UTSU IMPEACHES VP CAMPUS LIFE
TRIAL BY FACEBOOK
UNCOMMON PROPS
THE MORE THE MERRIER
ZUMBA AND CULTURAL APPROPRIATION
News, page 2
Opinion, page 6
A&E, page 8
Features, page 11
Sports, page 15
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No investigation into assault allegations UTSU did not conduct an investigation into allegations leading to VP campus life’s impeachment NICOLE DANESI NEWS EDITOR An investigation will not be conducted by UTSU into the public allegations that led to the impeachment of former VP campus life Akshan Bansal. As previously reported by The Medium, Bansal was impeached by the UTSU board of directors in a vote 24 in favour and two against on December 30 directly following public allegations posted to Facebook on December 15 alleging Bansal sexually assaulted a fellow U of T student. In an interview, UTSU VP external Jasmine Denike told The Medium that UTSU has not and will not conduct an investigation related to the Facebook allegations. At press time, the allegations remain unverified. After the allegations and the UTSU executive’s call for impeachment, UTMSU had issued a public statement on December 22 calling for “an immediate investigation into the allegations”. “While neither the UTSU nor
UTSU.CA/WHO-WE-ARE/PHOTO
Bansal, seen front row, left, was impeached on December 30. the UTMSU are the arbiter of the allegations, we must challenge rape culture on and off campus by affirming the narratives of survivors and by taking all claims seriously,” the statement adds. “We are not a court,” said Denike in the interview. “[An] investigation is not something we have a right to [conduct].”
According to Denike, UTSU’s public statement calling for the union’s board of directors to impeach Bansal “in light of [the Facebook] allegation and based on the conduct of the VP campus life” does not mean that the allegations are true. “The statement is not in any way accusing him of the allega-
tion,” said Denike, speaking of the December 15 statement by UTSU. “We had to stand by the mandate of the union and we wanted to ensure that students felt safe and with something like this we just needed to solidify the fact that despite an allegation that is as severe as it was, we just wanted to make sure that students remembered
that the union is a safe space and we do really care about the safety of students on campus.” Denike also said the union sought legal counsel during the impeachment of Bansal and his removal occurred not only in response to the allegation, but also due to previous complaints against Bansal in relation to his work as VP campus life. “The executive review committee has brought up multiple concerns involving the VP campus life for the past several months, [issues] regarding job performance, professionalism, and behaviour in the office” said Denike. “The impeachment came at the time of the allegation; however, it was not based solely on the allegation.” Asked whether Bansal would have been impeached if the allegations had never been made on Facebook, Denike said she did not wish to comment. The Medium reached out to Bansal for comment but he did not respond. The Medium also reached out to the author of the Facebook post, who chose not to comment.
New numbers shed light on job prospects Academic Affairs Committee also hears findings of sexism in English and drama department AMANDA BORTHWICK
Findings presented to the Academic Affairs Committee last Wednesday have shed new light on job prospects facing recent UTM graduates, with more than half of 2014 graduates surveyed fully employed. The committee also discussed the results of departmental external reviews, unveiling sexism present among UTM’s English and drama department. The career findings presented at the meeting were results of a study conducted by Career Centre director Felicity Morgan and assistant director Anne Gaiger, who surveyed 347 of the 2117 students in the graduating class of 2014 during the summer of 2015. Among graduates surveyed, 59 percent found full-time employment, with half earning between $30,000 and $50,000, while only 29 percent reported earning more than $50,000. Among graduates not doing fulltime work, 35 percent are engaged in volunteer activities, and 32 percent went on to professional and graduate school studies. Feedback received also pointed to the importance of students taking ownership of their career trajectory
CHRISTY TAM/THE MEDIUM
Among graduates surveyed, 59 percent found full-time employment. early rather than while in their final years of study, while survey results also found that 50.8 percent of employed respondents acquired employment through networking, cold calling, or using networks from previous employers. The presentation also offered steps
and recommendations that department members and professors could adopt in order to enhance the career planning and development of students in their classrooms. Recommendations include departmental office hours dedicated to advising students on careers and the organization
of departmental networking events for students to interact with professionals in their prospective fields, among other proposals. Also presented during Wednesday’s meeting were results from an external review of various departments and programs, presented by
interim VP academic and dean Kelly Hannah-Moffat. According to the review, the English and drama department has had “student sexist behaviour in classrooms”. UTM equity and diversity officer Nythalah Baker is working with the department to address the issue. Strategies being used to respond to the issue have been mentioned as “train[ing] faculty members in creating safe spaces, while communication lines with students have been opened to ensure reporting of future incidences”. Another issue brought to light was the perception of gender inequalities among female faculty members. According to the presentation, diversifying faculty remains a priority. The presentation, available on the Office of the Campus Council’s website, also noted, “Some comments on gender equality were not specific to UTM, where eligible female faculty members have all been promoted or are under promotional review and most new hires are women.” Additionally, recommendations within the department pointed to the diversification of literature and playwriting to include Canadian and Aboriginal content.
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CUPE files complaint Union claims U of T acted in “bad faith” during negotiations
January 3, 6:00 p.m. Trespass to Property Act A U of T student gave his card to a non-community member to enter the gym. He was trespassed from entering the gym. January 5, 2:50 p.m. Theft under $5,000 A student reported to Campus Police that his parking permit was stolen from his vehicle. January 6, 10:16 a.m. Mischief Campus Police received a report of graffiti in the CCT garage. January 7, 12:08 p.m. Medical Call
RAWC staff reported to Campus Police of a patron that had lost consciousness. Campus Police and ECSpert attended and provided medical attention. January 7, 1:25 p.m. Motor Vehicle Accident Campus Police were contacted in regards to a motor vehicle accident in a UTM parking lot. January 7, 7:10 p.m. Theft under $5,000 UTM student left her purse unattended in a female washroom. When the property was retrieved from lost and found, it was discovered that her wallet was missing.
These reports are those that have been released to The Medium and do not necessarily constitute an exhaustive list. Students can contact the UTM Campus Police at 905 828 5200, Peel Regional Police at 905 453 3311, or Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222 8477.
Saini returns to duties following sabbatical CHRISTINE SHARMA Professor Deep Saini returned to his position as VP of U of T and principal of UTM last Monday following a sixmonth sabbatical, where the administrator was able to reflect on the future of UTM.
Saini pointed to an enrollment of 20,000 as a “soft spot” that can maintain intimacy and community at UTM In an interview with The Medium, Saini outlined his plans for the growth of UTM and to meet the demands of a growing student population, cur-
rently sitting at 14,000, by hiring additional faculty. When asked how many students UTM can ultimately accommodate, Saini pointed to 20,000 as a “soft spot” that can maintain intimacy and community on campus. As previously reported by The Medium, UTM’s current ratio of students to faculty is 35.9:1, while the ideal ratio is 30:1. When asked how Saini will lead the expansion while faced with decreasing financial support from the provincial government, he said that for UTM, the focus will be on balancing the budget effectively and implementing one area of change at a time, such as facility expansion and faculty expansion. Saini continued on page 4
MAHMOUD SAROUJI/THE MEDIUM
CUPE 3902 filed a complaint against U of T to the Ontario Labour Relations Board. MENNA ELNAKA ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR More information has come to light following CUPE 3902’s move to take legal action against U of T due to allegations that the university acted in “bad faith” during strike negotiations by providing the union with incorrect data. According to Ryan Culpepper, the chair of CUPE 3902, following a meeting with the university last September, the union realized data provided to them during the strike settlement differed from that provided to them in the meeting. In an interview, Culpepper told The Medium that the union was not absolutely certain about the inconsistencies until October. “All that was supposed to be [in the data] was funding commitments, but instead, the [university] included net incomes,” said Culpepper. “The way the data was marked was very different from what they showed us during the strike.” As previously reported by The Medium, CUPE 3902 filed a complaint to the Ontario Labour Relations Board based on claims of “unfair labour practice” by the university. The announcement was
made on December 8, months after the four-week strike and binding arbitration were settled. According to Culpepper, data provided by the university during strike negotiations listed various funding commitments to members of the union. For those who earned between $15,000 and $16,000, the new contract would grant top-ups to $17,500 or $18,000.
