew near, early voting opened on Oct. 22 in Texas. More Americans took the early voting advantage this election season. Out of all 28 states that permitted early voting, nearly 36 million people cast their vote. According to the Elections Project, there was an estimate of 116 million voters in the 2018 midterm elections – making it the highest turnout since 1914.

This year’s voter turnout set new records, especially in Texas. Over four million ballots were cast in early voting in the Lone Star State, surpassing the 2014 turnout by three percent, according to The New York Times.

On Election Day, Cruz won against Beto by 2.6 percent for the Senate. Out of the nine elected Representatives for the House, five were Republican. Greg Abbott was elected governor. The majority of the state results came out Republican.

On the national level, Republicans fill the Senate 52 to 47. The House of Representatives is now controlled by Democrats 232 to 201. The Supreme Court leans Republican while the Court of Appeals leans Democrat. In theory, the current political status is purple.

Young Voters

Record numbers of young adults showed up to vote in this year’s midterm elections. “Young People,” by definition, refers to voters from the age 18 to 29: college students, recent college graduates, people trying to establish the career that fits their major. Why the high correlation?

First of all, there’s a reason that voting organizations advertise to young voters burning this past election season. On Sept. 24, a video titled Dear Young People, Don’t Vote was published on YouTube. The video criticized young people not voting by having older generations question and mock a young voters’ reasons for not voting. Currently, the video has over 650,000 views.

Likewise, famous Youtube star Lizza Koshy posted a video encouraging her viewers to vote, regardless of their political views. The video gained over two million views on her channel. Google also encouraged voter registration via a Google Doodle published on google.com.

Why is it that young people don’t vote? According to ACC’s Student Government Association President, Emmanuel Cuevas, the voting system is rigged against university students.

“For one thing, students weren’t taught how to vote,” Cuevas said. “Whenever you are asked ‘What do you think about the Republican or Democratic parties?’ at the age of 18, you think, ‘I don’t really know because I was never taught to think about those kinds of things.’”

Another obstacle is residency. Many young people move from their registered home county to attend a four-year university. This can be difficult, being that some students may not want to travel back to their registered county. However, the government provides free online guidance to registering, checking or changing your voter registration, state by state at usa.gov/register-to-vote.

It’s important to note that young people are the future. This past election, young people in Williamson and Hays counties, which were red, became blue mostly due to the university students living those counties.

“To the students who don’t vote because they don’t want to, or it’s an inconvenience, or because they feel like their votes won’t count, I will have to tell you that you’re wrong,” Cuevas said. “Students have a big voice. If they expressed their opinion, they will see a lot of things change.”

Vote. Make a difference. You have the power to shape the government to better the future.

Prop G Break Down

Austin leaders have plans for various projects, and upgrades among the propositions that were passed during the midterm elections. The city will put $160 million towards improving transportation and infrastructure since Proposition G is one that received a green light. Many residents hope their money is going towards safer roads, as others wonder how the budget is being spent.

Written & video by Melina Madrigal

$50 Million

It is very clear that Austin, like all major cities, could always use renovation and this proposition is dealing with some improvements that have been long put off, especially Emmett Shelton Bridge. This is the bridge built over Lady Bird Lake near Red Bud Trail, known for being the site of a copious amount of motor vehicle accidents. It’s expected that $50 million will go towards the reconstruction of this and other bridges and structures that experience heavy, daily traffic.

$66.5 Million

Construction to improve streets near local schools and businesses, as well as curb ramps and drainage areas, will receive $66.5 million.

Previous ACC student and Austinite, Kristen Gallegos says her walk to UT in the mornings can be dangerous. “There are some areas where there are no sidewalks, so I have to cross really busy roads.”

$20 Million

Sidewalk construction and improvements have been allotted $20 million. The city has emphasized that the first to be renovated are those marked as a top priority of the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) Transition Plan.

Remaining Funds

The city also has plans to enhance the lives of residents who use means of transportation other than motor vehicles. There will be $15 million going to pedestrian safety improvements at certain city intersections; $4.5 million spent on signals, technology and communication systems; and $3 million towards urban trails.

$1 Million

Allowing the city to have a say, $1 million will be used for the Neighborhood Partnering Program. This program gives local residents the opportunity to propose projects on property owned by the city.

