The Western Howl

April 22, 2026 | The signs as forest creatures Aries: a dryad with fire magic who constantly burns themself Taurus: Elf Gemini: somehow ended up as a tiny little shrimp Cancer: The troll that lives under the bridge in Dora the Explorer Leo: A fairy that can only do taxes Virgo: Mina herself Libra: MOTHMAN  Scorpio: the Lorax Sagittarius: Big foot with shaved legs  Capricorn: Three goats in a trench coat pretending to be Bigfoot Aquarius: Hamster Pisces: A bear that avoids being hunted for ten...

April 22, 2026 | Belen Ponce Leal | Lifestyle Editor We as humans are very social creatures; having a significant other can provide a lot of benefits. Being in a committed relationship, according to Northwestern Medicine, can lower the production of the stress-inducing hormone called cortisol. There have also been reports of living a longer life and having a greater sense of purpose when being with someone who can be described as a “better half.” As someone who is happily married, I can confirm that being in a healthy relationship is pretty awesome.  However, not every relationship is meant to last, especially if the person isn’t a good partner. A lot of the time, we end up stuck in relationships that we think are healthy, but in reality can be extremely toxic. No one wants to be in a relationship with someone who isn’t going to treat them properly, so I thought I would provide the biggest red flags I’ve seen in many relationships, both my own and those of some close friends of mine,...

April 22, 2026 | Jaylin Emond-Hardin | Entertainment Editor Growing up as a Native kid, I didn’t have many books that were for me. As a tiny tot, I had one called “Thirteen Moons on Turtle’s Back,” which told the story of the 13 moon cycles of the year on the back of Turtle Island. By the time I got into chapter books, there were more, but not by much — “Indian in the Cupboard,” “The Birchbark House” and “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” were titles I was more than familiar with.  But now, Native authors are becoming a greater part of the author demographics, and with that, so are their stories.  Among these authors is Steph Littlebird, a Kalapuya and Chinook artist, who recently published “You Are the Land.” Released Feb. 24, 2026, “You Are the Land” is Littlebird’s first published children’s book, though she has illustrated for other works before. These books include “My Powerful Hair,” “Body Beautiful” and “Fierce Aunties,” all celebrations of the power of...

April 22nd, 2026 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor While the Portland Trail Blazers are currently in the midst of their first playoff series since 2021 against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs after defeating the Phoenix Suns 114-110 in the play-in tournament, some fans are taking the time in between to reflect on the era of Blazers basketball often referred to as the “Jail Blazers” era. On April 14, Netflix introduced the next installment of its “Untold” series with a documentary-style episode focused on the team, with feature interviews from players Rasheed Wallace, Damon Stoudamire, Bonzi Wells and the general manager of the team at the time, Bob Whitsitt.  The documentary opens with the hiring of Whitsitt after a successful tenure with the Seattle Supersonics, which coincided with the Blazers needing to retool after franchise legend Clyde Drexler was no longer a member of the team, as well as Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen purchasing the franchise and looking to start...

April 22nd, 2026 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor On Thursday, April 30, the first round of the 2026 NFL draft will commence and will then be followed by the second and third rounds on Friday and rounds four through seven on Saturday. Headlining the draft class is Heisman Trophy winner and national champion Fernando Mendoza out of Indiana University at the quarterback position. As of now, it’s all but a done deal that Mendoza will become a Las Vegas Raider on Thursday night, but what about the remainder of the class? Safety Caleb Downs from Ohio State is an NFL franchise’s dream for the modern iteration of the position and running back Jeremiyah Love from Notre Dame could immediately contribute and put himself among the NFL’s best at the position. For all the talk of the top of the draft, what about the rest of it? Below is a quick guide to each position and who some underrated prospects could be. Drew Allar, quarterback, Penn State. Allar was supposed to have a similar year to what...

April 22, 2026 | Abbi Duhart | News Editor On April 9, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek signed eight bills surrounding the protection of Oregon residents in regard to immigration status and other related matters. These bills were brought into motion by Kotek and other Democratic representatives following the high surge of immigration arrests in 2025 and early 2026.  Kotek, along with others, emphasized these bills are urgently needed in order to protect Oregon residents, with representatives saying they want to fight for a safe state that advocates for all. Kotek further explained the bills fight back against federal immigration actions such as the deployment of the National Guard to Portland and federal agents launching operations in the Willamette Valley with directions to reach a quota of at least 80 people detained, often doing so without warrants and while wearing face-obscuring masks. In February, Democratic representatives introduced a series of bills during the short legislative...

