October 2013

the newspaper The University of Toronto’s Independent Publication

since 1978

VOL XXXVI Issue II

October, 2013

the newspaper

The University of Toronto’s Independent Publication

since 1978

October, 2013

VOL XXXVI Issue II

October 2013

2

the newspaper Editor-in-Chief Yukon Damov Managing Editor Dylan Hornby Design Editor Odessa Kelebay News Editor Isaac Thornley Associate News Editor Marsha McLeod Arts Editor Carissa Ainslie Associate Arts Editor Jane Alice-Keachie Comment Editor Zach Morgenstern Senior Copy Editor Sydney Gautreau Associate Copy Editor Samantha Preddie Features Editor David Stokes Illustrations Editor Nick Ragetti Video Editor Ted Rawson Events Coordinator Chelsea Hirons Cover Image: Daniel Glassman Centerfold: Odessa Kelebay

All good things come in twos You little punks think you own this town, but we’re #2!

We’ve assumed a certain financial and editorial outlook from our forebears.

We are run without funding from the university, completely upheld by two revenue streams—advertising and fundraising—or lack thereof. We are not held back by bureaucratic or financial interests; our independence comes at a cost that we are glad to pay for.

We are an exclusively volunteer-run, self-sufficient organization, producing monthly print content, frequent online content, hosting events, welcoming new members at every opportunity, constantly growing, always learning, and never asking for more than a read, like, or share.

The freedom of the underdog allows us to fuck around while not fucking around.

We don’t have a distribution service. We use our feet.

Second puts us in the critic’s chair as the opposition, the sober second thought, the alternative, the independent way of looking at things. For the newspaper, it alleviates the pressure of always being the source in the spotlight. In this way, we offer a journalistic alternative—one that changes freely with the times, and with the various writers within each issue.

Second is where the magic happens.

the website 2.0 Apparently, people get their news online more than ever before.

They wouldn’t have learned much from the state of our website.

But, rest assured, we’re assured we’re working on it.

October will be better than September. Over the past month we’ve slowly learned the new ropes this website has thrown at us, and come this month, you will see much more activity than last month.

We will take advantage of the immediacy that the internet offers media. Instead of reporting a big story in print days after it broke, expect the newspaper to be on top of U of T’s important, fascinating and hidden stories as they happen.

-the newspaper

Special thanks to Kendall Addison, Christopher Bathgate, Selina Chignall,Ty Coxxx, Carrie Feinstein, Sinead Doherty-Grant, Dave Gasinec, Eimi Harris, Abbi Indrakumar, Master Web, Josh n’ Olives, Calan Panchoo, Paulina Saliba, Lauren Peat, Hannah Raymond, Jordan Sowunmi, The Varsity, Melissa Vincent

the newspaper is published by Planet Publications Inc., a non-profit corporation.

256 McCaul St, Suite 106 Toronto, ON M5T1W5 thenewspaper@gmail.com All U of T community members, including students, staff and faculty, are encouraged to contribute to the newspaper.

Writers: Carissa Ainslie Allison Cooper Ty Coxxx Leelan Farhan Ria Gyawali Dylan Hornby Jane Alice Keachie Yasmine Laasroui Annette Latoszewsk Edwin Lean Camille Leon-Angelo Marsha McLeod Lisa Monozlai Zach Morgenstern Kalina Nedelcheva Samantha Preddie Sophie Poppe Richter Anna Bianca Roach Erika Simon Taylor Stinson Isaac Thornley Noah van der Laan Images: Daniel Braverman Parker Bryant Daniel Glassman Milo Golub Julia Greig Erika Hughes Joanne Lau Marsha McLeod Sam Nolan Grant Oyston Nick Ragetli Erika Simon, Copy Editors: Carla Bowman Laura Coburn Sydney Gautreau Aylin Manduric Phil Metz Alissa Mirochristchenko Samantha Preddie Daniel Ross Poppy Sanders Alexander Saxton

thenewspaper.ca

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the school: pg. 4

Tales of two campuses — the quest for a tricampus community” Annette Latoszewski “When the frosh fantasy fades” Taylor Stinson

pg. 5

pg. 13

table of contents

“Stumbling out of residence into the city’s waiting arms ” Leelan Farhan

the world: pg. 6

“Citizenship status: it’s complicated”

the centrefold: pg. 10-11 “How cities hook up in the global community” Noah van der Laan

“Bowie changes” David Stokes “Down and out in the USA” Sebastien Greenholtz

pg. 8 “A doctor and a director walk into a police station” Marsha McLeod

pg. 9 “Second chances” Camille Leon-Angelo

the other side: pg. 12

“Technophobia in the Age of the iPhone” Lisa Monozlai “Out of hell: Out of Heaven: Lessons in forgiveness” Edwin Lean

the culture: pg. 14

“Transforming cheap eats into gourmet grub” Erika Simon “The unibrow: to pluck, or not to pluck?” by

pg. 15 “Vintage clothing: a love story” Jane Alice Keachie

the camera: pg. 16

“Mahatma who?”

pg. 7

Dylan Hornby

Samantha Preddie

Anna Bianca Roach Ria Gyawali

“Was Orange Crush an electoral fad?”

“Old white man to star in another TV show”

the newspaper needs a Business Manager and Salespeople Contact Dylan or Yukon at: thenewspaper@gmail.com

the newspaper presesents: U of T Comedy Night Featuring Jordan Sowunmi and Guests and friends Thursday, October 10 At the GSU Pub

Allison Cooper

the mic: pg. 17

“The comebacks of the artist formerly-knownas Cat Stevens” Zach Morgenstern

the sextion: pg. 18

“Coming out, coming out, coming out” Isaac Thornley “Sex metaphors in the world’s least-sexy sport” Ty Coxxx

pg. 19 “The story of why bisexuality is apparently still unacceptable”

Tickets $8 at the door $7 in advance Available at 256 McCaul St.

Isaac Thornley

the end/the back cover: pg. 20

“A portrait of Little Portugal” Sophie Poppe Richter

October 2013

the school

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Tales of two campuses Newly arrived UTM and UTSC students evaluate their positions at U of T ANNETTE LATOSZEWSKI

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he “boundless” community that the Univer- defended on the grounds that “they let you switch sity of Toronto advertises does not seem to over easily, and take courses anywhere.” Several apply to either the Mississauga or the Scar- other students made reference to university-held borough campuses. U of T’s “satellite” campuses events and services, such as the shuttle bus conappear to be both geographically and symbolically necting UTM to the downtown campus. Needless separated from the central university, fostering a to say, students that take advantage of these crossset of unique identities with ambivalent relation- campus links do report greater feelings of tri-camships to the greater U of T community. pus identity and community.

Although UTM and UTSC are often lumped toRany Youssef, a first-year student at UTSC, exgether, based on conplained that although versations with sevcompetition exists beeral students across the tween campuses, there three campuses it apare moments when one pears that each campus thinks, “Hey, maybe we is somewhat insulated. are a family.” This tenWhen asked about the sion between competicampuses to which tion and cooperation was they don’t belong, something he observed many UTM and UTSC during frosh week’s tristudents revealed that campus parade, where they don’t know much hostility and support about them, and signif- “Scarborough or not, this building still looks hideous.” were exchanged between icantly less about each - Dylan Hornby Photo: Joanne Lau U of T groups. other than UTSG. Ivana Dewi of UTSC One UTSC psychology student noted that per- explained, “Some people are very hostile towards haps the unified U of T community exists only the other campuses, but I don’t see anything to be in theory, citing the challenges presented by the hostile about.” Another UTSC student suggested, physical separation of the three campuses. A UTM “We’re a little intimidated by the St. George camcommerce student, however, maintained that the pus. People who go here feel like they’re second existence of a tri-campus community could be best –which is not true. [St. George students]

When the frosh fantasy fades TAYLOR STINSON

W

hen the glamour of frosh week fades, most firstyear students are left to navigate the transition from high school student to university level critical-thinker. First-years are immediately immersed in a massive network of different subcultures, ranging from small study groups to a myriad of student clubs, organizations, politics, and beyond. The biggest challenge for first-year students following September—besides the actual school work—will be tunneling through the academic and social madness to establish a sense of belonging. The most important part of this process involves using as many educational tools and resources as possible. You are paying for it, after all.

Professor Robert Brym, Associate Chair of the Undergraduate Sociology Department and longtime professor of the standard first-year class

might look down on us.”

This sense of inferiority and the idea that UTSG students are somehow more stuck-up or competitive was echoed from both UTM and UTSC. Kabir Tariq, a UTM student, suggested that “downtown you’ll see more competition, more aggressiveness.”

In contrast, UTSC students widely consider themselves a close-knit campus with a sense of family.

First-year student Arnica Longonya described the UTSC atmosphere as “homey,” while referring to UTSG as a “party” campus, and also felt negatively toward UTM. Meanwhile, some students in Mississauga described their campus as having a more conservative and passive feel, differing from the other campuses in its dynamics.

