McGill Tribune Vol. 35, Issue 24

The McGill Tribune curiosity delivers

WEDNESday, March 30, 2016

Editorial:

Volume No. 35 Issue No. 24

Write-your-own editorial

FEATURE: digging a hole, lying in it, & giving up

pg. bado

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m c gilltribune.com @m c gilltribune

Arts building construction a coverup for installation of

Principal’s secret email servers

This piece is a work of satire and part of our Joke issue

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Conspirassmu

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Student crashes Minerva by accidently completing course evaluation The truth that the university doesn’t want you to know Sir Aldous Washington III The Truth Like every other student, I thought Minerva was supposedly going to be unavailable from Friday April 1 to Tuesday April 5 because of a technical upgrade; however, I was still a bit skeptical about this official reason.

Yesterday confirmed my thoughts.

I had received a call in the early afternoon from a blocked number. Since I thought it was my friend prank-calling me, I decided to answer. But from the moment I heard this voice, I knew this was no prank call. I had never heard someone who seemed as frightened as this.. The caller, who claimed to be a current McGill student and shall be called Mr. X for reasons pertaining to anonymity, asked me with a shaky voice if I could print the truth on Minerva’s system crash. Since he was not willing to speak on the phone as he thought our phones might be tapped, I asked him where we could meet. He told me to meet him at his flat in the ghetto. I checked the weather, not knowing whether the last day of March was going to be snowy, rainy, sunny, hot

or cold. Unfortunately, the weather had me put my coat and my winter boots.

After steering clear of vomit puddles and shattered beer bottles, I finally arrived to his door and rang. I waited a long time, and finally heard some footsteps. He opened the door wide enough for me too see one eye and asked me if someone had followed me. I told him that I had taken precaution.

Hesitating for a couple seconds, Mr. X invited me inside. He immediately blurted everything out.

“I accidentally completed a course evaluation,” he said. “I got drunk last night and I remember that I was texting my ex to try to get her back. I blacked out after and I woke up with my phone showing Minerva’s message to thank me for completing my course evaluation!”

He explained to me that completing this one evaluation probably overflowed Minerva’s system, which was not prepared to get so much information.

Understanding the gravity of the situation, I asked Mr. X if he could remember additional information. He took some time to think, and he got a panic attack.

“I think I even left some additional written comments,” he said.

At this moment, I knew his time at McGill was over. If people were to identify him, he would become the butt of everyone’s jokes.

I called up McGill’s witness protection program (McWitSec) and asked them if they were willing to cooperate with Mr. X’s transfer to Concordia under a new identity. McWitSec told me they could only help under one condition: Mr. X had to complete his four other evaluations, this time

Minerva couldn’t handle the increased workload. (mcgill.ca) on paper, so that McGill’s administration could finally work with student reviews.

Mr. X did not want to relive this traumatic experience. I tried to convince him but ultimately failed. He slowly breathed in and out, and told me he was going to leave for the Bahamas to finally be at peace with himself.

I wished him good luck, and left the apartment. I walked up a bit and heard my name.

“Wait,”he said. “I’m going to take

the deal.”

Mr. X completed his course evaluations and arranged his transfer to Concordia. He moved out from the ghetto and now turns off his router every time he goes out to drink.

Minerva is now on maintenance until April 5, and from a trustworthy source, the administration is upgrading the system to allow up to 10 course evaluations. *This article is a work of satire and a part of our joke issue*

Varsity LARP team wins regional championship The most succesful team that nobody knows about Jack Mackland Ace Sports Writer Spirits were high this past weekend at Parc Mont-Royal, where the McGill Redmasters claimed victory at the Provincial Varsity Live Action Roleplay Championship (the PLARP).

In a riveting final battle against reigning LARP champions the Concordia Orcs, Redmaster co-captain Dave Stipinski and his high elven broadsword, Deathslayer, dealt the winning blow to the last of the Orc forces.

“We’re really just thrilled to be here,” said an exhilarated Stipinski at the trophy ceremony, which was unfortunately cut short by scheduled park maintenance. “It’s an honour to compete against the Orcs, and league heavyweights like Frollo Boulderspine and Khan the Nightbringer.”

It’s been a long journey for Stipinsk—or the “Roddick Assassin,” as he is known around the league— and his teammates. Although familiar to many students as an endearing if odd staple of Tam Tams, competitive LARPing has received far less public attention. The Redmasters were only given varsity status this Fall, after cocaptain Erica Cowell placed a curse of eternal damnation upon McGill Athletics and Recreation.

“Throw demonic runes into the mix, and suddenly the admin’s not so keen to play hardball,” Cowell, level

12 druid and potions major, joked.

Per the stipulations of the curse, funds were reallocated from the McGill Quidditch team, and the Redmasters made their debut into the varsity community.

The team faced an uphill road to the championship, however. Scheduling field time at Molson Stadium between Redmen and Martlets practices proved difficult – training sessions are held primarily in Stipinski’s basement. The team also struggled to gain adequate storage space for its equipment in the McGill Sports Complex.

“Standard issue lockers just aren’t built for full-body 12th century armor and chainmail,” Cowell explained. “And a decent longsword?

Forget it.”

Logistical difficulties were only the beginning. Disaster struck halfway through the regular season, when star player Harry Presley was suspended after pummeling a 10-year-old recreational LARPer with his fire mace.

The victim, now recovered, reportedly “thought they were just playing a game” when he unknowingly wandered into a cutthroat team practice at Parc Mont-Royal. Presley allegedly mistook the minor for a particularly well-costumed dwarf, but was nonetheless suspended from the league for unsportsmanlike conduct.

The players have also struggled with marginalization in the McGill

These people are LARPing but they are not McGill students. (larping.org) sports community.

“It’s not always obvious, you know, but it’s the little things,” Stipinski said somberly while sharpening his broadsword. “We didn’t get a table at the Varsity Gala, our gameshave pretty low turnout, professors still won’t accept battles as reason for assignment extensions. People don’t take us seriously as athletes. But I think our win today is really going to

change the conversation.”

When reached for comment, McGill varsity football quarterback Charlie Laval wasn’t familiar with LARP as a sport, but did know Stipinski personally as “that dude that was always playing Settlers of Catan in residence”. Laval didn’t address Stipinski’s recommendation of traditional goblin battle strategy to improve the Redmen Football team’s

performance.

Up next, the underdog team hopes to continue their winning streak at the National LARP Championships in Kingston, Ontario this May. With increased funding, they’re also looking to get matching letterman chainmail. *This article is a work of satire and a part of our joke issue*

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Crowdsourced Content

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Students discovered in suspended animation under melting snowbanks Administration perplexed on how to deal with outdated degrees Daniel Galef Contributor When April arrives with its sweet showers to herald spring and the end of the term, and the giant snowbanks that have dwarfed all other campus structures for the past six months finally begin to melt, what was once hidden shall be revealed.

We meet again our old friends the benches and abandoned bicycles of yesteryear, and, like always, the students that were buried by snow and have been trapped in suspended animation since the Fall.

One such student, part of the growing epidemic which Service Point has dubbed “a nightmare in terms of paperwork, and also pretty existentially horrifying, too,” was discovered in the Caryatid Fountain when the protective covering was removed in preparation for Spring OAP, perfectly preserved under a sheet of

ice, flat beer, and unidentifiable bodily fluids.

“I can’t even begin to imagine how this happened,” laments the student, who has redacted his name for reasons of anonymity, but is reportedly the identical twin brother of a high-ranking Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) executive. “I swear I was just at Gert’s, imbibing my body weight in vodka, tequila, and actual automotive antifreeze, when I decided to run outside and fall asleep in a pool full of water while I waited for night to fall so it would be cold enough for skating.” This mystery is not likely to be solved anytime soon.

This being Montreal, however, there are some snowbanks which have remained unmelted through the last summer and then some. In many places around town and around campus, the mounds are of such massive size that they survive every year to be replenished again with the new

snow. For them, it is only this March that, due to construction plans and an advanced new form of synthetic rock salt brewed up in the laboratories of McConnell Engineering, they have finally been shifted.

And it is under these ancient hills that the truly shocking discoveries have been made. Hapless students are being uncovered in the icemelt that have been trapped beneath for 10, 20, even 50 years.

Professor Anthony Rogers with the McGill Department of History and Climate Studies explains the crisis: “We do our best to help these students adjust to life in the 21st century, but there’s only so much we can do to ease the transition of a lost soul from the 1980s into the bizarre modern landscape of social struggle, economic fluctuation, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau,” Rogers explained.

One of the issues presented by the newcomers is how to deal with their academic standing.

“I see no worldly reason why I

should not be perfectly able to continue my studies and graduate this Michaelmas term with my degree in Telegraphy,” asserts Jameson Ötzi (1867–1888 & 2016–present).

Upon examination of Mr. Ötzi’s student records (unearthed from the dusty archives beneath the James Administration Building, where the file has been serving as a doorstop for the past 75 years), it was discovered that he has indeed completed his major requirements, but the university no longer offers his degree.

“The program was never discontinued,” Rogers explained.

“Its description and requirements have changed over time. In 1927, it was changed to the electronics and broadcasting technical studies program, then later on to electrical systems and circuitry for telecommunications, and, over the years, became what is now a degree in electrical engineering. That said, the administration feels that it might be imprudent to

award Mr. Ötzi a 2016 electrical engineering degree based solely on his admittedly proficient knowledge of Morse code.”

Other students in similar situations are currently in the ICU of the Montreal General Hospital (MGH) being attended to by hot tea, thermal blankets, and several dozen personal electric hairdriers.

They have pending applications for degrees in Natural Philosophy, Alchemy, and Fire-Making (frankly, considering that the school was only founded in 1821, some of these are a bit surprising regardless). Furthermore, at least two dozen students displaced from the mid-19th century are petitioning the administration for completion of the popular “Imperialism” minor.

Students continuing from courses in the Faculty of Arts are expected to graduate without issue. *This article is a work of satire and a part of our joke issue*

SSMU turns to flip cup to decide result of “divisive” and external motions Ole, ole, ole... flip cup!

Dave Brewsky Beer Co. Spokesperson In the aftermath of the failed attempt to pass a constitutional amendment creating a Steering Committee to prevent “divisive” and “external” motions from being voted on at the General Assembly (GA), The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Council has announced a new procedure for dealing with controversial motions. Instead of being voted on, controversial motions will now be decided by a large game of flip cup between supporters and opponents.

SSMU’s ruling will require that, effective as of next semester’s GA, any motion that is deemed divisive and external will be approved or rejected based solely on the results of a relaystyle, beer-chugging drinking game to be played on the assembly floor.

While the decision has come as a shock to many members of the McGill community, SSMU representatives have firmly defended their decision, claiming it is a necessary step to reverse student disenchantment with SSMU, the GA, and the democratic process on campus.

SSMU President Cole DeBeir adamantly defended the rule change, explaining the reasoning behind SSMU’s decision.

“Debates over controversial motions at McGill have developed into such appalling cycle of yelling, namecalling, and fake outrage that a drinking

game in the middle of the [GA] would provide a welcome moment of relative sanity for all in attendance,” DeBeir said.

The SSMU President also claimed flip cup would significantly reduce the amount of divisive rhetoric at the GA. “It is impossible for anyone to have their arguments about any controversial subject taken seriously while a dribble of foamy beer trickles down their chin.”

SSMU VP Internal Y. N. Couler pointed out that, in addition to combining two of McGill’s most sacred traditions—needlessly heated political arguments and binge drinking—the flip cup games would have another important benefit.

“Instead of leaving the GA with a feeling of bitter disappointment from having witnessed the ongoing implosion of our student democracy, students will now get to leave with the slightly better feeling of a warm, Pabst Blue Ribbon-induced burp,” Couler said.

Some students have taken to Facebook to voice their opposition to SSMU’s decision, labelling it as “undemocratic” and “ridiculous.” A few brave critics even chose to write their dissents entirely in capital letters, in order to properly express their outrage.

“SSMU’s decision to pass amendments via games of flip cup is an insult to the student body,” wrote student Rouman Coch on SSMU’s Facebook page.

“Clearly beer pong would have been a much better choice.”

Glub glub. (Photo courtesy of Soft Goth Sutton) Regardless of the reaction of critics, SSMU representatives remain confident that the “Motion to Flip Cups” will help restore the confidence of students in SSMU and the democratic process. Beginning with the next GA in Fall 2016, they hope to see a real change in how controversial motions are treated on campus. However, some

within SSMU see the motion less as a solution and more as a distraction.

“Honestly, some of us are hoping that after a few games of flip cup everyone will just forget about the motions and head over to Gerts,” an anonymous source within SSMU’s financial department confessed.

The administration has yet to

make an official comment on SSMU’s decision, although according to anonymous sources close to McGill Principal Joanne Fournier, she reacted to the news with a subtle fist pump and muttered the words “McGill once, McGill twice.” *This article is a work of satire and a part of our joke issue*

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100% fact checked

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

McGill to divest from the colour red The truth that the university doesn’t want you to know OY G. BIV Miss Scarlet In the latest divisive Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) motion debated at yesterday’s Mid-Term-Crisis General Assembly (GA), 87 per cent of students decided to part ways with the iconic McGill red. SSMU is now mandated to lobby the McGill Board of Governors to divest from and boycott all things red, which will necessitate a comprehensive rebranding strategy to remove all traces of the colour from McGill buildings, websites, and logos.

“This call for BDR (Boycott and Divest from Red) states that such campaigns are to remain in place until McGill meets its obligation to create a stress-free, environment for students, and to recognize the colour wheel’s inalienable right to self-determination,” the motion read.

SSMU will effective immediately be removing all traces of the colour from its property, with minor renovations and repainting at Gerts Bar to force the cancellation of Sangria Wednesday this week. “It’s a small price to pay for the huge step forward we’re making with this decision,” explained SSMU President Karl Abraham to disheartened students. Gerts’ red sangria will likely not survive the cut.

The “Yes” group consistently expressed concern regarding the stressful nature of the colour: It reminds students too closely of the red X’s written on their fifth grade long division tests, and the

red F’s on midterms handed back during McGill’s neverending midterm period. It brings to mind only the judgemental negativity of the red squiggly lines in Microsoft Word, which incidentally still fail to grasp the correct spelling of “colour.” The colour has now become inseparable from the

Fish, a tropical parrot, or alternatively, just a blank white space.

Consequently, the “McGill Martlets” will no longer be a suitable name choice, with rumours circulating that the Martlets will soon be unveiled as the “McGill Floodgirls,” to remind student athletes of the fearlessness and bravery

munity. “Things have been really tough lately, with austerity cuts and all, but I’m so excited to be involved in this ground-breaking journey towards a stress-free school.”

It is estimated that boycotting red will reduce campus mental health services expenses by at

“Beets...

Berries...

Blood...

L.O.V.E...

The four elements. Shhh.

It’s a secret” -Bill Bourgeoisie , Zodiac Killer red notification bubble that pops up on myCourses, which continues to shatter dreams of attending Harvard Law and working alongside Harvey Specter.

