Volume 44, Issue 4

Volume 44, Issue 4 • October 17, 2023 • thelinknewspaper.ca "I wanna give her a lil' haircut, a lil' trim" Since 1980

CONCORDIA’S INDEPENDENT PUBLICATION SINCE 1980

NEWS

No solutions, just evictions Jacco Stuben, an unhoused man who recently experienced a challenging eviction faces the threat again Hannah Vogan

@hannahvogann

n a small forested area just steps This gruelling legal battle the campers]. That was largely lower the probability of eviction. ments are not a viable, safe or Iwin-Williams away from a Westmount Sher- ended after the judge ruled con- about the optics.”

However, “if something goes lasting solution.” paint store, tents struction could no longer be Two and a half months after the wrong, you really are in a preChapman believes rather than and trinkets lay low beneath the trees, where Jacco Stuben and one other unhoused individual reside.

The residents were evicted from their previous encampment only two and a half months prior, enduring a hellish cycle of eviction and displacement. After recently being evicted from the encampment under Route 136 of the Ville-Marie Expressway, Stuben can’t seem to escape the shoving hands of the Transports et Mobilité durable Québec (MTQ). “[MTQ is] throwing people out [...] just rushing everybody out, all the people are [now] scattered on the streets,” Stuben told The Link.

One year ago, MTQ had signed a contract to do repair work on Route 136 of the VilleMarie expressway; about 20 individuals had lived in the encampment for roughly five years.

As preparations for construction began, MTQ realized it would threaten the safety of the individuals living under the expressway if construction proceeded, calling for an evacuation of the area.

MTQ faced criticism from activist groups, allies and shelters for evicting the residents of this encampment without providing adequate alternatives. On account of the campers’ first official eviction date, Montreal’s Autonomous Tenant Union (MATU) organized a public demonstration in retaliation, thus delaying the eviction to a later date.

MTQ’s pattern of proposing an eviction, receiving pushback from the community, and then halting evictions continued until March 2023, when campers were verbally informed by MTQ that the camp was to be vacated along with their belongings by the end of the month. Fifteen days after this notice, Mobile Legal Clinic (MLC), a team that represented the campers’ rights in court, solicited an injunction to prolong the end-ofmonth eviction against MTQ and arrange for suitable alternatives to the encampment. MLC sought to defer the eviction until midJuly to allow for the relocation of campers in friendly weather while culminating an action plan that redirects these individuals into stable housing, offering social reintegration programs and aiming to permanently detach them from the cycle of homelessness. thelinknewspaper.ca

postponed and that the campers would be evicted on July 11, 2023.

MTQ spokesperson Sarah Bensadoun said MTQ had only one purpose throughout all this, “to be able to find long-term housing for the campers.”

In documents acquired by The Link, it is revealed that from the period of Nov. 2022 to July 2023, MTQ spent $38,415 on protection

Ville-Marie eviction, Stuben finds himself scrambling as he prepares to be ejected from a different piece of MTQ property in a matter of days.

“Everywhere, the [MTQ] want to conquer,” Stuben said.

Chapman has worked with Montreal’s unhoused population for years and has fought alongside encampment members for their rights since the beginning.

dicament. There is no one there to administer naloxone. There is no community looking out for you.

What it does is it just hastens the probability of an early death.”

On Apr. 11, a judge overseeing the case between MTQ and MLC found that if no alternative solution was granted to the campers in the event of an eviction, the campers would suffer irreparable harm.

JACCO STUBEN TRYING TO MOVE HIS BELONGINGS BEFORE HE IS EVICTED BY TRANSPORT QUEBEC. PHOTO TUZA DULCINÉE activities—such as fencing and concrete barriers—for the campers and $57,210 on relocation (containers).

Still, only four people who lived under the bridge moved into government-subsidized housing. The others could put their belongings in lockers provided by MTQ and were left to scatter throughout the city.

Not only were the campers evicted, but more than half of them currently resorted to more threatening situations than before.

“Everyone is interested in looking good [...] We all wanna look good. Frequently, people choose to look good over facing real problems that are with us,” David Chapman, the executive director of Resilience Montreal, told The Link. “They (MTQ) had people going in for the purposes of saying that they did [help

“If simply an alternative location would have been given to the people, there would’ve been no court case. All they needed to do is say where they could go. That proved impossible,” Chapman said, sharing his disappointment about Stuben’s situation.

According to Chapman, dismantling encampments and displacing campers ushers them in search of dark alleyways, small forested spots, and abandoned buildings, which isolates them from the community and forces them into dangerous situations.

“What’s concerning is for some of the folks who’ve headed to abandoned buildings, they won’t even tell me as an intervention worker where they are,” Chapman said. He added that the more secret the location, the

“Bonds have been formed between them and as a result of the mutual assistance between them […] they consider themselves a community, which gives them a certain sense of security,” said Judge Chantal Massé in French.

Stuben has been told he is facing eviction due to complaints from neighbours. According to Bensadoun, MTQ must intervene with an encampment when a request by the city, police, or emergency services is made. Guillaume Rivest, press relations for the City of Montreal, told The Link in an email that “the City must intervene very quickly for the safety of all.”

The issue with the dissolution of encampments is the lack of options for those continually displaced.

Rivest declared that, “For the City of Montreal, urban encamp-

shutting down encampments, one could designate an area of a park, or an unused spot under a bridge, “an area where you can be left alone in the meantime,” said Chapman.

Without resources to help people transition into subsidized housing and access to affordable housing, Chapman emphasized that encampments will continue to exist.

Shelters aren’t permanently a solution, either. Chapman told The Link that, although shelters were liberally offered by MTQ partners to the campers, not one of them went.

Shelters tend to have strict rules, making accommodating individual needs challenging. Out of the 79 shelters listed on Quebec 211 on the island of Montreal, only six allow pets. Some shelters are gendered (which restricts heterosexual couples from living together), only offer daily accommodations or have limited bed availability. Others require interviews and applications by phone or email, and some shelters bear a zero intoxication tolerance, requiring users to do the difficult task of going cold turkey.

Stuben has plenty of belongings that make it difficult to move anywhere: he has an expensive grill he was gifted, which he loves to cook on. On Sept. 28, he was told he had 24 hours to evacuate his new spot. After some negotiation, MTQ asked Stuben to leave

by Oct. 9. As of the last contact with Stuben, he is still struggling to collect his belongings and desperately needs a moving truck for transportation. All belongings left behind are thrown in the trash.

Evictions with no solid solution only shake the ground for the unhoused trying to find their footing. “It's not fair. Don't treat us so bad,” Stuben said.

Once Stuben is able to move all his things successfully, he and Chapman have already scoped out the prospective spot for him to reside until housed.

“We are trying our best,” Stuben said, as he talked about the challenges of moving.

This new spot is further along the bridge, and is out of sightline of the housed neighbours. Chapman thinks that Stuben has a better chance in the new spot, as complaints should lessen. “People don't complain about what they don't see,” Chapman said.

OCTOBER 17, 2023 • NEWS 3

NEWS

Student sent to hospital after SARC counselling session Resources for survivors are lacking at Concordia, advocates say Maria Cholakova

@_maria_cholakova_

CONTENT WARNING: The article contains themes of suicide.

GRAPHIC MYRIAM OUAZZANI

uring the Winter 2023 se- Ben decided to look into what After waiting several hours at and added that he still felt suicidal. (SACOMSS) between 2019 to D mester, Ben, a first-year resources Concordia provided the hospital, he decided to head The counsellor once again pan- 2021 and has done several assistConcordia student who asked for sexual violence victims. That home. Once he reached his house, icked. In order to avoid reliving the ed suicide prevention trainings. to remain anonymous for safety reasons, was living through his toughest week.

After publicly coming out as gay, he lost many of his university friends. Because of the toll this experience took on his mental health, he decided he wanted to relieve some pressure and feel less alone.

Ben went on Grindr and found a date, but made it clear from the beginning that he was not interested in having sex. Once he arrived at his date’s house, the perpetrator started taking off Ben’s clothing without consent and demanded oral sex.

“It all happened so quickly,” said Ben. “I just froze, and then he stripped me naked. I told him [...] to stop three times, and he just couldn't stop.”

After he left the perpetrator’s house, Ben sent him a text demanding an apology, but in response received a cynical text denying the events.

Ben filed a complaint with the police and has yet to hear back from them about his case.

Three days after the event,

is how he found the Sexual Assault Resource Centre (SARC).

He reached out to them and was offered counselling services.

Ben described his first impression of SARC as “not very resourceful. If you don't ask specifically what they can do, they won't say anything,” he said.

Nevertheless, Ben returned for a second session, during which he mentioned he had been experiencing suicidal ideation. He made it clear to his counsellor that he would never take his own life because he did not want to leave his family.

The counsellor’s immediate response was to call an ambulance, despite Ben’s insistence that he would not harm himself. “I wasn't given an option to just go [home]. She coerced me into either going to a hospital or calling my parents,” he said.

The counsellor then called campus security and escorted Ben to the ambulance, which drove him to the Montreal General Hospital. “I was escorted out with two security guards. A bunch of students saw me. It was really, really embarrassing,” he said.

a police car was waiting for him.

“Once you are put on suicide watch, if you leave the hospital, you are technically still ‘under arrest,’” he said. “It was really painful for both my parents and me to experience that. I was escorted out of my own house [into] a police car.”

The police officers drove him to Jean-Talon Hospital, where he was locked in a room by himself. “I freaked out,” he said. Ben stayed at the hospital for 12 hours before being allowed to go home.

The incident didn’t deter him from going to a third counselling session at SARC because he felt the experience varied “appointment by appointment.” He added that he felt he was always reaching out to SARC first, and that “there is no care for the student.”

SARC is meant to be a safe space for students, staff and faculty to find help and resources. However, based on a 2018 report, 70 per cent of students were dissatisfied with the services SARC provided.

Once in counselling, Ben explained what happened to him during his visit to Jean-Talon Hospital

same experience, Ben asked if he could call Suicide Action Montreal.

That way, he could leave without being escorted by security or go to the hospital. “She watched me call Suicide Action and started talking with them [...] I hung up as soon as I walked out of the room,” he said.

After his experience, Ben dropped all his courses, as he didn’t feel safe on campus or around SARC anymore.

According to Concordia’s official spokesperson, “SARC staff are trained to respond in a trauma-informed manner. SARC social workers are experienced and trained professionals who belong to a professional order and receive clinical supervision as well as supervision from the SARC manager,” she said in an email.

However, Hannah Jackson, the external coordinator at the Concordia Student Union , said that SARC’s treatment of Ben showed a complete lack of proper counsellor training.

Jackson was a political educator for The Sexual Assault Centre in the McGill Students’ Society

Jackson explained that the counsellor’s panic comes from the Quebec mandatory reporting law which dictates a medical professional’s obligation to report when a patient is in imminent danger.

“People have really poor training and they don't understand that suicidality is a spectrum,” she said. She continued to explain that the counsellor’s reaction is a very quick way to lose a victim’s trust.

"It undermines trust because you're not centering the person and their feelings anymore,” said Jackson.

For Jackson, the incident provided proof of issues and lack of knowledge on suicide prevention in Montreal and at Concordia.

“It is a greater societal problem in which we re-traumatize survivors of sexual violence in the exact same way that the original violence does, which is not believing that people have the agency to determine what they can do with themselves,” she said.

Fight for fair pay continues CARE and CREW-CSN are demanding better wages for TAs and RAs Maria Cholakova

@_maria_cholakova_

nions across campus have three months later. However, Mc- hour. In contrast, McGill pays RAs a U started negotiations with Laren noted that Concordia didn’t minimum of $28 to $30 per hour.

