McGill Tribune Vol. 33 Issue 23

Volume No. 33 Issue No. 23

TRIBUNE THE mcgill pX

Published by the Tribune Publication Society

CURIOSITY DELIVERS

A campus conversation The Anglo vote in quebec P7

Incubating innovation The University and social entrepreneurship p 10

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Tuesday, March 25, 2014 See inside for...

Story P 2

SSMU and PGSS elect new executive teams

Newly elected SSMU (above) and PGSS (below) executives celebrated their victories last Friday. Not pictured: PGSS MSO Lungu. (Remi Lu and Alexandra Allaire / McGill Tribune)

SSMU finances jeopardized by University Centre Fee referendum failure SSMU executives plan to immediately call special referendum period to avoid financial trouble Sam Pinto News Editor The failure of the University Centre Building Fee question in the Winter referendum could lead to drastic cuts to the services provided by the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU).

The proposed fee would have cost $6.08 for full-time students and $3.04 for part-time students per semester and was intended to cover the cost of rent and utilities for the SSMU Building under the new lease agreement between SSMU and McGill.

Results released by Elections SSMU on March 21 show that 53.6 per cent of students voted against the first part of this two-part question and 60.8 per cent against the

second part, which would have indexed the fee for inflation.

“This is catastrophic for SSMU,” Vice-President Finance and Operations Tyler Hofmeister said. “This is going to mean a huge reduction in the services the SSMU is able to provide and jeopardize our sustainability in the long term.”

According to Vice-President University Affairs Joey Shea, the budget cuts needed to meet this lack of funding could run up to $200,000.

“We ran a $90,000 deficit this year because we couldn’t afford to pay what was thought [would be] the fees if we were to have signed the lease,” Shea said. “Next year, it’s another $200,000 more […] so it’s $300,000 worth of services that will be cut from students.”

Services that may face cuts include Gerts, the Student-Run Café, the Sexual Assault Centre of the McGill Students’ Society (SACOMSS), and the McGill Student Emergency Response Team (MSERT), according to Shea.

One option for SSMU is to hold a special referendum period before the end of classes, putting the same question to the vote again.

However, unless the bylaws are amended at Council on Thursday, there will not be enough time in the remainder of the school year to do so.

“Currently there isn’t enough time based on the guidelines set out by the bylaws,” said Chief Electoral Officer Ben Fung. “That being said, the bylaws can still change.”

Hofmeister said SSMU had

already begun to take precautions in case funding for the lease could not be secured before the end of the academic year.

“I’ve been in talks with many of the services, creating their budgets for the new fiscal year, with many services relying on the SSMU lease fee,” he said. “I’ll likely have to make two budgets; one in the case that we can pass a special referendum and one if we can’t.”

SSMU President Katie Larson said students did not do their part to understand the stakes of the referendum question.

“People clearly didn’t read the context of the question,” she said.

“They don’t understand that we had to pass it because we now have to pay that much more money, and we don’t have that money coming in.”

However, students have criticized the SSMU executive for not explaining the reasoning and importance of such a fee. Kylar Daigle, U0 Arts, said he was confused about the question because it was not clearly explained on the ballot.

“I think the referendum poorly expressed what the consequences of this vote could be,” Daigle said. “I am certain that specification or more emphasis on the “cut services” would have changed the outcome. Surely the student population is willing to pay a mere $12—relatively nothing next to their tuition costs—to avoid losing Gerts and various student clubs and See “Referendum” on p. 3

NEWS

student government

Khan wins SSMU presidency by 78 votes

Elections SSMU announces 2014-2015 executive; voter turnout increases to 31.4 per cent Natalie Wong Staff Writer

A mere 78 votes decided the winner of the presidency for the 2014-15 Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) executive in results released Friday at Gerts.

Tariq Khan, U3 Engineering, was elected as SSMU president with 29.8 per cent of the vote, beating out runner-up Courtney Ayukawa.

Other members of the 20142015 SSMU executive team will include Claire Stewart-Kanigan, Stefan Fong, Kathleen Bradley, Amina Moustaqim-Barrette, and J. Daniel Chaim.

Tariq Khan elected as new president As SSMU president, Khan said he is determined to build strong connections in the coming months.

“Winning these elections is a very small part of [gaining respect],” he said. “[The important thing is] winning the representation, and winning the heart—I know I have to earn a lot of trust. I need to work with you all and I look forward to that.”

Khan explained that his upcoming goals as SSMU president would include increasing a sense of cohesion among SSMU members.

“The first step is uniting the team and that will be a big challenge,” he said. “The long-term goal will be earning the trust back from

students [….] We will advocate for accountability, and I will start off [with] myself.”

SSMU Clubs Representative Billy Liu said he was looking forward to see what next year’s executives, including Khan, would bring forward.

“I’m interested in seeing how sustainability will be incorporated into [Khan’s] portfolio,” Liu said.

“For example, what steps he has planned in sustainability, like specific events, forums, etc., or whether he will hold consultations with other campus groups.”

Elections SSMU issued a public censure on Khan the morning of the last day of voting, which stated that Khan had disregarded the bylaws by asking a non-campaign committee member to send unsolicited text messages to the public.

Khan denied the accusation.

“I was not informed before the censure happened,” Khan said. “I think I should have been consulted and given a chance to represent myself [….] I consulted my campaign manager and he assured me that something from our campaign team did not happen [.…] We will be investigating the entire thing.”

Elections SSMU Chief Electoral Officer Ben Fung said a censure would not affect a candidate after they have won unless there is definitive evidence that the elections were skewed in their favour.

Moustaqim-Barrette celebrates her victory. (Remi Lu / McGill Tribune) Other candidates In the race for vice-president clubs and services, incumbent Stefan Fong received 56.1 per cent of the vote, while his opponent Sandhya Sabapathy received 43.9 per cent.

Amina Moustaqim-Barrette defeated opponent Enbal Singer for the position of vice-president external with 60.2 per cent of the votes.

Three uncontested candidates were also elected—Claire StewartKanigan as vice-president university affairs, Kathleen Bradley as vice-president finances and operations, and J. Daniel Chaim as vicepresident internal.

Increase in voter turnout According to Fung, voter turnout this elections period was impressive in comparison with last year— 29.1 per cent in 2013 versus 31.4 per cent this year.

“That’s almost 500 more people,” he said. “Our job as Elections SSMU is to make sure that it’s a fair and equal election, and [to] get as many people to vote as possible [.…]

I think we did our best to ensure that both of those things happened.”

Fung also described Elections SSMU’s goals to improve future elections.

“We’re looking into expanding the number of events that are going to happen,” he said. “We’re also going to try to rearrange the voting period

and polling period in a way that gives the candidates more time to campaign before the polling period starts.”

Referendum questions Students voted in favour of all referendum questions except for the implementation of the University Centre Building Fee. Questions that passed included those regarding the SSMU First-Year Council Fee, the Organic Campus Fee, disaffiliation from TaCEQ, the Legal Information Clinic at McGill Fee, the Athletics and Recreation Facilities Improvement Fee, the SSMU Access Bursary Fund, the SSMU Ambassador Fund, the SSMU Campus Life Fund, and the SSMU Library Improvement Fund.

student government

New PGSS executive to tackle case against CFS

Graduate students vote to create Midnight Kitchen fee; vote against athletics fee, increase of PGSS membership fee Mayaz Alam Sports Editor Uncontested candidate Juan Camilo Pinto was elected as secretarygeneral for the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) last Friday with 61.3 per cent of the vote.

The remaining six executives for the 2014-15 academic year will be Jennifer Murray, Julien Ouellet, Nikki Meadows, Ge Sa, and Brighita Lungu.

Five of the six executive positions were uncontested. The only contested position was academic affairs officer, where Murray ousted competitor Behrang Sharif with 76.18 per cent of the vote.

Murray attributed her victory to her platform and campaign strategies.

“I tried to raise awareness about my campaign [and] tried to be clear about my platform,” Murray said. “One of the first things I did before running was [making] sure that I understood

student needs […] and what they wanted to do in the future.”

Given the number of positions that were unopposed, many of the executives had the opportunity to work with each other prior to their election.

According to Pinto, they were able to forge bonds and recognize each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

“They’re all very competent, they all have impressive CVs and they have been involved with the [PGSS] for a very long time,” Pinto said. “I think they’re awesome, they’re intelligent, and they’re hard-working. I’ve already talked to them about how we’re all going to manage our resources and projects.”

Incoming Internal Affairs Officer, Sa, expressed excitement at the official results.

“I didn’t know some of the members of our slate before this election but we have grown to understand each other a lot more,” Sa said. “We’ve al-

ready began working together and we will continue to work with each other until June when we take office. We’ll continue to work together as a team.”

Many of the new executives cited their primary concern as the looming legal battle with the Canadian Federation for Students (CFS), an organization that the PGSS has been trying to leave for the past seven years but has been unable to exit despite a successful referendum. For Meadows, the next financial affairs officer, the ability to move past the CFS will allow her to readjust the budget to better cater toward student interests.

“It’s such a huge drain of our resources, and if we can get out of it we will have so many more opportunities,” Meadows said. “It’ll really broaden my portfolio because there will be less money going to a specific place.”

Incoming External Affairs Officer Ouellet said his goal will be to lobby both the provincial and federal Govern-

Pinto and Sa elected for 2014-15 term. (Alexandra Allaire / McGill Tribune) ment for assistance in the CFS case.

“I have a plan as to how I want to start the lobbying process […] but in the next year or the next two years we are going to see a major breakthrough in that case,” Ouellet said. “It’s clear that the CFS has a very weak case against us.”

Saturday also marked the end of the PGSS Winter 2014 referendum period. Members voted against an in-

crease of the PGSS membership fee, as well as against both the McGill Athletics Building Fund and the Graduate Fee Application fee.

The Midnight Kitchen Fee Levy passed with 61.21 per cent of the vote.

Students also voted to increase the PGSS grants program fee, decrease the Needs-Based Bursary fee, and renew the PGSS Health and Dental Plan for the next three years.

Curiosity delivers. | SPEAKER

NEWS

| Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Hillary Clinton makes economic argument for gender equality

3

Former Secretary of State talks Ukraine crisis, North American collaboration, future of political career Jacqueline Galbraith Managing Editor Former U.S. secretary of state, senator, and first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton spoke on issues ranging from female empowerment to the Ukraine crisis last Tuesday in front of a sold-out audience at Palais des Congrès.

Clinton began her talk by addressing the importance of advocating for gender equality in Canada and the United States.

“There are so many opportunities in our own two countries to continue to push the expansion of the rights and opportunities for women and girls, but particularly for Americans and Canadians to do more to open the doors of progress, to create equality and justice everywhere,” she said.

According to Clinton, strong economic arguments are increasingly in favour of full workforce participation from women.

“We see in every country

in the world what difference it would make [...] if women and girls were able to have full access, and participate in the economy to the fullest of their abilities,” she said. “The empirical evidence is compelling. It shows that when women and girls participate throughout the economy, productivity and growth go up, which of course benefits everyone.”

Clinton gave advice to all those in attendance, but particularly for younger women facing criticism or hardship in the workforce.

“One of my favourite predecessors, Eleanor Roosevelt, wrote back in the 1920’s that if a woman enters politics or the public arena, she needs to grow skin as thick as the hide of a rhinoceros,” she said. “What does she mean by that? The way I interpret it is that you have to learn to take criticism seriously but not personally.

After all, our critics can actually turn out to be our best advisors.”

Clinton’s speech was followed by a question and answer session, during which Sophie Brochu, president and CEO of Gaz Métro, a natural gas distributor in Quebec and Vermont, asked Clinton questions on a number of topics, one of which focused on the Ukraine crisis.

“What Putin did is illegal,” Clinton stressed. “It is against international law; it is not because we gave the poor little Baltic states NATO protection. And people need to say that and they need to be very clear that this is a clash of values, and it’s an effort of Putin to rewrite the boundaries of post-World War II Europe.”

Clinton went on to describe her views on what the United States should do to help with the crisis, and concluded with a call to “stand up for our values.”

“What I see is an enormous untapped potential for North American cooperation, within a vision of a partnership that is

truly going to the next level,” Clinton said. “I think we will be stronger—the United States and Canada—the more we can cooperate on key issues, and three of those are energy, the Arctic, and our partnership in NATO.” Leaving the question of possible 2016 presidential candidacy unanswered, Clinton jokingly said the audience “would be the first to know.”

The event, hosted by the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal, was part of the Bell International Leaders series of speakers, past guests of which have included Tony Blair, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Among many notable attendees of Clinton’s speech were Minister of Foreign Affairs John Baird, Quebec Premier Pauline Marois, Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre, and McGill Principal Suzanne Fortier.

Approximately 80 McGill students attended the event, as

well as students from other universities. Fatima Ahmed, U3 Engineering, was pleased at the level of detail in Clinton’s answers.

“I thought she was a great speaker—very inspirational,” Ahmed said. “She really did dig deep into the major political issues that we’re facing currently [….] Whoever was here was very lucky because they got a really good female perspective on all the issues from a very strong lady.”

Diana Luk, U2 Science, was also impressed by Clinton’s ideas.

“She gave me insight on potential plans for the future,” Lukexplained. “Also I like how she explained the economical global situation and possible plans linking energy and environmentallyfriendly issues. Other than that, I was happy to be here just to [hear] how she [became] so successful.”

student government

PGSS takes CFS to court over disassociation referendum

Graduate students embark on second legal battle against student federation; final decision to be released in August Cece Zhang News Editor

The Post-Graduate Students’ Society of McGill University (PGSS) has formally requested that the Quebec Superior Court order the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) to allow PGSS members to vote on leaving the CFS. Councillor and PGSS representative Ge Sa spoke to the Court on March 18. The final decision on the case will be made after a two-day trial on Aug. 28 and 29.

This is the second attempt by PGSS to leave the CFS through a referendum. A previous attempt in 2010 was not recognized by the federation due to a disagreement about the length of the voting period. The case is also cur-

rently in court, as the CFS alleges that PGSS owes them approximately $270,000 in membership fees since the 2010 referendum.

On Oct. 11, Sa mailed a petition to the CFS with more than 2,000 signatures requesting permission to hold another referendum to leave the federation.

A CFS representative acknowledged receiving the petition on Oct. 29.

According to its bylaws, the CFS had 90 days to determine whether the petition was in order. When he did not receive a response in that timeframe, Sa filed court proceedings with the Quebec Superior Court to ensure that PGSS could schedule a referendum to leave the organization.