How then, does one decide between these three seemingly different campuses? For one UTM student, there was no choice; UTM was the only campus that accepted her. For others, it is the programs, convenience, and sometimes aesthetic appeal that led them to UTSC or UTM. Tariq explained, “I chose UTM because I love the smaller environment. It feels like you’re actually in a school, unlike downtown, where it feels like you’re just in a city.”

Despite a lack of consensus as to whether there really is a “U of T community,” students do agree that each campus has a unique identity with an associated local community. Most notably, the majority of students spoken to definitely felt at home, proud, and happy with their campus decision.

Exploring identity and belonging in the second month of school

SOC101Y1, pointed out that the university experience has changed drastically. When asked about his own first-year university experience, Brym noted the difference in student-professor interactions. While he quickly developed close relationships with his professors, Brym observed that today’s students are turning more towards their peers for help with educational issues.

Brym acknowledged, however, the current difficulties faced by students—in part due to the “subtle distances” some professors create by focusing solely on research projects: “This is a large, research-intensive university, and that can sometimes create an educational environment that isn’t very inviting.” Despite this, Brym is optimistic that over time the close relationships between faculty and students will be rebuilt. For this to happen, Brym stressed the need to “shrink the classroom” to encourage more discussion in lectures, and

respond to the growing trend of students who feel disconnected from their educational experience.

“I went [into my undergraduate degree] knowing that I wanted to major in women’s studies,” said Professor Sarah Trimble, faculty member of the Women’s and Gender Studies Institute at U of T. Despite being initially set on a major, Trimble added: “I think that [in university], the further you go, the less certain you are about everything.”

Trimble’s point is valid, considering the number of students who enter first year without necessarily knowing what they will major in; this struggle to find their footing is intensified by overwhelming campuses, which can hinder educational growth in later years. Trimble suggested that students should re-evaluate how they envision their university education, and most importantly, develop critical-thinking skills and engage with material early on.

The first year at university may not come across as entirely serious, but before the end of fourth year, it is important to remember that what you put in, you get out. It may be difficult to land that dream job with just an undergraduate degree in today’s job market, but the most important thing to take away from university —combined with the ups and downs of young adulthood—is the skills, relationships, and experiences you create.

Professor Trimble articulated why one should care about finding their sense of belonging and purpose as students and critical thinkers: “Things happen and we need to be able to respond to the claims of the world.” Indeed, as first-year students enter their second month of university, they will need to start formulating their own perceptions and claims of the world—and hopefully, discover what higher education ultimately has in store.

thenewspaper.ca

Into the wild: round two

the school changed our favourite hang outs and phone numbers, in case I ever had an eyebrow emergency.

Coming to know Toronto has made me more comfortable at U of T and with myself. There is a sense of agency that comes with knowing one’s surroundings so well: when you know all about your literal destinations, you can focus on your

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figurative destinations. When you actually explore the opportunities available to you, the goals you want to accomplish suddenly don’t seem so impossible.

The diverse, quilt-like quality of our surroundings gives one the chance to network with and learn from a variety of people and places. Second year is a great time to engage with this

Some of Bowie’s favourite books

Stumbling out of residence into the city’s willing arms

1. Fiction

LEELAN FARHAN

W

hen I finished my first year of university, the first thing asked by anyone who had not seen me in months was: “how was living in downtown Toronto?” or “what did you discover?” Meanwhile, those who lived here queried: “don’t you just love the city?”

All I could think was, “what city?”

Living in residence housing on campus is all a part of the university experience, right? It’s a great way to get involved, meet close friends, and immerse yourself in the campus community. I would be lying, though, if I said I ventured out beyond the four corners of campus more than five times in the eight months of first year.

I found that if I was not in class, I was either in the dining hall, at a campus library, or in my dorm room.

That’s not much of Toronto—or even U of T for that matter. I found that with all the overwhelming new aspects of life in first year, I tried to keep things as simple as possible.

Unfortunately, that didn’t leave much room for the city-life experience.

So when I signed the lease to my first apartment in July, I was itching with excitement. I had a whole month to discover Toronto as a true local—rather than as a campus dweller. Although I had technically lived in the city the previous year, I didn’t quite feel comfortable calling myself a Torontonian.

I moved in at the end of month and within just five weeks of living in the actual city I noticed that I had begun to call Toronto, rather than the town where I was from, my home. That’s when I knew that I had qualified for local status. I started going to the aesthetician across from Honest Ed’s more for her sisterly dating advice than for her waxing services. When we found out that we lived within three blocks of each other, we ex-

opportunity; you’re no longer trying to adjust to first year, but don’t yet have to worry about applying to grad school, jobs, or professional school.

So whether you’re lingering in a coffee shop, signing up for a conference, or getting a part-time job, be open to the wisdom and opportunity that can always be found on the streets of Toronto.

Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov, 1955 Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell, 1949 Room at the Top, John Braine, 1957 On The Road, Jack Kerouac, 1957 A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess, 1962 Flaubert’s Parrot, Julian Barnes, 1984 In Between the Sheets, Ian McEwan, 1978 Herzog, Saul Bellow, 1964 All The Emperor’s Horses, David Kidd, 1960 The Outsider, Colin Wilson, 1956

2. Non-fiction

DANIEL GLASSMAN

The Trial of Henry Kissinger, Christopher Hitchens, 2001 The Sound of the City: The Rise of Rock and Roll, Charlie Gillete, 1970 Writers at Work: The Paris Review Interviews, ed. Malcolm Cowley, 1977 Interviews with Francis Bacon, David Sylvester, 1980 A People’s History of the United States, Howard Zinn, 1980 The Life and Times of Little Richard, Charles White, 1984 Kafka Was The Rage: A Greenwich Village Memoir, Anatole Broyard, 1993 A People’s Tragedy: The Russian Revolution 1890-1924, Orlando Figes, 1997 Teenage: The Creation of Youth 1875-1945, Jon Savage, 2007 Beyond the Brillo Box: The Visual Arts in Post-Historical Perspective, Arthur C. Danto, 1992 Source: AGO

the world

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October 2013

The idea of being a citizen of more than one country doesn’t seem so complex, and yet it continues to confuse even the citizen in question.

Dual citizenship is identity limbo: I mostly belong, but I’m always reminded that I’m really from somewhere else.

There are advantages and disadvantages to having multiple citizenships. As a Swiss-Italian-British-Canadian, I have four embassies to turn to if something goes wrong while I travel. I have easy access to social security in four countries. I have four times the homes, ANNA BIANCA ROACH four times the safety nets, and four times the feelings of belonging—and it’s nice.

But am I allowed to be patriotic?

What if one belongs to countries instead of a country and one’s countries are in some way opposed?

If I’m committed to one language but a different culture, then am I patriotic towards both for supporting them or neither for valuing another? Multiple citizenships mean that somewhere, in the back of my head, if I’m proud of any one country, three others are hissing and calling me a traitor or a fake.

The story of integration is one of me versus them—the population of any single society or culture. It’s being stuck halfway between estrangement and belonging: too foreign to be a local, too local to be a foreigner; not quite an outsider, but not quite an insider.

Passports have come to signify “home,” but let’s remember that they were originally only the paperwork required to travel. We all await an ID that can mark us as belonging to the world as opposed to a single country. Until then, let’s remember that citizenship defines individuals no more than driver’s licenses. To my fellow hyphenated Canadians: you are what you identify as, not what your passports dictate.

Citizenship status: It’s complicated

Mahatma who?

omy and development, Gandhi is now a distant figure in the Indian political landscape. In comparison to Gandhi’s methods of resistance, potent displays of violent Hindunationalism and talk of economic growth draw in the crowds. more complex than the But cherry-picking Gandhian man depicted on those ideology is still a popular Indian posters one can see at political strategy. Prime MinisteSidney Smith Hall. rial candidate for the upcoming He was a religious man elections, Narendra Modi, can killed by right-wing Hinboast of coming from a dry state dus. He is the face of (where alcohol is prohibited), of Eastern mysticism and championing development, and his biggest intellectual inof reportedly backing pogroms fluences included Tolstoy against Muslims. and Thoreau. He spoke of The world needs a more complex radical non-cooperation, Gandhi. Simplifying him into catbut today those words egories of sinner or saint erases mean passive resistance. the complexity of his thought. The The Gandhi on the postchallenge for the modern reader of er is sanitized, safe, and Gandhi is to look past the easy witscrubbed clean of Ma- Gandhi’s image has been cleaned for the cameras, but there’s ticisms and engage with Gandhi as more to Mahatma than meets the eye. hatma Gandhi. It is this a philosopher. simplification that has tically, Gandhi still holds sway over October 2, the day of Gandhi’s made him an icon speaking recycla- social norms. He is the unsexy father birth—and now the International ble words. who dictates rules: no smoking, no Day of Non-Violence—forget the “International Gandhi,” Salman drinking, no holding hands, and no posters and reassess your assumpRushdie called him, meaning an meat. tions about the man. Spend an extra idealized figure—who is just plain While alienating the urban youth, $6 on Gandhi’s treatise Hind Swaraj boring. his political vision of the village- and get to know him over coffee.