The “Yes” group advocates renaming the “McGill Redmen” the “McGill Men,” to help the process along. It argues that “Redmen” was “a stupid name anyways.” The martlet on McGill’s logos will also have to go, with various suggestions for its replacement including Rainbow

demonstrated by McGill’s most courageous student.

In a surprising turn of events, McGill Principal Jo-Anne Fournier expressed her relief at the passage of the motion, and praised students for the courage and solidarity they have shown throughout this hard time.

“This really speaks to the kind of innovative problem-solving unique to McGill students,” Fournier explained in a congratulatory email to the McGill com-

least 50 per cent.

In an exclusive interview with the Tribune, a weary Fournier also admitted that she didn’t even like McGill red that much.

“Quite frankly, it will be nice to be able to shake things up a bit,” Fournier said. “I’m more of a lavender person anyways.”

The Colour-Blind Students’ Network expressed its support for the movement, stating that McGill’s overuse of red in its branding is oppressive and discrimina-

tory towards the full colour spectrum. Red comes in many shades, and promoting fire-engine-red as the only socially accepted norm is unacceptable.

“Just because society has institutionalized red as a primary colour, doesn’t mean McGill can overlook the struggles of under-appreciated colours, like mauve.” Vice-President (VP) Paintbrushes, Mandy Warhol, explained.

The McGill Teetotalers Club also officially endorsed the movement, as red is too closely associated with the ubiquitous red solo cup.

“Frankly, the red solo cup promotes wastefulness,” Jane Simpleton, U0, complained.

“Beer pong is a waste of plastic, a waste of time, and a waste of an education.”

The club’s office has since reportedly been the victim of several acts of vandalism and harassment, including drunk streakers; graffiti reading, “red solo cup, I fill you up;” and receiving excessive free promotional gear from Molson Canadian.

The “No” group remains disappointed with the decision, reiterating that divestment will only serve to “marginalize Canadians on campus, and make them feel ashamed of their nationality and their maple leaves.” Many of its supporters reportedly swore to move to Laval after yesterday’s decision. *This article is a work of satire and a part of our joke issue*

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NEWS

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Panel addresses what it means to be an indigenous ally Students learn how to become involved in issues affecting First Nations communities Zoé Rochat Contributor On March 22, members of the McGill community attended a panel on indigenous allyship as part of the Students’ Society of McGill University’s (SSMU) and the Education Undergraduate Society’s (EdUS) Indigenous Awareness week, which ran from March 21 to 24.

The panel aimed to define what it means to be an ally and how students can become involved in the issues affecting First Nations communities. It answered questions on how to best support members of Indigenous communities and how to collaborate successfully with them. Three speakers shared their views on the topic: Paige Isaac, a member of the Listuguj Mi’gmaq First Nations and the coordinator of the First People’s House at McGill; Tayla Lalonde, president of the Aboriginal Peo-

ples Commission for the Liberal Party of Canada-Quebec and board member for Indigenous Access McGill; and Patrick Brennan, executive director of McGill’s Institute for the Study of International Development.

The panel opened with the question, “What is the most important part of being an ally?”

Isaac began by stating that being an ally is a process rather than a label.

“It’s something that you’re constantly striving to be or do,” Isaac said. “Your actions are speaking more than words, you’re standing with whoever you’re being an ally with, not speaking for them [….] It’s learning, educating yourself on different issues, hearing from diverse perspectives, listening to the news, [and] talking to resource people at universities [and] businesses.”

Lalonde stressed the importance of mutual collaboration,

through the acts of both listening and understanding rather than always asking questions.

“A lot of times, people think that they are being an ally when they are constantly asking the marginalized person to tell them their story,” Lalonde said. “[This] approach is a little misguided because it’s exhausting to be that person who always has to answer those questions over and over again [....] By asking those questions you are also triggering deep-seated issues for people because a lot of people [… have] been marginalized.”

For Brennan, being an ally is about supporting people, not forcing your own viewpoint on marginalized groups.

“You can be there to support, or what I like to say ‘lead from the side,’ but you need to be careful not to confuse the destiny of a marginalized people with a solution that you have come up with,” Brennan said.

Lalonde went on to explain the benefits that can arise from an ally’s privileged social position—particularly among university students.

“If you have access to student government or decisionmakers because of your place of privilege [...using] that to push issues for [the] indigenous community, [is] a really effective way of being an ally,” said Lalonde.

Lalonde also shared her personal experience as an indigenous student at McGill and how she felt the lack of indigenous content from the moment she arrived.

“When I think back to when I started [at] McGill in 2008, what I always remember is how invisible I felt,” Lalonde said.

“I was sometimes one of the only indigenous people in my classes [....] I didn’t see myself reflected in the course content anywhere [....] There wasn’t any

dedicated time in discussing the indigenous viewpoint.”

Lalonde specifically described an instance when she felt erased as a member of her Cree society.

“I remember sitting in an anthropology class and I remember learning about Indigenous people from this white male professor,” she said. “No insult to white male professors, but it was strange to hear this person talking about our people, Cree, from his anthropological perspective, which kind of made it feel like we didn’t still exist.”

Going forward, Isaac emphasized the necessity of having more indigenous faculty members and offering more indigenous-focused classes. “[Provide] more opportunities for people to engage in Indigenous pedagogies,” Isaac said. “I’m hoping if your voices are loud enough to say ‘we want this,’ [the school] would listen.”

SSMU Council releases statement in favour of divestment Motion on solidarity with Black Lives Matter Toronto passed April Barrett Arts & Entertainment Editor At its March 24 meeting, Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Council discussed the McGill Board of Governors’ (BoG) recent decision not to divest from the fossil fuel industry, and passed two motions: For SSMU to officially stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter Toronto and an official policy on indigenous solidarity.

Response to BoG’s decision not to divest SSMU Council released a statement in favour of divestment, countering the decision of McGill’s BoG not to divest from the university’s holdings in fossil fuel industries. The BoG based its decision upon the report written by the Committee to Advise on Matters of Social Responsibility (CAMSR), releasing their decision in a special meeting on March 23. The report stated that CAMSR does not believe significant social injury had occurred by investment in fossil fuels, which Vice-President (VP) External Emily Boytinck singled out as a particular flaw.

“I think that this is shameful,” said Boytinck. “How dare they say the impact is not grave?

They should speak with the 150,000 people who die every

year due to climate change. They should speak with the indigenous communities who are the first people affected by this issue.”

Boytinck also addressed concerns over security at the BoG meeting directed at students attending as representatives from Divest McGill.

“Divest McGill has been present at every single board meeting this year,” Boytinck said. “It was the first time we were escorted up in James administration by security. It was a huge slap in the face for a committee who has repeatedly called us a partner. I was disappointed and shocked by the way the [BoG] treated students at that meeting.”

Boytinck highlighted the lack of transparency in the decision-making process, as none of the CAMSR meetings on the matter were open to the public, and no information is available on the experts with whom CAMSR consulted.

“SSMU will continue to work with Divest McGill to find a way for this question to be brought back to the Board of Governors in an open and consultative manner,” Boytinck said.

Solidarity with Black Lives Matter Toronto Council passed a motion brought forward by the Black

Students’ Network (BSN) for SSMU to officially support the Black Lives Matter Toronto organization, following their recently-released statement of solidarity calling on community organizations, labour representatives, individuals and the broader global community to protest against police brutality. The statement demands the release of the names of the officers who shot and killed Andre Loku, a 45-year-old father of five last July. Protestors are also for charges to be laid against the officers since they have been cleared of any liability.

VP Internal Omar El-Sharaway brought forward the concern that the motion might be viewed as divisive, quoting the results of a student experience survey which revealed that students would prefer SSMU to be “less political and more fun.”

Boytinck cited the importance of SSMU taking a stance on this issue, given its connection to McGill students.

“This directly affects students at McGill,” Boytinck said.

“What we consider to be a student issue and not to be a student issue, is in and of itself a political choice.”

VP University Affairs Chloe Rourke added her agreement to Boytinck’s response.

“I take issue with some of the claims that SSMU should

SSMU Council passed solidarity motion. (Natalie Vineberg / McGill Tribune) be less political,” Rourke said.

“It’s important to quantify and qualify what you mean by that.

Student unions have historically played a role in human rights movements across the world.

Remaining neutral is also very much a political choice.”

Policy on Indigenous Solidarity Council approved a motion to adopt a policy on Indigenous Solidarity, drafted by Indigenous Affairs Coordinator, Leslie Anne St. Amour, following consultation with various indigenous student groups, staff, and faculty members.

“The policy covers many areas, particularly focusing on how SSMU can better support McGill’s Indigenous students, as

well as lobbying the university to hire more indigenous staff and faculty, and increase indigenous course content,” St. Amour explained.

St. Amour addressed the lack of physical spaces on campus for indigenous student groups as one area SSMU can work to improve upon through this policy.

“There is only one space on campus which allows for [the cleansing ceremony of] smudging, First Peoples House, and it is not a great space for holding large events,” St. Amour said.

The policy also obliges the office of the VP External to reach out to indigenous communities at the beginning of the academic year, and continuously throughout the year as relevant issues arise.

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NEWS

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Police called to AUS/SUS Grad Ball to handle coat check debacle Students unable to retrieve belongings Regina Wung Staff Writer The end of the sold-out 2016 Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) and the Science Undergraduate Society (SUS) annual Grad Ball descended into chaos at coat check. Guests were unable to retrieve their belongings and around 2:30 a.m. the police were called to intervene.

The event took place on the evening of Saturday, March 19, at Le Windsor Hotel in Montreal’s Golden Square Mile and included dinner, dancing, and an open bar.

Hailey Krychman, U3 Arts, commended the general coordination and execution of the ball.

“The overall event was really fun,” she said. “I think overall people were very classy, despite being super drunk, and I didn’t really feel like anything was going wrong. The music was great and so was the venue.

It was very well organized by the AUS and SUS. Of course because there were open bars, there were sometimes long lines but nothing unmanageable or excessively rowdy.”

“People were screaming and shouting and cursing and someone yelled [that] she was going to punch someone if they didn’t stop stepping on her toes. The police arrived and someone—I think it was a policeman—just shoved a bunch of us back by brute force.

It was very aggressive and rowdy and a lot of people tried to take control of the situation but the crowd was so unforgiving.”

Many McGill students were unable to retrieve their belongings from the coat check at the end of the night. (Photo courtesy of Le Windsor) However, issues arose as the evening concluded. According to U3 Computer Science and Biology student Cassandra Rogers, with hundreds of guests, and only a few staff members manning the coat check, the night became disorganized as guests attempted to collect their belongings to leave.

“There was no security to speak of managing the crowd or creating a line, and there were only three or four people working behind the coat check desk,” Rogers recalled. “At the counter, I was shoved and pushed down by other students trying to reach over me to attract the attention of the coat check staff. Some people were trying to climb over other people [....] More than a few men in the crowd were making inappropriate comments about being in such close proximity to so many women [....]

The crowd was overflowing up the stairs and into the main hall by the time I was able to escape.”

According to Cleona Tsang, U3 Psychology, coat check staff eventually stopped using the ticket system all together, leading to students’ belongings being left out in the open.

“There were also just a bunch of coats and bags thrown

out past the coat check room and my coat and my friend’s coat and my bag were just on the floor up for grabs,” she said. “Anyone could have taken that stuff.

Plus, they gave up with the tickets [halfway through] and just yelled out, ‘Whose is this jacket?’ and whoever said, ‘Mine’ got to take it home. No organization whatsoever. I was lucky I found my stuff, but I was there for an hour and a half.”

Douglass Luo, U4 Economics, also described a volatile situation at coat check.

“Everyone just crowded around the coat check, yelling at each other and trying to shove their way to the front,” he said.

“It felt like a riot was about to break out. I’m lucky I was near the front of the line, because I hear a lot of people didn’t get their coats.”

Rogers took note of several students who were inebriated but were unable to receive aid from the McGill Student Emergency Response Team (M-SERT).

“Some people were very drunk and ill, and it seemed like medics or M-SERT staff weren’t really able to fight their way through the crowd to get to them,” Rogers added.

Officers from the Service de

Police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) ultimately responded to the scene and reportedly used harsh tactics to get through the crowd.

“People were screaming and shouting and cursing and someone yelled [that] she was going to punch someone if they didn’t stop stepping on her toes,” Tsang said. “The police arrived and someone—I think it was a policeman—just shoved a bunch of us back by brute force. It was very aggressive and rowdy and a lot of people tried to take control of the situation but the crowd was so unforgiving.”

In a post on the Grad Ball Facebook event page, the AUS and SUS formally apologized and explained what had happened.

“Employees of Le Windsor felt unable to handle the crowd around coat check and decided to call the police,” the Grad Ball Committee wrote.

At the time of publication, the SPVM had no report of the night’s events, according to Marie-Élaine Ladouceur, SPVM media relations.

“I checked the events of that evening,” Ladouceur said.

“I didn’t find any report.”

In response to statements

concerning police brutality towards guests, the Grad Ball Committee announced on its Facebook event that it would look into pursuing a formal complaint with the SPVM. “[We] are considering filing a complaint with the SPVM regarding the events which took place on the evening of March 19 at Le Windsor on behalf of guests who felt harassed or mistreated by law enforcement officials,” AUS President Jacob Greenspon said. “As stated on our Facebook post on March 21, we encourage anyone who wanted to provide a statement to email us.”

Greenspon stated that no testimonies have yet been received to follow through with a formal complaint.

“Given that neither the Grad Ball Committee nor any Faculty Executives have received any reports from guests as of yet, it is unlikely that we will file a complaint with the SPVM, but we remain open to the possibility if students come forward,” Greenspon said. “The [AUS] and [SUS] will be following up with Le Windsor to relay complaints we’ve received from our guests and to help find any lost belongings.”

7

NEWS

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

BoG votes against divestment following release of CAMSR report Benefits outweigh injurious impact, according to CAMSR findings

Divest McGill will continue to petition the university, despite the BoG vote. (Noah Sutton / McGill Tribune)

Sara Cullen Staff Writer On March 23, Principal Suzanne Fortier sent an email to the McGill student body announcing that the Board of Governors (BoG) had decided not to divest from McGill’s holdings in fossil fuel companies. Divest McGill first submitted a call to divest from fossil fuels to the Committee to Advise on Matters of Social Responsibility (CAMSR) in Feb 2015. CAMSR took over a year to make their decision, finally delivering their report to the BoG on March 17.

The final CAMSR report on divestment thanked Divest McGill for bringing the issue of climate change to attention at McGill, but stated that CAMSR and Divest McGill hold different views on the role that extractive industries play.

“The Committee is persuaded that the beneficial impact of fossil fuel companies offsets or outweighs injurious impact at this time,” CAMSR’s report stated.

The report outlined that they had not found the actions of fossil fuel companies to cause social injury, despite the case presented by Divest McGill.

“Continuing to explore or refusing to keep unburnable reserves underground does not directly have grave injurious impact on individuals or the natural environment,” the report stated. “Climate change is an injurious impact primarily due to

the burning of fossil fuels by endusers rather than activities of fossil fuel companies.”

