the newspaper University of Toronto’s independent community paper
INSIDE 4 6 7
PAIKIN interview with a famous alumnus BUTT JFL42 comic on racial comedy REFUGEES or migrants?
Volume XXXVIII Issue II September 24th 2015
Since 1978
S.H.I.B.G.B’S SHUTS DOWN Growing pains in the DIY punk community by Astoria Felix DIY venues are self-run places where expression and
Despite the fact that it is essentially a weird-smelling,
freedom are the priority of a space’s structure. About
dank, concrete box in the ground, the people and the
seven years ago, Adrift Clubhouse, located in Kensing-
things that went on in that space are what made it a
ton Market, began as a way for owner Lyndsey to skate-
comfortable place for me.”
board in the winter and subsidize the space by also
putting on shows. Although the space closed quickly,
Ryan
the residual energy that was left over took root in Greg
S.H.I.B.G.B’s and “having a new space we could really
Benedetto, a local punk promoter who began to crave
call our own. It’s amazing to think about what was cre-
having a space like that again. At the time, Ryan Tong,
ated out of nothing, as well as all the individuals who
the vocalist for the hardcoreToronto band S.H.I.T., who
saw it as an opportunity to make it something more.”
have a reputation for helping to bring the Toronto punk
A space that was and still is needed in Toronto. Ryan
community together, needed a place to practice. They
and Greg both believe DIY spaces should be a strong
found space in an affordable industrial neighborhood
community, one where, as Ryan explains, “A communi-
and called it home. Seven years later, S.H.I.B.G.B’s is a
ty can regularly congregate, share ideas and work to-
hidden home in the west end of Toronto, tucked behind
gether—it’s essential as a means for free exploration
a blacked out door in the industrial Dundas neighbor-
and expression.” For Greg, a DIY space is “the means
hood. It has become a necessary staple in the Toronto
of allowing music or other practices to exist outside of
hardcore scene.
an exclusive capitalist corporate-driven architecture.
recalls
the
excitement
of
first
finding
DIY for me is about providing space for the community Upon entering S.H.I.B.G.B’s, you follow a flight of
to allow alternative ideas to exist in opposition to cur-
stairs into a bare, concrete room furnished only with
rent ideas and the status quo.”
a sinkable grey couch and a slightly-raised stage at
FREE ZINE
in select issues!
the front of the room. It is the appropriate landing site
S.H.I.B.G.B’s was not about tokenism, but instead
for members of Toronto’s punk community and void of
about having an open space that is community-ori-
anything but the necessary equipment to put on a riot-
ented. “We do our best to navigate those priorities
ous show. In the amount of time it takes to run through
in hardcore, which is a realm of music that is gui-
a usual 15-20 minute set time, the space evolves into
tar-based rock music at its core, that is [not] dominat-
a being of sheer power. About the venue, Ryan Tong
ed ... in those things.”
says: “S.H.I.B.G.B’s is like a second home to me….
CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
2
the news
Having these safe spaces allows for
put capital and profit as secondary con-
the punk scene to flourish. Greg notes
cerns. “We pay rent, we pay taxes, and
that what really makes Toronto punk
as such we’re tied down to those capi-
unique is its strong roots in queer punk:
talistic demands that everyone else is,”
“Toronto is the place where queer punk
explains Greg. The space isn’t just for
was born. As someone who has been
entertainment or cheap beer, which re-
involved in Toronto hardcore for 12
sulted in a disconnect from the politics
years or longer, it’s interesting to see
they were trying to create. Refusing to
that as a recurring thread.” Greg feels
participate in the bureaucracy of city li-
it’s incredibly important to understand
censes, they depend on the community
the history of the Toronto queer scene.
to come to every show to support the
Dating back to the early 2000s, he rec-
space. “In Toronto it’s increasingly get-
ognizes Will Munro and his involve-
ting harder and harder to take up space
ment in migrating the queer scene out
and take up space in a manner that peo-
of the “gaybourhood” and establishing
ple are interested in engaging in.” And
its own identity elsewhere in the city.
even if they do find a new space with
In 2015, bands such as Fathers, An-
cheaper rent, “Torontonians are fickle
ti-Vibes and Triage have taken up the
and won’t travel there.”
torch. Greg reiterates that “it’s import-
As it was one of the earlier DIY punk
ant to be proud of being from Toronto,”
spaces to establish itself, the va-
a sentiment that can get lost when we
cancy left behind with the closing of
compare our music scenes to those of
S.H.I.B.G.B’s will allow other spaces
others.
to carry on the punk DIY tradition that
S.H.I.B.G.B’s didn’t only cater to a mu-
the community needs. Ryan has plans
sic-involved crowd but also to other
to open his own record shop, serving
forms of expression such as accom-
as a bit of a continuation, with a focus
modating art shows and screenings of
on the outer punks of the world. Greg is
local political movies. Ryan believes
excited to continue to promote within
that it is the ethic and intention behind
the DIY punk community. He’ll be pro-
these various modes of expression that
moting for Ryan’s shop and D-Beat-
continue to draw interest and support
stro, which Greg commended for its
from the community, and subsequent-
awesome work in community activism.
ly interest in S.H.I.B.G.B’s as a venue. Greg also points out that having
The DIY punk community will continue
“wicked art” is a byproduct of providing
without S.H.I.B.G.B.’s, likely dealing
a space where such expression can
with many of the same struggles be-
flourish. “As a space for art, music or
tween being anti-establishment and
film, the space is the root that allows
yet still being required to pay rent.
things to take hold. The space is ulti-
Hopefully, newer venues will learn from
mately most important.”