While poster-boy Gandhi grows centric, spiritual, yet non-sectarian bigger internationally, his Indian homeland has also been rejected by homeland becomes increasingly India Shining. disenchanted with Gandhi. DomesWith the current focus on the econ-

Gandhi at the poster sale

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RIA GYAWALI

’m looking for a man at a poster sale. He is bald, bespectacled, and possibly in black and white.

I find three varieties of him—one less than last year—using his signature pick-up lines.

“Be the change you want to see in the world.”

Gandhi the poster-boy is like that person you meet at the Maddy on Thursday nights. You buy him a $6 drink and take him back to your room; you don’t really get each other, but you have a moderately interesting story in the morning.

Mahatma Gandhi, however, was far

This Gandhi is like that person you meet at the Maddy on Thursday

Patriotism and identity limbo

the world

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Bowie changes

Down and out in the USA

Bowie the artist-philosopher

US government shutdown and Obamacare hurt struggling Americans the worst

L

DAVID STOKES

ast year, the Museum of Modern Art displayed a work called “Tapestry of the Thousand Longest Rivers in the World.” A witty, complex piece by Italian artist Alighiero e Boetti, it deserved the long look that museum-goers gave it.

Audiences at a 2008 display of the piece were able to read an accompanying plaque that read: “In 1968 Alighiero Boetti changed his name by inserting an ‘e’ (‘and’ in Italian) between his first and last names to indicate that he (and by extension, anyone) was not a single but a mul-

art form and a philosophy. He engaged with his era by becoming it (men land on the moon—become a doomed astronaut yourself). He drew his inspiration from anything that happened to catch his fancy: Berlin of the 1930s, Hollywood divas of the 1940s, William Burroughs, English folk plays, Jean Cocteau, Andy Warhol, French chansons, Buñuel’s surrealism, and Stanley Kubrick’s movies, to name a few.

He constantly updated his look by drawing on those who inspired him—educated on the ways of his muses. He was brave enough to see himself anywhere and with anyone.

The AGO exhibit includes a sketch

Photo source: kurantigenic/FLICKR

tiple self.”

An Alfred E. Neuman grin crept slowly across the visitors’ faces; you could almost hear them sliding the “and” in and out of their own names, intrigued by the thought of adopting the idea themselves.

David Bowie did this to everything.

He donned everything and everything suited him just fine, if only, sometimes, for a moment. A display of his sloughed identities is showing at the Art Gallery of Ontario: stage clothes, music videos, handwritten song lyrics, film clips, artworks, scripts, storyboards, all from his personal archive.

The most visually striking objects are his outrageously beautiful clothes and dreamy stage costumes, from Kabuki-like bodysuits to Weimar-era drag, which have been as legendary as the cultural influence of the characters that came through them.

Bowie was inclined towards experimenting with different persona, but took it further—he made it an

of himself in the future, with a Buddha figure by his side, a Pierrot, and his girlfriend.

His creations took a lot of work; plagiarism is hard if you want to get away wit it—just ask the masters: T.S. Eliot, Picasso, Coetzee—but he was able to draw from these sources the inspiration needed for his own experimentation.

In creating everything himself, however, he was never “himself.”

He was always playing a part, which was part of his allure: he wasn't from space or a girl or black or gay or the King of the Goblins, but he wanted to take on those guises at different moments in his life and did so because they allowed him to articulate something about himself.

Bowie wasn’t just interested in taking on a role to achieve fame or accomplishment, like today’s movie celebrities; rather, he tries to reach people’s need to escape the identity they feel trapped in from birth.

One lifetime is too short a span for so many possibilities of self…

SEBASTIEN GREENHOLTZ

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he United States’ trainwreck of a political machine has once again found itself at an impasse. Having failed to agree on a spending budget, the government has shut down, leaving only its essential services in operation and its poor out of luck.

While one of Congress’ primary duties is to pass spending bills, the problem this time is the Patient Protection and the Affordable Care Act, better known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or Obamacare.

Obamacare obligates anyone without health insurance to purchase insurance or face a significant tax penalty. The tax penalty, which begins as a relatively minor $95 per person per year or one per cent of household income, increases to $695 or 2.5 per cent of income, by 2016.

The Republicans who control the House of Representatives want to delay or repeal Obamacare and the Democrats who control the Senate won’t agree to any spending bill unless Obamacare is passed. Thus, political deadlock.

As a result, only the government operations that have been deemed essential will continue: air traffic controllers and hazardous waste handlers will remain at work; the postal service will continue; food stamps and Social Security payments will be handed out, and the military will stay on duty.

But an estimated 800,000 government employees will be furloughed, asked to stay home or leave work early. Agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Health and Safety Administration will be shut down, and national parks and zoos will be closed.

Should the shutdown continue for weeks like the one in 1994, the hardest hit will be the most vulnerable members of American society.

Veterans and their families might not receive unemployment and disability cheques, because the Office of Veterans’ Affairs has lost funding.

People in subsidized housing are at risk of eviction, as the Department of Housing and Urban Development will stop giving out vouchers to local housing authorities. limited number of people in subsidized housing will find themselves at risk of eviction.

Impoverished mothers of children under five will stop receiving vouchers for healthy food, breastfeeding support, and supplies, because will run out of funds after a few weeks as well Meanwhile, Congress and President Obama continue to get their paychecks.

The crisis’ affects would be mitigated if Obamacare promised a huge relief to the poor and struggling people most impacted by the shutdown. But it ends up punishing the poor for being poor.

Starting January 1, 2014, all Americans must have health insurance or pay a tax penalty. Some people will qualify for subsidies, but most won’t and will be required to pay out of pocket to private insurance companies.

Over 48 million Americans are uninsured, mostly because the cost of private health insurance is more than they can pay. The options under Obamacare are to buy health insurance or be fined for not being able to afford it.

Americans already pay more per capita in taxes for health care than Canada or any country that has statefunded health insurance, without actually getting any health insurance.

Instead of using the tax funds already collected to create a health care system like Canada or the UK or Germany, the United States is taxing and penalizing Americans who don’t have private health coverage to buy private insurance.

Obamacare launched October 1 despite the federal government’s shutdown and poor people can add to their long list of financial worries: ending housing subsidies, lack of veterans’ payments, and health insurance. God bless the United States of America.

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October 2013

A doctor and a director walk into a police station Spoiler alert: the punchline is a gross violation of human rights

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J

MARSHA McLEOD

n Toronto-based filmmaker John Greyson’s ohn Greyson is currently detained at Tora, refused phone calls, stripped, shaved bald, accused film, Fig Trees (2009), the quasi-religious naran expansive prison that stretches between of being foreign mercenaries.” rator begins by discussing the perfect mathvarious suburbs of southern Cairo. Alongside The pair was thrown in a cell at Tora Prison with ematical ratios for harmonious architecture. He Greyson is Dr. Tarek Loubani, an emergency room 36 other prisoners, sharing one toilet and one tap. explains them as “the melodies of an orderly unidoctor from London, Ontario, and a professor at They were denied outdoor access—save for one verse.” the University of Western Ontario.

30-minute period. After 30 days, Loubani and Fig Trees, however, is a film about a universe disOn the evenGreyson were tinctly out of order. It follows Zackie Achmat, an ing of August 16, moved to HIV-positive activist in South Africa and found2013, Loubani a cell with er of Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), as he and Greyson en"only" six ocrefuses to begin antiretroviral treatment. tered a police stacupants.

It is the late 1990s and drugs are not priced tion in the vicinity On Sepaccessibly for most People With HIV/AIDS of Ramses Square tember 29, (PWHA) in South Africa, nor for many PWHA in central Cairo in Greyson and in more developed countries. Achmat believes in order to ascertain Loubani's the necessity of his drug strike, stating, “it would directions to their sentence was be wrong [to take treatment], when other people hotel. They were extended for cannot buy life." promptly arrested a further 45 Fig Trees highlights a critical days. question surrounding disIn addition crimination against PWHA: to unethical how do we show political prison condiTarek Loubani Photo source: thestar.com and emotional solidarity tions, the pair with people who are infected is subjected to the with HIV?

by Cairo police. ineptitudes of Egyptian “justice” system. Egypt is The film’s answer is printed The day of their currently ruled by martial law—an extreme form on tee shirts—thousands of arrest had been of law which allows military personnel to effectiveT-shirts, stating in bold typemarked by heavy ly suspend civil liberties—which could result in face, HIV POSITIVE. clashes in down- the extension of Greyson and Loubani’s detention Throughout Fig Trees, most town Cairo be- for up to two years, irrespective of any charges beof the plot is narrated ustween local resi- ing laid, explained Justin Podur—a friend of both ing original operatic music, dents, security Greyson and Loubani. however canonical opera is forces, and sup- Professor James Reilly of the University of Toronto also featured in the film. porters of the re- Centre for Middle Eastern Studies sees martial law In a recognizably Greyson cently ousted Mus- as a way to arbitrarily conclude trials using miliuse of split screen, a 1950s lim Brotherhood tary law, and thus “escape normal legal scrutiny.” recording of Maria Callas president, Mo- In protest of their unsubstantiated arrest, Lousinging “La Mamma Morta” hamed Morsi. In bani and Greyson undertook a hunger strike on is shown alongside its conan Amnesty report September 16—mirroring the radical drug strike temporary revival in the seeking urgent ac- taken by Zackie Achmat, the subject of Greyson’s AIDS drama Philadelphia. tion, the organiza- film Fig Trees.