A mediator is expected to sit with CUPE 3902 and the university next month. “What we saw in September was not marked as a graduate bursary funding commitment, it was marked as net income,” said Culpepper, who explained that funding included award calculations and employment income at U of T, such as a job in the library or cafeteria. “That means that there are people who should be eligible for the fund who are not in the data we’re seeing. And there are people in the data we’re seeing who are entitled to a bigger payment than what the data
shows,” he added. As previously reported by The Medium, Althea Blackburn-Evans, U of T’s director of media relations, released a statement on behalf of Angela Hildyard, VP human resources and equity, denying all claims made by CUPE 3902 and stating that the university gave the union bursary funds of $1.045 million and has requested the union to disburse these funds. “We can’t distribute the bursaries,” said Culpepper. “The point is to give everyone a top-up payment. We don’t have that data […]. We now have no idea who’s eligible for the fund or how to get the data.” The Medium is unable to independently verify either party’s claims. According to Culpepper, the union has not heard directly from university officials since October and a mediator is expected to sit with CUPE 3902 and the university in February; if the dispute is not resolved, there will be a trial hearing. When asked if a strike is a possible option for CUPE 3902, Culpepper told The Medium that due to the union’s collective agreement with the university, a strike is not a possibility.
Meric Gertler appointed to Order of Canada U of T faculty, alumni, and community members have been newly appointed to the Order of Canada SHEHNOOR KHURRAM
U of T president Meric Gertler has been named one of 69 new appointees to the Order of Canada for his contribution in field of geography. According to the December 30 announcement made by the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, Gertler has been named in honour of “his research in urban geography, notably for his influential studies of innovation, technology, and development in cities”. The Order of Canada, which was created in 1967, is the second highest civilian award for merit in Canada. The award recognizes “outstanding
achievement, dedication to the community, and service to the nation” from people in all sectors of Canadian society.
In addition to Gertler, several other U of T faculty, alumni, and community members are being honoured. Gertler has written over 80 journal articles and book chapters in his field. His research revolves around “the geography of innovative activity and the economies of city-regions”. In addition to Gertler, several
other U of T faculty, alumni, and community members are being honoured with the Order of Canada, or promoted to a higher level within it, including Brenda Andrews, Kent Roach, Frances Shepherd, George Baird, Margaret MacMillan, Atom Egoyan, Rohinton Mistry, Patricia Cranton, and Helen Vari. “I’m delighted to see the Order of Canada celebrating so many members of the University of Toronto community. These leading scholars and dedicated citizens have made extraordinary contributions to our country and our world and I’m pleased to offer them my congratulations. It’s an unexpected honour to be included among their number,” Gertler said.
CARLOS OSORIO / TORONTO STAR
Sixty-nine new appointees have been named to the Order of Canada.
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THE MEDIUM 01.11.2016
Saini outlines ideas on future UTM academics
»WHAT IS YOUR NON-NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION?
Anjali Suresh 1st year, CCIT
Alex Mac 2nd year, CCIT
Maintaining my healthy diet.
Keep exercising and eating healthy foods.
Katie Lo 3rd year, crim & CCIT
Polina Pyatakhina 3rd year, accounting
Continue working to improve the Canadian Asian Student Society on campus.
Keep hanging out with friends.
MAHMOUD SAROUJI/THE MEDIUM
Saini traveled to India, worked on research, and reflected on the future of UTM during his leave.
Saini continued from page 3 When discussing academics, Saini expressed the willingness to incorporate more programs in the applied sciences while also fostering more events and opportunities for students in the social sciences and humanities to create more of an artistic and literary culture at UTM. “It is important to remember that we are not just the University of Mis-
sissauga, we are the University of Toronto Mississauga,” Saini said on UTM’s position within the broader context of the University of Toronto. Another goal of the sabbatical was to focus on research. “I made a lot of progress on getting back into research, so that was a good thing,” Saini said regarding his return to research both on paper and in the lab. He worked on a research manuscript in his field of biology and hopes
to have a potential publication with input from other experts in the field published sometime this summer. “I was able to just detach myself [on sabbatical] and set my own schedule and work on things that had been lingering,” said Saini, who told The Medium that he had not taken a leave of absence for the last 15 years. During his absence, Saini also played golf and traveled abroad to India.
24-hour wait times for students in crisis Among the next steps for the growth of residence counselling are services offered in international languages and a new social work intern, mentioned at the Campus Affairs Committee meeting on Thursday. Given the large international student population at UTM, UTM’s personal and student family life counsellor Heather Burns-Shillington said that services offered in additional languages would allow students to seek help in their native language. In her presentation on “Mental Health in Residence”, Burns-Shillington explained that UTM will also get an intern on residence who is completing their Master’s in Social
Work; however, the exact role and responsibilities of the intern have not been defined. According to Burns-Shillington, the wait times for personal counselling are three days for residence students and 24 hours for crisis situations. She mentioned that on average, she sees one student per day who is at risk for suicide. A qualified social worker, BurnsShillington provides individual and family counselling and staff and student training workshops at UTM. In 2015, 87 staff and students received training in a two-day ASIST suicide prevention workshop and 150 staff and students attended the one-day safeTALK workshop. According to the presentation, most of her clients are upper-year female domestic students. Burns-
Shillington said that students request counselling for three main reasons, the most common being anxiety, then relationships (which includes family, friends, and romantic relationships). The third most common reason is suicidal thoughts and depression. One of the Student Housing and Residence Life’s initiatives to promote mental health was the Mental Wellness Week last semester, which consisted of educational activities based on the Five Ways to Wellbeing: Take Notice, Connect, Learn, Give Back, and Get Active. The department will organize Lunch ’n’ Learn Sessions during the winter semester according to BurnsShillington, in which students can discuss topics such as addictions, radicalization, and mental health.
New airline to offer cheap flights within Canada
Syrain refugees attacked in Vancouver at welcome event
Cruz’s citizenship in question by Donald Trump
Two suspects at large following theft of OPP cruiser
No winner in Powerball jackpot worth $950 million
A new airline will be offering reduced ticket prices between seven cities across Canada. Announced last Wednesday, NewLeaf will begin flights next month between Halifax, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Hamilton, Abbotsford, Regina, and Kelowna. Tickets range from $89 to $149.
A group of Syrian refugees were pepper sprayed at a welcome event last Friday in Vancouver, B.C. The event was hosted by the Muslim Association of Canada Centre and 15 people were assulted by a male suspect. Vancouver police are now working to locate the male, who was riding a bike when approaching the group.
Leading Republican candidate Donald Trump is calling into question whether fellow GOP candidate Ted Cruz is eligible to run as a presidental candiate in the 2016 presidential race. Cruz was born in Calgary, Alberta to a mother with American citizenship.
Police are searching for two individuals who stole an Ontario Provincial Police cruiser in Brampton. The vehicle, which was stolen on Friday, was later recovered by police who found it deserted in Mississauga.
The American Powerball lottery did not have any winners in Saturday night’s jackpot, which had $950 million up for grabs. It is expected the next Powerball will be worth an approximate $1.3 billion.
Source: CBC News
Source: CTV News
Source: The Globe and Mail
Source: Toronto Star
Source: Toronto Star
EESHA HASAN
JILLIAN SEGOVIA/THE MEDIUM
Wait times for counselling are three days for resident students.
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The politics of naming a victim The impeachment of UTSU VP campus life was trial by Facebook What’s in a name? A lot, apparently, when it comes to sexual assault. Over the winter break, we published a breaking news story about how UTSU VP campus life had been publicly accused of sexual assault—or attempted assault, depending on how the allegations are understood. The accusations were made on Facebook by the victim of the alleged assault. In a lengthy post that also contained screenshots of a private chat with VP campus life Askhan Bansal, the author called on people to share the post “widely”. The post was later taken down for unknown reasons, but its content remains available on Reddit at press time. After we published our story and posted it to The Medium’s Facebook page, the student who made the allegations commented on our post that we should have asked permission to use the student’s name. To be clear, at the time when the article was published, the student’s original Facebook allegations were visible to the public with the author’s name. It was a no-brainer that the post was indeed a public one and its contents were public information. Indeed, when UTSU issued a statement the same day calling on its board of directors to impeach Bansal, the union referred to the accusations of sexual assault against the VP as a “public allegation”. In other words, it was understood that the contents of the Facebook post are public information. Whether that changes after the post was removed from Facebook, I’m dubious
of, since it had been viewed enough to get a large organization to make such a strong statement in response. As examined in our cover story this week, UTSU proceeded to impeach Bansal in a decisive vote at its board meeting. The decision came without an investigation into the truth of the allegations. According to UTSU VP external Jasmine Denike, UTSU is “not a court” and they don’t have “a right to conduct” an investigation. UTSU may very well not be a court, but I do believe they had the onus of verifying the claims before taking ac-
Bansal’s name has been published in many articles about the allegations while his accuser remains largely unnamed. tion. Denike claims that UTSU does not accuse Bansal of the allegations, but made their decision out of a desire to “stand by the mandate of the union” and “make sure that students remembered that the union is a safe space”. So it seems that the reputation of the union took precedence to giving Bansal the benefit of being presumed innocent until proven guilty. In all fairness, UTSU has mentioned that the impeachment comes as a result of multiple issues with the VP, but it’s clear from the union’s public statements that the recent Face-
book allegations were a major push towards the decision. Even Denike doesn’t say that Bansal would have definitely been impeached if it weren’t for the allegations. So for Bansal, his name has been published in multiple articles about the unproven allegations along with his photo. But his accuser remains unnamed for the most part. Taking a look at practices in the media on naming victims, it seems that it’s generally the case that when it comes to sexual assault, the media is either banned from naming the accuser or doesn’t name them out of ethical considerations for the individual’s well being. A 2014 article in the Toronto Star entitled “Should sexual assault victims still be kept anonymous?” says regarding two people charged with sexual assault, “Their names and photos have been widely circulated since the charges were first laid years ago, but outside of that courtroom, no one knows the identity of the accusers. “And because of a publication ban on their identities, most people never will.” There is some disagreement on this practice, including the argument that the more we name victims of sexual assault, the better we can address the stigma associated with it. The article continues, “With only one name and face to report in the media, criminal defence lawyers say the publication bans impede the presumption of innocence because their clients get convicted in the court of public opinion before their trial ever starts.”