S.H.I.B.G.B.’s accessibility issues and
Unfortunately, S.H.I.B.G.B’s is closing
seek to provide an inclusive, welcom-
its doors for good. The space that was
ing place for all members of the com-
foremost for the community had always
munity.
Masthead
Top and bottom: VCR, middle: Fathers Photos by Stefan Bird
the newspaper
University of Toronto’s independent community paper since 1978 the newspaper is published by Planet Publications Inc., a non-profit corporation
Editor-In-Chief - Dylan Hornby Managing Editor - Zach Morgenstern Arts Editor - Prisca Lam Music Editor - Melissa Vincent Comment Editor - Fraser Allan-Best Science Editor - Emily Posteraro
256 McCaul St. Suite 106 Toronto, ON M5T 1W5 thenewspaper@ gmail.com
Design Editor - Ariel Ryann Art Director - Maxwell Galley Marketing Director - Neil McKenzie-Sutter Photo Editor - Stefan Bird Senior Copy Editor - Alina Butt Web Editor - Christopher Bathgate
Contributors Maxim Basu, Fraser Allan-Best, Stefan Bird, Alina Butt, Sinéad Doherty-Grant, Astoria Felix, Dylan Hornby, Alevtina Lapiy, Hilary Lo, Zach Morgenstern, Sanjana Nigam, Nikki Pangilinan, Barbod Pournajar, Ariel Ryann, Diandra Sasongko, Joyce Wong www.thenewspaper.ca
All U of T community members, including students, alumni, faculty, and staff are encouraged to contribute to the newspaper.
the news 3
U of T news briefs by Zach Morgenstern & Dylan Hornby
OCAP: Shelters ‘won’t be pushed out’ of U of T neighbourhood On the morning of Friday, Sept. 18, the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP) staged an occupation protest at the recently closed Salvation Army Hope Shelter at the corner of McCaul and College. Three OCAP members gained rooftop access to the building and unravelled a banner demanding that the city provide “more shelter and housing now.” The Hope Shelter operated for 40 years and provided beds, medical help, meals and other services to homeless men in the city. The 124-bed facility shut down in April 2015 due to increased lease rates and maintenance costs. OCAP members also made their presence known on the street, and said at City Hall on Monday that the city is failing abysmally in its goal of keeping shelters at or below a 90 per cent occupancy rate. OCAP cites that over 1000 shelter beds have been lost over the past 15 years, and that 740 homeless people have died on Toronto streets since 1985.
Lawyers called in to fight UTSU BDS On September 4, lawyer Leo Adler sent a message addressed to University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) President Ben Coleman and CC’ed the entire UTSU board of directors. In it, he warned that the UTSU “would be exposing itself [to] a number of legal difficulties” in reference to a recent motion submitted for their upcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM) calling for the UTSU to join the BDS (Boycott, Divest and Sanction [of Israel]) campaign. Adler has been retained by U of T law student Aidan Fishman, a two-term student representative on the Governing Council and a tabler for the group Israel on Campus. Adler cites four legal arguments as to why the UTSU board should not forward a BDS motion to a general meeting. He notes that the motion would be in violation of the provincial Discriminatory Business Practices Act, which disallows the refusal to business with another person or corporation based on “nationality, ancestry and geographical location amongst other things.” Adler also cited the UTSU’s own anti-discriminatory mission statement, the fiduciary duty of UTSU board members to act in the corporation’s best interests and the Canada Not-for-Profit Corporations Act’s oppression remedy policy, which could allow UTSU members to sue the union for discrimination and potentially seek its dissolution should a BDS motion pass. The UTSU board voted not to send the motion to the AGM. However, the UTSU plans on holding a second general meeting at which a BDS motion may be discussed. The letter was reportedly denounced as baseless
Is Canada helping its share of refugees?
U of T joins the Ryerson initiative
by Sinéad Doherty-Grant
Citing the “moral urgency” of the Syrian refugee crisis, U of T’s president Meric Gertler has announced that U of T, along with York and OCAD, will be joining the Ryerson University Lifeline Syria Challenge. The initiative seeks to sponsor 25 Syrian refugee families. In addition, U of T’s “Scholars-At-Risk” program will be expanded to include “Syrian students at risk,” as well as other academic refugees. The scale of the Syrian refugee crisis has few parallels. Syria’s population is approximately 18,000,000. Estimates vary, but since the outbreak of civil war in March 2011, approximately 6,500,000 persons, half of whom are children, have been displaced to other parts
of the country. Another 4,088,099 refugees have fled the country entirely for places such as: Turkey (2,138,000); Lebanon (1,172,753); Jordan (500,000); Iraq (251,500); and Kuwait (120,000). In Europe, Germany has accepted 105,000 refugees, Austria has taken in 18,000 and Sweden 31,000. Other European nations have accepted even smaller numbers of people. Interestingly, in Europe there is no correlation between the wealth of a country and the number of refugees accepted. Of Europe’s wealthy countries, only Sweden and Germany have accepted a significant number of refugees. Sweden has been by far the most generous on a per capita basis. Germany’s total
by UTSU legal counsel, and thus may not have influenced the vote.