Jed Lenetsky, U1 Environment and member of Divest McGill, said that the BoG did not properly examine the harm being done by fossil fuel companies.

“The fact that they didn’t even consider extreme extraction as social injury was a serious affront to people who are being directly affected by irresponsible extraction methods every day,” Lenetsky said.

“They also claimed that climate change shouldn’t be considered social injury because it hasn’t yet reached grave levels. Hundreds of thousands of people dying every year, and more being displaced across the world because of climate change, seems pretty dire to us.”

Mike Andrew, president of the Co-op Mining Engineering Undergraduate Society (CMEUS) explained that the society supports McGill’s decision to not divest.

“Many students in the program obtain internships and post graduation positions at fossil fuel companies,” he said. “CMEUS [... is] committed to ensuring the stability of Canada’s energy future in a safe and sustainable manner. Collectively, we understand the importance of transitioning to a carbon neutral economy in the face of climate change. That being said, fossil fuel companies are among the largest investors in the green energy technology that is needed for this transition.”

CAMSR explained how divestment would not be an impactful movement against climate change.

“Divestment, whether to exert financial influence or for symbolic purposes, would not be an effective means of addressing climate change,” the report reads. “It is an ultimate action that is disconnected from the intended outcome of reducing the injurious impact represented by climate change. It also is a distraction to efficacious forms of action, and somewhat overreaching relative to reasonable next steps given the current economic and political reality. The Committee sees no advantage or benefit for McGill to engage in action that would have negligible impact on climate change.”

Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Vice-President (VP) External Affairs Emily Boytinck stated that the BoG and CAMSR did not allow McGill students to be a part of the decision process.

“All CAMSR meetings were held in closed sessions, and the final report was released to the board only 26 hours before it was voted on,” Boytinck said. “Furthermore, the BoG never once heard from Divest McGill directly, despite the fact that Divest McGill attended every board meeting as observers this year.”

Although he did not respond to a request for comment, Chair of the BoG, Stuart “Kip” Cobbett was closely involved in the deliberation

process.

“Earlier in the year, a few members of Divest McGill met with Kip Cobbett and Michael Di Grappa, [vice-principal Administration and Finance], to discuss the idea of releasing a draft report before it was voted on at the [BoG],” Boytinck said. “This way, there could be feedback provided on the report and community voices would be able to be heard. This is not uncommon practice, as Dalhousie released a draft report initially as well.

Kip Cobbett, however, responded by noting that this was not a conversation.”

Kareem Ibrahim, SSMU president and member of theBoG, stated that an increase in transparency would benefit any future decisions regarding divestment.

“Although the University followed its procedures appropriately, we would certainly appreciate a more open process next time, as exists in many other comparable universities,” Ibrahim said. “This would require some changes to our governance procedures, but in the spirit of transparent and two-way dialogue, I don’t think this would be an issue.”

The choice not to divest left many students frustrated with the university and the lack of consideration for student voices.

“The decision by members of the Board to maintain McGill’s investments in fossil fuels is disappointing and embarrassing to say

the least,” Lenetsky said. “Not only does their decision signal their inability to lead on issues of great importance to all of humankind, it also demonstrates how disconnected they are from the McGill community. They were the first body at McGill to reject divestment, and did so after refusing to conduct community consultation or provide a draft report for community comment.

They didn’t even have the courtesy to inform us of the vote.”

Although there are not yet any formal plans to present the case for divestment again, Doug Sweet, director of the McGill’s Media Relations Office, indicated that the BoG could revisit divestment in the future.

“CAMSR has finished its work on this file,” Sweet wrote in an email to the Tribune. “If and when another request is made, it will re-engage.”

Lenetsky noted that this is not the last time that Divest McGill will petition the University.

“This is not the end of our campaign by any means,” he said.

“If anything, the Board’s ridiculous report is galvanizing further support and action for divestment. We simply care too much to let our university continue to be on the wrong side of history.”

On Tuesday March 29, Divest McGill began a sit-in in front of the James Administration Building.

According to the event’s Facebook page, sit-in participants are prepared to stay until all demands are met.

8

Opinion

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

e d i tor i a l

McGill’s sincere concern called into question by reaction to student pressure

M

ost of the time, McGill Principal Suzanne Fortier is absent from the day-today activities of students.

A year ago, students would have been surprised to receive direct emails from her with anything other than updates on the most recent Board of Governors (BoG) meetings. Yet in the span of a month, Fortier has sent two emails to the McGill community. The content of these emails addressed issues that concern McGill students directly—namely, fossil fuel divestment and the Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Although the administration has not, by any means, sided with the students in these emails, it is apparent that the university is having to respond to issues that it would not have raised of its own volition. Student activism is, it seems, paying off—even if it is not in the most ideal way.

One of the emails was in response to the failure of the online ratification of the motion in support of the BDS movement, while the other was in response to the BoG’s decision regarding the university’s divestment from fossil fuels. One of the unintended consequences of sending out these

emails was that it reinvigorated the student groups on either side of the debate.

With these two emails, it is apparent that students have a great deal of power to draw attention to an issue. By placing fires beneath the administration, whether in the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) or elsewhere, students can force the university to respond to new issues. While this is not, by any means, a drastic change, it is indicative of the way that students may take advantage of the tensions that arise in the corporatization of the university.

These emails have also raised the question of the role that Fortier has made for herself on campus.

In a period marked by debate regarding the corporatization of the university campus, the role of the principal is harder for students to grasp. The principal is the figurehead of the university, but within an academic setting it is unclear as to whether this role entails working like a chief executive officer as well. The principal is responsible for, and to, the university as a whole. Yet in taking a side on these issues, the university comes down against a certain portion of the student body who are actively

fighting for BDS and divestment.

In so doing, the university shows itself to be out of touch with what affects students.

The university is well within its rights to decide whether or not to divest; however, in Fortier’s most recent email, and particularly following the email on BDS, the university comes across as attempting to avoid the subject entirely. The irony of this contradiction cannot be understated.

In the email, Fortier explains the university’s overall commitment to sustainability. Although this is certainly evident in the steps the university has taken to improve the sustainability of food and dining services, among other things, a response to not divesting by proclaiming commitment to sustainability comes across as contradictory. Fortier should have specified what efforts the university is and will be taking to help the environment, if divestment is not its preferred course of action.

It is apparent that these emails are not only addressed to the student community, but also to alumni and potential donors. In allaying the concerns of potential financial backers, however, the university has placed itself in an

untenable position. On one hand, they had to take the time to respond to a report that was written and delivered by Divest McGill.

On the other, the university has to respond to something brought forward by students as though students are not part of the picture. This sets the university on a collision course between its various stakeholders, with a clear imbalance towards those with deeper pockets.

Although emails are unable to provide insight as to the exact decision-making process of the upper administration, their frequency this semester is suggestive of a shift in how the university seeks to address concerns raised by students. While this may remain unclear, this semester may yet be looked back upon as a turning point in the mentality of students towards not only the administration, but their own position as activists on campus. For better or for worse, students use forums such as the General Assembly (GA) and the BoG to voice concerns and attempt to enact change. If the McGill administration shifts its communication to be more direct without also becoming more explanatory, the administration comes across as insensitive to the concerns of its students.

Winter 2016 Ancillary Fee Endorsements Ancillary fees are non-optoutable fees that are imposed by McGill university in addition to tuition costs.

1. Motion regarding the increase to the WUSC Student Refugee Program Fee: “Yes” The World University Services Canada (WUSC) is a nonprofit group that operates on various campuses across the country. WUSC leads the Student Refugee Program (SRP) which provides refugees with the opportunity to study in their country of refuge. Currently, the fee levy of $0.50 is insufficient to cover the costs of two refugee students, and so WUSC has been

using its endowment to support a third. Without a fee increase, WUSC will have to reduce the number of students covered by the SRP. The increase to $2.00 not only accounts for inflation since the fee’s creation in 1986, it also empowers the SRP to be a sustainable program. Given the global refugee crisis, McGill students should demonstrate their commitment to supporting refugees in acquiring education by voting “Yes” to this ancillary fee question.

2. Motion Regarding the Renewal of the Access McGill Ancillary Fee: “Yes” McGill suffers from a variety of accessibility problems,

such as a lack of flexibility in receiving academic accommodations and an overburdened Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD). Without the renewal of this fee, these issues would only be exacerbated. The Access McGill fee supports the OSD, which provides invaluable direct services for students, such as the peer note-taking program, and is used to improve physical spaces and purchase equipment for the university. While it is necessary for students to support this question to maintain the current level of service provision, there must be a stronger movement to support accessibility on campus.

Students must be aware that this fee does not mean that accessibility problems are ‘resolved’ on

Editor-in-Chief Mayaz Alam editor@mcgilltribune.com Creative Director Hayley Lim hlim@mcgilltribune.com Managing Editors Shrinkhala Dawadi sdawadi@mcgilltribune.com Morgan Alexander malexander@mcgilltribune.com Julie Vanderperre jvanderperre@mcgilltribune.com News Editors Jenna Stanwood, Laura Hanrahan, Aislinn Kalob news@mcgilltribune.com Opinion Editor Julia Dick opinion@mcgilltribune.com Science & Technology Editor Chloe Nevitt scitech@mcgilltribune.com Student Living Editor Hailey MacKinnon studentliving@mcgilltribune.com Features Editor Natalie Wong features@mcgilltribune.com Arts & Entertainment Editors Christopher Lutes and April Barrett arts@mcgilltribune.com Sports Editors Nicholas Jasinski and Zikomo Smith sports@mcgilltribune.com Design Editor Domitille Biehlmann design@mcgilltribune.com Photo Editors Natalie Vineberg and Noah Sutton photo@mcgilltribune.com Web Developers William Burgess webdev@mcgilltribune.com Matt Smith online@mcgilltribune.com Copy Editor Adrien Hu copy@mcgilltribune.com

campus. It must be viewed as the bare minimum, and more concrete steps must be taken in the future to improve upon it.

Advertising Executives Mingye Chen and L-A Benoit ads@mcgilltribune.com Publisher Chad Ronalds

TPS Board of Directors

3. Motion Regarding the Renewal of the McGill Writing Centre Ancillary Fee: “Yes”

Sam Pinto, Mayaz Alam, Maryse Thomas, Nicolas Tuech, Luka Ciklovan, Adrien Hu, Chloe Nevitt, Mingye Chen

The McGill Writing Centre provides free assistance to students.

Tutors not only edit essays, they also provide one-on-one guidance and suggestions—something that is particularly rare and treasured in the McGill setting. Moreover, the centre employs students. It also provides assistance for essays written in French, and provides support for those who speak English as a second language.

Lauren Benson-Armer, Arman Bery, Audrey Carleton, Cordelia Cho, Daniel Galef Margaux Delalex, Zachary Carson, Luka Ciklovan, Sara Cullen, Evelyn Goessling, Emma Hameau, Clare Lyle, Eric-Noble Marks, Albert Park, Elli Slavitch, Nicole Spadotto, Elizabeth Willcock, Regina Wung, Alissa Zilberchteine

The TPS Board of Directors is holding its Annual General Meeting on Thurday, April 7 at 5:30 p.m. in the Tribune office (SSMU 110). All undergraduate and post-graduate members of the TPS are welcome.

Staff Writers, Photographers, & Illustrators

Contributors

Keara Campos, Luka Ciklovan, Genevieve Citron, Amanda Fiore, Clare Fogarty, Charlotte Hings, Marie Labrosse, Jin Lee, Areni Nicoghosian, Eric Noble-Marks, Hana O’Neill, Zoé Rochat, Aaron Rose, Alanna Sokic, Justine Touchon, Nico Wada, Elie Waitzer, Andy Wang, Tamara Yang

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The McGill Tribune is an editorially autonomous newspaper published by the Société de Publication de la Tribune, a student society of McGill University. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of The McGill Tribune and the Société de Publication de la Tribune, and does not necessarily represent the views of McGill University.

Letters to the editor may be sent to editor@mcgilltribune.com and must include the contributor’s name, program and year and contact information. Letters should be kept under 300 words and submitted only to the Tribune. Submissions judged by the Tribune Publication Society to be libellous, sexist, racist, homophobic or solely promotional in nature will not be published. The Tribune reserves the right to edit all contributions. Editorials are decided upon and written by the editorial board. All other opinions are strictly those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the McGill Tribune, its editors or its staff. Please recycle this newspaper.

C ommentary

Albert Park Columnist As a child, being productive simply meant you were hardworking and diligent. Today, however, productivity seems to signify a golden standard of existence everyone should aim for: It is a concept which is heralded by society.

There is an endless source of selfhelp books and blog posts dedicated to teaching readers how to achieve the divine state of being productive.

As for me, however, it is difficult to deny that during my time as a McGill student, the idea of productivity has devolved into nothing more than a measurement of how many pages of lecture notes I can get through in a typical night at the library.

Attempting to broaden my outlook on the subject, I took an online survey which was supposed to measure my level of productivity.

Only four questions in, I got an idea

9

OPINION

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

On why the cult of productivity is not productive of where the results were headed: I am not very productive. However, putting aside any judgements of my character, it was abundantly clear that the survey was asking common sense questions to draw an arbitrary verdict about my work habits without taking into account my personal style or thought processes. In a way, this outlines the issues introduced by society’s fixation with productivity: The conversation around it simplifies a complex and subjective concept, often causing an excessive focus on the product of the work rather than the people and processes behind it.

As it stands right now, the limitation behind many of the discussions about productivity is that they try to suggest an ‘ideal way’ to study or to complete tasks. For example, the survey mentioned above seems to highlight organizational habits, such as keeping a clean work space and developing an activity log. While there is no doubt that having a tidy desk or an orderly time schedule may help most people be more efficient, there is also evidence that some people may be able to think more creatively and generate ideas better in a messy environment. Therefore, there are multiple work habits which can function effectively in different situations, based on the task at hand and the worker’s aptitude and personal-

ity. This idea is not sufficiently addressed by society’s linear approach towards productivity.

Similarly, another concern is that many of the resources geared towards encouraging productivity seem to be primarily about limiting distractions. This is understandable, as the prominence of online communication and easily-accessible entertainment in today’s world is a large influence that causes people to lose their focus. Yet, simply suggesting tips and devising methods to block out distractions is an overtly simple and short-term solution to the problem, especially in an academic context. In order to cultivate a strong sense of focus, students should try to address the reasons why they are so prone to distractions in the first place. Perhaps they are not enjoying the work, or the method of learning is not right for them.

Regardless of the reason, simply trying to block out distractions is unlikely to solve the underlying problems in the long run.

Overall, many of these tips and ideas regarding productivity culminate in an unhealthy focus on the product of the work rather than the working process itself. When students get too caught up on trying to learn efficiently by trying to limit distractions and follow tight schedules, education can become sidelined as students race to memo-

Striving for optimal productivity is often a stress in itself. (Daria Kiseleva / The McGill Tribune) rize as much information in a given time, rather than actively absorb knowledge. Some traditional ways of teaching, such as interactive discussions, are less productive in the sense that they don’t allow students to acquire the maximum amount of raw information in the fastest time; however, they encourage internalization of the information, and therefore should not be abandoned in the pursuit of productivity.

