10 Things To Know About 'Roma's' Yalitza Aparicio

10 Things To Know About 'Roma's' Yalitza Aparicio

Yalitza is making major headlines as the first indigenous woman to be nominated for lead actress at The Academy Awards.

Melyssa Guzman
Melyssa Guzman Feb 25, 2019
25
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Yalitza is the star of the Netflix film "Roma" which has been nominated for several Academy Awards. Yalitza has been thrust into the limelight ever since getting recognition for her role as Cleo, the housemaid in the film. Here are some fun facts about this queen.

1. Yalitza was a preschool teacher

She had a degree in early childhood education while pursuing another degree in pre-school education before starring in "Roma." This brings to light how indigenous women and men are continuing in higher education.

2. She is the second Mexican actress to be nominated for an Oscar

Yalitza got nominated for best actress and I almost had tears of joy. She is the second Mexican actress to be nominated behind Salma Hayek who got nominated for her portrayal of Frida Khalo.

3. Her older sister was suppose to audition for the role of Cleo in Roma

Yalitza's sister was pregnant at the time and asked Yalitza to audition for her, bur Yalitza was skeptical about the whole ordeal. She went to the audition as a favor to her sister and gave it her all, which stirred emotions for Alfonso Cuarón who based the film on his memories of his nanny growing up.

4. Yalitza has three emotional scenes: Spoiler 

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times Yalitza started with the first scene that was emotional to film, which was the scene where she was in a furniture store and her ex began pointing a gun at her. The second scene is where Yalitza's character is giving birth to her stillborn child. The last scene is where Cleo has to rush in the water to save the kids from drowning.

5. She has been facing racist comments on her looks and being indigenous, but remains classy. 

Although fame and recognition can be positive, fame does come with negative aspects. Yalitza has been criticized for her beauty, skin tone, and being indigenous. In an article in indiewire, that she did pose for her Vogue cover to be the face of Mexico. Bur Yalitza has shown more representation for the indigenous population.

6. She is from indigenous origin - her father is Mixtec and her mother is Triqui

Yalitza stays true to her character Cleo by being 100% indigenous and really understand how the indigenous population was treated in the seventies in Mexico.

7. Yalitza has been nominated for nine awards for her portrayal of Cleo in the film Roma

I hope "Roma" wins some or even all the nominations for this years Academy Awards because not only is it a cinematic masterpiece, but it also brings up pivotal moments in Mexican history that people may not know about.

8. She took the role of Cleo as a tribute to her mother

Yalitza dedicated the role of Cleo to her mother. She stated in an ET article, "At first, this was an opportunity to pay tribute to my mother for her work. She too is a housekeeper, but now I realize this film is an opportunity to show all domestic workers the importance of their role within a family unit."


I love this quote because it gives depth to her but also to her character Cleo.

9. Yalitza is the first indigenous woman to be on the cover of Vogue Mexico

It is so refreshing to have to have an indigenous woman on the cover of Vogue. It opens up discussion on the indigenous community and their values in society.

10. A subjective opinion on Yalitza is that she has amazing fashion

Yalitza has definitely become one of my favorite fashion icons. She can dress casual, classy and elegant, but also chic. I definitely cannot wait to see what she will wear to the Academy Awards.

Melyssa Guzman
Melyssa Guzman Feb 25, 2019
At DePaul University

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Allegations Of Domestic Abuse Against Johnny Depp Turn Out To Be False

Johnny Depp was framed and it turns out that his now ex-wife was actually the abuser, not the other way around.

amrojas
amrojas Mar 19, 2019
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You might have heard last year that Amber Heard, leading female actress in "Aquaman," made allegations over domestic abuse against her then-husband, Johnny Depp. This caused Twitter to "cancel" Johnny Depp, compelling people to boycott his movies, including the latest film from the Harry Potter universe, "Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them." He was even dropped from the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise following those allegations.

Recently, however, Johnny Depp has filed a lawsuit against Heard for a whopping 50 million dollars on the counts that the abuse allegations she made were false. In addition, an overwhelming amount of evidence has been presented, including 87 surveillance tapes and 17 sworn eyewitness statements, showing that Heard was the perpetrator of the abuse, not Depp. She even became a "darling of the MeToo movement", a Human Rights Champion of the United Nations Human Rights Office, was appointed ambassador on women's rights at the American Civil Liberties Union, and was hired by L'Oreal Paris as its global spokesperson, as a result of the false allegations, according to the lawsuit from Depp's legal team. Reports say that she even confessed that they were a hoax as well.