Gallegos says she understands the need of her money going to this proposition. “There is a lot of wear and tear on [the roads] and with more people moving to Austin I think that construction is the best thing to do.”

It is apparent that while voters are being asked for a somewhat large amount of money, most understand the increasing need for renovation.

Show Review: The Contortionist & Intervals

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Written & Photos by Taylor Kokas

Recently The Contortionist and supporting band Intervals made a few stops on their latest tour in Texas. The Reimagined tour is unlike what most fans of this genre are used to, with only two bands on the ticket both were able to play much longer sets, and if you spent a little extra for the VIP experience you would’ve gotten access to a Meet & Greet, signed merch and exclusive first listen to The Contortionist new EP.

Instrumental band Intervals started off the night with “Touch and Go” which is the first track off their latest album The Way Forward. The rest of their nearly hour long set consisted of songs off The Way Forward as well as their previous record The Shape of Colour with songs like “I’m Awake”, “Sure Shot”, and “Leave No Stone” that warmed up the crowd.

Now it was time for progressive metal band The Contortionist, who would take the stage for the next two hours. As a signal that they were about to take the stage the lighting changed to a dim purple hue while Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” began to play and the crowd erupted into a chorus. Then the lights went dim and the outro to “The Parable” with its mesmerizing instrumentals paired with archive speeches from philosopher Alan Watts set the tone, leading into their first track of the night “Language I: Intuition”; the second track off their previous album Language. Next a couple of tracks off their latest album Clairvoyant, “Reimagined” and “Godspeed”. Followed by a throwback to their heavier roots “Primal Directive” and “Flourish” from their debut album Exoplanet. The Contortionist finished off their first half of their set with “Clairvoyant”, “Return To The Earth”, “Integration” and “Language II: Conspire” before taking a fifteen minute break.

After their break they started off the second half with acoustic performances of “The Source” and “The Parable”. Fans were also treated to a cover of The Smashing Pumpkins hit song “1979”. To close out their set they played two more off Clairvoyant, “The Center” and their emotional encore “Monochrome(Pensive)”. Having been lucky enough to catch two of their stops in Texas I have to say it was one of the more unique and intimate concerts I’ve ever experienced. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_gallery interval=”3″ images=”4911,4910,4912,4913,4915,4914,4916,4917″ img_size=”large”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Show Review: Make Them Suffer @ Come and Take It Live

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Written & Photos by Taylor Kokas

The symphonic metal/deathcore band from Perth, Australia have made their way back to the lone star state on their latest US tour supporting Erra and two headliners who are both celebrating the 10 year anniversary of their albums; Acacia Strain’s Continent and After The Burial’s Rareform.

Last time Texas fans saw Make Them Suffer they were on their own headlining tour for their album Worlds Apart. Although its their latest album, Make Them Suffer chose a selection of some of their heaviest and more well known tracks for this tours setlist. Which I assume is due to the fact that they knew the type of crowd that would be attracted to this tour. Their set started off with one of the heaviest tracks off World Apart “Vortex (Interdimensional Spiral Hindering Inexplicable Euphoria)” which would also be the only song that they would play off that album for the remainder of the set. From there “Fake” a chaotic track from Old Souls, “Widower” their hit single off Neverbloom, “Blood Moon” another Old Souls track, and to close out their set “Ether” a track from their combo album Old Souls & Lord of Woe, which represented the new direction they took going into Worlds Apart that leans more toward metalcore rather than deathcore.

My only complaint with their set is the lack of newer material, over this summer they put out a single titled “27” in my opinion it could have fit into their setlist seamlessly but I totally understand the choices they made in order to attract newer fans from a heavier crowd while showcasing their range within such a short set.[/vc_column_text][vc_gallery interval=”3″ images=”4900,4899,4901,4904,4902,4903″ img_size=”large”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Film Review: Mid90s

Written by Martay Whitfield

Jonah Hill wears many hats in the creation of Mid90s. Mid90s focuses on 13-year-old Stevie’s (Sunny Suljic) teenagedom in the 1990s. Stevie lives in a low-income neighborhood of Los Angeles with children of different ethnicities, experiencing troubles of their own. Stevie escapes his troubled home by making new at the local skateboard shop. Through this group of teens and young adults, Stevie partakes in fun, but dangerous, discoveries.

