Rock Out

rock out

Mark LaLonde is SFU's new chief safety officer

SFU should fund more students to study abroad

first peek

3

“I'm not too familiar with wages here, so I don't know. Is that too much?”

Milou Asemani Third-year mechatronic systems engineering

“It's surprisingly quite a bit higher than I thought [. . .] I know too little about how that works to be super upset or [not] upset.”

Matthew Kinna Sixth-year cognitive science

This year has been a rough one for me, personally and academically.

Between a cancer scare and my mental health feeling like it has been rapidly deteriorating, school has unfortunately not been the number one priority.

This being my first year at SFU, I thought dropping a course would be a relatively simple process; since the school already has my money, what more could they want from me? It turns out that since I didn’t find out early enough that I would have to drop a course, the number of hoops I’ve had to jump through has made the process almost not worth it.

Summer courses began on May 9, and the last day to drop all classes without any record of it on your transcript was May 15. One week is fair enough for students to decide if a term is not for them. Should students decide they only want to drop a single class, they had an additional week — until May 22 — to drop a class without any consequences.

After that, the pressure is on for students to figure out if they’ll be able to complete their classes.

This term, the last day to withdraw from a class through the Student Information System was June 12. That’s the end of the fourth week; after that, students have to go through the extenuating circumstances (WE) process.

To put that into context, if this semester had a reading week for

students to catch up on their student duties, they’d have to decide beforehand if they needed to drop their class. This was the case during the spring semester this year, and it seems counterintuitive to force students to commit to these decisions before they have had a chance to reorganize their lives.

What happens when a student has extenuating circumstances?

This is where the process becomes unfair and borderline demeaning.

Students are expected to prepare a package explaining why they are unable to complete the class, and discuss with the manager, student academic appeals to be judged if they validly cannot do so.

The package consists of a personal essay explaining why they are unable to complete the course, as well as supporting documentation to show that they can fully prove their reasoning.

According to SFU’s website, “It is not possible to lay down clear rules

specifying precisely how WE applications will be adjudicated because the reasons for such requests are so varied,” which can be intimidating for students who want to know if it’ll be worth it.

The general criteria that SFU suggests for considering dropping a class consists of medical grounds, employment grounds, compassionate grounds, and ‘other’ grounds, each with a brief description of what those mean.

To sum it all up, it’s unreasonable for the school to pull such a power maneuver, because it shows once again how uncompassionate it can be with its students.

I’m not advocating for a penalty-free system. I don’t think the money paid should be returned, and the transcript should still reflect the withdrawal. It’s simply unfair that students need to know so far in advance how their semesters will shake out, and being judged as to whether or not your reason for dropping out is worthy enough is draconian. It puts unnecessary pressure and guilt on students who clearly need a break.

As a transfer student, I once had to drop a class in week nine for personal reasons back at Mount Royal University in Calgary. It was as simple as going to the registrar's office, filling out a form, and never looking back.

Unfortunately, SFU’s coursedrop policy is just another example of how out of touch the school is with its students.

“A little overwhelming, I guess.

I wouldn't expect a university president [. . .] to be making more than the prime minister.”

Taran Sandu Third-year psychology

“It's pretty high, yeah.”

Do Hyun Kil Third-year philosophy

“That's crazy. [. . .] I think [the president's wage] should be decreased and the professors' should be raised. [It] raises their incentive to teach better.”

Colman Ng Second-year business

4 News

Jamal Dumas / Print News Editor

news@the-peak.ca

STONE COLD

SATELLITE SIGNALS Woodward’s Two film festivals will be taking place at the Woodward’s campus over the next month. From August 11 to August 21, the Vancouver Queer Film Festival will showcase over 80 examples of queer film from around the world. The festival will take place at six venues including the Goldcorp Centre for the Arts.

Then from August 25 to September 4, the 14th annual Vancouver Latin American Film Festival will also take place at the Goldcorp Centre for the Arts. Tickets can be bought online. This year, Brazilian cinema will be featured.

Illustration by Nancy Chen / The Peak The latest find is one of the few "well-preserved" archeological sites in the Comox Valley area.

SFU archeology studies 2,000-year-old artefacts found in Comox Valley An excavation of K’ómoks First Nations territory reveals “mystifying” stone tablets

Miranda Macfarlane Peak Associate The K’ómoks First Nations got more than they bargained for while holding a barbecue in the Comox Valley last year.

A midden containing ancient artefacts was discovered at the site, leading SFU archaeology professor Dr. Robert Muir to oversee a six-week field school excavating the area. During the excavation, Muir and his students discovered around 80 stone tablets, some as small as pebbles, estimated to be roughly 2,000 years old.

The field school, led by Muir, involved 21 third- and fourthyear students excavating a 100m by 120m exploration site on the K’ómoks First Nations’ traditional territory, and studying

their findings. The excavation was conducted at the Puntledge RV Campground on Vancouver Island.

According to an interview with Muir by the Comox Valley Record, the markings on the tablets could be seen as symbols for trees, feathers, or fertility. In the interview, he described the site as “very unusual,” referring to the tablets as “a little mystifying.”

The site was first discovered in 2015 when a group of the K’ómoks First Nations were digging a roasting pit for a celebratory barbecue.

During the celebration they uncovered an accumulation of shells, finding later that it was a midden containing numerous animal bones as well as other miscellaneous deposits.

According to Muir’s interview with the Record , “[the discoverers] thought, ‘Uh -oh, there’s a site here,’ and we figured out how large it really is.”

He claimed that in over 30 years as an archaeologist, he’s never studied a site like this.

Dr. Muir described the site as “very unusual,” referring to the tablets as “a little mystifying.”

They have uncovered myriad artefacts: herring rakes; deer, dog, and elk bones; harpoon points; bone fishing needles; and, perhaps most excitingly, the flat stone tablets, each marked by symbols on one side.

