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May 26, 2014 · Volume 147, Issue 4
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Send your short TXT MSGS to (778) 321-0603, email production@the-peak.ca, or tweet @peakSFU. Entries include public tweets about SFU. **Please include TXT in the email subject line. The Peak will not print submissions considered to be sexist, racist, homophobic, or attacks of a personal nature.
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FIRST PEEK
My dad is from Pakistan. He moved to the United States for school when he was in his early 20s, met my mother — a country girl from Oklahoma — and never went back. I am American, through and through, raised Christian instead of Muslim, raised speaking English instead of Urdu; I’ve never been to Pakistan and I’ve never met my grandmother or my uncle or my cousin. My dad has returned home only a handful of times since I’ve been alive and rarely speaks to his family on the phone. Unhappily, this communicative ineptitude, this bizarre phone phobia, is something I seem to have inherited. Last year, my father’s father died. He was an old man, in his 80s, and had lived a full life. His body gave out peacefully as he slept in his chair, I was told. He was something of a legend to me: the soldier, the forest ranger, the stoic, whitehaired man in a tunic and hornrimmed glasses who stared out
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from the sepia-toned picture in our living room. He was a part of me, and though I’d never met him, I felt an overwhelming, profound ache when I heard of his passing. News of my grandfather’s death didn’t reach my dad until a month after it had happened. Stay with me for a second and really think about that. My dad’s dad was gone for four whole weeks before he knew anything about it. When the phone call finally came, he was out of town for work and my mom picked up; she ended up having to break the news to my stunned father over the phone.
My dad doesn’t talk about Pakistan easily; when I was little, I refused to go to bed until he told me a story from his childhood — my favourite involved him getting chased home by a pack of monkeys. He is the eldest son and he left, he married a white woman and raised his children in the West . . . I know my father’s relationship with his family is strained at best. But I never realised just how disconnected he was until this giant lapse in communication.
I always knew I would leave home and go far away. I grew up just outside Detroit, Michigan and after I graduated college, I immediately moved to Chicago. After two years there, I moved to Vancouver where I’ve been for just over a year. I suck at calling home. If a month goes by, my mom will send me a text which usually reads something like “Haven’t heard from you in a while. U alive?” It’s not that I don’t love my family, I think about them often, and yet, something always seems to hold me back when I reach for the phone: it’s too late at night, I’m too tired to talk, it’s been so long since we last talked . . . It’s scary when you find yourself replicating bad habits. I’m all for adventure, exploration and independence, but in pursuing those things, I find myself losing track of the people who make me “me.” It’s a sneaky sort of silence, an isolation that spirals out of control until a phone call to my brother seems like a truly daunting task. Family is family, this is true, but even relationships bound by blood require maintenance. We are young and invincible and bright-eyed, but at some point, we will stumble, we will hurt, and we will fail. So pick up the phone, now. Keep the lines of communication open and remember how much we all really do need each other. ‘Cause no one wants to be in the dark when it counts.
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NEWS
May 26, 2014
news editor email / phone
Leah Bjornson associate news editor news@the-peak.ca / 778.782.4560
Melissa Roach
Thursday, May 22 to Sunday, May 25 was a busy weekend for SFU’s Arts campus, which hosted the second annual Spur festival. Founded by the Literary Review of Canada and Diaspora Dialogues, Spur offered solution-oriented presentations and debates on issues such as public transit, managing a public political persona, and maintaining a green city. Readings, literary cabarets, and film screenings were also offered.
Surrey students looking to pad their resumes in the extracurricular sphere were in the right place last Thursday, May 22. Clubs Days was in full swing, offering a chance to sign up with groups such as the Aviation Club, BitCoin Club, Game Developers Clubs, and SFU’s Jazz band. Departmental student unions were also out in force, recruiting students to attend their upcoming meetings and functions.
The unique literary wranglings of poets Phinder Dulai and Kim Minkus found the eager ears of Lunch Poems attendees at Harbour Centre’s Teck Gallery on Wednesday, May 21. The weekly poetry reading occurs at 1:00 p.m. and features Canadian wordsmiths who entertain listeners free of charge.
In 2013, there were no CFL draft picks out of SFU — this year, five SFU graduates will be taking the field for CFL teams in the fall. Offensive lineman Matthias Goossen led the charge, drafted second overall by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. He was followed by Casey Chin and Dylan Roper to the BC Lions in the third and sixth rounds. Accompanying Goossen to Winnipeg is defensive back Derek Jones. Rounding out the draft, was Tore Corrado, selected by the Toronto Argonauts in the sixth round; Jones was the sole SFU draftee to be chosen in the Eastern Conference. Only Laval and Montreal, two elite teams in terms of Canadian university football, produced more picks than SFU. “It just speaks to how good our athletes are in this program,” stated SFU head coach and onetime fifth overall pick Jacques Chapdelaine. “SFU does have the
ability to attract very, very skilled football players.” Goossen is the first firstround draft pick to come out of SFU since Dean Valli in 2006. He is also SFU’s highest pick ever, since Obby Khan also went second overall in the 2004 draft to the now defunct Ottawa Renegades. Both Chin and Goossen were projected to be in the top 15 prospects in this year’s draft. Chapdelaine also gave SFU’s NCAA status credit saying that “there’s benefits to being seen” and that the status puts SFU players in “a very favorable light in terms of competition, in terms of level of competition” with CFL scouts. He pointed out that although a CIS team had the first overall pick, the player was on a championship team, Laval University, as compared to SFU, a team that has not yet had a winning record during its time in the NCAA. Roper, who will be playing defensive linebacker for the Lions this fall, agreed, saying, “It proves that we play at a higher level here. SFU football is different than CIS and I think that CFL scouts see that as well and see that a lot of players are coming out well developed and ready to play in the pros.” In addition to what the draft says about SFU’s current program, it also provides inspiration for new
SFU players coming into the system, Roper said. He added, “It’s motivating for sure. When I came in as a freshman, I was sitting behind [Justin] Capicciotti and [Andrew] Marshall, they’re both with the Ottawa Redblacks now. It’s motivation for the younger guys, [it shows] they can do it as well.” Future Lions teammate Chin stated, “I’d like to think it gives them a little more motivation, makes them want to work that much harder, maybe even get more guys drafted next year.”