Concordia University to increase want to budge on salaries.

By November 2022, negotiworkers’ pay and sign new collective agreements.

The Concordia Association of Research Employees (CARE) has been at the negotiating table for over a year, demanding livable wages that match inflation and that are comparable to other universities in Montreal.

According to the union’s secretary-treasurer, Gabrielle McLaren, negotiations with Concordia have been “extremely difficult.” CARE’s collective agreement expired on May 31, 2022 and the union started negotiations

“They've been really unflinching, which is a problem,” she said.

“It took us a really, really long time to even get Concordia to talk about money.”

She said she believes Concordia’s unwillingness to increase salaries is unfounded when comparing research employee salaries to those at McGill. “[McGill] just takes research more seriously and it shows financially,” she said.

Depending on the job employees unionized under CARE have, the hourly salary as a research assistant (RA) is a minimum of $23.43 per

4 NEWS • OCTOBER 17, 2023

ations were slower than CARE would have liked. “It became really clear that it was sort of [Concordia’s] way or the highway, which isn't how bargaining works. That's not how negotiations work,” McLaren said. Then, CARE decided to take matters into their own hands.

On Feb. 22, 2023, one hour before their meeting with Concordia’s negotiating team, CARE members gathered in front of the Faubourg Building, giving out flyers and informing passersby on the need for an increase in RA wages. The

GRAPHIC PANOS MICHALAKOPOULOS gathering was quickly shut down

by Concordia security, who asked union members for their IDs. “It became really clear from the start of that meeting that the university was unhappy that they had been greeted downstairs by our group, and it was a really difficult meeting that ended up with Concordia telling us that if we didn't agree with them, we should just leave,” McLaren said.

For McLaren, the meetings weren’t productive anymore.

“[Concordia] wasn't respecting what we were bringing to the table, they weren't showing up at meetings ready,” she said.

CARE then moved to conciliation, a step in bargaining where a neutral party would get involved to facilitate and fast-forward negotiation discussions.

“At first, we were sensing a change of attitude,” McLaren said.

“Tensions in the room were releascontinues p. 5 thelinknewspaper.ca

NEWS continued from p. 4 ing, the dialogue was more productive, but [...] that did not last.”

In early August, Concordia presented an offer. Although some demands were met, the minimum salary was not increased for 2023.

“It is ridiculous, given inflation.

Plus, the minimums aren't that high, they're like $21,” she said.

Concordia refusing to increase wages was unacceptable for CARE. “You're asking people to have research expertise, to have specialized skills with different software, different computing,

different financial systems, different administrations; that's not a competitive salary,” said McLaren.

CARE didn’t accept the offer and waited until September for Concordia’s new offer, which never came.

“Often our colleagues would ask, ‘How'd it go?’ And it was really tough,” she said. “How do I tell them that the employer just wasted two months of our time in the most diplomatic way possible.”

According to Vannina Maestracci, Concordia’s spokesperson, “The parties continue to negotiate and we are committed to reaching an agreement.”

The struggle for better pay has been felt by CARE and CREW-CSN alike.

Zachary Mitchell, a CREW-CSN militant and a teaching assistant (TA) and RA in the history department, said that considering inflation hit 5.2 per cent, the union will demand pay to at least match inflation.

“Fundamentally, a lot of us are being priced out of our own city. This is where we work, this is where we live. If we can't afford rent, if we can't afford food, what are we supposed to do?”

Mitchell said a better working environment culturally would

benefit TAs and RAs as a whole.

“We're contracted for [a certain] number of hours, but often the expectation is to work above those hours, and there's a real culture around it that's developed over the years,” he said.

Mitchell added that Concordia’s negotiation strategies should change in order for unions to see change. “Concordia really has signalled sort of a policy of austerity in the past years, despite record inflation, but a very selective austerity,” he said.

He used Concordia President Graham Carr’s 10 per cent

salary increase as an example in contrast to their strict no-pay increases for unions.

“Some of the unions here, even ones which are asking for very little—like four or five per cent— they're kind of getting snubbed,” Mitchell said.

Mitchell added that all hope is not lost. “When things fail at the bargaining table, that's when unions begin to take larger steps doing things like industrial action, possibly even escalating eventually to strikes,” he said.

Concordia Health Services refers student to “unprofessional” clinic An out-of-province student was charged $150 with no receipt, for lacklustre service and a prescription of Reactine Hannah Vogan

@hannahvogann

resh into the semester, Olivia tioning to Steer that there was an service, she was unable to cover the F Steer, a second-year out-of- ATM across the street. treatment under her insurance. province full-time Concordia “I should’ve known just from Once again, Steer requested a student spent days coping with a full-body rash and hives. When Steer began to miss classes as a result of her ailment, she sought refuge in Concordia Health Services (CHS). CHS is available to all students who pay their Student Service fee which is the sum of $11.11 per credit each semester.

On Sept. 29, Steer described her symptoms to a CHS nurse. After examination, the nurse advised Steer to see a doctor. However, Steer visited CHS on a Friday and the clinic only schedules doctor appointments Monday through Thursday. The nurse then handed Steer a sheet with two referral clinics listed: Queen Elizabeth Health Centre and Clinique Médicale Crescent, to which Steer called the latter of the clinics listed and booked an appointment. Steer was met with disappointment after CHS referred her to a clinic where their quoted client testimonials are dummy text, and the attributed photos are stock images.

Steer eventually arrived at the clinic at around 4:10 p.m. As she walked in, she felt uneasy. Steer notices printouts that read “seven dollar Botox,” and that the clinic was packed. Those who were unable to take a seat on the chairs provided stood or sat on the floor.

As she checked in with the front desk, Steer clarified she is an outof-province patient, to which the receptionist told her a fee of $150 is required for the appointment.

When Steer said she would pay by card, the receptionist told her it was cash or e-transfer only, menthelinknewspaper.ca

that,” Steer told The Link.

The receptionist handed her a large printed paper with the email in which to e-transfer. After Steer sent the money, she was subsequently told that there was still a bit of a wait. The receptionist emphasized that the time you booked your appointment is not the time you will receive treatment.

Over five hours of sitting on the floor later, Steer was still waiting.

Meanwhile, Steer’s mother called the clinic to request a refund for her daughter as the service at this clinic had been anything but timely.

The clinic staff told her mother that there was no need for a refund, and that Steer was already in the doctor's office: Steer was still in the waiting room.

By the second time Steer’s mother called, “They picked up, said nothing and hung up,” Steer said, “At this point, I’m fed up. This is not worth waiting this long. I could literally have traveled back to Ontario and saw my family doctor for free in that amount of time.”

Feeling irritated, Steer requested a refund so she could leave the clinic.

Insisting they were unable to e-transfer her back, the receptionist insisted Steer would see the doctor shortly.

“I don't know why they made it seem [impossible to issue a refund]. They literally refused to give me my money back,” Steer said.

The way the clinic took payments, you were unable to obtain a receipt. In Steer’s case, there was no way to verify that she paid for the

refund; she wanted to go home.

The receptionist then told her to “wait,” and put Steer in front of everyone who had been waiting longer than her.

By the time Steer met with the doctor, she told him, “before you say anything, I want a refund,” to which the doctor started to diagnose her. Compliantly, she told him her symptoms.

“I don't know why I said anything, I should have kept it quiet,” Steer said. “He (the doctor) just didn't care.” The doctor proceeded to prescribe her Reactine. “I could've gone to a pharmacy, and they could've told me that for free.”

With 111 reviews averaging a 2.3 star rating on Google, Steer questions why Concordia could not conduct a simple background check.

“I feel betrayed,” Steer said.

“The fact that Concordia is making people go to this place is very odd. I feel like they haven't had a background check on that place.

I think whoever put that place down has never been.”

Steer’s experience is not unique.

Carly Hylton, a Quebec resident, is a registered nurse (RN) who is completing her bachelor’s degree in nursing at McGill. This past June, Hylton booked a blood draw at Clinique Médicale Crescent.

Hylton described the clinic as strange.

“It didn't look very hygienic,” Hylton told The Link.

She noticed the clinic was hot, sticky and crammed. The prices for services were slightly higher than other private clinics, the

CRESCENT MEDICAL CLINIC IS ONE OF THE TWO CLINICS CONCORDIA HEALTH SERVICES REFERS STUDENTS TO. PHOTO STELLA MAZUREK two receptionists were on their phones texting—not really being responsive to patients—and the Botox advertisements plastered around the clinic alarmed Hylton.

The receptionists were confused about her requests to get her blood drawn. They told Hylton to sit and wait to see a doctor.

This weirded Hylton out, she told them that for a blood draw she just needed to see a nurse.

The receptionist kept asking questions about her blood test, even though it was written on her requisition. “How do you not know what this is?” Hylton said.

Hylton left as the clinic exhibited “too many red flags.”

“I felt like the environment was very unprofessional, and kind of sketchy [...] I waited for a half hour with no idea of what was happening.”

When told about Steer’s situation, Hylton was shocked.

“As a healthcare professional I am surprised,” Hylton said. “I think it is strange that [CHS] would be referring people to this clinic [...] If

I am referring people somewhere I personally check out the place.”

Hylton additionally expressed how prescribing Steer Reactine does not require an in-person physical assessment. “I think Concordia should take a stronger stance on this and help students access good care.”

She mentioned how there are tons of other private healthcare clinics in the downtown area. At a different clinic only minutes away, Hylton got her blood drawn “quicker,” for cheaper, and in a “clean environment.”

Concordia spokesperson Vannina Maestracci said Concordia has never received any formal complaints about this clinic, and only removes clinics from their reference list if they are told the clinic engages in problematic practices.

Clinique Médicale Crescent declined The Link’s interview request.

A Link photojournalist was harassed on the street as she attempted to photograph the building.

OCTOBER 17, 2023 • NEWS 5

NEWS

Students denounce double standard in Concordia’s Israel-Palestine statements Separate emails leave students feeling “appalled” and “unsafe” by administration Iness Rifay

@inessdagoat

GRAPHIC ADAM GIBBARD n Oct. 11, the Concordia pressed concern that “the violence O Communications team and and the reporting on it will inevitPresident Graham Carr sent out ably intensify emotions in ways a statement to the university’s entire student body regarding the “events in the Middle East.”

The correspondence described how “profoundly troubling the deadly attacks and kidnappings

by Hamas in Israel” are, and ex-

that risk becoming even more polarizing than they already are.”

The email asked the Concordia community to “conduct [it]self respectfully” in the event demonstrations occur on campus, mentioning past demonstrations “not

authorized by or associated with Concordia” that have taken place.

The administration then detailed having “reached out to some students and student groups whose members are most affected by this war” in support.

SPHR member Leith Barghouthi explained that the “safety” and “zero-tolerance policy for hate and violence” message Concordia reiterated in its mass email resulted in more uneasiness for the Palestinian student community.

“Scratch SPHR—as a Palestinian student, we’re not feeling safe,” he said. “They think they have a superiority complex on us and it’s something we don’t approve of.”

The day prior, the student group Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights (SPHR) Concordia received an email from Dean of Students Andrew Woodall. After he expressed wishes of safety for any family members possibly

located in the region, Woodall wrote: “I also want to remind you that we do expect everyone at Concordia to be respectful of each other even in difficult times so if any of your members are feeling otherwise, please let us know. We are proud of our safe campus notwithstanding many different opinions.”

On Oct. 8, multiple Israeli international students received a separate email from the International Students Office in which on and off-campus mental health resources were explicitly laid out.