Hmm. Sounds like Bansal’s case was a trial by Facebook. For our part, although we’ve already named the accuser in our first article on the issue, the decision not to name her again in this week’s story was a difficult one. When we reached out to the student for comment on the story, the student specifically requested that her name not be used out of consideration for her health and wellbeing. If we wanted our coverage to be balanced in that we presumed the innocence of both parties involved, it became apparent that we should give due consideration to the potential stigma and trauma that could result from continuing to name the accuser should the allegations prove to be true. So we didn’t publish the name in this week’s article. At the end of the day, it came down to a desire not to presume guilt for either party. It remains a fact that Bansal’s name has already been widely propagated in reference to the allegations and that he’s lost his position largely because of them. How is it fair to presume the innocence of the accuser and not giving the same benefit to the accused? Whatever actually happened remains unclear, but what has come to light is that there was a dramatic imbalance of justice in this case that led to the presumption of Bansal’s guilt rather than innocence. I expected better of UTSU. YOURS, MARIA IQBAL
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A glimmer of hope for future grads Although job prospects seem positive in survey results, it’s important to keep other realities in mind In my op-ed from a few months ago, I discussed the pros and serious cons of being an English and professional writing major. Despite the few panic attacks I’ve had since then thinking about what I’m going to do to support myself once school is all finished, I felt uplifted by recent information distributed by the Academic Affairs Committee. In light of the highlights from a survey they conducted, 59 percent of graduates found a job that pays between $30,000 and $50,000 while 29 percent managed to rake in over $50,000 a year. It’s nice to know that some people legitimately found a full-time job after graduation. Despite my enlightenment with these numbers, it isn’t necessarily reassuring when you think about how low the number still is. I can’t really complain about not being able to find work since I’ve had a paying job for the past three years at the paper. I was lucky enough to score a job here at The Medium a few years ago when I landed the gig of features editor. I’ve climbed
the ladder little by little as the years progressed and managed to earn myself a few promotions, which is a great way to make money and use the skills I’ve obtained in my programs. But I always wondered what I would do without this place. During the summer, I tried to find a job to keep me afloat before I returned to school. Over 300 applications later to jobs that, quite frankly, would only pay the bills, I still wound up nowhere. The only job that considered taking me in was Town Shoes in downtown Toronto. I was pulled in for an interview with the manager of the location and, once approved by him, needed to go through a second round of interviews with his boss. Both of them loved me and just as I could see the finish line ahead of me, my employer asked about my availability. After days of interviews and emails to them, I ultimately had to walk away due to my school schedule in September, which was months away. Although, I did get the nice parting gift of being told, “I would have
hired you on the spot but I need people to work Sundays.” Because of this heartbreak, I racked up a pretty hefty debt to my mother, which I needed to pay back with the first paycheque I made at The Medium in September. According to Statistics Canada, “Youth unemployment rate in Canada increased to 13 percent
We also can’t lose sight of the fact that minimum paying jobs offer employees a handful of peanuts for hours of hard labour. in December from 12.7 percent in November of 2015. Youth unemployment rate in Canada averaged 14.15 percent from 1976 until 2015, reaching an all-time high of 20.7 percent in October of 1982 and a record low of 10.4 percent in July of 1989.” We also can’t lose sight of the fact that minimum paying jobs of-
fer employees a handful of peanuts for hours of hard labour. Labour is also exploited when it comes to internships. I’ve had a few, which were good learning experiences but were ultimately very obvious months of work without pay. In light of these numbers, the Liberal Party is promising to spend over one billion dollars over a four-year span in an attempt to help 125,000 young people find work, as reported by Huffington Post. Also reported, “The Liberal plan includes spending some $300 million annually for three years on a youth employment strategy, a move the party believes would create 40,000 jobs each year. The party also promised to pay up to one quarter of a co-op student’s salary, up to a maximum of $5,000, for every new position an employer creates.” I consider it a good thing that we have the Career Centre available to us after we graduate but their services only stretch so far when it comes to finding a job in your field. And I’ve got enough
time left on my ticket at university where I don’t have to worry about these things right now. But the questions of where I’m planning to go after graduation and what I want to do when I leave have already started (shout out to my relatives). It really wasn’t until my clock began ticking at university that I really started to focus on the harsh reality that I actually need to do stuff on my own once I leave here. I mean, I live at home and don’t need to pay for anything other than my phone bill and takeout (because I’m on a big health kick) but I do freak out when I think about funding my own life. Funding my own life despite the fact that I’m going to be in an approximate $25,000 to $30,000 of debt due to OSAP once I graduate. The good news is I can tell people I’m a successful writer as I work out of my mother’s basement.
Maria Cruz Managing Editor
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Out of sight, but never out of mind The props department’s job may not be obvious, but someone has to mind the details HAILEY MASON ASSOCIATE A&E EDITOR Approaching the halfway mark in its “Silver Season”, Theatre Erindale introduces its production of Wendy Wasserstein’s Uncommon Women and Others, a play that takes place in the ’70s and focuses on the rise of female individuality in a time of social change. Also in the works are backdrops, painted set pieces, and an assortment of props as Theatre Erindale’s backstage crew works towards the opening night of Uncommon Women, only a few weeks away. “Props are not just what [the actors] hold in their hands,” remarks Sarah Scroggie, the head of properties and paint at Theatre Erindale. “[The backstage crew] does a bit of everything to make the show work as a unit. Props become the glue that hold all parts of the theatre together.” Scroggie has worked on six years’ worth of sets, which is roughly 30 shows. With plenty of experience under her belt, Scroggie shares insight into the backstage world of Theatre Erindale. The Medium: Do you prefer to
OLIVIA ADAMCZYK/THE MEDIUM
Sarah Scroggie heads the props department at Theatre Erindale. work on modern plays, such as Uncommon Women, or the classics? Sarah Scroggie: I’m fascinated by historical objects. For my hobby I do historical recreations so I definitely prefer the historic plays. But any play that has interesting props is a fun experience.
Although I do find that a modern script such as [Uncommon Women]—as opposed to Shakespeare— will give me a lot more in terms of what I can use for props. With a script like Uncommon Women, everything is prescribed in the text. Things may be cut and added but
you certainly have a much stronger starting point. TM: Is Uncommon Women a demanding show in terms of props? SS: [Uncommon Women] is already historic, even though it only takes place 40 years ago. A lot of things are unfamiliar to the students.