PGSS Secretary-General Jonathan Mooney explained that although there is no verdict cur-

rently, the trial in August is encouraging and leaves the possibility of a Fall referendum question.

“The judge said [the] final decision would be made over this summer,” Mooney said. “So the decision was fast-tracked—faster than it would be otherwise.”

This trial is part of a sevenyear dispute between PGSS and the federation. Sa explained that PGSS cannot afford to wait for the final verdict on the previous case to disaffiliate, as the membership fees for the federation continue to accumulate by approximately $50,000 per semester.

“The [2010] litigation is ongoing, and will likely drag on for several more years,” Sa said.

“Until that gets resolved, we have to set aside a certain amount

every year as contingency funding. What I’m trying to do is to have a referendum without prejudice to the previous litigation, just to determine from this point onwards, whether PGSS is still a member of CFS through this referendum.”

In addition to the two court cases, PGSS is also working to lobby the government to expand the Act Respecting The Accreditation and Financing of Students’ Associations (ARAFSA) to include regulation of leaving student organizations. They have met with Quebec Higher Education Minister Pierre Duschesne, who has expressed interest in the case, as well as Liberal higher education critic Pierre Arcand, who recently sent a letter to Duschesne in their support.

“Right now [ARAFSA] gives

student organizations the right to be recognized by universities, and the right to assemble and be recognized by universities,” PGSS Financial Affairs Officer Erik Larson said. “But it doesn’t provide any way to disaffiliate from federal organizations.”

According to Sa, the PGSS’ multiple approaches to disaffiliation mean there should be some movement regarding membership this year.

“No matter what the outcomes of the previous litigation may be, we’ll have a referendum to see if we will continue to be a member of the CFS in the Fall semester,” Sa said. “On the other hand, we will push to lobby the government to devise more appropriate and fair approaches to the ways that student organizations should be.”

CONTINUED FROM COVER

Referendum question up for discussion at Council programs.”

The phrasing of the question does not specify what services would be affected or the consequences of a “No” vote.

“Without this fee, the SSMU would have to cut services to students in order to afford rent and

utilities payments to McGill,” the preamble reads.

In addition, there was no “Yes” committee formed to campaign and raise awareness of the question.

Shea acknowledged that SSMU had not done enough throughout the referendum period to inform students.

“I think we didn’t make it clear enough to students how necessary this fee was, which was obviously the fault of myself and Katie [Larson],” she said.

Larson said she hopes students will reconsider their vote in a special referendum for the question.

In order to hold a special referendum, a motion must be submitted to the council steering committee, and then pass by majority in Council.

Ben Reedijk, a member of the steering committee, confirmed that a motion to hold a special referen-

dum had been submitted Monday.

Larson stressed the necessity of passing the motion.

“We literally can’t wait,” Larson said. “We have to pay it this year—it’s not an option.”

4

Tuesday, March 25, 2014 |

campus

NEWS

| Curiosity delivers.

Out-of-province students face difficulities in voter registration Provincial election criteria criticized for vague definition of “domicile” Sam Pinto News Editor An unclear definition of requirements to vote in the upcoming Quebec election has led some students to be refused the right to vote on April 7.

According to the Quebec Election Act, a person has the right to vote if they are at least 18 years of age, are a Canadian citizen, and have been domiciled in Quebec for six months.

Dune Desormeaux, a U3 Engineering student from Vancouver, is one McGill student who has been told he does not have the right to vote due to the fact that he does not meet the domicile requirements.

“What it comes down to basically is the word ‘domiciled,’” Desormeaux said. “That is a term which means that you have an address in a place and you have an intention to make that place your permanent […] place of principal establishment.”

According to the Civil Code of Quebec, a domicile is a place that a person considers his or her personal dwelling, publicly acknowledges as his or her domicile, and gives as reference for the exercise of his or her civil rights.

In addition, in order to prove that an establishment in Quebec is your domicile, you must show intention of making it so.

“Intention is evidenced by

material facts, such as concrete gestures and behaviours,” the code reads.

Desormaux argues that his intention to make Quebec his domicile should be clear—for example, he has worked in Quebec and his family owns land in Montreal.

“My father was born here, my last name is from family that’s been here for a really long time, and I [have spoken] fluent French [...] for 14 years,” Desormaux said.

However, Quebec officials frequently question potential voters, most often out-of-province voters, in order to prove their intention.

Lou-Anne Daoust-Filia-

trault, a McGill alumnus from Montreal who accompanied Desormeaux to the registration office, explained that while many students they spoke to from outof-province were rejected, others with the same backgrounds were accepted.

“Some students are getting it, some students are not,” she said. “I’m sure the law isn’t being applied universally and it’s just completely up to interpretation.”

National media sources have reported that other students have also had difficulties, especially from universities with high outof-province populations such as Concordia and McGill.

“I’m really disturbed by the

way the process is set up—the idea that someone can deny you the right to vote without requesting any additional documentation or having an appeal process,” Sean Beatty, a McGill PhD candidate in virology and bioinformatics from British Columbia, told the CBC .

According to Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Vice-President External Samuel Harris, SSMU will be providing students with information so that they are prepared when they go to the registration office.

“We are going to be sending out information [on how to vote] very soon,” Harris said. “We will be putting out other information on the listserv.”

campus

Anonymous grading sparks debate at Senate Senators call for further emphasis on advising; Dyens promises substantive changes within the next year Erica Friesen Managing Editor The possibility of anonymous exam grading gave rise to debate at Senate last Wednesday.

Discussion stemmed from a report by the Academic Policy Committee, which concluded that there should be no university-wide policy on anonymous evaluations.

Anonymous grading policies have been implemented at other universities worldwide and in McGill’s Faculty of Law. The primary intention is to combat potential biases against students based on personal information that allows the marker to identify the student, their race, or their gender.

According to Provost Anthony Masi, members of the committee did not deem such a policy appropriate for implementation at the university level because grading is under the jurisdiction of individual faculties.

“Suggestions were raised concerning how to deal with this in a manner that would not be too

cumbersome,” he said. “We’re not willing to say this should become university policy through the normal mechanisms. Faculties have the right to do that if they so choose.”

Some senators, however, argued against the committee’s conclusions.

“The basis that we should leave this to the faculties to decide—I’m not sure that’s a good justification for not implementing a policy that affects assessment, because assessment is something that affects all students,” Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) Representative Jonathan Mooney said.

Masi argued that more evidence is needed before the committee can move forward with further recommendations.

“We have no evidence that there is bias in grading at McGill,” he said. “If we had that empirical information, it would be very helpful [.…] I will undertake a McGill study to demonstrate it.”

Other senators argued that McGill does not need a new study

to move forward on the issue.

“There is data that shows this worldwide,” Cameron Butler, Macdonald Campus Students’ Society (MCSS) representative, said. “There are no reasons to consider that McGill is somehow outside of the realm of social injustice, [so] we can logically assume that these issues exist at McGill.”

Faculty of Arts representative and Political Science professor Catherine Lu said providing faculty with potential strategies for avoiding bias would be a more effective solution.

“I’m not sure it’s going to really help to try to figure out empirically [through] a study at McGill whether there is bias,” she said. “We have to think of strategies that actually work given the way that we actually do things in our system.”

University priorities Senate also critiqued and made suggestions for the university’s priorities following a presentation by Principal Suzanne Fortier on McGill’s proposed pri-

orities for the future.

These include emphasizing research; improving the university’s partnerships with alumni and other universities; and maintaining and improving McGill’s physical and digital infrastructure.

Some senators questioned the value of these priorities, noting their lack of substantive, qualitative measures.

“A few things I’ve seen are a bit fluffy and ought to be more well-rounded in what exactly we hope to achieve,” Mooney said. “‘Position McGill research teams at the forefront of knowledge’— that sounds great, but what does it mean? And how are we going to measure that?”

According to Fortier, community approval of these values will lead to another round of consultation to create a concrete plan and to set targets and timelines for reporting on progress.

“We need to know first and foremost: can we at this point mobilize around these areas?” she said.

Other senators praised the

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document’s emphasis on improving academic advising, and stressed the importance of developing concrete results on this topic.

“Students have been very underrepresented in getting advising services,” Faculty of Arts Advisor Ruth Kuzaitis said. “In our particular faculty the ratio is 2,000 students to one advisor [.…] It’s very unfortunate to see students go through their university studies without ever encountering an advisor [to] help navigate a complex system.”

Deputy Provost (Student Life and Learning) Ollivier Dyens assured senators that concrete steps for improving advising should be in action within the next year.

“We already are moving on some things—for example […] we’re building an advising checklist for incoming students,” he said. “We’re going to put an emphasis on pre-arrival advising or early advising so we avoid the bottleneck later on, [and] we’re developing a series of simulators for incoming students.”

Curiosity delivers. | Province

NEWS

| Tuesday, March 25, 2014

The provincial party guide

5

A guide to the main contenders in the upcoming Quebec election Eman Jeddy Staff Writer

Quebec’s General Election is set to take place on April 7, as the province gears up to elect members to the National Assembly.

This year’s election sees four major parties in contention: the incumbent Parti Québécois (PQ) led by Premier Pauline Marois, the Quebec Liberal Party under Phillipe Couillard, Coalition Avenir Québec under leader François Legault, and Québec Solidaire represented by François David and Andres Fontecilla.

The Parti Québécois (PQ) The PQ is the incumbent party of the provincial government, having formed a minority government following their victory in the 2012 general election.

In the last election, the party gained 54 seats—the most among other parties, but insufficient to form a majority government, which requires 63 of 125.

Aligned as centre-left on the political spectrum, the PQ is known for its advocacy for Quebec sovereignty. The question of Quebec sovereignty appears to have re-emerged at the forefront of the platform for the PQ in the upcoming election; however, Marois has insisted that her party will not call for a referendum in

the near future.

In its two years of governance, the PQ has pushed for legislation such as Bill 14, a proposed language law which would have further institutionalized French within Quebec society through mandating usage of French in customer service and the workplace. Another controversial PQ initiative was the Charter of Values—a bill that would ban public sector workers from wearing conspicuous religious symbols. While the party eventually abandoned Bill 14, the Charter of Values remains a topic of controversy given its mixed reception across Quebec.

In terms of its economic platform, the PQ has unveiled a $2 billion job creation program, involving spending on improvement of infrastructure and development of the transportation system, CBC reported.

The Liberal Party Led by Phillipe Couillard, the Parti Québec Liberal is the second largest political party in the province in terms of legislative influence, holding 50 seats in the National Assembly since 2012.

Succeeding Jean Charest as the leader of the Liberal Party in 2012, Couillard has struggled to unify the party’s stance on is-

sues such as the Charter of Values (Bill 60). The Liberal Party initially rejected Bill 60’s proposal in September of last year.

However, in January they took a stance that promoted the ban of some but not all religious symbols, including the chador, niqab, and burka for women working in the public sector, Global News reported.

Coming into the 2014 general election, the Liberal party has shifted their attention toward the economy, with a platform centred around a proposed $1.3 billion in spending cuts in the first two years of government, which they propose to enable by generating revenues through infrastructure development and a careful monitoring of costs. The Liberal Party also promises to generate a budget surplus by the 2015-2016 fiscal year through spending freezes, as reported by the National Post.

Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) “Coalition for Quebec’s Future” is a centre-right party founded and led by former PQ minister François Legault in 2011. In its first election in 2012, the CAQ managed to gain 19 seats in the national assembly.

The CAQ’s platform seeks to divert attention away from

the separationist arguments and focus more on the provincial economy. Legault, a self-made millionaire and one of the founders of Air Transat, is known for his business-friendly approach to the economy, promising a reduction of family taxes as well less bureaucracy and the decentralization of school boards and health agencies, according to CTV News.

The CAQ, like the Liberal Party, supports a compromised version of the Charter of Values that would still restrict religious symbols in the public sector to a certain extent.

Québec Solidaire (QS) Québec Solidaire (QS) is a far-left social democratic party in favour of Quebec sovereignty.

Straying from traditional Party leadership practices, the Party is represented by two co-spokespersons, Francois David and Andres Fontecilla.

Their platform promises to create 160,000 new jobs, favour alternate forms of energy, and invest $400 million to help hire more medical professionals in the province. The QS currently holds two seats in the National Assembly. The party also rejects the PQ’s proposed Charter of Values.

The election race As of March 19, the Liberal Party held a five point lead over the Parti Québécois in a poll conducted by Ipsos Reid for CTV. Results showed that 37 per cent of voters would support the Liberals in an election, compared with 32 per cent for the PQ, 16 per cent for Coalition Avenir Québec, and 10 per cent for Québec Solidaire. However, the PQ remains the popular party among francophones, with 38 per cent saying they would vote for the party compared to 29 per cent who would vote for the Liberal party.

Students looking to vote must be entered on the list of electors and, on voting day: - Be at least 18 years old.

- Be a Canadian citizen.

- Have lived in Quebec for at least six months.

Students can register to vote at their local Board of Revisors.Voting locations depend on your registered riding. Students can check their entry on to the list of electors by logging on to the Quebec Elections webpage. http://www.electionsquebec.qc.ca/ english/

QUEBEC ELECTION SUPPORT POLL Infographic by Hayley Lim 5% Other 32% Parti Québécois Pauline Marois 37% Québec Liberal Party Phillipe Couillard

MARCH 19 POLL RESULTS FROM CTV’S IPSOS REID SHOW A MAJORITY OF SUPPORT FOR THE QUÉBEC LIBERAL PARTY.

10% Québec Solidaire François David and Andres Fontecilla 16% Coalition avenir Québec François Legault

opinion editorial

THE Mcgill

Editor-in-Chief Carolina Millán Ronchetti editor@mcgilltribune.com

SSMU ‘outreach’ on building fee yet another abdication of duty “Whereas, without this fee the SSMU would have to cut services to students in order to afford the rent and utilities payments to McGill” This line, snugly hidden within one of the 11 questions posed by the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Winter 2014 referendum and jostling for voter attention, was probably read by a few of the two-thousand some students who voted against both parts of the “Implementation of the University Center Building Fee.” It’s doubtful that voters took it seriously.

The two-part question—which sought to institute a fee of $6.08 per semester and index said fee to a 5.6 per cent annual increase until 2021—was intended to raise the money needed to pay the increases in the newly negotiated lease with McGill for use of the SSMU building. It was also the only referendum question to fail. Judging by the thoughts expressed by various SSMU executives before and after the results were revealed, this question was the most important of those that were before the voters.