Stevie’s new friends aren’t the best role models. Many drink and smoke at young ages, leaving Stevie to become a product of his environment. The relationship that you start to build with Stevie is very strong throughout the film, from the opening – when you see a sweet boy trying to fit in – to the ending.

His character development from the beginning of the film to the very end is amazing. In the film, there is a point where you start to see him fitting in with the other guys coming out of his shell. The most powerful scene in Mid90s was when the character Ray (Na-kel Smith) and Stevie have a conversation about the problems that all the boys are having. This sparks the reason that they all stay friends. They learn they can escape from home to skate with one another.

Now, I must admit the beginning seemed very challenging to hold attraction to regarding the plot. It seemed a little forced. However it quickly regains itself and captivates the attention of the audience. This film is full of comedy mixed with heartfelt emotion. This is a good film and I highly recommend it.

Film Review: The Happy Prince

Written by Kevin Lopez

The Happy Prince stars, written and directed by Rupert Everett and this makes it his directorial debut in this film. For his directorial debut, Everett chose a biographical film based on the last days of Oscar Wilde (Rupert Everett).

Everett places us inside Wilde’s mind as he creates scenes that connect the audience to party and romantic flashbacks. The Happy Prince shows highlights of Wilde’s adventure from being a famous playwright to losing his money. Everett displays these scenes through the coloring of the cinematography. The best scene in The Happy Prince shows two characters arguing, creating a color of orange underground noir.

Everett shows us Wilde’s explored sexuality in the time he spends with the, seemingly, sinister and seductive Alfred “Bosie” Douglas (Colin Morgan). As the film progresses, we see Boise’s cold heart warm up around Wilde as the two grow and learn from each other.

The film has some really fantastic supporting actors the like Colin Firth, Edwin Thomas, Emily Watson and many more. Overall the cast is well cast and the performances from each actor are really amazing. But, Everett performance really stands out as you see him becoming Wilde, making for an intriguing performance.

The film can lack a bit because of slow pacing. The movie felt a little too long, especially in the beginning. However, I would like to have seen more character development through the supporting characters. Lastly, I think this movie should have been a bit longer just to have a bit more character development from the supporting characters. It would have been nice to see more than three focal points of Wilde’s life to satisfy the ending.

Because The Happy Prince has a great cast of actors, looks great and does a good job showing Boise’s effect on Wilde I would recommend it–even to those who unfamiliar with the famous playwright.

Show Review: Parkway Drive, August Burns Red, The Devil Wears Prada & Polaris at House of Blues Houston

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Written & photos by Taylor Kokas

It’s been nearly two years since Parkway Drive last visited Texas. Now on their latest touring cycle promoting their 6th studio album Reverence, the Australian natives have made their way back to House of Blues Houston. This time they brought along August Burns Red, The Devil Wears Prada and fellow Australian band Polaris. I sympathize with anyone who wasn’t able to make it to the show. Having been a fan myself for the past 6 years I’ve missed every opportunity to witness a Parkway Drive performance until now. This was definitely the chance of a lifetime.

Polaris kicked off the evening, playing songs off their latest record The Mortal Coil. Songs like “Relapse” and “The Remedy’’ were perfect for the crowd to warm up to and to be ready for the madness that would continue to build throughout the night.

Next up was The Devil Wears Prada whose set consisted of songs off the latest album Transit Blues and 2009’s hit record With Roots Above and Branches Below. TDWP also sprinkled in some other songs like “Escape” from 2010’s Zombie EP, “Born to Lose” 2011’s Dead Throne, and “Planet A” from their Space EP. Finally concluding their set as they always have with “Danger: Wildman”.

When August Burns Red took the stage the venue erupted. The floor literally shook to the rhythm of the crowd bouncing up and down when they started off their set with “King of Sorrow”, “Martyr”, and “Invisible Enemy”. Lead guitarist JB Brubaker flawlessly shredded away at his Ibanez guitar in sandals, as he always does. The remainder of the set consisted of songs ranging across their catalog, from “Composure” off of 2007’s Messengers all the way to 2017’s Phantom Anthem. After their set concluded, drummer Matt Greiner hopped off the kit to greet fans at the front row.