He described the area as “wellpreserved and pristine.” It’s one of only a few spots where these artefacts have been discovered in the Comox Valley.

The artefacts found in the excavation site are being taken to SFU to be photographed and studied.

The students are currently helping with the analysis of these artefacts, after which Muir will take extra time to study them before returning them to the K’ómoks band.

The K’ómoks First Nations are an indigenous band from the eastern coast of Vancouver Island. They are currently comprised of around 330 individuals, including people of Puntledge, Ieeksun, Sathloot, Tat’poos, Cha’chae, and Sasitla ancestry.

Having suffered greatly because of European settlers, including the loss of over half their population due to a smallpox outbreak in 1862, the K'omoks people have worked hard to maintain their community. They are comprised of four reserves on the island, and regularly hold events and take part in business ventures and partnerships.

Surrey On the first and third Friday evenings of the month, you can join like-minded creatives at the Surrey City Centre Library for Maker Meetups, a program designed to encourage people to try their hand at inventing. You can bring your own materials and work on creations, or observe others.

The program is offered by Maker Cube, a venture that began under SFU student Dylan Belvedere.

Harbour Centre Nobel Prize nominee and acclaimed Chinese-Canadian poet Lo Fu will host a day-long forum regarding his latest collection Driftwood , at Harbour Centre room 1400 on August 6 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. The forum will look at Fu’s work, and other transcultural works by Asian-Canadian artists.

Jamal Dumas Print News Editor

News

August 2, 2016

5

he Ministry of Finance has publicly released the earnings of individuals working in a number of public sectors, including crown corporations like BC Hydro and those working in university administration. The province has decided to unfreeze many executive salaries, but university administrator salaries will remain frozen.

The Ministry of Advanced Education responded to concerns regarding the level of compensation, especially in light of recent issues regarding wages paid to sessional instructors, TAs, and TMs. Said the ministry, “Sessional instructors negotiate with the university through their union and have ratified an agreement with SFU that includes general wage increases (GWI) over five years under the Economic Stability Mandate.

“Management staff at SFU have not received an increase since 2012. There are now some issues of compression, inversion, and retention of those high-performing staff.”

Regarding concerns that certain top salaries — such as Andrew Petter's, which approaches half a million Canadian dollars — are simply too high, the ministry responded, “Public post-secondary presidents lead large, complex institutions with thousands of employees responsible for delivering highquality post-secondary education to tens of thousands of students.”

The Peak has compiled the relevant data and other salaries for comparison below.

SFU’s Zero Waste Initiative has diverted 70 percent of all waste on campus from landfills just two years after its launch, and people have noticed.

The program was given the Innovation award from the National Association of College and University Business Officers, and the Quality & Productivity Award from the Canadian Association of University Business Officers.

Rachel Telling, the program manager for Zero Waste, has attributed the initiative’s key to success as cross-departmental collaboration. “The initiative is aided by SFU’s Zero Waste committee, which is a committee

made up of different groups and departments in the university,” said Telling.

The project has been supported by students and staff through a wide range of volunteer programs and movements within the community. Telling emphasized the massive participation of many departments that has helped the project achieve great success.

She noted that “there is a general representation from all key departments like Dining Services, and Sustainability Services.

Even student representatives from the SFSS and GSS are

involved, [as well as] partners like UniverCity.”

Telling expressed pride in the solidarity that has bound all of these different groups together: ”We have been working together from the initiative, [and] we can achieve more than we ever could if there were one or two departments.” The committee is now looking at reducing waste from resources purchased by

SFU Food and Beverage Services, such as cooking oil and butter.

Executive director of Embark Joshua Cairns noted that the project’s success is impressive given the high expectations that came with its launch: “The 70 percent diversion goal [set by the program] is quite lofty, and at the time that seemed so far away, but it only took a year for SFU to reach that goal.

“I would say that the Zero Waste program is definitely a highlight and a key milestone for SFU in regards to its sustainability commitment.”

Looking towards the future Josh Cairns of the program, director of Embark Cairns remarked: “I think the

“The Zero Waste program is definitely a highlight [. . .] in regards to SFU's sustainability commitment.”

Executive

reality is that like any sustainability initiative, you’re getting decreasing return on your effort.

So now, when the project has reached its 70 percent waste diversion threshold, every extra percentage [point] is gonna be much more difficult. It's gonna be very challenging to ensure that there’s widespread compliance across the university and the students are well-versed in [the program].”

He added that the constant influx of new students to SFU each year is both “a blessing and a curse” for the program, given that each new student needs to be educated in how the Zero Waste Initiative works.

“You have to ensure that the new students entering SFU are educated on the Zero Waste program, and [that there are] changes in behaviour, for SFU to exceed the 70 percent goal,” Cairns said.

6 News

Jamal Dumas / Print News Editor

news@the-peak.ca

SAFETY FIRST

New chief safety officer stresses "survivor-centric" approach Mark LaLonde takes on role amid growing concerns of safety on campus Amneet Mann Peak Associate Following sexual assault allegations and privacy issues in campus washrooms, Mark LaLonde has stepped in as SFU’s new chief safety officer as of June 6.

LaLonde brings a wealth of experience to the position. “My entire career has been focused on public safety, and risk management, and human security,” he said in an interview with The Peak. After working with the Vancouver Police for 12 years, LaLonde took a position at the Justice Institute of BC, and later worked for various non-police agencies. He also spent years working with a national risk mitigation firm.

What attracted LaLonde to the position at SFU was the energy and dedication on campus, as well as the critical role his position played in the larger dynamic of SFU. Additionally, the fact that LaLonde’s friend and former police colleague Terry Waterhouse had been a chief safety officer gave him a glimpse of a working environment that he found appealing.

LaLonde has also previously contracted SFU grad students for

research, and been a guest speaker in some of the classes. His mother and one of his sisters are SFU graduates.