Funny that no one noticed.

The alleged necessity of this fee stems from the new lease terms that SSMU recently concluded negotiating with McGill. The new terms include an increase in the rent from $126,900 to $165,000 over 10 years, as well as

charges for the utilities costs for the building—previously gratis—to the tune of $100,000 per year, subject to annual inflation-related increases. SSMU is also on the hook for the retroactive payment of the three years during which this agreement was being negotiated.

“We can only hope that the incoming executives take into account the lessons of this situation; actually telling students why their votes matter before they happen would be a good start.”

When looking at the terms in front of students now, it is dubious how well SSMU held on to any sort of negotiating position vis-a-vis McGill. What is clear is that SSMU, as it stands, does not have the money to pay these new rates without substantial changes to its budget. The global budget for this Fall was already close to a deficit, factoring in an estimate as to the increase in the building’s rent. When this newspaper endorsed the fee referendum, we did so expressing reservations, “as to the lack of concrete or even semi-tangible context as to how SSMU will re-allocate funds in the event of a “No” vote.” It now seems that there was no plan at all.

Considering then, how necessary the new infusion of cash promised by the referendum was to the continued functioning of SSMU, there was a substantial lack of awareness generated on the subject. Outside of a few quotes scattered throughout student media pieces on the upcoming elections, there was no outreach from SSMU to students expressing the importance of this fee.

There was no “Yes” committee, and thus, no social media outreach, no posters, and doubtless little organizing at the grassroots level. What makes the lack of effort here even more galling is that there seems to be a sense that the mess SSMU finds itself here is solely, or even mostly, the fault of the students. There certainly is something to be said for the contention that students can’t be bothered to care for student politics—even in the cases when it genuinely matters.

However, there is also a certain level of hutzpah required to place a critical—and substantial—fee increase before students without explaining why they should care, then excoriating the irresponsibility of these students (the people SSMU ostensibly represents) when they balk at an extra $12 per year charge.

Doubly disheartening is the fact that this fee referendum is not the first time this kind of negligence on the part of the SSMU executive has happened this year.

Last Fall, the SSMU General Assembly

(GA) was attended by a mere 50 students, not even meeting the already exceptionally low bar of 100 students for quorum.

Under-attended GAs are part and parcel of McGill student politics, but even compared to that baseline, the SSMU executive put little effort into raising awareness of the forum, disregarding its own mandate. As we editorialized under a similar headline (Oct 16, 2013), “The passivity demonstrated by the executive towards involving students in the political process is troubling [and] indicative of a disregard for the input of the membership at large.” The inability to meet quorum also left SSMU unable to appoint a Board of Directors (BoD) for this year, which rendered it unable to update its investment portfolio and put the renewal of its license to operate Gerts in jeopardy.

Lo and behold, a special GA was convened, and an actual effort at outreach was made. Quorum was reached and maintained, and SSMU had a BoD. The only problem: time and resources were wasted by not doing it right the first time.

How the SSMU manages to wriggle out of the corner it has painted itself into here remains to be seen. We can only hope that the incoming executives take into account the lessons of this situation; actually telling students why their votes matter before they happen would be a good start.

Ben Reedijk Commentary

SSMU has made its fair share of mistakes this year. We messed up frosh.

We messed up on the Farnan apology. We certainly messed up on the building referendum. But all these mistakes would pale in comparison to the mistake President Larson seems to be planning on making. A re-referendum would be a slap in the faces of students and an affront to democracy.

I study democracy—both from the political science and the theory side. It is really complicated, and rarely cut and dry. For example, should President-elect Khan have to advance to a run-off against runner-up Ayukawa? He only received 78 more votes than her—less than 30 per cent of the total votes—and that’s before we count the abstentions so beloved by McGill Memes (which pointed out that more voters abstained than actually voted for Khan). According to SSMU bylaws,

Khan is a democratically elected president. But if this were France, he wouldn’t be, and many theorists would argue he is not. Again: democracy is almost never cut and dry.

There are, however, some pretty basic principles. One of them is that under no circumstances do you re-run referendums. Doing so is a wildly abusive act because it allows for the institution that controls referendums—in this case SSMU— to run referendums ad nauseum until it gets the result it wants. If that’s the plan, we should really just stop kidding ourselves, ignore the constitution (because we’re probably about to abuse it anyways), and just hike student fees unilaterally.

Actually, that would have been a preferable option. As insulting as it would have been to charge students without asking them, it’s far more damaging to ask them and then ignore their answer. Compounding matters and showing that we really just don’t get why students see us as disconnected, apparently the line from the executives is that students just didn’t pay enough attention, so they are going to get another try at making the ‘right’ choice.

Even North Korea is generous enough to provide just one option on the ballot in the

first place and save everybody some time.

The reality is that we don’t want to accept responsibility for our own mistakes.

SSMU ignored the recommendations of a couple of councillors and chose political correctness over principle and common sense when they censured Farnan. There was a profound willingness to listen when students en masse protested against the apology. It actually took the Black Students’ Network coming to Council and pleading with us to reverse the apology and to stop making a mockery of the equity process.

We weren’t done. Organic Campus came to Council asking for a 20-cent fee levy. We asked them why, and they told us that it was because they will otherwise have to raise costs next year in order to operate. We asked them how much and they hadn’t run the numbers. Because its easier to get Council to vote in a fee levy (which then gets passed because Organic Campus campaigned for it and nobody campaigns against 20-cent fee levies) than it is to actually do math. But at Council, again, we didn’t feel offended enough by that assertion to scrap the referendum on the levy.

Concerns from myself and Councillor Élie Lubendo that perhaps the plethora

Production Manager Steven Lampert slampert@mcgilltribune.com News Editors Jessica Fu, Sam Pinto, and Cece Zhang news@mcgilltribune.com Opinion Editor Abraham Moussako opinion@mcgilltribune.com Science & Technology Editor Caity Hui scitech@mcgilltribune.com Student Living Editor Marlee Vinegar studentliving@mcgilltribune.com Features Editor Jenny Shen features@mcgilltribune.com Arts & Entertainment Editor Max Berger arts@mcgilltribune.com Sports Editors Mayaz Alam and Remi Lu sports@mcgilltribune.com Photo Editors Alexandra Allaire and Wendy Chen photo@mcgilltribune.com Creative Director Alessandra Hechanova ahechanova@mcgilltribune.com Design Editors Hayley Lim and Maryse Thomas design@mcgilltribune.com Copy Editor Adrien Hu copy@mcgilltribune.com Advertising Executives Spoon Jung and Daniel Kang ads@mcgilltribune.com Publisher Chad Ronalds

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Jonathan Fielding (Chair), Anand Bery, Abhishek Gupta, Adrien Hu, Steven Lampert, Chris Liu, Carolina Millán Ronchetti, and Simon Poitrimolt

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Commentary

Fool me twice, shame on SSMU

Managing Editors Ben Carter-Whitney bcarterwhitney@mcgilltribune.com Erica Friesen efriesen@mcgilltribune.com Jacqueline Galbraith jgalbraith@mcgilltribune.com

Prativa Baral, Max Bledstein, Wyatt Fine-Gagné, Osama Haque, Eman Jeddy, Chelsey Ju, Paniz Khosroshahy, Alycia Noë, Kia Pouliot, Aaron Rose, Samiha Sharif, Julie Vanderperre, Elie Waitzer, and Natalie Wong

Contributors

of fee increases might lead to a backlash were politely ignored.

Finally, we showed the same disdain we have for students—those pesky, apolitical students—by not even campaigning for our fee. So if you’re keeping score at home, SSMU has now embarrassed itself with Farnangate, ignored the reaction of student body entirely, put to shame by the Black Students Network, shown zero respect for students’ wallets (frosh and Organic Campus), and a lack of respect for their ability to say enough by running nine fee increases at the same time and not campaigning for our own.

The line from SSMU is that those students just didn’t know what they were doing: “Gerts is going to be gone!’” “SACOMSS as well!”

(Wrong: Gerts is highly profitable and not going anywhere, and SACOMSS is separately funded.)

The problem isn’t the students. The problem is SSMU. If this vote doesn’t make us realize that, nothing will.

Ben Reedijk is an Arts Representative to SSMU, and sits on SSMU Council.

The views represented here are his alone.

Morgan Alexander, Laurie-Anne Benoit, Tara Boghosian, Will Burgess, Laura Hanrahan, Tim Logan, Shadia Marun, Max Mehran, Amina MoustaqimBarrette, Kyle Ng, Ben Reedijk, Zikomo Smith, and Courtney Strouthos, and Ruidi Zhu

Tribune Office Shatner University Centre Suite 110, 3480 McTavish Montreal, QC H3A 0E7 T: 514.398.6789 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.

A Campus conversation:

The Anglo vote in quebec

Editor’s note: As the race to the Quebec provincial election on April 7 intensifies, the role that students should play, especially those with a permanent residence outside the province, has become a defining issue in the campaign. Amid allegations of voter suppression against students with out of province residences, the ruling Parti Quebecois have claimed that there have been irregularities in voter registration among these students, claims swiftly debunked by the electoral office. With the issues at stake—the charter, university funding, and more, we convened several students and groups to ask: what should be the role of the anglophone student vote in the Quebec election?

Both a right and a responsibility

Amina Moustaqim-Barrette SSMU VP External elect

This question of the role of the anglophone students’ vote in Quebec provincial elections comes in the wake of

accusations against the Parti Québécois for trying to bar anglophone participation in the upcoming elections. Students are being turned away this year for insufficient proof of being “domiciled” in the province. While in the 2012 provincial election students were eligible to vote by showing up with photo ID and proof of residency for six months or more, they are now being asked for proof of permanent residency (a health card, driver’s license, etc). Though the

details around these new rules remain unclear, this could mean that a large majority of out-of-province students will be systematically barred from voting in the upcoming election.

For the past week, I have had several conversations about whether out-ofprovince students should be able to participate in the provincial elections. Quite a few people have argued that because many anglophone students are out-ofprovince, and because many out-of-

Ruidi Zhu / McGill Tribune

province students will only be staying in Quebec for four years and then leaving, they should not be entitled to the vote.

While this is true, and while many of these students are not invested in Quebec’s future after their studies, I can’t help but think back to the 2012 election and how drastically that has affected students in the past couple of years. People who were students in 2012 and are still studying have been directly affected by the results of those elections, including

decisions the PQ government has made on university funding.

Given the nature and fluidity of political change, I think that it is imperative that any student residing in another province for school has the opportunity to have their voice heard. If the decision made in this election has anywhere as drastic an impact on students as it did in 2012, I would argue that it is the right and responsibility of every student to go out and vote.

Voter supression must be stymied at all costs

Kyle Ng

Commentary One would expect voter suppression and the arbitrary application of electoral rules to be the exclusive hallmark of states like North Korea, Syria, or perhaps Russian-controlled Crimea. The reality is we might have more in common with those regimes than we would like to believe.

Official voting policy for Quebec reads as follows: one must be 18 years of age, and a Canadian citizen. One must also have been “domiciled” in the province for at least six months and have proof to back up this claim. It is this policy—and the arbitrary interpretation by a three person board of revisors—that are being used to deny students like myself the right to vote in the general election.

I am a Canadian student who has resided in Quebec for four years. I have moved between apartments, but have

not left the province for any substantive amount of time. I have held several jobs in the province and recently had my driver’s licence transferred. Though my family resides in British Columbia, for all intents and purposes, the whole duration of my adult life thus far has been invested in Quebec.

Unfortunately, these qualifications did not satisfy the three-person board of revisors. Yes, I was a Canadian citizen.

Yes, I had reached 18 years of age. Yes, I had resided in the province for at least six months. All these facts and their supporting documents were not disputed.

Yet, the panel saw fit to pronounce their judgment upon me: I was not enough of a “citizen”; I did not “have the proper profile.”

What is a proper profile? Apparently, it consists of some nebulous combination of Medicare card, driver’s license, tax records, bank account location, and the arbitrary opinion of the three panelists on whether you ‘belong’ to the province. When pressed, the board could not provide a substantive minimum requirement to establish a

“profile”—apparently, this concept is so confusing, that each case must be judged separately, rather than by substantive legal criteria. It is worth noting that the most commonly cited piece of documentation that establishes this “profile” is the possession of Régie de l’assurance maladie (RAMQ) Medicare card, which also happens to be explicitly prohibited for out-of-province students.

It also apparently matters which school you attend. On presenting my letter of enrolment, the three panelists gave it one look of haughty disdain, before summarily stating that nine out of 10 students from English universities don’t stay in the province.” While the veracity of this fact is debatable, I am more outraged that the arbitrary opinions of three people, each with their own biases and blind spots, are able to deny me the right to vote in the general election.

This was the summer of 2012 during the registration period for the elections leading to the victory of a minority Parti Québécois (PQ) government.

Since then, I have been registered on the provincial voter’s list by virtue of a

municipally sanctioned board of revisors’ interpretation of “domicile.” Same application, same qualifications, but different people, and different politics.

As hundreds of other students are documenting the same experience, it is time that we take a stand. While the suppression is primarily gripping students, the bitterness of identity politics that fuels the necessity of these requirements commands all of our attention. The choice of whether we wish to welcome those who are different into our body politic once a reasonable criterion is met is a central question for any democracy.

There are those who would agree that such rigour is required in order to maintain the integrity of a voter’s list comprised of individuals with the intention of staying and investing in Quebec.

Even though out-of-province students tend to have whimsical plans about everything from courses to the next meal they might cook, these are not grounds for such obstructionism. Intention is only known by the individual, and is certainly not connoted by how many bureaucratic hoops one is able to jump

through.

Even more important are the intentions of the potential governing parties themselves. The right to vote is one derived from the power of the state to affect the life of the individual voter. It is not solely derived, as some have argued, from the contribution of labour, taxation, and the intention to continue to contribute to this province (even though some if not all of these are already demonstrated).

A government that intends to obtain a mandate to shape the very fabric of society in Quebec requires a rigorous election. A party that has declared its intention to regulate the religious garb of public university students cannot be elected by a process that has been repeatedly shown to exclude these students.

Wherever we might stand on various political issues, it is imperative that we challenge these unjust electoral practises and interpretations. Our democracy is only as strong as we defend it, and we have no business promoting these values abroad unless we properly govern our own.

