Madison Rheam

Women’s rights have been a topic of discussion for years and some progress has been made. However, in today’s society, women still face inequality in the following categories: media, education, and the labor system. Men and women receive two different educations because of the way each gender is treated in the education system. Following the education they received, these men and women enter the workforce under the impression that they’re under equal standards. Yet, the gender pay gap still highly exists today. Finally, our media focuses on women in such a negative way, leading to mental health problems that we see in the women’s population today.

There are so many things I could address with the problems we currently see in today's society. While social class, gender, and race are their own category, I feel they all can be put under one word: discrimination. While this country may have moved three steps up during the 1960s, we have certainly moved two steps back. To me the main problems with society now is still that difference makes one unequal. Whether it be sexuality, the sex you identify yourself as, the pronouns we use, the cultures we see, and the colors that come with it, everyone is not equal. At least not in this country anymore. I want to focus on two main categories, race and transgender individuals.

Throughout the series, Glee has tackled some serious problems teens are facing everyday in their high schools. Most of these problems are not easy to take on, and I give credit to everyone on the cast of Glee that made the show such a great hit and influence among teens everywhere.

If you follow mainstream news then you probably already know the big controversy that’s happening with Cardi B right now. For those of you that don't know what's going on with Cardi B, then I'll give you a short run down of what's really happening. A video that Cardi B claims were made about three years ago just now resurfaced on Twitter this past weekend. The video is of Cardi B referring to the times she used to work as a stripper saying, "I'd drug men up and I'd rob them." Cardi B confirmed the authenticity of the video and her apology was, "I made the choices I did at the time because I had very limited options."

From 170 different species, millions of these helpless creatures are being dissected in schools each year. The American Anti-Vivisection Society states, in one year, over 12 million animals are used in high schools alone. Some of the most commonly used animals are frogs, mice, rats, worms, cats, rabbits, baby pigs, dogs, and cows. Most schools and universities purchase these species when they’re already dead, but they were killed to be dissected. Many of these animals are purchased through slaughterhouses and fur farms, but animals like cats are purchased from "Class B" dealers who take animals from shelters or "free to good home" ads. In other countries, cats are purchased in Mexico, then killed by drowning or slitting their throats, then sent to the US. In some facilities, they put the frogs in bags while they're still alive, killing them by suffocation. Some rats are embalmed while they're still alive. This is animal torture and abuse. These animals are deprived from a real life and raised to do what? Be cut open for 30 minutes and then thrown away.

As some of you may know, this year marks the 50th anniversary for the 1969 iconic Woodstock music festival. This peaceful musical love affair will return to us this August 16th to 18th in Watkins Glen, New York. Tickets will be going on sale April 22nd, but prices have yet to be announced.