Written May 2018

Frank Yip is great… but not JUST great. And as easy as it seems, Mr. Yip isn’t someone that can be summed up in a bland adjective. He has a story, like we all do, but to explain his story, we must start before Mr. Frank Yip was born. We’ll start with William Tow. 

William Tow came to America as a young boy in the early twentieth century, and he eventually became a citizen of the United States. When he was old enough, Tow went back to Hong Kong, China and got married. Before the couple’s first daughter was born, Tow once again went back to the United States and assisted his family- still in China- through means of financial backing and support. 

When World War II began, Tow was unable to get them to the United States, which led to his decision to return to China after the war. Their second daughter was on the way and Tow knew that he would have to return to the United States before she was born.  He worked hard on getting his family over to the United States along with him. However, their firstborn daughter, Lily, got married and began having children. When Tow finally had his wife and second-born daughter approved to come to the United States, Lily and her own family were unapproved due to fact that her children were so young. Lily and her family were in Hong Kong, hoping to get to this country while Tow was working on the other end to try his best to make it happen.

Now, on an entirely related note, Tow managed a restaurant known as the Ming Garden. It happened to be the top Chinese dining in the state of Rhode Island. Everybody went there. 

In 1962, while Tow was becoming increasingly frustrated and began to lose hope of bringing Lily to the U.S., one of his regular customers had noticed that Tow looked rather upset. When asked what was wrong, he explained that he couldn’t get his daughter and her family to this country. The man told Tow he would see if he could help; his college roommate might be able to do something. 

As Tow walked into work that day, he had no idea how his sad expression would permanently affect his life.

It turned out that particular roommate of one of his customers was Robert Kennedy, who was then the U.S. Attorney General. Through his contact, Robert Kennedy was able to clear all of the blockades for Lily. Later that year, Tow’s daughter, husband, and her children, including one particular Mr. Frank Yip, were able to immigrate into this country. 

“What are the odds? If my grandfather (William Tow) hadn’t looked so down that day and that man hadn’t recognized it, I may never be here- and neither would my siblings,” Yip explains. 

As incredibly interesting as this story is alone, it puts into a firsthand perspective the details of immigration. Mr. Yip’s family, since they’ve come to America, has greatly contributed to the U.S. military through their participation in it as well as the engineering behind it. Yip himself has worked as a teacher for many years, shaping future generations into their most educated selves. Yip points out: “If I weren’t here, there would be a ‘real American’ sitting here right now. If my siblings weren’t here, their jobs would be filled by ‘real Americans.’” 

Mr. Yip’s older brother served in the navy and has two sons. His sister worked as a chemical engineer and started up her own company with her friend, making her an entrepreneur whose had the responsibility of supplying many jobs. His other brother is a mechanical engineer who helps make US defense airplanes.

Mr. Yip’s family has surely proved themselves “worthy” of American citizenship, as have many immigrant families of the twentieth century and beyond. “The question is simple,” Mr. Yip says. “Is America better off with us or without us?” 

Written December 1, 2016

A popular item in many student’s backpack, and a popular cause of students getting in trouble: headphones. 

No matter what type of music you like, a song or artist can impact your mood, focus, and even your ability to pay attention to what’s going on around you. Many times when writing an essay or doing an important paper in class, all you want to do is listen to music. But should music be allowed when doing independent classwork? 

“In classes, when you take out the headphones, it’s so hard to write and concentrate with so many people distracting you. I think that’s why so many kids really want to be able to have that sound instead of the talking,” says Ava Heal, a freshman here at LHS.

According to a study at Stanford University, music increasingly helps the brain’s focus when doing simple tasks. Music is known to have many effects on people. It can excite us, depress us, and reduce anxiety. In school, when students are learning and studying all day, music can really help out in the aspect of relieving stress. 

Unfortunately, music also can have negative effects on our studies. Music with lyrics can easily distract. When listening to words put to the music, the brain tends to focus on the words being blasted in your ears, and not so much the work in front of you. 