It is truly a shame, and I am utterly disgusted at the level of sheer hypocrisy being demonstrated here. Imagine trying to propel your career based upon a mountain of lies and not only that, lies about the abuse that you committed. I honestly don't know how Heard can live with herself, having knowingly ruined someone's life by spreading lies, let alone causing a person such high levels of physical harm on multiple occasions (and on top of that her performance in "Aquaman" was EXTREMELY subpar). What Amber Heard did is just going to be used in favor of those who oppose the MeToo movement, because now there is clear evidence of a female celebrity lying about the abuse. Heard's lies could be used to discredit every woman telling the truth, and especially now we want to and SHOULD believe women. Instead of making things better for women, she has just magnified the damage and has made it increasingly difficult for women in the future to report their abuse because now there will be more speculation.

However, I do also think that it is crucial to think about the double standards we often hold here. Just because women tend to be the victims of abuse more than men does not mean that men do not also suffer abuse. Women should not be blindly believed on every occasion because of that statistic as well. We want so desperately to believe women, yet when Amber Heard claimed to have been abused she was believed without intense further investigations and even put on pedestals for her bravery, despite the fact that Depp's ex-wives had never suffered abuse by him. Perhaps every claim of abuse really should be investigated equally, regardless of the gender of the victim.

I am extremely glad that Johnny Depp was not the abuser because I have always admired his incredible acting and talent. I am glad that my impression of him can remain as good as it was before and that I can give him my full respect again. However, Amber Heard must be treated the same way Depp was when he was accused - full "cancellation."

amrojas
amrojas Mar 19, 2019
At University of Arizona

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Dear Olivia Jade

An expression of concern on behalf of the student body.

Rachel Billington
Rachel Billington Mar 20, 2019
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Dear Olivia Jade,

Almost nineteen years ago I was born in Long Beach, California, to an immigrant mother and a father who would soon be essentially jobless. Both my parents went back to school when I was a child - my father got his law degree online and is now a public defender, and my mother got her degree in biology from Fresno State. It was incredibly difficult for both of them to do this and raise three children, but they did, and I am eternally grateful. From a young age, I was taught that education is important. You make sacrifices for it. It means a lot more to people than game days and partying.

Unfortunately, they never taught me that this country's educational system is incredibly classist (I have Twitter and my AP Composition teacher in high school to thank for that). For this demonstration, I'm going to have to talk about myself more - I'm sure as a vlogger you understand. When I applied to USC, I had a 3.8 GPA, took 9 AP classes, was heavily involved in choir, started a club for mental health awareness, and had written decent essays. I worked hard in high school, and I deserved to get in. But I was pretty privileged compared to most kids. I lived in a two bedroom apartment with my dad, but we were living comfortably. I had a laptop to study with, and if I needed anything for school he was there to support me. Furthermore, my high school's average family income was in the upper 9% compared to other schools, and having rich parents around means bigger donations, smaller class sizes, more extracurricular opportunities and overall a better quality education. The environment I was in encouraged me to succeed in a system where a degree from an elite university is seen as the key to entering the 1%, even though the only people who can truly afford it are in that top 1%. But I was grateful for the opportunities I had been given, and I chose USC because I thought that in the long run, it was worth the financial risk.

Still, sometimes I wished I was like you. You, with your famous parents, YouTube money, millions of followers, and excellent bone structure. You, with your carefree attitude about school, not having to worry about your midterms, not having to worry about getting a job, not having to worry about financial aid. But the fact of the matter is, whether or not you knew about the entire scam, you sit on a throne of privilege and lies. You were admitted to USC because your parents bribed your way in. You and your sister received scholarships from USC when they could have gone to two students who were much more deserving.

I'll admit, when this story broke it hurt me on a personal level. Right now I'm considering taking a year off from school and preparing to transfer, because I literally cannot afford to go here, and it is devastating. I can't tell you how bad it feels, as someone who worked so hard despite struggling with mental illness and was even hospitalized in high school, to get a reality check only halfway through your first semester that going to your dream school is no longer feasible. And I'm not alone. I have too many friends in similar situations, who have either accepted their impending debt, or who may drop out. We are the minority at USC, but the unfortunate majority of college students. We aren't here to have fun, we're here to get a degree. To get a job. To not disappoint our parents who sacrificed so much for us. To survive.

And that's why you should drop out.

At orientation, we were all told the five traits of a Trojan: faithful, skillful, scholarly, courageous, and ambitious. I do not know you well enough to know if you are faithful, courageous, or ambitious (skillful at social media and marketing, maybe), but you are most certainly not scholarly (aside from the whole mom paying $500,000 to get you in thing, your school-hating tweets are further proof). And if you and your sister don't drop out of USC, you won't have any integrity either. Two hard-working, bright, and deserving transfer applicants will be denied the opportunity of getting to study at an amazing school because of you taking their spots. They need this degree. You don't.

If, by a long shot, you're reading this, I hope you don't see this letter as a personal attack, rather, advice. An expression of concern on behalf of the student body. After all, you don't need a college degree to party in LA.

Sincerely,

A broke, frustrated, yet hopeful college student.

Rachel Billington
Rachel Billington Mar 20, 2019
At University of Southern California

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