To vote or not to vote: a moral and logistical quandary

Tim Logan

Commentary

On Friday, Mathieu Vandal, head of the election revision board for a downtown Montreal riding, resigned over concerns that large numbers of non-francophones were registering to vote in the upcoming election without proper screening. At a press conference on Sunday, Parti Québécois (PQ) candidates accused “people from Ontario and the rest of Canada” of trying to “steal” the election. Amid these accusations were reports that McGill and Concordia students who appear to qualify as voters

according to the minimum registration requirements are being disallowed from registering to vote. Later on Sunday, Québec’s chief electoral officer said there was no evidence of an “irregular increase in voter registration.”

Each time there is a provincial election in Quebec, there is a discussion on campus as to whether or not McGill students should vote in it. This election has raised a more heated discussion than usual, as a result of our widespread opposition to the PQ’s Charter of Values. Passions aside, there are two questions at work here: can we vote, and should we?

On the first question, there are certainly some of us that can—people originally from Québec, for example (though the specific riding in which they should vote is still at issue). For the rest of us, it is much less clear.

There are three specific requirements for registration: Canadian citizen-

ship, residence in Québec for at least six months, and intention to make Québec your principal residence. The first two are straightforward; the third is not and needs clarification.

This aside, the more interesting question is “Should we vote?” If you plan on living here permanently, you absolutely should. How about those of us that don’t?

The main argument I’ve heard in the past weeks for students voting regardless of long-term residency is keeping the PQ from a majority government. This isn’t a very good argument, if only because it is currently far from clear that the PQ will form a government at all. Polls are giving the Liberals an edge that varies from two per cent to double-digits.

Moreover, the ridings in downtown Montreal where students who weren’t already residents of Quebec tend to live are basically decided— two are solidly Liberal, two are PQ,

and one is held by Quebec Solidaire. These ridings seem unlikely to change hands. Ultimately, whether the PQ forms a government will be decided in the 97 ridings outside the Liberal-dominated island of Montreal. Considering the vote distribution, student-voting won’t make a difference in the ability of the PQ to form a government.

You could also argue for students voting in order to increase the budget of their preferred party through Quebec’s per-vote subsidy of $1.50 (which increases to $2.50 in an election year). While this reasoning has some logical merit, in reality, the impact on any party would likely be fairly small because there are relatively few of us. In my mind, this makes moral considerations more important. Simply put, it is immoral for a person to vote if they will not have to deal with the consequences of that vote. Doing so is unfair to those

who will.

We allow people the right to vote because we believe that people should be able to make decisions about the character and the quality of the society in which they live. If they reside in or are leaving to another, with no plans to return, they have no right to a say in this one.

If Quebec is your permanent residence, you should vote. If you are planning on making Quebec your permanent residence after you graduate, you should vote. If you are a first- or second-year student and you will be studying at McGill for the rest of your degree, you too should vote as you will be living here for several more years. But if, like me, you’re an upper-year student from elsewhere in Canada with a distaste for xenophobic populism, it’s not your choice to make.

In election, it’s common ground that matters

Liberal McGill Commentary

With the latest poll from Ipsos Reid showing a decline in support for the Parti Québécois, it is clear that voters are turning away from politicians who seek to divide the people of the province and rely on the fear and fervour created by wedge

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issues.

The question of the anglophone role in the Quebec elections is more than just a question of how to vote; it is a question of what kind of politics we want to see both now and in the future. To some extent, we should reject the question “What should the anglophone role be?” Politicians have been content to play off of linguistic divisions in order to score cheap political points. While it is not unreasonable to use these electoral cleavages to analyze voting tendencies, asking what the an-

glophone vote should select presupposes that it should be a bloc.

The risk then is that we, instead of thinking of ourselves as varied individuals defined by a variety of political interests, choose to pit ourselves against each other by the sheer assumption that we care more about our language than the issues that we all face together.

The Liberal Party of Canada has been, is, and always will be a federalist party. This means we support a country that celebrates our differences, unites

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multiple interests into a national vision, and seeks to enable the achievement of those interests through a strong economy that supports Canada’s middle class. As far as what the role of the anglophone vote should be, it should be to do more than just vote. It should be to have a voice that speaks out against the divisive politics of fear that leaders perpetuate. It should be a voice that demands to hear solutions, not just problems. It should be a voice that seeks to reach out to other communities, and not just shrink within

itself in fear of discrimination. For while fear is a powerful motivator, the solutions it provides are often not sustainable.

We do not want to divide our nation.

Relying on an anglophone identity performs a disservice to all Quebecers—regardless of their primary language—who have the hope to pursue their ideas for a sustainable future, a strong economy, and are willing to devote the hard work needed to achieve those goals. It’s time we demand an environment that allows us to put those ideas forward.

Science & technology SCIENCE

Anti-vaccination platforms risk disease re-emergence Developed countries have recently experienced come-back cases of once eradicated diseases Prativa Baral Staff Writer Over the past few years, there has been a massive cultural movement towards distrusting vaccinations. A Google search of “Vaccines are…” results in hits such as “Vaccines are bad,” “Vaccines are dangerous,” and “Vaccines are poison.” In fact, 20 per cent of Canadian websites and 70 per cent of American websites promote anti-vaccination platforms, according to a talk about vaccine wars by researcher Brian Wald.

The distrust in vaccines is largely attributed to a 1998 publication connecting the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine (MMR) to autism. The research was conducted by former British surgeon Andrew Wakefield and published in the journal The Lancet. While further investigation indicated that no link between the two has ever been proved, it took 12 years for the paper to be discredited and removed from the journal. By that point, the public had already become suspicious as to the effects of vaccines.

Celebrities, too, play a factor in

Mother comforts daughter during measles outbreak in the National Capital Region of india. (gmanews.tv) this trend. American actress Jenny McCarthy is well known for her antivaccination platform, claiming, alongside Wakefield, that vaccines led to her son’s autism. Despite a gaping lack of scientific evidence, McCarthy’s celebrity status gave her the means to promote this anti-vaccination movement, albeit with poor scientific practice.

Unfortunately, this fear of vac-

Research briefs Drugs and Down syndrome

For the past 25 years, Roger Reeves, a professor and researcher at Johns Hopkins University, has been growing brains—in particular, the cerebellum. By targeting this area of the nervous system, Reeves hopes to develop a treatment for Down syndrome, a condition caused by inheriting a third copy of chromosome 21. Down syndrome is responsible for a variety of symptoms experienced by affected individuals, including cognitive delays, birth defects, and behavioural problems.

Reeves decided to target Down syndrome during his postdoctorate studies because of its complexity and the challenges it posed. Down syndrome patients have a significantly smaller cerebellum than the majority of the population—40 per cent less in many cases—that contributes to some of the developmental and behavioural problems experienced. In response, Reeves has been investigating compounds that promote growth of this portion of the brain.

Recently, the team discov-

ered a small molecule that mimics growth factor, a hormone capable of stimulating cellular proliferation. Using mice engineered with a reduced cerebellum, the team injected this chemical on the day of their birth and observed as the affected part of the brain was entirely restored.

However, the team was surprised that in addition to the restored cerebellum, the mice improved their learning abilities.

Three months after the treatment, they could successfully find their way to the end point platform of a water maze. This type of learning is associated with another aspect of the brain known as the hippocampus, which is responsible for memory formation. Although the researchers are unsure as to the exact effects of the drug on this part of the brain, they plan on conducting further research to better elucidate this observation.

“The possibility of actually giving Down syndrome people the ability to improve learning and memory significantly—that’s something that I never thought I’d see in my entire career,” said

cination has led to a re-emergence of diseases once easily managed with immunization. There have been reported outbreaks of whooping cough, measles, mumps, rubella, and polio in the last year or so, in countries where these vaccines are readily available.

Eduardo L. Franco, Chair of the Department of Oncology and director of Cancer Epidemiology at McGill, is

frustrated with today’s anti-vaccination lobbying. He explains that these myths are difficult to dispel, and are having a huge consequence not only on the public’s views of vaccinations, but also on the choices people make.

For instance, anti-vaccination groups have claimed that there is no proof that the HPV vaccine prevents cervical cancer. Franco questions this particular argument, stating that research suggests otherwise.

“The vaccine has high efficacy in preventing pre-cancerous lesions,” he said.“That’s enough proof [to indicate that the vaccine works]. What would you do? Wait until the cancer happens? What if we had done the same with polio in the 1940s?”

Franco refers to the polio epidemic that ravaged North America during the 1900s. In 1916, polio outbreaks resulted in 27, 000 cases in the United States with over 6,000 deaths.

The disease and associated panic spread until it reached a climax during the 1940s and ‘50s. In 1952 alone, there were over 57,000 reported cases leaving about 21,000 victims paralyzed.

In response to this epidemic, the Salk vaccine came to the rescue, followed by the oral polio vaccine that led to an abrupt decline in cases post immunization. By 1961, only 161 cases were reported in the United States.

While it is important that the public is making more informed decisions about what is being injected into their bodies, this decision should be based on legitimate statistics, as opposed to Google searches. One solution could be disclosing a risk-to-benefit ratio of vaccines to educate the public about the strength of vaccinations.

To date, researchers are questioning the validity of the anti-vaccination debate. In one of his lectures in MIMM 387 Franco debated why we should even question something that has proved to save millions of lives in the past. If more and more people opt out of vaccinations, once-eradicated diseases could continue to make a stronger appearance—an appearance that may not be protected by the vaccines we currently have available.

Compiled by Caity Hui Reeves to Scientific American.

“And it’s now happening. The game has changed.”

Google Glass medical care

improves

The doctors in the emergency room of Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconness Medical Center beg a second glance—glaring above the sea of white lab coats are neon tinted Google Glasses.

Google Glass was developed in February 2013 and fits over the eyes like any pair of eyeglasses.

However, unlike regular glasses, they are equipped with a camera and software that allows users to connect to the Internet, upload video, and open files, among other applications.

While Google Glass has many applications, groups of doctors are trying to integrate this technology into the medical workplace.

One such doctor is Van Lancker, an orthopedic surgical resident at the Montreal General hospital.

Two years ago, he wrote a letter to Google after learning about its Google Glass Explorer program.

As one of 10,000 individuals

Wearing Google Glass, doctors could provide assistance to physicians in remote communities. (dailymail.co.uk) accepted into the program, Lancker is trying to push the boundaries as to how Google Glass can be used in hospitals. Rather than focusing on patient care, he is currently trying to determine its application in the operating room.

To date, Lancker foresees glass playing a critical role in mobile medicine. The technology would allow medical specialists in Montreal to assist doctors in remote communities, providing instructions in real time on how to perform more difficult proce-

dures.

Lancker also envisions Google Glass as a key teaching tool. One of the problems faced with training medical residents is a lack of space in the operating room. Google Glass would provide students with the opportunity to view a video from the doctor’s perspective without being in the examination room—a valuable tool that would allow them to better visualize the procedure.

FEATURES |10

A university’s role in fostering social entrepreneurship

By Alessandra Hechanova

Canada’s social economy is replete with innovators inspired by a global consciousness that transforms oppression into opportunity. It is a sector that is neither publicly nor privately controlled and touts one of the fastest growth rates in the country.

According to Statistics Canada, nonprofit industries contributed $35.6 billion to the national economy in 2007, exceeding the value added by the agricultural industry more than two-fold and that of the motor vehicle manufacturing industry several times over. Within the social economy, entrepreneurs are leveraging the market system to think critically for solutions to the world’s most pressing economic, environmental, and social problems.

Through critical interdisciplinary learning, niche mentorship, and networking opportunities, academic institutions like McGill are positioned to foster the talents of young innovators who inaugurate and add value to organizations within one of the fastest-growing sectors of the Canadian economy.

And much like a university cannot be represented by one feature, its methods for encouraging students to engage in the social economy can be seen at multiple levels of the institution.

Emulating empathy: a pedagogy of interdisciplinarity Industry Canada reported that 98 per cent of higher education institutions in the country offer at least one course in entrepreneurship; however, entrepreneurs surveyed by the 2013 Ernst & Young (EY) G20 Entrepreneurship Barometer were critical of Canada’s lack of coordinated support for entrepreneurship and weak mentorship opportunities. In 2012,

the Desautels Faculty of Management began to institutionalize a pedagogy tailored to address this issue by launching MGPO 434, an undergraduate elective called “Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation.”

Anita Nowak, former integrating director of the faculty’s Social Economy Initiative (SEI) and professor of MGPO 434, noted how social entrepreneurship can invigorate new forms of academic instruction.

“It is a catalyst for different ways of teaching across the entire university system,” Nowak said. “Social innovation is about systems change. Any specific problem in one area has its tentacles in other issues, and systems-thinking addresses this holistically.”

Mentorship and outreach occupy a central place in the curriculum of Nowak’s popular course. The class features guestspeakers who serve as role models in the social economy.

The momentum of what Nowak coins the “social entrepreneurship zeitgeist” is establishing its foothold in the Faculty of Management, as the SEI plans to scale its efforts to offer related courses relevant to the social economy.

However, Nowak still sees room for improvement.

“There should be more opportunities that intentionally foster cross-border interdisciplinarity between management and other faculties,” Nowak said, emphasizing the ability of universities to magnetize and bring together the world’s brightest minds. “Every faculty on campus can contribute to social innovation. The convergence of different ways of problemsolving situates social entrepreneurship now in a great moment in time.”

Universities are often able to instigate important and informed conversations about specific social problems that can benefit from interdisciplinary dialogue and experiential learning.

U3

International Management student Joanna Klimczak and McGill alumnus Mariana Botero worked tirelessly to pioneer the new Social Business and Social Enterprise Concentration within the faculty. They were both conscious of the advantage of interdisciplinary studies in the context of social innovation. This option allows Management students to integrate classes that focus on corporate social responsibility and social impact with those offered under the International Development Studies curriculum, in addition to other related courses outside the Faculty of Management.

As McGill moves forward, Klimczak hopes the new concentration will serve as fuel to energize a new generation of business leaders.

“It’s one thing to create an idea, and another to make it happen in a large institution with resource limits,” said Klimczak. “While certain management courses definitely [impart] skills for social entrepreneurship, this concentration will be a lot more encompassing.”

The university will thus be urged by students to temper its desire for innovation with the constraints of its structure as an administration.

“McGill is taking a step in the right direction, but its bureaucracy as an institution stifles innovation,” said Sean Reginio, U3 Arts, who completed Nowak’s course last Fall. “Procedures as simple as room-booking for meetings and venues on campus are difficult in an institution of McGill’s size.”