There’s a typewriter in the show and nobody knew how to clean it and how to fix it. Even when you do more current plays, there are always aspects of interests that are more challenging to different people. TM: How do you negotiate the placement and use of props? Is this an original process or is it predetermined by the script or director? SS: The first thing the director, myself, and the stage manager will do [at the start of a production] is read through the plays and find all the references in the play to props. Then we make a list referring to page numbers and how [the props] are being used in the script. In some instances, there are some [props] that are much more personal than others. In Uncommon Women, we’re using a little Winnie the Pooh stuffed animal. An actress actually brought in her own stuffed animal that she had as a kid. So there’s a very close relationship there; I didn’t have anything to do with it. But if I had bought the stuffed animal, I would have to break it down and make it look dirty and old and loved. Props continued on page 10
Are we out of the woods yet? Ask Rapunzel Hart House actors weigh in on the complexities of plot, music score, and character development KATE CATTELL-DANIELS A&E EDITOR Hart House Theatre is currently in the throes of tech week before their third production of the season, Into the Woods, opens this Friday. Into the Woods is Hart House’s only musical in the 2015/16 lineup and, judging by the sheer magnitude of the set, it’s going to be a big one. The Medium sat down with Michelle Nash, a graduate of UTM’s Theatre and Drama Studies program (2012), and Saphire Demitro, who play Cinderella and the Witch respectively. The Medium: What has the rehearsal process been like? Saphire Demitro: It’s been interesting because it’s such a large-scale show that for a long time we were actually quite separated. The whole cast wasn’t in the room together for over a month. There’s maybe three or four times in the show, maximum, when we all occupy the same space. And it’s been a difficult process figuring out what the story is about and melding all the different storylines together because it’s such a complicated piece. TM: How is working on a musical different from a straight play? SD: Really just the music. Because
HART HOUSE THEATRE/PHOTO
Hart House Theatre prepares for their first musical of the season. at the end of the day it’s all about storytelling and connecting with the audience. The only real difference is that you get to this heightened state where you can’t speak anymore, so you have to sing. Michelle Nash: And also, with Sondheim specifically, he’s almost written the acting into the music. So instead of other musicals that might be a little simpler and where you
might speak some lines [in between numbers], in this show what our director is focusing on is the music, and that if you deliver it exactly the way it’s written, the story will come across, and the acting will become easier. But it’s more difficult than a play in some ways because of the timing and rhythms. If you get off, you’re screwed for the rest of that piece. TM: Is there something about mu-
sicals that is different from straight plays in terms of what the audience gets out of it? SD: I think that with any piece of theatre, your audience will be affected. I think in a straight play there are more silences, more beats and pauses that will affect you because [the actor is silent while standing] in front of this group of people, whereas here there is music that almost shows you
how to emote and kind of tells the audience what’s going on without using words. TM: Do you think that musicals are more accessible than plays? SD: I think music in general is a universal language. People can walk in and no matter what the story is, they’re going to be able to connect to the music alone. I think that one of the things with musical theatre is that people assume it’s going to be sparkly and floaty and light, whereas with this show there are a lot of serious [elements]. MN: It turns a musical on its head. The first act ends and everything is perfect, and everyone got what they wanted, and then act two begins and everything falls apart. You see the reality of these storybook characters, and you see that they are not satisfied. And people are like that—even if we get what we want, we are not satisfied. I think plays can be just as accessible as musicals, but it’s maybe easier for someone who hasn’t seen a lot of theatre to start off with a musical because there’s music which, as [Demitro] said, is a language everyone can understand. Woods continued on page 9
01.11.2016 THE MEDIUM ARTS» 9
Turning the soil deep in AGO archives Drawing, Je t’aime unearths decades of valuable art by both recent and established artists WENDELL MACAPAGNAL Over the winter break, the Art Gallery of Ontario launched their Drawing, Je t’aime exhibit. The exhibit features over 100 pieces selected and curated by the AGO’s newly created Print and Drawing Council, which consists of members from the Conservation, Curatorial, and Public Programming & Learning departments. The exhibit features a wide range of pieces from different time periods, cultures, and mediums with a focus on exploring and celebrating the different aspects of drawing. It includes rare pieces from celebrated artists including Joyce Wieland, Edgar Degas, Annie Pootoogook, Henri Matisse, and Jacopo Tintoretto. Throughout the exhibit, there are blurbs from Print and Drawing Council members highlighting their thoughts on certain pieces and why they were chosen. Photography for personal use and sharing on social media is encouraged, using the hashtag #DrawingAGO. The exhibit takes its name from Robert Motherwell’s Je t’aime series of drawings, one of which is featured in the exhibit. In the text that accom-
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The exhibit includes a workshop along with a traditional gallery. panies the piece, Brenda Rix, manager of the AGO’s Marvin Gelber Print and Drawing Study Centre, says that “Motherwell, a self-admitted Francophile, used this romantic phrase to express his deeply felt passion for art-
making.” The exhibit is split into three parts. The first room explores drawing as a thought process and features sketches on paper that date back as far as around 1638 with Massimo Stanzi-
one’s “St. Francis Receiving the Stigmata”. The second room explores the emotions that are evoked from sketching the human body, with pieces that concentrate on sketches of live models. In
the middle of the room is an interactive element where museum-goers can practice sketching their friends or use a mirror to practice sketching themselves. The third room explores drawing as a response to the world. It features a larger range of mediums and subjects, including a bronze sculpture by David Smith and drawings on napkins by John Scott. Other highlights of the exhibit include K. M. Graham’s sketches from 1970 of NASA’s famous Apollo 13 space voyage, and a collection of William Cruikshank’s notebooks donated in 1909 featuring many pages of sketches, artwork, and descriptions of his surroundings. The exhibit also has a corresponding workshop, titled “Drawing, Je t’aime: Life Drawing in the Galleries”. The class is led by Bogdan Luca, a U of T graduate alumnus and currently a professor at the Ontario College of Art and Design. It takes place on Fridays for four weeks, focusing on life drawings, and explores pieces from the exhibit’s collection. The exhibit will be open until April 3 and is included in the general admission to the museum.
Into the Woods challenges fairy tale conventions KEENA AL-WAHAIDI
I am sure that many people have read The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald at least once in their lives. If it wasn’t your grade 12 English teacher shoving it down your throat, it was your really cool aunt who gave you a copy for Christmas, or maybe your group of friends who raved about it at brunch last Sunday. If you haven’t read The Great Gatsby, though, you’re missing out on one of the most impactful pieces of literature that has ever been brought to the attention of book lovers. In ENG110, The Great Gatsby was assigned reading over the winter break. I heard some of my peers groan over this while others expressed excitement over their first reading. Other students, like me, were delighted to be studying the book for the second time. The Great Gatsby’s success is not only due to its dynamic plotline but also its electrifying characters. Take Jay Gatsby, for example. Gatsby is like that guy on your street who never comes to your parties, but that’s probably because he’s too busy polishing his car. You can’t be jealous of him because you want him to like you, but then again, you don’t have to worry because he likes everyone anyway. Gatsby is romantic and mysterious. But reading further along, there seems to be more to his story than just a guy who throws lavish parties and has loads of friends.
Fitzgerald knows how to make the setting an accessible and substantial aspect of the storyline. Usually, his books are set in New York City. This is one of the aspects of his writing that I like the most. Who doesn’t dream of New York? Fitzgerald makes it the place to be. He goes into detail about all the glitz and the glam, making the 1920s enviably cool. It’s obvious that Fitzgerald loves the Big Apple. The people are diamondstudded and the city nights embody the American Dream, filled with rich, too-pretty-to-care, curly-haired wom-
If you haven’t read The Great Gatsby, you’re missing out on one of the most impactful pieces of literature. en and a whole lot of charm. The novel takes an interesting spin right from the start when we realize that Nick Carraway, the man who moves in next door to Gatsby, and not Gatsby himself, is the narrator of the book. When I read the book for the first time, I desperately didn’t want Nick to be the one to tell Gatsby and Daisy’s story on their behalf. I wanted to hear Gatsby’s story straight from his mouth. But if the reader is allowed inside Gatsby’s head, well, where’s the mystery in that? MMMM
Woods continued from page 8 TM: What got you into acting? MN: I can’t pinpoint one specific moment. I love music and music has always been in my family. Acting kind of came later for me. I started doing theatre around age 11, and from then on I was hooked on community theatre, but mainly because I like singing. It wasn’t until later on in high school when I [realized] I loved acting and I loved watching it, but I was such a self-conscious person I [felt I] wasn’t good at it, [but] I wanted to learn. Once I went to TDS and finished the program, I learned to love acting in a whole different way, [and] that propelled me to seek out acting in any way I could. It’s one of the only things that truly satisfies me. SD: I went to see my first musical when I was very young and I started singing at a very young age, but I didn’t realize that this was a job, that you could do this for the rest of your life. I was seeing Miss Saigon and I looked at my mother and I [said], “I can do that?” and she said, “You can do whatever you want.” And then I went to [the Etobicoke School of the Arts] where musical theatre was my major, and then I did a lot of community theatre. I love it. If you don’t love it, this is not the career for you because it’s not an easy one. TM: What’s the hardest part about being an actor?
MN: Money. SD: Finding jobs. And the competitive nature of it, because there are so many people striving for the same thing. MN: At the end of the day there are a million talented people for certain parts, but you have to have your own self-confidence and really not give a crap about what anybody thinks of you. SD: Because you stand in front of people and you [say]: judge me.