Finally for the highly anticipated set of the night, Parkway Drive. As haze and darkness fell upon the room, the crowd cheered, and the spoken word intro of “Wishing Wells” set the tone. *BOOM* “Until I’m done!”, all hell broke loose from there, and it was only just the beginning, continuing to warm up the crowd with tracks like “Prey” and “Carrion”; an old favorite. The band went on playing a variety of new and old tracks, ranging from their latest records Reverence and Ire all the way to their, now, 11-year-old sophomore . Along with nods to Deep Blue and Atlas. It’s really tough for me to pick favorites with this band because every song is so massive and full of energy. If I had to pick I’d have to say “Dedicated, “Boneyards”, and their encore “Bottom Feeder” all three of which I think just express invincibility. I witnessed many fans that night throw down in the pit, letting the music take them, and so many came running to the back of the venue to catch a breather for the remainder of a song, then got upset when their next favorite came on because they wanted to spend whatever energy they had left on it. When the night concluded, I walked out of the venue with my hearing muted, limping down the stairs to make my way to the food trucks outside the venue. Many others from the show sat in silence eating with friends, probably reflecting on the insane night that was just experienced.

The Devil Wears Prada will be on their 10-year anniversary tour, playing With Roots Above and Branches Below in its entirety, and is set to be back in Texas in early December. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_gallery interval=”3″ images=”4869,4868,4867,4866,4863,4862,4861,4860,4871,4872,4873,4864,4865″ img_size=”large”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Student of the Year: Amber Rodriguez

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Starting Classes

“I recommend bringing a planner or creating some type of schedule. It could be as simple as writing down your class schedule for a week and whatever you work. For me, I have to have hours down in the day like ‘what am I doing this hour?’ It helps remind myself that I do have time here and not there”

Staying Strong

“‘Don’t be a fool, stay in school’ is a motto in my household. I love going to school, it’s inspired me to want to learn more. I’ve always been kind of the odd ball in class.”

Working in Student Life

“I networked so much and was able to create a lot here at my time in Student Life… I did come out a much stronger and much more confident person because of it. I don’t know how to thank everybody for how much I’ve learned here.”

Future Self

“I want to be in the Computer Science field, because that’s the future and I want to be part of it. My one goal is to find a job I do really love and do enjoy.”

Why School?

“ACC is cheaper to take classes. Higher education is the key to success. I know from my parents, they didn’t get past high school and they had dreamed of going to college…I hope students see there is a lot of opportunity getting a higher education.”

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Animation Biz

Written and Filmed by Nathaniel Torres[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

These days access to our favorite shows is easier than ever. With a few clicks or taps you can open your preferred streaming service to binge your favorite shows. Some may remember the days of on demand shows, back when DVR was spelled VCR. In order to find out what your favorite tv show characters were doing, viewers had to wake up for saturday morning cartoons.

Now, you might have an animated character dancing around your head, bringing back some childhood joy. Our favorite childhood characters were there to make us smile, but have you ever considered the hands that drew them?

This past Spring, ACC GDAMG & 2Design hosted a workshop on character design with guest animator, Stephen Silver, at the Northridge campus. Five minutes after the printed start time of his lecture he stated that anyone who was not there at that point was already not taking themselves seriously enough. He, then, pointed up at the collage of pictures that had been projected on the screen and reveals that it, in fact, was a test. Did anyone pick up their pencils and start drawing? Did anyone find inspiration from the peculiar human faces that were a part of the collage? Was the opportunity to fill in the blank areas of the sketchpad taken? One may not expect an animation creator to be so adamant, but as Silver continues he cuts through the mounted apprehension with direction. “If this is going to be your life’s work then you should always be refining your craft.”

Silver has contributed to series such as Histeria!, Kim Possible, Danny Phantom, The Penguins of Madagascar, and more recently the revamped version of Scooby-Doo “Be Cool Scooby-Doo.” Despite that many of these works are targeted towards children, animation itself is growing and becoming a much more regular part of adult lives.

