The Queen's Journal, Volume 141, Issue 26

F R I D AY , J A N U A R Y 1 7 , 2 0 1 4 — I S S U E 2 6

J THE OURNAL QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY — SINCE 1873

SMH vs.

WRL #AMSVOTES

PHOTOS BY SAM KOEBRICH

B Y O LIVIA B OWDEN S EBASTIAN L ECK Journal Staff

Pakalnis and John Patrick Stanley dropped out of the executive race, after it became known that one of team members wasn’t an AMS member. According to AMS policy, Two teams were ratified for the 2014 executive candidates must be a member AMS Executive election ballot, but a third of the society in order to run, Mark team was left out after they failed to meet Godin, deputy speaker and chief electoral nomination requirements, according to the officer, said.

“I made a ruling in consultation with the AMS Elections Team.

Team SMH was ratified, and is comprised Elections Team that the team in question had of Scott Mason, Mark Asfar, and Hasina therefore not completed [the] nomination Daya. They are running for President and process, and thus were not permitted Vice-President (Operations and University to continue the election,” he said.

The AMS Elections team is comprised Affairs), respectively.

Allison Williams, Justin Reekie, and of the Chief Electoral Officer, the Philip Lloyd make up Team WRL. Williams Chief Returning Officer and Deputy is running for President, Reekie Returning Officers.

To be allowed on the ballot, Teams must for VP (Operations) and Lloyd for VP (University Affairs). garner a minimum of 750 signatures from Williams is currently the AMS Academic students, and complete all the components Affairs Commissioner, Reekie is currently of the nomination package, including Hospitality and Safety Services Director and writing a description of the team as well as Lloyd is currently on the Student Faculty signing a bonding agreement.

Kanivanan Chinniah told Relations Committee.

Journal following Assembly Daya is currently President and CEO of the night that the team the Residence Society., Asfar is the AMS Thursday Student Life Administration Manager and decided not to run after meeting with team WRL, consisting of Williams, Reekie Mason is currently ASUS President.

Three candidates were ratified for the and Lloyd.

“After talking to team WRL, we realized Rector ballot: Aman Partap, Mike Young, we shared common values and they are and Marcus Threndyle.

See Teams on page 7 The team of Kanivanan Chinniah, Peter AND

AMS

Discipline defended Student Affairs allegedly violates Code of Conduct B Y VINCENT B EN M ATAK News Editor The AMS is advising students to be wary if they receive emails from the Office of Student Affairs requesting to meet.

Around October, an unspecified number of students were allegedly contacted by Student Affairs as part of a “fact-finding” process, after receiving reports of a hazing incident that took place earlier in the year.

The names of the students and the exact incident in question have remained undisclosed, due to confidentiality reasons. .

A screenshot of an email sent to a student from Student Affairs, which was provided to the Journal by a student who requested to remain anonymous, asks the student to meet after their classes. The nature of the meeting wasn’t relayed to them.

“I am writing to request a meeting with you,” the email states. “I see from your timetable you have classes until …. would

THE STATE OF THE UNIVERSITY

you be free after that?”

Eril Berkok, AMS president, said the emails, which were sent by Student Affairs, violate students’ rights as stipulated in the Queen’s Student Code of Conduct. He added he’s unsure how many students were contacted by Student Affairs, as only a select few came forward expressing their concerns.

The Student Code of Conduct, a University document which outlines regulations for non-academic discipline at the University level, states that students have the right to “know the nature of the hearing in advance of the proceedings,” the right to “representation” and to “disclosure of evidence.”

“We were notified of this [by a student] and we got in touch with anyone who had received that email to inform them of their rights, which the email didn’t explicitly do,” Thomas Pritchard, AMS vice-president (university affairs), said.

EDITORIAL - PAGES 12 & 13

See Rector on page 7

2 •QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

NEWS

FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014

STUDENT LIFE

AMS goes ahead with JDUC plans Executive to release report in April outlining plans to spend $1.2 million in revitalization funds B Y O LIVIA B OWDEN Assistant News Editor The AMS executive announced last night that they are currently hiring a consultant to finalize the JDUC revitalization plan before their term ends.

Eril Berkok, AMS President, said at Assembly last night that the Executive, Executive Director and Student Centre Officer were excited to be moving forward with a plan for the JDUC, which will be finalized in April.

The AMS collected the fund via the Queen’s Student Centre Fee. Under an agreement with the University, any projects financed with this fund must begin before April 2015.