“At the end of the day there are a million talented people for certain parts, but you have to have your own self-confidence.” TM: What is the biggest challenge in this piece in particular? MN: I believe it’s the rhythms, the technicalities of the show. The rhythms in this music are some of the hardest I’ve ever had to do. I am classically trained, I studied opera, but [here] nothing makes logical sense when you look at the music. Nothing fits. But every single moment is on purpose. Putting us all together on the same page, and getting us all into that same world has been the hardest thing that we’ve had to work through. SD: For me it’s taking these char-
acters that we grew up with and think we know and making them real people. And communicating that to the people who are watching. Because you come in and you see a witch and you think [she] must be bad. So it’s taking this person who’s stereotypically bad and making her human. She’s making choices because she thinks that they’re right. There is no all-encompassing evil. TM: Do you relate to your character? SD: Absolutely. Mainly because this woman isn’t known for being nice, and when I first meet people I can be quite cold, more because I’m an awkward human being than anything else. But people assume that if you’re not nice then you’re not good. MN: I relate to my character more so now than at the beginning of the process. It was difficult because everyone in this show has such high stakes. For Cinderella, it’s that [she] wants to go to this festival. But at the heart of it is [the question of ] why. It’s because she’s never had any true happiness or freedom. She’s looking for a chance to figure out who she is. It’s trying to find your purpose and [dealing with] that indecisiveness. Anyone can relate to that. It’s easier, when I think about it that way, to up my stakes. This interview has been edited for clarity and length. Into the Woods opens at Hart House Theatre on January 15.
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THE MEDIUM 01.11.2016
History happens early in the props department KATE CATTELL-DANIELS A&E EDITOR They say to never judge a book by its cover or, by extension, an album by its cover art. But I think I have an argument to the contrary. A World Next Door to Yours by the Parlotones should have won an award for exceptional cover art. Frankly, in a metal box full of rejected music, (we have one in the Medium office—come check it out sometime), something has to stand out. The album art shows a metallic knight in armour carrying a similarly metallic princess holding a megaphone. I don’t get it, but I’m also not sure there’s anything to get. When I open the case, the reverse side of the insert shows that same knight on horseback. The disk itself has no writing or titles on it, but a tiny knight crouching in the shadow of an oncoming dragon. I’m interested—I can’t help it. I’m also having serious doubts about what happens to album artwork, and artists, in the age of digital music. The first two songs on the album, “Louder than Bombs” and “Overexposed”, make for a strong start. It really gets on my nerves when an artist puts their best song first, and then I spend the rest of the album waiting for another song as good as the first one. But here, while the first two songs are stylistically similar, they do not exhibit everything A World Next Door to Yours has in store. The next two songs, “Dragonflies and Astronauts” and “Beautiful”, provide contrast to the solid wall of rock and roll I was expecting. The lyrics are catchy but also unpredictable. In “Beautiful”, for example, the chorus goes, “You are all beautiful/ You are all magical.” At the first line I think, “Wow, someone’s an optimist,” and then I catch myself wondering what exactly lead singer Kahn Morbee
means by “magical”. I’m assuming that’s a compliment, but there’s also a chance he’s on hallucinogenic drugs. Who knows? Does it really matter? Listening to the Top 40 recently, it seems like every human being making music these days either lives in a bubble of perfection or is seriously considering jumping off a bridge. The Parlotones are an exception. Listening to songs like “Colorful” and “Giant Mistakes”, I find there is a balance in this music; there is room for normal ups and downs and all the grey area in between.
In many ways, I think a good album is not unlike a novel; it starts in one place and ends somewhere new. My favourite song is “Solar System”. It’s slow and lullaby-like, inviting the listener in with the first line, “Take a walk in the solar system.” “Sure,” I think. “That could be fun.” It turns out this song isn’t a happy one, but there is something oddly soothing about it. In many ways, I think a good album is not unlike a novel; it starts in one place and ends somewhere new. I don’t know that I can tell you, in a logical manner, the narrative of A World Next Door to Yours. I can, however, attest to there being a discernable arc. The album begins with rock and roll, takes a trip through unstoppable optimism, detours through self-doubt, and ends in a soft, comfy place where everyone eats marshmallows for dinner. There’s that other thing they say— getting there is half the fun. MMMM
OLIVIA ADAMCZYK/THE MEDIUM
There are some props that Sarah Scroggie makes herself.
Props continued from page 8 TM: On average, what percentage of props do you make yourself ? SS: First we see what [props] we have in stock. Then we see what we can buy. Finally, we’ll make [props]. Only the [props] we can’t buy we end up making and sometimes we alter things we buy. For example, in Semi-Monde, a show done a couple of years ago, we needed small pistols. I brought in water pistols, but they didn’t have enough weight so we poured plaster into them to make them more realistic. They were also painted so they wouldn’t look like toys anymore. TM: How much research did you have to do for this show? Were you familiar with Uncommon Women beforehand? SS: This is not a play I’d ever heard of before. We’ve definitely been researching the time period and making sure everything is cohesive and adheres to the play. For example, there’s a Corn Nuts bag [in Uncommon Women] and we needed to know
what this bag would look like in the ’70s. TM: Do you feel that you relate to the content of Uncommon Women, such as its ideas of feminism and female individuality? If so, does your level of interest influence the way you frame the props and setting? SS: I don’t always think in those terms. I think more about what I need to do for the show. And then,
“We’ve definitely been researching the time period and making sure everything is cohesive and adheres to the play.” when everything is all together, I let myself actually think about whether I like the script. When you’re looking for props, you don’t get that emotional attachment to the play’s content—or I don’t, anyway. TM: Can you describe the experi-
ence of working with crew members? SS: It’s fantastic. I really enjoy working with the students. [The crew] is primarily acting students [from the theatre and drama studies program]. We have a really good time with props and paint and I think a lot of them find they enjoy doing things they’ve never tried before. TM: How does the crew function? Do you work as a team or do you more or less go your separate ways while working on a production? SS: We do a little bit of both. Every day we come in and I have a list of what needs to be done. From the stage manager there’s also a list of all the new things that were added or cut during the previous rehearsals. Then we’ll divide up the work. I usually get the students working in groups of two or sometimes on individual projects. I find that the students get a lot out of having a project they work on from start to end—a finished product they can be proud of. Uncommon Women and Others opens at Theatre Erindale on January 21.