UTSU AGM notice The UTSU Annual General Meeting, an open meeting where UTSU members can vote on bylaw and policy motions, is scheduled for October 7. The AGM will feature a vote between two competing proposals to reform the UTSU’s board of directors structure to be in compliance with Canadian corporate law. One proposal, brought forward by Arts and Science at Large director Krystyna Zhuk and U.C. director Daman Singh calls for the introduction of nominated equity-at-large directors, calls for the VP Equity to be nominated and VP Campus Life to be elected (a reversal of current conditions) and for college and professional faculty directors to be nominated through elections held internally within U of T’s college and faculty student societies. Another proposal, brought forward by Orientation Coordinator and former VP External Grayce Slobodian and Suryana Thappa includes specific equity and other new directorial positions (including a Racialized Student’s Issues director and Women’s Issues director), while proposing one director each for each college and profaculty, and eight directors for U of T’s Mississauga campus. Several other policy motions will also be debated at the meeting. These include calls for: the UTSU to financially support the Black Lives Matter movement; the UTSU to lobby for professional faculty students to take sabbatical years to serve on the UTSU executive; the UTSU to continue using the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS)’s anti-rape culture “No Means No” campaigns; the UTSU to refugee intake from all countries this year will reach approximately 800,000. To date, Canada has accepted approximately 2,374 Syrian refugees, a fraction of Sweden’s intake. It is noteworthy that as well as accepting a small number of refugees, Canada has participated directly in bombing campaigns over Syria. Canadians of all political stripes have therefore questioned whether we aren’t, in fact, helping to create the refugee problem as opposed to solving it. Drew Garvie, Communist candidate in the federal election, says, “The Harper government’s participation in the illegal bombing of Syria and its uncritical support for the United State’s policy of divide and conquer in the region must be ended immediately.” What do Canadians themselves think? Recent polls show that while 25% of Canadians support Stephen Harper’s security-first, minimalist approach to the Syrian refugee issue, 52% think we need to do more to help refugees. Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien has suggested that the current approach compares poorly to Germany’s open
express solidarity with the Cape Breton Students’ Union, which reportedly went bankrupt following a lawsuit over unpaid dues from the CFS; the UTSU to hold townhalls on its bylaw and policy changes; and competing motions on the preservation of physical voting booths in UTSU elections.
Student group denied room, called “too politicized” Students First, a left student group at U of T, was told earlier this month that they could not book a room to hold a townhall because administration deemed them “too politicized.” Students First was formed during the CUPE 3902 teaching assistants’ union strike during the winter of 2015 as a student-TA solidarity group. It held general assembly-style meetings outside of Sidney Smith and organized a student walkout. Students First distributed leaflets advertising the town hall, titled, “Who’s Running this Shit Anyway” at the UTSU clubs fair.The leaflet opened with the line, “Welcome basic income units,” explaining that this is how U of T administration refers to students, and called for a “free education, not a $40,000 debt sentence.” The event was set to be held at the U of T Arts Centre, which announced the cancellation over the phone with Students First activists. According to Students First organizer Faraz Vahid Shahidi, “Administration had reached out to GSU and CUPE to gather more information about the event and essentially [scolded] those they (erroneously) thought were involved.”
gate attitude: “It’s not acceptable. How many Hungarians who have come during the crisis 50 or 60 years ago have caused problems to Canada? Name me one,” he remarked. “How many Ismalians who came to Canada have caused problems? How many Vietnamese people? How many Kosovars? For me, common sense should prevail.” The Conservatives have promised to bring in 10,000 Syrians by the end of 2017. The NDP has promised to bring in 10,000 and the Liberals 25,000 by the end of the year. Those numbers stand in stark contrast to polls showing that 41% of Canadians think that up to 100,000 refugees would be well within Canada’s means. The Conservatives stand alone in continuing to insist that there are substantial security issues involved. This position plays well to their core supporters. That said, even an increasing number of Conservative heavyweights, such as Barbara McDougall, David Crombie and Joe Clark to name only a few, have refused to accept this reasoning.
4 the interview
Paikin’s playby-play of Canadian politics An interview with the newspaper and TVO veteran Steve Paikin article & photo by Fraser Allan-Best
Partisan politics are alluring, but not for Steve Paikin. On a growing list of issues, Canadians retreat to the safety of their echoey political tent, emerging only for brief combative exchanges. While everyone likes to watch gladiators spar, democracies need to make decisions. When debate springs loose, Steve Paikin can be found centerfield heading the negotiating table. Most often, that table is atTVO, where he hosts The Agenda, a nightly current affairs program that brings competing Canadian voices together to tackle the divisive issue of the day. Guests have names like Steven Pinker, Salman Rushdie, Bill Blair and Irshad Manji, and run the political gamut from Gail Dines, a “slut walk” activist, to Shabir Ally, an imam concerned about sex-ed reforms. Not always on the outside of politics, Paikin is sometimes right in the middle. Since 2006, Paikin has served as the moderator for three federal and three Ontario leaders’ debates. Even when he steps out of the ring, Paikin has made use of his experience rubbing shoulders with Canadian giants, having penned four books on politics. He’s also written one on sports, one of his passions. Before landing in the host seat at The Agenda, Paikin was a Toronto city hall reporter on CHFI, a host on CBC Newsworld and co-creator of the foreign affairs television program Diplomatic Immunity. Oh, did I mention he used to write for the newspaper, too? Sitting down with Paikin, things begin to make sense. His office is filled but organized. You’ll find sports-related chachkis scattered among hardcover books on the history of politics and the art of its maintenance. The collection on the bookshelf behind his desk shows an inquiry into Canadian values without a palette for political colours. HOUSELEAGUE As we begin, Paikin makes it clear that politics is not just a topic at the armchair, but something he has lived from childhood. Sitting in the middle of the office, he explains: “I’ve been sort of interested and around politics for a lot of my life. I think my parents get a lot of credit or the blame for that.” It’s true. Having been appointed to Governing Council at the University
of Toronto by a Conservative government, his mother, Marnie Paikin, was no stranger to party politics. But she did not simply toe the party line. “I was at [the] University of Toronto in 1981; there was an Ontario election in 1981.... My mother had accepted an appointment to Governing Council from the Conservative government, she gave money to Stewart Smith—who was the Ontario Liberal leader ... and she voted NDP.” As he finishes his story, Paikin smiles as if just noticing his mother’s perfectly tricoloured complexion.