In 2017 TV By the Numbers reported that more cable viewers, ages 18-49, were tuning in to Adult Swim programming than most late-night shows. According to a report by the Entertainment Software Association the average gamer is 34-years-old with 72 percent of the market made up of gamers that are 18 and older. The video game industry shows no signs of slowing. With the developments in VR and AR games it’s predicted there will be steady growth in the industry through 2020.

As it goes, the workforce is seeing an ever-increasing amount of technology involved with their work and the animation sector is no stranger to this. “Honestly, I can’t believe how much has changed in such a short time,” says animator Cindy Crowell.

Crowell has been animating since 1992. She started at StarToons, an animation studio open from 1988-2001, working on Warner Bros. produced series such as Tazmania, Tiny Toons and the Animaniacs. “It was pretty amazing, this was back in the glory days of pencil and paper. I’d get a stack of key animation drawings from the lead animators and sit there on the light table and flip the pages, do all the in-betweens and clean up. I absolutely loved it, I miss those days.”

Technology has changed the business since then. Computer animation has been a part of cinematography for over 40 years. Since the premiere of Toy
Story (1995), the industry began receiving major investments and returns on Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) movies. Animation light tables, discs and paper have all been shelved in place of computers loaded with programs that allow the artists to explore their work on a screen.

As technology booms and the free market flexes, artists are finding themselves needing to be familiar with multiple software programs for various projects. Adaptability seems to be a fundamental requirement of artists right from the get go. Silver says, “The most important thing is versatility. You want to show a range. You can’t just have apples and oranges and pears in your portfolio because all of a sudden they go, ‘Oh, he can do that but he can’t draw strawberries.’ You really want to make sure to show that range because the more versatile you are, the more opportunities you’ll get.”

This point could not be stressed enough by both Silver and Crowell. Turns out, there are dozens upon dozens of ambitious students, eager to only show off their anime illustrations. “Everyone can draw anime these days,” says Crowell. “The call is really for people who can do it all.” ce.

Finding a steady job in the animation business isn’t easy. The Animation Guild in California offers benefits, only to those working at a union member studio. Union members must accrue 600 hours (approx. 3 months) to qualify for a period of six-month benefits – if they continue to work at least 400 hours in one of those studios. Their benefits continue to cover them even if they are laid off. The artist can also bank their hours in case of a prolonged period without work follows. This goes to show that in the state employing the densest number of animators, one of the largest unions takes into account that getting hired at a studio does not mean you get to stay there.

“A lot of times [a project] will start out with just a few people,” Crowell says. “Then, they hire on a bunch of people determined, flexible and familiar with rejection. “It’s so important to attend local conventions,” Silver says. “It’s like an artist’s market. It’s the effort. It’s knocking on one door after another. There’s going to be a lot rejection and you have to be prepared for it.”

Crowell has been at Powerhouse Animations for 17 years. She acknowledges it’s unusual for a studio to be around this long, but also knows there the mindset to have in order to work at a continuing business. “One thing that I really wished they would have taught me more of when I was in animation and in art school is that when you are a commercial artist you really have to have the ability to follow directions from your supervisors and make changes that they want or that the client has requested even if they seem dumb or pointless. You have to not take it personally.”

Animation is more than creating art. There is rejection, deadlines and the tedious details that are required to create the work seen on screen for a limited amount of time.

For those who are willing to endure such real job requirements and are lucky enough to land desk space in a studio know that there are perks of the job. Studios, like Powerhouse Animations have activities for their employees like arcade games, a big screen TV, couches, countless artwork on the walls and life size cutouts of video game characters. And there’s the seemingly obvious reward of seeing your artwork come to life in front of hundreds, thousands, potentially, millions of viewers.

Spongebob Squarepants singing “Sweet Victory” has millions of views on YouTube despite copyright. Peter Griffin fighting the Ernie the Giant Chicken has gone on to create posters, mugs, and action figures. There are countless cars with the Hyrule Crest stickered on their back windshields and bumpers.

It is all about knowing what you want to do in the industry whether it be background design, character design, storyboarding and being honest with yourself, according to Silver. Do you have the skill to do it and making sure you are getting opinions from more than just your family. “You have to not let things offend you or upset you and that’s the bottom line. You can’t be too sensitive.”