For LaLonde, his most rewarding work has also been his most challenging. He did consulting work with the UN in areas such as South East Asia, the Middle East, and East Africa. Some of these projects focused on the protection of women and young girls from threats such as human trafficking, intimate partner violence, and commercial sexual exploitation.

Coming into his role as chief safety officer, LaLonde named his number one goal as “the safety of students, staff, and faculty.” Along with their physical safety, he spoke about addressing the emotional and psychological safety of students through resources such as the Health and Counselling Services, Student Services, the Women’s Centre, and Out on Campus.

When asked about the recent sexual assault issues SFU has been dealing with, LaLonde said SFU is taking a firm approach.

Photo courtesy of University Communications Mark LaLonde has experience with the Vancouver Police and the Justice Institute of BC. “Our entire process is survivorcentric,” he declared.

He spoke to the policies and protocols in place at SFU to ensure immediate and appropriate attention is given to students who raise concerns. Additionally, LaLonde is working on an ongoing campus initiative to develop new sexual violence policies, such as protocol enhancement, prevention

training and awareness, and communication programs to discuss issues such as consent.

In regards to the washroom privacy incidents, LaLonde advised SFU students to “be vigilant at all times, be aware of [your] surroundings, and report incidents in as much detail as possible quickly so that security and the police can respond.” In

addition, he spoke about how campus security has stepped up its patrol in key areas.

LaLonde looks forward to working with his team at SFU to oversee the safety and security for the entire community. He strongly believes in the effectiveness of his communication and policy reforms, to deal with the safety issues with which the university is currently struggling.

FOSSIL FOOLS

Amendment to fossil fuel divestment policy a “step backward,” say student groups Critics argue policy now makes it “all but impossible” to pursue climate change action

Kevin Rey Peak Associate Student groups advocating for Simon Fraser University to divest from fossil fuel companies are reeling after the university posted a draft to its divestment policy.

Called a “significant step backward” in a media release posted on the Embark website, the policy outlines guidelines that the Responsible Investment Committee (RIC) will use to consider divesting from that company.

Those guidelines are based on: • The extent to which SFU is invested in that entity • If the entity derives more than 10 percent of its revenue from activities that cause social injury

• Evidence that divestment will produce a favourable outcome • Impact on the university’s “fiduciary duty [. . .] to maximize return on its investments” This draft policy comes after three years of the Divest SFU campaign pressuring the university to rethink its stance on fossil fuels. A joint venture between SFU350 and Embark, the campaign calls on SFU to “immediately freeze any new investment in fossil fuel companies, and to divest within five years from direct ownership” in order to address climate change. Josh Cairns, executive director of Embark, conceded in the release that until now “the university

has made considerable progress regarding its stance on divestment.”

However, Cairns elaborated on the Embark website that this policy draft isn’t quite up to snuff. He argued that “the policy revision, if it is adopted in its current form, creates an unjust test for the university’s investments that ensure divestment will not occur.”

This is in line with the trend of Canadian universities rejecting divestment. Earlier this year, McGill, UBC, and the University of Toronto all rejected calls to divest from fossil fuels. However, Cairns explained that SFU should look to the “University of Ottawa, which recently committed to decarbonizing its investments in accordance with Canada’s emission reduction commitments.”

Cairns said in a separate media release that “The revision suggests that the university is comfortable investing in an entity that profits from harming people or the environment — as long as the entity’s revenue from harmful activity is below an arbitrary

10 percent threshold, and as long others are also investing in the entity.”

The same media release noted that under the new conditions it might be “all but impossible” for divestment to occur at SFU. The issue of divestment at SFU touches on a local conflict that has been playing out over the past few years.

Kinder Morgan is seeking to expand the existing Trans Mountain Pipeline that transports tar sands products from Edmonton to Burnaby. This project has elicited controversy due to environmental and safety concerns. The proposed expansion would triple its capacity, but critics argue that the economic benefit to the province is marginal, especially given the environmental risks.

Earlier this month, MP for Burnaby North-Seymour Terry Beech held a consultation meeting to address Canada’s Climate Change Action Plan, and to continue the discussion about the proposed Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion. The

event is the first in a series taking place over the summer.

As for what will happen if SFU rejects divestment outright, SFU350 has been collecting students’ signatures, pledging “direct action.” A similar situation unfolded after McGill rejected divestment this March: students staged a sit-in at the vice chancellor’s office for days, while supporters camped outside.

Cairns finished his statement by putting the issue in no uncertain terms. He spoke to the fact that SFU is a signatory of the Paris Pledge for Action, a document that acknowledges the gravity of climate change, and commits to limiting global warming to 2 C above pre-industrial levels. “SFU should ensure its actions align with the just future it has publicly committed to,” he argued.

The RIC is currently accepting emailed comments on its draft policy until August 7, and will review in September.

Opinions

People of African descent have lived on the West Coast for more than a century. The first large migration of the black community, from California, settled in BC in the mid-1800s, mostly in Victoria and Salt Spring Island.

Another wave of immigrants came to Canada during the 20th century, mainly from the Caribbean and Africa.

Today, Metro Vancouver is home to a significant number of people of African ancestry, many of whom are entrepreneurs, teachers, police officers, students, activists, and journalists, among other professions. Despite their enormous contribution to social, political, and economic development in the city, Vancouver’s African community has experienced systemic social problems such as discrimination, geographic displacement, and poverty.

One of the most notable historic injustices committed against Vancouver’s African community was the destruction of the Hogan's Alley community — a prominent Afro-Canadian neighbourhood in Vancouver, comprised of residences and businesses at the south-western side of Strathcona. Hogan’s Alley was demolished in the 1960s and early ‘70s in order to pave way for the construction of the Dunsmuir and Georgia viaducts — a decision that is still widely perceived to have been racially motivated.