during a Vietnam protest.” Driving it home, he makes his implication clear, stating, “I think that scared a lot of people off … I can’t recall an issue that was boiling when I went to university that I was willing to die for.”
ity burning the midnight oil at the wee small hours of the morning putting the paper to bed.” Joining the final dots, he adds, “Given what I do today it was kind of essential training.” Sitting back in my chair, I get the picture.
“Fair enough,” I hear myself say, running through a long list of modern ‘Kent States’ in my head—politically-oriented violence carried out during my (and Zach’s) undergraduate years. “Right.”
Drifting onward in his career, Paikin paraphrases a few decisive words he received from the editors of The Hamilton Spectator: “‘You know how to cover sports … so we’re going to let you specialize in everything except sports.’” Not being one to jib from challenge, Paikin accepted. Making sure I noticed the watershed implication, he adds, “That’s what really turned me on to news and current affairs.”
LOSING THE JERSEY Needless to say, when it came to his mother’s politics, the eggs were not in any one basket. As for what this means, Paikin’s assessment is simple, “I grew up with politics that [were] very hard to pigeonhole.” Having been pulled in a few different directions, Steve’s politics were suspended somewhere in the middle. Perhaps it’s in the Paikin family cooking; Steve explains that his son “Zach stuck his toe in the water, I guess, [as a
Paikin admits he wasn’t “emotionally politically engaged” in his university years. His passions were thrown in a different direction. He traded campaign colours for team colours, of which he said, “I don’t think I read the ... front section of a newspaper.... I read all the sports sections, I just lived breathed and ate sports all the time.” From this starting line, his career kicked off before he even saw the agenda.
“the newspaper was one of the most influential and important experiences I had going to U of T, for sure, great collegiality burning the midnight oil at the wee small hours of the morning putting the paper to bed.... Given what I do today it was kind of essential training.” federal candidate in a Hamilton riding] for the Liberal party in the leadup to this federal election.” Taking on a delicately euphemistic tone when referring to Zach’s somewhat rocky withdrawal from the race, Steve simply says that he “ultimately decided not to run,” shedding partisan ties in what Zach described as a “principled decision” in an online post in mid-March. “I have always encouraged my children to be involved in politics,” he says—but his drive is certainly not borne of a wish to be followed in lockstep. Paikin’s early adulthood bore little resemblance to his son’s. Whereas Zach focused on politics, the electoral scene was relegated to Steve’s periphery. Asked why, Paikin blames the zeitgeist, saying, “When I went to university it was a particularly apolitical time.” Not wanting to leave this seemingly-thin excuse blowing in the wind, he adds to his answer, “I can remember soldiers going onto a campus in Kent State, Ohio and killing four students
“I went to Hart House on clubs night— this was in August of 1978—and walked in there and saw … something for U of T radio, and a lightbulb went on.” That lightbulb stayed lit, because Paikin was a regular on the air, a varsity sports commentator alongside Michael Landsberg, now host of TSN’s Off The Record. Far from his destination in current affairs, tinges of Paikin’s later-renowned objectivity made a telltale appearance. As I go over his history with Landsberg, Paikin jumps in, “I did play-byplay, he did colour.” Today, while his subject may be different, Paikin still leaves the colouring to other voices. Connecting the dots, Paikin calls to mind the second stop in his early career: the newspaper, where he edited the sports section two years in a row. Misty-eyed at hearing the name, I push for more. Paikin opens the floodgates, saying, “[it was] one of the most influential and important experiences I had going to U ofT, for sure, great collegial-
He adjusts his hockey-themed pullover, and I glance at the bookshelf behind him. In the years since he worked at The Spectator, Paikin shed his apolitical skin, but the non-partisan sinew remained, of which he said, “I think some people define their politics by [a] partisan label and that’s fine … [but] there are other people, I guess like me, who don’t…” With a slight air of exceptionalism, he adds, “We have an open mind about things.” Proudly free of party affiliations himself and having not felt “the need to sign on anybody’s dotted line,” his prescription to Canadians is different. “I don’t care what party you get involved in, just get informed on the issues and volunteer. There is no campaign that will turn down free contributions from students.” In his first book, published in 2001 and titled The Life: The Seductive Call of Politics, Paikin draws from his discussions with Ontario leaders to tackle a single question: what compels politicians to public service? His answer isn’t easily distilled, but he sees one ingredient as indispensable: a sense of duty to represent the people. As Paikin continues, it strikes me that his call for young people to become involved may be in the same vein, saying, “19% of people gave the Ontario Liberal government 100% of the power.” A man with his finger on the pulse of Canadian politics, he cuts to the heart of the issue, saying, “Our governments are getting dangerously close to being non-representative and/or illegitimate.” He pauses, and then adds, “That concerns me.”
