While the transgender bathroom bill, House Bill 2, has been nearly universally arraigned by the media and celebrities alike (the UK even issued a travel warning to its citizens), proving that as a society we will not stand for discrimination of this ferocity, it still exists.

Despite five US states and more than 20 US cities issuing bans on official travel unless absolutely necessary to the state of North Carolina, and even Donald “Some, I assume, are good people” Trump stating that the bill was a bad idea, it was still passed through the North Carolina congress uneviscerated and without objection.

The bill in itself acts to force transgender people to use the bathroom matching the gender on their birth certificate. The root of the problem that this creates centers around the struggle of validation for transgender people, and the implications it poses are dangerous and vast.

Most agree that bathrooms are a right, and not a privilege. And so with the debate surrounding the anatomy of an entire subgroup of people, and which bathrooms they are allowed to use, comes along an intrusive and vulgar sense of unrightful entitlement by those that are perpetrating it. It should not be the business of any elected official what the genitalia of the people they serve is, even if gender in itself could be boiled down to anatomy.

I use the above to illustrate the importance of the new gender neutral bathrooms on UMBC’s campus. If we lived in a perfect world, people would not be discriminated against. Adversely we do not, and the problems that can arise from our overwhelmingly transphobic and sexist society can create counter issues from doing the morally and sensibly right thing and letting transgender people utilize the bathroom matching their gender.

The assault of transgender people using bathrooms that match their gender has been a horrifying and widely recorded phenomenon. Oppressed people are often the subject of battery when they attempt to assert their human rights, stepping out of bounds with what their oppressors see as valid or right.

Because of this unjust scenario, gender neutral bathrooms, like here on UMBC’s campus, are a good fit for now. Says a current UMBC student and transgender person on the new gender neutral bathrooms, “As a transgender person myself, I can say that entering public restrooms is a daily source of anxiety that becomes exhausting to face. Being assured that I will have the option to avoid that very stressful situation has a major benefit to my mental health … entering [restrooms] can pose a safety issue for some trans individuals, so allowing a gender-neutral option is important for a variety of reasons.”

With all hope we will soon live in a society that treats people like people, and issues like this will be human rights violations of the past. But for now, it should be our top priority to assure the safety and health of our fellow human beings, making gender neutral bathrooms a priority everywhere.

The post Gender neutral bathrooms: a right, not a privilege appeared first on The Retriever.

As the crowd was standing and waiting for Fetty Wap to come on stage for his Quadmania performance, various performers came out to entertain the crowd and get everyone pumped. One of Fetty Wap’s DJ’s came out, who never said what his name was, and spun some tunes to popular rap, EDM and pop music. He made the best music of the concert, making the music enjoyable for people who were not familiar with the rap being played.

One of the best elements about the performers at the concert was that they all varied in their musical genres. A performer who was the highlight of the show was quite similar to Tiana from “Empire.” She performed pop/RnB music that really brought out her vocals and her talents as a songstress. She also did a cover of Rihanna’s “Work,” and the similarities between the vocals and mannerisms were quite striking. It felt like a Rihanna concert for a hot second.

Finally, after an hour of various and random rappers, singers and dancers, Fetty Wap came to the stage. Fetty began his set with “Again,” and surprisingly, this track was quite catchy, making it easy to sing along to. Fetty is mostly singing throughout the track, and there is about one verse where he actually raps. In the recording of this song, his singing voice can be nasally, but he performed it well. His vocals and the EDM beats of the song meshed very well together, creating a strong reaction from the audience.

As the concert progressed, I became more convinced that Fetty Wap is a singer rather than a rapper. If one Fetty Wap song could win an award for the best bird sounds, “My Way” featuring Monty would take the cake. For about thirty seconds Fetty was simply just making random bird noises, and for the rest of the time, he was making random sound effects as the song played in the background. On Fetty’s album, there is no rapping, he just slurs a bunch of words while Monty raps for a verse. It is completely horrifying that this song was even a hit because it’s just awful.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a good concert without Fetty performing his hit singles that launched his career, like “679” and “Trap Queen.” Surprisingly, Fetty actually rapped instead of making random animal sounds. The upbeat EDM beats along with the catchy lyrics brought together these tracks, which made it memorable for audiences. Out of all of the Fetty Wap songs, “679” and “Trap Queen” were the best ones he performed because Fetty actually was active instead of just standing there.

Fetty’s music isn’t bad, but it’s not great. Based on what I saw, he needs to make more of an effort performing.  The entire time he was on stage, he would actually rap or sing for a minute while the song was playing in the background. Fetty is talented, which is clearly shown by his number one singles, but he needs to put more effort in creating music that actually makes sense.

The post It seems like Fetty Wap doesn’t try at all appeared first on The Retriever.

Ethnic diversity at UMBC is a given. You do not need to walk through Academic Row more than once to realize that UMBC is home to a plethora of different ethnic and racial backgrounds. However, not many people are aware of exactly how many of UMBC’s international students become acquainted with the campus community.

This is where the English Language Institute comes into play. The ELI acts as a miniature school within UMBC, where international students can better their understanding of the English language while simultaneously creating fellowship and community among fellow international students. As of spring 2016, it hosts 189 international students who are taking up residence at UMBC.

