The beloved HBO show “Game of Thrones” (GOT) is currently celebrating its 15th anniversary, and it seems only fair to give some attention to its casting choices, but is there a deeper societal message behind them?

In 2016, Jon Snow actor Kit Harington commented in an interview with The Sunday Times that he felt there was “reverse sexism” in male actors like himself being cast in roles purely based on their physiques. 

He received intense backlash for his statements over his claim of sexism. Such a claim may have been a little distasteful in light of systemic female oppression, but it does raise some important questions about how physicality did play into casting decisions for the show.

Harington was cast for the role of broody and rugged Jon Snow, while  his co-star Peter Dinklage was chosen to play the wittier but less physically imposing Tyrion Lannister, and I can’t help but wonder what that  says about the issue of appearance-based typecasting.

Websites tailored to actors, such as Casting Networks, have even commented on the issue. In a 2024 article, Illana Rapp mentioned that many actors and actresses are typecast for certain parts based on physical appearance, sometimes even having to undergo a “physical transformation” to escape that niche and break out into new things. 

Rapp even acknowledged the larger social implications both inside and outside of the acting community, stating that the “practice can strengthen inflexible character molds rooted in gender, ethnicity, age, and other factors, thereby constraining diversity and inclusivity in the field.”

Discussing the issue regarding GOT is especially important as it, and its two spinoffs, are rather high-profile projects. With such a space in the limelight, they are especially likely to have had adverse effects on industry standards. 

Harington may not have gone about discussing the issue most productively, but he certainly does seem to have a point. Game of Thrones is a fantastic show in its own right. I, like many others, have fervently binged the entirety of its eight seasons, but it seems undeniably beneficial for future TV and cinema projects to focus on diversifying their casting selections in order to create a more equitable future for the industry. 

Harington, Dinklage, and all actors in between deserve to be given proper credit for their versatility, but this will never happen if they continue to be stereotypically cast for slots like jocks or comedic relief based on little more basis than physical appearance. 

The issue also needs to be looked at from a broader societal standpoint. There have always been notable stereotypes based on traits like gender, ethnicity, or body composition. And as  Rapp mentioned, Hollywood typecasting only serves to bolster those notions and promote such discrimination on an even wider scale. 

The problem is definitely widespread, and it will take time to work past it, but many in the creative sphere are actively finding ways to overcome it. 

In an article for East Film, Emily Knudson mentions that “many more Black directors, writers and producers are getting their work greenlit by studios” and that this is “allowing actual Black creators to be dictating how Black people are represented.”

Knudson also tells readers that they are specifically doing this by accepting that “stereotypes return” at many points in artistic creation, but taking control of them by making sure that they are “presented in a satirical manner.”

This  twisting of the practice provides hope for the future of both the film industry and society as a whole. It shows that  even if we cannot always ignore cultural misconceptions, we can find ways to reclaim them and turn them into something more positive and uplifting. 

Whether it be Game of Thrones (I would personally love to see Dinklage slay a few dragons) or a high school science classroom, I think that we as a society should definitely take the same advice. I know that we are fully capable of creating a more positive world, but we can only do that if we are willing to fight in the now to reimagine what each of us is capable of, and to allow every individual to reach their full potential.

The post Game of Thrones and the Social Implications of Its Casting first appeared on The Bottom Line.

Martin Koolhoven’s 2016 film “Brimstone” is an arguably brilliant western flick, but what more does it have to say about commonly religiously motivated gender norms during its 19th-century timeline?

I believe that it serves as a great commentary on the fact that, without proper legal and scientific advancements, the men of the American West were truly allowed to simply be judge, jury, and even executioner in many situations. 

The film begins with a jarring sequence in which the film’s main protagonist, Liz, portrayed by Dakota Fanning, is forced, in her local church and under the watchful eye of her new reverend, to fulfill a more difficult duty of the period’s midwives and deliver a stillborn to save its mother’s life.