Despite recent municipal acknowledgements, the Hogan’s Alley community hardly exists today. Sociologically speaking, the destruction of Hogan’s Alley created large displacement amongst Vancouver’s African community, thus dispersing what resembled a cultural ‘hub’ at the time.

Today, Metro Vancouver is known for its vibrant migrant communities: Chinatown,

August 2, 2016

Japantown, Greektown, Little Italy on Commercial Drive, Surrey for South Asians, the Filipino community near Kingsway, the Iranian community in North Van — the list goes on, with the glaring exception of Afro-Canadians.

Metro Vancouver’s African community is one of the few communities that does not have either an officially recognized neighbourhood or cultural centre. As a result, Afro-Vancouverites feel marginalized and excluded by municipal governments.

The African community in the Greater Vancouver area deserves, first and foremost, an official apology from the City of Vancouver for the demolition of the Hogan’s Alley community and the eviction its residents. We also must see the restoration of the African community and the implementation of a cultural centre, where Afro-Vancouverites can congregate to celebrate their diversity and debate major issues affecting them.

More importantly, the creation of African spaces in Metro Vancouver would act as a node for integration of the African community. They would capacitate the African community to assemble and reflect on its social and economic status within Canadian society and Vancouver.

Spaces would also enable the community to gather and discuss some of the most pressing issues — such as discrimination, migration, multiculturalism, and resistance against police brutality through Black Lives Matter, which has inspired a chapter in Vancouver.

The recognition of Black History Month by the City of Vancouver in 2011, the annual Caribbean Days Festival, and Vancouver’s recent African Descent Festival also act as models for addressing the lack of spaces for the African community in Metro Vancouver.

Afro-Vancouverites have made tremendous contributions to this metropolitan city, and therefore we merit a postal code.

We hear about police brutality far too often these days. It seems like every day I read about another innocent civilian shot; often an unarmed black man who was complying with police orders. One of the best ways to prevent these situations would be to strip police officers of their service handguns, at least for standard duty.

Having a handgun changes the mindset of the carrier, making them see the world in terms of threat levels and potential targets. The bearer is also forced to carry with them the fear that their firearm may be turned on them. An unarmed attacker can become a deadly assailant if they seize an officer’s handgun; as such, officers are taught to treat every threat as a potential threat on their life.

A criminal with a gun can kill, if only because of a splitsecond decision. This, understandably, ferments fear and escalates situations. Fear and semi-automatic handguns do not mix well. This causes the police officer to think like a soldier, and to treat the streets they are meant to be protecting like a warzone.

Instead of carrying handguns, officers should be trained extensively in non-lethal methods of apprehending individuals, such as using tasers, and on de-escalating potentially violent situations. If a criminal does have a gun, however, there should still be a firearm that the officer can get from their cruiser, or a tactical team that they can call upon for backup. A firearm should not be the first solution to every problem though, simply hanging at the hip, ready to kill.

Before you start arguing that “blue lives matter,” and telling me that I hate police officers, it is important to remember that my proposal is not revolutionary. In the UK, for example, most officers do not regularly carry handguns, and they are not having a big problem with officer safety.

In the UK, they stress de-escalation tactics and proper nonlethal apprehension.

It is worth watching the video from the UK in which an incoherent man is brandishing a machete: the officers do not shoot him. They get the riot gear out, they make sure they have enough officers on the scene, and they subdue him by slowly advancing

7

on and overwhelming him. No one gets shot, and no one dies.

I have heard multiple reports of policing like this in the UK, and we in North America need to follow their example.

Officer safety still needs to be taken very seriously, but handguns for daily carry are not necessary. In many cases, having a handgun immediately accessible does not make officers any safer — such as the shooting of three police officers in Baton Rouge, where the officers were ambushed and were not able to react quickly, anyway.

Having easy access to a gun only escalates dangerous situations. If there is a chance to react in an instance that truly requires a firearm, then the officer should have time to get an assault rifle from their cruiser. At least that way, the officer is forced to think about whether or not a firearm is really necessary for the situation.

What makes officers less dangerous is if they develop a relationship of understanding with the communities they police, as well as having enough personnel on the scene. Handguns only create distance between the police and the public. If we truly want a police force that serves and protects, and if we truly believe that the lives of all citizens — including black citizens — matter, then we need to take guns off the streets, starting with service handguns.

10

Opinions

A couple years ago, I was intent on studying abroad for a year in Amsterdam. I am Dutch, and having grown up with various Dutch traditions, food, and attitudes — especially when visiting Oma and Opa — the prospect of spending a year immersed in the culture that had such an influence on my upbringing was alluring, to say the least.

The police force in the British county Nottinghamshire announced on July 13 that, in partnership with the Nottingham Women’s Centre, misogynistic acts can now be reported and investigated as hate crimes. The Nottinghamshire Police defined such acts as “behaviour targeted towards a woman by men simply because they are a woman,” according to their press release.

The definition includes undesirable verbal, physical, and electronic interactions. This means that persistent catcalling and wolfwhistling, revenge porn, and social media abuse could all fit under the new definition.

However, Jack Storey, a spokesperson for the Nottinghamshire Police, clarified with Global News

Adam Van der Zwan / Opinions Editor

opinions@the-peak.ca

As much as I love to travel, I’ve never been to the Netherlands, nor overseas for that matter, so it’s understandable that I’d find SFU’s sleek “Study Abroad” ads promising.

Sadly, to go abroad requires quite an application process, and after having conversed with willing parents (at the time), I spent the next couple months gathering together

submission materials — reference letters and all.

A hurried week before the application was due, my parents decided that they wouldn’t be funding the small difference I needed for the trip after all; not because it wasn’t affordable, but because they didn’t want to afford it. Needless to say, I was pretty bummed, and guilt-ridden as I sent apology emails to the lovely faculty members who’d taken the time to write letters on my behalf.