With respect to being drafted by the BC Lions, the home team for the Greater Vancouver area, “It’s a dream come true [. . .] I would rather go in the third round — where I got picked — than in the first round to a different team,” said Chin, who was drafted 27th overall. Roper added, “[When] it popped up on the TV that BC took me, words don’t describe [how I felt]. I’ve been a BC fan since I was born.”
The other three players will be travelling further: Jones and Goossen are off to Winnipeg, and Corrado to Toronto. Corrado mentioned that any “childhood allegiances” disappear after being drafted, as the Lions became just another team that decided not to pick him. Jones, on the other hand, is from Edmonton and was never a Lions fan. Although Goossen was chosen second overall, others like Roper, had to play the “waiting game,” not being drafted until the sixth round, 50th overall. However, he sees this as more motivation. “I’ve always played with a chip on my shoulder, and I think waiting around and teams passing on me, I think it’s going to give me more of a chip on the shoulder and prove some people wrong,” said Roper. Chapdelaine, who was both a player and coach in the CFL, believes his guys will adapt well to the CFL: “They’ve been prepared extremely well [. . .] I think they’ll be just great.” He advises the draftees “to go into work, let the good days build and let the bad days be learning experiences.” He said, “There’s going to be some challenging days for these kids, it’s going to be extremely competitive, it’s going to be physically demanding [but] persevere through that. If you can do that, that’s all you can ask for.”
NEWS
After ending the 2013/2014 fiscal year with almost half a million dollars in losses, the SFU Bookstore is looking to new avenues to expand their services while meeting student demand in the technology age. “We had to eat this burden this year,” said Mikhail Dzuba, manager of the SFU Bookstore. “Here we have a significant year of loss, but at least there is money to absorb that. It’s not like we’re having to make it up next year. Our past year of being successful has allowed us to absorb this as a bump in the road.” At the end of March, bookstore management discovered that their losses from the year totalled $481,000. This loss resulted from a 10 per cent annual decrease in sales as well as a higher cost of goods as a result of lower prices. Adding to the financial burden was a year-end shift to a new system of inventory valuation, which will allow management to monitor the financial situation of the bookstore throughout the year rather than discover the inventory’s value at the end of March. Switching to this new method cost them approximately $171,000, but Dzuba and executive director of ancillary services Mark McLaughlin felt it was worth it. “We made it even worse for ourselves in order to get out of the challenge of never really knowing true information except for once a year,” said Dzuba. The SFU Bookstore’s situation is not unique in North America, as students turn to more creative solutions such as Amazon, eBooks, and online source textbooks to obtain their course materials. “We’ve gone through the last five years of declining course material and we’re at that apex now where we need to make a change,” said Dzuba. “The crisis is kind of on.” “We want to embrace the digital world because that’s
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where we see it going,” explained McLaughlin. “Our mission for the next few years is really to lower the cost of learning materials for students.”
This crisis is manifested in the fact that almost 35 per cent of SFU students surveyed by the bookstore last year said that they do not purchase textbooks at all. Instead, they rely on finding access online or through other means. “Our worry is that [. . .] students aren’t accessing it altogether,” said McLaughlin. “We’ve got to find a way to get learning content to students.” The bookstore has already attempted to challenge alternative suppliers by reducing prices of used books by 15 per cent, among other things. Dzuba explained, “We did a
lot of price matching last year, we did a lot of trying to bring prices down to be equal to what Amazon was, and that cost us business in margins.” One area in which both Dzuba and McLaughlin see avenues for improvement is custom courseware and textbooks. Said McLaughlin, “We’re looking at much more of that kind of development that allows us to take advantage of some of the most affordable options and blend them together.” Custom courseware is attractive because it would allow SFU to include discounted — or even free — publications, reducing costs for students. “We see no reason why students should be buying 100 per cent of a book when their professors are only using 50 per cent of the chapters,” said McLaughlin. This option is also desirable from a sustainability standpoint, as course material could be bound on campus instead of shipped from the States. However, one main challenge of switching to a more customized or online system of material distribution is getting faculty on board. “Faculty wants what is simple,” said Dzuba.