“Vivi ancora! Io son la vita! tion marked their Loubani and Greyson are consuming only juice Ne' miei occhi è il tuo cielo!” concern: “As with and water to highlight the urgency with which the John Greyson Photo source: lfpress.com sings Callas. “You must live, I the hundreds of flagrant denial of their human rights be addressed, am life itself! Your heaven is others arrested that stating, “We deserve due process, not cockroaches in my eyes!” day, [Loubani and Greyson] have been charged on concrete. We demand to be released.”

Achmat does live. TAC, Nelson Mandela, AIDS with a broad array of offences without apparent To John and Tarek, one could echo “La Mamma Action Now, and ACT UP, along with numerous consideration of their individual criminal respon- Morta:” “Tu non sei sola! … Io sto sul tuo cammino other individuals and organizations, successfully sibility.” e ti sorreggo!” petitioned pharmaceutical companies to provide The clashes prevented Loubani and Greyson from “You are not alone. … I will walk with you and less expensive antiretroviral drugs; accordingly, carrying out plans to quickly travel to Gaza; Lou- support you!”

Achmat ended his drug strike. bani was traveling to Gaza to provide medical care So, too, does the film end. Unbeknownst to at the Al-Shifa hospital and Greyson was present Greyson, four years later his life would begin to to document the experience. the newspaper contacted the Embassy of Egypt in imitate his art; in August 2013 he became the In a statement by Greyson and Loubani released Ottawa on September 19 to obtain comment for protagonist in his own struggle for basic human on September 28, they described their arrest: this story and was informed that the correct official rights.

"That's when we were: arrested, searched, caged, would be in contact on September 20; the newspaquestioned, interrogated, videotaped with a 'Syri- per did not receive any further communication. an terrorist,’ slapped, beaten, ridiculed, hot-boxed,

the culture

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Second chances DON’T BLOW IT CAMILLE LEON-ANGELO

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any would consider Anthony Weiner to be a lucky man—he was given a second chance.

Weiner’s wife, Huma Abedin, is one of Hillary Clinton’s top advisors.

She stood by him in 2011 when the 46-year-old Congressman was implicated in a major “sexting” scandal.

When Weiner returned to politics in 2013, two years after his resignation from Congress, he emerged as the frontrunner in the New York City municipal elections. He had been given the “second chance” he asked voters for.

No sooner had Weiner been granted a second chance did he blow it. In July 2013, Weiner was incriminated in another sexting scandal nearly identical to the one in 2011.

Making mistakes is universal; everyone has lapses in judgment that make the people around them question their character or abilities. Whether the people around them choose to grant them a second chance, however, appears to depend on their gender and profession.

No female politician has ever been the center of a major political sex scandal in the United States. This raises an interesting question: are women less likely to be given second chances? Or are women less likely to blow it in the first place? Women arguably have to work harder to get higher positions, and are therefore less likely to jeopardize their success.

Furthermore, it seems the world is less likely to give women a second chance when they slip up. Just compare Charlie Sheen and Britney Spears: they both appeared to suffer

PARKER BRYANT

from addictions and mental illness, and both eventually lost custody of their children. The only difference between them is that Sheen made a comeback as a bad boy and got a starring role in the TV show Anger Management, while Spears’s career is still far from a complete recovery.

It is also fair to say that someone’s profession can determine how likely they are to be given a second chance.

Nowadays, people seem more engrossed in the lives of celebrities and athletes than in politics, and therefore seemingly less interested in holding politicians accountable for their ethical mistakes. Bill Clinton, former President of the United States, was caught lying under oath about having sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky and was slapped with a sexual harassment lawsuit, only to gain a

reputation in pop culture as a ladies’ man. He remain one of the most favoured presidents in American history.

In the same way, a person’s professional competency can determine their ability to get a second chance.

Using the example of the New York Yankees’ third baseman, Alex Rodriguez, it is evident that indiscretions are likely to be overlooked when someone’s talents are deemed invaluable. Rodriguez admitted to using Performance Enhancing Drugs (PEDs) during his time with the Texas Rangers. The Major League Baseball Players Association decided not to punish him if he agreed to refrain refrain from using PEDs in the future.

Earlier this summer, Rodriguez was busted for using PEDs again, along

with a dozen other players. The other less talented players who were implicated with him are currently serving 50 game suspensions, but “A-Roid,” as fans have fittingly nicknamed him, is still allowed to finish the 2013 season.

Maybe it is the severity of someone’s mistakes that determines whether they get a second chance, and the repercussions of their mistakes that determine whether they change their behavior in a positive manner.

In the cases of Weiner and Rodriguez, the only people they really hurt were themselves, while in the case of Spears and Clinton, they also hurt their families. The bottom line is this: if someone gets lucky enough to be given a second chance, the best thing for them to do is to stay far away from what got them in trouble in the first place.

The annonymous LOW-commitment voicemail

Can’t wait a month?

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10

F

LET’S GET IT ON

or the first time, the majority of the world's population lives in a city. By 2050, urban citizenship is poised to increase to 70 per cent of the world’s population.

Agglomerations are crowding into cities worldwide. Urban is the new Rural. Techno is the new Agro. This is the century of the City.

With the rise of city migration and the advent of the global village there has developed a coupling practice—a municipal ménage-a-deux—known as twin towns or sister cities. There is no precise definition of it, neither in law nor in culture. Theories tend to dictate that this type of complex relationship must be long-term, open, and inclusive in character. Finding harmony in another city is an act of mutual benefit, understanding, and peace.

The Second World War proved a catalyst in the development of twin towns. The idea was simple: repair damaged relationships between France, Germany, and the UK by finding towns that suffered during the war. Pair them up and foster friendship between former foes as an act of reconciliation. That’s why Coventry, UK, twinned with Stalingrad and later Dresden, all of which were inflicted with heavy bombing.

The rate of towns twinning accelerated rapidly during the Cold War, and to date there are over 10 000 partnerships throughout Europe, bolstered by the Council of European Municipalities and Regions funding program, valued at 12 million Euros annually.

In 1956, the concept of sister cities migrated to the US, where President Dwight D Eisenhower proposed people-to-people citizen diplomacy. An association aptly named the National League of Cities was established to this end, which eventually became Sister Cities International, a not-for-profit citizen diplomacy network. This organisation currently boasts over 2 000 partnerships in over 150 countries.

Twinning cities can be geographic, oriented towards commonalities in place, territory, and scale. This is how Vancouver and Los Angeles hooked up back in 1986, even though on the scales of culture and population, Van city is not as endowed as LA. But geography is not required of a good partner, for twin towns destabilize spatial arrangements by encouraging border-crossing and extended networks.

Sister cities can come together culturally, sharing history, language, or tradition.

But comparable demo-

October 2013

thenewspaper.ca

11 g raphics does not necessarily translate to compatibility.

When Toronto rejected Lisbon as a partner despite very strong community and business relationships, it was because of Toronto's numerous relationships in the region, stating, “One more European city in an already unbalanced international portfolio is not recommended." Toronto definitely has a type, and just can’t help being polyamorous with so many eligible candidates.

Toronto, however, is committed. Its oldest partner is Chongqin, in southwest China. They have been in a relationship since 1986. The coupling seems an unlikely match. Chongqin is 10 times larger, with 31.4 million residents. The city serves as the economic capital of the region, with the country’s largest aluminum plant as well as considerable mining, steel, textiles, food, and auto industries.

For Toronto, this relationship is business above all else—an entry point into the Chinese market.

Partners need not even share much in common for, as they say, opposites attract. Abstract notions such as urban citizenship and localism can generate a nice, warm fellowship.

Twinning can provide avenues for engagement and participation in city politics concerning the rights of peoples in other places. Rights claims and political decisions are increasingly made at the local level. In 2013, Milan and Venice broke up with twin town St. Petersburg due to the city’s ban on “gay propaganda” and the increasing violations of LGBTQ+ rights in Russia.

The mobility of urbanism, think-tanks, media, professors, and other forms of technical assistance can also enhance the intimacy of divergent places. That’s how Nottingham, UK, and Karlsruhe, Germany, got it on.

When Nottingham decided to install a tram network it consulted experts from Karlsruhe, a city with extensive and highly efficient tramways. They’ve been building together ever since, and have recently welcomed a new tram route into the family.

The relationships between cities are as diverse as those that populate them. There are successful couples, entertaining couples, sexy couples, and then there’s the town of Boring, Oregon, who decided to court Dull, Scotland.

Despite differences and similarities, every city has its soulmate. Sometimes it’s just about the right pickup line.