Silver also suggests that individuals be as plugged in as possible in order to benefit from networking. Follow your favorite artists on social media to see where they will be exhibiting their work or offering critiques and check in to AWN.com (Animation World Network) for information and job listings. Make sure to take initiative and reach out to your local studios to find out what programs they are using but do not get hung up on them. Both Silver and Crowell both say the programs do not fully rid the need of skill with paper and pencil.

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Transtastic

Written and Edited by Halie Davis
Filmed by Taylor Kokas

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Blue, pink and white flags were printed on posters that hung up around various campuses this past spring. These colors sandwiched together, horizontally are the Transgender flag. Text on the posters promoted the premiere of a student-made documentary, Transtastic, supported by an LGBTQ resource fair.

Transtastic is the creation of ACC student, Margo De Alva. As a transgender person, she felt the urge to create something that further explains transgender than the textbook definition.

“Coming into the school semester, I was asked several times ‘why do you dress like this?’ ‘Why do you act like this?’” says De Alva. “I just wanted ACC to have a better understanding and I wanted to reach out to people who were in my situation, or are in my situation.”

After graduating from high school, De Alva attempted attending college. But, the timing was off.

“I was very, very sad for several years because I was scared to tell everybody. I didn’t even know what Transgender was. I knew I wanted to be a woman, but I didn’t know the term…I had to venture off to YouTube to even know what transgender meant.”

In recent years, the public has seen more videos, articles and events, regarding transgender people. In 2014, Laverne Cox is the first transgender person on the cover of Time Magazine. Making her public debut at the 2015 ESPYs, Caitlyn Jenner spoke for transgender children and people. That same year and the following, Jeffrey Tambor brought home an Emmy for Leading Actor in Comedy Series, Transparent. In 2016, NPR reported that 1.4 million adults identify as transgender, according to a study done by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law. The highest number of reported deaths among Transgender people, occurred in 2017.
This year Cox poses for the cover of Cosmopolitan
Magazine, Scarlett Johansson apologizes and announces her withdraw from the transgender project, Rub
&
Tug, and Wisconsin is covering two of its residents’ gender confirmation surgeries.

Transgender may be a term that is confusing for the general public to understand, let alone an individual. This past summer, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that in 2019 being transgender will no longer be considered a mental illness. Often, a fake identity is created by a transgender person to try and fit into society’s standards of male and female roles.

“Dorothy [Alexander] is one of the friends who helped start everything,” De Alva says. “She met me when I was, I guess a boy. She met me and could tell something was up because of the way I acted and stuff. Like she said in [Transtastic], I would joke around about getting my nails done and she’d be like, ‘if you want to get your nails done, I’ll go with you, it’s not a big deal.’ There were times I’d try to act masculine and she’d look at me and and be like, ‘I don’t really feel like this suits you.’ She was just reminding me that ‘I think you’re a different person,’ so when I finally told her, she was like ‘I knew it all along.’”

Some of De Alva’s friends and family were accepting, but not eveyone. At 12-years-old she knew she wanted to be considered a female, but was still unsure about the ways to express herself. “I had no choice but to put on this persona of what I felt like a man or teenage boy was supposed to be, because it was very rough. I was getting picked on in school from the other boys and I remember them telling me ‘you’re such a girl, man up.’”

In her early adolescence, De Alva was living with her dad in the Rundberg area of Austin. This neighborhood is known as a rougher one to many Austinites.

From 2012-2016 Restore Rundberg was a grant received to revitalize the area. Since the funding closed, the Austin Police Department has continued extension programs throughout the area, like Summer in Rundberg to keep the neighborhood children safe when not in school. Restore Rundberg decreased property crime in the area and the city itself.

Crime rates are higher in lower income areas than high-income households, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Some neighborhoods in Austin with a median household income ranging from $7,000 to $38,000 are St. Johns (Rundberg area), North Lamar and East Riverside. Neighborhoods in Austin with a median household income range of $130,000 to $217,000 are Bee Cliffs, Bella Mar and Avery Ranch.