The two are looking to encourage faculty to reuse textbooks or offer the same course material for a number of semesters. “What we’re hoping is that it closes the loop [so] there’s more students who are able to sell their books at buy-back,” explained Dzuba. Despite the many challenges ahead, both Dzuba and McLaughlin are confident that they will be at the forefront of Canadian universities exploring greater options for course material distribution. Said McLaughlin, “There’s a lot of avenues, a lot of issues, and a lot of solutions.” You can follow Leah Bjornson
Graduation Photos by Robin Wong
Emind Photo Studio.com
3580 East Hastings St, Vancouver (604) 618-8200 www.RobinWongPhotos.com
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6 NEWS
Build SFU held a community update at the Think Tank last Wednesday, where architects Perkins+Will presented proposed exterior designs and floor plans for the future student union building (SUB). The design selected will be built according to the “Terrace” concept — one of three concepts presented in March. The exterior of this model coincides with the original architectural features of the campus, as devised by Arthur Erickson. The “terracing” effect — involving staggered patios and levels, inspired by Erickson’s original sketches of the campus — will make the SUB as unintrusive as possible. The design will preserve views of the surrounding environment from existing buildings, such as the AQ, as well as views of prominent locations, such as Convo Mall. Perkins+Will also took into consideration the shadows that would be cast by the building, particularly
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into Freedom Square. Their studies concluded that the new structure would minimally affect sunlight reaching the area, especially during the summer months. In order to create a distinct and identifiable building, the exterior structure will be comprised of, in addition to some concrete, glass, wood, metal, and greenery in the form of roof gardens. The idea is to make the SUB an easily recognizable and transparent “wood-glass box.” Build SFU intends to make the SUB economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable. The large outdoor terrace spaces are meant to encourage stewardship, and they plan to use durable, local, and recycled materials for the construction of the building. LED light fixtures, renewable energy, and control of solar heat gain are some of the other strategies they hope to implement to achieve LEED Gold status. The interior of the building will also draw on the notion of transparency with the inclusion of multiple open spaces and large windows. These features will allow multiple levels and areas of the interior of the building to be viewed from a single spot, fostering a feeling of a cohesive community when inside. The designs presented are still not set in stone. Marc Fontaine, general manager of Build SFU, told
The Peak, “General blocks of space are set, but things can still move up till mid June.” Fontaine told The Peak they hope to meet with student groups from now until mid June, and that the Think Tank will be open for other students who have feedback. However, he emphasized that the sooner they receive the feedback from students, the more it will help. Sections of the interior space have been allocated as office space for student organizations and groups, bookable meeting rooms, group study spaces, dance and music rehearsal rooms, multipurpose event space, a cafe, a
cabaret, a community kitchen, a games lounge, and general student lounges. They also plan to extend the existing SFSS food court in the MBC into the SUB. Fontaine said that his favourite part of seeing the plans progress is “the fact that the building is really designed to work for students who aren’t very involved on campus or who aren’t involved at all.” “It’s truly a student building,” he continued. “It’s not an administrative building, and it puts the general student spaces like lounges and general meeting rooms that anyone could book in very obvious and convenient
The SFSS Board of Directors is sending a letter of apology to the GSS after being banned from using GSS space until the end of August. The ban was issued after the GSS lounge was left in “extremely poor condition” on April 4. SFSS board members had booked the space to use for volunteer storage during the Spring Sendoff Concert. When graduate students entered the room the next morning — where they had planned to host a family-friendly event — they found the room littered with leftover food, trays, plates, and empty cans. Among the empty beverages were alcoholic drinks, despite the GSS lounge being a non-liquor licensed space. The apology letter read, “This type of behaviour is inexcusable and similar conduct will not happen again.”
places so that every student could come in this building throughout the years that it exists and know that they can find a place to relax.”
NEWS
May 26, 2014
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Stephanie Munez, SFU residence and orientation mentorship coordinator, approached the SFSS Board last week to explore a partnership around residence orientation in the fall. Munez suggested the SFSS sponsor an orientation dance, to be held on August 30. The dance would use SFSS speakers and equipment and would replace previous MuchMusic video dances. VP Student Life Kayode Fatoba and residence liaison Katie Bell were tasked to meet with Munez and look into further options for collaboration.
The downtown Surrey core has been experiencing a rise in aggression from panhandlers. As one of the fastest-growing cities in Canada, Surrey is beginning to experience a level of panhandling that tends to occur in larger cities. An increased volume of people and more foot traffic in urban areas presents the opportunity for panhandling. The Downtown Surrey Business Improvement Association (BIA) has received numerous reports from businesses that are concerned this trend is detracting from people’s impressions of the neighbourhood and affecting their business.
The organization is now taking action to remedy the problem, employing SFU criminology student, Alex Dibnah, as a summer research intern to look into the matter. “There are people in the community in need,” said Dibnah. Aggressive panhandling is distinguished by behaviour that causes a person to legitimately fear for their well-being. This can come in the form of making a rude gesture or comment after refusal, or following someone with repeated requests for money. “It can be an uncomfortable situation for people being panhandled, simply because they do not know how to react. This can be addressed through increased public awareness, which is what we are working on, ” Dibnah explained. As reported in The Province, BIA’s CEO, Elizabeth Model called it “a disruption,” saying that, “When there are panhandlers basically loitering around your business, the perception is not extremely good for inviting customers in.” Captive audience solicitation — as well as aggressive
panhandling — is considered illegal in BC under the Safe Streets Act of 2004; this sort of panhandling involves soliciting people when they are unable to leave, such as at bus stops, ATMs, or traffic lights. People can be issued tickets for this and repeat offenders can be arrested.
public and to tell people not to give money to panhandlers. The second part of their message is that the better way to help is to give to charities geared towards aiding those in need. Dibnah will be working on this project for the remainder of her co-op term. She said that her experience so far has been “absolutely fantastic.” She considers herself lucky to have her first co-op placement somewhere she can work on something so closely related to her studies in criminology and that is “right up her alley.”
As a result of the division of the Internal Relations Officer position into VP Student Life and VP Student Services, the SFSS Board has had to replace the IRO position on society committees previously defined by the bylaws. After discussion with executive members, the decision was made to eliminate the IRO seat on the Commercial Services Committee and replace the seat on the others. As a result, business representative Shadnam Khan was appointed to Constitution and Policy Review Committee; VP Student Life Kayode Fatoba was appointed to Financial and Administrative Services Committee; and University Relations Officer Moe Kopahi was appointed to Labour Committee.
You can follow Melissa Roach
Dibnah is collecting data about which areas see more incidents of aggressive panhandling with the aim of gearing initiatives toward those specific places. By reaching out to people through social media, she has learned that people encounter panhandling most frequently in places such as Surrey Central SkyTrain station. Identifying these “hot spots” will help the BIA target their initiatives. One of their aims is to provide education to the
BE A VOICE DONOR An SFU forensic linguistics study needs Canadian English speakers born west of Quebec for speech recordings.