This serves as a segue into our first observation, as she receives no shortage of backlash for her actions. Later at her house, the unfortunate mother’s husband becomes irate and violent with Liz and her family, and he rebukes her as the female midwife charged with handling the situation. He ignores the fact that with the time’s rather limited gynecological knowledge, there was only so much she could do, and he blames her for the child’s death, implying that it was an act of evil or wrongdoing. Furthermore, she is similarly chastised by the reverend, a man she is seemingly already weary of, for the same crime and for other previous crimes which only he seems to believe or be aware of. 

In setting this scene, the film tells an important story about religion and the minuscule scientific or feminist development promoted by it at the time. And this is done not only through the fact that Liz, as a woman, is given the difficult job and blamed solely for its result, but also through the idea it seems to promote that such an event might have happened based on the little medical knowledge or assistance allowed for by the church setting where the birth occurred. 

The reverend is then revealed as violent towards Liz and her family, consisting of her husband, stepson, and daughter, and she is forced to flee with the latter. We then witness a young woman, Joanna, experiencing adolescence in a brothel in the fictional town of Bismuth. She and her fellow “workers” are consistently abused by customers and forced to be submissive, punished severely by the corrupt owner and his sheriff brother, even through the loss of tongues when they deign to fight back. 

Joanna eventually escapes when the titular reverend, revealed to be much more closely related to her, comes to torture her for her services and perceived sins, but the sequence is used to elaborate even further on how a system, created by men, was directly regulated by men for their benefit. 

These men in the film create and, through corrupt social and legal rules, maintain a disgusting system of abuse. We also know that the film is sadly taking inspiration from real events, as such “institutions” are known to have existed in many Western Downs during the era. 

The film then builds up to its conclusion of Liz’s defeat of the pursuing reverend, but subsequent death by past foes, with another childhood sequence. 

In this set of scenes, young Joanna, having later changed her name to Elizabeth, is revealed to have been raised by her abusive and extremely cultishly perverted father, the Reverend, and only escapes when Samuel, an outlaw movingly portrayed by Kit Harrington, encourages her escape and then defends it with his life. 

This moment is especially important because it immortalizes the sexist cruelty of the film yet also provides hope for a better world. 

Through such depictions, the film hearwrenchingly reveals the cruelty of its chosen world, but its two main heroines and their actions also convey a possibility of escape in the past and even for modern viewers. 

Samuel’s and Joanna’s/Liz’s coordinated escape plan makes it clear that even though the horrors the film describes did exist, and in some cases continue to exist, there is always a chance of escape for those affected by them, if, as a society, we are willing to band together in defense of what is right.

The post “Brimstone”: The Wild West’s Battle of the Sexes first appeared on The Bottom Line.

“Mortal Kombat II,” a direct sequel to the 2021 film “Mortal Kombat,” is an intense adaptation of the action-packed video game with the same name. 

The video game series has been alive for more than 30 years now, and within that time frame, it has seen its ups and downs. The most recent installment of the video game series was “Mortal Kombat 1,” which was released in 2023. You can see my review of that video game here, where I dove into how it failed to live up to the expectations that many fans were hoping for. 

The 2021 “Mortal Kombat” film was met with harsh criticism from critics and long-time fans of the series as well. In the film’s defense, it was the first time they had tried to make a film showcasing the video game series in over 20 years. The very first film of the series, also titled “Mortal Kombat,” was released in 1995, and fans considered this one to be the very best … until the most recent release of “Mortal Kombat II.”

The release of “Mortal Kombat II” marked the highest Rotten Tomatoes score of any previous live-action “Mortal Kombat” film. The score isn’t anything to rave about, but to long-time fans of the series, this is a step in the right direction and is sure to catch the eyes of casual moviegoers. 

Additionally, the film has become the highest-grossing fighting game movie of all time, with a current gross of $100 million at the box office in its second week at theaters. Whether the record maintains its rank will remain to be seen, especially as another fighting video game is earning its movie adaptation this year: “Street Fighter.”