Like many cities, the public education provided to its residents depends on their neighborhood. According to the U.S. News & World Report’s list of Best High Schools in America, Westlake (EISD) ranked 213. Westwood (RRISD) followed up at 221 with a graduation rate of 99 and college readiness score of 72. Vandegrift (LIST) land at 339 while the top ranking AISD school is Anderson at 1,038. Schools like Lanier, Reagan and Eastside Memorial did not place in the national or state rankings. Students at the non-ranking schools live in neighborhoods like East Riverside, North Lamar and St. Johns.

“LGBTQ people are not just on the North side or by Highland.”

DeAlva attended Wooldridge Elementary School, which filters into Lanier High School. These are some of the schools associated with the Rundberg area.
“Rundberg, from my experience, wasn’t necessarily the best place to live at,” De Alva says. “The boys needed to have this role of being tough. In middle school, they were running around, talking about sports…In 2006, I remember being in middle school and LGBT was picked on. Nobody said it was ok.”

De Alva lived with a boy persona until 2015, when she became a junior in high school. At this time, De Alva has moved to the Lakeline area with her grandma. At Westwood High School she was noticing LGBT was more accepted than her previous schools. She was making friends who were openly gay or lesbian. “Their friends weren’t mean about it and they still liked them.”
De Alva was noticing a different world, where people were more accepting and open about being gay. Moreover, she did not feel the urge to live in her previous identity; the one that would mock or ignore people from the LGBT community. “If I had met [an LGBT person] when I was in Rundberg, I would have no choice but to pick on them if I had friends around…my grandma lived in this place where I could listen to how [an LGBT person] felt.”

After taking a break from school, Margo De Alva discovered acceptance in the LGBT community, friends and family. Although hesitant to begin college, Margo found a home in Student Life.

Northridge’s Student Life Coordinator, Tim Prata, assisted Margo with the creation of Transtastic. After listening to her thoughts and hopes, Prata introduced De Alva to ACC’s LGBT eQ Committee and Student Life’s YouTube series, Life4U. From there, the group took De Alva’s documentary idea and created Transtastic. Last March, Transtastic premiered after its resource fair concluded. A Q&A session was held after the documentary premiere with Margo De Alva and others featured in the Transtastic.
“My friends are accepting, so I’ve reached out to several and they have my back with things like ‘hey, I feel uncomfortable going to the bathroom, would you go with me?’ and they will.”

In the 2019 legislative session, many Texans are hoping to continue the discussion about the Bathroom Bill. This bill, defines access to public restrooms by transgender people. In 2015 the Austin City Council passed an ordinance stating that all businesses with a single-use restroom must provide gender-neutral bathrooms. Every ACC campus, with the exception of Riverside, has a family bathroom for its transgender students, faculty and staff. However, having only one single-use bathroom on a campus can be difficult for transgender people – especially if it’s in use.

“LGBTQ people are not just on the north side or by the Highland campus – we’re everywhere,” says De Alva. “There should just be more family bathrooms in general. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to hold going to the bathroom because [some business] doesn’t have it.”

Although De Alva’s goal is to live a life as Margo, she chooses not to use the women’s bathroom, even if it’s the only option. “I don’t want to go into the women’s bathroom because I don’t want to alarm females. I’m totally understanding that it can alarm everybody, so I just try to stick to the family bathrooms”

Austin businesses like Alamo Drafthouse at Mueller, Hillside Farmacy and Cheer Up Charlies offer gender-neutral bathrooms. These areas have closed-off stalls for private business and sinks to wash. CEO of Alamo Drafthouse, Tim League, says there are “no complaints at all” in an article from the Austin American Statesman.
De Alva is knowledgeable about which businesses have a restroom for her to use due to personal experience. Fortunately, her support system is able to accompany her to the restroom, if needed. “I’ve had my grandpa tell me ‘if you have to go, I’ll go in there with you and make sure no one says anything…As sweet as that is, it’s humiliating to have to go with my grandfather.”

De Alva says she doesn’t expect sweet gestures, but is thankful for the support. After revealing herself as a transgender person, she’s lost relationships but stays positive. “You’re going to have people that don’t like you no matter what, so you might as well be who you are.”

Margo De Alva plans to transform Transtastic into an event at ACC. She also hopes to open a safe area for the LGBT community to talk and relate with one another. “You know I still have not met someone who is transgender at the school, that I can reach out to. At the event, I started to see more people and they were talking to me and it was great to know that I’m not alone.”

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