The HPCMS Chronicle

By Briana Naranjo  Every school has a dress code students must follow. But some of those dress codes are out of line when it comes to what girls wear. For girls, there are a lot of school dress codes that dictate how much thigh and how much shoulder they are allowed to show. Many schools have these dress codes so the students dress “modestly,”  which is understandable to a certain extent. However, many school dress codes focus only on what the girls wear and never focus on what boys wear. This has started major outrage from students, as this is an unfair system and should be changed.    Shirts that show collarbones and shoulders are said to be too “distracting” for the boys and are not “appropriate” for the learning environment. These strict dress codes lead to many counts of girls being sent home due to the fact their clothes were too “revealing” or not “appropriate”. Dress codes don’t just focus on clothing, either: One case of an unfair dress code was in New Orlea...

  The 1900s: Century of Misfortune, Part 1- Remnants of the 1800s By Farhan Ahmed Imagine this: You are a 15 year old Jewish boy in 1942 being taken to a strange camp in Berlin, where the smell of blood taints your nose. You don’t know what to do, but the only thing you’ve been told to do before being separated from your parents is to run and never tell anyone who you truly are. You do so, only to live a life of pure hell for the rest of your 50 years of life.  Needless to say, the 20th century was an eventful century, and it defined the events of the 21st century, even now as there are parts of the world still recovering from wars from feuds that started decades ago. This is the first of a three part article series breaking down the events of the 20th century, starting with the events directly affected by the previous century up until World War 1. Boxer Rebellion (China 1899 - 1901) Outraged by the increase of Western and Japanese influence in North China, or the then-Qing Dy...

By Aleia Fernández and Ella Zak Just like our title says, some schools are separate but not equal. But before we dive in, let’s talk about what school segregation even is. School segregation divides people who are struggling financially from people who aren’t. As a result, people of color are the ones who might not have access to the best resources when it comes to their education. Starting in the late 1900s, segregation divided people not only by race but by their education too. In 1954, the Brown vs. Board of Education arose which provoked the government to make school segregation illegal. Now, you might be asking yourself, Why is school segregation still even a thing? According to the Hulu original, The Weekly , segregation didn’t quite end in 1954, and a lot of people rebelled against the new law. So here we are, with the most segregated school system in the country. The fact that it is still going on today is alarming. Here’s an example of some situations that are happe...

By Lily Pichardo HPCMS, Long Island City - What is the midterm election that everyone is talking about you might be asking? Well, I’m here to help you understand!     Photo Credit: Alexi Stegner and Sarah Horie Q & A What is the midterm election? According to CNN , the midterm election is an election that occurs halfway through the president's term. Who is being elected? According to USA.gov : 435 seats in the US House of Representatives One third of all US senators.  Thirty-six state governors and three U.S territory governors. Many city mayors and local representatives. What does any of this mean?  Congress is the part of the government that creates laws. It is divided into two branches - the house of representatives and the senate (both are controlled by the republicans currently). How is the senate different from the house of representatives? Each state has two senators but the number of representatives is based on populatio...

By Cara Giardina and Vanessa Ramos  Long Island CityWhat does the tax reform bill mean? What will it do? These are some questions that people - including middle schoolers at HPCMS - have had over the past few months since the tax reform bill passed in December of 2017. In November of 2017, congress passed the tax reform bill. The thing about tax reforms is that all our families except kids pay taxes, so it affects all of us. In our opinion it is very important to talk about these things. So you know our parents, and adults pay for rent, bills, and taxes every month. The money they pay in taxes goes to many places. In addition to paying the salaries of government workers, our tax dollars also help to support common resources, such as police officers firefighters and public school teachers Tax money also helps to ensure the roads you travel on are safe and well-maintained and that older people are taken care of when they can no longer work This is what basically happens whe...

By Kylie Williams DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival), is an American immigration policy for individuals who entered the United States illegally, to protect them from deportation. DACA also allows kids (referred to as “dreamers”) to receive a work permit in order for them to get a job. Also, keep in mind that DACA has been going on for so long that some of these kids who entered the U.S as children are now adults who have jobs and lives. So why is there such a buzz around DACA and the dreamers right now? Well, it all started in June 2012 when Obama announced this new immigration policy to protect young illegal immigrants. However, on September 5th, 2017, the Trump administration attempted to revoke the law but the full operation was delayed for six months leaving congress time to discuss the situation. So that means that congress only has until early March to decide whether to keep DACA or to take it away. This is not a lot of time, but a lot can happen. In fact, ...

By Kylie Williams, Jaiden Montero and Vanessa Ramos Original Artwork by Michelle Oliveira, 7th Grade Long Island City - On November 8th, 2016, Donald J. Trump was elected President of the United States of America. There were lots of mixed feelings on this event from many different students at Hunters Point Community Middle School in Long Island City. Some students have felt the need to discuss Trump's presidency and the state of US politics, whether it be in the cafeteria at lunch, in the classroom, or at the dinner table at home. So we have gathered a group of students from HPCMS to interview them on their opinions about US politics. That way, people can have an understanding of what kids think when they hear the word “politics.” “There’s actually a split in my family. None of us support Trump and I supported one of the candidates, but of course I don’t get to vote,” said 6th grader Griffin Weiss. “My mother voted for Bernie until he got out. Then she voted for Hillary and that ...