The message mentions “Concordia’s wishes to express deep concern for all members of the community impacted by the violence in the Middle East.” Such resources were not provided in emails to SPHR members.

One Israeli student, granted anonymity for their safety, was a recipient of this correspondence.

They expressed their “complete appallment and disappointment [towards] the actions committed by the Concordia administration” to The Link.

“Sending out an email of support and sympathy to only Israeli students and disregarding that all the other students are going through a difficult time is an absolutely disgraceful thing to do,” they said.

They added that “the Concordia administration should be ashamed of this act and should rectify it as soon as possible.”

With files from Maria Cholakova.

Read emails here

Finance update: ConU President’s trip to Israel A breakdown of Graham Carr’s university-funded expenses during 2022 trip Maria Cholakova, Zachary Fortier @_maria_cholakova_ , @zach_fortier

GRAPHIC ADAM GIBBARD

n August 2022, Concordia Carr left Montreal on Aug. 26, All 15 Canadian university with Israeli President Isaac Her- shared with Ben-Gurion UniverIticipated President Graham Carr par- 2022, three days after his sit-down presidents who attended the trip zog. The itinerary also includ- sity (BGU) in Israel. According to in a trip to Israel to visit interview with The Link. He trans- stayed at two five-star luxury ho- ed several dinners, networking the Euro-Med Monitor for Human Bar-Ilan University in Tel Aviv and build academic connections.

Six months after the trip, The Link spoke to Palestinian students and Canadian academics about their reactions and to understand why Concordia decided to participate.

Since the article’s publication in February 2023, The Link has acquired new information about the trip via records provided by an access to information request.

In total, the university spent nearly $9,000 to send its president on the trip to Israel. The money was spent on business class flights, luxury hotels and several activities on the itinerary.

ferred to Toronto Pearson Airport and then took a direct flight to Tel Aviv. Sitting in a business class seat, Concordia spent $5883 on airfare alone. That price doesn’t include the additional $75 for taxis to and from the airport. The president was also allowed a daily allowance of $52 while in Israel, which would come up to $364 for the week-long stay.

In addition, the university paid $2,500 to participate in the trip itself. The event was organized by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, which took care of the trip’s itinerary and its collective organization.

6 NEWS • OCTOBER 17, 2023

tels during their stay. Although the prices for the rooms were not listed in the document, Mamilla Hotel in Jerusalem currently charges $580 per night for a studio room, which is the least premium of those rooms available.

Carlton Hotel charges $385 per room for a “Superior City View Room.” Carr stayed eight nights split between the two hotels.

During his week-long stay in Israel, the president visited seven Israeli and two Palestinian universities. On Sept. 1, 2022, Carr attended an “Israeli Politics 101” seminar and later in the day met

events, strolls around cities and leisurely activities like a “Lunch and Swim” at the Vert Hotel.

However, Concordia’s ties to Israel are deeply rooted. In 2011, Concordia received $5 million from the Azrieli Foundation for the creation of the Azrieli Institute of Israel Studies at Concordia.

More recently, in January 2023, Concordia received $1 million courtesy of Miriam Roland, a former member of Concordia’s Board of Governors and honorary president and chair of the Jewish Community Foundation of Montreal. The donation would be

Rights, BGU had strong connections with the Israeli military. According to their report, in 2018, the Israeli government allocated $15 million to BGU to accommodate thousands of active Israeli soldiers in technology-related subjects, as the Israeli Defence Forces continue to transfer its technology units to the Negev region, where the university is located.

Concordia has yet to make an official statement on the trip or speak directly to Palestinian students on campus.

thelinknewspaper.ca

NEWS

The severe mismanagement of Concordia’s co-op café: The Hive Administrative failures at Concordia's student-run café has led to substantial debt and negative experiences for employees Menna Nayel

@mennaanayel

Disclaimer: Emma, James, Lily, and Grace are individuals who are no longer affiliated with the Hive and have requested to go under a pseudonym and remain anonymous. he Hive Café Solidarity James believes Williams uni- and just weeping into the phone.

T Cooperative is a reprieve laterally made the decision to fire Contracts are renewed and for many students for its study him with consent of the board, canceled at the beginning and end spots, offering sustainable food options and coffee. Yet, a stark contrast emerges from the accounts of former employees who describe a different side to the cafe. It includes allegations of unjust terminations, problematic interactions with HR, power imbalances in the structure of the co-op and finishing 2022 with a substantial deficit of $42,000.

Unwarranted termination When the Hive reopened in Fall of 2022, James was appointed as the general coordinator of the Sir George Williams location. Calvin Clarke, the former general coordinator, was set to work at Loyola rather than both campuses as he had before. With James joining the co-op, both general coordinators would be working together, each with their own set of responsibilities. However, James says that he worked long hours as co-coordinator and had to fill in for baristas as a result of scheduling errors.

“In probably two weeks, I did 120 hours. I think I was doing 60 hours a week,” he says.

After James had gotten sick, and failed to schedule an important meeting with Clarke, he was fired by HR. At the time, the HR position was held by Chloe Williams.

consisting of William’s friend who supported the termination and one other person who abstained.

“It's like the board had given Chloe a lot of discretion [...] When she fired me, I wasn't even in a room with other people. It was just me and Chloe," James says.

Clarke counters, explaining that the weekend before the Hive was set to reopen, James failed to show up. “He failed to give any fair notice about what was happening, did not provide any reasons for why he was not coming,” he says.

“James failed to deliver on basic responsibilities he had to do.”

Those responsibilities included counting cash, organizing schedules, communicating with the team and ordering supplies.

“All of those things combined led up to this situation of both with myself, HR and other people that brought up their concerns and issues as well. The decision was made that James had to be let go,” Clarke says.

Clarke claims that he was supposed to leave last year, but had to remain in his position due to James’ sudden termination.

James' termination caused him “to be really depressed for a while. I couldn't think about going door to door and talking to people and giving out my CVs. It was so crushing.

I remember calling [my partner]

of each semester. The rehiring of employees is based on anonymous performance reviews. Emma and Grace were not rehired as their feedback was negative. They both believe their reports are based on lies and speculation.

Relationship with HR During her hiring process, Emma was informed to follow the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Quebec (MAPAQ) dress code. Their attire regulations when handling food include: wearing clean clothes, covering hair, removing jewelry; and short, clean and unpainted nails.

Emma states that while working in shorts, her coworkers, Clarke and Laure Brisson, were, “talking, laughing, looking at me.

You can tell [when] someone's talking shit about you.” Later, Emma was approached by Brisson and told that it was a health and safety hazard to wear shorts in the kitchen. Emma describes that Brisson implied Clarke made sexual comments about her.

“If there was genuinely a health and safety issue, Calvin could have taken me aside privately and addressed me,” Emma says.

Emma decided to take the issue up with Williams, who held theHR

PHOTO DOROTHY MOMBRUN position. Williams was in a relationship with Clarke, but Emma claims to not have known this at the time.“I reported to Calvin's girlfriend, unbeknownst to me.”

It took two months for Williams to respond to Emma, stating she was in violation of MAPAQ dress code.

Clarke classifies Emma’s complaint as “a false accusation” and that she was violating MAPAQ regulations. However, the provincial dress code includes no mention of shorts.

He clarified his relationship with Williams saying, “That was declared as a conflict of interest and Chloe resigned from HR when that came to be the case.”

“HR should be impartial. It shouldn't be your friend, never mind your girlfriend,” Emma says. “Of course she's going to take his side.”

Williams resigned in the new semester, and Lily, a previous board member, stepped into the position. The complaint was never resolved, however, as Lily also resigned soon after.

Clarke claims Williams stepped down before this situation was ever taken up with HR. However, The Link has seen the email correspondence between Emma and HR. HR’s emails were signed “Chloe on behalf of HR.” Uncertainty regarding conflict resolution was brought up multiple times according to James. “The way they've organized their accountability structure is woefully inadequate for any situation. I'm not confident in the Hive’s structural ability to deal with almost any internal conflict,” he says.

Monopolizing power

A HUB FOR CONCORDIA STUDENTS TO STUDY, CHAT AND GRAB A BITE SUFFERS FROM MISMANAGEMENT. PHOTO DOROTHY MOMBRUN thelinknewspaper.ca

The close friendship of those who held board member and coordinator roles concerned Emma.

“It's like all these [people] that have never left Concordia are all in this weird friend cesspool of dating each other and being friends,” she explains.

Lily shares the same sentiment, “I think it definitely contributed to some unfair power dynamics. I don't know if I want to go as far as saying unfair treatment of employees, but it definitely had an effect on how the work was being done and how decisions were being made,” she explains.

Emma also believes that there was an obvious power dynamic held by Clarke and his friends.“Whenever they get called out, they're like, ‘I’m not your boss. I'm your equal. We’re on the same level.’ But you're not,” she says. "You obviously have some sort of authority over me.”

“Calvin was kind of like a hawk. People just didn't feel empowered. So, there's a level of discomfort. Instead of uplifting, it felt condescending. It felt like it was judgment,” Grace says.

Grace feels the same whenever Williams was present, saying that she “was very judgmental.

She wasn't at ease. She was very stressed at that time and it got projected onto us that we were not working hard enough.”

Grace adds that the crew of friends who have taken over the Hive need to pass it forward to other employees.

Clarke believes that claims of power imbalances are unfounded.

“There are multiple people sitting around the table and there are multiple other opportunities for people to speak and voice their concerns continues p. 8

OCTOBER 17, 2023 • NEWS 7

NEWS

PHOTO DOROTHY MOMBRUN continued from p. 7 and opinions,” he says. “I myself took it as my responsibility as a coordinator to give the floor to the baristas to express their concerns, their fears [and] their opinions.”

Clarke also defends himself, explaining that he took initiatives to better involve the baristas with labour council meetings, cooperative training opportunities, and also by offering them involvement on committees as well as financial training.

He adds that sharing institutional knowledge can be difficult due to high turnover every year.

“It becomes very difficult to do that in a vacuum that is the Hive in a university environment.”

Grace shares that she offered to take on more responsibilities, such as counting tips and meal prepping. “Their response was non-communicative. It would be turning their head away from me and nodding because they didn't want me to.” She says there needs

to be “an opening for people to step up and share [...] Allowing their voices to be heard.”

In May 2023, Clarke stepped down from his position as general coordinator and is currently resigning from the board.

Financial trouble According to the most recent 2022 financial report, the Hive had a deficit of around $42,000. Their accumulation of profits by the end of the year was around $72,000.

Ronika Khanna, accountant and founder of Montreal Financial, explains, “they actually have a positive amount of $72,000.

However, a lot of that money is coming from grants.”

In 2022, the Hive received around $124,000 in grants from the Concordia Student Union, Arts and Science Federation of Associations and Graduate Students' Association, two of which are specifically for their free lunch services.

Khanna stresses that, “They

have a gross margin of approximately $61,000. The question I would want to know, as an accountant, is why are they paying $170,000 worth of salaries?”

Extremely high salaries alongside lower gross margins could also be found in 2018 and 2019. In the latter year, they had $208,000 in gross margins, but $367,000 in expenses, $290,000 of which are only salaries. “It really stands out,” Khanna says.

“They're able to make up for their shortfall; their expenses being much higher than their revenues. Their regular operating expenses are higher than their gross margin, therefore, they need grants to survive,” Khanna says.

Malcolm McClintock, treasurer of the Hive, argues they are not operating the cafe like for-profit businesses do. “Our labor margin last year was egregiously off market standards, but that's part of the Hive's overall operation. It's meant to be subsidized for the students, so they

have immediate access to more affordable food.”