Now, I understand that funds aren’t always available to send students overseas, and I’m no longer

that isolated instances of catcalling are not in fact “illegal.” According to Storey, the department would only become concerned if, for example, “a woman is walking to work and there is an individual on their route who wolf-whistles at them every morning.” Storey explained that the situation would be cause for investigation if the woman then felt compelled to follow another route to avoid the harassment.

This change in Nottinghamshire, while the first of its kind in England and admittedly pretty progressive, could go even further.

Firstly, it could crack down on isolated instances of catcalling and whistling as well. Why should women be forced to wait until they fear for their physical safety before they can report harassment? How

many days in a row of catcalling constitutes enough of a threat before they can feel validated in reporting it to the police?

Secondly, the current definition heavily subscribes to the gender binary. People of all genders are capable of misogynistic harassment — not just men — and the definition should reflect this reality.

That being said, Canada, which has similar issues with harassment, should look to the British county as an example.

According to a British study published in March of this year, “85 percent of women [in the UK] aged 18–24 have experienced unwanted sexual attention.”

Sexual assault and harassment also occur in Canada. According to the Canadian Women’s Foundation, less than 10 percent of sexual assaults are reported to the police. Confirming that misogynistic harassment won’t be tolerated by law enforcement could help to alleviate some of

upset with my parents in their financial decision — after all, it’s their hard-earned money. Though I see a much broader picture that seems to have swept our society: many individuals and families today simply do not perceive value in hopping borders for a diverse education.

The Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE) released a report in 2014 stating that student and family perspectives on international education would desperately have to change if Canada is to survive among global markets in the near future.

Both of my parents were raised during the ‘70s, in more or less quiet and conventional homesteads; a time when the world was not as globalized nor was it as easy to hop a plane and explore the world. Travel was seen as a distant luxury, not a financial priority. To this day, my parents enjoy the safety net of their own home, like many people of their generation do.

When travel is an actual option, it can require extensive planning and even mental preparation.

Moreover, these perspectives are clearly reflected in Canadian university culture: there’s an increasing number of international students studying in Canada, while only three percent of Canadian students go abroad — a percentage that, according to CBIE, will need to increase five times over.

We live in a post-secondary society that does not value an international education. The fact that schools such as SFU are so culturally diverse creates the illusion that an ‘international experience’ is right at our doorstep, as Yuen Pau Woo, former president and CEO of the Asia-Pacific Foundation, explained to The Globe and Mail. Why move away when other cultures are moving here?

For more perspective, an article in The Globe and Mail from 2014 stated that while Australia is shelling out $100 million to send students to nearby Asia-Pacific countries, the United States has planned to increase its percentage of overseas students to 20 percent. Meanwhile, Germany wants to send away 50 percent of its students.

What does this mean for Canada? It means that SFU and other universities should be setting aside considerable funds for outgoing students, big time.

Given the idea that global forces will very soon affect all career paths, I think the time has come for us to finally shift our collective mindsets on the merits of global study. Let’s not cloud ourselves with ideas that a global experience will come to us; instead, let’s prioritize funding that will create the most important opportunities for careers in a globalized world.

the shame and stigma women face when discussing their experiences. This could potentially encourage women to report their harassers more frequently.

I’ll be the first to admit I’m skeptical of police and the assurances they offer to the public. It’s too early to tell if Nottinghamshire Police will actually follow through with the new policy; however, Sue Fish, the chief constable of the force, inspires some optimism, if only because she herself can speak to women’s experiences.

In the Nottinghamshire Police press release, Fish described misogynistic harassment as “absolutely unacceptable” and “extremely distressing.” She also acknowledged that many women experience such harassment on a daily basis. Fish also tweeted later that she was “proud to be [the] first force in the country to tackle misogynistic hate crime.” Hopefully, it isn’t the last.

Additionally, provided that the police will actually investigate reports of street harassment, and that this isn’t just an empty promise, the new classification sends a message to the people of Nottinghamshire that misogyny will not be tolerated — a message that the catcallers, revenge-porn-posters, and the up-the-skirt-photo-snappers of Canada deserve to hear, too.

Diversions

Maia Odegaard / Business Manager

August 2, 2016 maia@the-peak.ca

11

EVENTS AT (OR AROUND) SFU: AUGUST 1 — 12 1: MONDAY

2: TUESDAY

DOCUMENTARY TICKLED (WITH DIRECTOR Q&A!)

EVO SUMMER CINEMA — SPACE JAM

Journalist David Farrier stumbles upon a mysterious tickling competition online. As he delves deeper he comes up against fierce resistance, but that doesn't stop him getting to the bottom of a story stranger than fiction. There will be a Q&A session with co-director Dylan Reeve via Skype after the screening.

6:30 p.m., The Rio Theatre, 1660 East Broadway, Vancouver

The Evo Summer Cinema Outdoor Movie Series in Stanley Park is back! Grab your beach blanket, some snacks, and some friends, jump on your bike and head down to Second Beach to watch the 1996 classic, Space Jam! 8:50 p.m. (after sunset), Ceperley Meadow — Second Beach in Stanley Park, 8501 Stanley Park Dr., Vancouver

8: MONDAY

9: TUESDAY

3: WEDNESDAY

4: THURSDAY

5: FRIDAY

MAKING SPACE: A COMMUNITY PANEL AND DISCUSSION ON SOCIAL SPACES IN VANCOUVER

MARINA AND THE SPECKS // EAST VAN GRASS // LOGAN & NATHAN LIVE AT THE WISE LOUNGE

TOWARDS HEALING: A NIGHT OF QTBIPOC STORYTELLING

For many communities that have been marginalized, gathering can be a source and site of healing.

Participate in this two-day event showcasing the lifting voices of East Vancouver community members creating and facilitating community spaces in Vancouver.