The plan, Berkok said, would be “multi-phased” using a consultant, and updates will be released until the plan is finalized.

The space that had held Signatures Hair Salon until this past summer will hold a new tenant, he said.

“We’ve been in talks to find a new commercial tenant for that lease. We have made an offer but cannot go into detail,” he said.

Berkok said he would go into further detail next Assembly.

During the last two AMS elections, the use of the JDUC revitalization fund of $1.2 million was a focus for candidates.

In their initial campaign, Berkok, Pritchard and former teammate Peter Green had committed to a process whereby student focus groups would choose how they wanted the JDUC to be renovated and upgraded.

“Eril, T.K. and Nicola feel that they want to make some good movement on [the JDUC] before they leave office,” said Annie Orvis, Student Centre Officer.

Orvis said the revitalization has been a central focus of the AMS since last term.

“Hiring a consultant to help us through this process [is] the most responsible thing we could do with the money,” she said.

Orvis said the decision on what aspects of the JDUC will be revitalized haven’t been decided yet.

“It’s basically just a step, it’s not that

PHOTO BY CHARLOTTE GAGNIER

A plan to revitalize the JDUC will be released before the end of the academic year.

we’ve decided and that students haven’t been consulted,” she said. “It’s just an update on what’s going on.’

The AMS met with Physical Plant Services, including them in the revitalization process in order to decide what is feasible, Orvis added.

“We wanted them to get on board with it, to get on the same page and to share a vision on what we want the JDUC to look like,” she said.

Orvis said that one of the major things that could be improved in the JDUC is the lighting.

“Where the picnic tables are [in the JDUC], it’s not a great welcoming space for students,” she said.

“What I would like to see happening is for it to be the hub of campus, to return to campus … it’s really exciting to see money going into it.”

FOR THE LATEST ELECTIONS COVERAGE CHECK OUT QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

Friday, January 17, 2014

queensjournal.ca

Feature Mental Health

Conversation started After losing his son Jack to suicide in 2010, Eric Windeler is changing the face of youth mental health in Canada B y E mily M iller Features Editor “How are you doing?” While these words are said countless times a day, the question is seldom genuinely answered.

According to Eric Windeler, founder and executive director of The Jack Project, improving mental health hinges on the openness to engage — fully engage — with that very question.

After losing his son Jack, a first-year Queen’s student, to suicide almost four years ago, Windeler and his wife Sandra Hanington started The Jack Project, a charitable organization aimed at increasing awareness of mental health and illness.

Jack, ArtSci ’13, died in his Leonard Hall residence room on March 27, 2010.

“That phone call from the police officer was our harsh introduction into the whole field of mental health and suicide,” Windeler said.

“Of course, we’d heard about mental health, but we didn’t know much about it, and we hadn’t been personally touched by it.”

Suicide is the number one health-related cause of death among young people today. It’s the leading cause of death following accidents, but moreover, it’s preventable.

“We just decided to be completely open and transparent about our story,” Windeler said.

“We quickly learned how common it is, and how much more conversation is needed.”

After initially raising funds with Kids Help Phone in Jack’s memory, the Windelers continued to raise awareness of suicide and mental illness, to have some good come from their loss.

“I basically never went back to work. I just started working on this,” Windeler said. “About six months later, we had developed a fund … we’re now an independent charity, based here in Toronto.”

Following his son’s death, Windeler set aside his endeavours in the business world to become a full-time advocate for youth mental health.

“I remember the first few times that I’d come across people and they’d ask me what I do,” he said.

“It was so hard, because everything out of my mouth was reliving this whole thing. Now, I talk to people about it, whether it’s after a tennis game, or I’m on a plane and someone asks me what I do.”

One in five Canadians suffer from a mental health challenge every year. What remains truly problematic is the stigma surrounding mental illness, according to Windeler.

“We all have mental health,” Windeler said. “You should be conscious of your mental health, just like you are your physical health.”

Currently, The Jack Project’s

primary objective is to provide schools and student leaders with the resources they need to raise awareness of mental health.

“We think where our real niche is, is using Jack’s story to really engage young people to be more involved,” Windeler said.

Starting with a year’s worth of speaking engagements at schools across Ontario in 2011, The Jack Project then built a partnership with Queen’s University, an alliance it now plans to emulate with other schools. Its aim is to engage students, increase well-being, reduce youth suicides and ultimately help change the landscape of mental health in Canada.