McClintock says that during the 2022 Annual General Meeting, “A wage increase for the coordinators as well as baristas across the board [was] predicated on the understanding that certain sales targets would be met. The idea was that if we sell so much, we're able to afford these increased wages and benefit our worker members.”

He added that if the wage increases were deemed financially unsustainable and sales targets are not met, they would then need to reevaluate the labour costs.

“We ended up dipping far into the negative,” McClintock says.

“Unfortunately, the systems were not very good at catching things in the moment. They were not proficient at tracking their labor costs on a regular basis. It would only happen at the end of the year.

As a result, McClintock and other members of the finance committee came up with a plan to institute sustainable systems

to track the café’s finances; it included a wage cut.

McClintock adds that weekly financial health meetings have been implemented to report on three key metrics: labor, sales and cost of goods sold. “By doing that on a weekly basis, we can track how close to or off our budget is overall,” he says.

McClintock shares that one of the Hive’s current goals is to make finances more transparent. “I personally have seen some friction, and a little bit of animosity between the baristas and the board because the board makes macro level decisions and baristas, who are actually doing the labor on the floor, often feel like they're not consulted with.”

"I truly believe in the Hive," James says. He argues that if implemented correctly, "Concordia food systems would be really valuable."

The Link has attempted to reach out to Williams and Brisson on multiple occasions but received no response.

CSU fall by-elections period has begun Nomination period will run from Oct. 2 to Oct. 27 Geneviève Sylvestre

@gen_sylvestre

wenty-two council seats are in 2022 and a 21.1 percent turn- in. Most students don’t really know an interest. I vote for people who p.m. on Nov. 9. Students can vote T up for grabs as the Concordia out rate in 2021. what the CSU is, let alone know seem to truly believe in what they online on the platform Simply Student Union’s (CSU) Fall 2023 Hendrale Gressel, a third- what the elections are for.” are doing,” Tardy said.

Voting, either on their personal by-elections officially launch.

The election will be split into three periods: the nomination period, which ends on Oct. 27; the campaign period, which runs from Oct. 30 to Nov. 6; and the polling period, which runs from Nov. 7 to Nov. 9.

According to CSU Chief Electoral Officer Ikjot Singh, the nomination phase is when students make it known that they will run for seats on the council.

“That’s when we figure out who’s going to run for the elections,” he said. “By the campaign phase, everything is figured out. We will know how many candidates are running and we will know how many for each faculty.”

The student turnout rate in the CSU fall by-elections has been low in the past few years, with a 5.7 percent turnout rate

year physics student, shared that she has never voted in a CSU election, but would be interested in learning more about them. “I wasn’t aware of the elections coming up,” said Gressel. “I think the emails get lost in my inbox.”

The CSU’s general coordinator, Harley Martin, thinks the COVID-19 pandemic is partly to blame for low student engagement, as it eradicated campus life for a few years. “In my opinion, there is a real passing of knowledge of people being able to bring others into something as they are leaving.

I think that is why we are seeing such low engagement, even postCOVID, it’s because that transmission of things has been lost.”

Singh agreed with Martin, saying, “with the pandemic, there was a disconnect with students coming

8 NEWS • OCTOBER 17, 2023

The CSU’s Council of Representatives essentially acts as the union’s board of directors, representing students and holding executives accountable. They have the power to pass mandates, change CSU policies and approve its budget. Filling vacant Council seats is not the only purpose of the elections, many bring forth referendum questions, such as fee levy increases or questions of importance.

Singh believes this is one of the key reasons to get involved.

“The CSU is going to take money from your tuition every year, regardless of whether you vote or not, so you might as well have a say in what they’re doing with it.”

Sabrina Tardy, a third-year science student, finds it important to vote in the elections. “When there is an option, I like to vote for people who seem to have more of

To learn more about the candidates, students can attend or watch the livestream of the public debate on Nov. 1, as well as read each candidate's biography when voting.

Martin finds it important for students to participate in campus life. “It's exciting, to get to participate in these things, but it’s not exciting if you don’t know why those things matter,” he said. “Whether the student body is something you generally care about or not, it is something to at least look into a little bit and be aware of.”

The polling period, where students will be able to vote for candidates of their choice, will run from 9 a.m. on Nov. 7 to 9

devices or at various polling stations across both campuses.

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FRINGE ARTS

Mizushobai: Revealing the unheard voices of Japanese women A powerful theatrical narrative that shatters stereotypes Claudia Beaudoin

@claudiaclx

n Oct. 12, Mizushobai (The O Water Trade) by Tableau D'Hôte Theatre—who are re-

nowned for sharing the untold stories of Canadian history—premiered at Montreal's Segal Centre.

Directed by Yvette Nolan and written solely by playwright Julie Tamiko Manning, the production held profound significance, particularly for its all-female Japanese-Canadian cast and the wide range of themes explored.

“I wanted to show the diversity of the Nikkei (Japanese diaspora) female identity because we are not just one thing, we’re multiple things at the same time,” said Manning, who is Japanese-Canadian herself.

She shared the importance of visibility for different communities in theatre and the empowerment she has always felt when she gets to witness all-Asian casts on stage.

“No one’s community should be defined by one story,” she said.

“Forgetting is, more often than not, a very deliberate choice as to what stories are worth remembering,” said Mathieu Murphy-Perron, artistic director of the theatre.

The title of the play, Mizushobai (The Water Trade), also doubles as the name for the brothels and clubs owned by the main character, whom the audience follows throughout her life.

This name is a metaphor used in Japan, often describing jobs that provide income that is neither secure nor reliable, much like the ever-changing nature of water, as mentioned in the play.

As the lights dimmed and plunged the audience into complete darkness, heavy breathing awakened them to the story of Kiyoko Tanaka-Goto—artfully merging fiction with reality.

Manning provides a poignant yet humorous look into the largely untold history of Japanese women's struggles in Canada in the 1900s through her writing and extensive research on the real life of Kiyoko—a first-generation immigrant and a Japanese woman who defied all stereotypes associated with her.

Driven by the weight of her familial struggles, Kiyoko immigrated to British Columbia in the 1930s to reunite with her absent father and seek a better life for her family. However, the promised life abroad often falls short of exthelinknewspaper.ca

lier selves standing proudly by her side. In this moment, she acknowledged how her life has frequently been influenced by the actions of men, those who have aspired to be the narrators of her story.

With unwavering determination, she proclaimed that while history has often neglected the stories of many women, she will not allow her own to be erased.

“You can keep on becoming new versions of yourself, that is also the meaning of the play,” added Nolan.

KIYOKO AT DIFFERENT STAGES OF HER LIFE PHOTO CLAUDIA BEAUDOIN pectations, leaving her to grapple with discrimination, objectification and personal challenges that echo in every chapter of her life.

The cast of five embodies our main character at various stages of her life—from the ages of four to 88—functioning as reflections of her past. "We are every facet of ourselves at every age and in every moment," Manning said, highlighting this artistic choice.

The playwright points out that Kiyoko's memory isn't consistently reliable, suggesting, “Perhaps her manipulation of the story is what she wanted to leave behind..”

The thought highlights the human tendency to reshape our own stories as we age.

In a poignant moment, as the lights casted a crimson glow and the room fell into silence, 88-yearold Kiyoko vividly recounted the heart-wrenching memory of a young Japanese girl's tragic passing in her brothel by a sexually transmitted disease.

She looked at her middle-aged self and asked, "Do you see how well I remember?" This gripping moment underscored the enduring strength of our memory, during moments that shape our lives.

On Feb. 25, 1942, the federal government of British Columbia invoked the War Measures Act to relocate Japanese Canadians living within 160 kilometres of the Pacific coast, which profoundly impacted many lives.

For Kiyoko, this meant being sent to jail for four years, a harsh consequence of the government's suspicions toward Japanese individuals during the Second World War. A central theme in the play is the fetishization of Asian culture.

Our main character noted, "Oriental was for show," shedding light on the objectification Japanese women faced. Our character reclaimed the submissive and quiet role assigned to her with assertive-

ness and charming vulgarity— much like the real Kiyoko.

Her connection to her culture gradually faded throughout her life, leaving her with only one lingering memory of home: a distant hill where she once gathered fruits—a place she dreamed of reclaiming one day when she had earned enough money.

The play's finale featured Kiyoko’s introspection about the impermanence of life, with her ear-

Throughout her life, our main character bears different labels— Mama Kay, Ki, Kiyoko, Enemy Alien Kiyoko, Okiyo San—yet she always retained an identity separate from these titles.

During her encounter with the story of Kiyoko, Nolan was particularly struck by her ability to embrace her life despite hardships, noting the inclusion of excerpts from interviews with Kiyoko's voice in the production. “She was 80 years old and just cackling away, and it’s just so great to be so open to your own life,” Nolan said.

She expressed the essence of Kiyoko's story with the words, "Women have always been present, just not visible."

Mizushobai undeniably succeeded in presenting an authentic portrayal of the experiences of Japanese women in the 1900s in Canada.

“It's really important to take the stereotype of the Asian woman down from the pedestal to demystify these societal fetishes and prejudices,” said Manning.

“Exploring how Kiyoko was a woman of power and intelligence, but also very flawed, is a really important step towards demystifying that image.”

PHOTO CLAUDIA BEAUDOIN OCTOBER 17, 2023 • FRINGE ARTS 9

FRINGE ARTS

“BLACK LIFE: UNTOLD STORIES:” Honouring elders and preserving history Eight-episode docu-series on Black Canadian history to be released on CBC Gem Gabrielle Laperrière Leblanc

@gabouts

COURTESY STUDIO 112. PHOTO DUANE COLE roduced by Canadian film- ada’s history of colonialism. “It P maker Leslie Norville, BLACK saddened me that it took me [emLIFE: UNTOLD STORIES is an barking] on this project to learn eight-part historical documentary series detailing of Canadian history that often go untold. The docu-series will air on Oct. 18 on CBC Gem. Gabrielle Free, the spokesperson for the studio behind the series (Studio 112 & Northwood), emphasizes the content of the second episode as it is related to Concordia University. “I think the entire series would be of interest to [Concordia students], but of particular interest would be the “Revolution Remix” episode which focuses on the Sir George Williams Affair, with rare footage of Concordia from the 1960s,” Free said.

“The series spans more than 400 years, with an eye towards contemporary issues, music, policing, Black liberation, immigration, culture and sports,” Free added.

All eight episodes explain different aspects of Black Canadian history through different periods.

Additionally, each episode has its own directors—most of them Canadian and all of them part of the Black community.

The Link was granted access to the first two episodes.

The first episode, “Haven, But No Heaven” is directed by Alicia K. Harris, a Canadian filmmaker and director. It delves into the history of Canadian slavery, breaking the fantasy that many Canadians have about slavery only happening in the United States. Historical documents, reenactments and testimonies from experts all help tell the story.

Throughout her Canadian education, Norville did not hear about Canadian slavery or Can-

about this history,” said Norville.

Norville was thrilled to take on this project, eager to delve into the history and perspective of Black Canadians. “I had been thinking for a while about doing a project on Black Canadian history, and because that’s how the world works, a friend of mine (Nelson George) connected me with his mutual friend Miranda Depancier, who ended up being my producing partner. [...] She’s just amazing and made lots of projects with the CBC [...] From there, we pitched the idea to CBC back in 2019 and the rest is history,” Norville said.

As Norville and her team were gathering information, going through archives and researching, she was surprised at the number of stories she had never heard.

The second episode, “Revolution Remix,” directed by Haitian-Canadian director Michèle Stephenson, touches home for Concordia students as it recounts the story of racist professor Perry Anderson and the Sir George Williams affair.