When you give kids permission to listen to music independently, it may cause them to listen to it during lectures, and while teachers and administrators are speaking to them, which defeats the purpose of music helping focus and learning.

“I do see many issues with kids listening to music during class, like being distracted and focusing on the music itself. But I find that some kid’s chatter less when listening to it,” says Mr. Yip, a well known history teacher at LHS.

While music is a way to feel emotion and alleviate stress, is it an effective tool for school?  

Written January 19, 2017

   Graffiti has been around for years; a political and important statement scrawled even on the buildings of ancient Pompeii. Modern graffiti, though, started just in the 1970’s along with the birth of hip hop. Artists started using public property as a form of canvas to portray large thoughts and ideas. Today, you know graffiti as the marking under a bridge, or the images and names showcased on buildings in the city. Some people see this as an expression of creativity, while others see it as just plain crude. But what is it really?

     First off, there is a big difference between “tagging” and “street art.” 

     Street art is any painting, drawing or writing of something on a surface in a public place. It comes in various styles and colors, and usually requires a bit of mastery. 

     Both street art and tagging are types of graffiti, though they each have their own meaning. According to Providence, Rhode Island crime statistics, about 65% of graffiti crimes reported are “tagging,” instead of street art. 

     Tagging can be explained as a basic graffiti type where the “artist” signs his or her name with the use of spray paint. This is usually used by artists to simply “mark their territory,” Unlike street art, tagging is typically done to vandalize or trespass and doesn’t require much skill. 

     Graffiti in general is quite argumentative, because so many people disagree on whether it is art or not. 

  Many see graffiti as simply a sort of voice of social change and protest, and in many cases that’s exactly what it is. 

     “If graffiti art is used in the right format with the right audience, it is a strong vehicle to take a stand.  There are graffiti artists that are commissioned to have their work featured on buildings for public display. Shepard Fairey and Keith Haring among them,” says Mrs. Kolenda, an art teacher here at LHS. She believes that it is very important to express and make a statement with art. This is also what many others believe and feel strongly about when defending the thought of street art as a whole. 

     Although this is a good point and it is well taken into consideration, the work of graffiti takes many different forms and styles from a tag of identity to a strong, beautiful piece of political protest which is what makes it so difficult to decide whether or not it should be considered art. 

     There is no single reason as to why people take part in vandalism graffiti, though most artists who do are not motivated primarily to cause damage. Common motivations for tagging are things such as wanting to be seen or noticed and to claim control over an environment. Either way, sometimes harm is done unintentionally which brings us back to the fact that there is a point where graffiti becomes a large issue.

   “Graffiti tends to not create beauty or thought for the viewer while Street Art is thought provoking, expressive, and creative. Graffiti, by my definition, is not creative. It is destructive. It is the “tag” that is done without thought or meaning,” expresses Mrs. Binder, another teacher of arts at Lincoln High.

     To conclude, graffiti has many different components. While it is sometimes used for the good, it can cause damage that is unintentional and this factor is what makes the topic so debateable. But while this is true, there are so many other ways to express art and doing so in a manner that is just as bold as graffiti. 

     “When a company manager asks someone to paint a mural or something that is given permission, it’s alright. It’s not vandalism in that sense,” Mr. Cavanaugh, Lincoln Police Officer says. He has been a Lincoln High School officer for quite a while. Mr. Cavanaugh says that although he doesn’t see too many cases here in Lincoln, it is strictly vandalism unless permission was given. 

     Many business owners and companies in the city appreciate art and are delighted to have pure, art on their walls building’s wall. In 2006, small store owners were getting frustrated with the tagging on their walls, until a group of Cut Collective artists offered to paint over the vandalism with their own, aesthetic artwork free of charge. Business owners were glad for the offer and the artists themselves were glad to be showcasing their ideas. This case shows that there is great potential for property owners and street artists to work together.

     As far as graffiti goes, there is no definite right or wrong, but the expression of art and creativity is important.“… I encourage students to use their creativity when they feel passionate about and issue as a vehicle to make a positive statement in their/our community,” finishes Mrs. Kolenda.