April 22, 2026 | Abbi Duhart | News Editor Starting April 13, Western hosted its fifth annual HSI Summit week. As a Hispanic Serving Institution, Western’s undergraduate student population consists of 27% identifying as Hispanic or Latino, and the goal of the summit is to bring together the university and community to discuss what it means to be an HSI. Specifically, this year’s summit’s purpose was to highlight how data informs, aligns and advances commitment to serving the student population. Marla Franco, who has a doctorate in higher education leadership, was chosen as the keynote speaker for this year’s summit. She has worked at public universities in California and Arizona for 25 years, and her work consists of creating greater success in pursuing degrees for underrepresented and minority communities. The assistant director of the HSI Initiatives, Cristian Mendez Garcia, said, “We are pleased to have Dra. Franco share her expertise with our broader community. This work is...

April 22, 2026 | Jaylin Emond-Hardin | Entertainment Editor In Native American cultures across the country, powwows are times of gathering, celebration and culture. The powwow put on by members of the Multicultural Student Union and Native Indigenous Culture Club executive boards brought this to campus for the 31st time in Western’s history.  Planning for the powwow began in August of last year, when members of the MSU and NICC executive boards met every Monday to discuss the logistics that went into planning. By December, the powwow committee was formed and continued these weekly meetings to ensure that all the parts were coming together.  This year, the powwow was spearheaded by Cheydon Herkshan, the events director of MSU and president of NICC. A senior and a member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, this event held special meaning for Herkshan. “This is just such a beautiful event to be able to host, as a Native person,” she said. “Being in an institution that has a 2%...

April 15, 2026 | What the signs spend their tax returns on Aries: responsibly saves 50%, the rest is fetish gear Taurus: teeth Gemini: fursuit savings account Cancer: Plushies from their favorite TV show Leo: Materials for a hobby started two days ago Virgo: pokemon cards Libra: Many, many Legos Scorpio: Tickets to a concert in the middle of the desert in mid-July Sagittarius: sims 4 packs Capricorn: Chipotle Aquarius: hamster  Pisces: probably owes taxes so…...

April 15, 2026 | Belen Ponce Leal | Lifestyle Editor As a proud mother of two cats, Freddy and Khalessi, I’ve noticed that my babies have enjoyed boxes more than the very expensive toys that my husband and I have bought. In particular, since we’re moving, they have loved throwing themselves into giant cardboard boxes. The bigger it is, the better and harder it is to get them out of it.  As someone who has had cats throughout her life, I know that my babies aren’t unique. All of the cats that I’ve had in my life have enjoyed being in a box, whether it be to hide from us or take a very long nap inside of it. Recently, though, I’ve found myself wondering what it is exactly that makes the perfect killing machine so weak to enclosed cardboard pieces. One of the reasons that cats enjoy being inside boxes is the safety that it provides them. Alison Gerken, a veterinary behaviorist at the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, explains that in the wild, with...

April 15, 2026 | Belen Ponce Leal | Lifestyle Editor Despite the article I’ve written in the past talking about the dangers of caffeine, I have enjoyed various forms of caffeinated drinks throughout my life. Particularly in the last few months, I have tried a good amount of the various flavored Red Bulls. I have since formed an opinion, or more accurately, an obsession with the flavor that these canned drinks contain. So, here is a ranked list of my favorite Red Bull flavors.  Fifth place — Up first is the orange can with the flavor of strawberry apricot. It’s the first of the flavored Red Bulls that I tried back when I was a teenager, so there’s a bit of a nostalgic flair that I get when I drink it. The flavor itself starts out as a sweet strawberry with the hint of apricot being mostly an aftertaste. It’s not a bad combination at all, but out of the six flavors, it’s at the bottom.  Fourth place — I had no idea what to expect for the spring edition flavor Red Bull was coming out...

April 15, 2026 | Abbi Duhart | News Editor Are “Frozen” and “Tarzan” secretly connected? Is there an invisible dome around the Disney parks? Is Walt Disney secretly buried somewhere in Disneyland? Many Disney fans have a lot of insane conspiracy theories, and while many of them are proven to be false or may be way too crazy to be true, they’re fun to think about nonetheless. In this article, I’m going to talk about some of my favorite Disney conspiracy theories. The first theory is that the parents depicted at the beginning of “Tarzan” are actually Anna and Elsa’s parents in “Frozen,” making Tarzan their little brother. Fans speculate that Anna and Elsa’s parents didn’t actually die in their shipwreck and instead washed up on the coast of Africa, where they had another baby boy before being killed by the leopard in “Tarzan.” While I love this theory, there are a couple of different reasons why this probably isn’t true. “Frozen” is meant to take place in the early 1830s and “Tarzan”...