“We are so pleased to have our partnership with Queen’s,” Windeler said.

He added that The Jack Project is helping to fund the recently-launched Bounce Back Program at Queen’s, a mentorship program designed for first-year students whose GPA is below 1.6.

“It’s something that we felt passionate about and that’s why we’re using some of our funds towards that,” Windeler said.

The Jack Project also offers funding for projects related to mental health at Queen’s through its Student Initiative Fund, facilitated through the Office of Student Affairs.

Justin Scaini, ArtSci ’13, is one of several Queen’s students who got involved with The Jack Project to promote mental health on campus.

In 2013, Scaini founded Unleash the Noise, an annual student mental health innovation summit, sponsored by The Jack Project. Student leaders from every province and territory applied for 200 delegate positions at the now-annual Toronto conference to discuss how to better mental health for today’s youth.

This year’s summit had over 800 student applicants.

Windeler said speakers at The Jack Project events often encourage all attendees to tell someone about their experience at the event.

Windeler noted the importance of reaching out if you think you may be struggling yourself, and observing when a friend’s change in behaviour might be an indicator of a mental health struggle.

According to Windeler, the transitory time bridging high school and university can be the most difficult time in one’s life, as it’s often marked with first relationships, living in a new city and attending a new school.

“It can be a very risky time,” Windeler said. “It can also be a very incredible time, but if you’re struggling, it’s kind of like double trouble, because everybody else around you seems to be having this amazing time.”

While mental health awareness has increased in the last four

years, Windeler said there’s a long way to go before the stigma will be shattered.

He referenced the breast cancer awareness movement to exemplify stigma reduction as a long-term endeavour, and one that requires grassroots support from people of all ages.

“About 20 years ago, the breast cancer movement was more or less where the mental health movement is now,” he said. “So if a woman was diagnosed with breast cancer, she basically wouldn’t tell anybody.”

As the conversation about breast cancer became common among those affected, the attitude towards the illness improved immeasurably.

“It became something that people are not ashamed of,” Windeler said. “What that has led to is more women getting tested earlier, and more detection earlier, and better outcomes.”

Windeler said four years ago, when he first became engaged

help-seeking and helping behaviours and providing accessible, high quality health services.

“There’s a lot of kids that struggle and some of them — far too many of them — end up in Jack’s situation,” Windeler said.

“You want to help anybody who’s struggling adapt to a new situation, and if they do need to get into the health care system, help them get there, because when you’re in the midst of it yourself, you may not be able to pull yourself out of that effectively.”

While not all mental health struggles involve suicide, the commonality of mental illness means it affects a staggering amount of people.

“All families are affected in one way or another by mental health struggle,” Windeler said.

When it comes to helping friends, Windeler recommends trusting one’s instincts.

“Trust your gut,” he said. “If there’s a change in behaviour, something is up, and that’s when you need to strategize and figure out how you’re going to have a conversation with someone.”

Starting those conversations can be challenging, but more than worthwhile, according to Sydney Cormier, ArtSci ’13, who currently works as a project lead at The Jack Project.

“I have had indirect experiences with mental health, and I know people who have struggled with their mental health ... so I always had a desire to contribute to this movement,” Cormier said.

Jack Windeler (right) with his father Eric (centre) and mother Sandra.

in mental health awareness, the movement was at the beginning of a similar 20-year spectrum.

“Are we five years into this?

Probably, but we still have a long way to go in this awareness, education and getting people to move beyond just knowing about it, but to actually behave differently.”

Windeler mentioned Principal Woolf’s Commission on Mental Health as a major achievement so far.

The Commission’s Final Report, published in late 2012, outlined plans to educate students on all aspects of mental and physical health, provide appropriate academic accommodations when necessary and build a community of support to mitigate the anxiety frequently felt by students.

The report, which said that 53 per cent of Ontario post-secondary students have felt overwhelmed by anxiety, summarized the Commission’s four primary goals to improve mental health. These include promoting a healthy culture of wellness and inclusivity, facilitating a smooth transition to university life, fostering coping skills, actively encouraging

She said that mental health awareness seemed relatively nonexistent when she first arrived at Queen’s.

“In my perspective, it’s come a long way in these four short years,” she said.

Working behind the scenes at events like Unleash the Noise, Cormier now helps student leaders put mental health on the agenda.

“We have received messages from students that we’ve connected with, that have said, ‘Were it not for The Jack Project, I might not be here today’,” she said.