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01.11.2016
There’s “Room for More” refugees A group of 15, including two UTM philosophy professors, sponsored a Syrian family of six MAHNOOR AYUB ASSOCIATE FEATURES EDITOR Christmas Eve was anything but traditional for two of UTM’s philosophy professors. Amidst their late afternoon run to No Frills—adding to the stock of lentils, rice, and other dry goods placed in the new apartment— Dr. Jennifer Nagel and Dr. Sergio Tenenbaum found themselves nervous but excited. In less than 48 hours, they would be at Pearson International, waiting to welcome a refugee family. A group of 15 friends and family, dubbed Room for More, had been formed through the professors’ efforts to privately sponsor a Syrian refugee family. The group welcomed six refugees, a mother and five children, with five of them arriving on December 26. After an extended layover in Jordan, the 21-year-old son arrived on December 30. The family, who are now permanent Canadian residents, are set to begin a new chapter of their lives. Launched in 1979, the Canadian Private Sponsorship Program has brought over 225,000 refugees to Canada over the years. The private sponsorship process involves the submission of an application for a refu-
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Room for More includes two UTM professors: Dr. Jennifer Nagel and Dr. Sergio Tenenbaum. gee profile to the federal government addressed to the Winnipeg Central Processing Office, followed by raising funds and developing a settlement plan. The experience, however, has proved to be much larger for the group than the logistics would indicate. “Undertaking a sponsorship is
something that has enriched my life much more than I would have expected,” says Nagel, describing how the experience has been for her and her family. “I have a pretty tame life—two kids, a husband, and a Honda Civic— and suddenly I’m spending time with people who have escaped a war zone and meeting people whose immediate
family members have been killed by ISIS or by the Syrian Armed Forces […] Weirdly, what I’m doing with them is stuff like waiting in the apartment for the guy from Teksavvy to come install the Internet.” The Handbook for Sponsoring Groups, published by the Refugee Sponsorship Training Program in
Scarborough, emphasizes culture shock being a significant component for adjustment for both parties. Nagel explains how cultural adjustment, while being unsettling, can be an incredible learning experience, commenting, “You’d think those three-hour delivery windows would be really hard to wait through when you don’t share a language with your hosts, but they aren’t. “When the Internet was finally up, I felt really bad for the 21-year-old, who was desperately trying to log into his Facebook account, which was giving him the whole secondary verification thing, probably freaked out by the fact that he’s logging in from another continent,” she says. While Facebook was sending a text message with an access code, the cell phone was presumably dead somewhere in the Middle East. “There he was, with an awesome status update ready to go, and he couldn’t log in.” Moments like these make Nagel feel culturally close to her “new family”, as does watching SpongeBob SquarePants with them in Arabic— the voices, she says, are pretty much the same. Family continued on page 13
Local MP Iqra Khalid shares her success The Mississauga-Erin Mills MP speaks about the federal elections and what she brings to the job FARAH QAISER FEATURES EDITOR Last year’s federal elections may seem like a distant memory to many, but the campaign remains fresh in the mind of Iqra Khalid, the newly elected MP for the Mississauga-Erin Mills riding. “It was inspiring; it was motivating; it was traumatising—it was everything and so much more,” she says. Khalid graduated from York University with a double major in criminology and professional writing and later attended the Western Michigan University Cooley Law School in the U.S. She had initially volunteered for the Liberal Party to aid with her colleagues’ election within the party, but found herself fascinated with the role that MPs played in the government, particularly the “direct and indirect effect of decision-making at the government level”. Prior to her election campaign, Khalid was working within the legal department of the City of Mississauga. “[The campaigning] really taught me the value of relationships, of
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Iqra Khalid was previously working in the City of Mississauga’s legal department. understanding the different communities, the different ideas that we have to take into account when we’re seeking office or when we are in office,” says Khalid. “I think that [the] balance act is [an] important part of Canadian politics because we are a majority made up of minorities— just understanding that was the most valuable part of the campaign.” Khalid believes that this federal election was focused on the Cana-
dian “identity”. “There [were] very practical or hard-core issues like the economy that were being discussed, but at the same time, I think what it truly means to be a Canadian was a bigger part of the platform,” she says. “I think that a lot of Canadians really wanted to define […] who we are as Canadians. Are we as diverse and as inclusive as we make ourselves out to be? Or do we want a transparent
government? How do we function as a country? […] I really wanted to be a part of that dialogue.” Previously, the Mississauga-Erin Mills riding was represented by the Conservative party’s Bob Dechert. He was first elected to represent the riding in 2008, and re-elected in 2011. According to Mississauga News, Khalid was elected as the MP for the riding with a total of 27,518 votes,
while Dechert received 21,682 votes. “That was a very, very stressful day. When the votes were being counted, my heart was in my throat,” says Khalid. “[…] There were many, many moments of self-doubt and insecurity—whether I’m good enough, whether I can do the job effectively— but seeing that some 27,000 people thought that I as a member of parliament for Mississauga-Erin Mills could do something, that they gave me a chance, it really motivated me to go forth and removed some of that self-doubt. That election day was definitely one of the biggest moments in my life.” Following the election, elected candidates were sworn in as MPs and had their first sitting at the House of Commons. There Khalid made her maiden speech, thanking the people of the Mississauga-Erin Mills riding, and reflected on “the importance of having an inclusive government [and] the importance of really looking at issues that define us as Canadians”. According to Khalid, there are currently 200 first-time MPs in the House “from all the parties”. MP continued on page 12
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A case of mistaken fossil identity Researchers have now identified an 1845 fossil to be Canada’s first Dimetrodon fossil FARAH QAISER FEATURES EDITOR Jurassic World enthusiasts may be shocked to hear that a Canadian dinosaur fossil, originally discovered by a farmer in the 19th century, had been misidentified and wrongly proclaimed for over a century. Researchers, including two UTM palaeontologists, have correctly identified the previously-named Bathygnathus borealis to actually be the first Canadian Dimetrodon fossil. The farmer had discovered the dinosaur fossil while digging a well in the French River district of Prince Edward Island in 1845. Due to a lack of natural history museums in Canada at the time, the farmer sold the fossil to the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia, U.S. Joseph Leidy, a prominent palaeontologist at that time, believed that the fossil was the lower jaw of a dinosaur, and mistakenly identified it as a Bathygnathus borealis fossil in 1853. Bathygnathus refers to the fact that the dinosaur has a “deep” jaw, while borealis indicates its northern
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Dr. Kirstin Brink and Dr. Robert Reisz were part of the research team behind this discovery. origins. “Bathygnathus borealis is an extinct animal known from only one fossil, a jaw with teeth,” comments Dr. Kirstin Brink, a palaeontology graduate alumna at UTM. “It wasn’t until 1905 that the [fossil discovered on Prince Edward Island]
was recognized by palaeontologists as the upper jaw (maxilla) of a sphenacodontid, which is a group consisting of the ancestors of mammals, not dinosaurs,” says Brink. “The most well-known sphenacodontid is Dimetrodon, whose most recognizable feature is an elongate dorsal sail
[…] Dimetrodon is often mistaken for a dinosaur, but is more closely related to mammals (and therefore humans) than it is to dinosaurs.” Despite palaeontologists recognizing that there were inconsistencies in the so-called Bathygnathus fossil, the identity of this particular Canadian
fossil was not clarified until 2015. While completing her Ph.D. studies at UTM, Brink’s research focused on specifics of dinosaur anatomy, with a significant emphasis on tooth structure. Alongside her supervisor, Dr. Robert Reisz from the Department of Biology, she studied the evolution of Dimetrodon teeth across 25 million years, leading to conclusions such as the fact that a serrated tooth structure (as seen in the Tyrannosaurus Rex) allowed top predators to rip flesh effectively from prey. Their research has been published in science journals such as Nature Communications and Scientific Reports. During her research, Brink came across the Bathygnathus fossil and believed that she may be able to correctly determine its identity based on its teeth. She and a team of researchers (Reisz, Hillary Maddin from Carleton University, and David Evans from the Royal Ontario Museum) attempted to put an end to the questions regarding the fossil’s identity. Fossil continued on page 13
MP’s unique perspective MP continued from page 13 “I’m a big believer in jumping headfirst into icy cold water,” she says. “You can take all the training in the world, you can have a million and one readings about how it should be done and the theory behind it, but until you start doing something, you won’t really understand how to do it. And quite honestly, if we’re being paid from the time that we’re elected, then it is our obligation to start working from that day as well.” Since then, Khalid and her team have been busy setting up their constituency office in the riding. “Who knew that real estate was so expensive in the west end of Mississauga?” says Khalid with a laugh. When the House will be in session, Khalid will be in Ottawa. She will return to the Mississauga-Erin Mills riding on weekends and on days when the House will not be sitting. Her day-to-day tasks involve meeting with constituents to “understand what their concerns are”, as well as stakeholders, businesses, and organisations on issues such as creating jobs and building a community that is “more open to entrepreneurship”. Khalid believes that she brings a unique perspective to her job, given her status as a both “a young, brown Muslim woman” and a first-generation immigrant. “I understand the immigrant culture along with the Western. I think that I stand to provide a very unique perspective and to really help people transition from other countries into the Canadian home, which I know is a very difficult process, having gone through it myself. I really think that we can do a lot more in that respect,” she says. According to Khalid, over 50 percent of the Canadians that live in the Mississauga-Erin Mills riding are first-
generation immigrants and together speak over 40 different languages. Despite the great diversity that can be found in the riding, Khalid believes that the community doesn’t “actually live together—in that, we live in silos”. “One thing that I hope to achieve, whether through politics or through social work or humanitarian effort, is to unite the community and to make sure that we are living together and not just co-existing,” she says. When asked about her thoughts on postsecondary tuition, Khalid says that “as the national household debt rises, it’s becoming very hard for postsecondary students to complete their education”.
“I understand the immigrant culture along with the Western. I think that I stand to provide a very unique perspective and to really help people transition.” According to Khalid, the government has put forward a “very comprehensive plan” that will help students “not only achieve their postsecondary education but also then to transition into the workforce”. “The first would be to [address] student loan accessibility,” she says. “To not have the loan fee repayable the minute you graduate, but to have that loan become payable once you are earning more than $25,000 a year. So it’s [a] multi-faceted [plan].” Budget consultations will be taking place throughout January. “Once the budget passes, we can expect to see some of these items— which are our platform items—to come forward,” says Khalid.
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THE MEDIUM 01.11.2016
The fossil is the first in Canada
One week of 2016 has already passed—
seem slightly outdated, there is one clear
are you still holding on to your (slightly am-
underlying message: if you haven’t broken
bitious) New Year’s resolution?
your New Year’s resolution yet, statistically,
According to the Toronto Star, only 19
you’re about to do it soon.
percent of Canadians kept their New Year’s
Typical New Year’s resolutions include
resolutions during 2011. The statistics
exercising more, losing weight, and switch-
don’t end there—approximately 52 percent
ing to a healthier diet. For those of you who
of the individuals surveyed had kept their
are attempting to beat the odds and want
New Year’s resolution for a month, while
to make your healthy resolution a reality, I
19 percent could only manage to do so
have two words for you: Caesar salad.
for 24 hours. While these numbers may Caesar Salad SERVES 4-6
INGREDIENTS
slices. Brush one side of the bread with
• ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
oil, and then cut into smaller squares.