the science 5
Visiting the neighbours Engineering design team heads to Nevada for speedbike competition by Dylan Hornby
photo by jnyyz.wordpress.com
Tucked away on the fifth floor of 256 McCaul Street—right above where the newspaper is produced—is the working space of U of T’s Human Powered Vehicle Design Team (HPVDT). They are engineering enthusiasts who have pushed the limits of pedal power since their first speedbike, Ace, whipped across the desert in 2008. We caught up with team member and fourth-year material science and engineering student Alan Pettit right before they embarked on a road trip to the flat terrain of Battle Mountain, Nevada. The custom-designed bikes that are heading out west are able to reach highway speeds of over 120 km/h using pedal power alone. To achieve speeds like that, you need an in-depth understanding of aerodynamics. The bikes are built throughout the year with a combination of used bike parts and custom mechanical work. Everything making contact with the elements on these bikes is carbon fibre. “It’s a cloth, actually,” says Alan, “like papier-mâché. You basically get a cloth and you add the resin. We have a foam core in these ones which is really light but gives you a shape.”
“This one’s a camera bike,” said Alan as he pointed out two small cameras stealthily drilled into the bike’s top fin, and then continues, “We have two camera systems so in case one fails you can still see stuff.” The driver gets into a very small hatch in the top, and once sealed in, they can easily see the video display. With vehicles such as these, safety obviously becomes an issue, especially because many of the speedbikes have “very bad” turning radii. “We design all the roll cages and everything so you won’t get hurt [inside].... They’re all nicely painted up now but we’ve definitely scratched them up quite a bit.” HPVDT participates in two series of international competitions. They have three-wheeled bikes named Celero and Valkyrie, which are built for completing daily commuter tasks, such as picking up groceries, in the fastest time with the fewest road safety mistakes. “[More recently] we’ve been focusing more on usability,” Alan explained. “Those trikes are a lot easier to ride
obviously [but] in Nevada it’s all about speed.” Later on, we catch up with another teammate, third-year engineering science student Thomas Ulph, who noted that “[U of T] is basically top three every single time,” with Bluenose’s fastest speed being clocked at an impressive 125 km/h. Speaking of their competition, Thomas noted that “there’s a team from Delft [University of Technology in The Netherlands], so they actually hold the current record.… They get a huge amount of funding.” Estimated material costs for the bikes ranges between $4,000 and $5,000. The club is funded from a combination of U of T, technological sponsors and by members out-of-pocket. “Since it’s carbon fibre the real cost would be labour,” said Alan. Above the space’s small kitchen, amidst old bike projects and used parts, something catches our eye: a large novelty cheque for $250,000 sitting above the doorway. “That’s the Sikorsky prize money,” Thomas explains, saying it was
the result of a global challenge issued by the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation to build a human-powered helicopter that could reach a height of three metres and stay aloft for 60 seconds within a 10 by 10 metre box. “It was a contest because no one thought it could be done,” Ulph explained. Thirty years after this challenge was issued, AeroVelo—an aeronautics company established within HPVDT—made history by being the first team in the world to pull it off, building a massive eight-blade human-powered helicopter in 2013 that stayed aloft for 64.1 seconds. Thomas explains that “the trickiest part was to get it up to three metres. It’s really hard to get the height, so you just want to reach the three metres and you hold it until you get the 60 seconds.” These engineers aren’t ones to bask in their unlikely victory for too long, however. That esteemed trophy now sits unceremoniously on an old wooden shelf above the sink next to the salt and pepper shakers.
The wheels themselves are customized carbon fibre sandwich boards without any spokes or holes. Alan explains, “If you have the spokes you have a lot of the airflow going through there and that causes drag at high speeds.” Giving the cyclist inside a smooth start and stop has also been a challenge: “We have people launch you and catch [you].… We’ve experimented with different kinds of landing gear [such as] wheels in the back [and] training wheels you can pull up once you get going.” The team works with several models, but Bluenose is the most technologically-advanced bike travelling with the team, of which they said, “It was originally designed with a window, but we had a lot of trouble designing the polycarbonate so it would get [in]to shape.” Working with multiple materials produces unwanted drag at high speeds, so HPVDT soon scrapped the window on Bluenose, rendering the driver without any physical view.