How cities hook up NOAH VAN DER LAAN

the other side

12

October 2013

Steve, quit watching me LISA MONOZLAI

T

Technophobia in the age of the iPhone

he latest iPhone features a fingerprint scanner, eliminating the hassle of remembering a four-digit password. Despite eager consumers lined up en masse to buy the new phone, many are feeling perturbed by the dangers inherent in giving away fingerprint information.

It is a paradox of the human condition: we'll wait in a queue for days for new technology, yet we're equally as terrified that Apple's fingerprint scanners might just be the end of us.

With the iPhone’s release only months after Edward Snowden uncovered the National Security Agency's elaborate program of international masssurveillance, many people are feeling justifiably spooked about technology’s ability to compromise personal privacy.

Amazon sales of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, a landmark novel about omnipresent government surveillance and mind control,

rose by 7 005 per cent in the days after the Snowden story hit newsstands in June.

Many contemporary social critics ponder whether we have any justified fear of technology. In a June article for Mother Jones, titled “Wel-

come Robot Overlords: Please Don't Fire Us?,” Kevin Drum decries what he sees as an impending economic equality doom because of intelligent robots—that there will come a time

when wealthy capitalists will own all the intelligent robots, eradicating the need for a large segment of the working population. Not only menial work, he worries, but possibly even magazine writing jobs.

“The history of mass economic dis-

followings for right-wing populist parties,” he concludes, allowing that the wealthy will have to share their wealth in order to maintain a middleclass.

Alvin Toffler, in his bestselling book from 1970, Future Shock, said that it's the “information overload”—the psychological and sociological problems that come from exposure to too much rapid change— that is contributing to our fear of advancements in technology.

He described a human reaction characterized by a “dizzying disorientation brought on by the premature arrival of the future.”

That was 1970, the era of the typewriter—now there are new versions of the iPhone released every year and computing power supposedly continues to double every 18 months. Compound that with human illustration by: PARKER BRYANT beings’ inability to adplacement isn't encouraging—fas- just to the abundance of information cists in the 20s, Nazis in the 30s—and and change, and you have yourself a recent high levels of unemployment recipe for mass technophobia. in Greece and Italy have already produced rioting in the streets and larger

Out of Heaven: Out of Hell EDWIN LEAN

I

Lessons of forgiveness from a Deist

now have something to write about—something that affects anyone who has left the religion of his or her birth: n a m e l y, how to keep on good terms with loved ones still of that belief.

One evening while visiting my friends from high school I somehow got into a discussion about religion; I am now a Deist.

This angered many of my friends who soon moved to convert me back to Catholicism. Every time I hung out with them they attempted to convert me. But it’s my life; I’ll believe what I want.

In response to the line that people who reject Jesus go to hell, I said, “To be surrounded by people of that intellect— would be swell.” That line is not even clever, but illustration by: DANIEL BRAVERMAN it seemed to piss off people so it didn’t matter.

It wasn’t until I went to another suburban bash that I learned the simple reason why my friends were so keen on my religious beliefs. They

were so intent on informing me that I’m going to hell because they honestly thought it is the case.

I learned as much first-hand when one of them came running up to me in a drunken haze crying her eyes out, saying that I was going to hell. I calmed her down and thanked her for her concern. I then gave her a smile, which lasted until she vomited on my shoes.

As I washed off my shoes, I realized these people legitimately cared about me. It probably had never occurred to them that I didn’t want to be harassed about my beliefs. I could go on saying not so clever things or I could change the subject, ignore what was being said, and remember the very odd rambles and bad arguments to recount to others instead.

The second option is how you keep old friends from playing up their misconceptions.

thenewspaper.ca

the other side

13

Was Orange Crush an electoral fad? Top 10 Twins

The NDP faces a tough predicament for 2015

I

DYLAN HORNBY

n politics, it seems out of place to take pride in a second place finish. The 2011 election, however, proved to be a dramatic and unexpected triumph for the NDP. Second place is truly a milestone for Canada’s only orange party, which had finished no better than third since 1935.

The Conservatives achieved their

won 31 per cent of the popular vote compared to only 19 per cent for the Liberals, a complete inversion of past results. Yet, the Orange Crush in 2011 hinged on two factors—Jack Layton and significant support from Quebecers.

After Layton passed away in 2011 and Tom Mulcair became leader of the NDP in early 2012, the party was boosted to 35 per cent support— more popular than the Conservatives

“Prime Minister Stephen Harper—a rambling ball of awkwardness, and a victim of severe uncoolness.” Photo source: Laureen Harper

first majority government in over 20 years, while the Liberal Party suffered their biggest collapse. The NDP picked up the slack, propelling themselves to Official Opposition for the first time in Canadian history.

Justin Trudeau and the Liberals’ recent rise in popularity has created a new problem for the official opposition—who do they target in the 2015 election?

A Conservative majority would make Stephen Harper one of the longest-serving prime ministers in Canadian history, with a 13-year legacy in office. A Liberal victory would be the biggest comeback of note in Canadian politics—and the start of Canada’s first political dynasty with the Trudeau family.

What would an NDP victory signify? Is it even possible in the current political landscape for the current number-twos to form the next government?

In the 2011 election, the party

for several months.

The honeymoon was short-lived, however, and the NDP has been on a steady decline ever since.

While opinion polls certainly do not decide an election, the Liberals

have gone from third to consistently placing first with Justin Trudeau as leader. It’s a hard but true fact for the NDP to swallow that Trudeau is a more popular leader than Mulcair and that he continues to hold a larger and longer lead over Harper than Mulcair has ever had.

The NDP’s situation in Quebec is even more dire than the leadership question. Forty-seven per cent of Quebec decided to vote NDP in 2011, where most of their seats currently are. Now, Liberals have made a comeback and lead the NDP 38 per cent to 29 per cent in the province. If the New Democrats have any chance of winning in 2015, they have to dominate in Quebec.

Was the Orange Crush an electoral fad? The ultimate question for the second-place NDP remains, “who to target?” Do they go after Stephen Harper or the Liberals, who are poised to kick them back into third?

The NDP has a lot more in common with Liberals than it does with Conservatives. Even if they do return to third in 2015, being open to cooperation with the Liberals is critical if the NDP want a say, especially if Harper wins a minority.

For democracy’s sake, the opposition party’s main target must always be the government, even if Trudeau is taking the wind out of the NDP’s sails. If they want to be seen as a legitimate opposition and future government rather than a passing political fancy, they must always strive for that top spot.

YASMINE LAASRAOUI

1.

Fred and George Weasley: Twin wizards, enough said.

2. Lindsay Lohan and Lindsay Lohan in The Parent Trap: Twice the mischief—preDUI, cocaine, and rehab.

3. Patty and Selma from The Simpsons: Two times the chain-smoking cynicism.

4.

Phoebe and Ursula Buffay: Half waitress, half Vampire Layer.

5.

Austin Powers and Dr. Evil: Best twin arch-enemies.

6.

Jenna and Barbara Bush: Twin presidential underage drinkers.

7. Thomson and Thompson from Tintin: The world’s most incompetent police duo.

8. Mario and Luigi: The Nintendo dream team.

9. Robin and Maurice Gibbs from the Bee Gees: Two-thirds of the groovy high-pitch harmonies.

Leader of the Opposition Thomas Mulcair brandishing a glass of orange crush.

Photo source: Canoe.ca

10. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen: Two people, one Full House character.

October 2013

the culture

Cheap eats as gourmet grub Eat well, spend little ERIKA SIMON

J

uggling reading lists, work schedules, and a social life does not allow much time for planning exciting meals. The school year tends to facilitate eating frozen pre-made foods, KD, or, if you’re lucky, leftovers—especially when on a budget. The following is a compilation of ideas for turning boring budget-friendly student meals into masterchef-worthy feasts, guaranteed to impress your roommates.

The unibrow To pluck or not to pluck SAMANTHA PREDDIE

C

ompared to other mammals, the human is a relatively hairless being, so why do people—especially women—feel the need to remove the few hairs they have left?

The beauty industry has long been a proponent of minimizing female facial hair. A 1901 anonymous writer for a Beauty’s Aids column posited that “an exaggerated crop of hair all over the cheeks and chin and nose gives to the face a villainously masculine appearance, and is a serious drawback to feminine beauty.”

It advocated “annihilation of hair by means of electricity,” using a charged needle to destroy the hair forever. “This operation, in no way painful to the face, is hardly painful to the chest either, and, if necessary, one can escape all pain by using cocaine.” Perhaps an extreme remedy for a process that she claims is “hardly painful,” but alas, anything for beauty.

Hair removal products have been on the scene for over 100 years—in 1907 a product called X-Bazin Depilatory Powder promised to remove any “humiliating growth of hair on the face, neck, and arms.”

“If necessary, one can escape all pain by using cocaine”

Grilled Cheese is one cheap eat that has

been transformed into every gourmet variation possible, which explains why there are cookbooks entirely dedicated to the sandwich. So no more Kraft singles with Wonder Bread for you: time to think bigger and better. To start, pick a bread such as Italian ciabatta, challah, sourdough, or a handsliced American white bread. For the insides, be creative with fresh ingredients and unique cheeses—this is where Kensington Market comes in handy. To name a few combinations: tomato, spinach, and mozzarella; goat cheese and strawberry brie; turkey and green apple; sharp cheddar, pepper jack (or any spicy cheese), caramelized onions and bbq sauce; avocado, tomato, cheddar, and provolone; the list goes on. Just butter the bread and drop it into a butter-sizzling pan.

