By: Devyn Adams, Contributor Growing up gay and trans in rural Maine was like growing up without a voice. It meant learning “gay” was a thing you’d be vilified for before even coming out to yourself. It meant going through twelve years of state-mandated curriculum that never once told you of the brave people who fought…
By: James Fagan, Staff Photographer I am a first year student at the University of Southern Maine, and the changes that I have had since coming here are probably the most abrupt changes I had in my life. This does not only apply to how much I read books of my choosing, the amount of…
By: Naamah Jarnot, Coordinator of Tutoring Services Greetings, Huskies! I am delighted to join the University of Southern Maine community as the new Coordinator of Tutoring Services. Many Free Press readers may already be familiar with the Learning Commons, but if you have visited our space or used our services before, do not flip this…
By: Mary Ellen Aldrich, Arts & Culture Editor “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with…
By: Maverick Lynes, Staff Writer I am from Edmonton, a city in Alberta, Canada, and I drove 44 hours to get to the University of Southern Maine. Yes, you read that correctly, 44 hours from the other side of the continent, by myself, without cruise control. The only things I had concerning company were a ton…
By: Daniel Kilgallon, Staff Writer Let’s face the truth; blockbusters in Hollywood have basically become an endless string of reboots, sequels, or adaptations of popular source material. I can’t stand this lack of creative storytelling in the mainstream movie industry and I think it is just about time for studios to stop throwing together rehashes or…
By: Sam Margolin, Staff Writer It was a crisp bright autumn Saturday at the Maine Lakes Brewfest at Point Sebago Camp Ground in Sebago, Maine. Over 3000 attendees came to sample beers from 31 different New England breweries and 15 local food vendors. While some of the more recognizable breweries were present such as Allagash, Shipyard…
By: Mary Ellen Aldrich, Arts & Culture Editor Bare feet, high energy, contagious rhythm and a lot of talent. Keller Williams, a one man band, performed at Aura in downtown Portland as part of his Fall Tour 2017 on Oct. 7. The conglomerate gathering of people was evidence of Williams’ ability to touch upon many…
By: Jordan Castaldo, Staff Writer State officials as of Oct. 8 include: Governor Paul R. LePage, Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap, Attorney General Janet T. Mills, State Treasurer Terry Hayes, and State Auditor Pola Buckley. The mayor of Portland is Ethan K. Strimling since 2015. Senators of the state of Maine are Senator Angus King…
By: Sarah O’Connor, Staff Writer The Multicultural Center (MCC) is located at the Woodbury Campus Center at the Portland campus. Passing by, it seems like another study space, complete with computers and students working on their homework. However, the Center is more than that. According to Anila Karunakar, coordinator of multicultural student affairs, it is a…
By: Aaron Witham, Contributor To some people, climate science seems like straight-up fiction—so why even try to lower your carbon footprint? For others, climate science seems real but also too complicated—so why try to take action if you are not sure which action is best? Finally, some people just plain shut down when they hear about…
By: Andrew Volkers, Contributor Saturday, Sept. 30 a broad coalition of left leaning political groups, including Maine John Brown Gun Club, Portland Confront Community Network for Resistance Organizing and Training (CONFRONT), International Socialist Organization: Portland, ME, Socialist Party of Maine, Socialist Alternative Maine, Bangor Racial and Economic Justice Coalition, Greater Portland SURJ, Central Maine SURJ, SURJ…
By: Micaela Manganello, Contributor Thursday. August 25th, 2016. For most, this was probably another normal day. Some might have been enjoying the beautiful weather and holding on to those last weeks of summer vacation. Others might have been at work waiting for the day to pass so they could be closer to the weekend. For…
By: Daniel Kilgallon, Staff Writer When looking back on the eventful seventh season of HBO’s Game of Thrones, the word bittersweet comes to mind for several different reasons. First of all, it is hard to come to terms with the idea that there will only be six more episodes of my favorite television show and…
By: Mary Ellen Aldrich, Arts & Culture Editor On Saturday, Oct. 7, Aura in downtown Portland will welcome Keller Williams, a one man band. Williams uses a loop pedal and an acoustic guitar to create his “acoustic dance music” (ADM). Tying in notes of rock, bluegrass, funk, free jazz and electronica, Williams creates a complex…
By: Cormac Riordan, Staff Writer Although it’s Princess Nokia’s first mixtape, 1992 Deluxe is not the first mixtape by Destiny Frasqueri. She began rapping in 2010 as Wavy Spice when she was 18. She released two mixtapes before changing her name to Princess Nokia (after the “Obama Phone” she received through welfare, a Nokia) in 2014…
By: Maverick Lynes, Staff Writer The USM theatre production of Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom is original, violent, abstract and the furthest thing from boring. I can say with full confidence that this play, a mix of comedy and horror, is nothing like something I have seen before. Neighborhood 3 is a play that is set…
By: Sam Margolin, Staff Writer A new home for USM’s MBA program is still in the planning stages after almost five years. Since 2013, the process of how to combine the MBA and Law programs of USM and UMaine Orono, and build a new graduate center to house them, has been frustrating and stalled. Changes in…
By: Sarah O’Connor, Staff Writer The International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA) orchestrated an audit report this summer for the USM Police Department. Between May 21 and 24, the Loaned Executive Management Assistance Program (LEMAP) helped USM in evaluating their police, security and public safety programs. Buster Neel, Interim Chief Business Officer, described that…
By: Cara DeRose, Copy Editor The Sept. 29 student senate meeting began with the election of senior business major Chase Hewitt. When Senate Chair Muna Adan asked Hewitt why he was interested in joining student senate, Hewitt responded that he is “specifically interested in commuter issues [and] helping commuters have a better experience here [at USM].”…
By: River Plouffe Vogul, Sports Editor Getting involved is an easy and great way to meet new people, learn new games, have a fun time and stay in shape. While sportsmanship and fun are first and foremost, it is also competitive and anyone who joins should expect to laugh hard and play hard. USM intramurals, which…
By: Daniel Kilgallon, Staff Writer In a few weeks, we will be getting the first Blade Runner movie since 2007, when director Ridley Scott released the seventh version of his 1982 original, suitably titled The Final Cut. Starring Ryan Gosling and featuring the return of Harrison Ford in his iconic role as Rick Deckard, Blade…
By: Jordan Castaldo, Staff Writer USM’s Theatre Club is a club for singers, dancers, actors and artists alike. Formally known as Student Performing Artists club (SPA), the club is advised by Sara Valentine, a lecturer in the Department of Theatre Much like the theatre majors themselves, SPA is full of vibrant young artists who value collaboration,…
By: Mary Ellen Aldrich, Arts & Culture Editor The term Intersectionality was first coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw, an American feminist legal scholar, critical race theorist and civil rights advocate, in the late 1980s in relation to the feminist movement. Crenshaw argued that feminism needed to look at more than gender, and that race, class and…