U3 Management student Nikita Pillai echoed this sentiment.

“McGill is a mecca for talent and skill,” Pillai said. “But, for as long as bureaucratic red tape exists, there will be inertia in academic innovation.”

Fostering confidence and competition Throughcompetitionsandmentorship opportunities, universities can become micro-environments with the potential to address gaps in the public sector’s existing services supporting young entrepreneurs.

According to Industry Canada, these shortcomings include unreliable access to start-up funds, long-term mentoring, and restrictions on a young entrepreneur’s eligibility for government assistance.

HackMcGill and Computer Science Undergraduate Society’s (CSUS) McHacks—a 24-hour interuniversity undergraduate hackathon—and the McGill Dobson Cup, a start-up competition, provide world-class mentorship opportunities from industry professionals and encourage inter-disciplinary solutionmaking.

“The Dobson cup could be the natural springboard for social enterprises to launch by gaining exposure to key impact investors,” Nowak said. “If [students] don’t have interface opportunities, innovation may never happen.”

Rewarding ingenuity through mentorship and thousands of dollars can make the formative difference in helping a young entrepreneur overcome significant barriers when starting a venture.

“I always knew that I had an interest in entrepreneurship, but it’s risky,” said U3 Arts Jessica Wang­—who won first prize at the Dobson Cup in its social enterprise track. She and with her partner Jassi Pannu co-founded Sanitru, a social enterprise dedicated to reducing the incidence of drug treatment errors. “The social and financial support network gave me

“Social inn not just th of the mo the refrai genera

11 | FEATURES

2

million

Paid employees in canada’s core nonprofit sector in 2006

$35.6

98%

canadian higher education institutions offer at least one course in entrepreneurship

billion

GDP of the core non-profit sector in 2007

44%

surveyed entrepreneurs see improvement in access to tertiary entrepreneurship programs Sources: Canada Revenue Agency, 2008 Statistics Canada, 2009 The EY G20 Entrepreneurship barometer 2013

the confidence to pursue entrepreneurship.

If we hadn’t won the Dobson, I don’t know if I would have tried.”

More so than through pedagogy, the university steps up to its role as a true catalyst for social innovation by galvanizing networking opportunities outside of the classroom.

McGill regularly mobilizes its resources to sponsor summits and symposiums that give students exclusive opportunities to interface with high-profile leaders and social entrepreneurs at little to no cost. Within the past academic year alone, McGill welcomed Thomas Mulcair, Justin Trudeau, former vicepresident of the United States Al Gore, and Elizabeth May. Mentorship often inspires a certain veneer of confidence in young innovators to consider a vocation in social entrepreneurship.

“I didn’t plan for [Nobel Peace Prize winner] Muhammad Yunus to come to Montreal […but] I approached him at a global leadership summit at McGill about [starting] an incubator and accelerator for young people,” said Klimczak, who is also the President and Co-founder of myVision, a student-run business that focuses on creating social business projects. “He told me to envision the world and how you live in it. Then you can create that world.

That’s how myVision was born.”

The myVision initiative leverages education as the fulcrum to resolve local challenges within Montreal, providing university and high school students with an understanding of how social business projects can sustain palpable communitylevel change.

“Social business was a way for me to personally integrate my life, career, and care for community,” Klimczak said.

novation is he flavour onth, but ain of our ation.”

Opportunity within the campus network A major advantage of a campus environment is the wide array of clubs and organizations as well as internships offered to university students.

Internship programs facilitated through individual faculties at McGill also foster a social ecology that makes academic development come alive through praxis. New to Desautels is the SEI impact internship program which partners students with Montreal-based non-profit organizations engaged in social finance and fostering social innovation such as the Jeanne Sauvé Foundation and Artistri Sud. “The network I have moving forward is way bigger than it ever would have been if I had never [attended] university,” admitted Reginio, who completed an SEI impact internship during its pilot year in 2013. “The intuition you gain about how to lead and manage the human dynamics of a team is from practice with real experience—everything [outside] the classroom. Through niche opportunities and experiences [facilitated by] McGill, I became comfortable with the idea of entrepreneurship as a potential career.”

The number of possibilities for student engagement in McGill’s hundreds of clubs and services has the potential to impart crucial skills that can add significant value for would-be entrepreneurs.

“A general skill-set derives from an executive position […] in extracurricular leadership,” said Pillai, who is also the former vice president external of McGill Women in Leadership. “Student organizations tend to have specific mandates, and students learn to tailor their communications and sell their ideas in accordance with that mandate.”

McGill’s robust approach to social innovation is supported by a campuswide ethos

supporting of community engagement.

This operates on several scales through outward-oriented initiatives such as the Social Equity and Diversity Education (SEDE) office’s Community Engagement day and faculty-level working groups such as the Arts Community Engagement Committee. The university is able to further encourage critical thinking about social initiatives through inward-oriented social financing opportunities such as the McGill Sustainability Projects Fund and through the dozens of charitable organizations, leadership accelerators, and social activism groups that are financed by the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU).

The university-wide commitment to community engagement also helps to form networks that indirectly nurture the seedlings of students’ visions of social change into concrete projects.

Saba Balvardi, U2 Science, arrived at McGill from a small village in Iran with an initiative to address the pediatric health concerns of underserved communities in the southern province of her country, but lacked the network to do so. Meeting likeminded students with similar interests and complementary skillsets through the Muslim Students’ Association enabled Balvardi to start Project Hiva, a student-run initiative that translates and produces culturally-sensitive illustrations for Canadian Paediatric Society health education brochures issued initially in English.

“Joining different groups at McGill helped make Project Hiva possible,” Balvardi said.

The confluence of McGill’s resources provide long-term opportunities for students with visions that look beyond business and more towards a more equitable social economy.

Prospects for progress

Within McGill, innovators can look forward to myVision McGill’s social business summit on March 28, anticipated as the largest of its kind to ever take place at the university. The summit invites social entrepreneurs to facilitate social business workshops, culminating in the launch of the myVision internship database and a virtual address delivered from Yunus himself.

Beyond McGill, young innovators can leverage the help of the J.W. McConnell’s new Social Innovation Fund. Approved early-stage community organizations can be awarded up to $150,000 over two years by the Foundation; this fund provides critical capital that may be necessary to scale pilot projects into socially and financially sustainable programs.

Social innovation is not just the flavour of the month, but the refrain of our generation. As the social economy becomes an increasingly attractive entrypoint into the workforce, Nowak advised that students not ask, but demand that courses and observable institutionalized support for social innovation across all levels of the university be made available and accessible to students.

“What is required is a concerted effort across a critical mass of students,” Nowak said.

She encouraged students to reframe the parameters of their expectations for the future.

“University is the best time of your life [to consider social entrepreneurship] because you are unburdened by major responsibilities,” Nowak said. “When people are in alignment with what they’re meant to be doing, coincidences and doors open up and allow that energy to flourish.”

GENERAL ELECTION NEW FOR STUDENTS: ON MARCH 28TH, APRIL 1ST, 2ND AND 3RD, YOU MAY VOTE IN YOUR EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION. YOU WILL VOTE FOR A CANDIDATE FROM THE ELECTORAL RIDING IN WHICH YOU ARE DOMICILED.

YOU MAY VOTE IF: • YOU ARE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OF AGE • YOU ARE A CANADIAN CITIZEN • YOU HAVE BEEN DOMICILED IN QUÉBEC FOR AT LEAST SIX MONTHS • YOUR NAME IS ENTERED ON THE LIST OF ELECTORS AT THE ADDRESS OF YOUR DOMICILE

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO FIND OUT THE LOCATION OF THE POLLING STATION, CHECK THE POSTERS IN YOUR EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION OR VISIT OUR WEB SITE AT ELECTIONSQUEBEC.QC.CA/VOTE/EN

1-888-ELECTION ( 1-888-353-2846 ) DEAF OR HARD OF HEARING PEOPLE MAY CALL TOLL FREE AT 1-800-537-0644.

Student living

McGill Tribune: What’s your hidden talent?

Maria Zamfir: Drawing.

Student of the Week

by Cece Zhang

MARIA ZAMFIR

First-year phd (Wendy Chen / McGill Tribune)

This is the first year Maria Zamfir has not been involved in student politics in her five years at McGill.

In all four years of her undergraduate neuroscience degree, Zamfir was involved in all manners of student politics, including the McGill Freshman Undergraduate Science Society (FUSS), the Science Undergraduate Society (SUS), and the Neuroscience Undergraduates of McGill (NUM).

This year, Zamfir is in her first year of graduate school, where she is a part of the Integrative Program in Neuroscience (IPN) at McGill. Her competitive neuroscience rotation PhD program places her in three labs over the course of the school year.

As such, Zamfir decided to make the difficult decision not to take on any student council commitments while undergoing this transition.

“I was trying not to be involved, which was kind of hard,” Zamfir said. “I really love getting involved in student council because it’s a great environment to learn about yourself and how you are able to work with others. Every council I’ve been on has been [a] different experience; but, overall I had to

challenge myself to do as much as possible for the students I represented during each of my semesters as an undergrad at McGill.”

Zamfir has reconciled her participation in student politics with her interest in the brain. During her time working on NUM council, she created the first Touching Human Brains event, which raised nearly $600 for AMIQuebec, a grassroots organization assisting families and individuals through the effects of mental illness. The event gives guests the opportunity to touch human brains.

Zamfir is still finding ways to be involved, if not as much on campus, then through community outreach programs. She is currently involved in two student-based organizations—the Brain Awareness Campaign and BrainReach—both of which aim to promote the benefits and progress of brain research to the general public.

Brain Awareness Week, an initiative started by the Dana Alliance Foundation, hosts events during the third week of March to increase public interest in brain research, giving workshops to school-aged children. BrainReach is a community

outreach program managed by IRN students, where graduate students conduct workshops to the same classroom over a longer period of time.

“Neuroscience isn’t something that is taught in the regular school system, and it is something that most children are somewhat aware of,” Zamfir said. “I think raising awareness about neuroscience is important because its great to have some idea about how your body and brain work together to result in your everyday life.”

Zamfir also writes for UsefulScience.org, a website one of her friends started and launched in October. The site aims to condense research papers into a useful, single sentence. Even in her work with the website, she appreciates the soft skills she has gained through her varied participation over the years.

“Everything I’ve learned from student council still applies to my life in the lab now as a grad student and working with the UsefulScience.org team, so it was well worth it,” she said.

MT: Are you a hunter or gatherer MZ: I need to dissect mice in my labs sometimes, so I think I’d be more of a hunter.

MT: Favourite ice cream flavour?

MZ: Mint chocolate chip and Dairy Queen ice cream cakes!

MT: What’s your dream job?

MZ: I’m still trying to figure out what that would be so I can do it.

MT: If you could go anywhere in the world where would it be?

MZ: Egypt, because of the nice winds and beaches—I get to go kite surfing.

nominate a student of the week!

Email us at studentliving@ mcgilltribune.com

How to please with wine and cheese

by Laura Hanrahan

So you love wine? And you love cheese? Together they make the Batman and Robin of food duos, but sometimes the number of options can be overwhelming. Combining the right varieties of cheese and wine is key to making your next wining and dining experience a classy affair. Here are a few suggestions of which wine pairs with which cheese to get you started.

Goat Cheese Made from goat’s milk, this cheese has a distinctive tart taste, and is typically paired with Sauvignon Blanc—a crisp, dry, white wine that originated in Bordeaux, France. The sprite acidity of the wine matches the tangy acidity of the cheese.

Cheddar The most popular cheese in the world, cheddar is a sharp tasting, natural cheese. Similar to Gouda, cheddar is aged for different lengths of time to vary the intensity of its flavour. A fullbodied red wine, such as a Cabernet Sauvignon is fitting for this cheese.

Blue Cheese From Gorgonzola to Roquefort, this sharp, strong, and very flavourful variety of cheese is definitely an acquired taste. For those who enjoy its unique flavour, consider pairing it with a dessert wine. The sweetness of the dessert wine complements the saltiness of the cheese nicely. While dessert wines tend to run slightly higher in price, there are quite a few options available for less than $30.

Camembert A soft, creamy cheese, Camembert is a staple in French culture. This cheese has a sweet, rich, buttery flavour and is best paired with light wines, such as Champagne or a sparkling white wine.

Gouda Originating in the Dutch city Gouda, this cheese has a unique creamy almond flavour that changes dramatically depending on how long it has been aged. For a young Gouda, a light red wine such as a Pinot Noir is the best pairing. For an aged and more flavourful Gouda, a fuller red wine such as a Merlot is better suited.

Brie Brie, a soft cheese with a white mould rind, pairs well with almost any wine because it has a much subtler flavour than many other cheese options. One classic wine to pair with Brie is a Chardonnay—a medium to light-bodied wine with notable acidity.

Curiosity delivers. |

STUDENT LIVING

fiesta Feast

Spicy Chicken and Guacamole Wrap

A warm wrap filled with spiced chicken, pico de gallo (fresh tomato salsa), guacamole, cheese, and lettuce. Makes a lovely and filling lunch or dinner.

Ingredients: ½ cup corn 2 avocadoes, mashed 1 shallot, finely chopped 1/2 jalapeño pepper (seeds and ribs removed) 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped Black pepper Juice of 2 limes 1/2 red onion 1 large tomato 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast Seasonings (black pepper, cayenne pepper, dried cilantro, and all-purpose seasoning to taste) Tortillas Shredded cheese (preferably pepper jack) Romaine hearts

Directions: 1. In a bowl, combine corn, avocados, lime juice, shallot, jalapeño, cilantro, and black pepper. Make sure the avocados are mashed well.

2. To prepare the pico de gallo, combine diced red pepper and tomato in another small bowl. Include all seeds and juice from the tomato.

3. Slice the chicken breast into one-inch thick strips and coat with seasonings.

4. On a non-stick pan over medium heat, cook chicken strips approximately 2-3 minutes per side until chicken is cooked through.

5. Take chicken off the heat and sprinkle shredded cheese over warm chicken to allow the cheese to melt.

6. Place chicken and cheese in the centre of a wrap. Place romaine hearts on top of chicken.

7. Put the guacamole, then pico de gallo on top of the lettuce in the wrap. Close wrap.

14

| Tuesday, March 25, 2014

by Alycia Noë

Churros

This lightly fried dough tossed in cinnamon and sugar makes the perfect sweet snack.