With finals season looming, students should loosen their fixation on productivity, or at least the generic kind of productivity that is encouraged by society. Instead, they should look to cultivate study habits that accentuate their personal strengths and allow them to truly immerse themselves in their studies, ultimately building the path to becoming stronger learners in the long run.

cruitment process gave me a feeling of being a part of something larger than any individual. Pledging processes are assumed to involve hazing simply because of their secrecy; if you don’t know what’s happening, and aren’t allowed to know, it must be something illegal. This is a misunderstanding of what pledging means and the purpose it serves.

Through pledging, fraternities and sororities build their recruits into men and women deserving of being lifelong members through traditions that date back to the organizations’ foundings. While these customs are highly secretive and vary significantly from group to group, the universal experience of having to accomplish difficult tasks together as a pledge class and facing challenges together as a unit creates a bond that is inimitable. It also differs from experiences such as playing on a sports team, in that there is no parent or coach or any form of older authority figure involved. By nature of its secrecy, the rewards and sense of fulfillment are largely personal.

Joining a fraternity was the best decision I made since coming to McGill. Brotherhood is not just for the three or four years of university—it’s for life. I will one day graduate from McGill University and leave Montreal, moving away

from many of the people I know here. But I know that I will always have a home to return to. Even if I have never met any of the active brothers of the future, I’ll be able to knock on the door of my fraternity and be greeted by a new brother. Relationships made through greek life are longer lasting than any other nonblood relationship.

University years are a formative time in a person’s life, during which fraternities and sororities serve as character-building institutions that require commitment and dedication, encourage creativity, and develop leadership and organization skills.

Because the majority of events and gatherings are private, partying forms the most visible part of Greek life for those not involved—but it is really a minor element of the experience and more a celebration of brotherhood or sisterhood than the goal of it. Greeks spend the majority of their time just like every other McGill student: In class, doing homework, or participating in extracurriculars. On top of this, they attend ritual activities, manage a house and organization of up to 80 people, and give back to their community through individual and combined fundraising or volunteering activities. Popular stereotypes and deplorable actions by few individuals should not shape the perceptions of entire organizations.

o f fC ommentary t h e b oar d Greek life: More than just a toga

Nick Jasinski Sports Editor Popular perceptions of Greek life will forever be caught under the shadow of the 1978 comedy Animal House, in which a youthful John Belushi and his gang of misfit fraternity brothers engage in debauchery and hilarity as they struggle to keep their organization legitimate at the fictional Faber College. These judgements assume that Greek life—and fraternity life in particular—is little more than an opportunity for an exclusive group of privileged and obnoxious young men to throw parties, get drunk, and hit on girls. Stereotypes claim that fraternity brothers are misogynistic and hyper-masculine while sorority sisters are little more than shallow and image-obsessed Valley girls. In my experience, being a member of a fraternity has taught

me important values as well as how to build friendships.

Many non-affiliated students at McGill do not understand this. I’ve gotten countless blank stares when introducing myself as a proud member of a fraternity accompanied by comments like “Oh. You’re a frat boy,” or “Well you must be great at drinking then!” While parties are certainly an element of Greek life, they are very far from the actual purpose that Greek organizations serve for their members and the university community. As opposed to requiring conformity and singlemindedness, fraternities and sororities give their members the opportunity to show their true selves and join a close-knit, student-run and student-led community where they can express their values without judgement or fear of reprisal.

The Greek system at McGill includes four sororities and eight fraternities governed by the InterGreek Letter Council, the school’s second-largest student group. Each chapter is affiliated with a national Canadian or North American organization that unites chapters at universities across the continent.

Estimates vary, but approximately 500 students, less than two per cent of the undergraduate student body, are members of fraternities or sororities with chapters at McGill,

many of which accept members from Concordia as well. Fraternities are many of the oldest student organizations at McGill, with some existing since the first decade of the 20th century. The fact that Greeks

“

Popular stereotypes and deplorable actions by few individuals should not shape the perceptions of entire organizations.

form such a minority at McGill undoubtedly contributes to the lack of accurate knowledge of the community.

In contrast to images of inebriated boys packed into a frat house, Greek organizations give students the chance to form meaningful and lasting relationships with individuals who they might not have otherwise met. Members come from different corners of the world, different faculties, and different upbringings. Joining a fraternity or sorority and completing the pledging or re-

T

he Christian Old Testament tells beautiful stories. It is poetic, rich in morals, and well-written. The beginning of the world, as described by Genesis 1, creates a haze whereby from nothing, God creates something.

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth,” the Bible reads. “On the first day, God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.

God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light, ‘day’ and the darkness, he called ‘night.’”

According to the BBC, Earth was formed by accretion (the coming together of matter due to gravitational force to form larger bodies) from a solar nebula creating an incredibly hot mass, covered in toxic volcanic gases. Though the Bible does not acknowledge the empirical creation of the world, and the BBC does not acknowledge the Biblical explanation, the two are not mutually exclusive.

Before being pummeled by meteor impacts and cooling down enough to form a crust, the Earth did look like the formless, empty, and dark Earth described in the Bible. According to some scientists, however, the Bible’s later claims that God made everything from birds, the moon, and trees—creationism—are false. But the Bible is not a scientific paper, written to stake claims about the world and our surroundings. Rather, it is a book—a very old book—compiled of historical texts and sources from different authors and civilizations.

“The Bible speaks a language that’s over 2,000 years old [and] when some people try reading it as if it scientific fact, you start to distort what is actually meant,” my brother, Alex Nevitt, a seminarian at the Gregorian University in Rome, explained. “You need to speak theology to understand what’s written in the Bible.”

I, like many others, do not speak theology. I am a scientist and an atheist. Though my mother is agnostic, my father is an extremely devout and practicing Catholic and my brother is studying to become a priest. Admittedly, dinner is weird.

“I don’t believe in creationism, I don’t think it’s a truth,” my brother continued. “That is something that’s happened in modern times where the Bible has been read as if it is speaking in scientific language [....] However, the Bible doesn’t speak that way.”

When I was younger, I had a hard time reconciling the Bible with my education because all stories and explanations were always inexplicably tied to God, and my public school never mentioned Him. But my devout father always tried to keep Him in my heart.

“I was brought up in the faith since I was a baby,” my father, Bill Nevitt, explained. “I went to Catholic grammar school, Catholic high school [...] and finished and graduated from a Catholic college.”

“When we marry in the Catholic church [we promise] to raise our children in the Catholic faith,” my father said. “Every child needs something outside of themselves, whatever it may be.

[They] need some sort of guidance, [a] being above to help them know the difference between right and wrong.”

This guidance began at birth for me. I was baptized, received the sacrament of Holy Communion and Confession, and, at the age of 16, I was confirmed—a sacrament that aimed to signify my being sealed with the gift of the Holy Ghost and strengthened faith. These milestones are part of the Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church: Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Communion, Confession, Marriage, Holy Orders, and the Anointing of the Sick. However, after (and, admittedly, even a bit during) my Confirmation, I started to realize that God was a piece that didn’t fit into my puzzle. At school, I was studying the laws of physics, biology, chemistry, and

math. But at home and at Sunday school—where Catholics learn about the Bible and guided through their Sacraments—I was learning about a giant worldwide flood that wiped out most of humanity.

“I think if we try to use science to explain religion, we’ll fail to explain things like Noah’s Ark and the Flood,” my mom, Florence BoucheNevitt, explained. “But, that being said, even Albert Einstein said that ‘Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.’ If we have one without the other, we miss something.”

But what does science give to religion, and, what does religion give to science?

When you consider the number of religions in the world—estimates hover around 4,300—an unbelievable proportion of people believe in the Catholic faith. Moreover, according to a study published in Pew Research Center, by 2050, only 13 per cent of the world’s population will not be religious.

To many, predictions that there will be an increase in believers is shocking. With popular science figures like Peter Atkins, Bill Nye, and Richard Dawkins leading the atheist parade, many presume that the church of science has taken the reins. And to an extent, it has, but only in the US. Between 2007 and 2014, the percent-

In the beginning,

GOD created the

scientist Chloe Nevitt

“[The seminarians] in a way [use] the scientific method,” my brother explained. “We take it to our faith and we take it to the study of God.” The only difference is that the science of God cannot investigate its primary source. This, my brother and his fellow seminarians take as given. And for believers, that’s okay.

“I’m someone that doesn’t need scientific proof that God exists,” Desiree D’Souza, a Master’s student studying Cognitive Neuroscience, said. “I understand that I’m never going to get that—I mean maybe I will, who knows—but I’ve [accepted] that part of my faith is this belief.”

But in the study of science, the absence of a primary source is arguably a fatal flaw. Despite this, according to the Anuario Pontificio, the annual directory of the Holy See, there are 1.27 billion Catholics in the world, which represents about 15 per cent of the global population.

age of Americans who describe themselves as atheist, agnostic or ‘nothing in particular’ has increased from 16.1 per cent to 22.8 per cent, according to another study by the Pew Research Center.

Starting at the age of 16, I belonged to this percentage. Yet having come from such a religious family, my path to atheism has been strange. At first, I was highly influenced by my peers. I spent a lot of time on Reddit, reading posts about how ‘stupid’ and ‘weak’ religion was.

“More people today are [...] questioning, questioning, and questioning, and the questions that they have are not being answered,” my father said. “They’ve grown out of what they learned as children and sometimes they don’t go back.”

I began questioning everything around me.

My brother was involving himself more deeply in the church, assisting with marriages, baptisms,

and special holidays, and I felt like I was constantly drawing the short stick. Initially, I did not understand why I was not invited to participate in those proceedings, despite having the same number of years of seniority as other altar servers or lecturers. Then I realized it was because I was a woman. After that point, I couldn’t stop seeing the Catholic church as misogynistic. This is not to say that I thought all Catholics were against women as the Catholic Church does retain a number of strong women figures like Mary, the Mother of Jesus.

“I really ground myself in that,” D’Souza said. “[It’s] something we address quite a bit [and] there’s a lot of support for women in the [Catholic] community.”

I, however, saw its foundations built and maintained on a male-dominated stage. Women cannot be the pope, bishops, cardinals, priests, or deacons. Women are allowed to be nuns—set aside, subservient, and made to be quiet.

“The main reason [I think you turned away from the church] was misogyny,” my mother explained. “You felt like boys had a boost, girls couldn’t become priests, it was your first irritation. You realized that there were negative aspects with religion.”

I had a lot of pride growing up; I still do.

So, to constantly feel slighted for something I had no control over did not sit well with me. I moved into something where I felt like I could shine: Science. Though women in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields still suffer similar issues, the notion of a successful woman in science was not as impossible as blazing a trail to becoming the first female priest.

During high school, I took Advanced Placement (AP) physics, chemistry, biology, and calculus, amongst other science-heavy courses. As I learned about the physical laws of the universe, the spiritual laws of God seemed flawed, improbable, and quite frankly, silly. To me, the two had become mutually exclusive: A scientist did not believe in God. I quit the church, I quit God, and I became arrogant and judgemental. I looked down on those who were faithful as being weak and smallminded. I sneered at those who spent time investing in their faith; I invested in science. This created tension in my family, considering I had a brother who was pursuing a future in the Catholic faith. But whenever he would speak about his beliefs, dreams, and activities in the Church, I laughed.

It took me a while to realize that the two were not so incompatible. Not because they were similar or because they held the same values and beliefs, but because they demanded from each other the same thing. Take for example, oil and water. Oil and water cannot mix because water is polar and oil is nonpolar; however, the moment you add an emulsifier, the two mix. Science and religion can also be emulsified: Through respect, communication, and understanding.

“When [we] look at things from a scientific point of view, we’re trying to see where we came from and where we’re going,” Father Owen Moran, my childhood priest, said. “[Believers] see science as a gift from God. We don’t have to be able to explain everything in the past. We don’t have to be afraid of the future. Because, even if the scientific facts of the future aren’t what we would like, we’re given the strength and the courage when the time comes to put up with any challenges because of our faith in Christ.”

For many, this is why they go to church.

It is a way to connect to the community, to make friends, and to pray for the strength to make it through the day.

“St. Barbara’s in Brooklyn was my community,” my father, said. “My father and

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mother were everything in the church. They ran bingos, ran the bazaar. When he passed away I became an altar server, I sang in the choir, I was in the five drummer bugle corps. I did everything a young man could do for the church.”

What I initially perceived as weakness slowly transformed into compassion, empathy, and patience as I spoke to individuals about their experiences with religion. I began to respect my brother’s kind acts and the psychological benefits they had—like delivering the host to the sick and elderly.

This does not ignore the horrible things that have come in the name of religion (see this past week alone, the events in Lahore and Brussels), but rather acknowledge the good things that have.

“There are not one hundred people in the United States who hate the Catholic Church, but there are millions who hate what they wrongly perceive the Catholic Church to be,” Venerable Fulton Sheen said on /ABC/ in the early 1950s.

It’s strange, and sometimes terrifying, to revisit the past to mold the future. When I look back, I’m ashamed with how unequivo-

cally, blindly, and quickly I dismissed religion for science. And I see this problem remaining amongst many of my peers.

“Science and religion can communicate to each other, but they’re speaking two different languages,” my brother said. “There needs to be translators. There needs to be people who know science and religion, and to help enable that conversation to happen together.

That’s the most important thing to remember.”

Unfortunately, few are willing to have this conversation. Science has been called the new religion, and certain individuals have fought ceaselessly to present its superiority to religion.

“Religion closes off the central questions of existence by attempting to dissuade us from further enquiry by asserting that we cannot ever hope to comprehend,” Atkins wrote in his essay, The Limitless Power of Science. “Science, in contrast to religion, opens up the great questions of being to rational discussion, to discussion with the prospect of resolution and elucidation [....]

Science is the apotheosis of the intellect and the consummation of the renaissance. Sci-

ence respects more deeply the potential of humanity than religion ever can.”

Biting words like this are mimicked in works and letters published by Dawkins, Thomas Edison, and Alan Turing. Today, these words are spread by modern atheists on social media in a sort of aggressive arrogance against those who are Christian.

Interestingly, and what many fail to realize, is that there are arguably equally as many believing scientists as non-believing. For example, individuals like Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Brian Kobilka, 2012 Chemistry Nobel Prize winner, and Colin Humphreys, a director of Research at Cambridge University have all identified themselves as being Christian.

“The first gulp from the glass of natural sciences will turn you into an atheist,” Werner Heisenberg, the winner of the 1932 Nobel Prize in Physics for the creation of quantum mechanics, stated. “But at the bottom of the glass God is waiting for you.”

The science versus faith argument is polarizing. Individuals might associate religion

with dogmatism, myopia, and truth; and science, with pragmatism, hyperopia, and truth.

I’m realizing that these are two hands of the same being. A scientist is dogmatic, myopic, hyperopic and pragmatic in their work—as is the modern Catholic practitioner.