7:00 p.m. — 10:00 p.m., Heartwood, 317 East Broadway, Vancouver

An eclectic East Van offering for your finely tuned tympanic membranes. Show by donation! Head over for a night of melodic folk, old-time blues, and contemporary folk music.

7:30 p.m. — 11:00 p.m., The Wise Hall & Lounge, 1882 Adanac St., Vancouver

Towards Healing is a fundraiser and a night of storytelling, poetry, music, art, and more by an all queer, trans, black, indigenous, mixed race and/or people of colour. Doors at 6:00 p.m., show starts at 6:45 p.m. and admission will be on a sliding scale.

6:30 p.m. — 10:00 p.m., Heartwood, 317 East Broadway, Vancouver

10: WEDNESDAY

11: THURSDAY

12: FRIDAY

CHUG-A-LUG COMEDY: OUR FIRST SHOW

EVO SUMMER CINEMA — LABYRINTH (1986)

MOUNTAIN-TOP METEOR SHOWER VIEWING

From the folks that brought you Mermaid Club Comedy at the Railway Club comes a new comedy show at a new bar (hopefully this one won't close down). Come on down for the inagural show of Chug-a-Lug Comedy! Only $5 at the door.

8:30 p.m. — 11:00 p.m., Yagger's, 433 West Pender St., Vancouver

The Evo Summer Cinema Outdoor Movie Series in Stanley Park is back! Grab your beach blanket, some snacks, and some friends, jump on your bike and head down to Second Beach to watch the 1986 classic, Labyrinth!

8:50 p.m. (after sunset), Ceperley Meadow — Second Beach in Stanley Park, 8501 Stanley Park Dr., Vancouver

The Tears of St. Lauwrence meteor shower happens midAugust each year, why not head up a mountain to watch it? Bring a blanket, maybe some lawn chairs, snacks, and bug spray and head to Mount Seymour.

11:00 p.m., Mount Seymour Provincial Park, North Vancouver

EVENT LISTINGS ARE FREE FOR SFU STUDENTS AND STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS. SEND THE DATE, TIME, LOCATION, NAME, AND A 15-WORD DESCRIPTION TO CLASSIFIEDS@THE-PEAK.CA

12 Arts

Every year, something magical happens on an island in the middle of a river, in the middle of a city in Alberta. This happening is known as the Calgary Folk Music Festival.

This was my first year attending and throughout the whole festival I was thinking to myself, “Why have I never done this before?”

Aside from being an overall amazing festival experience, it also was an opportunity to discover new (to me) musicians from across the genre. The following artists are some of my favourite finds from the festival.

Lemon Bucket Orkestra My first exposure to the selfdescribed “Balkan-klezmer-gypsyparty-punk-super-band” was under a

tent on a Friday afternoon. Since then my life has been forever changed.

The band, composed of more instruments and musicians than one could hope to list here, is what you musically want for any celebratory event — even if you didn’t know you wanted it. Lemon Bucket Orkestra mashes up traditional-sounding songs with modern sensibilities that will make anyone — including your prudish grandma — dance.

Cécile Doo-Kingué I have always wanted to learn how to play the guitar; it’s on my ever-growing list of things to do, that somehow always gets beat out

by Netflix. But, upon hearing Cécile Doo-Kingué play I realized that I

ADVERTISEMENT

EXTRA, EXTRA, THE PEAK IS NOW HIRING! Need a little extra cash for the fall semester?

The Peak is hiring two individuals: one to distribute the paper across the Burnaby campus and one to drive them to Surrey and Vancouver campuses (Modo membership provided) every Monday!

DISTRO QUESTIONS? CONTACT MAIA@THE-PEAK.CA RESUME & COVER LETTER DUE AUG. 5

Jess Whitesel / Arts Editor

arts@the-peak.ca

didn’t just want to play guitar — I wanted to become her. Listening to her play gave me goosebumps, even though it was at least 25 degrees outside. Doo-Kingué’s music feels very much of the present day, but also of a time when it was more important to play individual notes as opposed to chords. It also doesn’t hurt that her lower singing voice is a perfect mix of soul and the blues.

The Weber Brothers When you Google the Weber Brothers, the first page that comes up is their own, boasting the title of “The Baddest Band in the Land.”

This is really all you need to know about them: they are bad, but in the best sense of the word. There aren’t that many bands that can mix ‘70sinspired rock with an upright bass and DJ, but they can. They are everything you want from a band: beautifully produced studio work, and a live show that is just as much about musical talent as it is about the performance itself. The interactions between the band members were truly spectacular to behold — especially when Ryan Weber and Rico Browne played one upright bass at the same time following a friendly bass-playing competition.

Moulettes Any band that has a song inspired by sea creatures is cool by me. Even if they sucked, I would still respect Moulettes just based on that fact.

Lucky for me though — and everyone else present — they don’t. While they are folk-y, it is in the vein as Of Monsters and Men, but bigger, badder, less pop-y, and more Björk-y.

Their latest album is titled Preternatural, and it truly encompasses what their sound is. It is beyond what we think music should be, yet, much like a mythical creature residing in the deepest parts of the ocean, there is enough believability in their music that it stands up to scrutiny — even if there are people who aren’t fully convinced by it.

Want to actually hear these musicians? Follow thepeaksfu on Spotify and look for the Calgary Folk Fest 2016 Highlights playlist. There may also be some bonus bands thrown in just to capture the magic of the island.

Many things take a summer hiatus — such as school, The Peak, or your favourite TV shows. While I’m sure we’re all looking forward to a nice break before Fall semester kicks off, there are a lot of great shows coming in September and beyond. Below are five of the best shows renewed for late 2016 and early 2017.