Directions: 1. Add oil to a pot or deep fryer and preheat to 375 oF. Ingredients: Vegetable oil (enough to fill a 2. In a separate pan, combine water, brown sugar, salt, and butter. deep pot 2 inches or a deep fryer)Let ingredients come to a boil. Once boiling, remove pan from 1 cup water heat and stir in flour. Mix in eggs and vanilla.

2 tbsp brown sugar 3. Let the dough sit for about 10 minutes to cool, and during that 1/2 tsp salt (optional) time, prepare an icing bag with star-tip or a ziplock bag with a 1/3 cup unsalted butter cut corner.

1 cup all-purpose flour 4. When the oil has come to temperature, pipe a 4-6 cm long 2 eggs churro into the pot of oil and use a knife to disconnect the dough 1 tsp vanilla from the piping bag. Make sure not to overcrowd the pan. Fry no 1/4 cup granulated sugar more than four at once.

1 tsp ground cinnamon 5. Fry churros for two to three minutes, or until you observe at once.

6. While churros are frying, mix together granulated sugar and cinnamon.

7. Use tongs or a slotted spoon to remove churros from pot and place them on a paper towel to remove excess oil.

8. Wait one to two minutes and toss churros in the pre-prepared cinnamon-sugar mixture.

(Photos courtesy of Alycia Noë & cherrypatter.com)

Browsing for off-campus housing Need-to-know information on neighbourhoods and leasing

By Marlee Vinegar When it comes to finding your new—albeit temporary—home, there are dozens of factors to consider. Location is crucial—how long is the walk to campus? Is there a nearby metro station?

Access to grocery stores, or attractions and diversions? Do you want something more upscale, or do you want to keep your costs low? Beyond the insular McGill bubble, there are enough housing options to meet any unique preferences you might have.

Milton-Parc: The upside of living in the Milton-Parc area is that it’s as close to McGill as you can get. The downside is that rent is high and with campus a stone’s throw away, anything further than a 10 minute walk seems disproportionately far. In addition, many apartments in this area have undergone significant wear-and-tear due to their transient tenants.

West of campus: If you want the proximity to campus but slightly nicer accommodations, the apartments just west of campus are equally close as the Milton-Parc area and a bit less grungy. However, rent is on the high side and

there’s a notable lack of grocery stores nearby.

Quartier Concordia: A student-heavy area with mainly older lowrise apartment buildings. The cost of rent is a bit lower since there is less competition than in the housing area around McGill. The neighbourhood was part of a redevelopment project in the early part of the millenium that aimed to create a green urban environment that would improve the use of public space, student life, and transportation.

Plateau: A predominantly francophone area, it takes about 25 minutes to get to campus, but the area is brimming with advantages like Parc Lafontaine, chic stores, and trendy restaurants.

As you move further to the east, the rent becomes cheaper.

St. Henri and Little Burgundy: More students and young professionals have been moving into the area, which has pushed up the price of rent, although they still remain relatively low.

By metro, the trip to campus is only 15 minutes. If you’re into fresh produce, Atwater market is also in the area.

The Village: The village is a

vibrant neighborhood, especially in the summer, when the numerous restaurants in the area have outdoor terraces and Saint-Catherine Street is closed off to cars. The 15-20 minute public transit ride to campus is convenient because of the three metro stations in the area. Plus, the rent is fairly inexpensive.

Côtes-des-Neiges: The relatively affordable area is one of the most ethnically diverse in the city. The cultural heterogeneity is reflected in the mixed-bag of cuisine offered by neighbourhood restaurants. Most housing in Côtes-des-Neiges are low-rise buildings, and the area is much closer to University of Montreal than McGill campus.

Mile End: A neighbourhood for people who love art and bagels, the Mile End is a hip area, located 15-20 minutes by public transit away from campus. Increasing popularity has put upward pressure on the price of duplex and triplex housing in this area.

Tips and tricks: Apartment sizing: Advertisements list the number of rooms—not only bedrooms—in the apartment.

Graphic by Alessandra Hechanova

Bathrooms are written as a half a room.

For example, a two-bedroom apartment with a living room, kitchen, and bathroom would be listed as 4 ½ rooms.

Sublet: If a tenant is going to be absent from the apartment for a stretch of time like during the summer, they can rent the apartment out to someone else.

The sub-tenant and the tenant work out the arrangements between themselves, and the landlord is simply notified.

Lease transfer: The document that assigns the lease to a new tenant and releases the previous tenant of all rights

and responsibility of the apartment before the term of the original lease is over.

Finder’s fee: A fee—sometimes thousands of dollars—that current tenants charge incoming tenants when executing a lease transfer, often under the guise of a payment for furniture. Due to the fact that a landlord is not legally allowed to rent the apartment while another group is still renting it, the landlord is unable to intervene. Although a common practice, it is illegal and an abuse of Quebec tenants’ rights.

arts & entertainment

McMorrow remains calm during Post Tropical storm Irish musician reflects on the road to success—from the side of the highway

Morgan Alexander Contributor Dublin-born singer-songwriter James Vincent McMorrow has been gaining positive critical attention for his latest album, Post Tropical, but when I talked to him, he was just another guy standing on the side of the highway.

“Something exploded in the engine,” McMorrow explains, chuckling softly. “I’ve just been standing outside like an idiot trying to get out of the way.”

Automotive troubles aside, McMorrow sets the tone for the interview early on; he speaks calmly, but his clear passion for the music world seeps through regardless.

When his album dropped back in January, it caught listeners’ ears for its unique quality, not simply in terms of modern comparisons—though it isn’t often you hear a lingering falsetto beating through the radio as his does. McMorrow explains that he’s at a very different musical stage than he was when he released Early In The Morning, his first album.

“If I could make [a] record now, I wouldn’t make that album,” says McMorrow. “That album was born at a certain time in a certain place with a certain set of circumstances.”

McMorrow took the risk of reinventing his style to what suited him at

ThEATRE

the time—and evidenced by his soldout world tour, it seems to be working.

When it comes to McMorrow’s personal view of his recent rise to fame, he tries not to get bogged down with radio plays or chart listings. It’s all about pushing himself—particularly with his newest album, which he describes as featuring some of the most vocally taxing pieces he’s ever done.

Luckily for McMorrow though, his talents have taken him far past backseat performances. Post Tropical reached number two in the charts in his hometown of Ireland—second only to Bruce Springsteen’s album, as McMorrow notes with a laugh. He tiptoes around answering what it was like to find out just how well his album had done as he gets lost in recollecting on comparisons being made between himself and Springsteen on posters around town, but for a fleeting moment, he couldn’t hold back the pride he felt in his work.

“When you succeed in your home country, it’s special,” he says. “They now understand I wasn’t just messing around.”

Currently winding down his tour, McMorrow is starting to settle into the musician’s lifestyle: he warms up his voice beforehand, wears his watch on his right hand for luck, and, if he’s feeling particularly superstitious, rewears outfits from previously good

shows—which he admits is insane. But aside from a few quirks here and there, McMorrow largely seems content with his life on the road; he insists that this is what he was meant to do.

“I made a choice a long time ago to not do anything other than make music,” he says. “If that means playing guitar out of the back of my van, so be it.”

McMorrow also tells me about some of his earliest musical memories, such as frequently carrying around Michael Jackson’s Bad and the memory of listening to U2’s “The Fly” for the first time.

“At that moment in my life, I remember absolutely being obsessed with that guitar riff that starts the song,” recalls McMorrow. “It’s one of my first proper musical memories.”

It’s interesting to note McMorrow’s instant infatuation with the guitar, as it was the first of many instruments that he would learn to play. On Post Tropical alone, he admits to playing every instrument featured except the clarinet.

“I’ve never counted how many instruments I play,” he tells me. “I love the idea [that] if you learn it yourself, you’ll just know it forever.”

McMorrow really won me over, however, when I asked him to convince me, in 10 words or less, of why I should go to his show here in Montreal and

The talented McMorrow plays every instrument on Post Tropical except the clarinet. he stuttered around looking for the right argument. I even heard him counting under his breath and I imagined him sitting on the highway next to a smoking van full of instruments trying to fit his life’s journey onto his two hands.

“I can’t do it,” he finally sighed and admitted to me. “Anyone who wants to go, it’s because they’ve heard something they want to keep hearing [....] We’ve spent a lot of time on this show and I think it’s worthy of other people’s time.”

samplingstation.files.wordpress.com & itunesplus.diandian.com courtesy of @jamesvmcmorrow instagram

Music

Green is the warmest colour in Glengarry Glen Ross Money does a lot of talking in an adaptation that masters its script’s dialogue

Max Bledstein Staff Writer The devious machinations of modern capitalism provoke an awful lot of hand-wringing, but they sure make for a great spectacle. Though much of the contemporary media coverage of Wall Street tycoons tends to be negative, the fact that they receive so much interest in the first place indicates the undeniable fascination they elicit from viewers. Playwright David Mamet vividly captures these contradictions in his vulgar satire Glengarry Glen Ross, and they’re recirculated by first-time director Paul Flicker in his adaptation of the production that’s currently playing at the Segal Centre.

The play’s opening act consists of three extended conversations between different pairs of characters, each of which are dominated by a single person. In every exchange, one of the characters attempts to persuade the other of something, all to varying degrees of success. The three buyer/seller scenarios mimic the cutthroat capitalism of the 1980s Chicago real estate market, which all six of the characters are in-

Smooth talking keeps this story relevant decades after its debut.

(Courtesy of the Segal Centre) volved with in some capacity.

In the first scene, the aging salesman Shelley (R.H. Thomson) tries to persuade office manager John (Graham Cumbertson) to let him have access to “leads”—contact information for potential customers. In the next, agents George (Michael Perron) and Dave (Daniel Lillford) discuss a series of issues, including the problems of selling to people of Southeast Asian descent— a segment which was redacted from the 2005 Broadway revival of the play.

As the conversation progresses, Dave tries to convince George to break into

their office in order to steal “leads” and sell them to another agent. In the final scene of Act I, salesman Ricky (Brett Watson) discusses his philosophy on life with potential client James (Mike Patterson).

Act II reveals the consequences of these conversations. When the curtain rises, the leads have been stolen, Shelley has sold valuable real estate, and Ricky has talked James into buying property from him. The fallout from these events—and the details of how precisely they came to be—form much of the drama of the play’s final act.

Flicker and his ensemble have excellently drawn out the complexities of Mamet’s mockery of capitalism.

The actors all take careful note of the cadences of Mamet’s dialogue, and their interactions capture the speed and humour that makes it so remarkable.

In particular, Thomson uses the full range of his voice to convey Shelley’s fluctuation between desperation and confidence. He gives a dynamic performance that reveals Shelley’s flaws and flaunts the complexities of his inner torment.

Watson’s performance also stands out. His smooth talk and impressive stage presence show the audience how he is able to talk James into buying from him with such ease. We, like James, are captivated by Ricky’s pitch, and can’t help but be inspired by his words.

Though not the strongest aspect of the play, several of its production choices are able to effectively mimic the action they support. The black couch and red backdrop of Act I (designed by Michael Eagan) evoke the seediness of the men who share the stage with it. The disarray of the office

in Act II mimics the chaos which the men’s lives have been thrown into due to the upending of their order from the robbery. The contrast between the dim lighting of Act I and the vivid illumination throughout Act II (designed by Luc Prairie) helps to further reveal the change in the men’s lives that occurs between the two acts. The smooth jazz played in between scenes (composed

by Dmitri Marine) represents the veneered vision of Americana that all the men buy into.

It’s good to have Glengarry Glen Ross brought back to the stage in any capacity, and Flicker’s production certainly does it justice. The strong performances across the ensemble and the sparse production choices serve to express the intricacies of Mamet’s dialogue. Though Mamet originally wrote his drama to mock the excesses of Reagan-era capitalism, the play doesn’t feel dated in the slightest. Although it’s tempting to think of society as having progressed beyond the dog-eat-dog world depicted by Mamet, the current Segal Centre revival of Glengarry Glen Ross reminds us of how little things have actually changed.

16

Tuesday, March 25, 2014 |

FILM

| Curiosity delivers.

FOKUS Film Festival gets hearts racing with robust reels

Annual TVM spectacle features 19 student films from four different categories

Max Mehran Contributor It was only fitting that to arrive on time last Friday to the FOKUS Film Festival, I had to re-enact one of the great last-minute dash scenes in movie history. The moment my class ended at 5:55 p.m., I was zooming through the Milton-Parc area doing my best Ferris Bueller impression, pushing myself to get to Cinema du Parc before the festival’s 6 p.m. start time. While no slowmotion trampolining was necessary, I succeeded and thankfully, had the benefit of soaking up the fantastic student-run event in its entirety.

FOKUS is hosted annually by the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) service Student Television at McGill (TVM), and serves to showcase the talent of upand-coming filmmakers in the student community. This year’s installment featured 19 short films categorized as fiction, experimental, documentary, and TVM’s unique 72-hour competition films, all of which were judged for various prizes by both the audience and a panel of judges. The films were worthy of the big screen treatment, displaying strong creativity and a thorough commitment to the filmmaking process.

In the fiction category, I was seduced by J-G Debray’s Valentine’s Day, the story of an unfortunate date that unfolds in a light and amusing narrative style; while Ficol, by Al-

POP Rhetoric

arts & entertainment

exandre Vinson, transported the room into a confused and tormented young man’s mind, punctuated by superimposed shots of alcohol and an empty apartment.

The experimental films blew me away.

Glitch Walk by Ray Arzaga amazed the rest of the audience, who granted him the prize for the festival’s best film; Arzaga’s film also captured the best experimental film prize, which was determined by the judges. By using an editing of sound and image in harmony with a song, it unified four dancers merging into one. Luke Orlando and Cedric Yarish’s Far Too Awake, which received an honorable mention in the experimental category, relates with finesse the mental state of exhaustion, controlling the camera with full dexterity.

The documentaries were humble and professional. Sophia Loffreda’s Beta Orchestra looked at an emerging style of music-art that moulds together various computeroriginated sounds into coherent melodies, while Julia Edelman’s Artscape narrated the story of a saxophonist by compiling a series of alluring shots to accompany the instrumental sounds.

Members of the Montreal community settle in for an entertaining night. (Photos courtesy of TVM) During the intermission, I met with event organizer and U3 Arts student Chantal Africa. She described the process that TVM goes through to judge the 19 films that made it through to the festival out of over 40 applicants.