photo by aerovelo
6 the arts
Astoria Felix
Drake takes the cake Following an arguably inferior frosh concert, first year students wonder if the UTSU knows its audience by Ariel Ryann
He’s a pop artist with three platinum singles, a gold record and UTM hosted him four years ago for their own orientation concert. We knew all these factoids, but we still found ourselves asking—who the hell is Shawn Desman? Why him, and why not Drake? Desman peaked in popularity during the early ’00s, right around the same time this year’s froshies finished potty training. Following the announcement that the dated 33-year-old would be U of T’s frosh concert headliner, the UTSU was met with the harshest shade of indifference from first year students who expected something more from a top-rated international university. For many of them, it was probably one of the first impressions of student life U of T had offered. In comparison, McMaster University nabbed NYC-based DJ duo The Chainsmokers, McGill scored DJ Dannic and Western headlined with up-and-coming indie rock group, Walk Off the Earth. While all the neighboring frosh concerts went on reveling in their own impressive-enough acts, Ryerson somehow managed to arrange a soldout Future/Zed’s Dead/Miguel concert sprinkled with a little Drake on top. And no—we’re still not over it. Most students wouldn’t expect a university to book an artist whose list of nominations and awards require their own Wikipedia page, yet of all the schools in the “6ix,” we expected U ofT to snag Drake first. Although guest passes sold out days prior to Ryerson’s concert, envious students still migrated all the way from St. George campus to Gould and Victoria in the rain just to listen to the bombastic ambience and possibly catch a
Faisal, butts & other funny things by Fraser Allan-Best & Alina Butt
We catch up with Toronto-based standup comedian Faisal Butt in the leadup to his set at the JFL42 comedy festival. ALLAN-BEST: Do you see the Toronto stand up scene expanding? BUTT: When I moved to Toronto, things seemed to just pop off a little bit more. I moved here, I got my first half hour special, last year I won the SiriusXM Top-Comic contest and then that kind of steam rolled [sic].... I got to open for Russell Peters, I did the Montreal Just for Laughs and then there’s my show later this month for JFL42! ALLAN-BEST: Your set has some focus on race, with your own Muslim identity.… Russell Peters … won’t just tell jokes about his own Indian identity, he’ll venture
glimpse of Drizzy through the drizzle. Like so many other first year students, Woodsworth College student Neha Syed passed on U of T’s orientation concert entirely and instead visited the erupting Ryerson venue along with friends. “Obviously we didn’t get in, but because it was Drake, we were just waiting around outside. I think even that was better than being at Shawn Desman’s performance... I just wanted to be around Drake, like I didn’t care how far I was.” Neha would later score a video of Drake entering his car along the curb following his performance—the highlight of her night.
“I would actually rather see Nickelback than Shawn. It’s still not Drake, but like, it’s something.” Hiring a local act has always been a valid contention for UTSU’s programming coordinators. Being from Toronto, Shawn Desman fit the bill for such an act, but this year’s students agreed that their local pride could have taken a backseat to accommodate a performance by a more popular, or at the very least relevant, artist. However, it’s not just a matter of Desman being old news. When asked, most first year students responded that they would have rather seen other shamefully nostalgic, circa-2000s Canadian artists instead of Desman. “Simple Plan, Avril Lavigne—even Nickelback,” first year student Sara Zamani concurred. “I would actually BUTT: I’ve since shaved, but I used to have a pretty crazy beard, so people are kind of waiting for me to acknowledge [my racial appearance,] to a degree. Now I’m shaved and I look a little bit more clean cut, and I’m trying to do a set that is not based on race at all, which is a little hard! I would love to do a set without having to be like, “Well, I’m Pakistani and I’m Muslim.” ALLAN-BEST: You have said in previous interviews that you have been ready to leave comedy at several points, is that still on the table for you?
Stefan Bird
into any territory.... Is that something you are as comfortable doing…? BUTT: Peters is very specific.... Coming from me, I talk about race but it’s more my perspective, not like, “Here’s what I think about German people,” whereas he can break each race down, y’know? He explains the difference between like, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Japanese—and people are expecting that.... ALLAN-BEST: Would you ever consider that style, or do you plan to keep the racial tone that you have now?
BUTT: Now that I have this baby, that’s kind of shifted my perspective, because I don’t really want to travel that much now cause she’s only like 6 [months] and my woman works.… I gotta be here for my daughter. Do I want to quit? Definitely not, because I still love it…. ALLAN-BEST: When someone sees you in your show, what’s the kind of impression you want to have on them? BUTT: I just want them to enjoy the show, but I also … kind of want people to be like, “I was there when he was getting his break.” So … all of this is really exciting and new for me too.... I think watching me, even though I’m [a] Pakistani Muslim guy who drinks and smokes weed, I think people will still be like, “I can relate to this guy.” And I think that’s exciting for me too, … subverting those expectations.
BUTT: I might talk about my experiences with them, but my standup is … more personal.
ALLAN-BEST: Do you plan to keep that racial component of your act there?
ALLAN-BEST: So was race in your standup from pretty early on?