Kraft Dinner is often the default choice for a cheap dinner, a midnight snack or as post-exam wallowing food. You might not believe it now, but the processed cheesy goodness will become tiresome. The good thing is, with KD comes many opportunities for experimentation. Whether you have broccoli, onions, carrots, or mushrooms, you can add nearly any vegetable and it will turn out delicious. My favourite is a mixture of bacon for crunch, a diced sweet bell pepper, chopped broccoli, and diced sausage. Plus, if you have a block of cheese on hand, you can treat yourself by shredding an extra layer on your KD and baking it in the oven for a crispy layer over a gooey interior.

By the 1950s, shaving became a widespread norm in the west.

Today, an entire industry exists to sell and facilitate a variety of grooming acts—ones that range from waxing, shaving, plucking, bleaching, and tweezing, to the more permanent laser hair removal. One particular target is the dreaded unibrow.

Concern about eyebrow aesthetic, however, is not new—it exists as far back as the 14th century. “The Miller’s Tale” in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales features the beautiful and sweet Alisoun, whose eyebrows are described thus: “Ful smale ypulled were hire browes two,” or, in modern English, two eyebrows plucked very thin. Contrastedly, Criseyde in Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde who, “save hir browes joyneden yfeere,/There nas no lak, in aught I kan espien,” had no observable defect except for her unibrow.

Public figures who have refused to conform to the categorical norms against “unnecessary” body hair have historically made quite the statement.

For instance, Frida Kahlo is known for boldly portraying her unibrow and subtle moustache in her painted self-portraits. Other famous unibrows include those belonging to NBA player Anthony Davis, George Harrison, Leonid Brezhnev, and Ernie’s best friend Bert.

Those who follow Sikhism also refrain from cutting their hair—eyebrows or otherwise—out of respect for the bodies they believe God has given them. Maintaining this belief can cause quite the stir as well.

Last year, a photo of Balpreet Kaur, a student and practicing Sikh, went viral online because of her prominent facial hair; it encouraged many web-

Perogies,

a traditionally Polish treat, have become a cheap student go-to, with large frozen bags for only $2.99. These dumplings are usually stuffed with potato, cheddar cheese, or bacon, and are boiled until you see them flutter up to the top. To spruce up this dish, take the already boiled perogies and lightly fry them in a pan with a generous spoonful of spicy (or mild) salsa.

Do this until light brown on each side, and the salsa has begun to stick. Sprinkle with freshlygrated cheese, bacon bits, and finely cut chives, then serve with a dollop of sour cream. If you are feeling more adventurous, try making the dough yourself and stuffing them with the filling of your choice; you’ll be surprised how easy it is.

Pancakes are the best budget-friendly break-

fast. Whether you buy a Costco-sized premix, or make them from scratch, nothing says “best roommate ever” like a stack of freshly made hotcakes. To go gourmet, try infusing your pancakes with your favourite tea and each bite will taste like a tea latte. My first choice is vanilla Earl Grey.

Add three tea bags into a saucepan with the milk for your pancakes. Let it simmer for five to seven minutes on low heat, and then cool it in the fridge.

Add this earl grey milk to the dry ingredients when making the pancake mixture. For added flavour, skip the usual maple syrup and make honey tea syrup by simmering one tea bag with half a cup of honey and four tablespoons of water in a saucepan.

DANIEL BRAVERMAN

14

goers to make fun of what they saw as a lack of femininity. In response, Kaur cleverly subverted the criticism and used it as a platform to make a statement about body image and her faith.

“My attitude, thoughts, and actions have more value in them than my body,” she said. “My impact and legacy will remain, and by not focusing on the physical beauty, I have time to cultivate those inner virtues and, hopefully, focus my life on creating change and progress for this world.”

Ultimately, eyebrows are intended to keep rain, sweat, and debris from falling into the eyes, making any hair in between superfluous. For the chance to leave a legacy like Frida Kahlo or the aspiring Balpreet Kaur, however, it might be worth it to put those tweezers down.

thenewspaper.ca

Vintage Y clothes: a love story

Why you should shop second hand JANE ALICE KEACHIE

the culture

15

ou’ll always remember your first love. For me it was Levis—light-wash, high-rise boyfriend Levis. Our paths crossed on a hot July evening at a pop-up sale hosted by Rigorous Mess Vintage. When I tried the jeans on they fit perfectly and I was instantly in love.

It should be noted that this wasn’t exactly the first time I fell in love with a piece of vintage clothing.

There was also the white sequined top with dangly beads that I found at Space Vintage in Mirvish Village, and the floral high-waisted shorts I came across at SubRosa in Kensington Market—even though I had just sworn not to buy any more floral

or summer clothing, I just had to have them. The list goes on.

Everytime I find that perfect piece of vintage clothing I get the same feeling of excitement. When I try it on and it fits, it feels like it is just meant to be. There is a reason those Levis came into my life, even if it is just to make my butt look really good.

Thankfully, I’m not the only one who feels this way. Why choose vintage? I was able to chat with Erika, the owner of SubRosa Vintage and compiled a list of what makes vintage shopping a truly unique experience.

Top four reasons to buy vintage 1. Quality over quantity: vintage clothing is timeless.

A vintage cashmere sweater never goes out of style. “Mall fashion is mass produced, flashin-the-pan, spoon-fed fashion. A good vintage shop is the antithesis of this, offering classic, unique, quality pieces,” Erika explained. This means that both the style and quality of vintage will long outlive most new brand-name clothing.

2. Vintage is sustainable.

“Wearing vintage is recycling, plain and simple,” said Erika. In a society obsessed with mass consumption there is something humbling about investing in used clothing and feeling good about it, both environmentally and economically. “Vintage garments are on the whole much higher [quality] and last so much longer than current, disposable fashion,” added Erika. Recycle, reuse, re-wear!

3. Vintage is one-of-a-kind— or at least very close to it.

It is almost statistically impossible for two people sitting beside each other in a lecture to be wearing the same vintage dress/shirt/shoes. Buying vintage will not only bypass the awkward experience of showing up to a party in the same American Apparel dress as everyone else, but it also forges an individual style identity for the wearer.

MILO GOLUB

4. Vintage is ethical!

Many of today’s consumers contribute to corporations built off of sweatshop labour.

While vintage shops might not always offer the same low prices as H&M, shopping vintage supports small local businesses. “Vintage clothes were made and manufactured decades ago on a much smaller scale than is done today, which means profits don’t go to companies that utilize factories with sub-par working conditions, and carbon-inducing worldwide shipping,” said Erika.

Food that comes in twos YASMINE LAASRAOUI

1. The Double-Stick Popsicle.

The meaning of true friendship.

2. Pop Tarts.

Two slots in a toaster, two times your daily dose of sugar.

3. Kinder Bueno.

A bi-national treat of German origin.

Dos danke!

4. Lamb Fries/ Mountain Oysters.

A southern dish to satisfy that lamb testicle craving.

5. Twinkies.

A cream-filled double pack “food” with a 46-day shelflife.

6. Chicken Breasts.

The original hooters.

7. Twix.

Buy one, get one free.

9. Charms Blow Pops. Two sweets in one.

8. Nature Valley Crunchy Granola Bars. For when you forget about breakfast, twice.

10. Dad’s Oatmeal Cookies.

Two for me, none for Dad.

16

October 2013

old white guys

New doctor, old practice Old white man to star in another TV show

ALLISON COOPER

W

hen it was announced that Matt Smith was leaving Doctor Who after four years, the internet worked itself into a frenzy as people discussed who could be the new Doctor. Speculation included Skyfall star and BBC favourite Rory Kinnear, Chiwetel Ejiofor (Twelve Years a Slave), and Helen Mirren (The Queen).

Kinnear, a white British man, was at the forefront of fan theories for the next Doctor with bookmakers placing odds on him five-to-one. Mirren stated herself that she thought it was unlikely she would get the role, while bookmakers gave her a 25-to-one chance. Ejiofor was given slightly better odds at 16-to-one.

The Doctor, however, will remain as white and male as he was when the show began in 1963 (after 26 seasons, it was reborn in 2005). Executive producer Steven Moffat disappointed those hoping for a woman or person of colour by returning to Doctor Who’s original series’ roots.

Moffat cast Peter Capaldi, who is not as young as Smith, the show’s recent Doctor, and will be the 12th white man to play the the leading role in the show’s history.

Fan reactions ranged from disappointment at Capaldi’s lack of youthful sexiness, to enthusiasm about his acting and directing credentials.

Some thought the time was not right

It takes two LAURA CHARNEY

I

n the movie, Almost Famous, the singer of the fictional band Stillwater explains the laws of musical role-playing: “From the very beginning, we said I’m the frontman, and you’re the guitarist with mystique.