“It’s important to know that [the Church] seeks always for the benefit for all humans,” my brother said. “[The Church] asks science to be slow. To be cautious and careful. To be morally unambiguous. [Our faith] is a gift from God that can enable us to study and learn more.”

Human beings search for purpose and identity. Finding that identity, however, can be tricky and takes time. But if that identity is built on sacrificing the well-being and the happiness of others, then I believe it is flawed. When a scientist—believer or non-believer—does not respect and seek to understand the decisions of another, then they are not truly a scientist. For scientists are seekers of truth, knowledge, and understanding in their world and in their surroundings, without omitting people.

This, after 22 years, is what I have finally determined to be what I believe.

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Say hello to the chickensaurus

Researchers reverse evolution to turn chickens into dinosaurs Charlotte Hings Contributor Instead of building a time machine to travel back to prehistoric times, scientists might be able to engineer dinosaurs out of chickens to live in our own backyards.

In a study published this past January in the Journal of Organic Evolution, researchers were able to genetically modify chicken embryo legs to resemble that of tetrapod dinosaurs—specifically the Archaeopteryx and the Pygostylia— the ancestors of modern birds.

Archaeopteryx and Pygostylia—and many other dinosaurs—were already thought to have strongly resembled birds, and even had feathers. Modern bird legs are composed of two bones, side-by-side, the tibia and the fibula. The fibula of a modern bird is about two-thirds the length of the tibia, whereas in tetrapod legs, both bones are the same length.

This discrepancy in bone length, the researchers believed, was primarily

due to a negative feedback loop caused by interactions between proteins from Indian hedgehog (IHH) and Parathyroid hormonerelated (PTHrP) families. This would ultimately lead to a shortened fibula.

“The secreted protein Indian hedgehog (IHH), [plays] an important role in [bone formation],” the paper explains. “IHH also stimulates the production of Parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) [which hinders] the production of IHH. This function controls the differentiation of cartilage-producing cells in the growth plate of the bone, and eventually stops the growth of the fibula when it is very short.”

However, reduced growth of the fibula is only part of the reason for the discrepancy. The researchers also suggest that the detached epiphysis (growth plate) contributes to a shorter fibula.

“The earliest birds to show fibular reduction have a splinter-like distal end […] suggesting disruption

of the growth plate,” the paper reads.

In order to create this larger fibula in the chicken embryos, the IHH protein was inhibited by injecting a solution containing Cyclopamine—an inhibitor of the IHH signaling pathway—into the amniotic cavity of the embryos.

This would then stop the negative feedback cycle.

The paper explains that in tetrapod dinosaur embryos, ossification (cartilage hardening into bone) occurred much later than it does in modern bird embryos.

Cyclopamine also delays the solidification of cartilage cells and keeps the growth plate attached to the fibula, meaning that the bones are growing for a greater period of time, allowing them to be longer.

While just a small change, the inhibition of one protein can reverse millions of years worth of evolutionary changes. In a previous study, published last April in the Journal of Organic Evolution, researchers reverted the beaks of modern day bird

By inhibiting specific proteins, researchers were able to de-evolve the chicken.

(Alissa Zilberchteine / McGill Tribune) embryos to their ancestral palate.

Although none of the birds in either of these studies reached the hatching phase, the studies demonstrate the increasing

capacity of scientists to reverse the complicated processes of evolution, which—who knows— may eventually result in a reallife Jurassic Park.

Islamic art inspires metamaterial Development of bistable auxetics a step forward in commercialization of metamaterials Andy Wang Contributor On March 21, McGill University’s Facebook page shared a video that demonstrated a unique type of material called an auxetic, expanding while being stretched.

The metamaterial, designed Dr. Ahmad Rafsanjani, a member of the Pasini lab in McGill University’s Faculty of Engineering, is unique because when it is stretched, it becomes wider and longer.

Conventional materials such as metals or plastics, on the other hand, contract in the direction lateral to the force exerted upon them. That is, they get longer in the direction they are pulled in, and shorter in the opposite direction— longer and thinner.

Due to this unique property— defined in mathematics as exhibiting a negative Poisson’s ratio—engineers categorize auxetics as a class of metamaterials that possess mechanical properties above and beyond that of conventional objects.

Bistable auxetics are desirable in any industry that requires smaller packaging. They may have applications in medical stents, which are used to treat narrow or weak arteries. Traditionally, a metal or plastic tube inserted into a blood vessel is used keep open previously blocked passages. Having a flexible

material will enable smaller arteries to be treated with greater precision.

Additional applications include satellite panels, where smaller packaging is essential in delivering the payload into space.

Scientists and mechanical engineers have studied auxetics extensively. As a result, the conventional square auxetic, a ‘base’ model for this class of metamaterials, has been very well described. In order to stay in an expanded form, conventional auxetics require a constant and continuous force to be exerted upon it, and this unfortunately makes the material difficult to commercialize.

On the other hand, the auxetics designed by the McGill team is bistable. Bistable auxetics require no such additional force to stay in an expanded conformation, and consequently possess myriad of applications ranging from aerospace to biomedicine.

“Before [my design], the only bistable auxetic that has been described were complex origami patterns,” Rafsanjani said. “They were hard to make. Graduate students sometimes spent days just folding the patterns.”

Researchers first discovered the bistability of origami structures in a paper published in Advanced Materials in March 2015. And the design developed by Rafsanjani can be created using a laser cutter

Similar patterns inspired Rafsanjani (left) in his bistable auxetic design. (Photo: Noah Sutton, Illustration: Elli Slavitch / McGill Tribune) in less than an hour.

“The beauty of purely mechanical systems is that they are scale-free,” Rafsanjani explained.

“Essentially, a model developed in a lab can be changed into any size for any practical application.”

Born and raised in Iran, Rafsanjani attributed his geometric designs to Islamic art, specifically the patterns found on panels of a 1,000-year-old Iranian tomb; however, Rafsanjani cites all forms of art as sources of scientific inspiration.

“Throughout my life I attempt to find elements that inspire me”

he explained. “Artists are not bound by [the same] practical and physical constraints as scientists.”

It appears that art, as an element of inspiration, is a recurring motif in Rafsanjani’s works. In a paper about metamaterials published in 2015, Rafsanjani cited artist Ron Resch in his introduction.

However, Rafsanjani’s description of his materials as being inspired from Islamic art has been met with criticism.

Some have argued that Islamic art is not an all-encompassing term and that science and art

should not be mixed.

“I could very well have said ‘Persian Art,’ or ‘Iranian Art,’” Rafsanjani said. “Of course this would have been a lot less controversial. But the geometric patterns that I used are part of an artistic theme synonymous with Islam. To use another name would simply be not true.”

Regardless of where he draws his inspiration from, Rafsanjani plans to continue his scientific work.

“I am dedicating my life to the pursuit of scientific achievement,” he said.

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FROM THE BRAINSTEM

GROWTH ATTENUATION THERAPY MIMICS AN UGLY PAST

Treatment to stunt growth finds use in disabled children Clare Fogarty Contributor A recent article published in the New York Times discussed a boy named Ricky, who had been diagnosed with cerebral palsy and static encephalopathy. His permanent brain damage meant he was unable to walk and had very limited eyesight.

Ricky is now nine years old, but his body is the size of a four-year-old’s; his parents opted to stop his growth with a treatment known as ‘growth attenuation therapy’ in order to make his illness more manageable. While not illegal, the therapy floats in a grey area of medical and bioethical discourse, and its nature eerily echoes historical therapies now deemed entirely unethical.

Growth attenuation therapy involves the administration of estrogen to close the epiphyseal plates of bones, leading to a halt in their growth. The therapy grew in popularity in the 1940s and 1950s, when girls and young women would receive it to stop their growth before becoming ‘too tall.’ As height became more desirable to many women in the following decades, the popularity of the treatment waned.

Today, growth attenuation

therapy is administered to children with profound physical and cognitive disabilities that become more difficult for parents to deal with as the children grow. The therapy is meant to increase the ability of parents to care for a disabled child who is believed to hold no chance of living an otherwise normal life. Some bioethicists argue that it is a sufficiently safe therapy allowing improved quality of life for disabled children and their families.

By halting disabled childrens’ growth, parents are said to be better able to manage their physical size and provide better care for their child, and therefore some families strongly advocate for the therapy.

Halting the growth of a child unable to volunteer for the therapy is highly criticized by disability rights groups, who argue that the therapy violates a person’s civil rights. The treatment in girls is also slightly more complex than in boys, because growth attenuation of females involves treating the child with a hysterectomy—removing a woman’s uterus—to prevent menstruation. This would mean the child would never be able to reproduce. In the case of many suffering from strong disabilities, this might not greatly affect the course of

The parents of some disabled children are choosing to stunt their growth. (usatoday.com) their lives, but the therapy still draws the attention of feminist groups arguing that involuntary hysterectomy cannot be ethically justified.

On a historical level, the therapy eerily resembles the mid-20th century popularity of the lobotomy to improve the manageability of psychiatric patients. According to Professor Jack Pressman of University of California, San Francisco, the procedure included severing the tissues connecting the prefrontal cortex and the rest of the brain, making “society’s troublesome individuals more complacent and compliant.” The lobotomy was

performed to shape members of society whose minds did not conform to social standards, and make psychiatric caregivers’ jobs easier. The procedure later died in popularity as prescription of the synthetic tranquilizer took over the medical marketplace, providing a reversible and less drastic way to improve patient compliance.

While the lobotomy holds more devious connotations than growth attenuation therapy, both procedures act as involuntary and irreversible medical interventions meant to improve the manageability of patients for their caregivers. Disability rights

campaigners argue that this is simply not ethically justifiable, while parents praise growth attenuation therapy for easing their lives. No empirical studies have been performed to prove the benefits of the therapy, leaving many physicians and hospitals hesitant to provide it given the ethical grey area in which it lies. It is important to keep in mind that bioethical discourse changes throughout time, and therapies once deemed entirely justifiable may now appear completely archaic. The only way to guarantee that we do not repeat past mistakes in bioethics is by remembering our medical history.

MonWHO inspires students to discuss public health Passion for problem-solving is contagious Clare Lyle Staff Writer Three days, hundreds of delegates and one goal: To inspire people to talk and think critically about public health. The Montreal World Health Organization Simulation (MonWHO) kicked off on Friday March 18, bringing together students from universities all around Quebec to gain insight into public health. This year’s theme was non-communicable diseases, a topic especially relevant given aging populations in developed countries.

“This [...] theme will challenge delegates to reexamine how we tackle disease prevention and how we manage our responses to disease,” Alexandria Petit-Thorne, executive director of MonWHO, wrote in an open letter to prospective delegates.

One of the most exciting parts of MonWHO is its Global Health Fair.

The Fair brings in organizations from the Montreal community to network with students, providing delegates the opportunity to learn about internships and volunteer opportunities available to them which contribute to global health efforts. Organizations, whic have participated in the past, have included MEDLIFE McGill and Aids Community Care Montreal.

“The Global Health Fair

MonWHO drew in students from multiple backgrounds to examine the importance of public health. (Marie Labrosse / McGill Tribune) was introduced to the MonWHO conference in 2008 with the aim to showcase the global health initiatives, such as clubs and organizations, around the McGill and Montreal community,” event organizer Ga Eun Lee explained. “It is an educational space for both organization representatives and conference participants to share perspectives on global health issues and solutions, and to provide opportunities for delegates to get involved.”

The Fair’s goal is to take students out of the fantasy world of simulation and into the real world by providing them with information on how they

can have an impact on public health.

“As part of the MonWHO mission statement, the secretariat aims to ‘raise student awareness about global health issues’ and to ‘provide a means for students to play a proactive role in global health policy,’” Lee said.

“The Global Health Fair was created in 2008 to fulfill these statements by educating delegates about the various global health initiatives that contribute to advancing health around the world.”

MonWHO also draws students from more diverse backgrounds than traditional Model UN (MUN) conferences.

“[The delegates at MonWHO are] people who are really passionate about the [issue,]” said Juliana Fanous, chargé d’affaires at MonWHO. “It’s not the type of thing that has the [flashiness] that Model UN has.”

This is largely tied to the students who are participating in the event. “[Our delegate backgrounds are] very interdisciplinary,” Fanous said. “We [get] a lot of students from different backgrounds, from sociology to microbiology, so we [get] a lot of diverse opinions that are brought into debates.”

Many participants at the event mentioned the shared passion and

interest in global health as one of the highlights of the event.

“It was an interesting crossover between tiptoeing into policy but at the same time being with other people who are interested in global health,” McGill student Emilia Chatelier said.

Another aspect participants cited as being particularly engaging was the role-playing component of the conference.

“What I liked was that we were put in the country’s perspective[s],” McGill alumnus Alexandre Chadi said. “We were asked to prepare beforehand. It was really interesting to put yourself in that mindframe, and to start voicing and arguing for that country, being really an advocate. So all of these political aspects came into play.”

But the political issues remained secondary to the main goal of addressing public health problems.

“There’s a lot of attention that goes into conferences like Model UN, which focuses on issues of more of a political nature, and there wasn’t a lot focused on issues pertaining to global health, and it’s an issue that a lot of students care about,” event organizer Angela Yang said. “The goal of MonWHO is to stimulate discussion and debate on [global health] and encourage students to [...] gain experience in drafting solutions and policy work.”

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It’s McGill’s turn to talk about sexual assault Sexual Assault Awareness Week discusses sexual violence through intersectional lens Alanna Sokic Contributor Bringing awareness to sexual violence has traditionally proven to be a difficult task, but it is one that the Sexual Assault Centre of the McGill Students’ Society (SACOMSS) is once again ready to undertake.

For many years, the volunteerrun organization has been committed to supporting survivors of sexual assault through many initiatives, including the ongoing Sexual Assault Awareness Week. From March 29 to April 1, SACOMSS is hosting speakers, workshops, and information sessions aimed at raising awareness about issues revolving around sexual assault in the McGill context, as well as in surrounding communities.

Talia Gruber and Jean Murray, SACOMSS special projects coordinators, noted that the nature of sexual assault and gender-based violence can make it so that students feel uncomfortable expressing interest in learning more. Though SACOMSS has made a big push to table various events on campus and

engage individuals through open libraries, essentially an informal question and answer period, Murray still claims visibility proves to be one of SACOMSS’ biggest challenges.

“It’s hard getting people to come to things, even if they are basic, intro-level, ‘let’s just talk about this, maybe you have some questions’ sort of things,” Murray explained.

Throughout the week, the organization hopes to offer support and visibility for those who may not be given space within mainstream sexual assault awareness organizations.

“Considering that the movement to end sexual violence— the mainstream movement—has been largely white, cis-gendered women, which is not at all the priority or should not be the priority of a mainstream sexual violence movement, I think that SACOMSS is trying at least to do a really good job of reflecting the real impact of sexual violence and who it affects,” Gruber said.