Part of what she thinks makes Jack Project events effective is their focus on what she calls, ‘the five in five’ — while one in five Canadians is directly affected by mental health issues in any given year, everyone has their own mental health to take care of.

“A lot of initiatives in mental health and in mental health awareness really resonate with those people who are familiar with the issue, but what we want to do is target everybody,” Cormier said.

Cormier said normalizing the use of mental health resources is pertinent to reducing the stigma

•3

as well.

Fortunately for Queen’s students, the University now offers more mental health resources than ever before.

In the last four years, Queen’s has expanded its mental health resources and educated more than 5,000 people on the topic, according to Mike Condra, director of Health, Counseling and Disability Services (HCDS).

Information on what to do in an emergency, how to identify and respond to a student in distress and how to direct a student to help is available through HCDS. The University has also hired four new counsellors to act as a resource to students since 2010.

“All of the mental health education and service initiatives are in tandem with what The Jack Project is doing,” Condra said.

University students are among the most likely age bracket to develop mental illness — most commonly depression and anxiety, he explained.

Possible signs of these challenges include loss of interest and lack of motivation, a significant change in appearance induced by less self-care, acting out of character; and having difficulty concentrating, sleeping and controlling emotions.

Condra emphasized that mental illness is marked by its persistence, with symptoms extending beyond a bad day or tough week.

His recommendations for reaching out to someone who might be suffering include approaching the person to discuss

Photo supplied The Jack Project

the topic, listening to how they’re feeling, offering your support and referring them to resources.

“Focus on things you can notice, not on trying to think that you can diagnose them,” he said. “You don’t necessarily have to be able to solve the problem, but people develop a huge amount of hope from feeling that they’re being listened to.”

According to Condra, the best support one can provide is hope.

“Sometimes, particularly for young people, they can lose hope very quickly because they may be experiencing things and feeling things that they haven’t had before,” he said.

Condra said having something in your life that you can enjoy doing every day is central to optimal mental health, as is having someone you can trust and confide in.

“We can’t change people, but we can encourage them, and sometimes friends do an amazingly remarkable job of supporting each other and getting a friend pointed in the right direction.”

4 •QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

NEWS

FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014

NEWS

FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014

EXCHANGE

Partner program to end Queen’s-Blyth Worldwide announces it will discontinue this year B Y O LIVIA B OWDEN Assistant News Editor After a three-year trial run, the Queen’s-Blyth Worldwide (QBW) program, which allows students to complete University credits abroad, will not continue after 2014.

QBW was created in 2011 when Queen’s decided to collaborate with Blyth Education, a program that allows high school students to study abroad. The program also offers private schooling on its high school campuses in Ontario.

Alan Harrison, provost and vice-principal (academic), said low enrolment numbers led to the decision to discontinue the program beyond the pilot period.

“Enrolment was lower than anticipated and consequently the program failed to meet financial projections,” he said to the Journal via email.

Students participating in QBW are offered three-week study sessions in May or June, where they have a choice of course and location.

For 2014, the destinations of Italy, Spain, Costa Rica and France have been offered.

Queen’s professors accompany the groups to teach the courses.

Each program costs approximately $4,500 to $6,000, excluding extra living costs.

A typical single term, or full-year exchange costs a student their Queen’s tuition, plus additional flight, lodging, food and transportation costs.

Enrolment for the last two years averaged about 116 students, Harrison said.

However, efforts were made to promote the program, Harrison added. Information sessions are currently offered at UBC, York, Laurier and Western among others.

Harrison said many exchange options still exist for students for 2015 and beyond, including the Bader International Study Centre in the U.K. “Queen’s continues to offer … a robust exchange program incorporating agreements with 148 institutions in 46 countries worldwide,” he said.

Controversy arose Oct. 2012 when several Queen’s faculty members contributed to an opinions piece published in the Journal. The article criticized the program for being ethically unsound and encouraging the privatization of education.

Professor David McDonald of the Global Development Studies department led the faculty effort to publish the critique in the Journal.

The article called for the cancellation of the program, and to pursue more in-house international programs.

McDonald said his feelings about QBW are the same as they were in 2012.

“The pedagogy of the courses were really problematic,” he said.

“It was basically a kind of tourism with a Queen’s course attached to it.”

What was most problematic was lack of an ethical consideration when bringing students to the Global South, due to belittlement of other cultures in program descriptions, McDonald added.