Earn $10 for 30 minutes e-mail phonetics@live.ca to set up a recording at RCB Hall
8 NEWS
May 26, 2014
From one of the world’s largest ruff aviaries perched atop Burnaby mountain, SFU researcher David Lank has come across a crucial discovery that genetics — not environmental factors — drive courtship and mating practices in these unique birds. Lank, an SFU research associate and adjunct professor of biological sciences, has spent three decades studying the unique mating patterns of the male ruff bird, a type of sandpiper originally from Finland. These birds, bred by Lank in the aviaries at SFU, are the only known ruffs in North America. Lank was originally drawn to these birds because of the mating
patterns specific to their species. The males are unique in that they belong to one of three distinct groups, each with their own behavioural patterns in regards to mating. However, unlike most animals, these differences in mating are not a result of their environment, nor a
result of different stages of development. Instead, they are a result of genetic variants in the three types of the male ruff birds. The three types of ruff birds are the territorial, the wingman, and the female mimics. The territorial make up 85 per cent of the population,
acting as most birds do when trying to mate; they display their plumage to attract the females, and hope to mate with those that approach their selected territory. The wingmen function as their namesake states. They join one of the territorial males, forming
a competitive yet helpful alliance to attract the females. However, once a female ruff approaches, the alliance transforms into a rivalry of who can mate with the female first. Lastly, the female mimics are similar to female ruffs in appearance. They are smaller than the other males, and only form one per cent of the populous. Unable to attract females themselves, they lie in wait by the other males, and try to jump on an approaching female. This discovery made about the ruff birds is important because, according to Lank, “major differences in personality [are] attributable to a gene.” In other words, behavioural patterns can be determined before these birds are even born. He explained to SFU News, “Ruffs lack developmental plasticity, which means they do not change their mating behavior with social circumstances, or learn from experience.” This has proven very informative to researchers as it proves that behaviour is not always a learned trait, and it is now scientifically proven to be something these ruff birds inherit.
New information warns of increasing survival pressures on amphibian life in the Pacific Northwest as a result of climate change and non-native fish. SFU researchers Wendy Palen and Maureen Ryan considered the threat climate change poses for these amphibians. Palen, assistant professor of biology and tier two Canada research chair in aquatic conservation, explained, “For natural resource conservation issues, you cannot make the ocean less acidic. You cannot turn down the temperature on something, but in this case it has to do with these different mixes of aquatic habitats.”
According to Palen, “Fish were introduced into these mountainous landscapes and really large lakes. What that means is amphibians and a lot of the native species are restricted to other, more at-risk habitats in the landscape where fish cannot exist.” Currently, 95 per cent of lakes in the Pacific Northwest are stocked with non-native fish. Palen and other researchers from the University of Washington and the University of Notre Dame began their research in US national parks with high elevations, such as Mount Rainier National Park, North Cascades National Park, and Olympic National Park. Palen found reason for concern: “We found that stability is likely to change in the future if some large percentage of their habitat disappears because of climate change,” she said. “Basically, they call it the climate squeeze. If we are squeezed in one direction by fish
present and then in the other direction by climate change, then the question is, ‘how much are they going to be left with in the end?’,” Palen explained. The ponds where most of these amphibians live are going to be 50 to 80 per cent more likely to dry up in the next 50 to 100 years as opposed to present conditions. In essence, “[There] are these shallow ponds and wetlands that you see if you have ever been hiking in these mountainous areas, like a little wet meadow,” Palen said. These may be a site for exploration as fish have difficulty living in them because of the shallow nature of these ponds. In this climate squeeze, many questions arise about the potential solutions to the problem. “How do we go in and strategically remove fish from these landscapes?” Palen posited. “Here we might be able to forestall the effects of climate change for these amphibians by removing trout where we think
there will be the biggest impact,” she continued. “We can restore some of the large, more resilient habitats and make native wetland ecosystems in the surrounding area more resilient again.”
By removing these fish — which were originally introduced for recreational purposes — Palen hopes to prevent the destruction of amphibian populations.
OPINIONS
May 26, 2014
opinions editor email / phone
Joel MacKenzie opinions@the-peak.ca / 778.782.4560
Early losses in the 2014 NHL playoffs make for interesting speculation. Although some teams — such as the Dallas Stars and Columbus Blue Jackets — are content with their early bow-outs, they were not expected to be cup contenders and yet made significant progress. It was shocking to see other teams, such as St. Louis and San Jose, get let off early, as they were expected to contend for the cup, or at least pass the first round. The Blues are a team that seem built for the playoffs, and dominate the regular season, but when it comes to the playoffs, for some reason they fold.
There does not seem to be much reason for this. They do have some scoring issues, but that did not appear to be the problem this series (also, teams such as the L.A. Kings have certainly cruised to success without much offense). Perhaps due to injuries on the team and the fact they were facing Chicago, their losses were seen as justified, and
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the team will remain largely unchanged, at least behind the scenes. Coach Ken Hitchcock has been kept on, with a one-year extension on his contract, and GM Doug Armstrong is still with the team. It is unknown what they will do player-wise, but it is unlikely they will blow up their core. This lack of change may not be a bad thing either. They still seem like a strong team and their losses can be blamed on luck. With that being said, a dismal performance in next year’s playoffs will probably mean bigger changes. In this light, Hitchcock’s one-year extension could be seen more as a threat than a legitimate vote of confidence. A 2-0, home game-won lead, like the Blues’, is fairly easy to blow. But, a 3-0 lead is not, something us Canucks fans know all too well. Yet this is exactly what the San Jose Sharks did and, although it was against the L.A. Kings, it is an inexcusable loss for them. Year after year, the Sharks have been proven playoff chokers, nearly every year being chosen by many to actually win the Stanley Cup only to be knocked off early, always before the finals. That makes it all the more surprising that, just like the Blues, neither the coach nor the GM of the Sharks will be shown the door. Without firing these two, not too much can be changed. Their constant failure in the playoffs speaks to a problem larger than a few tweaks, making it seem as though the core is the only thing left to change. However, with their regular season success, they probably won’t do something that bold. It seems likely they will not do anything until it is too late, and miss their chance at success.