Included in this year’s Sexual Assault Awareness Week is a

mix of casual events such as the aforementioned open library, as well as closed events aimed at specific populations who are disproportionately affected by sexual violence.

Widening the scope and trying to focus on the populations who are most directly affected by sexual violence, such as women of colour, is an important tenet of SACOMSS’ mission and part of the organization’s aim to expand their events beyond ‘Sexual Assault 101’.

The Week closes with the annual Fire With Water show— an art exhibit and performance evening with the goal of allowing for artistic responses to sexual violence, gender-based violence, survivorship, and their intersecting themes.

In an interview with CTV Montreal, Karine Raynor, curator of the RBC Art and Heritage Centre at the McGill University Health Centre, noted that art can have a remedial function.

“Art has the potential to bring us into the present moment which we don’t do a lot when we’re ill or when we’re with people that are very

ill, because we’re thinking about the future and we kind of get wrapped up in our thoughts,” Raynor stated.

The healing power of art for survivors of sexual assault is not lost on Gruber and Murray, who both acknowledged the importance of art as a curative outlet. As such, there is a workshop included in the schedule for the week titled “In Rhyme, In Time” that is geared towards writing poetry and spoken word as remedial tools.

Another idea Gruber and Murray, both involved with SACOMSS for four and five years respectively, acknowledged is the evolving nature of SACOMSS’ initiatives alongside the changing world of feminism.

“SACOMSS is a feminist organization, so what we’re prioritizing and valuing and putting into our events is changing as feminism is changing,” Murray explained. “Obviously intersectionality has always been important, but I think we’re certainly seeing it become more and more important in the feminist movement and in response to sexual violence.

I would say as feminism grows and

changes, so, too, do we.”

While the recent Jian Ghomeshi ruling is sure to provide a catalyst for the week’s events, Gruber and Murray both hope that the week gives survivors and allies the space and opportunity to do what they feel is important; to reflect the real impact of sexual violence and who it affects.

“I would like to demonstrate that this is still a relevant and ongoing conversation,” Murray said. “I think people get tired of the cycle of something happens, there’s outrage, people forget about it, people move on, then there’s another event, more outrage. I think people forget that this is something that is constantly affecting people and it’s [...] insidious.”

Though both McGill as an institution and the wider societal contexts could do much more sexual assault advocacy, SACOMSS’ annual Sexual Assault Awareness Week is doing well to give communities disproportionately affected by sexual violence the funding and space to make a space for themselves—a mission certainly worth supporting.

STUDENT OF THE WEEK

W

CHRIS GISMONDI U4 HONOURS ART HISTORY & HISTORY

By Audrey Carleton (Noah Sutton / McGill Tribune)

hile many McGill students struggle to work fitness into their daily schedules in addition to balancing academics and extracurriculars, Chris Gismondi, U4 Joint Honours Art History and History with a minor in Indigenous Studies, has no problem with this. After taking a Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) minicourse in pole dancing, Gismondi fell quickly in love with the sport and is currently planning his second trip to the Canadian National Pole Fitness Championship this summer.

“It’s very close to me as [a] student experience because I started in first year,” Gismondi said. “I’ve always been an active person [and] used exercise as a way to deal with stress. I loved pole dancing so much [....] You forget you’re even doing it because it’s so much fun.”

As he has progressed in the competitive pole dancing community, however, Gismondi has become more aware of the bias that some hold toward its origins in stripping.

“Pole dancing comes from the sex industry,” Gismondi explained. “Some people like pretending that it doesn’t come from the sex industry, and put down sex workers, when sex workers already get a lot of [flak] from society, and I don’t think we as pole dancers should really be doing that, as we take their sport.”

Gismondi’s acute awareness of social injustices moves beyond his experience in the pole dancing community. He has also developed a passion for indigenous rights after become aware in university of the

realities of racism and colonialism.

“I came to school and started learning about indigenous issues,” Gismondi recalled. “In public school, elementary school, and high school, you don’t really get that education. I started to learn more and got really passionate, and I just want to keep learning more as much as I can.”

Part of his effort to do so entails serving as a coordinator for the McGill Student Indigenous Studies Journal, which was founded to showcase undergraduate research on indigenous issues and give voice to indigenous students on campus. The journal recently changed its name in response to critique from indigenous groups on campus.

“The [journal] was founded in 2009, and at the time there wasn’t a minor, there wasn’t a lot of dialogue on indigenous issues,” Gismondi explained.

“The journal was a way to raise people’s awareness and publish student work [on] these topics. But our context has changed a lot, so we wanted to listen to and respond to some critiques indigenous students here had of the journal, and try to make it a responsible form of allyship.

[We also wanted to] make it a space where indigenous students feel like they can contribute or be on the editorial team or have their stuff published.”

In addition to being an ally for indigenous voices at McGill, Gismondi advocates for environmental justice on campus in his position as the sustainable events coordinator for SSMU. “It’s remarkable how many student

groups don’t know that there’s a green fund available for them to apply to for their events,” Gismondi said. “I try to raise awareness for that. I meet with clubs and I help them brainstorm how to limit the impact of any big events they plan on holding, whether it be catering or transport or things like that.”

Gismondi devotes a lot of his time and energy to making McGill more eco-friendly, but he recognizes that the average student is not able to commit to the environmental cause to the same extent. Nonetheless, there are many small ways in which students can lower their carbon footprints by establishing greener daily habits.

“I think there’s something about student culture that can be a little bit apathetic and very convenience-based,” Gismondi said. “[Being eco-friendly requires] planning ahead and making your own meals and bringing tupperware when you go out so you don’t have to get a take out container. I think those are very feasible, we just often don’t think about them. And it’s hard, we’re pressed for time, we’re really busy, so it is difficult, but it’s not impossible.”

Looking back on his time at McGill, Gismondi feels that his involvement in social justice causes has helped define his student experience.

“I really enjoyed getting involved,” Gismondi said. “Being passionate about social justice and environmental issues, [...] for me that [has] been very rewarding.”

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(Photos courtesy of coupons.com, erecipecards.blogspot.com, bbcgoodfood.com)

Acing the end-of-year potluck party

Three easy-to-make meals to share

By Hailey MacKinnon

Appetizer CUCUMBER BITES

Makes 48 balls (Adapted from foodnetwork.ca)

As Montreal slowly defrosts and patios enter their thawing phase, McGill students will begin the gradual return to life outdoors. For many, a staple of both the end of the year and the warmer weather are potluck parties. Don’t get stuck being the person who brings the last-minute bag of chips, or the store-bought box of cookies. Here are three easy-to-make dishes that can be easily shared among friends, and taste delicious enough to treat yourself to after the end of a tough semester.

Makes 36 bites

Ingredients

4 ounce of cream cheese, softened ¼ cup of ranch dressing 2 tbs of dill 4 cucumbers 16 cherry tomatoes Sprinkle of paprika

Instructions

Dessert PEANUT BUTTER RUM BALLS

Meal: CHICKEN FRIED RICE WITH A SPICY TWIST

1. In a blender, mix cream cheese, ranch dressing, and dill.

2. Peel cucumbers, then slice into 1-inch pieces. Using a melon baller, scoop out a small hole from each cucumber bite.

3. Fill hole with cream cheese mixture, top with half a cherry tomato, and garnish with paprika to taste. Serve chilled.

Serves 8 (Adapted from bbcgoodfood.com)

Ingredients

600g of basmati 2 chicken stock cubes 8 skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced 4 red peppers, sliced 600g of kidney beans Handful of coriander, chopped 300g of frozen peas

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups of icing sugar 2 cups of chocolate cookie crumbs 1 cup of butter, softened 1 cup of flaked coconut 3/4 cup finely chopped peanuts 1/2 cup of smooth peanut butter 1/2 cup of granulated sugar 1/8 cup of cocoa 2 tbsp of rum Granulated sugar

1 onion, sliced 3 tsp of ground cumin 2 tbsp of sunflower oil

Instructions

1. Put rice and chicken stock in a sauce pan, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Allow rice to simmer for approximately 20 minutes, then drain.

2. Put chicken with coriander and spices. Stir fry peppers in the sunflower oil for three minutes, until softened. Add chicken to pan and cook until tender (approximately five minutes). Add rice, beans, peas, and onions, and cook to taste.

Instructions

1. Combine icing sugar, cookie crumbs, cocoa, butter, coconut, peanuts, peanut butter, sugar, and rum in a large bowl and blend into doughlike consistency.

2. Shape balls into 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch balls and roll in granulated sugar. Place in fridge in airtight container, and then keep until hardened.

Looking through the student lens at the Fokus Film Festival How student filmmakers at McGill allow their creativity to flourish Keara Campos Contributor Fokus Film Festival, an annual event organized by TVM: Student Television at McGill, took place at Cinema du Parc last week, where student filmmakers had the opportunity to submit their work to be screened in a public forum.

Three directors with screened works shared insight on how to get started in the filmmaking process as well as the challenges faced by student filmmakers.

“McGill, in my opinion, as an academic institution, isn’t very accommodating to a lot of creative souls, especially ones who want to practice and create in film and television,” said Lou Gatti, U3 Arts, who had his films Waterway to Stardom: Who is Flood Girl? and Getaways screened at Fokus. “That’s where TVM has aided myself and [...] a lot of other filmmakers in the community with an understanding of process.”

McGill’s Faculty of Arts offers only a minor in World Cinema, which Gatti, as well as fellow director Ben Koring, U3 Arts, agreed can be disappointing for aspiring filmmakers wishing to learn more about the field.

“Other than TVM, which is great because they have a lot of content coming out, McGill isn’t great for film,” Koring said. “It’s got everything. But no film school, not great film classes, I’ve only been able to take one or two so that is a bit frustrating.”

At the same time, Sashka Avanyan, U1 Arts, who had three films screened at Fokus: Babushka, Moscow I Miss You, and How To Fall In Love, noted that McGill’s high academic calibre can be a source of inspiration for student filmmakers.

“Being in an environment where there are so many successful people and just knowing that you’re on campus where there’s so much knowledge and academics at a very high level [...] that’s inspiring in itself because it makes you want to strive to that level,” Avanyan said.

Another hurdle for many student filmmakers is the time constraints felt by those who balance academics with their craft, instead of choosing to combine both into a single degree. Time becomes a highly coveted resource for most creatives minds who recognize that there is a constant pull and push to stay active in

academic life at McGill while still pursuing personal creative passions.

One way several directors mitigated the time constraints faced by student filmmakers, as well as gained practical experience in the field, was through a filmmaking competition sponsored

by TVM. Directors were instructed to write, shoot, and edit an entire film within 72 hours. One of Avanyan’s films Babushka as well as one of Koring’s films Karma Police—both which were screened at Fokus—were products of this competition.

For Koring, these time and resource constraints, whether they are due to simply being a student, or the regulations imposed by events like 72-hour competitions, can be put to use in a productive manner. For example, while Koring’s submission was shot entirely on iPhones using an app he bought for $15, this app ultimately complimented the goofy style of the mockumentary film he was creating. Additionally, the angel costumes used in the film were made by a friend’s girlfriend while another musical buddy helped create the ‘Larry Davidesque’ theme music and the other

sound effects.

“I have a philosophy that’s [...] use your limitations whether it’s 72 hours, or a concept, or your equipment, to your own advantage,” Koring said. “Don’t see it as an inhibitor, see it more as a framework to work within.

I only know this many people, I know these locations we can use, I only have this equipment [...] You have to make your concept based on those constraints.”

Besides the challenges, rewards, and community that are fostered by creative endeavours, there are still certain aspects of the creative process that Avanyan does not want to go unnoticed. Women in industry, and specifically women in the film industry, are topics she has been exploring since her first submission to Fokus last year with a documentary piece on femininity. The 10 minute film paralleled interviews featuring Armenian women and Canadian women; however, now she hopes to release a newer twist on the film which features the more refined technical skills she has gained over the past year.

“Everyone I look up to in the film industry is male, and there are definitely female editors

and directors that are stellar and fascinating, but they don’t have as much visibility,” Avanyan said.

“It’s really, really visible that there aren’t enough women in the industry in the roles of direction and editing [...] I think it’s important to be conscious of that, no matter what your gender is.”

The parting advice that the student filmmakers have for students looking to get into filmmaking at McGill is to get involved in the creative process, whether that be through writing or editing, and by joining groups such as TVM or participating in events like Fokus.

In the bigger picture, becoming involved in the McGill filmmaking community has led some of these directors to think differently about their future in film.

“When I came to McGill [...] I did not have a clear idea in my mind that I wanted to pursue film,” Avanyan said. “Last year was my first year and I had four films shown at Fokus [....]

I remember that was a very clear jumping board for me because I met a bunch of filmmakers here at McGill.

They were talking to me about how they had stayed involved with film during their time at McGill and then [...] I very concretely decided that this is what I want to pursue.”

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Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Video games in education: Turning GPA into EXP Gaming makes a difference in the classroom Luka Ciklovan Staff Writer In an era where social media sites are dominated by the likes of Farmville, bars and pubs increasingly entice patrons with the prospect of some drunken Dance Dance Revolution, and even the elderly have been swept by the rush of Candy Crush, video games have successfully expanded beyond their niche origins and have permeated society on an intergenerational level. One such area of video game proliferation, however unlikely it may seem, has been the classroom.

Contrary to the lingering notion that video games kill brain cells, an idea that plagued many a Cold Warera household, educators at both the primary and higher levels have started to tap into the unique potential of games for stimulating curiosity and imparting experience in ways that traditional schooling simply cannot. Montreal in particular—through the research conducted by Darren Wershler, associate professor of English and Concordia University Research Chair in Media & Contemporary Literature, and the graduate courses taught by Dr. Christian Ehret, assistant professor at McGill’s Faculty of Education—stands as a pioneer in uncovering these largely untapped rewards games can offer for the classroom and beyond. But what exactly can games offer the classroom, and why do they even need them in the first place?

“I’ve always tried to see if I can use the game as a kind of allegory,” Wershler said. “Can we use the game to teach students how ideology works, or explore concepts such as free will and forced choice? Instead of saying we’re going to take this theory and apply it to game, it’s like turning the telescope around and going the other way. You use the game to tell you something about a larger intellectual question. This kind of approach allows students to end up thinking about things that are of interest to them from other categories.”

As the panic surrounding midterm/finals season proves, grades and the fear of failure surrounding them constitute one of the defining elements of acquiring an education. Yet that fear is often so palpable that students increasingly run the risk of becoming averse towards the subject material and come to view education through a lens of woe rather than wonder, ultimately hindering their growth. As Lee Sheldon, associate professor and co-director at the Games and Simulation Arts and Sciences program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, articulates in his book The Multiplayer Classroom, the modern classroom directly contributes to this fear of academia through its foundation upon letter grades which are assigned “as penalties for failure,” where students start at 100 and then whittle their score down through mistakes.

The tried and tested mechanics used

Video games allow students to interact with previously intangible concepts. (Cordelia Cho / McGill Tribune) to incentivize player engagement in video games offer an invaluable tool for teachers in combating this fear of failure.