“We created different criteria for [the categories], but for most of them, cinematography, sound, and editing [were included],” says Africa. “For fiction, it was story and acting; for experimental, it was the ability to evoke feeling and emotion as well as acting; and for documentary, it was subject and presentation.”

The second half of the festival featured the 72-hour competition, a segment that challenges filmmakers

to write, produce, film, edit, and turn in short films in under three days— while somehow incorporating the element of “heart beating.”

“It’s a tradition we are running,” explains Africa. “The idea of the secret element changes every year. We announced it at the very beginning of the competition, and we had a 72-hour committee come up with it.”

Taking both straightforward and poetically subtle approaches, the filmmakers incorporated the open-ended “heart beating” requirement in distinct and inventive ways.

My personal favourite—which also took the judges’ prize for best 72hour film—was Vanessa Combe’s Two Tall Blondes, which plunges its

viewer into a childhood filled with sophomoric games, softly orchestrated by a calm heartbeat. I also enjoyed Yarish’s second entry in the festival, Bedrooms, an ingenious film that counts down the heartbeats before a young woman’s death.

From start to finish, the theatre was filled with steady amounts of laughter and applause, attesting to the success of a festival that kept the entertainment level high throughout. Every second counted, and my charge to the theatre proved to be well worth it.

Selections and winners from the 2014 FOKUS Film Festival can be viewed in their entirety at www. tvmcgill.com

You can’t handle the truth—unless it’s handled properly

Wyatt Fine-Gagné Staff Writer The first time I listened through Benji, the latest offering from Sun Kil Moon, I was wandering around Macdonald Campus trying to find a place to get a coffee. I’d finally figured out where I could buy one when the sweet organ at the beginning of “Jim Wise” came on. The song tells the story of a man on house arrest for mercy-killing his terminally ill wife, but then is unable to successfully end his own life while at her bedside in a hospital. The story engrossed me, and by its end, I found myself in a hallway I didn’t recognize, unsure of how I got there, and still without a cup of coffee in my hands.

Benji has been well received for the most part by critics and listeners, drawing praise for its lyricism above all else.

It is quite literal, with singer-songwriter Mark Kozelek describing actual events from his life in a straightforward fash-

ion, recounting specific stories without the use of metaphors or other figures of speech. This type of songwriting often leads to lyrics that are cumbersome and awkward; however, when done well, it tends to produce incredibly poignant and touching music.

Lyrics that hide most of their meaning below the surface are not inherently better or worse than the kind that Kozelek puts forth on Benji— they’re simply different. When the “verbal obfuscation,” as Ian Cohen of Pitchfork calls the former style, is wiped away, you’re left to deal with your own emotion. Instead of forcing you to dig into the lyrics, these songs make you dig into your own self, looking inward rather than outward for meaning or significance. The visceral quality of this well-executed lyricism has the ability to provoke ephemeral moments of intense listener engagement—as it did for me on Macdonald campus—and holds true across all genres, not just folk rock.

One of the best rap albums in recent memory uses this formula extraordinarily well. Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, M.A.A.D. city is a concept album that takes you inside his upbringing in Compton, a world where family and faith act as last lines of defence against gang violence and crime. The album’s meaning is grounded in characters and stories, not hidden behind clever wordplay, which gives added significance to the lessons and ideas that it preaches.

Another example is “Stan,” Eminem’s disturbingly vivid narrative about an imbalanced fan who communicates with the rapper through a series of letters that go unanswered—until it’s too late.

Though not explicitly autobiographical, “Stan” takes the same lyrical approach as Kozelek and Lamar, and it is widely viewed as one of his best songs.

It’s hard to pinpoint examples in mainstream music where this style flat out doesn’t work. Simply put, the songs that fall short of capturing something

special are likely tabled, rather than pushed by producers and labels. Even though so few unimpressive songs get released, sometimes it happens. On Benji, “Dogs” stands out as one of the lowlights, as Kozelek messily recounts past sexual experiences, but fails to find any truths about the difference between love and sex.

The Weakerthans have a catalogue filled with interesting characters and songs such as “Our Retired Explorer (Dines with Michel Foucault in Paris, 1961)”—its premise exactly what its title describes—are quite clever, but don’t manage to venture far beyond that.

Stories like these function well enough in songs that disguise their meaning, but in order to succeed in the style discussed here, you need to find tales in which listeners can see themselves.

As “Stan” shows, the narratives don’t necessarily need to be true either.

Sufjan Stevens is quite good at writing songs that feel more like stories, the best

of which might be “Casimir Pulaski Day.” Stevens sings about a lover whose significant other is diagnosed with cancer and later passes away. It is beautiful, devastating, and entirely made up, but the fact that it is fiction doesn’t make it any less impactful. When the song is over, you’re left with a stinging feeling of loss, forced to confront some of the sadness in your own life.

On Benji’s opener “Carissa,” Kozelek sings about trying to “find some poetry [....] to find a deeper meaning/In this senseless tragedy.” But rather than a string of his own thoughts on death or loss, Kozelek tells a story and allows the audience to decide why it matters. We tend to prefer romanticised versions of our own everyday life in much of the content we consume. Though on the surface it may seem as if there is no “poetry” in our lives, it’s there; and songs like these allow us to see it.

Curiosity delivers. |

arts & entertainment

ALBUM REVIEWS DEEP CUTS

Sound bites from Seattle Unearthing the hidden gems from The Emerald City Compiled by Jessica Fu Thank You For Tonight (feat. Eliza Young) Artist: Sam Lachow Album: Brand New Bike Released: January 1, 2011

This rapper begins his nostalgic track with trademark smooth vocals, which he proceeds to layer over rhythmic percussions, rich keyboard cadences, and mesmerizing saxophone samples. He paints an evocative scene—“Green eyes sitting over red lips/Cigarette smoke drips up thick”—while maintaining his work’s characteristically playful tone —“I don’t know what I’m doing/But I know I’m having fun,/ And I don’t know where I’m going/ But I hope you might want to come.” Young proceeds to steal the show with her smoky chorus, concluding one of the most soulful tracks on the album.

A Long Midwinter Artist: The Horde and the Harem Album: A Long Midwinter Released: February 2, 2012

The Horde and the Harem features multiple vocalists taking turns crooning about winter coats, fine clothing, and how “The snow kept falling, such a chill to our hearts” in this noteworthy track. Over a harmonic pairing of keys and guitar strums, the song builds itself up and finally concludes in a sorrowful, melodic cadence. How a band from the Pacific Northwest could so accurately describe the specificities of the Montreal college student winter experience, we will never know.

I Want You Artist: Odesza Album: Summer’s Gone Released: September 6, 2012

This young electronic duo mixes choppy, seemingly erratic cries with metered synthetic snaps in this bright track. Twinkling electronic echoes saturate the song from beginning to end, evoking promising images of the energy of youth and the highs of summer, despite what the album’s title may otherwise suggest.

Elegy Artist: Hey Marseilles Album: Lines We Trace Released: March 5, 2013

Hey Marseilles employs a full symphony—or so it feels—in “Elegy.” These indie rockers expertly balance string work and drumbeats, which supplement their warm, melodic vocals. As the song progresses, its high-arching instrumentals and unanswered lyrical musings lead into a hopeful conclusion that makes you feel as though you’ve been transported out of winter, through spring, past summer, and into fall— all in slow motion.

| Tuesday, March 25, 2014

17

Aloe Blacc - Lift your spirit XIX and Interscope Products don’t always live up to their advertisements, but Aloe Blacc’s Lift Your Spirit holds true to its promise. Blacc’s innovative third album dips into multiple genres and realizes its promise of lifting listeners’ spirits through an upbeat mix of classic and novel sounds.

Tending towards simple and iconic subject matter, the tracks mainly focus on love, faith, and money, but ventures occasionally into political or existential territory, as “Ticking Bomb” does prominently. The album’s spirit never becomes downtrodden though, as Blacc explores all topics with the subtle emotion and grace that most will remember from his 2010 hit, “I Need a Dollar.”

The playful humour on Lift You Spirit’s most danceable tracks, “Can You Do This” and “The Man,” comes out on lines such as “I played my

cards and I didn’t fold/Well it ain’t that hard when you got soul.” Interestingly, these tracks also show Blacc partake in hip hop’s conventional egotism, which he was previously stated he was “uncomfortable with” in a 2010 interview with the website HipHipDX. Perhaps he feels that his recent successes indeed warrant some measured bravado.

After all, the only blips on Lift Your Spirit are the country-infused “Here Today” and “Wake Me Up”—which Blacc originally performed vocals for on Avicii’s megahit—but Blacc’s luscious voice somewhat salvages even these. Considering Montreal’s brutal weather this March, it’s probably best for your spirit’s health and well-being to try a listen. You’ll get quality music, but more importantly, some of the advertised good vibes too.

— Tara Boghosian

Various artists - catch the throne HBO In the weeks leading up to the anticipated Season Four premiere of Game of Thrones, some HBO executives apparently thought it was a good idea to spend a chunk of their marketing budget on commissioning a mixtape project called Catch the Throne. The somewhat bizarre rationale for the project was given by Lucinda Martinez, HBO’s Multicultural Marketing VP, in Rolling Stone: “Our multicultural audiences are a very important part of our subscribers, and we don’t want to take them for granted.”

The tape, which references Jay-Z/Kanye West’s Watch the Throne, features choice, foreboding dialogue samples from the show to introduce each song, in the style of Wu-Tang Clan’s kung fu flick intros. It also features a roster of artists ranging from obscure to illustrious, some of the latter being Common, Wale, and Big Boi. The stars on this album don’t necessarily shine the brightest though. Big Boi’s album opener “Mother of Dragons” includes the

corny hook “Dungeons, dragons, kings and queens,” and other weak, innacurate lyrics.

Meanwhile, more under-the-radar rappers, like dancehall artist Magazeen and female emcee Snow tha Product, perform well on their respective songs, bringing some energy to the tape that counters Big Boi’s deadpan intonation. Amateur rapper Dominik Omega’s lyrics in “Arya’s Prayer,” pay the most attention to the plot, and his original “Game of Thrones Hip Hop Remix” on YouTube seems to be the likely inspiration for the tape.

Game of Thrones fans who are counting down the days to the show’s premiere will be satisfied by the mixtape, if only to hear a chopped version of the show’s theme on Wale’s “King Slayer,” as well as the general novelty of fantasy hip-hop. While it achieves some limited musical success, this album doesn’t really emerge as anything more than an expensive promotional experiment.

— Will Burgess

SELL US THIS PEN. The Tribune is hiring an

Advertising Executive for the 2014-2015 academic year.

Ema to apply il editor@mcgilltribune.com

APPLICATION DEADLINE: MARCH 27

SPORTS

In November 2013, a San Francisco sports radio host made a number of misogynistic statements on air, arguing that women did not belong in the world of sports journalism. The resulting uproar shone a spotlight on some of the barriers preventing women from breaking into, and moving up, in sports media today.

According to Amy Lawrence, a CBS radio host, roughly 90 per cent of the producers and on-air talents in sports radio are male. In sports television too, men outnumber women in production roles, as noted by award-winning multimedia journalist Amy K. Nelson. That’s not to mention the alienation some female journalists can feel in male professional locker rooms, outlined in a Sports Illustrated piece on the subject in November shortly after the comments were made.

Women in Sports Journalism

Despite some recent milestones for women in sports media—Molly Solomon was named executive producer for the Golf Channel in 2012—progress has been extremely slow in dismantling the “old boys’ club” mentality of the sports world. In this edition of Changing the Game, we look at how to break down the institutional obstacles that exist for women looking to enter and rise up in the field of sports journalism in order to promote greater diversity in the world of sports media.

Athletes first, reporters second While women in sports journalism undoubtedly face many industry-specific obstacles, the heart of this problem is the assumption that women are not—or should not be—as interested in sports as men. Athletics organizations need to encourage and legitimize women’s participation in sports culture by increasing sup-

port for women to be involved at the foundation of that culture— as athletes. Women cannot thrive professionally in a culture where their participation is consistently undermined by limited opportunities as athletes and a lack of publicity due to poor media coverage.

The promotion of a sports

culture in which women can feel comfortable and encouraged to participate athletically is key to their ability to participate in other professions in the field. Whether through increased funding, opportunities, or media coverage, an emphasis on the legitimacy of women’s sports would perpetuate positive views about the ac-

ceptance of women in the sports world in general. Role models like Hayley Wickenheiser and Christine Sinclair may encourage girls to not only become athletes, but also be more involved in sports culture through other avenues like journalism. An increase in female athletes would also create a pool of experienced and

qualified women to provide expertise and insight as sports journalists once they have retired.

For women to be taken seriously in the world of sports media, we need to make it normal for them to be engaged in athletics culture—whether as viewers, athletes, or journalists.

—Erica Friesen

Recruiting to smash the glass ceiling Similar to scientific disciplines or engineering, the glassceiling paradigm is also in effect for women in sports journalism.

There are only a few token jobs considered suitable specifically for women, such as sideline reporter or on-screen reporter.

Consequently, there is a lack of role models and, subconsciously,

achieving roles of power seems unattainable and ‘unconventional.’

Broadcasters need to start actively seeking women in sports journalism. There are plenty of women attempting to rise up in the field, but men in power perpetuate the present inequality. It is these men in power that need

to acknowledge their own biases and start recruiting women.

Moreover, women’s voice in sports needs to be considered valid not ‘radical’ because they are not mimicking the ‘conventional’ male voice.

This is not to suggest looking to increase the number of women in sports journalism sim-

ply for the sake of gender equality. Hiring women who are not competent to simply fill a quota would continue to perpetuate the idea that women have no place in the sports world.

What needs to occur is the hiring of women who are qualified, not only with on-screen roles, but in production roles

that hold more responsibility.

This would create an influential drive that would continue making a positive change in sports journalism.

ily. Options for childcare and paid leave are severely lacking in Canada, and many women opt out of the elite tracks they may be on to focus on their families when they are forced with the choice.

As freelance multimedia journalist Amy K. Nelson suggests, the real problem in the world of sports is a lack of

women in positions of power.

There is no doubt in my mind that women are more than capable of keeping their heads down, putting in their work, and rising to the top despite any workplace misogyny they might encounter.

However, no real, sustainably beneficial change will come for women in any workplace—the sports industry included—until

systemic change is effected in terms of childcare for both mothers and fathers. This would allow women to fill higher ranking positions, which would in turn lead to increased equality for women in the world of sports.

views on sport and allow for female opinions to be embraced without criticism; after all, people are less likely to question the acumen of a professional coach who has embodied the culture of winning in her sport than male commentators who themselves have never been involved with

professional sports.