12 OPINIONS
After months, the man is finally where he needs to be. His blatant alcoholism, substance abuse, prejudice, and all out immaturity make it amazing that he was ever even elected mayor of Toronto. Not only that, he’s caused one of the biggest stirs in our country’s media history, and has likened our political media coverage to the abysmally sad levels of the American celebrity. When a Canadian politician makes SNL’s Weekend Update, described as “when a Canadian stops being polite
Earlier in the month, multiple news outlets across the country reported that Rob Ford had been “spotted” in Bracebridge. That’s right, “spotted.” As if rehab has transformed him into some wild, endangered animal that the press is trying to capture. CBC reported that he was still in rehab, but that being off-property was considered essential to his continuation in the program. A couple cheerful photos of him have surfaced. While these may or may not be attempts to show the
May 26, 2014
and starts getting real,” you know this is something we must shake our heads at (although I’ll admit I found the joke funny). Now, we must celebrate. This adult/troubled teenager has finally accepted his condition and has checked himself into rehab. Now, he will receive the psychiatric help he needs. He and his family will hopefully be more at peace. He won’t receive as much media attention and have his face pointlessly plastered all over the news! But . . .
world the supposed progress he’s been making, I’m irritated that the press is seizing every opportunity to headline Ford. People, give him a break! The guy is in rehab now, so leave him alone. His story has been stretched to the point of exhaustion. Yes, he’s made some bad decisions, but give him the time to peacefully complete his rehabilitation before you, once again, spearhead him with ridicule, and plague readers with so-called “news” they shouldn’t care to read anymore.
The “check your privilege” campaign is a social media movement that has been spreading among university campuses in the hopes that it will catalyze change and prevent discrimination. The campaign asks students to question their own privileges. A lack of a privileged experience can result from discrimination based on race, sex, class, disability, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, age, and others. The generalized implications of the “check your privilege” campaign are brilliant because they cover all of these issues. The problem, though, is that this slogan is too broad to make the desired impact on its targeted audiences, which should include most of us to some degree. It seems to me that despite the campaign’s attempt
to increase the complexity of privilege, we still tend to drift towards the “I need this campaign because I am not a Caucasian, 30-year old, heterosexual, cis-male” argument. Surely, this demographic experiences a lot of privilege over other minority groups, and they need to be aware so that they can learn to mediate that issue. But there is more to understanding what privilege means in all of our lives than just this argument.
If we imagine a privileged experience of the world to be determined quantitatively through a checklist of how many privileges we have, then it is inevitable that there will be those who will score higher than others. However, are some privileges going to carry more weight than others? What score counts as being truly privileged? The issue is too complicated to be categorized into a pass/fail system. There has been concern that the campaign could be
used to silence Caucasian students. However, this shouldn’t be the case. Certain groups are going to feel targeted by the slogan but that is because of the negative perception we have of what privilege means. This negative perception of privilege is unfortunate, as it tends to shut down meaningful conversation. We all need to understand that being privileged doesn’t make you a mean and selfish individual; it just means that you have some advantages that others do not experience. The “check your privilege” campaign is easily interpreted as only targeting the obvious groups. But we have to remember that just because you are part of a minority group doesn’t mean you don’t experience some privilege. There are wide ranges of contributing factors to privilege. If you step out of Canada and compare our rights and attitudes with different groups in other nations, this becomes immediately apparent. Examine your own privileges before pointing out someone else’s. That is the only way that each of us can begin to listen to the issues of other groups and to become cognisant of the problems that we may not encounter because of the privileges that each of us possess.
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39- Concordes, e.g. 41- Indian dish 43- Pert. to the management of public wealth 46- Carson’s successor 48- Litigate against 51- Brunch cocktail 53- Slender cord 55- Musical sounds 57- Silent 58- Gen. Robert ___ 59- Sisters 60- Lab fluids 61- Swedish auto 63- Golfer Aoki 64- Ward off 65- Afternoon affairs 66- D-Day craft
Do you want to hear your voice on the radio?
To attend various music events? To have fun? Then CJSF radio is for you! Join CJSF 90.1 FM as a volunteer and take a 45-minute orientation tour WR OHDUQ PRUH DERXW LW 'URS LQ RQH RI WKHVH WLPHV WR ¿QG RXW ZKDW \RX can do and learn at your campus radio. (We’re in TC216 right over the Burnaby campus main entrance.) 1st Friday of the month at 3pm 2nd Tuesday at 4pm 3rd Thursday at 3 pm Hope to see you there! 4th Wednesday at 6:15 pm
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ARTS
arts editor email / phone
May 26, 2014
Tessa Perkins arts@the-peak.ca / 778.782.4560
How does a contemporary dance show inspire a Lululemon capsule collection? Amber Funk Barton is still surprised that she can now say she has her own clothing line, and she feels so grateful for the experience. “I feel that both organizations have truly had a collaboration and been inspired by each other,” she said. “They’ve been so supportive and respectful. It’s been a true artistic exchange.” This unlikely partnership all began when Barton was introduced to lead designer Jean Okada at the Lululemon Lab during a fit session where she gave feedback on some of their pieces. At that time she was halfway through producing her new dance work, The Art of Stealing, presented by her company, the response, and she was beginning to think about costuming. “I thought it would be so cool to work with Jean,” she said.