“The courses that were going to be offered in Africa, Asia and Latin America just seemed to reinforce colonial stereotypes,” he said.

He said the form of education that Blyth promotes is inappropriate for Queen’s. “[QBW] was just a form of privatization. Education should be public, and publicly accessible,” he said. “The fact that some of these courses were over $8,000 made the program out of reach for a majority of students.”

He recommended that the University invest in in-house programs that are public and ethical.

“We’vedone internationalization at Queen’s in a very ad hoc kind of way, so we need … to develop a meaningful notion of internationalization,” he said.

McDonald added that he feels the University listened to his concerns and the concerns of other faculty members.

Kathryn Gibbons, who works as a student representative for QBW at Queen’s, said she was surprised that the program isn’t continuing, as it gives students another exchange option.

“Blyth programs are more accessible for people who need to work in the summer, because you’re only gone for one month,” she said.

Gibbons, ArtSci ’16, added that it can be difficult for programs to take off.

“It’s the way it goes. It was a newer program, so it takes time to build up a customer base,” she said. “It was just a test run.”

PHOTO BY SAM KOEBRICH

Queen’s-Blyth exchange program has seen low enrolment since 2011.

CAMPUS CALENDAR Saturday, January 18

Monday, January 20

Wednesday, January 22

THUNDERSLEDZ AB Field 12-4 p.m.

QUIC “Back From Abroad, Now What?” Re-entry Session International Centre 3-5 p.m.

Napoleon Gomez Public Lecture and Book Signing Ellis Hall Auditorium 7-9 p.m.

Tuesday, January 21

Thursday, January 23

Summer Job Fair 2014 ARC 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Suit Up For Smiles 2.0 Stages 9 p.m. -2 a.m.

Sunday, January 19 Polar Bear Dunk and Hot Tub Soak The Pier 1-3 p.m.

QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

•5

6 •queensjournal.ca

News

Friday, January 17, 2014

ams

Five student clubs lose opt-out fees AMS strips charity groups of funding after several fail to pick up their cheques and one fails an AMS audit B y S ebastian L eck Assistant News Editor

told the Journal via email that they were appealing their lost fee, but declined to comment further.

The amount of forfeited fees was Five student groups lost their AMS funding this week after either failing to pick up their unexpectedly high, Plummer said, so she has installment of their student fee or violating not yet made a decision on how to distribute the fees. However, she said they will be AMS club policy.

AMS Vice-President (Operations) Nicola distributed to AMS granting committees as Plummer announced the clubs were losing per AMS policy.

Granting committees provide funds their student fees at Assembly last night.

Canadian Students Unified Student to student groups, such as new clubs Environmental Network (CUSEN), Queen’s requiring money to establish themselves, or Students for Accessible Education, Queen’s sustainability initiatives.

During Assembly, Plummer said the Students for Corporate Social Responsibility, Keep a Child Alive and Students Taking student club Students Taking Action Now: Action Now: Darfur will each lose their Darfur is losing their student fee after failing a random AMS audit earlier this year. opt-out student fees. photo by sam koebrich “They hadn’t spent any money last year. Nicola Plummer (left) made the announcement yesterday.

Together, the groups forfeited $27,890.55.

The AMS collected $824,724.02 in opt-out I audited them, they had $18,000 dollars CUSEN is affiliated with the Ontario Keep a Child Alive had a $0.50 fee, in their account and they were receiving fees this year.

Plummer said CUSEN, Queen’s Students another $8,000 this year,” she said. “The while Queen’s Students for Corporate Social Public Interest Research Group (OPIRG).

However, OPIRG coordinator Brea Responsibility had a $0.30 fee. for Accessible Education, Queen’s Students group was basically kind of disorganized.”

According to the AMS Clubs Manager Hutchinson said CUSEN leaders haven’t However, their fee won’t be going to a for Corporate Social Responsibility and Keep a Child Alive failed to pick up the grant committee. Instead, she said, she’ll be Clare Bekenn, CUSEN and Keep a Child responded to attempts to contact them.

CUSEN split off from OPIRG about meeting with the group and helping them Alive weren’t ratified last year. second part of their student fee last year.

AMS policy doesn’t mandate that a three years ago, she said, and past OPIRG She asked them to submit financial donate their student fee funds to a charity, student organization be ratified to receive coordinators have told her that the group is records for this year, she said, since AMS she said.