Many fans of the fighting game genre are well aware that there are constant discussions surrounding which is the better fighting game. This rivalry will now be taken to the theaters, where fan bases will be holding box office numbers and review scores against each other for years to come. 

Personally, I favor “Mortal Kombat” more as a franchise, and I can safely say that they have improved a lot since the last film in 2021.

The film kept all of the same characters from the 2021 film and added a couple of new ones, such as Johnny Cage, played by Karl Urban, Kitana, played by Adeline Rudolph, and the new big bad Shao Kahn, played by the towering actor Martyn Ford. 

These new additions to the film are fan favorite characters from the video games, and they stole the spotlight anytime they were on screen, whether it was Johnny Cage cracking up a joke to ease the tension or Shao Kahn’s intimidating presence that brought a sense of dread with him everywhere he went. 

Speaking of Shao Kahn, his presence was strongly felt throughout the movie, and luckily, it wasn’t just because he was standing there menacingly. Shao Kahn was given a large number of fight scenes, and each one felt more dangerous than the last.

Fans of the series know that the standout feature of the franchise is the Fatality move, which prompts the winner to finish their opponent in a bloody fashion. The film delivered on this feature and then some!

Aside from the action-packed fight scenes and bloody fatalities, the overall story also has viewers on the edge of their seats, with plenty of character development, twists and turns, and a looming sense of danger throughout to keep your heart pounding and eyes watching. 

With the film excelling critically and financially, and one actor reportedly signing a five-year film contract, there is a clear sign of what is intended for the franchise. If this film is an indicator of what is to come, I can safely say the franchise is in good hands. 

But if the idea of having to keep track of multiple movies deters you from watching this one, I would say don’t let it. As a standalone action movie, it has everything you could want for a fun film.

But don’t just take my word for it, see it for yourself!

The post “Mortal Kombat II” is a Bloody Good Time first appeared on The Bottom Line.

UC Santa Barbara’s (UCSB) chapter of the nationally recognized organization, Active Minds (AM), is a student-led group that spreads awareness about mental health to students throughout community  events and educational workshops. Second-year psychology and brain sciences major Natalie Zebley talked about her experience as co-research liaison of AM in an interview with The Bottom Line.

Zebley discussed the first time she heard about AM and why she was interested in joining. Zebley stated, “I’m very interested in psychology and in human mental health. I saw this club as an opportunity to get more involved in a space where it’s just accepted to talk about mental health.” As co-research liaison, Zebley presents on various mental health topics, like how music can help improve one’s mental health.

Zebley mentioned that one of the main issues associated with mental health is “academic pressure,” and that it’s an issue she takes it into consideration when she plans meetings with the AM board. Zebley said, “A lot of the people who are trying to do well in their classes also have a lot of other things going on. So people that really regularly come to our club meetings [find] a little bit of community and a space to get away from their hectic responsibilities and meet some new people.” Zebley also encourages members to reach out to available mental health resources such as  Counseling & Psychological Services, or CAPS.

One of the challenges that AM experiences, like other student-led organizations, is maintaining member attendance. Zebley said that it’s hard to reach people to be consistently involved with AM. However, she believes that when regular members attend, they meet new people who are inspired to continue attending. Zebley stated, “The ultimate aid in mental health is community, and honestly, there are so many ways that you can find community on a college campus that can help in your mental health.” 

AM found methods to reach out to interested members, such as the Stigma Free fair, which is the biggest mental health fair that AM hosts. Zebley added, “We had a bunch of mental health organizations from campus all on the lawn in front of the [Student Resource Building]. And we had some dog therapy, which is very effective and just a bunch of fun.” Zebley sees the Stigma Free fair as a fun and effective way for students to learn more about the resources and mental health activities offered on campus.

AM was able to receive funding from the Active Minds national organization through grants that helped them host events that benefited students’ mental health. Zebley talked about the organization recently hosting a bouquet-making event, where people created bouquets to give to a loved one, saying that “One major way to aid your own mental health is to help someone else and to feel like you’re doing a good thing for another person.”