By having students start at an F and then ‘rise up’ in level to achieve an A through ‘Experience Points’ distributed across assignments ‘ranked’ in difficulty, offering unlockable ‘achievements’ in recognition of exceptional accomplishments, and organizing ‘guild’ systems wherein students receive bonus points for helping each other, Sheldon’s case study ultimately showed how the use of such RPG mechanics led students to achieve a higher interest in learning and better grades. Games allow students to move up instead of fall down academically, and, while the grade numbers are practically the same, such a psychological difference is crucial for stimulating the joy and wonder learning is supposed to be all about.

Another common problem many students face, particularly at the earlier stages of education, lies within the concept of transference, where students often feel that the things they learn in the classroom bear little relevance to life outside the classroom.Video games, as amalgamations of so many different fields, stand as one of the perfect teaching mediums with which to show the interconnectedness of class concepts.

“Game studies are always interdisciplinary because games are such weird, fractionating objects,” Wershler said. “You need some insights coming from film studies, digital media, communication theory, literary studies about narrative, philosophy,

programming […] you really can’t approach games from a sole disciplinary perspective as you just miss stuff.”

In one of his most successful class projects, Wershler had students studying Plato’s Republic attempt to recreate a utopia within the sandbox engine of Minecraft. Utilizing the game in such a manner ultimately led students, according to Wershler, to both connect with the material in a deeper, more personal way, and have a wider grasp on how these concepts transcend the assignment.

‘Class divisions’ between Minecraft-savvy students and those less so, ecological debates concerning the actual building of the project, and issues of responsibility all were entailed in the fact that the project was so massive it detrimentally “slowed the entire class server to a crawl” for other students.

“Their utopia forced them to think about a whole set of questions that they weren’t aware of when they started, but by the time they were finished were able to think about in the ways philosophers have always approached utopia and dystopia,” Wershler said. “That’s sort of what I mean by games as allegory.

When game studies in the classroom work at their best, the game becomes an occasion for thinking about something larger.”

For Ehret the commmunity surrounding the game is more important than the content.

“Video games, regardless of the content, create opportunities to learn differently than other platoforms: Open world games, for example, teach players how to grapple with new languages, symbiotitc codes, like icons, and ways

of talking to each other that are different from the communitication of everyday life, but also transfer to other areas of your life,” Ehret said. “So when we talk about literacy now, we talk about multiple literacy, so you might know standard english, or standard french, but can you switch between all of those various discourses, and do so adjunctively? Video games are one of those types of languages, or discourse communities, and kids learning and talking in those areas have a lot of transerfable skills to academic writing.”

Perhaps one of the most powerful areas in which games can uniquely impact students in the modern classroom is in their sense of agency.

Student agency refers to the sense, or lack thereof, of how much control students feel they have over their studies and how much they perceive their academic choices, whether choosing classes or picking a university, to be meaningful choices they can actually make. It has become a common trope that kids within the public school system increasingly feel that college is out of their grasp, or that they’re ensnared in whatever pre-determined plan was set out by their parents, and thus can’t meaningfully change their lives or the community around them.

When agency dwindles, so too does student motivation. School, once again, begins to foster the very sentiments that turn students away from it. Video games, a medium all about action and ‘doing,’ stand as one of the best ways to empower students and make them believe their choices matter.

Ehret has conducted extensive research on the social impact of video

games, and his experiences powerfully demonstrate the potential games have to impart the notion that kids can impact their communities.

“A Minecraft club at the Nashville Public Library was created for the specific purpose [of] redesign[ing] and reimagin[ing] areas of the city that were currently dilapidated or home to underprivileged communities, and to think about how to design them for ‘spatial justice,’ with more mobility between communities, green spaces, and community gardens in mind, and to think about all those things that would create more fruitful communities,” Ehret said. “The kids involved became like urban planners in Minecraft and reimagined those spaces and actually rebuilt them according to their imaginings together and presented it to local city planners. Those sandbox games like Minecraft provide at least two big potentials, one for us to harness kids’ expertise in games, but also to reimagine, with and alongside kids, not as experts ourselves, potential projects for social justice.”

While implementing video games and their mechanics in schools is certainly not devoid of challenges, the positive changes they bring to the classroom to make them a necessary force in the 21st century school system.

If the curiosity that is supposed to at the foundation of education is to be rekindled, there needs to be a move away from a system of based on moving down, and focus on levelling up.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

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Retrospective in retrospect McGill University Photography Students’ Society presents first annual exhibit Tamara Yang Contributor The McGill University Photography Students’ Society (MUPSS) celebrated their first annual exhibit last Wednesday entitled Retrospective. Featuring the work of McGill students in both film and digital prints, Retrospective was well-attended and met with high praise from both the McGill community and the general public.

The exhibit itself was lowkey—the majority of photos did not exceed 8” by 10” dimensions.

Held at Shape Gallery on Boulevard Saint-Laurent, visitors removed their coats and shoes after escaping the snowy street outside. The small size of the prints, paired with chipped floors and tattered walls, created a cozy and welcoming atmosphere.

Soft melodies from the Montreal band Duo Nouveau played in the background, and the entire collection was held in a single room.

Focusing on the simplicities of life, the subjects of the photos were mostly everyday objects, ordinary people, and nature. Retrospective was the perfect name for the exhibit, and it set the mood for the entire collection. Perhaps the best representation of this would be Roald Teffries’ twin pieces, “Mirror” and “Miroir,” depicting two convex mirrors from different perspectives.

At first glance, they appear to be

FLASHBACK

plain and could easily be passed over without further inspection; however, Retrospective is about pausing to reflect on the little things in life and considering how we perceive things—even two plain mirrors.

Joseph Dahdah’s “Untitled” focuses on an elderly man on the metro, squatting and looking at his phone. In the foreground is the fuzzy outline of another person, hands clasped around a duffel bag. Dahdah’s second print, also “Untitled,” is in black and white, of a man in sneakers and dark jeans reading a newspaper while crouching on a box. To the side are stacks of more newspapers, presumably from where the subject acquired the one in his hands. Dahdah’s work encapsulates the idea of finding wonder in everyday moments, and in the scenes we pass by every day and would appreciate, if only we had stopped to look in the first place.

Retrospective, at times, felt like a jump to the past. “Armored” by Scott Cope depicts a march of uniformed police, but a shutter malfunction caused the top half of the photo to be blurred black. The dystopian scene is suddenly transformed by the blur, mimicking the haze of tear gas that protesters may face. Jules Tomi’s “Noam Chomsky was traumatized by the Soviet Union” shows a man looking on into the crowd while holding up part of a large sign on a stick. The picture feels dated, leaving

Montreal band Duo Nouveau scored the photography exhibit, Retrospective. (Tamara Yang / McGill Triubne) the viewer questioning when the photo was taken. “Armored” and “Chomsky” work well together, capturing a protest from two opposing perspectives. Another piece, “A Father’s Work” by Sally Han, simply portrays hands pouring sauce into a jug, but the achromatic colouring gives the impression that the photo was taken decades ago. Perhaps the “retro” portion of Retrospective is ambiguity in time.

The modesty and humility of the collection convey a sense of honesty that connects with the viewer through relatable depictions of the simplest of acts: Pouring something into a jar, or looking at one’s cellphone on the metro. The way Retrospective was structured conveys a sense of familiarity even with the pictures of “grander” subjects, like protestors or mountain climbers. This was aided by the soft lines and colouring that

together achieve an intimate effect.

Retrospective tells viewers to stop, reflect and focus on the small details of life that give unexpected joy.

Retrospective was enjoyable, but not incredibly memorable. The humble gallery and small prints could have used larger, attention-grabbing ones as an anchor, for larger impact. But for MUPSS’ first exhibit ever, it was a job well done.

perfectly encapsulates the elegiac tone of Ikiru.

As Watanabe’s imminent death approaches, he rids himself of his sorrow and transforms into a Christlike figure who, resurrected from his deathlike daily routine, aims to better his community. Through this religious interpretation, women play an important role as Watanabe’s disciples. In the beginning of the film, a group of poor women visit the public affairs department with a proposal to make a sewage pit into a children’s playground. They are constantly deferred until Watanabe cuts through the red tape and takes action. At Watanabe’s funeral, these women weep and bow to his shrine like worshippers.

One woman in the film is the youthful and energetic Toyo Odagiri (Miki Odagiri), whom Watanabe enjoys spending time with. While previously working at Watanabe’s office, Toyo quits her job to produce toy bunnies. “I feel like I am playing with every baby in Japan,” she tells him of her work. At his shrine, she leaves a fuzzy bunny that hops around playfully.

Kurosawa uses movement strategically in Ikiru. Filming the stagnant office workers sitting

hunched at their desks and men talking criss-crossed signify a morbidity of spirit. Perhaps the reason for Watanabe’s laconicism is that talking is a way of not moving.

For example, the bureaucrats stall and defer proposals yet achieve no action. Unlike the others, Watanabe is a character of movement. In the most picturesque scene of the film, Watanabe rocks in a child’s swing, not talking but once again singing “Life is Brief.”

Sound, such as background noise or pregnant silence, is also used strategically by Kurosawa to elicit emotional responses from the viewer. After dining with Toyo, Watanabe descends the staircase of the restaurant as a group of girls sing “Happy Birthday” to their friend. As the camera focuses on Watanabe’s smiling and awakened face, it seems as if the girls are celebrating his rebirth.

Ikiru, though made in 1952, was not released in the United States until 1960 as it was labeled “too Japanese.” Ironically, Ikiru’s subject matter could not be more universal, as the film forces the viewer to acknowledge the brevity of human existence and the importance of breaking free from idleness.

IKIRU

Kanji Wantabe’s life is put into perspective when he discovers it will end soon. (slantmagazine.com)

Nico Wada Contributor “A man dying of cancer searches for life meaning.” When condensed into this single phrase, the plot of Ikiru seems trite and simple. Yet renowned director Akira Kurosawa is an original storyteller who uses this familiar narrative to create an existential masterpiece.

The opening shot of the film is an X-ray of a stomach belonging to Public Affairs Section Chief Kanji Watanabe (Takashi Shimura). The

stomach is filled with tumors that will eventually kill him. The narrator of the film introduces the viewer to Watanabe hunched over at his desk.

“It would only be tiresome to meet him right now,” the narrator explained. “After all, he’s simply passing time without actually living his life. In other words, he’s not really alive.” Watanabe’s job consists of stamping paperwork and appearing busy.

Having worked monotonously in the public affairs department for 25 years, not skipping a single day

on the job, Watanabe is appropriately nicknamed “The Mummy.”

Upon learning of his death sentence, Watanabe initially plunges into a state of despair. He takes to drinking and meets a young man at a bar who learns of his situation and guides him through a night of hedonistic enjoyment. At a crowded dance hall, Watanabe requests a song entitled “Life is Brief.” The happy dancers pause in their footsteps to listen pensively to Watanabe’s soft voice as he sings the lyrics.

This plaintive, heart-breaking song

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Video didn’t necessarily kill the radio star How CKUT is revitalizing the airwaves

CKUT and other student stations are keeping radio alive. (Noah Sutton/ McGill Tribune)

Eric Noble-Marks Staff Writer The Casbah Coffee Club, like countless other dive bars in Liverpool, has staked its claim in music history. The supposed “launchpad of the Beatles” now features a commemorative plaque, signed memorabilia, and a £15 entry fee. Yet, the Casbah Club’s most impressive piece of history is also its most modest. Positioned under a series of commemorative photographs and t-shirts is a beatup brown console whose function is difficult to discern at first.

However, upon closer examination, its purpose becomes clear: This is the radio where the Beatles first heard their music broadcast. In a room full of historical treasures, the radio stands head-and-shoulders above the rest. You can almost imagine the fab four huddled around it thinking to themselves, “Hey, this ‘music’ thing might work out all right for us.”

Radio used to be the major way that people accessed and discovered music. As virtually the only way for up-and-coming artists to get their music heard, it became a crucial entry point into the industry. Radio was essential to the rise of Rock ‘N’ Roll in the 1950s, with DJs such as Alan Freed and

Wolfman Jack gaining celebrity status themselves. In those days, anyone who was anyone was on the radio and everybody was listening.

By the 1980s however, new and exciting ways of listening to music were beginning to weaken radio’s stranglehold. The introduction of in-car tape decks and CD players provided alternatives to drive-time radio shows. Later, the Internet and the rise of the blogosphere gave listeners exciting new ways to discover music. Today, streaming services such as Spotify and Pandora have provided perhaps the most robust challenge yet. Now, instead of combing the airwaves, more and more listeners are relying on these services to discover new music, some of which feature builtin algorithms that suggest songs based on previous listening habits.

The million dollar question then, is ‘What should radio be in 2016?’ No longer the only source for new and exciting music and facing steep competition, radio stations are finding ways to adjust.

“The biggest change for radio is that twenty years ago, radio stations were just that,” Mark Bergman, program director and Afternoon Drive announcer for Montreal’s Virgin Radio 96 said.

“Today a station like Virgin is no longer just a radio station, we are

an entertainment brand.”

It’s an outlook that’s common in radio today. In order to compete, stations are looking beyond the music and toward a more holistic entertainment package, complete with an active social media presence.

“I think we’re changing by the second,” Bergman said. “Music radio will become more and more about the great personalities in the mix with the music. That’s the only way we’re going to compete with digital.”

Virgin is one of the most popular radio stations in Montreal, with over two million listeners each week; however, it is not just the big boys who are finding new ways to make radio relevant. McGill’s own CKUT is going beyond the music as well, albeit in a different way. For one, CKUT has always prominently featured news coverage in addition to music, focusing on stories that may have been overlooked by more mainstream outlets.

Aishwarya Singh is a student who has worked extensively in CKUT’s news department, contributing to the station’s two major news programs: Off the Hour and All Things McGill.

“We speak to the people who are working for change within a specific context,” said Singh. “If

we’re going to a demonstration, we wouldn’t speak to the police but to the protesters or event organizers.”

This approach is reflected in everything CKUT puts on the air, from its news and culture, to even its music.

“We try to get a perspective that’s less covered by mainstream radio,” Rudy Quinn, who has hosted multiple programs on the station said. “Personally, I tend to focus on smaller labels and bands out of Montreal.”

They’re not the only ones who benefit. University radio stations such as CKUT also provide a valuable creative outlet for students on campus.

“In the classroom, we are passive receptors of knowledge,” Singh said. “Of course you can engage with that knowledge critically, but […] I feel like [working in radio] gives you a type of knowledge you wouldn’t get in the classroom.

This knowledge is then passed to listeners through the station’s multifaceted programming.

“If you’re the radio you have access to many different groups involved in Montreal,” said Quinn.

“We have programming 24 hours a day, seven days a week. I can’t paint CKUT with one broad brush.

There’s just so much going on.”

While streaming services offer tailor-made playlists based on past listening habits, radio can push listeners outside of their comfort zones.

“On Facebook and other social networks you only get a small glimpse what your friends are posting [...but radio] broadens your horizons,” Quinn said. “I play stuff that I like, but also stuff that my audience might not like or not know yet. I hope that they’ll enjoy it and that it’ll get them talking.”