S u b s e q u e n t l y, v i e w e r s would become more accustomed to serious and analytical female voices in sports and these commentators will provide young women with visible role models. Ultimately, fans are going to demand coverage by those who

display a deep knowledge of whatever is being talked about, and given the level of expertise of female coaches, there is certainly a supply.

—Zikomo Smith

—Rebecca Babcock

The fix is in the family The issue of gender equality is in no way unique to the world of sports, so it stands to reason that any possible solutions won’t be either. The vast majority of professions have been ‘old boys clubs,’ and in many ways, upper level executive positions continue to be. For as far as our society has progressed in terms of accepting women as more

than mothers and homemakers, the overwhelming attitude still seems to be that if a working woman wants to have children, it is up to her to balance raising a family with pursuing a career.

By the time most women are at the point where they’ve paid their dues and earned an executive spot, they have also made decisions about starting a fam-

—Jacqueline Galbraith

Putting the coach in the booth The best way to increase the presence of women in the media is to include more female voices in serious tactical analysis of male sports. Analysis of basketball is an area where this could be attainable, given the litany of Hall of Fame basketball coaches who have deep insights into the

game that are at a level far higher than the current on-camera product. Great basketball minds like Pat Summitt, C. Vivian Stringer and Jody Conradt would put Skip Bayless in his place far more effectively than Stephen A. Smith. Moves like this would give credibility to women’s

Curiosity delivers. |

10

things

you didn’t

know about

sports

| Tuesday, March 25, 2014

19

Sports have a weird and wonderful vocabulary of their own. In this edition of 10 Things, we aim to clarify some of the funkiest and most famous phrases in the world of sports.

by Zikomo Smith (Photo courtesy of sportsgrid.com) CAN OF CORN— This refers to an easy-to-catch ball hit high into the outfield.

There are two possible explanations for this phrase. The first is that nineteenthcentury grocers would knock down cans from the highest shelves with a hook for an easy catch in their aprons. The other is that corn was the best selling vegetable, stocked on the lower shelves and thus the easiest canned good to ‘catch.’

CATBIRD SEAT­— This is an ideal situation for a batter during which the bases are loaded and there are no strikes nor outs to the batting sides’ name. A catbird seeks out the highest point in a tree to sing, and the batter can likewise be seen to be on top of the world in these situations.

Hail Mary— The most iconic play in American Football is when a desperate quarterback throws the ball deep into the end zone in hopes of a game-changing touchdown late in the game. Roger Staubach of the Dallas Cowboys popularized the name in 1975. After a game-winning touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings he said, “I closed my eyes and said a ‘Hail Mary.’”

Bump and Run— A defensive technique used by defensive backs who are trying to slow down receivers at the line of scrimmage. It’s designed to initiate contact with the receiver in order to throw him off of his intended running route. This is also a car-theft technique, where one robber draws a driver from the car so that an accomplice can drive off with it.

Tossing up bricks— Shooting the ball in such a manner that it clangs hard off the backboard. It is usually used as an insult to someone who is shooting poorly or has an unpleasant shooting motion. If a basketball player is continuing to miss shots, then he or she can be said to have laid enough bricks to build a house.

The Charity Stripe— Legendary sportscaster Chick Hearn coined the phrase ‘the charity stripe’ to denote the free-throw line in basketball. When players step up to the free throw line, there is no one from the opposing team actively trying to stop them from scoring. Hence, it is deemed that they are given a charitable opportunity to score the basketball.

Butterfly— A goaltending technique where the goalie falls to his or her knees with legs splayed out and arms wide, like the wings of its insect namesake. This allows the goalie to maximize coverage of the net, and to stop the puck with any part of the body. It was pioneered by Glenn Hall, who played 14 nerve-wracking NHL seasons before finally putting on a goalie mask.

Gordie Howe hat trick— Named after one of the all-time great hockey players, Gordie Howe, who won four Stanley Cup Championships and six Hart Trophies as MVP. Howe was known to be as tough as he was talented—fittingly, this feat involves scoring a goal, notching an assist and getting into a fight, all in the same game.

Parking the bus— This is when a team sets up all of its players in a defensive position in front of goal. Thus it is almost impossible for the opposition to score as the defenders take up so much space that it is as if they were a bus taking up parking spots.

Getting booked— When a player receives either a yellow or red card for a particularly bad infraction. The former is a warning that can lead to a sending off, the latter is an immediate sending off. The referee then notes the foul down in his or her notebook, hence the phrase.

Duke Blue Devils — Duke's outstanding 'One-andDone' forward, Jabari Parker, shot a putrid 4-14 from the field as his Blue Devils were one-and-done in the tournament, falling 78-71 to the Mercer Bears. After the game, ambulances arrived at PNC Arena when Duke's Mike Krzyzewski was found gasping for air in the men's locker room appearing to be grabbing his own throat.

Rumour has it that paramedics found an empty Bear Paw wrapper beside the choking coach. For the winningest coach of all time in college basketball, Coach K sure has figured out how to lose NCAA tournament games against lowly opponents.

W

Around the

ater cooler

Aaron Rose Staff Writer

In case you were too busy not voting for the SSMU Building fee question, here’s what you missed during the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament

Virginia Commonwealth Rams — Shaka Smart's VCU squad looked Shaka Not-So-Smart on Friday night when, up by four with just five seconds remaining, they fouled SF Austin's Desmon Haymon, who had already thrown up a prayer from behind the arc. Haymon hit the shot and converted the and-one, which sent the game into overtime where the Lumberjacks chopped down the Rams 77-75. While VCU's 'havoc' style of basketball got them into the tournament, it seems like a little bit of poise in the final seconds could have helped them advance to the round of 32.

Harvard Crimson — Because being the smartest school in America just wasn't enough, the Harvard Crimson advanced to the round of 32 after scheming their way past the Cincinnati Bearcats 61-57. The round of 64 was just

another easy standardized test for the Crimson, who pulled off their second consecutive upset in as many years. Their Cinderella run—yes they are a underdog despite having an endowment that dwarfs the GDP of some countries—came to a halt against a powerhouse Michigan State team. Maybe a non-Ivy League education has more value than previously thought?

Dayton Flyers — The Dayton Flyers opened up March Madness by wreaking havoc onto millions of brackets as they beat Aaron Craft and the Ohio State Buckeyes 6059 in the Battle of Ohio. After driving to the lane late to put the Buckeyes up 59-58, Craft couldn't stop Dayton's Vee Sanford, who hit a clutch layup with four seconds remaining to ice the game for the Flyers. The state of Ohio hasn't seen a battle this close since Clinton took down Dole in the 1996 presidential election.

Kentucky Wildcats — The Kentucky Wildcats shocked the world, taking down Witchita State 78-76 on Sunday afternoon after Shockers guard Fred VanVleet missed a crucial last second three pointer that would have sent his team to the Sweet 16. Kentucky’s freshman star Julius Randle recorded a double-double with 13 points and 10 boards, just enough to earn a little bit of extra money from Coach John Calipari. While the Shockers proved that anyone can win in the Missouri Valley Conference, Calipari showed the nation that winners never cheat, but cheaters sometimes win.

illustration by paul lempa

SPORTS | 20

The great experiment

Jackie and the Montreal Royals

It’s no secret that Montreal is not a baseball city. The Expos moved out because nobody showed up to their games. Nobody came to watch Pedro Martinez throw fire every five days, or Tim Raines rob hit after hit on the outfield grass, or Gary “Kid” Carter fire bullets to second base. Some pointed fingers at Expos owner Jeffrey Loria, but in Montreal, baseball season had always been little more than a time to recover from the hangover of the Habs’ latest playoff run.

If you want to find a piece of baseball lore in Montreal, you would have to look in the right spot.

First, you’d have to go back in time to before the Expos brought Major League Baseball to Canada. Then you’d have to walk a bit—the opening of the metro is still 20 years away. Rush out of your 8:30 a.m. lecture (it’s a day game; there is no stadium lighting, not yet at least) up University and through the Plateau. A few blocks past SaintDenis you would cut through Parc La Fontaine and hang a right.

You have arrived at Delorimier Stadium. It’s Opening Day for the Brooklyn Dodgers’ top farm club, the Montreal Royals. The date is May 1, 1946. You take a seat and listen to the sound of 16,000 adoring fans screaming one man’s name: Jackie.

It was not by chance that Jackie Robinson, the man who broke the colour barrier in professional sports, came to Montreal to play ball. Despite having just fought a war in which the enemy was vilified for its horrific discriminatory practices, the United States remained thoroughly segregated. People may have been comfortable sending African-Americans overseas to die for their country, but they wouldn’t dream of letting a black player onto the hallowed fields of their national pastime.

As the story goes, the integration of African-American players into professional baseball was put to a vote in 1946. Of the sixteen major league owners polled, all but one voted against.

The exception was Branch Rickey, president and general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers.

In Rickey’s eyes, the issue at hand wasn’t desegregation or civil rights.

He saw a strategic advantage; dormant sluggers waiting to be handed bats and gloves. According to baseball historian Jack Jedwab, Rickey once confided that “the greatest untapped reservoir of raw material in the history of the game is the black race […] who will make us winners for years to come.”

As with all established traditions, segregation was not a status quo that could be slowly chipped away at. Rickey knew that he needed an athlete who could open America’s eyes so wide that they could never be fully shut again. He needed someone who could dazzle on the field and present an honest image off the field. In Rickey’s words: “We need to convince the world that I’m doing this because [he’s] a great ballplayer and a fine gentleman.”

After passing over established Negro League stars such as Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson, Rickey found Robinson—an articulate, college-educated, soon-to-be-married Methodist—and the ‘Great Experiment’ was hatched.

Every detail was carefully planned out. Montreal was chosen due to its comparatively weak racial prejudices, and the fact that most of the Royals’ games would be played north of the Mason-Dixon line. The demarcation separated the Confederate states and the Union states during the Civil War and remained a cultural boundary in the years that followed.

The signing itself was kept a secret until October 23, 1945, months after Robinson’s arrival in Montreal. South of the border, the announcement stirred up a national debate, with baseball legends such as Roger Hornsby, Bob Feller, and Connie Mack vehemently opposed to the idea of possibly competing against a black player in the big leagues, let alone having one on their own team.

Robinson, of course, was conveniently out of the American media’s reach, and as the cold winter months rolled by, the controversy was buried under metres of Montreal snow.

While popular retellings of the

Robinson legend—such as Brian Helgeland’s recent Hollywood biopic 42— often gloss over this period, it can be argued that Robinson’s first winter in Montreal was the beginning of baseball’s desegregation. After experiencing rejection and hatred in countless American cities, Robinson was surprised when he was able to rent a room in the predominantly French-Canadian neighbourhood of Villeray without a problem. His wife Rachel, who spoke to the Montreal Gazette years later about her experiences, remembered the people of Montreal as warm and hospitable. The children of Avenue de Gaspé rushed to carry her groceries up the icy steps to the apartment, and neighbours began sewing maternity clothes when she became pregnant.

“Rickey knew that he needed an athlete who could open America’s eyes so wide that they could never be fully shut again.”

“It was likely that [Rickey] knew the Robinsons would be warmly greeted by the neighbours,” Jedwab said in a recent special to the Gazette The division in Quebec has always been a linguistic one, and any racist undercurrents would have taken a backseat to the ingrained Anglo-Franco tensions.

“Since most people in the neighbourhood didn’t speak English, the couple was a kind of curiosity […] while the Robinsons were stared at on the streets, the stares were friendly,” Jedwab said. Although the family may not have been able to communicate with their neighbours save for hand gestures, they had found a place where “Jackie” would be recognized and respected first and foremost as a ballplayer, not a black player.

Unburdened by the weight of the civil rights narrative, Robinson took the

- Elie Waitzer, Staff Writer International League by storm in 1946.

The Royals began their season on a long road trip, but news of his prodigious exploits slowly filtered back to Montreal.

Rumours swirled that he had knocked a three-run homer in his first at-bat and stolen home his next time on base.

By the time the Royals’ home opener rolled around, Montreal was in the grip of Canada’s first baseball frenzy. According to Toronto Star reporter Richard Griffin, Robinson was unable to join the team’s pre-game practice because he was too busy signing autographs for adoring Royals fans. The Royals won the game 12-9 and, nestled in the riotous crowd of 16,000; Habs legend Maurice Richard would remember the moment as the first time Montreal had cheered for something other than hockey. In a recent retrospective on the magical opening day, New York Times’ sportswriter Joe Sheehan wrote: “Robinson had fully justified [Rickey’s] precedent-setting break with what was described as a baseball tradition.”

Robinson would go on to lead his Royals to a 100-win season and their first Junior World Series title over Louisville. He led the league with a scorching .349 average to go along with 113 runs and 40 steals. After the final out of the championship game was recorded, fans poured out of the bleachers and rushed onto the field, chanting Robinson’s name. Sam Maltin, a stringer for the Pittsburgh Courier, famously described the scene at the time as “the only day in history that a black man ran from a white mob with love instead of lynching on the mind.”

But by no means was Robinson’s season with the Royals free of discrimination. The team would get off the bus in Florida or Georgia, only to find their games canceled because their second baseman was black. Griffin recalls that “On road trips […] no team hotel would take African-Americans.” Through it all, Robinson expressed no desire to retaliate nor turn back. He hoped that Americans listening to his games on the radio would slowly grow used to the idea of an African-American playing in the major leagues. Whatever abuse

Robinson experienced on the road, he knew he could always heal his bruises back home. In their cozy apartment on de Gaspé, the Robinsons were accepted without prejudice.

While baseball tends to paint an overly-nostalgic image of history, one wonders if Montreal has been moving backwards ever since Jackie Robinson left town. All that remains of the hallowed grounds of Deloriomier on which Robinson played is a modest bronze plaque in honour of his accomplishments. Jarry Park Stadium, the Expos’ original field, has been repurposed as a tennis stadium; meanwhile Olympic Stadium, the most recent home of the Expos, stands as a shell of its former self.

The Expos have been gone for a decade now, and over the next few decades, their legacy will fade, as did that of the Royals. Soon, it may be hard to imagine that the crack of bat on ball ever sounded in this city. The role that Montreal played in the civil rights movement should not serve as a reason to put our city on a pedestal, but as a constant reminder of what Montreal once was, and what it can be.