By: Gianna Jacobs/Staff Writer

  Michael Jackson, known as the “King of Pop,” reshaped the music industry and influenced generations of artists, yet, decades of child sexual abuse allegations have has damaged his reputation. The debate of whether Michael Jackson was a good or bad person is not easily answered or proven. 

     Jackson’s impact as an artist is undeniable. Albums like “Thriller” and “Bad” broke records, and his music video and concert performances redefined pop music and dance across the world. Beyond his music career, he was known for his philanthropy, donating millions to charities and using his platform to raise awareness for many issues that most artists at the time would not risk talking about.   

     However, for all the good he has done, he has been accused of some horrible things. The allegations against him should not be overlooked. In 1993, Jackson faced multiple accusations of child sexual abuse against a boy he met through a car rental service. The case resulted in a civil settlement without an admission of guilt, and a later criminal trial held in 2005 ended with Jackson being acquitted of all charges. 

     The FBI looked into Jackson on multiple accounts between 1993 and 2005. The investigations found no evidence of criminal conduct. The absence of convictions from all the cases has not ended the controversy against his character. 

     Later on, more allegations were revealed over time including multiple claims of sexual abuse presented in the 2019 documentary “Neverland.” Ongoing lawsuits have been reviewed and filed in recent years. Though most of the cases have been dismissed, many of these cases are still unsolved due to the speculation of what really happened during this time.  

     Fans argue that the allegations were financially motivated and were inconsistent of his character, with discrepancies and testimonies lacking definitive physical evidence. Others emphasize the number of accusers and the seriousness of their claims, arguing that the legal outcomes of his cases do not necessarily point to his innocence. 

     There is not a clear verdict of whether or not Micheal Jackson was a good person because of the conflicting legacies left by his separate lives. As a world-famous artist, his work has brought joy to millions of people, but his personal life remains the subject of troubling allegations. 

     Micheal Jackson was neither wholly “good” or “bad’’ in a way that satisfies both his fans and the people who believe the allegations.

     For some, his music will always stand apart from the accusations. For many fans, the allegations permanently alter how he and his music are viewed. The debate over Micheal Jackson defines a different question of whether society can separate the art from the artist.

By: Bryanna Pullins/ Website Manager

For over 30 years, band students have enjoyed a trip to Disney every four years, and this spring break, the high school band is headed back to Disney World.

     Departing on March 27 and returning April 1, band students will enjoy a five-day trip to “the happiest place on Earth,” adding to the trip an additional three days off of school.

    On Thursday morning, 175 band students loaded up on four charter buses, beginning their 1,000 mile 16-hour drive to Orlando; however, the journey will take around 24 hours due to stops for restroom breaks, changes in bus drivers and meal breaks.

     Each student paid over $1500 to enjoy entry to three of the four parks, including Epcot, Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. as well as covering transportation fees and hotel costs. Students will stay at the Rosen Hotel where they will be roomed with three other students of their choice (four to a room in total).

     While this trip comes with a hefty price tag of over $1500 with additional cost for meals and merchandise, families are not left to pay the cost out of pocket. Senior Madenlynn Chikosky explained how band families had multiple chances to earn funds to help cover the cost of the trip.

     “There’s a lot of opportunities for parents to get money–volunteering at Blossom to pay for other things. [We] all have band accounts, so most every fundraiser can go into your band account, and that’s how you pay for it, so you don’t have to pay everything out of pocket,” Chikosky said.

    According to band director Greg Newman, Disney World has been a continuous pick due to it being a great venue: providing workshops for the band, giving students the opportunity to perform in the Epcot parade and the amazing warm weather.

     The band will participate in a workshop with a Disney cast member where they will perform multiple Disney songs. The workshop provides students with a hands-on learning experience to improve their musical skills and perfect technique. 

     “We’re split up into two groups. The maroon band and the gold band are going to be two separate groups and then half of the wind goes to each, and then half of the freshman band goes to each,” Chikosky said.

     Newman said the band will be performing three songs in the parade including “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Across the Field “(the SMF Fight Song) and drumline cadences throughout the parade route. 

     Newman considers this performance to be one of his most memorable moments at the park and one he regularly looks forward to having again, recounting it to be an amazing experience for the students to have. 

     Chikosky shares this sentiment, believing Disney is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that everyone should have. Being able to go on such a trip and hanging out with friends is an experience she is not only looking forward to but one which everyone in the band should take advantage of.

     Chikosky is not the first in her family to go on the band disney trip–her older sister who attended the 2022 Disney band trip leaves her with this advice: “Enjoy it, don’t focus on stressing over what you want to do, and definitely enjoy the bus ride because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing that you will experience.”

By: Ty Phillips/Editor

People become victims everyday. From sexual abuse to domestic violence, there are always people who are living their worst day. 

     The knowledge that people have been through horrible experiences makes people morbidly curious. ‘What did they go through?’; ‘What were they thinking?’; ‘How were they treated?’ With social media people hear something terrible and have question after question. 

     It often seems as if people are forgetting that the “stories” they are listening to came from real people. Recently, I saw students from Central Visual and Performing Arts High School talk about their experience surviving a school shooting in 2022. Over 20 people have come forward to talk about how terrifying it was and how scared they were. 

     To my absolute shock, all I saw in the comments were people asking for part two, making insensitive comments and not many people giving any sympathy. Most of the comments were filled with reaction pics and “Oooooh when we gonna get the rest of the story?” as if what they were listening to was fictional and there for their entertainment. 

     With the Epstein files I am seeing this more and more–people feel like they should be able to know who the people are, how old they were when it happened and everything they went through. People are treating the victims like a show.

     It seems as if people are quickly forgetting that what they find ‘entertaining’ is what others are having nightmares from. Amanda Knox talks about this in her article, “True crime fails when it treats trauma as entertainment. But there’s a better way.” She discusses how society finds brutal murders and true crime to be the peak of their interest without taking into account that it actually happened to someone. 

     While morbid curiosity is normal and important, there becomes a point where it becomes insensitive and rude. Sharing photos of crime scenes and un-blurring photos of the children in the Epstein files is not acceptable or normal. Treating victims with the respect they deserve is happening less and less; They are becoming spectacles for people to talk about.
    Many articles are being written, and there are photos shown of things that victims had to go through, yet it seems as if people are not focusing on the victims themselves but the circumstances and the monstrosities they went through.

     Documentaries are often made about what victims went through. A newer one is Piper Rockelle and what she went through with childhood exploitation and how terribly her mother treated her. While it was airing, people on her TikTok had very little empathy, leaving comments like, ‘Yes, but did she have to do…..” or “Do you guys think she acts like this because her mom made her?” When Rockelle would come on social media and talk about how the documentary–which was made without her consent–affected her, people told her to move on and to just answer their questions. 

     Social media and TV are heavily adding to people’s greed to know what people have been through, desensitizing them to the fact that they have no right to know how people have lived. 

     The Epstein files have left people with many questions. Something I am seeing often asked is why are victims being unblurred, but the perpetrators are being hidden? This leads to more questions about the victims, trying to find them and trying to see if there was anyone who loosely looked like them hanging around celebrities. 

     People are reading what victims had to go through and being disgusted, yet they continue to share it and investigate more. Even when victims of Epstein and similar events come out and ask people to be kinder, not to talk about them like they are a spectacle and give them the respect they deserve, people continue on to act as they did previously. 

     Morbid curiosity is fine, but think about what if one day your family had a horrid murder or attack, and before people ask how you are feeling or what they can do to help, they are sharing all of your private information for everyone to know without asking you for as little as an okay. How would that make you feel? Be considerate and respectful when listening and learning about what people have gone through. `