Running Wild with Bear Grylls (NBC) – Season 3 premieres on August 1 This show is insane. Bear Grylls, a British survivalist, takes celebrities into the wilderness and makes them, well, survive. Not only does he get really famous people — President Obama was on the program this past December — but the things they do truly are dangerous. Zac Efron slept on the edge of a cliff, Channing Tatum helped kill a rattlesnake; honestly, the insurance budget must be through the roof. The latest season kicks off with Julianne Hough on August 1 and Nick Jonas on August 2.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (FOX) – Season 4 premieres on September 20 If you’re not watching this show, you are missing out. Brooklyn Nine-Nine follows Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg), a detective in the NYPD, and the rest of his squad as they encounter all sorts of mishaps. The entire cast is hilarious, and the writing spotlights Samberg’s humour as quirky rather than annoying. Catch up on previous seasons by streaming them on Netflix.

Drunk History (Comedy Central) – Season 4 premieres September 27 The premise of this show is beautifully simple: celebrities get drunk and try to tell us about historic events. What a time to be alive. Past episodes have included the Watergate scandal, the life of Mark Twain, and the invention of the bra. The upcoming season will feature Lin-Manuel Miranda retelling the ongoing feud between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. This show truly is the gift that keeps on giving.

The Mindy Project (Hulu) – Season 5 premieres October 4 After being dropped by FOX following its third season, the comedy created by Mindy Kaling was picked up by the streaming service Hulu, which was the best thing that could have happened to this series. While The Mindy Project had always been a bit more daring with its subject matter regarding race, sexuality, and body image than comparable shows, the show has gotten even more overt without the restrictions of cable TV. Considering the cliffhanger season 4 ended with, the premiere is sure to be full of drama — and laughs.

Archer (FX) – Season 8 coming early 2017 Even though no release date has been set, Archer being renewed is kind of a big deal — especially since FX’s order of three more seasons will take Archer all the way into its 10th year on air.

The animated series follows the world’s best secret agent, Sterling Archer, as he attempts to get drunk enough to save the day.

While the show seemed to hit a bit of a slump in season 5 (Archer Vice? Really?), it has found its stride again in the last two seasons, regaining its place as one of the funniest shows on TV.

Arts

August 2, 2016

Vancouver’s music scene is diverse and ever-expanding, but for artist King H, he hopes the Lower Mainland will one day be known for more than Michael Bublé, Carly Rae Jepsen, and Nickelback.

“The music scene in Vancouver is cool, but [it] doesn’t have a dope rapper,” King H told The Peak . “I hope to make people more aware of Vancouver beyond what we are already known for.”

With a passion for music, a desire for greatness, and a strong work ethic, King H started to really take his music seriously two years ago. While listening to Kanye West or Eminem, he would rap over the songs with his own lyrics. Unlike most artists, however, King H would never write anything down; instead, he would keep performing and listening to the beats until something clicked.

“It would all be freestyle and creativity. It feels like my body has a mind of its own [. . .] everything comes out perfect, without feeling like it’s forced,” he said.

This passion pushed King H to meet new people and collaborate with other artists, many of whom are featured on his new EP Switch Up, released on July

29. As music began to take on a more prominent part of his life, he pushed himself to the limits, balancing classes and work to make music. When asked how he was able to balance everything, he responded, “I see how hard my brother, my producers, and other artists are working to help me, and it makes me want to work harder.”

King H’s positive attitude makes his work seem effortless, but it wasn’t always this easy.

Two months ago, a car accident left him with constant back pain, and he was unable to stand for a long time. “I couldn’t record standing up because I would be in so much pain, and the medication I was taking would leave me with dry mouth [. . .] I got to this point where I couldn’t do my music.”

But despite this adversity, King H took this as an opportunity to “switch up” his life — hence the title of his new EP. Instead of sitting around and feeling bad about himself, King H would wake up early to go to physio, water therapy, or anything that would help him feel good enough to record in the

studio. This incident helped King H develop his patience, and showed him how important it was to switch up whatever life throws at us from negative to positive.

“This is what Switch Up is all about,” King H said. “The accident was super shitty, but I needed to find the positives: was I going to lie on my bed, or make myself feel better?”

This resilience is evident in the five-track EP. With contagious beats and strong lyrics, King H shows both his lyricism as

Life, Animated, based on the book of the same name, is about Owen, a young boy with regressive autism, who learns to communicate through Disney movies. With the precision of a calculator, Owen can recite every line from every animated Disney movie ever made. Far from being merely an obsession, Disney’s filmography is Owen’s vocabulary, how he understands the world, and the framework through which he filters his experience. These films are his language, his scripture, and his metaphysical reality.

When Owen turns three and loses his ability to say coherent words, it isn’t until his father talks in the voice of the character Iago (the parrot from Aladdin) that the boy responds. From

here, the treatment builds off Owen’s affinity and understanding of Disney, thereby providing him with a voice.

Despite his unique circumstances, a lot of what Owen goes through is relatable. Although he sees the world from a different viewpoint, he is still a 23-year-old man, in love, looking for work, and about to move out of his parent’s home. Like all of us, he wants to be happy and have a meaningful life, regardless of the hand that life has dealt him.

Since Disney films live inside Owen, the director Roger Ross Williams frames this documentary like one. Not only does it literally turn his life into an animated film with exquisite hand-drawn images, his entire journey is focused towards independence and growing up, much like those of Simba, Peter Pan, and Mowgli.

The film makes a point of showing the limitations of this simple “black and white” worldview, where the heroes succeed

13

well as his keen ear for rhythm.

The songs all have stories tied to them; for example, his first track, “Intro,” is a tribute to his start in music, and how in the music business, not everyone is your friend. His lyrics are very raw and real in his songs “You Need” and

“The One,” challenging people’s perceptions of making it big and what it truly means to be a rapper or artist.