Perhaps more than anything, radio provides the opportunity to establish a connection between the listener and the larger community.

“I think it’s about giving McGill a voice into the broader community, but also giving the community a voice into McGill,” Quinn said.

In a telecommunications industry that has become increasingly automated, radio has remained a distinctly human industry. The radio is a conversation of sorts between DJ and audience and an invitation into a larger world.

Bergman puts it succinctly: “All the streaming services offer is music, nowhere else can you listen to a station and feel, and know, and breathe Montreal,” he explained.

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SPORTS

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

MLB SEASON PREVIEW

by Aaron Rose, Elie Waitzer, and Hana O’Neill

A M E R I C A N L E A G U E

N A T I O N A L L E A G U E

EAST The Toronto Blue Jays look poised for back-to-back division titles. With all-stars and MVP candidates scattered across the diamond, Toronto expects to field a historically deep lineup this season. Newly acquired starting pitcher JA Happ can’t replace David Price, but with a full season with Marcus Stroman and a top-end bullpen, the Jays shouldn’t miss a beat.

The Boston Red Sox were big winners in the off-season, bolstering their pitching staff with ace starter David Price and closer Craig Kimbrel.

Although 2015 was a complete disaster, Boston’s talented young core showed flashes of what 2016 might have in store.

The New York Yankees shored up their second base hole and added flame-throwing closer Aroldis Chapman

to help improve an already lights-out bullpen. Expect injuries, such as to first baseman Greg Bird’s torn labrum, to plague the Yankees and cripple their chance at a playoff spot.

The Tampa Bay Rays’ offence lacks almost any type of effective firepower, but their pitching staff consistently shuts down opponents.

With lights-out pitching and superb defensive play across the diamond, Tampa Bay could exceed expectations this season.

The Baltimore Orioles had a strange off-season; they were constantly in the news for unorthodox reasons.

They’ll certainly hit a lot of homers, but with serious roster flaws, don’t expect the Orioles to contend in a

The Washington Nationals look strong heading into 2016. Their tough offence is led by superstar right fielder Bryce Harper. They will, however, face problems with their rotation; Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg are dominant, but Gio Gonzalez, Tanner Roark, and Joe Ross are not sure things.

The New York Mets’ Noah Syndegaard, Steven Matz, Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, and Bartolo Colon will form a far more dominant rotation than the Nationals’. The lineup is also solid, led by outfielder Yoenis Cespedes.

If Miami Marlins starter Jose Fernandez stays healthy, he and Wei-Yin Chen will be good numberone and two pitchers, but the rotation lacks depth overall. It’s likely that

trades for more starting pitching will be made early on. Right fielder Giancarlo Stanton, if healthy, will lead a great Miami offence.

The Atlanta Braves is rebuilding its roster. On offence the Braves will rely on first baseman Freddie Freeman, whose numbers are steadily decreasing. Young pitchers Matt Wisler and Mike Foltynewicz will have a chance to prove themselves.

The Philadelphia Phillies, while in rebuld mode, are in better shape: They will rely on young talent such as pitcher Aaron Nola, who posted a 3.59 ERA last season, along with sluggers Maikel Franco and Odubel Herrera, who hit .280 and .297 respectively. They will also have the option of calling up shortstop J.P. Crawford and pitcher Mark Appel.

The Chicago Cubs are the favorite to win the NL Central coming into 2016. They’ve added right fielder Jason Heyward to an already strong lineup that includes first baseman Anthony Rizzo and infielder Addison Russell. They’ve also acquired John Lackey, who will be a solid number three starter behind Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester. Interestingly, both those acquisitions came from their division rivals, the St Louis Cardinals.

In spite of this, the Cardinals’ rotation remains strong, given pitcher Adam Wainwright’s recovery and the acquisition of pitcher Mike Leake. They will feel the loss of Heyward more acutely, but if sluggers Matt Holliday and Yadier Molina can bounce back

from injuries, their offence should remain productive enough to compete.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have lost three players from their 2015 rotation, which may damn them in a competitive NL Central. Pitchers Gerrit Cole and Francisco Liriano will likely remain productive, but they will be backed up

by Jeff Locke, coming off a less-thanstellar season. Pitcher Jon Niese is consistent but not amazing, and pitcher Ryan Vogelsong is also coming off of a down year.

The Milwaukee Brewers are completely rebuilding, and will be uncompetitive this year.

The Cincinnati Reds are in a similar position, and will also be uncompetitive.

Zack Greinke left the Los Angeles Dodgers to chase a big contract in Arizona, and Clayton Kershaw is suddenly looking like the only ace on a once-dominant LA pitching staff. General Manager Andrew Friedman has made it clear that his strategy is depth, and the Dodgers have it in spades.

The Arizona Diamondbacks clearly think they have a window to win a title with their batting core of Paul Goldschmidt and AJ Pollock, and went all in with pitchers Greinke and Shelby Miller. Other interesting pieces on the team are young outfielder

David Peralta and starter Patrick Corbin, who is returning from Tommy John surgery and looking to regain his 2014 form. There are a lot of question marks near the bottom of their lineup, but it’ll be a fascinating year regardless.

The Colorado Rockies is in full rebuild mode after disastrous 2015 campaigns. They have a decent lineup, but will still struggle with an average bullpen.

The San Diego Padres are in a similar boat, and are looking to retool their squad. The Padres will hope that their solid rotation can stand up throughout the year.

CENTRAL With superstar Mike Trout in the AL West and boatloads of cash in the AL East, the Central has overall struggled for the past few years, but things are starting to change. The reigning World Series champs, the Kansas City Royals, are favourites to win the division, but it’s not going to come easy.

The Detroit Tigers were beset with injuries to first baseman Miguel Cabrera, designated hitter pitcher Victor Martinez, and Justin Verlander last season, and just having a normal amount of health should push them to contend with the Royals for first. They added outfielder Justin Upton to what was already one of the best offences in the Majors, and breakout slugger JD Martinez will get even more RBI opportunities hitting in

this reloaded lineup.

The Chicago White Sox also added offensive help from outside, bringing in third baseman Todd Frazier and second baseman Brett Lawrie through trades, but they’ll probably finish near the bottom once again.

Despite their quiet offseasons, Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Indians fans should be excited for 2016.

In Minnesota, third baseman Miguel Sano should channel young A-Rod to lead a surprisingly powerful lineup to another surprising season.

In Cleveland, sophomore shortstop Francisco Lindor will provide Ozzie Smith-level defence for the league’s filthiest rotation.

WEST The Houston Astros are stacked with young talent across the diamond.

If star shortstop Carlos Correa can improve after a Rookie-of-the-Year season and the Astros’ pitching staff can improve outside of Cy Young winning pitcher Dallas Keuchel, then Houston looks poised for another playoff appearance.

Pitcher Cole Hamels leads an impressive Texas Rangers pitching staff that awaits the eventual return of starting pitcher Yu Darvish. If third baseman Adrian Beltre can stay healthy and the rest of the lineup produces as they should, Texas should be looking at October baseball.

A few off-season pickups and a healthy second baseman Robinson Cano should help the Seattle

Mariners improve on a disappointing 76–86 season, however, a top-heavy division is likely to have Seattle on the outside looking in come October.

With two almost-certain Hallof-Famers on field, the Los Angeles Angels aren’t lacking star-power; however, aside from Trout and first baseman Albert Pujols, the Angels have a mishmash of inadequate parts.

Without much offensive firepower and a fairly weak pitching staff, Los Angeles doesn’t look like a serious contender.

Aside from pitcher Sonny Gray, 2016 doesn’t look bright for the Oakland Athletics. While they don’t have any glaring offensive holes, the Athletics are far from being anywhere close to contention.

Photos courtesy of sportingnews.com, allsportsintheworld.com, foxsports.com, gentlemensguideoc.com, cbssports.com

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SPORTS

BEHIND THE BENCH Genevieve Citron Contributor The political agency of sports is often downplayed in popular conversation, if not totally ruled out.

While scoring a goal from centre ice doesn’t exactly warrant a parliamentary medal, sport culture is fostering a growing liberalism. Furthermore, a desire from sporting entities to maintain a wide audience has the potential to affect social conditions, and perhaps even public policy. Championing the team aspect of sports culture, athletic organizations have historically found a political voice against discrimination.

Most recently, North Carolina’s sports teams have directed their energy against the state’s recent homophobic legislation.

On March 23, the governor of North Carolina signed House Bill 2, The Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act, which dismantled a former ordinance that allowed trans individuals to use bathrooms corresponding to their gender identity. House Bill 2 also bans the existence of non-discrimination laws against LGBTQ individuals, blatantly

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

MORE THAN THE FRANCHISE: THE SOFT POWER OF THE SPORTS BUSINESS violating the safety and health rights of LGBTQ people.

North Carolina’s sports franchises have started to speak out against the homophobic policy. On Friday March 25, the Carolina Hurricanes responded to the controversial bill, stating: “The Carolina Hurricanes and PNC Arena are devoted to providing a welcoming and respectful environment for all fans. We stand against all forms of discrimination.”

Besides having been publicly shamed for what many consider to be legalizing hate, the state legislatures’ actions may have brought on some injurious consequences for North Carolina. While the city of Charlotte had been previously selected as the 2017 host of the NBA All-Star Game, the NBA has expressed their “deep concern” over the consequences of the legislation. While not outright threatening to remove the All-Star competition from Charlotte, the organization stated that the bill “runs counter to our guiding principles of equality and mutual respect.” The NBA used a similar tactic last year when LGBTQ rights were threatened in Indiana.

This recent defense of minority

rights is not unprecedented. In 1964, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) famously banned South Africa from the Tokyo Olympics because of the country’s failure to offer basic standards of human rights, demonstrated by the nation’s apartheid regime. The South African Amateur Athletic Union, unwilling to condemn apartheid, opted out of the event. The incident not only forced sports fans to confront the injustice of apartheid, but it also forced politics into a historically apolitical sphere.

While dysfunctional race relations continue to be a major issue in the US and Canada—athletes such as LeBron James and Derrick Rose have supported the Black Lives Matter movement— athletic commissions have started grappling with the rights of the LGBTQ community. This was manifested at the Sochi Olympics, where nations protested Russian laws against homosexuality by refusing not to allow their LGBTQ athletes from competing, and encouraging communities to stand in solidarity against the policy.

The NBA’s recent statements resurrect the question of whether a sports association can act as a para-national

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver spoke against North Caorlina. (Photo courtesy of Getty Images) institution. A team’s sentimental and historic status in a city positions them as a media lightning rod whose statements are always well-documented.

Moreover, their general alienation from politics laces these rare assertions with a provocative charge; their political hat is only put on in the face of what they recognize as a grave social injustice.

While it is not yet clear whether the NBA will relocate the All-Star game, a decision to do so would be particularly embarrassing for the city of Charlotte and the state of North

Carolina. Through their statement, as well as their previous attention to human rights violations, it is undeniable that the NBA is wielding a soft political power. While sports associations will never explicitly coerce governments into making nice with minorities—after all, sports leagues are businesses—the activities these associations represent are still the epicentre of popular culture. Thus, regardless of its distance from political processes, the sports world has a loud voice and the masses are listening to it.

KNOW YOUR ATHLETE

O

OLIVIA SUTTER

By Nicole Spadotto (Noah Sutton/McGill Tribune)

livia Sutter stands only 5’2” tall, yet she approaches life with the same large breadth of ambition that characterizes her style of play on the ice with the Martlets hockey team.

Winter 2016 marks the end of her third year at McGill and her 20-year hockey career. Sutter graduates in December, a mere semester away, after which she hopes to attend law school.

The culmination of Sutter’s undergraduate studies and varsity athletics has left her in a reflective and humbled mood.

“It would be easy to say that my highlight [at McGill] would be winning Nationals [in 2014],” Sutter reflected. “Playing on that team is something I’ll never forget […] but overall, I think the best memory is any moment off the ice that I can spend with my teammates. To be able to get to know each one individually has brought so much joy and happiness to my life.”

Sutter’s drive for excellence and her constant humility has placed her on a unique hockey career trajectory. At age 18, with her “eye set on staying in Canada,” Sutter was recruited to Carleton University in Ottawa on a scholarship, where she played for a year before determining the school wasn’t the right fit for her.

Ultimately, she elected to return home to Alberta for a period of personal growth and a stint with the Calgary Inferno in the CWHL, Canada’s professional women’s league.

“I really liked my overall experience [at Carleton],” Sutter said. “First year university was a learning curve, and Carleton was a good stepping stone during that time period. But my decision to return home and play CWHL also [helped me grow] as a person.”

This growth prompted Sutter to return to school when she was 21, choosing to pursue a double major in World Religion and Political Science at McGill. On top of her demanding coursework, Sutter learned to balance playing on the hockey team, being president of varsity council, partaking in various volunteer activities including Right to Play, the Alouettes Foundation for Leucan, and Best Buddies, and spearheading a sexual assault awareness campaign on campus. “[My years in Alberta after Carleton] really helped my experience here at McGill,” Sutter said. “[The maturity I gained] allowed me to pursue a lot of stuff that I probably wouldn’t have if I came here when I was 18 [….]

My goal [at McGill] was more on behalf of getting Athletics more involved in the Montreal community. Being a studentathlete, you are a leader and an advocate in your community.”

Sutter’s commitment to community outreach and her pride in being a Martlet has resulted in a slew of awards over the past year.

Sutter won RSEQ honours for the Leadership and Citizenship Award, was nominated for the prestigious CIS Marion Hilliard Award for excellence in hockey, academics,

and community service, and is nominated for the McGill Athletics Muriel Roscoe Trophy for leadership and excellence. She is also a fixture on the StudentAthlete honour roll and has merited Academic All-Canadian honours.

It’s clear, however, that the awards are merely an ancillary benefit to the satisfaction linked to making a difference, which Sutter hopes she has done at McGill and in the larger Montreal area.

“It’s obviously an honour to be recognized for anything you do,” Sutter said. “Pursuing both sport and education is huge and should […] be an example to the younger generation.”

Ultimately, Sutter’s greatest pride is not in her many accolades, but in acting as a leader in her community, and helping other studentathletes follow their dreams.

“The biggest award is when I see athletes from all different sports and backgrounds get together and have a common goal to give back to the community for allowing us to be able to pursue our goals.”

McGill Tribune (MT): chips?

Popcorn or

Olivia Sutter (OS): What kind of chips? And what kind of popcorn? Is it Chicago Mix?

MT: It can be Chicago Mix. OS: Okay, then it’s popcorn,

Chicago Mix [laughs].

MT: Running or yoga?

OS: Probably running.

MT: Plateau or McGill Ghetto?

OS: I’ve lived in both. I’m torn. I actually can’t…50-50.

MT: Are you a Lorelei or a Rory from Gilmore Girls?

OS: Probably a Rory.

MT: Toronto Maple Leafs or

Montreal Canadiens?

OS: Oh my…Montreal Canadiens. Is that even a real question? [laughs]