AM is proud of all of the accomplishments and impact it has made on students so that they can receive mental health support and learn about the available resources on campus. Zebley encourages interested students to join their organization to learn more about how to take care of themselves during academic and personal struggles.

To learn more about UCSB’s Active Minds and their work, readers can find them on their Instagram page @ucsbactiveminds. For additional information about the national organization, check out the official Active Minds website.

The post UCSB’s Active Minds: A Sanctuary For Students’ Mental Health first appeared on The Bottom Line.

Benjamin Stein // Staff Writer

This article is purely satirical and should not be taken seriously. Any attributions in this article are fictitious, and this story should be read as entertainment only.

We asked every California gubernatorial candidate: What’s your most important plan for when you become governor?

Mayor of San Jose and Silicon Valley pick Matt Mahan (D): “Every man in California should have a robot girlfriend. On day one, I will start the production of 20 million robo-babes for 29 million Californian men. These robotic baddies will come in two flavors: blonde and goth.” 

Sheriff Chad Bianco (R): “For too long, California’s corrupt Democratic government has ignored the real threat to our state: the army of Bigfoots in Yosemite. This legion of hairy beasts has been poisoning our water with fluoride and our skies with chemtrails. The only way to defeat them is by making an alliance with a slightly less sinister organization: the Freemasons.”

Man-about-to-drop-out Antonio Villaraigos (D): “We need more steroids in schools. Our children are weak as hell. How can we expect them to fight the many wolves prowling this nation?” 

Former Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra (D): “Crime has become a huge problem in this state. To combat that, I will make a radical first step: outlawing all crime. Under my administration, no longer shall kidnapping, stealing, and insurance fraud be legal.” 

Billionaire businessman Tom Steyer (D): “First, I will combat homelessness. This will be done by constructing a giant orb near Los Angeles. This orb can roll around California, allowing homeless people to jump into it through its many doors. Second, I will stop Trump’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). I’ll achieve this by creating a massive pilotable robot beneath the Golden Gate Bridge. If ICE enters this state, this robot, which will be piloted by a highly trained, traumatized teenager, can fight it using a giant robot saber. Thirdly, we need to fight climate change. To do this, I’ll build a massive heat-proof dome covering the entirety of California, except for Bakersfield.” 

Fox News anchor and Brit Steve Hilton (R): “The state’s bloody Democratic government are bollocks! We need real leadership, and that is me. First, I will sign an order making myself King of California. Then, I’ll take all those tax dollars we’re wasting on healthcare and education and put them towards building a beautiful palace. Finally, I’ll declare war on France.”

Former Congresswoman Katie Porter (D): “As a struggling mother of three, I know the hardship of having your children getting kidnapped by forest witches. No one should go through the experience of waking up and finding out that your six-year-old son, Peter Porter, has been taken. It’s not until 14 years later that you see Peter again, and he’s been transformed into some half-deer, half-human creature with magical powers and he says he’s getting married to the ‘king of the forest’ and you’re invited to the wedding. And you’re fine with the gay thing, but the problem is that the king of the forest is 4,000 years old and has never had a real job. So, to answer your question, I think we need to give more money to childcare.” 

Truly, this election might just be the most dramatic occurrence in California since the “H” in the Hollywood sign disappeared.

The post The California Gubernatorial Candidates’ Promises first appeared on The Bottom Line.

Sophia Sullivan // Staff Writer

If laughing because it hurts was a movie, then “Fackham Hall” would be that movie. 

Jim O’Hanlon’s 2025 flick “Fackham Hall” is a masterclass in comedy, but behind the laughs is an incredibly cutting take on social norms not only for the early 20th century, but for the modern day as well.

The film is set in England in 1931, and, as a parody of “Downton Abbey,” it serves as a fantastic conversational piece regarding rampant sexism, classism, and exploitation during the period. 

The first order of business is to analyze what all of the story’s laughable, campy jokes have to say about Depression era society. It’s all the more exciting when you look beyond and juxtapose it with our current societal challenges. 