The UMBC ELI was recently selected as a site visit to the International Teaching English as a Second Language conference that was held in Baltimore. Here, presenters including Dr. Yuliya England, ELI Director of National Marketing, and Sarah Gardenghi, head director spoke about the purpose, programs and various facets of the institute.

“The ELI offers customized training programs for special groups from around the world. Training may be conducted on campus, on site, via telecommunication technologies, or a combination,” explained the presenters. The ELI has taken part in customized education for students not only on the UMBC campus, but in programs located in Ecuador, Japan, Mali and India. In addition, the ELI currently trains Chinese teachers and Turkish government workers and operates a successful international “externship” program with Northrop Grumman.

As far as on campus training goes, the ELI provides top-notch training from 14 graduate or near-graduate level instructors, as well as five GAs and four student workers. Campus students, along with taking typical undergraduate and graduate classes, receive in-depth English training, which takes form in the Intensive (20 hours a week) or Academic (equivalent to 12 institutional credit hours) programs. The training specifically focuses on five aspects: speaking and listening, reading, writing, grammar and cross-cultural communication.

The ELI does much more on campus than providing english language training. According to the TESOL presentation, the ELI additionally “acts as a liaison for international students, works closely with student service offices, provides opportunities for scholars, interns and researchers, and provides intercultural training.”

Gardenghi acts as the academic principal of the “school within a school,” as she described. According to her, the ELI has plans of stretching its international reach in the coming years by expanding accessibility to the ILTS and TOESL online preparation courses. This will allow areas inhabited by low-income college-aged students to have access to online college courses offered through the ELI.

The ELI represents a fantastic name for UMBC and its focus on inclusion and diversity. As the program steadily grows on campus and plans to slowly expand outward to the international stage through its online presence and specialized programs in China, Turkey, Mali, Japan, Ecuador and India, it seems that the ELI has a bright future ahead. For more information, Gardenghi welcomes all students to the ELI office which is located on the second floor of the University Center, next to the Retriever office.

The post A closer look at the ELI appeared first on The Retriever.

I have a fabulous, neat two bedroom furnished apartment for rent, which would be available for Summer 2016 (May 20^th to August 20^th.)

The apartment is located in walking distance to MTA and UMBC shuttle stop. Also stories (CVS, Wallmart, Safe way, Giant, Shoppers, and liquor store) are so close to it.

The apartment has dedicated parking spot.

It is worth mentioning that the neighborhood is quiet and safe area.

 You can rent it one of the rooms or whole the apartment.

Small room : 450

Big room : 550 

Apartment: 950

contact me with email: ronak2@umbc.edu
text: 301-3772217

Courtesy of Karina Keefe

Now that the spring semester is finally on its way out, we are finally getting our first weeks of warm, sunny bliss. The cherry blossoms have bloomed on Academic Row, and students are soaking up the sun between classes. Spring is finally in full bloom, and student groups such as the Students for Environmental Awareness are taking advantage of it.

On April 20, SEA held their annual Green Fest on the Quad between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. The beautiful weather was just one of the reasons why so many students came out to Green Fest. There was live music preformed by various individuals and groups, including Ariella Joy, the Mama’s Boys, the Cleftomaniacs and the Stilettos. There was also plenty of free food, environmentally-aware crafts and giveaways. Many other student organizations were welcomed to come out for Green Fest and show support through tabling. The Rock Climbing Club, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, the Food Recovery Network, Global Brigades and Students for Life were some of the organizations present.

SEA’s Green Fest is but one piece of their annual week long festival known as EcoFest, which always takes place during the week of Earth Day. Karina Keefe, a sophomore majoring in chemical engineering on the Environmental Engineering and Sustainability track and president of SEA, spoke more about EcoFest. “It encompasses a series of events, all with the goal of promoting sustainability, engaging students in important issues and spreading the love of nature in general. We usually have a service event, some fun events such as hikes and movie nights, some events that are co-hosted with other organizations and Green Fest.”

Outside of EcoFest, SEA devotes its time to creating a solid community of students who are bound by their love for the environment and sustainability, and pouring out the love onto the UMBC community in various ways. “The goal is to give people an outlet to express their passion for sustainability at whatever level of commitment works for them,” said Keefe. “We try to host a variety of events such as tree plantings, stream cleanups, petitioning, bus trips to marches and rallies, hikes, documentaries and guest speakers. We’ve also been able to connect our members to research and internship opportunities in the past. The environment impacts our lives in so many more ways than we realize, and SEA is helping people make those connections in their academic, professional and personal lives.”

Communities, such as SEA, are one of the strongest facets of UMBC. Students with common values and goals team up all around campus on a daily basis and truly strive to make their world a better, safer and happier place. Keefe said, “I think UMBC is headed in a great direction as more people become interested in environmental issues. We see students empowering one another and supporting one another in very tangible ways, and we see successful initiatives on campus led by students such as the Prove-It campaigns, and it just shows how much power we really do have to change our community for the better.”

“I also think a lot of students are looking for ways to infuse their studies with passion,” said Keefe. “Getting involved in sustainability is a great way to do that.”

The post 4/20 gets even greener appeared first on The Retriever.