CUSEN had a $1.00 fee, the Queen’s a student fee. However, Plummer said the shutting down. policy states that clubs must spend student “They’re not seeking to keep the fee fee funds during the same year they Students for Accessible Education had a most likely explanation is that these clubs $0.95 fee and the fee for Students Taking are “defunct” and no longer operating because they’re not going to be operating on receive them. campus, or so I’ve been told,” she said. on campus.

“They failed to return any correspondence Action Now: Darfur was $0.90. and then failed to pick up the first instalment of their student fee for the 2013-2014 year by the first Friday back in the winter term,” she told the Journal via email.

West Africa AIDS Foundation was originally going to lose its fee due to “miscommunication”, according to Plummer, Queen’s gives out free Microsoft program subscription service for Office applications. intervention, recovery and return to work, but will now be receiving it.

Unlike Microsoft Office, ProPlus can be and identifying leaders’ influence in fostering “They were supposed to pick [their Office 365 ProPlus is now free for all installed on up to five different devices. a mentally healthy work environment. The cheque] up, they never did, and then they Queen’s students, with all Microsoft ProPlus is available due to Microsoft’s Faculty of Health Sciences will review the came back saying that they were turned away Office applications available to download “Student Advantage” program, which program annually in order to improve the by the AMS front desk,” she said. “I can’t and install. provides students with free access to Office quality of the program. verify that, so I can’t say they are lying.”

The Mental Health Commission of Word, Powerpoint, Excel, Outlook, during their time at school.

On Wednesday, the West Africa AIDS OneNote, Publisher, Access and Lync Queen’s students can install ProPlus by Canada estimates that between 10 and 25 Foundation president Daniel Quainoo are all included in Office 365 ProPlus, a logging into the Microsoft Portal using their per cent of mental disability costs incurred by employers could be prevented by Queen’s email address.

Because the Campus Computer Store implementing psychologically healthy and has been offering Office 365 University to safe workplace strategies.

Mental health challenges and illnesses are students at $79 for a four-year subscription, many students may already have purchased the top cause of disability in Canada.

Microsoft Office.

— Chloe Sobel A subscription purchased through the Campus Computer Store has some Students place at CEO competition advantages. ProPlus will expire after a student graduates from Queen’s, whereas Office purchased through the Campus Four Queen’s students are semifinalists Computer Store will only expire at the end for the Chief Executive Officer for a Day (CEO x 1 Day) competition run by global of the subscription term. executive search firm Odgers Berndtson.

— Chloe Sobel Susan Wang (Comm ’14), Hasina

Daya (ArtSci ’14), Stephanie Spagnolo New mental health program in works (Comm ’14), and Chu Wang (Comm ’15) A progressive new training program designed are among 18 semifinalists for CEO x 1 to support employee mental health has Day. Earlier this week, the semifinalists performed group and individual exercises been announced.

The program was developed by in Toronto.

Seven finalists will be chosen to shadow a Morneau Shepell, Canada’s largest human resources consulting firm, and Queen’s CEO in February.

Although Daya is studying global Faculty of Health Sciences. It complies with the National Standard of Canada development studies and religious for Psychological Health and Safety in the studies, she believes students of the humanities are capable of excellence in Workplace, introduced last January.

Come with your floor and The program will be delivered first to corporate environments. receive free popcorn! Speak CEO x 1 Day was created by Odgers nearly 5,000 front-line managers at Bell Berndtson with two goals: identifying Canada.

It consists of three phases, entailing to your Don for details. a blend of online and in-class learning, along Canada’s most promising future leaders, with an assessment process that involves and helping current CEOs understand what drives the next generation final exams.

The material involves developing of leaders. empathetic coaching skills, successful

— Chloe Sobel management practices focused on early

News in Brief

RES DAY

VOLLEYBALL (W) SAT. JAN. 11 QUEEN’S vs. WATERLOO 1:00pm ARC MAIN GYM

News

Friday, January 17, 2014

queensjournal.ca

•7

Teams seek to reach larger Queen’s community Continued from page 1

also running for the right reasons,” he said. The teams were approved by the Elections Team, presented to Assembly last night, and were omnibused so both could be ratified at the same time.

Both SMH and WRL were ratified successfully, and will appear on the AMS Executive ballot.

Mason of SMH said that the team was focused on making an impact.

“We want to be remembered as a team that brought students together as opposed to dividing them,” he said.