The Sir George Williams affair refers to the mistreatment and racism Black students faced at Concordia in the late 1960s, and the peaceful protests and sit-ins that Black students held in response to the unfair grading from Anderson.

The university called the police on the students, resulting in violence against them, arrests and, in multiple cases, deportation.

“One of the things I think people don’t realize [about the Sir George William affair] is that what

10 FRINGE ARTS • OCTOBER 17, 2023

happened in the ’60s at Concordia still had long-lasting repercussions for the Black students that participated in the sit-in”, Norville said.

Through captivating National Film Board of Canada archival footage of Montreal in the 1960s and the story being told by then-students who were present at the time of the events, the episode was tinted in black and white. Stephenson explained that the stylistic choice was made to immerse the audience in the atmosphere of those days. The episode is not only visually stunning but tells a story every Montrealer should know.

“The episode (“Revolution Remix”) was an occasion to pay respect and honor the elders that were there and fought for civil rights,” Stephenson said.

There were so many more stories that both Norville and Stephenson agreed were left untold, either in the series as a whole or in the “Revolu-

tion Remix” episode, as they could only fit so much in eight hours.

“I was shocked that the contribution of women in the movement had very little documentation [...] I tried to make sure that the sacrifices of both men and women were represented in the episode,’’ Stephenson said.

Both Norville and Stephenson expressed how the civil rights movements of the '60s are always associated with the United States, while Canada had a unique social environment and also participated in many liberation movements.

“As a Canadian, my history is acknowledged,” Norville said.

Stephenson shared the same feeling as her colleague, saying, “We are the moral compass of what it means to be Canadian.”

Stephenson offered advice to Concordia students after directing her episode and having done extensive research: Don’t under-

estimate the power of archiving.

“I am challenging the students of today to properly document and archive what is happening around them,” Stephenson said.

Norville knows that history documentaries can have the reputation of not being very stimulating for the viewer, but that it shouldn’t deter viewers from watching. “Although it is a docu-series, it is not your typical boring one like the ones you see in school,” said Norville, laughing. “It is cinematic and tells so many different perspectives.”

BLACK LIFE: UNTOLD STORIES will air the first four episodes on CBC on Wednesday, Oct. 25.

COURTESY STUDIO 112. PHOTO DUANE COLE

COURTESY STUDIO 112. PHOTO DUANE COLE thelinknewspaper.ca

FRINGE ARTS

Since I have been loving you Sanarelle

@sanarelle

My agony is a serpent's skin that Sheds and reveals new layers of suffering My muscles ache from Unfought wars with marking of wounds on my body meant to be inked on me I cannot hide the battlefield that lives within my spirit If I could evade My soul would drip out of my pores Like raindrops uncertain how to escape from the clouds And roam free as it has been forbidden to do so I seek inner peace in the hands of intruders My identity forged and rewritten by poets on my behalf I could tell God but he already knows There's nothing new I could apprise him Yet I still try My confessions, a cry for help, go unnoticed

Because you see Pain lashed unto my skin And bound itself to my cells Becoming one No matter how many times I exfoliate, the hurt never leaves My wounds never heal I travel the world with scraped lacerations That bleed unto those who wish to heal it pain etched unto me Like a child who fears abandonment The load of carrying such burden hunches my body Dragging it down with gravity -sanarelle

In my mother's womb, I absorbed all of her pain My placenta filled with suffering And destiny made it the composition of my flesh I have suffered for eons And without constant pain I wouldn't know how to describe myself

thelinknewspaper.ca

GRAPHIC MYRIAM OUAZZANI

OCTOBER 17, 2023 • FRINGE ARTS 11

SPORTS

Philippe Robin’s pan-American cycling journey From his doorstep to Argentina, the Concordia alumnus is biking for a cause Zach Jutras

PHILIPPE ROBIN POSES WITH HIS BIKE IN GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, WYOMING. PHOTO PHILIPPE ROBIN hilippe Robin, a former ConRobin was in Texas when he P cordia University journalism spoke to The Link. He stayed at a student, had always dreamt of Warm Showers location—a sertravelling the world by bike. Now, he is fulfilling his goal on a voyage of over 30,000 kilometres from Montreal to Ushuaia, Argentina that will end in December 2024.

The project is titled “Objetivo Patagonia”—Patagonia being a region in Argentina and Chile. After Robin completed his degree at Concordia in May 2023, he began his trip from just outside his apartment’s front steps a month later, on June 10.

Before he settled on his current route, Robin initially wanted to travel from South Africa to Egypt. “I really thought this kind of journey would be better if I start[ed] from my place,” said Robin. “I love the idea of just riding out from my front door.” For him, cycling allows him to see the smaller details of the world.

“I just think that cycling is the best way to travel because, when you travel by plane or by car, you see the tourist attractions or the big cities, but you will skip what’s in between them,” he said.

vice that pairs touring cyclists with people that will host them for free. Robin called the service “a real blessing.” Although he only gets hosted when he has rest days, Robin estimated that “95 per cent of my nights on the road are spent in my tent.”

Through his journey, Philippe is raising money for Fondation sablon. Cynthia Deschambault, the philanthropic development advisor at sablon, said their mission is to “facilitate access to sports and outdoor activities for disadvantaged children to empower them to unleash their full potential and positively transform society.”

Robin has a personal connection to their mission. He believes that what kept him in school was his participation in a soccer sports-study program. “If I didn't have the opportunity of playing sports as a teenager, I would have dropped out of high school.

I don’t know what my life would [have been like],” he said. “Since I

12 SPORTS • OCTOBER 17, 2023

@Zach_Jutras

got the opportunity to move and spend my energy, I was more focused in class.”

Deschambault empathized with Robin and said it was a perfect partnership. “We felt like he really cared about our mission,” she said.

Robin has raised close to $600 since he began his trip. sablon plans to boost his visibility through their social media and through the newsletter they send out to donors.

Since the start of his trip, Robin has faced a few obstacles. Forest fires in Quebec made him change route and go straight to Ottawa, Ont. instead of passing by Abitibi-Témiskaming, Que. He also rode through areas with bears, rattlesnakes and cattle crossings.

“When I got out of the Rockies I was like, ‘I'm out of bear territory, and I'm safe now’. Then, I get into Texas and there are snakes everywhere. There are gigantic spiders that can kill,” he said.

“Every time something happens I see it as a learning opportunity and I have to be careful.”

However, Robin said his biggest challenge was running out of water as he rode through Great Basin Park in Wyoming with a fellow biker he met in the United States.

“We couldn’t find anywhere to refill our bottles, so we had to filter water that I’d never drink in any other circumstance,” he said.

Ultimately, the water made him sick, but he kept on riding to get to fresh water. “Water won’t

appear by itself. If you don’t feel good, you have to talk to yourself and keep on going,” he said.

Robin credited his three sponsors with being able to bring the project to life. Robin had worked at La Cordée, an outdoor sports store, for three years. When he pitched his idea to them, they happily partnered with him. La Cordée provided him whatever equipment he needed for the trip.

Arc'teryx, an outdoor equipment company, also did the same after they received a twenty-page document from Robin that detailed his journey and who he is. He had sent that document to many companies and Arc'teryx was one that came back with an offer.

Lastly, Memento Cycles, a local shop in Montreal, was tasked with building his bike from scratch. Ronny Perez Jaramillo, the co-owner, designer and machinist said that they had to think about striking a balance of comfort and power. They also considered everything he had to bring with him, and built a rack that could store large amounts of water and his backpack.

Throughout the journey— and true to his journalism background—Robin made sure to socialize with people. He was able to ride for a few days with some people he met in the United States.

“For me, these little meetings with people sort of help me divide the trip into smaller trips and it makes it more digestible,” said Robin.

“If I think too much about Ushuaia, I can easily get overwhelmed and sort of question myself” He has also been accompanied by his loved ones at times. While he was in Yellowstone National Park, his father left Montreal to stay with him for a few of his rest days.

This December, he will be in Costa Rica, where his girlfriend will fly down to spend the holidays with him.

One of his close friends will also join him in Costa Rica with his bike. Robin will return to cycling in January 2024—up until December 2024—where his friend will continue the ride with him.

Perez Jaramillo, who is also friends with Robin, takes time to check in on him. He said it’s all Robin needs from him. “We can always try to look up bike shops and help him if ever needed, but [Robin] can handle himself, so right now it's mostly moral support,” Perez Jaramillo said.

Despite the difficulty of his endeavour, Robin remains modest about the 30,000 kilometre journey.

“I don't feel any sort of pride about what I’ve done. I don’t feel proud that I rode across Canada and the U.S., I just feel proud that I set off and left my home. I [made] a decision to do this,” he said.

Robin is currently in Mexico and is past the 120-day mark of his voyage. He is a long way from his final destination, but has the full intention to finish what he started.

PHILIPPE SITS NEXT TO HIS TENT IN GROS VENTRE VALLEY, WYOMING. PHOTO PHILIPPE ROBIN thelinknewspaper.ca

SPORTS

Shut up and Dribble: Women absent from Red Bull Rampage yet again The decision stops women from competing in mountain biking on an international stage Aidan Raynor

@aidanjraynor

ed Bull Rampage, the biggest in Virgin and followed the same no large-scale sponsorships— “On the recreational side of However, the sport has seen an R spectacle in mountain biking, concept as Rampage. outside of Red Bull—willing to mountain biking I have seen a astronomical rise in the number is back for another year to show“When Red Bull announced put down the big dollars for an drastic increase in female partici- of women performing extremely case the best in the freeride world, but not a single woman is in the line-up of 18 riders.

Red Bull Rampage could be considered the Superbowl of mountain biking. For the past 22 years, Red Bull has pitted the best male freeride mountain bikers against the most famous freeride course in Virgin, Utah.

Riders start at the top of a near vertical cliff and drop into jump lines with over 20-metre gaps and hit speeds of 70 km/h while doing flips and tricks to score points with the judges. Rampage is what every young mountain biker dreams of reaching. However, women will have to keep dreaming.

The news shocked the freeriding community, considering Red Bull has also decided this year to cancel Formation, a smaller non-competitive mountain biking event for women. Formation was hosted from 2019 to 2022

earlier this spring that they would not be continuing with Formation, a lot of the athletes were pretty excited since that would have meant that Red Bull was going to add women to the [Rampage] roster,” said Vaea Verbeeck in an interview with PinkBike.

However, that wasn’t the case.

Women have taken up cycling in huge numbers—and it should reflect their inclusion on the competition side of the sport—but sadly, it isn’t the case. The National Bicycle Dealers Association has stated that 55.4 per cent of female cyclists started or returned during the pandemic.

When Formation was first founded, it was a way of getting all the female freeriders who wanted a place at Rampage together to showcase what they could do on two wheels, but it was not perfect. Unlike Rampage, there were no winners and

athlete on the podium.

Lack of sponsorships greatly affects a professional athlete’s potential to practice their sport sustainably. Professional mountain bikers rely on high-profile events to showcase their marketability. Without external sponsor presence, they lack the financial resources to fund their training and events that make it worth it to huck themselves off cliffs. When the women involved with Formation entered into talks with Red Bull, it was to continue the event, but also make space for women in Rampage.

At the 2023 World Cross Country Mountain Bike Championships, Canadian biker Marin Lowe came in second. Lowe—an outspoken advocate for women’s mountain biking who works with groups like Ride Like a Girl—was disappointed with Red Bull's decision to exclude women from the competition.

pation in the past few years,” said Lowe. “When riding my home trails in Squamish, B.C. it is evident that there is a lively community of female rippers. There are days where I see more women out on the trails than men.”