Aside from his own hard work, he is thankful for his “non-Yes Men”: 40K, Malikai Motion, Kane Dabir, Samy T, TiV Productions, and TJ, all of whom played a major role in the release of Switch Up .

“These are the ones that kept me searching,” King H said. “They wouldn’t tell me that something is good so that they wouldn’t hurt my feelings [. . .] they were real and honest with me, and helped me to dig deeper.”

Ultimately for King H, music is his outlet and something that

he hopes to be doing for the rest of his life. With his current studies in business and communication at SFU, he hopes not only to be a great artist and rapper, but to also have business smarts and the ability to market his product confidently. Most importantly, he wants to make a name for himself and bring about a new wave of music, instead of just being known as a new Eminem or Kanye West. “If I want to do music, I’m going to do it seriously and not half-ass it.”

With his confidence and drive, King H is one to watch in pioneering Vancouver’s up-andcoming hip-hop scene.

and the villains fail. Heartbreak comes when Owen can’t make sense of life within the tight constrictions of Disney conventions, such as when his girlfriend breaks up with him, not because he did anything wrong but because she needed some space — to no fault of either party. In a funny digression, Owen’s brother, coincidentally named Walt, has a tough time talking to him about sex, short of showing him a porn parody of, say, The Little Mermaid.

Disney movies have happy endings and sterilized content, but this film is wise enough to show how Owen is unprepared for unfairness because of it.

Unfortunately, a lot of this tale is made slight by its telling.

Other than a few inspired edits that express internal emotions through Owen’s favourite films, a lot of the form is simple and conventional. Like most documentaries, we jump between old

photos, family interviews, and contemporary fly-on-the-wall footage. Given the potential for a powerful, subjective montage though, it’s disappointing that the film takes the easy way out: to have Owen exposit how he feels instead of finding a less literal way to express it.

Thankfully, Owen is not put under the microscope like a

science experiment, and the film’s catchy hook is an entry point for this resilient young man’s story.

By not treating its hero like an “Other,” a deficient object for us to pity, Life, Animated shows the universality in his challenges.

Beautifully and subtly, Roger Ross Williams has a made a film about an animated life that isn’t a cartoon.

14 Comics

Justin Stevens / Humour Editor

humour@the-peak.ca

Humour

Raccoons are a furry staple of SFU’s Burnaby campus — but what about those who are transformed by raccoons? While most doctors will tell you the worst to come out of a raccoon attack is rabies or some other virus, there’s a secret locked away by the medical profession. That’s right: the fearsome were-raccoon!

Some students have been sighted transforming into these giant partraccoon, part-man creatures, only to chitter at the moon and rummage through garbage bins hoping to eat thrown-out Triple O’s. Chilling!

August 2, 2016

Ever notice a moaning in the aisles of Bennett Library? Some say it's not merely tired students groaning from essays, but the walking dead. Students who have starved themselves to death and re-animated to haunt the library looking for brains to consume so they can succeed in their studies.

Their limping existence is a testament to the great horror that is exam season!

15

As if fears of residence closure and hiking tuition costs on campus weren’t bad enough, residences on Burnaby campus are now facing a scare of a different kind: the occult.

Last week, police were called to respond to what initially seemed to be a run-of-the-mill noise complaint. However, they made a startling discovery when they found a physics major attempting to sacrifice a first-year arts student to a demon.

The student, identified as Xavius Lucifus, was apprehended wearing a pair of light-up devil horns and chanting an incoherent babble of words from the Chicago style guide. He was brandishing a replica Skyrim sword that he had dipped in “unholy water” — which forensics later determined

to be hot dog water — all the while dancing around to The Lord of the Rings soundtrack.

The unidentified first-year student was duct-taped to a ceremonial pyre made of failed exam booklets and surrounded by a pentagram drawn in Kraft Dinner sauce.

Classmates of Lucifus confided with The Peak that his academic struggles might have pushed him to this devilish act.

Lucifus was taking a history course for the first time and found himself floundering. He needed to write his term paper on the relevance of ritual in early modern Europe in one week, and had no ideas.

According to a former group member, Lucifus began

researching ritual sacrifice, as well as demonic and deific pact-making on Wikipedia. Combined with a patchwork of unreliable sources — one such working being a fictional magic book from The Elder Scroll series — led him to create his strange ritual.

Notes found in his dorm showed that among a list of other questionable items, the crazed physics major’s ritual called for “the blood of an undeclared arts major.”

Lucifus now sits in his jail cell, with ritual blueberry juice still smeared on his face, awaiting trial.

Lucifus’ history professor spoke with The Peak later, remarking, “When I said a good essay takes blood, sweat, and tears, this is not what I had in mind.”

McFogg the Dog, our beloved mascot, might be hiding a dark secret. In fact, it may not McFogg at all, but rather an evil replacement. Stories of a shadowy McFogg-like figure from an alternate timeline have become common folklore among students. With red eyes and a fearsome, wolfish grimace, think twice about hugging this mascot and posing for a selfie.

Enduring another lousy floormate making an ungodly racket?

Well, what if I were to tell you it was something much more unholy and bone-chilling? Students who recently knocked on an agitated neighbour's door were shocked to find it vacant but still producing eerie noises. Could it be a loud iPod trapped in the wall, or is it really a demonic presence? All I know is that no human being would really leave “Who Let the Dogs Out” by Baha Men blasting.

Yes, that tribe of moochers who are rumoured to have invaded study spaces at SFU’s Surrey campus.

Some say their existence is mere legend, but others have terrifying tales of having to force Kwantlen students out of their study areas. The bloodcurdling whining and moaning of the Kwantlen students as they are forced to leave is said to be excruciating. Some say they’re merely bored students from a different university, but the most dangerous threats are sometimes the most seemingly innocuous. Beware, friends!

16 Last Word

Tamara Connor / Features Editor

features@the-peak.ca

Hire faculty who represent the

8 8 8 Z 8