In the very beginning, the Lady of the fictional hall refers to her daughter Rose as a “dried up husk of a woman,” because she’s reached the dismal age of 23. In the context of the film’s humor, one might see it as little more than a dark joke, but the wit is, given the historical context, little more than a buffer for a grim reality. Having a laugh might make it easier to process that women’s worth was very much tied to their youth during that period, youth with a capital “Y.” In doing so, “Fackham Hall” calls out the highly questionable practice.  

The film also takes no shortage of digs at the vast divide between the rich and poor of the UK’s early 20th-century society. When the Davenports’ oldest daughter, Poppy, reaches the altar with her fiancé, Archibald Davenport, she backs out and quite literally runs to her true love, Lyroy, who is passing by running his highly successful manure delivery business. 

We can and, as the film intends, should laugh at his line of work, but it does point out a truth about class divisions in fictional 1930s England. There was a clear gap at the time between the higher and lower classes, and O’Hanlon calls it out through the painfully funny scene.

The entire film also carries on the repeated gag of clumsy, ignored household staff whom  the family patriarch, in some cases, even uses as chairs to sit on. These moments are also played up and exaggerated to make viewers laugh. However, in pointing out through comedy how ridiculous such a thing is, the movie directly chastises the exploitation of workers, both domestic and in factories, which was prevalent from the beginning of the industrial revolution into the 20th century.

“Fackham Hall” calls out the ludicrous societal issues of the period in a wonderfully joking way, making the subject more digestible for viewers, and creates a great story to really get viewers thinking of what many of us believe to be a somewhat distant past.

However, watching it in all of its glory, and I do mean glory as it will have you cringily cracking up for hours, made this reviewer wonder if its subject material and discussion might still hold weight even in this modern era.

Surely we’d all love to believe we are far removed from such societal problems, but if we take an honest look, can we really say that we’re not all living our own modern-day “Fackham Hall”?

As hard as that may be to swallow, when one looks around the world we know and sees the growing financial gap between the wealthy and the poor, it becomes harder to deny. When you take a moment to consider the horribly unappreciated laborers who keep our public spaces in working condition and slave away for fast fashion, an ugly truth emerges. When women are constantly told in the media and in their personal lives that they must stress constantly over every small wrinkle or grey hair, it becomes increasingly difficult to separate ourselves from those who came before us.

In forcing us to laugh uncomfortably at the sad realities of the past, “Fackham Hall” also forces us to admit that some of the same issues may be ever-present and problematic in the current day. It implores all of us to take a stand against them, lest we remain stagnant and become the next punchline of the same very sad jokes.

The post Fackham Hall: God’s Gift to Social Commentary first appeared on The Bottom Line.

Ariana Isabel Duckett // Editor-in-Chief

Second-year computer science student Rohan Nihlani named the media recommendation app he recently launched, Rhome, literally: It’s a home for recommendations on movies, TV shows, books, and more. No recommendations are sourced from artificial intelligence (AI), as many apps commonly do nowadays.

“I built Rhome because I got tired of letting algorithms decide what I should consume,” Nihlani wrote in an email interview with The Bottom Line (TBL). “A lot of modern day social media platforms are very much focused on short form and scroll content,” according to a later interview with TBL. 

I decided to try it out for myself following our conversation. The thumbnail of the app and title screen is in Roman-reminiscent font, with a ring of navy blue laurel leaves as the O. Rhome downloaded in around three seconds, faster than many other apps I have observed. 

I put in my phone number and a password of at least six characters to create an account. With many requiring the password to have special characters and uppercase and lowercase letters, it felt faster and easier to reach the homepage and see what Rhome was about.

Recommendations fell under five categories — books, videos, articles, podcasts, and films and TV shows. “You probably wouldn’t follow hundreds of people like you do on Instagram because you don’t care about hundreds and hundreds of people’s opinions per se,” Nihlani said. “You just care about those … people whose taste you trust.”