Lowe said she’s hoping that growth in recreational mountain biking will translate into growth on the competitive end. “I believe having more female coaches, mentors and decision-makers in the cycling community/industry will encourage more girls and women to race bikes,” she added.

Lowe said the new generation of women’s freeride has raised the bar in terms of performance.

“For the past few years women have proven again and again that they belong at Rampage,” said Lowe. “The majority of ‘haters’ debate that women can’t handle the features and physical impacts.”

difficult tricks that would belong in a competition like Rampage.

“I am aware that being a girl makes me biased, but these freeride chicks are hardcore and they deserve a competitive platform just as much as the men,” Lowe said.

Lowe added that Rampage allows riders to design their own features and lines according to their abilities, so that no run is the same. Female riders would therefore not have to hit the same lines as the male competitors.

For some reason, in 2023, women in mountain biking are still not being given the same opportunities. Red Bull must stop making choices that set the sport back decades.

GRAPHIC RENEE BARNES

New NDG hockey team brings semi-professional series back to Montreal The Montreal Mounties is the city’s first senior level team in more than 15 years Stephanie Manning

@ByStephManning

JEREMY LAVIOLETTE TAKES THE ICE IN THE MOUNTIES’ GAME ON OCT. 7 AGAINST THE MERCIER HC CRÉDIT OUI AT ARÉNA COLLÈGE NOTRE-DAME. PHOTO ANNIE HUYNH

hen Colin Boudreau returned “Montreal players typically have diens’ “fan experience” increased youth groups, but Boudreau even- be a really good team for a lot of W to competitive hockey three to drive an hour to go and play a by 25 per cent to about $550 USD. tually found the team a late even- people to come watch,” he said. years ago, he joined the semi-profes- home game. So, when you count 20“Hopefully, garnering interest ing slot at Aréna Doug-Harvey Out of the first five games of sional Ligue de Hockey Senior Élite (LHSE), which plays in the townships and municipalities surrounding Montreal. During the long car rides with his teammates, he noticed a recurring theme in their discussions.

“It was always about how there was no team in Montreal and how we’d like to have one,” he said.

Boudreau took matters into his own hands in June 2023 when he founded the Montreal Mounties.

Now part of the LHSE, the Mounties are the city’s first team at the senior AA level in more than 15 years.

A Concordia student in kinesiology and exercise science, Boudreau said the team fills a void for players in the city. thelinknewspaper.ca

game seasons, it’s a lot of driving, a lot of snowstorms in the winter,” he said.

Boudreau understands the needs of hockey players well. He played competitively as a student at Collège Notre-Dame, where he now coaches. Despite currently nursing a foot injury, he plans on taking to the ice again as a member of the Mounties.

However, Boudreau wants the Mounties to cater to more than just players. He said he hopes the cheap ticket prices—$10 for adults and $5 for kids (free with a youth hockey jersey)—will attract local families who find professional games too expensive. Over the past decade, the Montreal Cana-

through that might be a secret to our success,” Boudreau said.

Montreal’s last semi-professional team was the Verdun Dragons, who stopped competing after 2006. Boudreau has a theory about the long absence: “It’s extremely hard, as I’m learning, [founding] a project like this in Montreal,” he said. Most teams are non-profit and rely on sponsorships, but Boudreau said many businesses in the city are already committed to supporting other projects. “Everyone here is super [solicitous],” he said.

Finding ice time was another challenge, as most prime practice slots were already taken up by

in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, where they were practicing on Sept. 20.

It was 9:30 p.m. on a Wednesday night, so the lobby and the rinkside seating were mostly empty.

Mounties defenceman James Hatzepetros met Boudreau on the hockey team at Collège Notre-Dame before Hatzepetros spent time competing in Europe.

He said he’s been thoroughly enjoying his time with the team.

“It’s not many practices, but it’s just a lot of fun being able to play at that competitive level,” he said.

Should the Mounties have a good season, Hatzepetros said more Montrealers might be enticed to sign up. “I think we could

the season, the Mounties have lost three, including their first home game against the Mercier HC Crédit Oui. However, they also celebrated their first win on Sept.

30 against the Saint-Roch-de-l’Achigan Jaguars—followed by a second win against the Jaguars on Oct. 14.

Head coach Sean Gilbert said the main goal for the season is to be competitive. “We will surprise, and hopefully we could play for 50-50, so 10 wins, 10 losses,” Gilbert said. “It’s going to be a good start for an expansion.”

OCTOBER 17, 2023 • SPORTS 13

SPORTS

Thriving on pride and heart The cross-country and track team’s journey towards growth and community Liam Christin

@liamchrt

he Concordia Stingers typicalLofranco’s team is split in two, Lucas Graham are all positive T ly conjure thoughts of packed with cross-country and track and about the direction of their efforts bleachers cheering on the football field each competing on their re- and the potential of the ten new team, or synchronized rally cries of the basketball teams echoing through the John Dore court.

However, despite often flying under the radar, the Stingers cross-country and track and field team boasts plenty of competitive drive and team spirit as they attempt to climb the ranks.

The team is one of the oldest sports units within the university, having existed since the 1920s when Concordia was still split between Loyola College and Sir George Williams University.

It was even known to have produced athletes who represented Canada at the Olympic games, such as Warren “Monty” Montabone who competed in Paris in 1924 and Amsterdam in 1928.

Despite its history, the team has been quiet since the turn of the millennium due to a lack of funding from donors, interest from fans, and a low number of participants compared to other Stingers teams. “There was no team,” said head coach John Lofranco, who took over in 2003.

Since then, he has strived to put the team back on the map.

“I want to coach growth. Athletes who get better not only as athletes, but as people too,” Lofranco said.

spective ends. The 17 athletes in the cross-country section mostly compete in long-distance running, while the dozen that make up the track section specialize in short-distance sprinting and throwing disciplines like javelin.

The unit's small size isn’t of much concern for Lofranco and the team. “We’re part of the smaller schools, but our goal is to get on top of those schools and then move on to the bigger guys,” Lofranco said.

The team competes in the Réseau de Sport Étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) division along with big names like the Université de Montréal Carabins and the Sherbrooke Vert et Or. Other smaller teams in the division include the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi Inuk and the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières Patriotes.

In their first competition of the year at the McGill Open on Sept.

16, the women’s team collected sixth place out of 18 teams, and the men arrived seventh out of 16.

The Stingers have endured a challenging past decade, but they are now focused on building from the solid base they have acquired since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lofranco and cross-country team captains Esther Savouré and

rookies who joined the team in the recent recruiting class.

“I really like the group that we have this year,” said Savouré. “These people have a lot to offer, they’re really invested and they want to be with the team.

It’s really a nice community and team that we’ve formed—a nice ambience.”

Even without the resources and funding other RSEQ heavyweights have, the Stingers don’t shy away from a challenge and are eager to show everyone that they’re capable

SKYE ROBINSON (LEFT) AND CAITLYN FULTON-KENNEDY (RIGHT) RUN DURING THE MCGILL OPEN. PHOTO BY CATE GRANSAULL 14 SPORTS • OCTOBER 17, 2023

THE STINGERS START THEIR RACE DURING THE MCGILL OPEN ON SEPT. 16 AT MOUNT ROYAL. PHOTO CATE GRANSAULL of putting in the work. One of their most valuable assets is the full confidence the team leaders have in their fellow athletes.

“This year is really about getting our name out there,” said Savouré. “It’s really our second season [competing] as an official team.

We want to get as many people on the team as possible and show everyone what we can do.”

The team understands that their group, while small and unproven, still has ways to overcome the competitiveness of their division.

Finding identity and building a solid group from the ground up takes time and effort, but the team’s chemistry, helped by a leisurely bonding process and some newly solidified values, has grown exponentially.

“When you know each other as people, then it’s a lot easier when you’re suffering,” said Lofranco.

“You can look to the side and say, ‘Okay, they’re with me, they’re suffering the way that I’m suffering.’

That’s the thing even our new people are buying into right away.”

Unity is a central value to this

Stingers team. A heavy emphasis is also put on teamwork and group ethics, values that the team considers crucial in their chase for a much-coveted podium spot.

“Doing things in a group is so much better,” said Graham. “For example, when we went to Quebec City, everyone took the bus as a team. [...] We could have just driven there ourselves, ran the race and dipped, but the coach wanted us to get on the bus. The whole ride was a blast.”

Among other things, Lofranco also explained how activities such as barbecuing and dragon boat racing have contributed positively to the bonding process. Despite their sport being very physically and mentally demanding, the Stingers can count on their team spirit to lift them in any situation.

As their next step, the cross-country and track and field team hope to build on the progress they’ve made this year.

With the base they’ve built, the team is now positioned for some much-awaited growth.

thelinknewspaper.ca

OPINIONS

The unspoken violence of censorship Silencing Palestinian resistance is stifling democracy Leora Schertzer

@leoraschertzer

he calamity in Israel and Gaza cult for Palestinians to escape. of engaging in hate speech, but I On Oct. 16 and 17, the Cen- space to debate freely and legally.

T has been incredibly emotional A post from comedian Amy believe silence on the matter is far tre for Israel and Jewish Affairs Hearing out all viewpoints is the and grief-stricken, particularly for Schumer, who has recently dedi- more deadly. Moreover, the im- (CIJA) is hosting a conference on first step to democracy, which those connected to the region. As a Jewish person, I am struggling to reconcile my community’s response to this past week’s events.

New atrocities unfold so quickly that it feels impossible to process the last hour of news. But the dehumanization of Palestinians has added a layer of bitterness and confusion that has made grieving all the more turbulent.

On Oct. 7, Ben Mizrachi— who I went to a Jewish high school with in Vancouver—was murdered in the Hamas attack on the music festival near Gaza, where 260 Israelis were killed.

He had stayed behind to perform first aid on a friend who had been shot. He was always incredibly thoughtful, generous and well-loved; his loss is felt deeply throughout the entire Vancouver Jewish community.

While processing Ben’s death, I waded through the flood of my community’s reactions on Instagram. One circulating post included the line, “Israel must do whatever it needs to defend itself,” when earlier that morning, the Israeli Defence Minister had promised to “turn Gaza into rubble.”

This promise has since been upheld with a total siege on Gaza, with Israel bombing schools, neighbourhoods and hospitals, as well as cutting off electricity and water across the strip. The Israeli and Egyptian border crossings have been closed throughout this week, making it incredibly diffi-

cated her Instagram to pro-Israel infographics, was circulating on social media: “If your response is ‘Yes BUT…’ you need to take a step back and ask yourself why the indiscriminate killing of civilians is defensible to you in this one and only case.”

Both Zionists’ and pro-Palestinians’ positions have been hardened since the attacks. Schumer’s rhetoric paints a narrative that there is only one side. Of course civilian death should be condemned—but if you so much as acknowledge the other side, or question how we arrived at this bleak point in history, you risk being accused of perpetuating violence. It is much easier to rationalize the grief of war crimes if you invalidate your enemy.

This silencing is incredibly dangerous. Dehumanization and policing debate have played key roles in the perpetration of genocide throughout history. In the demonstrations this week, both by pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel advocates, people are looking for an outlet to express grief, pain and fear. Silencing or ignoring the other breeds hatred, and this hatred is being used to justify the murdering of civilians.

Open and empathetic discussion is the necessary first step of all democratic processes. Many who hold strong opinions about Israel-Palestine might believe that entertaining the opposition is dangerous and puts you at risk

possibility of democratic discussion around Israel-Palestine has been exacerbated by misinformation and online rumours.

Willa Holt of Independent Jewish Voices, a Jewish-led Palestine solidarity organization, says leading conversations with compassion is key. “The only way that you can get through to someone who’s experiencing such a deep level of trauma and such an instinctive fear response is to lead with the idea that multiple things can be true at the same time,” Holt says.