• 1 lettuce (Cos or Romaine)
(Alternatively, you can buy croutons.)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
5. Place the bread squares on an oven
• 1 tbsp sour cream
tray. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
• 1 clove garlic
Toss the croutons occasionally.
• 2 large egg yolks • 3 slices of bread (or croutons) • 4 tbsp olive oil
6. Wash and dry the lettuce. Tear into smaller pieces. lemon juice, sour cream, and Worces-
• Cooked chicken, sliced into small pieces
tershire sauce into a small bowl and mix
• Pinch of salt and pepper
thoroughly. Add the egg yolks and whisk
• Anchovy paste (optional, can be added into the salad dressing)
until the salad dressing is thick. 8. Add the cooked chicken slices, garlic croutons, lettuce, and the parmesan cheese to a large serving bowl. Slowly
METHOD
pour the dressing over the salad and mix
1. Chop garlic into quarters.
gently. Add the boiled egg slices. Toss
2. Place the chopped garlic and 3 tbsp of olive oil into a small bowl. Let sit for 15 minutes. 3. Discard garlic. The oil will be used to
Fossil continued from page 12
7. Place the remaining oil, salt, pepper,
• 100 g parmesan cheese, grated
• Boiled egg, sliced into quarters (optional)
KIRSTIN BRINK/PHOTO
The Prince Edward Island fossil had previously been identified as the Bathygnathus borealis.
the salad lightly. 9. Sprinkle any remaining parmesan cheese on the top. 10. Serve immediately.
bake the croutons. 4. Remove the crusts from the bread
The fossil was transported from Philadelphia to Toronto, where CT scans were performed at the Princess Margaret Hospital to observe the internal anatomy of the fossil. The images were then processed at Carleton University. This led the researchers to realise that the fossil, according to Brink, had “teeth [that were] blade-like with tiny serrations along the front and back of the teeth”. This tooth structure was similar to that of a Dimetrodon. However, the fossil had an unusual facial structure where the septomax-
illa bone was greatly exposed. This was an observation that had not been recorded in previous Dimetrodon fossils. So was the fossil a Dimetrodon, or had it been correctly named as Bathygnathus borealis for the last century? To answer this question, the researchers then constructed a family tree for both the Dimetrodon and the Bathygnathus families to compare their evolutionary histories. The team realised that the Bathygnathus borealis was the sister of the Dimetrodon grandis, and that this Prince Edward Island fossil must be a new species of
Dimetrodon. “Based on the study of the anatomy of the teeth of Bathygnathus and the results of the new family tree, Bathygnathus borealis will be renamed Dimetrodon borealis,” says Brink. “This marks the first occurrence of a Dimetrodon fossil in Canada. Dimetrodon is now known [to occur in] the U.S., Canada, and Germany.” The team’s discovery, “Re-evaluation of the historic Canadian fossil Bathygnathus borealis from the Early Permian of Prince Edward Island”, was published in the Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences in November 2015.
The refugee family will face several struggles Family continued from page 11 However, there are some very significant differences, such as the language barrier. “I only have a few words of the language, and I have very little time to work on it right now, with work and family responsibilities,” she says. Room for More had put out a call for volunteer translators, which was taken up not only across the UTM campus by organizations such as the MSA, but also across Toronto. The Room for More group currently has 47 volunteer translators, primarily including people who live near the refugee family in Toronto. With most UTM students living near Brampton or Mississauga, the group has not used a UTM student translator yet. Nagel adds, “The family has only been here two weeks. Meanwhile, it’s just good knowing we have a long list of people willing to help if we need them, even if just over the phone.” RSTP requires that private sponsorship projects proceed either as a group of five, or in partnership with a sponsorship agreement holder. Room for More opted for the SAH route, choosing Humanity First, an almost exclusively volunteer-run charity in Vaughan. “We didn’t push very hard, [yet] we had people coming at us with all kinds of furniture, clothing, and household equipment,” says Nagel. She recalls a woman donating her
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Room for More donations included furniture, clothing, and household equipment. family’s beautiful Passover dishes, explaining that they only get used once a year. Room for More also received a significant donation from the staff at the UTM Advancement Office as a part of their annual holiday-season giving tradition. Additionally, when one of the Room for More group members took the family to a local mosque last Friday for prayer services, the imam (leader of the congregation) gave them a special welcome and a box of chocolates, and asked them to let him
know if the congregation could help in any way. Even with overwhelming donations and help available, Nagel does highlight how various things will get hard once the honeymoon of arrival is over. “It will be hard for our new family to learn the language, hard for them to do well in school at first, hard for them to get jobs, hard to learn a whole new system, hard even to deal with the weather,” she says. However, she remains optimistic for this family. “The youngest kid
got up at 6:30 a.m. for the first day of school because he was so excited. This might just be the kind of kid who will make it to his 9 a.m. classes on time in university, I can hope,” she says. Owing to her interaction with newcomer students from a broad array of cultures at UTM, Nagel reaffirms how kids coming to Canada, even in their late teens, can make extremely rapid academic progress and thrive here. Room for More is now faced with
the challenge of using these resources to support more refugee families, starting with more paperwork. “Filling out sponsorship paperwork feels like the worst high school class you ever took—it’s very boring, and there is a terrible penalty if you make even one mistake spelling a name or writing in a date of birth.” Nagel mentions how a single mistake could result in the application being sent back, with months of delay for the refugee on the other side. She remains motivated, however, by saying, “Whatever headaches we have with that are nothing compared to what the people on the other side are experiencing.” While Nagel remains hopeful that the overall reception of the Syrian refugees in Canada continues to be positive, she understands how this will be a struggle. “Look at the comments section under any CBC website article on the refugees and there is a massive sewer of hatred there, bad even by the general standards of Internet comments sections, which is saying something,” she says. Nagel envisions these difficulties smoothing out over time with better organization, and she also hopes that “the deeper problems with hate (here in Canada, over in the Middle East, and elsewhere) can get solved by this new generation of internationally-minded people—a generation formed with the help of movements like the influx of refugees here”.
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Rhythmic workout or cultural red flag? Zumba offers students a dance workout, but may usher in concerns over cultural appropriation AMANDA BORTHWICK
“Who’s that sweaty-haired, armpitstained, make-up-melting mess?” I wondered as I stared into the floorlength mirror reflection of myself. It was at that moment I realised that Zumba was not for the weak. I glanced around the studio, noticing everyone else was hardly breaking a sweat while I was one pelvic thrust away from breaking a hip. Maybe someone as rhythmically challenged as me should stick to the treadmill, but for more than 30 students who release their inner Shakira every Wednesday night in the RAWC’s dance studio, an hour-long Zumba fitness class offers them a high-energy cardiovascular workout and demands Extra Strength Lady Speedstick. First-year theatre and drama student George Alevizos describes his first Zumba class as a fun and unique way to engage in alternative exercise. The fact that Alevizos is confined to a wheelchair certainly holds no limitations to the kind of liberation and excitement he feels when he dances during Zumba. “It doesn’t matter if you have any disability or limitations, you can do
CHRISTY TAM/THE MEDIUM
Zumba is a safe aerobic exercise that helps build strength and improve motion and posture. whatever you want if you put your mind to it. This is a perfect example of doing something that I love to do, and doing it in my way,” he says. His way at Zumba looked as agile, dexterous, and graceful as other Zumbagoers like Katherine Booth, who has been attending classes for months. “I love Zumba because it’s easy and fun and it doesn’t feel like a workout,” says Booth, a first-year commerce student.