Before building Rhome, Nihlani realized that some of his favorite media came from family and friends giving him recommendations. The foundational premise of the app is using it with friends, not relying on recommendations from strangers.

Although I did not recognize any of the “Suggested for you” profiles besides the founder himself, media about a variety of topics populated my search — “Why don’t poisonous animals poison themselves?” one video title asked me. “AI Doesn’t Have to Rot Your Brain,” a reposted Wall Street Journal article reported. The user who reposted it, @arunbains, wrote beneath, “There was one method the author suggested that particularly stood out to me – when thinking through ideas or forming opinions have the AI play the opposition,” which “could be a great way to stress test and refine our ideas.”

Nihlani shared that numerous people believed the name of his app originated from his own name but it truly came from his goal to be “the world’s recommendation home.”

“When people want to share something or they want to consume something, they want to see someone’s recommendation, they come on to Rhome,” Nihlani said.

The post Computer Science Student Discusses Founding Media Recommendation App Rhome first appeared on The Bottom Line.

Theo May // Photo Editor

Over spring break, I spent ten days in Japan with a friend, taking trains between the cities of Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo. The spring weather was mostly rainy and windy, but the food and temples more than made up for it. My favorite experience there was our hike up Mount Misen on Miyajima Island. We wandered through old forests, encountering lots of curious Sika deer on our way to the peak.

The post Late Spring in Japan first appeared on The Bottom Line.

Taylor Cusimano // Co-News Editor

The UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) women’s rugby team won the Rugby 7s national title in their first-ever nationals appearance in Indianapolis last month.

Co-captain Jessica Navarro shared that the team entered the tournament without expectations, as it was their first time at nationals and they entered unranked. Navarro told The Bottom Line, “We were just hoping to be a competitive team, but when we got there, we just kept winning.” 

Navarro reflected on what makes this team special. “We have this thing called Barbara spirit, which is our spirit on the field. It’s being happy and trying to push each other. We always look at that on the field.” 

The team went undefeated throughout the tournament, shutting out UC Santa Cruz 12–0 and defeating the U.S. Air Force 33–5 during pool play, the opening stage that determines playoff seeding. In the quarterfinal match, they won again, conquering San Jose State 31–10.

Navarro expressed how they worked through their struggles throughout the tournament. “In our first game, we had to kick some of the rust off, and after that, we had the connection, and we had our Barbara spirit.”

In the semi-final match, the team faced UC Berkeley, the top seeded team, winning 12-10. This pushed them forward to face Stanford, the defending challenger division champion. 

Rugby 7s is the fast-paced, high-intensity version of the sport, known for its continuous action, open-field play and quick scoring opportunities. Head Coach Kelly Griffin, who competed on the 2016 Olympic team, described the game as full-contact and action-packed, featuring constant movement and explosive runs across the field. 

Griffin said that, as a student-run organization, the team was extremely motivated to put in extra work off the field, like going to nationals and raising the funds to do so. 

“At the beginning of the year, I asked them, ‘What kind of team do we want to be? Do we want to compete?’” Griffin remarked. “The girls said we want to compete, we want to grow together, we want to push, we want to take every opportunity to push ourselves.”

Griffin emphasised putting the team first, a mindset that helped define the team’s success throughout the season. At the tournament, Griffin was also recognized individually, earning the Pride of the Patch Award from the College Rugby Association of America for her outstanding contributions to the sport. 

Jayna Schalesky, a center and prop on the team who also competed in the 2025 Junior Panamerican Games, said the team had spent weeks preparing for the tournament, with a strong emphasis on injury prevention and conditioning. “Other teams were getting hurt, but we didn’t have any injuries,” Schalesky said. “People say it’s dangerous, but it doesn’t have to be. It can be if you don’t prepare, but we prepared.”

The team expressed excitement about the victory, viewing it as an opportunity to attract greater funding and long-term support for the program. Securing the resources needed to compete at nationals fell on the players themselves, who balanced fundraising efforts alongside training and competition. 