Too many people online jump to share flippant statements without creating space to mourn, and the hysteria is fitting; there is not enough time to process as murder and destruction continue to unfold in Gaza and Israel every day.

The silencing of Palestinians extends far beyond social media: this week, France has placed a ban on pro-Palestine demonstrations. An organizer for Palestinian Youth Movement in Montreal, who prefers to remain anonymous for this story, says this ban is “not very surprising.”

“People need to be aware of these double standards. When Russia invaded Ukraine, people were allowed to raise the Ukrainian flag with no problem. So why shouldn’t we be able to do the same?” they say. “If they haven’t addressed the recent increase of hate crimes, then there’s no reason to think that they wouldn’t push policies [like the anti-demonstration one].”

parliament hill in Ottawa to fight antisemitism. Seven hundred people are expected to attend, including over 90 MPs and senators.

This is possibly one of the largest advocacy days ever, for any issue, on parliament hill.

One of CIJA’s primary goals is for Canada to recognize that anti-Zionism is a form of antisemitism. If this were to ever be enshrined in law, any criticism of Israel would be made illegal, and the likes of France’s move to outlaw any pro-Palestine demonstrations could be seen in Canada.

A law like this would be dangerous for several reasons. Eliminating space to criticize a government further stifles debate and is a step toward dictatorship.

Outlawing criticism of the government is not tolerated in Western democracies—why should we encourage silence about a government in the Middle East?

Avoiding criticism of Israel’s occupation does not keep Israelis or Jewish people safe. The fear of antisemitic hate speech is incredibly present among Jewish people, which is something we have struggled against for millennia. However, conflating criticism of Israel with antisemitism waters down the very real threat of antisemitism, which has recently risen alongside white supremacy.

Eliminating the possibility of nonviolent self-expression further radicalizes opponents of the occupation if there is no longer

Israel is clearly very far from at the moment: the 2.8 million Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza strip are unable to participate in Israeli elections, even though their borders, security and thereby imports are controlled by Israel. The inability to hear out the other side with compassion is having real-life consequences, as it becomes easier to take down an unknown enemy.

The current ethnic cleansing that is underway after Israel declared a total siege of Gaza, as well as Hamas’ massacre that killed 1,300 Israelis since Oct. 7, is incredibly scary and painful for everyone with family and friends in Israel-Palestine.

In the words of Ben Mizrahi’s classmate, Rakeaa Chesick-Gordis, from a vigil held last week: “When we react from a place of hurt, fear and sadness, we expect that it will alleviate pain. We think that placing blame, looking for explanations, trying to make any semblance of sense of the incomprehensibility of it all will make the suffering just a little bit less: But it doesn’t. Instead, it dizzies us, hardens the mind and the heart, creates false promises of relief that don’t actually address what’s going on. We are hurt, scared and sad.”

I hope my community can soften our hearts and find a collective pathway toward justice.

COURTESY IJV. thelinknewspaper.ca

OCTOBER 17, 2023 • OPINIONS 15

OPINIONS

A hate letter to the shuttle bus Commuting alternatives for when you don’t want an unpleasant, unreliable, hour-long bus ride between campuses Leo Litke oncordia trumpets its shuttle primarily on the shuttle. When I nings and evenings, but for much spill-proof container). It’s a ride the bus or metro, and it’s far less C bus as a free and convenient took it for my first 8:45 a.m. class of the day, departed from either filled with abrupt stops and con- crowded than the shuttle. Along way for students to commute at Loyola, I was met with a line that campus every 30 to 35 minutes. sequent apologies to your fellow with a reported 95 per cent puncfrom one campus to the other, but for many it’s not enough.

When I decided to enter a program that was split between campuses, I had intended to rely

wrapped around the side of the Hall Building, unsure if I would make it for my lecture on time.

Until recently, the bus had scheduled departures in the mor-

GRAPHIC RENEE BARNES

Confusing? Yes. Unreliable? Also yes. With a travel time of around 30 minutes either way, the commute could take over an hour.

The trip itself is also often an unpleasant experience. At peak hours, the bus is usually stuffed with students and the unlucky last few to board might not have the luxury of having something to hold on to. I’ve been in this precarious situation and there is only so much core strength I have to stabilize myself first thing in the morning (pre-caffeinated, since the shuttle does not allow beverages unless they are in a

shuttle sufferers.

The shuttle also has a limited schedule as it does not run on weekends or holidays, ceases service at 7:45 p.m. on Fridays, further separating students from the two campuses.

However, when there is a will to get to the other campus, there is a way.

Montreal’s STM operates the city’s public transit, running over 2,000 buses and metro cars daily.

One can take the 105 Sherbrooke from Vendôme Station on the orange line, but I’ve found my favourite shuttle alternative with the Exo commuter train. The Exo trains can get students from the station near SGW to the station near Loyola in 11 minutes. Factoring walking times from the respective campus libraries, one can add on a ten minute walk on either end of the commute.

If you have an OPUS card or pay for STM tickets in Montreal’s zone A, it costs the same as taking

tuality (compared to 81 per cent

by STM buses), once you’re on the train, it’s smooth sailing.

The Exo is primarily used for commuters to travel from Montreal’s suburbs or those who live outside the island to their workplaces downtown, and the schedule reflects that. There are often long gaps in between departures, especially for off-peak times and directions.

The shuttle has its merits, but I needed to find an alternative that worked for me. I wanted a clear schedule, smooth ride and a more pleasant commuting environment.

It’s not that the shuttle is useless, nor that I don’t understand why it has the restrictions it does, but it’s far from the only option for students to travel between campuses.

No, you don’t need another Stanley Hoarding reusable bottles is far from eco-friendly Casey Kiss

@cm18141

GRAPHIC ADAM GIBBARD ook, I love a cute water bot- don’t buy three more because you are. Buying a ton of so-called re- ley’s marketing is how durable they reusable and thinking you’re Greta L tle. I have a knock-off Stanley want them in different colours. usable water bottles just to throw are, they want you to hold on to your Thunberg for buying it. from Winners and a Starbucks Buying one in a new shade of some away everytime a new one bottle for as long as possible, not Reusable water bottles are tumbler that are both precious to me. However, there’s a fat chance you’ll see me buying any more water bottles anytime soon.

Over the past few years, there’s always been some sort of ultra trendy water bottle that everyone just had to have. From Hydroflasks to Stanleys, there’s always a must-have accessory in water bottle form.

I'm not saying you shouldn't buy reusable water bottles (hot people stay hydrated). I’m just saying that if you buy a bottle,

green doesn’t make the environment any greener itself.

First off, where are y'all getting the money for this? These bougie bottles are pricey, and I’m talking $20 to $50 each kind of pricey. You could use your money in a much better way. Go get brunch! Get your nails done! Go to a yoga mom workout class! Whatever it is that floats your boat, you could use that extra cash you saved by not buying another bottle(girl math!).

Secondly, you are not saving the planet the way you think you

16 OPINIONS • OCTOBER 17, 2023

starts trending isn't sustainable.

When comparing a disposable bottle to a reusable one, the reusable bottle is only more sustainable if you use it at least every working day for a month. Those bottles sitting in the back of your cabinet aren’t exactly doing the world any good. Even then, they only have a teeny tiny bit less of an environmental impact than your run-of-the-mill disposable bottles.

As long as your bottle doesn't get severely damaged and you maintain it, you’re set for years. Part of Stan-

throw it away for the aesthetic.

Now, I won’t judge too harshly. Get yourself two if you want, just don’t go overboard with it. All it does is either take up a bunch of space in your home or create more waste than regular plastic bottles would.

At least plastic bottles are recyclable. Your Stanley is so well-made that it’s a lot harder to get rid of.

All this aside, I won’t tell you how to live your life. All I’ll ask is to be conscious of your environmental impact instead of seeing the word

cute and staying hydrated is so important, but we should be taking care of the planet and not just ourselves. Green should be more than just the colour you buy your bottle in, but as long as you’re actually drinking water and not exclusively consuming caffeine, I’m all for it.

thelinknewspaper.ca

OPINIONS

Is the West in decline?

Some thoughts on Elias Makos’ Twitter meltdown Zachary Fortier

@zach_fortier

@ZachFortierMTL

here is such irony in pay- the first time in over a decade. is not a new concept in the least. shifted my worldview. As I sat T ing $25 for a 300-year-old Rockets were launched into Israel, “We men of the Western Cul- in history of Western civilizbook. You’d think we would resulting in the death of hundreds ture are, with our historical sense, ation classes, I realized that I have figured this whole “public domain” thing out by now. This thought enters my head every semester as I fill my bookstore cart with tomes of classical Western philosophy.

As a political theory student, I spend every waking day pain-stakingly combing through this jumbled pile of concepts and contradictions we call the Western canon. From Plato to Nietzsche, Hume to Derrida, I’ve been forced to read all the so-called greats for my courses.

The icky feeling I get in class when someone clearly hasn’t done their reading—yet chooses to speak anyway—is what it’s like logging onto social media these days. Whenever I open one of these god-forsaken apps, I am reminded of how many people believe that with every turn of the news cycle, our fragile concept of a beautiful, sophisticated Western civilization is being attacked.

Growing up Greek and having attended Greek school from the ages of five to 12, I was fed a steady diet of Western indoctrination. “The inventors of democracy,” “the originators of Western culture,” “the defenders of the greatest ideologies known to man” and other phrases like these were shoved down my throat at a very young age. I was raised to believe that upholding the West was part of my civic duty as a Greek—and to think otherwise is to deny my heritage.

You can imagine the eyeroll I made when I saw Greek-Canadian radio host Elias Makos from CJAD 800 make a complete fool of himself on Twitter (and yes, I refuse to call it X, despite what Apartheid Clyde in his emerald-coloured glasses wants us to call it).

On Oct. 7, the Gaza strip’s governing authority, Hamas, breached the border fence for

of military personnel and civilians living near the world’s largest open-air prison. Israel’s retaliation has been nothing short of a total bloodbath.

Canadians remain nuanced and divided on the occupation, but that didn’t stop Makos from lambasting any Canadian who even remotely called out the Israeli state’s incessant bombing of the strip.

In response to Ontario MPP Sarah Jama’s call for an immediate ceasefire to the war on Gaza—a conflict in which the overwhelming majority of the Canadian government supports and aids on the side of Israel—Makos had a meltdown.

“This settler colonial nonsense is the hallmark of the anti-west, anti-capitalist, antisemitic ideology that seeks to undo the greatest societies ever built—the free liberal democracies of the West,” tweeted Makos on Oct. 10. “Canada’s extreme-left parties (the NDP, the Greens, and unfortunately half of the Liberal party— both federally and provincially) have swallowed these ideologies whole. Their wholesale regurgitation is destroying everything we’ve built. The richest, most equitable societies ever. Built by you. Being brought down by this.”

Makos pinned the blame for the Canadian left’s condemnation of Israel’s actions on “wokeness.”

He criticized Canada for not being included in a joint statement by the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, and Germany supporting Israel’s right to wipe Gaza off the map, citing that the anti-West and anti-capitalist ideology of wokeism was to blame.

As he continued his rant, Makos brought up that defending Israel is a necessity for the Western world because it “is the one bright light in the darkness that is the Middle East. We must defend Western values and civilization, full stop. Attacking Israel is attacking the values that give us freedom.”

The idea that Western civilization is under attack from within

an exception and not a rule.

World-history is our world picture and not all mankind's,” wrote conservative German philosopher Oswald Spengler in his 1918 book The Decline of The West. “[T]here will never again be a Culture and a human type in which ‘world-history’ is so potent a form of the waking consciousness.”