That’s the dynamic we agreed on.

Page; Plant. Mick; Keith. Blackmore; Gillan.”

As is sometimes the case in a romantic relationship, establishing and upholding the dominant/submissive roles are necessary to sustain chemistry. There is a sense of exclusivity created when these roles are entrenched in the music. Therefore, for bands with only two members, exclusivity is a major component.

Just like the quintessential high school couples who had their own

If The Doctor (now played by Peter Capaldi) has been able to regenerate into any new body for the past half century, why must it always be a white guy? Photo source: mrmovie-review.com

for a change in the gender or race of the Doctor, arguing his love interests would get messy if he became a she— because a queer female Doctor of colour would probably break the world, or at least fanboys.

In response to fans’ interest in casting a woman Doctor, Moffat replied that he would “like to see a man play the Queen.” Neil Gaiman, author and writer of two Doctor Who episodes, claimed, “time is not right [for a female Doctor].” This declaration could refer to the cycle that limits the Doctor’s regeneration to 12 times, meaning his final death could result in some drastic transformation and direction for the show. More likely, it

identities, so do bands with only two members.

There’s the couple who inevitably gets married (She & Him); the druggy couple who is probably really unhealthy for one another (Purity Ring); the couple who cheated on each other but are trying to recapture something of the past (Simon and Garfunkel); the intimidatingly cool and quiet couple (The White Stripes); I could go on.

An intimateness is established when only two are involved in making music. There is seemingly a secret language between the two players—the only way in which it can be understood to others is the visible and sonic manifestation of chemistry on stage. Seeing that chemistry and knowing that there is a secret—or a reason for making the music at all—is enough to convince me that it’s real.

may reflect on today’s culture and the widespread acceptance of inadequate diverse representation in media.

Between 2011 and 2012, according to GLAAD, an LGBTOUT entertainment advocacy group, women played 43 per cent of characters in scripted primetime television and 21.9 per cent of series regulars were people of colour. As writers’ rooms diversify, it is likely that these dismal figures will improve, but the current pace suggests it will be a long time before such parity is achieved.

Though science fiction and fantasy deal with new worlds that are home to human and nonhuman beings, the genres have always had exceptional

potential to showcase diverse casts.

But few shows have risen to the call, preferring to default again and again to white men as protagonists and secondary characters—while filling in lesser characters with people of colour and/or women. Recently, Jane Espenson, writer of Buffy and Battlestar Galactica, accurately remarked, “You don’t create new worlds to give them all the same limits of the old ones.”

Despite the high demand for shows starring women, people of colour, and LGBTQ+ characters, science fiction and fantasy repeatedly remain conservative as they follow the hero’s journey of a white man. Television executives still think it’s too risky to fund and support these shows, although they are alienating over half of their audience. It is well known that fandoms—even science fiction and fantasy, which are stereotypically thought of being primarily populated by men—are significantly comprised of women who put a lot of time and effort into fanfiction, fan art, and cosplay—just to name a few fan exploits.

If producers and writers like Moffat and Gaiman are unable or unwilling to envision diverse casting in their shows, the cycle of white men writing about white men and viewers absorbing white protagonists will continue.

Hope for an inclusive portrayal now lies with the 13th regeneration, when Doctor Who can go in an entirely new direction.

The White Stripes

Jack White’s melt-worthy riffs.

I can’t help but want to attribute their sensual, bluesy sound to the fact that the members of this duo were married for a good portion of the band’s existence.

Successful musical duos like Simon and Garfunkel have to become masters of choral cooperation.

Photo source: simonandgarfunkel.com

Simon and Garfunkel

“A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest” - “The Boxer” The complementary rawness of Paul Simon’s lyrics and Art Garfunkel’s voice is hauntingly beautiful.

Their last studio album, Bridge Over Troubled Water, released in 1970, is completely emblematic of both their extraordinary individual talents, and their musical compatibility.

Purity Ring

When I saw them perform Shrines, their 2012 album, at the Phoenix Concert Theatre last February, the trance-like sounds combined with the trippy light show made for a pretty surreal experience.

She & Him

Zooey Deschanel and Him (M. Ward) exude everything one would find appealing about a culturally nostalgic indie-pop duo: unrequited love, charm, and uncomplicated songwriting. Regardless, the simple and true emotions they address have a loveliness to them—as does Zooey.

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old white guy

17

Back to the good old times The comebacks of the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens

Cat Stevens boarded the peace train in the late-1970s and has successfully made a comeback as Yusuf Islam. Photo source: Bill McElligott/Flickr Some Rights Reserved

ZACH MORGENSTERN

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n 1971, Cat Stevens’ “Peace Train” reached number seven on the Billboard charts. Forty-two years later, Stevens, now known as Yusuf, is preparing to launch a “Peace Train Tour” in South America. Yusuf ’s career has collapsed and recovered twice. Now well into his second comeback, Yusuf has found a way to personally evolve, while retaining all that made him popular to begin with.

Stevens’ career began at age 17 in 1966 London. His first chart single, “I Love My Dog” was a simple tune based on the jazz-multi-instrumentalist Yusuf Lateef ’s “The Plum Blossom.” A series of heavily-produced pop tunes followed, including the oft covered “Here Comes My Baby” and “The First Cut is the Deepest,” as well as the cartoon-western “I’m Gonna Get me a Gun” and the Dickensian “Matthew and Son.” This success was short-lived, however, as Stevens’ sec-

ond album flopped. This disappointment was followed up by a far harsher blow—tuberculosis.

Stevens recovered, but changed drastically. He came back in 1970 having grown a beard, abandoning the McCartney-esque look of his youth. He dropped Vaudevillian production, opting for simple folk arrangements—complemented by his craggy yet sensitive voice. Several of his album covers featured hand drawn, whimsical illustrations and a number of his songs read like existentialist nursery rhymes. For instance, “I built my house from barley rice/green pepper walls and water ice/ tables of paper wood, windows of light/ and everything emptying into white,” from the song “Into White.”

Throughout this second phase of his career, Stevens sang about mortality and truth seeking. The scars of tuberculosis led him to sing pseudo spiritual lyrics like “I don’t want no God on my lawn/just a flower I can

help along/for the soul of nobody knows/how a flower grows.” In 1976, however, Stevens nearly drowned, prompting him to find the source of his perceived salvation. In 1978 he converted to Islam, singing the song “Never” on his last “Cat Stevens” album “There’ll never be another you/ there’s going to be another story/there’s going to be another spring/and it won’t always be winter/and it’ll always be spring/there’s going to be another Kingdom.”

For 27 years Yusuf stopped playing secular music. This was partly because of his disillusionment with the industry’s excesses, but also because he’d been told that musical instruments were sinful, or haram. Though not completely convinced by this argument, Yusuf abided by it, just in case. Luckily, this divorce could not last forever, as the premise behind Yusuf ’s retirement was weak.

His first Imam maintained that music is not haram so long as one’s lyrics aren’t sinful. Yusuf didn’t sing songs of sex and satan, but songs about his dog, a tree, the beauty of the moon, a fear of mindless industrialization, and of peace. Inspired by his son’s trek into folk music, Yusuf made his second comeback. He re-learned to play the guitar and recorded two albums, An Other Cup (2006) and Roadsinger (to Warm You through the Night) (2009).

Since coming back, Yusuf has maintained both secular and religious fan bases. While many of his new songs are religious, they are not overtly so.

For instance, Yusuf ’s “Heaven/Where True Love Goes” is about salvation, but it is also a direct spinoff of the secular Cat Stevens song “Foreigner Suite.”

This is not to say that Yusuf doesn’t have enemies. In 2007, an interviewer with The New York Times asked him whether he had ties with/sympathies for Hamas. For those of us who listen to Yusuf ’s music and not his hyperbolic and sometimes Islamophobic critics, however, there is something we can likely agree on: in an age where songs like “Blurred Lines” have become mainstream, it is a relief to see that the sensitive songsmiths of old have not given up the fight.

Yusuf and Cat A list of ten 1.”Here Comes my Baby” from Matthew and Son (1967) 2. ”Where do the Children Play” from Tea for the Tillerman (1970) 3. ”Father and Son” from Tea for the Tillerman (1970) 4. ”Peace Train” from Teaser and the Firecat (1971) 5. ”Moonshadow” from Teaser and the Firecat (1971) 6. ”Sitting” from Catch Bull at Four (1972) 7. ”Oh Very Young” from Buddha and the Chocolate Box (1974) 8. ”Two Fine People” from Greatest Hits (1975) 9. “I Never Wanted to be a Star” from Izitso (1977) 10. ”Boots and Sand” from Roadsinger (online bonus track) (2009)

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18

Coming out, coming Take me out, coming out out to the Rethinking the singularity of the closet

ISAAC THORNLEY

C

within it. You’re out now, and you live happily ever after.

But the idea that once you’re out, you’re out, is painfully simple and simply false.

If it were only so! I would be spared the hassle of coming out to every new person I meet who assumes my heterosexuality until informed otherwise.