Schalesky reflected on the dedication and the close bond, emphasizing how each athlete contributed in their own way. “Different teammates have their own little superpowers,” Schalesky said. “If they’re really good at this one thing, then you can count on them for that.”

Following an undefeated weekend and a historic title run, UCSB women’s rugby returned home as national champions for the first time in program history, proving the team’s resilience and determination on the national stage.

The post UCSB Women’s Rugby Team Captures Historic First National Title first appeared on The Bottom Line.

Simai Kang // Campus Beat Reporter

Undocumented Student Services (USS) is a UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) organization for all students and allies that provides various programs, services, and resources for students from undocumented, mixed-status, and refugee backgrounds.

“The programs that we have are intended to bridge the gap between what our undocumented students are not able to access on campus,” stated USS Director Melissa Candell Vilacreses in an interview with The Bottom Line (TBL).

USS has an internship scholarship program that’s focused on student team rights and creating professional opportunities for undocumented students on campus. Additionally, the service also provides a mentorship program to allow upperclassmen to be able to work directly with new students from the perspective of being undocumented.

“Knowing that for our students that are undocumented, they’re navigating this campus without social security and with limited financial resources,” said Vilacreses. “So that’s a really wonderful program.”

USS also has its Monarch Opportunity Scholarship, which focuses on creating opportunities for students to intern in various departments. When departments are in need of additional student staff support, one of the students from USS may be integrated in their team, which creates an opportunity for students without work authorization to be able to intern and strengthen their resumes through professional growth.

Vilacreses said, “Without some of these programs, our students wouldn’t have access to a lot of these resources, so our programs are focused on student development, basic needs, general programming, and things of that nature.”

As a director of USS, Vilacreses leads many programs and works very closely with a lot of campus partners to address the needs of students.

“One example is that we work very closely with Basic Needs, so we have different programs that are focused on food security for undocumented students. My main goal is to make sure that I’m a voice for the needs of our students,” Vilacreses told TBL.

The USS team also collaborates with the UC Immigrant Legal Services Center, a team of immigration attorneys that works across UC campuses.

“We have our UCSB Staff Attorney, her name is Yoxira Espinoza,” said Vilacreses. “She can provide her services to any UCSB student, undocumented or not, who has a question about immigration law.”

Staff Attorney Espinoza can also serve students’ immediate family members, such as parents, partners, or children, depending on what their needs are.

“She can also support UCSB staff members if they have a need for [Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA)] renewals or things in that nature,” said Vilacreses.

Without work authorization, students may face limited access to job opportunities compared to many of their peers post-grad. USS works with Career Services to be able to create programs to combat this, such as UndocuSuccess to help them navigate life after college.

Vilacreses shared, “We also have a separate entrepreneurship program that focuses on teaching immigrants how to create their own businesses because creating a business is not something that requires a social security number. It’s something that anyone can do if they have an entrepreneurial idea.”

Not only did USS collaborate with UndocuProfessionals, an off-campus organization, but they also worked with Immigrants Rising to be able to bring expertise on how immigrants build their entrepreneurship ideas.

“It’s not just about providing the information, it’s about meeting them in a way that’s more human, in a way that’s more mindful to understand the fact that it’s very emotional. We work very closely to build off of that,” Vilacreses added.

USS has also joined forces with student leaders within Associated Students to focus on creating physical spaces where students feel comfortable voicing their needs.

Alongside the Dream Scholars Resource Team, USS focuses on advocating for students and supporting their professional development.

“It takes a lot of courage and safety for students to feel like they can share that they’re undocumented,” said Vilacreses. “There’s a lot of emotional labor that we do when we support our students. They face additional challenges that are not always understood. We all know what it means to not know about AB 540 and then find out about it, what it means to have financial aid and reimbursements.”

“It’s a job that requires a lot of heart, being able to understand people from a human perspective, and collaborating with different people,” Vilacreses concluded. “I feel a combination of knowing that it’s a huge blessing and a huge privilege to be able to hold this role.”

The post A Deep Dive Into Undocumented Student Services first appeared on The Bottom Line.