Barton and Okada met for coffee, discussed costuming ideas for the show, and a short time later Okada suggested that they not only collaborate on the show’s costumes, but create a capsule collection inspired by it. “It was the most organic thing that happened. It was being introduced in the right way at the right time,” said Barton. Capsule collections are very small lines, in this case six pieces, inspired by groups in the Vancouver community. The right costumes can add so much to a dance. “Sometimes in contemporary dance we don’t put an emphasis on costumes,” explained Barton, saying that tight
budgets often lead to hastily put together costumes bought at the mall. For this show she knew it had to be costumed with more thought. The aesthetic of Lululemon really suits this project, with black being the prominent colour. “We’ve been working so hard on creating a world that makes sense to us,” said Barton, explaining that each dancer has their own journey within the piece. One dancer said to Barton, after putting on the finished costumes: “Before I just felt like I was in a template, now I really feel like I’m in it.” Barton believes in the power of costumes to help transport the dancers to her fictional world: “You
can suspend belief better in costume, you have your uniform,” she said. “For the dancers it really helps us forget that we’re dancers and be immersed.” The costume give them another piece of information about their role. Barton doesn’t like the word character to describe the different roles in her work. “I create avatars as opposed to characters,” she said, explaining that this leaves room for interpretation. The avatars in this show represent a post-apocalyptic gang of thieves, and there are some identifiable personalities: “There is a power struggle within the gang. There’s the leader, the rookie, the person who challenges authority,
Are you good or evil? What does that even mean? Wicked explores the idea that none of us are really good nor evil, but a combination of both, and how we end up that way is more complex than we probably realize. Matt Shingledecker, who plays the witches’ love interest, Fiyero, explained that the idea of the show is to strip away the labels of good and evil to look deeper into individual character and motivations. You may think you know the two witches from The Wizard of Oz: there’s Glinda, the sparkly, pure, good witch, and the Wicked Witch of the West who is sheer evil. But what were these two like before they became famous witches, and how did they
go from being best friends to worst enemies? Wicked follows Elphaba (who would later become the Wicked Witch), and Glinda, through their college years and demonstrates how different societal influences come to shape them. Shingledecker explained that the relationship between the witches is what people can relate to the most, “Their paths intertwine, they separate, and eventually come together. When Elphaba says ‘You’ve touched my life,’ everyone can relate to that.” “It’s a different take on The Wizard of Oz, people learn something new,” he said, explaining that with this previous knowledge of the characters, “everyone feels like they’re in on it.” The book that inspired the musical is quite different, said Shingledecker, but there is one part that stuck with him and seems to sum up the moral of the story: Boq, a munchkin who knew Elphaba as a child, says to her
that you don’t have to be weary of people who call themselves evil, you have to be weary of people who call themselves good. In Shingledecker’s favourite song of the show, “No Good Deed,” Elphaba’s character has a powerful moment when she struggles to figure out the difference between good and evil. “She sort of becomes her persona for a moment. It’s a moment of vulnerability.” Shingledecker’s character, Fiyero, is — according to him — best represented by the scene “thank goodness,” at the top of act two when he calls Glinda out. “You see where he’s come; how far he’s come,” he said. “Every character has a specific arc change in the show. You see him change overnight. He goes from happy go lucky to deeply caring, more than anyone else.” Fiyero is put in a difficult position, caught in a love triangle with Elphaba and Glinda. After over 100 shows in eight cities, Shingledecker is halfway
through this North American tour, and he’s looking forward to stopping in Vancouver, as well as a few other Canadian cities that he has never visited. Apart from the magical story of these misunderstood witches, the impressive dancing, amazing music, and stunning sets
etc. It’s more an outline of a personality type.” Influenced by comics and graphic novels, the loose narrative journey of the show could be described as a moving storyboard. The atmospheric, murky music adds a dark tone to the show and Barton says there’s a sense that “something eminently bad is going to happen.” This is Barton’s third full length show, and she explained that after her last work, Portraits and Scenes of Female Creatures, she learned a lot about knowing what needs to be fixed and how to fix it. “It’s just experience. You just have to keep making work and you come to terms with the fact that there’s no way you’ll ever make a perfect piece,” she said. “It’s all connected and every piece leads to the next piece. You don’t get a black belt in choreography,” she laughed. “It’s nice to still feel inspired.”
You can follow Tessa Perkins
keep audiences coming back for more Wicked fun. Wicked will be presented by Broadway Across Canada at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre May 28 - June 29. For information, visit Vancouver.broadway.com.
ARTS
Imagine palm trees, warm beaches and piña coladas year round. Imagine the best of vibes and the best of friends. Imagine juicy fruit and nonstop sunshine; imagine no bad days. This is the feeling Vancouver-based tropic pop group BESTiE hits us with, again and again. Their infectious energy is compelling and uplifting, with each of their songs a bright burst of warmth more colourful than the last. BESTiE, who list “summer, ice cream, the beach, girls, floating down a river in an inner tube, high fives and heart break” as a few of their influences, have a warm, calypso-surf dream pop sound that catches the ear and the soul and brings you to a place of infinite joy. After scoring third place in the 2013 Peak Performance
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Project, the boys have only continued to impress. Their self-released first album, No Bad Days, came out on April 22, and they are currently grinding through their first cross-Canada tour. If it’s any sign of the spirit of BESTiE, they made time to chat with The Peak following an overnight prairie drive, in between their first gig on live TV, first thing in the morning, and their (muchanticipated) breakfast.
The band consists of Tristan Orchard (lead vocals), Andrew Janczewski (guitar), Rob Cameron (bass), and Daniel Ruiz (percussion). The four besties met at the Vancouver dive bar Funky Winker Beans in 2009, at
a night Tristan had put together called No More Strangers. Their true collaboration, however, was birthed on a hot summer weekend at a jam space Tristan runs called Goodies. Tristan, Andrew and Rob stumbled into jamming together and were all really excited about the vibe that emerged, so they kept running with it. Daniel “found his way in” later, and the four of them have been seriously (but in a fun kind of way) creating their sound since 2012. BESTiE’s diverse musical tapestry is characterized by the eclectic mix of the unique styles and influences of each member. Tristan has a DJ background and “likes eclectic mixes of sounds, and earnest pop music.” Andrew grew up listening to a lot of African music and early reggae and is, in Tristan’s words, “almost a historian.” Then we have Rob, the “guru of indie rock,” and Daniel, a Columbian native who contributes his Latin-inspired drumming style. The overall BESTiE sound we hear is a smooth blend of
these diverse and sounds that compliment each other perfectly: breezy, upbeat, happy, and outrageously fun. Interestingly so, the popular categorization of BESTiE’s sound as ultra optimistic was unintentional on their end. In fact, Tristan was in a low place at the time of the band’s formation, as his other band was dissolving. The collaboration with new to-be besties was exactly what he needed. “Getting back into making music with other people was really exciting, we love playing music together. It’s really the best thing, so that joy manifests itself into the songs.” They also credit their geographical setting for their bright, positive sound. Tristan explains, “Being from Vancouver, where it’s dark out most of the time, you have a special fixation with the sun and the short summer.” For BESTiE, “it’s all about the vibe — born out of the mood we are in.” The resources and experience BESTiE gained through the Peak Performance Project encouraged the release of their debut album,
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which they had been working on throughout 2013 and up until March 2014. A highlight of the process for the group was working with producer Howard Redekopp (Tegan & Sara, Mother Mother, The Zolas), which “was great, and definitely made us a better band.” If the idea of summer condensed into an endlessly re-livable half hour sounds appealing, BESTiE’s No Bad Days is definitely an album for you. What’s perhaps the most amazing part of the music BESTiE has created is that when you listen to it, you can truly hear and feel that hot summer weekend that inspired the whole thing years ago. These self-described “young men that like to steer towards the light” are practically magicians, evoking the powerful feeling of joy they experience in doing what they love, a joy that many of us yearn for all year.
