Yearbooks were delayed one week and seniors did not receive their yearbooks until after graduation rehearsal.
Senior Sami Said stands before seven male students as they kneel on a woven rug in quiet thought. The students stand, chant a melodic prayer, then bow to the floor. As the chants permeate the hallway, only the hum of the Beltway remains as a reminder that this service isn't being held in a mosque, the traditional place of worship. Said's ID still adorns his neck and backpacks line the walls of Blair's child development hallway, where Islamic students come to worship every Friday afternoon.
With schedules due Feb 24 [Editor's note: registration has been postponed see related story (will open in seperate window)], registration for the 2003-2004 school year is rapidly approaching. The courses below are some unusual and enjoyable classes recommended by students who have taken them, liked them and spread the word.
The Women's Bundu Society, a controversial ritual involving female circumcision, is practiced by the Mende and other tribes in Sierra Leone and Western Liberia. When a girl reaches the age of maturity (usually 12 or 13), she spends a week secluded in the forest where she learns the skills necessary to be a successful wife and mother and undergoes female circumcision, in which the clitoris is removed.
Perched comfortably on a chair in the SAC, Sierra Leonean sophomore Mariama Sandy recounts a time when the simple act of lounging was too dangerous. "[My family] couldn't sit in the living room like we used to,” she says. "We were advised to sit on the floor so we wouldn't get shot.”
Mix three cups of compassion with two cups of education, and stir thoroughly. Add one tablespoon of vegetarian practices, and sprinkle in a pinch of consensus decision-making. Simmer for 22 years and you have Food Not Bombs, an organization created by C.T. Butler and Keith McHenry to address the issues of hunger and skewed political priorities.