Hennessy Garcia led a Black Lives Matter march through Washington Square Park in New York City, during the summer of 2020, toting a loudspeaker and hair scrunchies. As she handed the megaphone off like a torch to people who wanted to voice their thoughts on police brutality and the justice system, a woman unaffiliated with the march made her way to the front and stripped naked. Garcia laughed.
On Nov. 2, Stony Brook University (SBU) student and Undergraduate Student Government (USG) Senator Sarah El Baroudy posted an Instagram story of her vandalized car. In red paint, her door read, “terrorist” and “go to hell.” At SBU, pro-Palestine students like El Baroudy say they are facing an onslaught of discrimination and disregard — and that the administration has done nothing about it.
Ocean Blvd serves as a crash course on the singer, containing modules on her iconography, family history and psyche.
“What does it mean to live in a society where the police dictate what we’re allowed to say?” Crystal Fleming asked at a teach-in called “Policing Free Speech at Stony Brook” held on March 23 in response to the backlash Hayward faced. Suffolk County knows the answer to this question.
Radio pop’s downward spiral began with an attitude towards the general mainstream that festered on social media and grew over time. Being “basic” — enjoying cultural trends like pop music — was frowned upon.