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He’s been stomping around pop-culture since 1954. While he may seem like just a giant lizard with atomic breath, Godzilla tells a story much closer to our own reality. When the atomic bombs were dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima in 1945, an entire culture was beyond devastated. Many survivors had to live out the rest of their days with the constant reminder of massive keloid scarring on their bodies. Though Japan recovered, it has never forgotten. Nor should we. Emerging onto screen a few years after the bombing, Godzilla’s dark keloid-like skin is a reminder to the world that though Japan was horrifically scarred, it nonetheless rises. Godzilla was first introduced as just a monster rampaging around Japan (as the violence of the bombing was still fresh in the country’s mind).
But since then, the King of Monsters has shifted motives. He’s battled and saved us from threats of all kinds: many — like those in the newest installment — are the results of our own scientific arrogance. He’s the classic, but inadvertant movie monster. He destroys lives in his wake, but ultimately, he — along with all the other rampaging
May 26, 2014
monsters behind him — is the punishment mankind deserves for our nuclear crimes against each other. This latest Godzilla incarnation definitely lives up to its hype. The last time Godzilla was adapted into Western cinemas was in 1998, awkwardly starring Matthew Broderick. It was done in an archetypical “monster movie” fashion, with the beast rampaging through New York. To sugar coat it: the movie didn’t do so well. Now, director Gareth Edwards recreates Godzilla in his largest physical rendering yet, definitely stomping out the memory of its embarrassing predecessor. Even though a full hour passes before the King of Monsters shows more than his spiked back protruding from the ocean, the wait is definitely worth it. Godzilla is magnificently re-interpreted. Standing an impressive 350 feet (with thighs that look like he pushed himself to the max on an elliptical), his look is strikingly faithful to the globally recognized Japanese design. Put aside the mediocre story-telling, and just hear that iconic roar as if it were right outside the theatre. The scenes of giant monsters fighting are as eerily intriguing as witnessing unsettling footage on the evening news. From the Philippines to Hawaii and Japan, then to Las Vegas, and ending in San Francisco, Edwards’ film is more global than the 1998 version, and it really resonates as a what if this really happened? kind of film. The film is definitely a go-to summer movie (thus far) for stunning visuals. The first full body shot of Godzilla is sure to please your inner child. Don’t go for great storylines, however, as they unfortunately fall flat within the first hour after some emotional lypivotal events. Definitely go for the spectacular monster bashing, and Elizabeth Olsen’s surprisingly talented, but under-utilized acting skills.
Morgan Green shows me a fierce tattoo of an eagle with its wings spread along the length of her right arm. It’s crafted in the distinct formline of Northwest Coast Art. “I’m the eagle,” she says, meaning the crest passed down through her mother’s clan. “This is my cousin’s work. She uses elements that I don’t, such as this” — Morgan points to a red U-shape in the design — “Ts’msyen are strict,” she says. We stop in front of a piece in her jewelry exhibit, Ts’msyen Transforming, at the Bill Reid Gallery. A formline butterfly constructed out of delicate layers of oxidized silver rests on branches that wind together into a circle. Their flow of line is so rhythmic that they seem to dance in the space holding them. “Yes, I’m also interested in Art Nouveau and Egyptian art,” Green says. “You can see that here. But I have to be careful. Our culture is at the source of Northwest Coast art, so when Ts’msyen come to look at it,” she leans in my direction and nods, “they can be quite strict.” Born on Ts’msyen lands near Prince Rupert, Green
developed her art as a way of bringing her past into the present. It serves as a bridge in the history of her people. “Art was integrated in our life,” she says. “Just by looking at someone’s crest you could tell where he came from and who his people were. Everything people owned was proper according to our law and history.” Green is known for her time spent developing both her artistry and her knowledge of her culture. She works in painting, clothing, leatherwork, wood sculpture and jewelry, and yes, she makes her own tools. “I think any artist worth their salt should,” she says. She also teaches and plans to develop a culture centre back home. “All Northwest Coast artists work in the Lower Mainland,” she says, “but our culture comes from our land. It would be nice to return our cultural base there.”
Kwiaahwah Jones, director of content at the Bill Reid Gallery says, “Morgan works at a very high level. She only started in jewelry three years ago, but when people see her work they ask how old she is. She’s only 30.” Like Reid, Green preserves the art’s legacy, but transforms it in novel ways.
Reid advanced the use of repoussé in jewelry making; this is a type of sculpture where patterns in relief are shaped into the metal by hammering on the reverse side. Morgan’s techniques extend the sculpture of jewelry into hollowform construction. “Her work is a perfect example of the high art found here,” says Jones. Green lets the materials suggest themselves to her. Then she sculpts, solders, and polishes many times to shape the silver, gold, and copper that she works in. “I believe art has power,” she says. “It brings deep structure to the surface, whether it’s an idea or the lost knowledge of a society. It transforms people.” Going through the creative process is an emotional experience for Green. “I feel tension before finishing a work,” she says. “It’s because being inside the creative process is important to me.” Most of her pieces stay with her for a long time as she works to perfect them. Then they pass into her community through personal networks, often purchased for use in ceremony. “I like that, though,” she says. “I like that they are danced in the community, have fun and take on a life of their own that has nothing to do with me.”
