Photo by Connor Ryan
By Connor Ryan
“Sacrament,” is the melodic first-person short story of a mysterious young boy who wanders into a church and takes a nap — not far from where a homeless man is trying to masturbate.
“A Brief Meditation on Religion,” is a personal essay about why a Fordham student who was once Catholic is now Atheist.
One drawing is a caricature of the Crucifixion. Another is Elvis portrayed as a zombie — he holds a gun, flesh falls off his face. The drawing is credited to “Santi Horror.”
Most authors and artists in the magazine’s first issue use their real names, others are anonymous.
The debut issue of The Concubine — a magazine of art, photography, poetry and prose that hopes to foster an exchange that “embodies the anarchistic and socialistic ideals of equality and concern for one’s fellow man,” according to the introduction — was available for students to pick up last week on Fordham’s Rose Hill campus and New York University’s campus. Plans are in the works to expand its printing reach to include Hunter College, Pace University and Columbia University.
The man who founded the magazine is a Fordham student. He conducted an interview as William Clock, requesting that his real name remain anonymous.
“I felt that the university was severely lacking in student literary publications,” he said via email. “Although we greatly respect the Ampersand and all they stand for, they only publish a few times a year. For students who write and draw on a regular basis, this isn’t enough.”
He said the magazine, which is printed by the Staff Analysts Union — a group with strong ties to Occupy Wall Street — will be published bi-weekly; once in the beginning of the month and once at the end of the month. Students should expect to see issue two soon.
When asked about the magazine’s seemingly controversial mission, Clock spoke bluntly.
“Our radical leftist theme is something that I am certainly passionate about,” he said.
Any concern about the blowback such a magazine might face on a Jesuit university’s campus?
“Yes, Fordham is a Jesuit school, but I have confidence in the institution’s capacity for benevolence,” he said. “We are only slightly concerned that Fordham will interfere. This is why we’ve chosen to seek funding elsewhere.”
Clock said that after the magazine’s first issue, many students from Fordham and NYU have flocked to submit entries for future issues.
Shannon Driscoll, assistant director for student organizations and programming, confirmed that the magazine’s leadership had not contacted the university’s Operations Committee for club registration as of last Friday.
“It’s not a recognized organization, so I don’t have much information on it,” she said.
I’m not seeing the “blasts” part here….