Spengler’s writing influenced fascist ideologies in 1920s Germany and was favoured among members of the Nazi party. His principal argument is that the West is in a state of decay, rotted by politicians, activists and academics who seek its destruction from the inside.

Over a century later, his ideas can still be felt in our modern political discourse.

Many of us may remember the moral panic stirred up by conservatives in 2020 over critical race theory. The outrage was manufactured by American right-wing extremist and lobbyist Christopher Rufo. He argued that the only solution to getting “racial justice” concepts out of public schools is to defund and privatize the education system entirely.

Rufo’s defence of the West as a concept and his targeted attacks on leftists have had an impact in Canada. Conservative figures like Jordan Peterson and Pierre Poilievre have echoed his talking points verbatim.

“Conservatives need to create a strong association between Hamas, BLM, DSA, and academic “decolonization” in the public mind. Connect the dots, then attack, delegitimize, and discredit. Make the center-left disavow them. Make them political untouchables,” Rufo tweeted on Oct. 13. Essentially, he said the quiet part out loud.

When I left Greek school at the age of 12, I found myself at a crossroads. I was able to recognize some of the Greek nationalistic fervour that was instilled in me, but going to a French high school

was still being sold the same shtick, even in a non-Greek setting. The “our” in “our history” now belonged to an even larger group; I was being sold Western hegemony.

Western supremacy isn’t the bad-boy, anti-woke outlier or exception in our social sphere, it’s the norm. Never in my five years of post-secondary education have I been taught by a professor who outright opposed the Western canon. To blame the “woke left” for destroying Western culture and its institutions is a sleight of hand.

In his shitstorm of tweets, Makos explained that he does not identify as a conservative and that he has never even voted for the Tories. It was clear to me that he was being reactionary, but his outburst tugged at something deeper.

I don’t think Makos is a right-wing extremist at all. He reminds me of so many boys I went to Greek school with— centrist, middle-of-the-road liberals who feel like they are owed something because of the might of their heritage. The glory of the West is a myth. Any society fueled by genocide and enslavement deserves no glorification in my books.

The best thing we can do when someone is having an existential fit about their political identity is leave them in their corner. We shouldn’t be engaging with people who see Stalin in every single voice even somewhat critical of Western hegemony.

The concept of Western supremacy does not lie in the Gaza strip, it’s embedded in our minds.

Whether we choose to excise the tumour of white supremacy from our culture hangs in the balance.

GRAPHIC MYRIAM OUAZZANI

thelinknewspaper.ca

OCTOBER 17, 2023 • OPINIONS 17

EDITORIAL

Andrew Woodall needs to resign n Thursday, Oct. 12, The Link is essentially claiming the Palestin- thoughts, beliefs and opinions— and Palestinian students. of others when Woodall was the O received footage, along with ian student is a liar, and cannot tell including freedom of peaceful On Oct. 8, international Israeli one showing aggression towards two eyewitness testimonies, of the difference between a discern- assembly, freedom of association students were sent an email by the Abuhamed expressing his solidarConcordia Dean of Students Andrew Woodall apologizing to Palestinian students after allegedly giving them the middle finger on Mackay Street.

Bara Abuhamed, the student Woodall directly apologized to, was waving the Palestinian flag through the sunroof of his friend's car.

Concordia denies the dean made the gesture, rather, Woodall gave a “look” to the student due to the “high charged moments” of the ongoing Israel-Gaza war.

This “look” must have been an immoral one if Woodall had to apologize to Abuhamed for his misconduct. Either that or Concordia

able “look” and a hand gesture.

The Link believes Woodall’s behaviour is unacceptable and deeply unprofessional for a representative of Concordia’s administration.

The dean of students giving the middle finger–commonly associated with the intention of telling someone to fuck off–to a Palestinian student would be a blatant act of racism and xenophobia as well as an infringement of student rights.

All students at Concordia, including Palestinians, Muslims and Arabs, have the freedom under Concordia’s Code of Rights and Responsibilities to voice their

and the freedom of conscience and religion.

Abuhamed was simply holding a Palestinian flag from the passenger seat.

The Link believes this “look,” or alleged hand gesture, qualifies as a targeted act of harassment. It’s also a breach of trust and transparency by the dean of students, who acts as a liaison between students and the school administration. Would Woodall have even apologized for this “look” if Abuhamed was not a student?

Woodall’s actions are a prime example of Concordia's double-standard between Israeli

International Student Office expressing their concern for Israelis affected by the violence, providing them with a list of mental health resources. Palestinian students were by no means given the same amount of aid.

Palestinian students feel unwelcome on campus as Concordia has othered them as aggressors. The admin is alienating grieving Palestinians who are emotionally devastated by the onslaught of attacks being committed in their homeland.

It’s hypocritical of the dean, a person in a position of power, and for the university to call on Palestinian students to be respectful

ity with Palestinians living under brutal occupation.

The Link is calling for Woodall to make a public apology for hurting members of the Palestinian community.

We call on Woodall to resign from his position based on the eyewitness testimony of his completely inappropriate and racist interaction with Palestinian students. This allegation is evident of explicit discrimination towards students expressing their personal rights and views peacefully.

Racism should have no place at Concordia, especially within its administration.

Support Material for Palestinian Community Members

GRAPHIC MEIJI GRACE ESTRADA 18 EDITORIAL • OCTOBER 17, 2023

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EDITORIAL

GRAPHIC MYRIAM OUAZZANI

The CAQ’s latest allophone tax rançois Legault’s gem of a The Coalition Avenir Québec’s CEGEPs in the province. tuition costs, the CAQ’s motives students cease to exist in the next F higher education ministry de- (CAQ) game plan is to make The CAQ garners zero shame are clear. The assault on non- few years. cided to once again defecate all English universities even less ac- when they blatantly punish those French-speaking communities in The higher education and over out-of-province and international students’ rights to an affordable education.

Minister Pascale Déry and French Language Minister JeanFrançois Roberge announced on Oct. 13 that, starting in September 2024, all new students attending English-language universities from outside the province will have their tuition rates skyrocket.

Canadian students from outside of the province currently pay a minimum of around $9,000 annually. Under the new policy, that rate will jump to about $17,000.

Déry said international students could see their tuition jump by $20,000, on top of the already exorbitant rates they pay to study in Quebec.

Volume 44, Issue 4 Tuesday, October 17, 2023 Concordia University Library Building, Room LB-717 1400 de Maisonneuve Blvd. W. Montreal, Quebec H3G 18 Editor: 514-848-2424 x. 7407 Arts: 514-848-2424 x. 5813 News: 514-848-2424 x. 8682 Business: 514-848-7406 Advertising: 514-848-7406 House Ads: Panos Michalakopoulos Cover: Myriam Ouazzani Dorothy Mombrun

cessible to non-Quebecers. The government is effectively building walls around Concordia, McGill and Bishop’s in the hopes of reenergizing the anti-anglophone and anti-allophone base fueling the party.

Enrollment numbers are expected to plummet because of this policy change. At Concordia alone, at least 31 per cent of students come from outside Quebec.

At McGill, that number reaches 50 per cent.

The CAQ’s obsession with paralyzing English schools and pampering French education was a common theme throughout its first term in office. And within the first year of its second, we’ve felt even more of this squeeze: Bill 96 added a host of barriers to English

who chose English education over French. It is obvious when they prioritize the francophone community given that the remaining excess tuition gathered from the new fee will be used in part to invest in Quebec's French universities. That’s about $110 million allocated to supporting those who chose French education at the expense of anglophone students.

With this new tuition policy change, the party is even more intent on blockading its most prominent universities because of the language their student bodies speaks.

If allophone immigrant students are being impeded at the CEGEP level, and allophone immigrant students are being bombarded with higher university

the province is only heightened by these new economic restrictions.

Beyond the issues international students face when attempting to access quality education in Quebec, the province has just given up one of the biggest incentives Canadian students had for studying here. $9,000 annually might seem outrageous to Quebec students, but this rate is not uncommon for in-province university education in other provinces.

Combined with Bill 31—the new housing bill that would impact lease transfers and subletting—Quebec is making itself an anti-international student hub.

This will have massive impacts on student life on campus, especially if vibrant communities of

The Link is published fourteen times during the academic year by The Link Publication Society Inc. Content is independent of the university and student associations (ECA, CASA, ASFA, FASA, CSU). Editorial policy is set by an elected board as provided for in The Link 's constitution. Any student is welcome to work on The Link and become a voting staff member.

Material appearing in The Link may not be reproduced without prior written permision from The Link.

Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters 400 words or less will be printed, space permitting. The letters deadline is Friday at 4p.m. The Link reserves the right to edit letters for clarity and length and refuse those deemed racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, libellous or otherwise contrary to The Link 's statement of principles.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2023-2024: Voting Members: Caroline Marsh, Jordan Lee Jerome-Pitre | Non-Voting Members: Adam Gibbard, Zachary Fortier TYPESETTING by The Link PRINTING by Hebdo-Litho.

CONTRIBUTORS: Claudia Beaudoin, Sanarelle, Menna Nayel, Aidan Raynor, Stephanie Manning, Zach Jutras, Liam Christin, Leora Schertzer, Casey Kiss, Geneviève Sylvestre, Leo Litke.

Corrections for Vol. 44, Issue 3: In “Thousands of Climate Protestors Fight for Future Generations” p.6, the pull quote on the page was wrongly attributed to Shanipiap rather than Normand Pilot, The Link regrets this error.

In the Editorial “Vote Him Out” p.15, Joyce Echaquan’s year of death was expressed as 2021 when it should have stated 2020, The Link regrets this error as well.

French language ministries are trying to lessen the flourishing of Montreal’s diverse communities. This tuition increase will undoubtedly hurt Quebec in its entirety.

Out-of-province students deserve so much better, and for Legault to insist on making their time in Quebec as miserable and expensive as possible shows where his priorities are. His petty attempt to whip up nationalism and anti-immigrant sentiment will cause a chasm in Montreal.

We call on the government to immediately reverse its policy and make education as affordable as possible for students of all backgrounds.

Editor-in-Chief ZACHARY FORTIER Managing Editor AUTUMN DAREY Coordinating Editor ANTHONY ISSA Creative Director MEIJI GRACE ESTRADA Co-News Editors MARIA CHOLAKOVA INESS RIFAY

Features Editor HANNAH VOGAN Outreach Coordinator PANOS MICHALAKOPOULOS Fringe Arts Editor GABRIELLE LAPERRIÈRE-LEBLANC Sports Editor ALICE MARTIN Opinions Editor OPEN Photo Editor DOROTHY MOMBRUN Video Editor DANA HACHWA Graphics Editor MYRIAM OUAZZANI Copy Editor CONOR TOMALTY Operations Manager ADAM GIBBARD

In “FEMINAE NOX, an example of music business equity” p.7, one artist was misspelled as GLOWZI, but their name is written in all caps as G L O W Z I. Same goes for the organization FEMINAE NOX. We originally wrote their name in lower case as Feminae Nox. We also stated that the organization is based in Montreal, however they have offices in London, NYC, LA, Chicago, and Montreal. Lastly some quotes were misattributed. Co-founder Mira Silvers attended the event and was interviewed by The Link but was mixed up with the organization's other co-founder Seny Kassaye who was not present. The Link regrets these errors.

In “The fun, chaotic and very real world of quadball” p.12, we originally stated that the Montreal flamingos play within Quidditch Canada, however the group is now known as Quadball Canada. The Link apologizes for this mistake.

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OCTOBER 17, 2023 • EDITORIAL 19