As an avid disciple of Zumba, she attends multiple classes on and off campus. However, Booth feels that the pop songs selected for today’s Zumba session are different from the more Latin and “Bollywood” style music played in most classes she has attended elsewhere. “I think UTM has more of an adjusted Zumba, we focus more on the physical component and we dance to mainly pop music, but typical
Zumba, in my experience, is more sensual,” she says. We jokingly discussed the kind of wrist-flicking, hip-swivelling choreography that she had seen take place at her other Zumba classes. But jovialities aside, these dance moves are actually a derivative of some original “Bollywood” or “Latino” ways of dancing. And in overlooking the cultural context from which this music and choreography emerge, could we
be committing the moral sin of cultural appropriation in the name of yoga pants and tie-dye shirts? I pose this question in light of the recent decision to suspend a free yoga class at the University of Ottawa after reports of concerns about “cultural appropriation” were brought forward by the university’s student federation (SFUO). Cultural appropriation often refers to the power dynamic in which members of a dominant culture adopt elements from a culture that has been systematically oppressed. Although there have been various reports following the incident about the reasons for the suspension, according to The Ottawa Sun, the SFUO contended that since many of the cultures that yoga practises have been taken from “have experienced oppression, cultural genocide, and diasporas due to colonialism and Western supremacy”, students need to be mindful of the ways in which they express themselves while practising yoga. However, there is much opposition to the decision, and some claim that the labelling of this particular yoga session as cultural appropriation is questionable. Zumba continued on page 16
Blues playoff hopes are slowly diminishing Varsity Blues men’s hockey struggles on the road, losing 9-1 to city rival Ryerson and Waterloo ERIC HEWITSON SPORTS EDITOR On Wednesday night at Mattamy Athletic Centre in Toronto, the Blues lost 9-1 to Ryerson, who sit in the middle of the pack in the standings with a 9-9-0 record. The Blues fell behind early in the contest; the Blues were staring as goaltender Michael Nishi allowed three goals in the first period. The scoring continued early in the second period; Rams’ Mitch Gallant scored to open the period, then Daniel Clairmont gave the Rams a 6-0 lead with a power-play goal, defeating the Blues’ hopes of coming back. Ryerson has been a shooting machine of late; against Waterloo they had 50 shots on net and still lost 3-0. It was only a matter of time before Ryerson put the puck in the back of the net, and unluckily for Toronto, Ryerson found their scoring touch in time for their game. Max Flanagan scored the lone Blues goal late into the second period.
ROHAM ABTAHI/PHOTO
The Blues come home this week with a 6-11-2 record, good for eighth place in the OUA. Nishi gave up the first four goals to Ryerson, stopping 17 of 20 shots until Brett Willows came in as replacement, faring even worse and giving up five goals on 20 shots. Willows is the Blues goaltender famously known for backing up Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Jonathan Bernier two years ago during an emergency situation.
Ryerson goaltender Taylor Dupuis stopped 32 of 33 shots. The Blues fared much better against the Laurier Golden Hawks, who sit in sixth place with an 8-9-0 record, on Thursday. Both teams fought hard throughout, exchanging goals until Laurier pulled ahead with 11 seconds left in the game, giving the Hawks a 3-2.
With a handful of seconds left on the clock, the Blues couldn’t muster up any magic, falling victim in the dramatic ending of the game. The Blues opened the scoring three minutes into the first period when first-year Max Lindsay scored his fourth goal of the season. Laurier came back five minutes later when Derek Shoenmakers beat
Blues goaltender Andrew Hunt. Hunt was the third Toronto goaltender to play in two nights for the Blues. He fared better than his superiors, stopping 33 of 36 shots. Laurier goaltender Colin Furlong earned the win for the Hawks, stopping 30 of 32 shots. With the game tied at two apiece, Toronto committed a penalty, giving their opponents a man advantage for the final moments of the game. Rookie forward Christian Mroczkowski scored, giving his team the victory and pushing them two points ahead of the Blues in the OUA standings. With nine games remaining on the schedule, the Blues are only two points behind a playoff position. With a week to recuperate from the losses and organize themselves for the final stretch, they can surely make a push they’re capable of achieving. The Blues haven’t missed the playoffs this decade. The Blues play next on January 15, when they host the Windsor Lancers at Varsity Arena at 7:30 p.m.
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THE MEDIUM 01.11.2016
NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS Ken Duncliffe UTM athletic director I’m currently rehabbing my knee, which I hurt in a skiing accident. Over the course of the year, I’m looking to maintain a healthy active lifestyle.
Nick Hallett Varsity Blues athlete
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Habits have longer-lasting effects on your life than most New Year’s resolutions. ERIC HEWITSON SPORTS EDITOR While walking through UTM’s athletic facilities this week, I made it a goal to ask students, trainers, and staff about their New Year’s resolutions. I took pictures of them and put their quotes and photos in this week’s sports section. Some accepted, but there was an emphatic “No” from many. Why do so many people find New Year’s resolutions so cheesy and intrusive? And when some did answer, they had to think about it for a little while. Either these people just didn’t want their photo taken while sweating like a pig on level 10 on the treadmill—which I don’t blame them for—or they knew that New Year’s resolutions don’t work or they wouldn’t follow them through, especially during the busiest time of year. I thank the students, staff, and trainers who did give their New Year’s resolutions, but I also thank the students who said “No”, because they inspired this article. Do you want to lose 10 pounds for the summer and show off those luscious abs that are currently sitting in your imagination? Well, there’s a reason why your abs are sitting there
and not on your physical body; it’s because you created a goal to lose weight but don’t know how to do it. You’ll go to the gym whenever you feel bloated because, well, bloated equals no abs. But there’s no consistency or healthy driving force in your workout plans. To lose 10 pounds, it’ll take more than going to the gym a few times; you need to create healthy habits. This all sounds scary, but seriously, these words could change your life. Some mystical guru probably once said, “It takes 30 days to create a habit,” but since mystical gurus haven’t been shown to truly exist, we’ll go with “research”. If you want to lose 10 pounds, you’ll have to exercise every day for 30 days straight—this way, you’ll naturally program your body to get addicted to exercise and be unable to live without it. I’m not saying go to the gym and do 400 push-ups; I’m saying take the dog for a walk or instead of bailing on skating plans with your friends, go and skate—do something once a day for 30 days. And no, walking to the kitchen to get Doritos doesn’t count. Your next challenge is to cook something every day for those 30 days—why does this make sense? It allows you to control what you eat.
I’m looking to stay away from drinking alcohol. It slows you down and affects your performance on the field. Also, go to all the [football] team lifts.
Skip the morning lineup at Tim Horton’s . Even if you’re getting the breakfast wrap, you’re not putting any good nutrients into your body because fast food items are processed and fake. There are many ways to cook a healthy breakfast in the morning. Doing this will promote better health, focus, and mood, and even improve your sleeping habits and sex life. Students overestimate the amount of time it could take to either make or prepare a meal. You’re in line at Tim Horton’s for 10 minutes; take those 10 minutes and save your money. Scramble some eggs, burn some toast, and blend a protein shake in that amount of time at home. Remember, there are 11 months a year that consist of at least 30 days— why not set yourself up with 11 or 12 habits this year? In January, start off with the cooking—you could lose the 10 pounds with better nutrition alone. In February, incorporate the exercises. In March, you could make it important to read every day for 30 straight days—don’t read a textbook; read that sci-fi novel you’ve wanted to pick up since grade 10. There are no limits to the healthy habits you can create for yourself.
Gina Cellucci Athletic facilities assistant Besides developing more optimistic ways of thinking, I have many fitness goals I’d like to reach, such as run a 10-km marathon and meditate at least 15 minutes a day.
Alanna Draper Athletic facilities assistant I’m working on running a 5-km run sometime this year. I want to maintain a healthy active lifestyle. Besides fitness, I’d like to keep up a positive attitude.
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Cultural appropriation? Zumba continued from page 15 The line between behaviour that encourages empathy and cultivates the genuine interest in culture and behaviour that caricatures or mocks a culture illustrates the distinction between cultural appreciation and appropriation definitively. The opinions of many at UTM’s Zumba class echo my sentiments that this fitness regimen—or, at least, the type practised here at UTM—falls under neither, as the music selected is top 40 and the dance moves are relatively generic. But recently, it has become more important to be able to draw this distinction explicitly and define what actions cross the line from appreciation into appropriation. Thinking critically of “typical Zumba”, as Booth puts it, I would be remiss if I didn’t point out the underlying cultural appropriation that is apparent in the exaggerated hand movements and unusual hyper-sexualized movements she described. It is hard to discern if these stereotypical Latino, Bollywood, or Middle Eastern “belly dancing” songs end up making a mockery of Indian, Middle
Eastern, and Latino cultures through their reliance on stereotypical notions of erotic “otherness”. This may cross the line from appreciation into appropriation. But to make such a conclusion could be considered arbitrary, as there is hardly a formal criterion for what cultural appropriation looks like, at least within the walls of a sweaty dance studio. Clearly, the line between appreciation and appropriation is not a straight one.
Cultural appropiation is the adoption or use of elements of one culture by members of a different culture. Nonetheless, as this war on cultural appropriation perseveres, the attendees of weekly Zumba at UTM will too as they choreographically move in sync, undeniably putting a Beyoncé dance music video to shame. But I’ll take one for the team and sit out for the next class—I don’t think they needed a left shark anyways.