BUTT: I think so, but I think my take and view on the whole race thing, it’ll
rather see Nickelback than Shawn. It’s still not Drake, but like, it’s something.” While criticism regarding the Desman vs. Drake debacle drenched social media the day following the event, there were still plenty of froshies voicing their appreciation towards the UTSU and their love for Shawn online. Roshni Thawani, a Humanities student from Trinity College, proudly praised her frosh experience on social media by sharing a selfie she took with the pop star offstage, captioned, “Getting a selfie with Shawn Desman > getting a glimpse of Drake.” In response to online outcry that Desman is still “nothing compared to Drake,” Thawani replied, “He’s the father of a 2 year old and still performing. I admire that.” She then went on to add, “Everyone’s entitled to their own opinion. I still believe he did a fantastic show!” Though the lineup for this year’s performance was unfamiliar and subjectively inferior to Ryerson’s, the forecast for future frosh fests at U of T may not always be. This has been the third consecutive year the UTSU has hosted their orientation concert in the rain, but King’s College Circle was still halffull. With students waiting throughout the opening acts with their rain gear on, sitting in circles and playing soccer in the mud, they made their expectations clear: they were there for the show, they were there to have fun and they’d be there through the worst. That being said, if first year students would rather see Nickelback than their frosh concert headliner, the UTSU really needs to freshen up their first impressions. still be a little bit fresh…. But someone like Aziz Ansari, … he’s doing stadiums now, he’s doing great, but ... you watch his standup and … [he] will [very rarely] … talk about race…. ALLAN-BEST: Your point would be he’s gotten over that? BUTT: You wouldn’t be like, “Oh yeah I’m watching the Aziz show because it’s going to be racially charged….” You know what to expect from an Aziz show, whereas Faisal Butt you’re like, “Who is this guy?” … So naturally I’m going to bring up my race and talk about that. But just sort of as a stepping stone, because also people are like, “Oh this brown guy, he’s Muslim,” they’re going to essentially figure me out. But the more you listen to my act, the more you’re like, “Oh you know this guy’s not Muslim, he’s not what I’m expecting.” ALLAN-BEST: Is a big part of it listening to other comics and getting a feel for the sort of voices that already exist and then kind of putting yourself in that context? BUTT: Yeah, I think it’s important…. Every comic has a favorite podcast and different comedians will be on them. I just like listening to them speak, no pressure, just being naturally funny.... I think it comes out of like, as a comic, you just have to live a little and experience life. I think that really will kind of help and shape [your voice].… It would be weird if I never mention I have a daughter, that’s … really central to me right now, the most important thing happening to me right now. So obviously like, being a new dad, I’m going to talk a lot about that.
the opinion 7
When refugees become migrants How the difference affects the crisis on a humanitarian level by Barbod Pournajar It is estimated that by the end of this year over a million people will have flooded into Europe. However, it’s unclear as to what labels we should assign to these people: are they refugees or migrants? This difference fundamentally changes the nature of the moral and humanitarian question. A refugee is one who is fleeing war or persecution in their home country. Under European Union laws, asylum is considered a human right, and anyone who seeks asylum in Europe will be granted it. Under laws by many European nations, refugees are entitled to certain benefits.Those who seek resettlement in countries like Germany and Sweden are given social welfare, child benefits, child-raising benefits, integration allowances and language courses as well as other forms of integration assistance. With this in mind, it makes sense that a disproportionate
number of refugees are seeking asylum in places like Germany and Sweden: they’re rich. In fact, Margaret Wente from The Globe and Mail reported that refugees arriving in Denmark refused asylum because there weren’t enough benefits and demanded to be sent to Sweden or Germany. Many refugees who’ve arrived in Hungary and Eastern-Europe declined asylum by those nations for the same reason. This is where the distinction between refugee and migrant dissolves. If the refugees have successfully escaped danger but are now demanding to be shipped to a richer country with better social services, then they aren’t refugees anymore. They’re migrants. The process of immigration in Europe takes into account all of these factors. Those who seek asylum make their claim and wait for a response from the country they have sought asylum in. If we adopt an open-border policy where
Joyce Wong everyone who is suffering persecution is allowed entry, like Germany had done up until two weeks ago, then how can we have the stability to host them? This is not to say that migrants are not worthy of our sympathy—they are. Any human who is suffering is worthy of the sympathy and support of the international community. However, this makes the moral stance that much more unclear. Are we willing to throw aside an immigration system, albeit an imperfect one, in favour of receiving those who can wash up or walk to European shores? If our answer is yes, then we should be conscious of the lifeless bodies that will wash up on European shores as a result.
We are trading ordered bureaucracy for a system which is reminiscent of a Hunger Games dystopia where the physically and financially capable are rewarded and the incapable are left to drown like Alan Kurdi. The adoption of an open-heart policy is a system not based on rationality and logic, but a system based on the irrationality of emotion. Although our hearts may bleed for our Syrian brothers and sisters, this current system is both immoral and unsustainable for both the European nations and migrants.
Fight like a girl
Perspectives on the violent threats against feminists on campus “Fight Like A Girl,” the letters on my shirt proudly proclaim to the world. “Do you like it?” I ask my friend. She nods, laughing at the cartoon Sailor Moon weapons that accompany the inscription. “Boy, I just hope I don’t get shot today!” I joke. Her laughter stops. A genuine trickle of fear seeps into her voice as she asks, “That’s not going to happen … right?” As most people at U of T will have heard, broad violent threats surfaced online earlier this month, particularly (but not exclusively) aimed at staff and students of the Women and Gender Studies and Sociology departments. The post, which appeared anonymously on multiple forums, encourages anti-feminists to rent machine guns to kill all of the “slutty women.” While an email sent out by Professor Cheryl Regehr, the vice-president and provost of the university, claims that the school is taking all precautionary measures to ensure student safety, one can’t help but wonder what’s really being done. While an increase in campus security has been boasted at all three campuses, none of the added personnel will be armed, and their training in neutralizing a heavily-armed shooter is questionable. So, as the implicit target, how do women feel about the situation? After asking around, it was obvious that opinions differed. Some seemed hesitant to draw any more attention to themselves than necessary, preferring safety to a defiant, but potentially risky, declaration of their
by Hilary Lo
beliefs. Others seemed to think that that would be buying right into the threateners’ plans. “By lying low, we’re essentially just giving them what they want,” one student said. “They want the feminists to disappear, and simply by threatening us, they’ve already succeeded for the most part.” However, another student thought that unfair, saying, “That makes it seem as though valuing personal safety in the midst of a possible crisis makes us bad feminists. It’s not about good feminism versus bad feminism; if someone feels unsafe in a situation, he or she should be allowed to put his or her own safety first. Personally,” she added, “I’d want women to keep themselves out of harm’s way by not emblazoning ‘feminist’ across their chests during a time where they could potentially get hurt for it.” When you consider both sides of the situation, it’s easy to empathize with the women involved in this debate. Wanting to stay true to one’s beliefs but being afraid of possible consequences is a feeling many of us can relate to. Something that most students can more easily agree on is that the university seems to not be putting enough stress on the situation, suggesting that it might take a genuine incident occurring before they take these threats more seriously. Meanwhile, a select few are believing all this to be a rather twisted ad campaign for the gun-renting gang mentioned in the post. One thing’s for sure, though: for the sake of the feminists at U of T, I sincerely hope it’s the latter that’s true.