ARTS
May 26, 2014
Vancouver, get ready to dance your heart out. The 10th annual Vancouver International Bhangra Celebration is a lively festival that will showcase music and dance from the Punjab region of India and Pakistan. Bhangra is a rhythmic folk dance that incorporates a blend of Punjabi music and Western influences. The aim of the event is to connect global communities as the performers each present a piece of their cultural heritage. Several local and international artists will be performing at places such as SFU Woodwards, Surrey City Hall, and the Vogue Theatre, to name a few. The festival kicks off with the Transfusion event and reception at SFU Woodwards on May 29. As the name suggests, the diverse range of performers at the event showcase
a multitude of cultural and artistic boundaries. Among the performers are Now or Never, a hip hop breakdance crew; JCC Shalom Dancers, a dance group that celebrates Jewish heritage; and the Leela Dance Group which performs Indian classical and folk dance. Other performers include First Nations dance group Native Thunder and students from the Royal Academy of Bhangra. The Peak sat down with members of three of the crews to talk about their upcoming performances at the festival.
The Now or Never crew was established in 1997 by a group of young people who shared the same interests in hip-hop dance. They have performed at a variety of venues ranging from South Asian weddings to the closing ceremony at the 2010 Winter Olympics. As for what they wish to take away from their upcoming performance at the Bhangra Festival, member Jhaymee Hizon says, “We are always open to learning and experiencing new
things. We want to learn more about the South Asian culture and incorporate their [style of] dance into our show.” The JCC Shalom Dancers have been going strong since 1981, dancing to showcase their Jewish culture and heritage. Member Marla Simcoff describes the group’s style as “a melting pot of styles. We do Eastern European and Turkish dance and incorporate it into a modern style of dance.” Since performing at the Yom Ha’azmaot (Israeli Independence Day) celebration in
Admittedly I’m not the most qualified person to be reviewing a book of poetry. (For souring me on the literary form, I blame years of being forced to unpack/ dissect poems in the name of academic purposes.) But maybe that makes me even better suited for it. Instead of falling over myself for every stanza I read, my critic senses have been hardened — thankfully, any person who’s not a fan of flowery, over-the-top poems can look to C.R. Avery. Best known for his work as a rock musician over the last
several decades, Avery returns to the game of poetry with his third book, Some Birds Walk For The Hell Of It, 61 pages of unabashed, curt storytelling. Divided into four colourfully named chapters, Avery’s experiences from over the years undoubtedly helped create this myriad of anecdotes, covering everything from apathetic romance and hooking up, to feelings of inadequacy throughout life, along with the overarching tone of not really giving a shit. There are a ton of poems that deserve mentioning but a few personal favourites are as follows: “Lunch Pick-up Poem,” in all its Velvet Underground referencing glory; “Thin Walls 95.3 FM,” a cup-half-full quip about your neighbours having particularly loud coitus; “Ghost Car &
Ragged Glory,” a perfect and brief insight into a sketchy nightclub and its even sketchier patrons; and “Another West Side Girl,” if only for the opening lines of “She gave me a blow job on her sofa / Now my job is to blow in the direction of the black-vestry night.” With 35 different poems included, it’s hard to pick just a few to highlight. While most of the memorable poems come with at least a tinge of sexual innuendo, they never feel like a shtick or even remotely juvenile. Instead Avery uses sex as a device and a way to make his writing personal and honest, regardless of how unpoetic the sexual encounters might be. Some Birds also boasts a healthy number of music-related puns that most likely couldn’t
have been put together by someone who wasn’t a musician themselves. Take the closing lines from “Do they play Zombie Zoo,” for instance: “You’re not going to believe this, but they joined a Tom Petty cover band, it kinda broke my heart,” and “Well, they’re heartbreakers now.”
While the shorter poems — most of which are 10 lines or less — offer most of the comedic relief and quick jokes, Some
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1981, the group have become well known representatives of the Jewish community and history. As for the group dynamic, Simcoff says, “We are all in different stages of our lives. We have mothers, newlyweds, university students, and we are all united because we love to dance.” Leela Dance Group is an Indian dance group established by four choreographers who have been dancing together since they were kids. Incorporating a fusion of classical, structured Indian dance with the community oriented fun of folk dancing. Choreographer Monisha Manhas says of the group, “I enjoy the fusion of classical and folk dance as the classical style by itself can get lost on our younger generation.” The diverse showcase of cultures at this festival is truly something to celebrate; though the performers are from many different backgrounds, they are all united in their love of music and dance. Manhas characterizes this love well saying, “I think that people can create a deep emotional connection with music. Dance allows people to put a physical presence to that music. Even if people don’t understand the words, we can pull emotion from the music and put the emotions into our movement.”
Birds really shines with the poems that run between one and two pages. Avery’s strength comes from his ability to build a whole narrative instead of a brief snapshot into a character’s life and that’s where the payoff lies. The words might not flow particularly nicely, but Avery tells a story and he tells it well. Like I mentioned before, I’m not a poetry guy and most likely never will be, but if you’re looking for something light to take with you to the beach or while you’re trapped waiting at the laundromat, C.R. Avery will do just fine. While some readers may be turned off by his non-decorative language and generally sex-centred topics, it’s easy to appreciate Avery’s work for what it is: an entertaining read.
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HUMOUR
May 26, 2014
humour editor email / phone
Brad McLeod humour@the-peak.ca / 778.782.4560
HUMOUR
May 26, 2014
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20 LAST WORD
features editor email / phone
Max Hill features@the-peak.ca / 778.782.4560
May 26, 2014