A singular closet denies the burden experienced by queer people— the need to disclose; the problem of one’s sexual identity. It also does not acknowledge the process by which identities are produced and reproduced.

Coming out is not a single event in someone’s life, nor the beginning of a new way of being. It is a multitudinous process, a constant requirement for any non-straight person in this very straight world. The closet

Sex metaphors in the world’s least sexy sport TYRUS RAYMOND “Ty” COXXX

JULIA GREIG

oming out is a process that continuously necessitates itself; it is necessary for as long as a queer identity is to be affirmed.

American scholar Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick once said that the closet reproduces itself, putting up new walls at any given moment. Judith Butler said that gender is performative, sustaining itself through its repetition.

Coming out, the process of disclosing one’s sexual identity, has the twofold effect of describing an existing condition, and sustaining that condition temporarily. In effect, you become gay, lesbian, trans, etc. when you say you are, until that identity must again be reaffirmed.

The traditional narrative for nonstraight people goes something like this: from a young age you feel different, maybe others notice your difference as well. As you enter adoles-

ball game so I can feel some nips

GRANT OYSTON

cence those differences become more clear to you. They become more specific, easier to articulate. These differences, the supposed “truths” of your being, become undeniable to the point where they must be outwardly expressed. You reach a specific point of self-actualization, the angels sing, and you come out!

What happens next? It gets better.

You begin to identify with a larger community, a community which supposedly allows you to integrate

isn’t some terrible place that I finally gained the courage to escape when I turned 17; the closet is the world I inhabit, a world that continually privileges and expects heterosexuality from all. I am faced with new closets everyday.

So long as I live in this world, so long as these expectations are continually applied to me, so too I must continue to come out, and continue to make myself visible.

I

October 2013

get excited writing about sex, but baseball not so much.

For a sport considered boring by many people, however, it abounds with fruitfully sexual euphemisms, innuendos, and metaphors.

The bat. The big, hard, wooden bat.

Consider the bases: first, the tongue kiss; second, the non-sex/gender specific nipple touch; third, oral-genital pleasuring; and, finally, the phallocentric home run, which just happens to deny the existence of lesbian sex.

People “strike out.”

The “pitcher” and “catcher.” Or, “top” and “bottom” in bed.

Less graphically, the umpire can be understood as the various institutions responsible for controlling sex—the family, the law, or medical science. Or maybe he’s just the BDSM punisher.

Baseball doesn’t have condoms, but it does have gloves!

Some baseball slang phrases just plain sound dirty: “dinger,” “shot,” “grand salami,” “stroke of the bat,” “slap,” “poke,” “pound,” and “punish.”

Then there’s the big juicy ballpark frank, the quintessential American hotdog. Not to mention, corndogs, hoagies, chicken fingers, churros, bags of nuts, tacos, and burritos.

All in all we have a game filled with sexual metaphors, though mostly phallocentric, and traditionally heteronormative—The exception are pitchers and catchers, which are arguably gay male specific.

And although most people reading this probably won’t be any more drawn to the sport, perhaps they will be at least compelled to question the hold America’s pastime has on our sexual understandings.

the sextion

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19

“I kissed a girl and she likes dick” The story of why bisexuality is apparently still unacceptable ISAAC THORNLEY

A

fter the release of her song “I Kissed a Girl” in 2008, Katy Perry was dogged by the mainstream music media for donning “gayness” as an easy way to stir up a ruckus and sell her image. On the one hand her song was critiqued by social conservatives on the grounds that it promotes queer culture—“the gay agenda”—and on the other hand it was called out by progressives for reducing the idea of bisexuality to a drunken hook-up.

The gamut of reactions exposed several tensions felt both inside and outside queer society, surrounding bisexuality and those who refuse to identify neatly within the homo/hetero sexual SAM NOLAN identity binary. Perry’s bisexuality impinged on mainstream music’s safe heterosexuality, while also cheapening the authenticity of an autonomous and separate homosexual culture. Perry was cast as the Other by both ends of the spectrum, but the song certainly sold records.

Dismissive and derogatory attitudes toward bisexuality permeate Western culture.

One often encounters comments such as, “Bisexuals are just gay people, too afraid to admit it to themselves.” “They’re just indecisive; eventually they’ll pick a side and stick to it.” “Bisexuals are kidding themselves.” “Bisexuality is a myth!” “Bisexuality is a phase that all people go through before affirming a concrete identity.” Too often such remarks are heard.

Despite an arguable progression

toward the acceptability and respectability of gays and lesbians since the gay liberation and women’s movements of the 1970s, Western society’s general attitude towards those

ing, and open. It would have sounded strange 50 years before that, to the early psychoanalysts, to claim that there are stable and legitimate forms of sexuality other than monogamous

deemed sexually alternative—bisexual and/or pansexual—has remained stubborn and resistant.

Identity theorist Steven Angelides posited that the foundation of certain identity categories depends on a polar process of opposition and othering. In essence: we cannot have heterosexuality without its Other, homosexuality.

This also means that to embody a nonpolar point on the spectrum, to exist in multiple points simultaneously, or to transgress the boundaries of the dichotomy altogether, makes for a very messy picture as far as neat and tidy sexual identities are concerned.

It might have sounded strange to the early liberationists 50 years ago to claim that sexuality is fluid, chang-

heterosexuality. Fifty years before that it would have sounded strange to even talk about “homosexuality,” for the word hadn’t yet been coined.

The term “homosexual” first appeared in 1869 and emerged before the term “heterosexual,” which came two years later. Same-sex attraction was frowned upon, and often persecuted, for quite some time in the West. Homosexuality, with its etymological origin in 19th century medical discourses—denoting a deviant psychological condition—provided those who felt same-sex attraction with a categorical identity.

Into the 20th century, homosexuality became more allowable as it proved its likeness to heterosexuality. Gays are just like us! They can be monogamous just like us! They are different but equal—a common 20th century sentiment.

Meanwhile, bisexuality has remained in murky waters. Gay marriage is legal, but some people still speculate as to whether bisexuality is even a real thing. Bisexuality isn’t re-

ally like “straight” or “gay” in that it doesn’t require a singular trajectory of attraction. It doesn’t reject one orientation in favour of another; rather, it embraces both homo and heterosexuality while simultaneously rejecting both as well. It is queer and it is subversive.

Homosexuality started down the road to heteronormative acceptability when it was first understood as a concrete and stable expression of sexual identity. But within Western society’s understanding of sexuality as a spectrum, bisexuality must remain eternally in a state of unstable flux. There is not, however, necessarily anything wrong with that. I would argue that we are slowly moving past the era of concrete sexual identity labeling, into something more loose, open, and fluid.

Every day it seems another letter is added to the ever growing LGBTTIQQ2SA acronym. All the time individuals are forging new unique ways of understanding, describing, and identifying themselves. Perhaps it sounds strange to argue that labels matter less at a time when people are creating more labels than ever, but I would indeed argue that that is the case.

In the future we can only guess how sexual identity will be understood and theorized. Until then we can do no more than remain open-minded, non-judgemental, continue to think critically about the moralizing aspects of discourses on sex, and to consider what functions these identities serve in our society.

the mic

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A portrait of

(little)

20

Portugal

Life, food and songs in North America’s largest Portuguese SOPHIE POPPE RICHTER

Even the Portuguese youth in Toronto are active in Portuguese traditions. They sometimes do the tuna, a tradition that originated in Portugal and Spain, in which a group of university students play guitar and sing serenades as a means to earn money or food. Toronto’s own tuna group called Luso-Can Tuna, “remains to this day the only North American Tuna rooted in Portuguese culture,” says its website.

Fado is a genre of music known as “Lisbon’s song” and it’s characterized by its mournful tones and bittersweet lyrics.

“Even if you do not understand the words, if you do not shed at least one tear while listening to the songs of Fado, you are not listening hard enough,” a man in Lisbon once told me.

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MARSHA McLEOD

A variety of Portuguese clubs and restaurants—such as Lisbon By Night on Dundas and Benfica House on St. Clair—have been known to host Fado nights, in order to keep the tradition of Lisbon alive.

Handsome waiters weave amongst tables and the sweet, nasalized flow of Portuguese words hangs in the air.

“I’m the owner’s son,” the waiter told me. “My family comes from Bairrada—and I can’t wait to go back.”

Frango no Churrasco was great—but nothing can top my love of the Portuguese custard tarts, pasteis de natas. The Golden Wheat Bakery and Pastry at College and Grace had the best tarts to be found in Toronto. They don’t get much better than topped with cinnamon and served with hot tea and a book by one’s side.

Pleasantly decorated with blooming gardens and quiet fountains, the Portuguese-Canadian Walk of Fame displays the names of those who have contributed to the Portuguese-Canadian community, such as Nelly Furtado and Santonio Santos e Sousa. The Walk was inaugurated just this year—proof that the Portuguese community in Toronto is continuing to give life to their cultural heritage in countless of ways.

Little Portugal is a blend that responds to the memory of its country of origin, while planting Toronto roots.

But in Portugal and Little Portugal alike, what called out to me was more than their shops and their restaurants—it was the warmth of the regions that left a lasting memory.