8 the end
the newspaper goes to tiff! Shining a spotlight on lesser-known films Angry Indian Goddesses
Being Charlie
by Sanjana Nigam
by Diandra Sasongko
Pan Nalin’s new film, Angry Indian Goddesses, is already being deemed “India’s first female buddy film” because it introduces a new, bonafide take on feminism in India. The story follows the lives of seven women who reunite to celebrate the wedding of their friend Frieda in Goa. Each of their individual lives provides insight into what life is like for an independent woman in modern day India. With a healthy dose of humor and dark drama, Nalin is able to strike a balance, giving the film a playful essence with a refreshingly authentic foundation.
Being Charlie is the latest of Rob Reiner’s features, and the most personal of his works thus far. In this film, writer (and son of the director) Nick Reiner reflects on his experiences as a drug-addicted, rehab-ridden teenager, through titular character Charlie Mills, played by up-and-coming Jurassic World actor Nick Robinson.
One minor flaw remains—while the movie is quite the PSA for the slowly-progressing state of feminism in India, at times it seems to be carrying too much on its plate, potentially making the movie an emotionally exhausting watch. The movie covered several unresolved social issues in India, ranging from rape and gay rights to the lack of female welfare, and just about everything in between. However, despite the slight lack of structure, Angry Indian Goddesses’s witty and powerful script makes the film seem effortlessly humorous and engaging. If the movie kept your emotions high, the relatable dialogue—often improvised as cast members later revealed—was most likely what kept you anticipating even more. The opening sequence first introduces these angry goddesses and ties you to the seat while the final scene leaves you emotionally wrecked and hanging off a cliff. Angry Indian Goddesses is not for the light-hearted. It is an ambitious film for those who crave an accurate understanding of social issues in India with a hefty dose of drama.
More serious in nature than your standard Reiner flick, Being Charlie will predictably never become the comedy classic that is When Harry Met Sally… or The Princess Bride. It is refreshing that this movie veers away from a completely romance-centric plot and is instead focused more on one individual and the process of recovery that he goes through. Disappointingly, Being Charlie had a two-dimensional approach to shedding light on drug addiction as a mental health issue, and ultimately lacks the emotional depth that is undeniably necessary in portraying such sensitive subject matter in film. In fact, for a film whose main character is a drug addict, the movie focuses very little on the addiction itself. A lot seems to happen to Charlie in the movie as he deals with the consequences that his addiction brings upon his family, but a combination of a scattered storyline and several purposeless characters results in a relatively inconsequential film. In spite of this, Being Charlie is still worth watching for those who genuinely enjoy comedy-dramas. The movie’s wry humour makes it more accessible, and Charlie Mills’s sharp mouth as well as the overall dialogue’s quick wit is what carries the movie and ties its different plot elements together. From the start of the movie to the end, Nick Robinson delivered an apt performance worthy of praise, which almost made up for the film’s narrative flaws.
Stranger by Alevtina Lapiy Written and directed by Ermek Tursunov, Stranger is as aesthetically pleasing as it is at times revolting and bizarre. There are moments of simple, sheer beauty characterized by the sparkle and crunch of the falling snow, soaring eagles and spring streams that glimmer and weave. There is blood too, and pain. Have you ever seen a man’s eyebrow roughly stitched up with a fishing hook? Orphaned at a young age, our hero Ilyas leaves his village behind to build a life of solitude in the high mountains of Kazakhstan. Covered head to toe in majestic furs, atop his stallion and surrounded by his massive dogs, Ilyas evades Stalinist deportation, the 1930s famine and even the Second World War. The metaphorical intent of this film lies in Kazakhstan’s long historical struggle for independence. Ilyas, a nomad in his own name, is robbed of his freedom. He is rich now, civilized and yet completely unaware of how to function. When will the people of Kazakhstan have free elections? When will wealth be distributed fairly and not by prestige? These are the questions the filmmaker is asking. The film picks up pace upon Ilyas’s eventual, and somewhat accidental, return to the village. Unfortunately, this is also where it begins to run into problems. The relationships Ilyas engages in, meant to humanize him, only distance the audience from him. His interactions are unnecessarily child-like and simplistic. We learn little about Ilyas’s values, so it becomes difficult to carry on on this long journey with him. Ironically, he becomes a stranger to us. Despite all of this, the film is an experience for the senses. The score, courtesy of Kuat Shildebayev, is a beautiful blend of folk instrumentals and modern electronics. Coupled with cinematographer Murat Aliyev’s grand landscape shots, Stranger will have you in awe. However, watching it without having any knowledge of what or where Kazakhstan is will leave you confused, and watching it for the sake of characters and story will leave you somewhat disappointed.
photo by Stefan Bird