“It’s the executive’s job to look out for the broader community, assess what’s going on and being a leader.”

Daya emphasized to Assembly that small actions cause change.

“It all comes down to the day to day interactions that will make a large impact on student experience,” she said.

Asfar added that he would bring a “new perspective” as vicepresident (operations).

“I want to test ideas, and see what the merit is,” he said.

“I believe in trusting what works, and not change things just for the sake of changing things.”

Mason added that they wish to reach out to faculty societies so everyone can understand what their needs are.

Williams spoke for team WRL stating that they want to focus on creating a broader learning environment at the University.

She said that each member

of the team brought a different perspective to the AMS thus far.

Lloyd said the team wants to focus on engaging all members of the Queen’s community.

“Building relationships with students across all disciplines, that’s a culture that I want to create, one of collaboration and engaging with one another,” he said.

Student feedback remains very important, Reekie added.

“It’s continuously seeking student feedback, even from students who aren’t using student services, and to ask why,” he said. The two teams were announced last night at AMS Assembly.

photo by sam koebrich

Rector: students are intimidated Continued from page 1

academic discipline-related matters has dealt with such risk before,” he said.

The AMS Non-Academic were relayed to Student Affairs.

In an email statement to the Discipline system (NAD), a Pritchard said all matters peer-run judicial system, typically relating to the email incident Journal, Queen’s Provost Alan deals with complaints related should have been deferred to Harrison said the University “has a responsibility to protect the to student behaviour, and is the AMS. responsible for doling The AMS said they approached health, wellness and safety of its out sanctions following Student Affairs regarding the students.”

“If and when reports concerning an investigation. It’s run under the emails, to which they were told Judicial Affairs Office. the University was conducting health and safety are made In Sept. 2012, Principal a “fact-finding process”, rather directly to a university department Woolf signed a memo alongside than an “investigation”, meaning or office, the university has an then-AMS president Doug Johnson, the AMS didn’t have to be involved, obligation to gather information where possible on the report and securing the responsibilities of he added.

NAD as a peer-run judicial system.

“The other sentiment they determine what follow up, if The system was extensively expressed about the incident any, is required on the part of the reviewed by the University was that they felt there was university,” the email states further.

“Such follow up might, following several student deaths on some risk to student health and wellness, but NAD is very if appropriate, lead to campus in 2010.

During the time, most non- well-equipped to handle and the university asking the

AMS to initiate its Non-Academic Discipline (NAD) process.”

Nick Francis, Queen’s Rector, said the emails reflect a fundamental disrespect toward the AMS NAD system.

“You’ve got a peer-based discipline system that’s existed for over 100 years and we keep having the University administration approaching and even encroaching on this peerbased discipline system,” Francis said, adding that students should speak with the AMS before attending the meeting.

“Students are called to these meetings, and they feel as though they are required to go to them.

They feel intimidated,” he added.

Nomination packages are now available for the 2014-15

Editor in Chief of the Queen’s Journal

No Journal Experience required

Open to all AMS members

Please contact journal_editors@ams.queensu.ca

8 •queensjournal.ca

News

Friday, January 17, 2014

Friday, January 17, 2014

Editorial Board Editors in Chief

Janina Enrile Alison Shouldice

Production Manager

Alex Pickering

News Editor

Vincent Ben Matak

Assistant News Editors

Olivia Bowden Sebastian Leck Chloe Sobel

Features Editors

Rachel Herscovici Emily Miller

Editorials Editor

David Hadwen

Editorial Illustrator

Katherine Boxall

Opinions Editor

Erin Sylvester

Arts Editor

Meaghan Wray

Assistant Arts Editor

Justin Santelli

Sports Editor

Nick Faris

Assistant Sports Editor

Sean Sutherland

Postscript Editor Photo Editors

Katie Grandin

Charlotte Gagnier Sam Koebrich

Graphics Editor

Web Developer Blogs Editor Copy Editors

queensjournal.ca

Dialogue

Editorials — The Journal’s Perspective

“Not all men are creeps, and not all women are body positive.”

gender

No gents in Ryerson gym A small controversy has erupted over a proposal to create women’s-only gym at hours at one of two campus athletic facilities at Ryerson. The hours were requested by female students for a variety of different reasons ranging from religious modesty to unfair cultural expectations of women.

Women should have the option of working out in the exclusive company of other women.

Ideally however, women’s-only hours would be a stand-in until a permanent women’s-only space is established.

The case for a gender segregated option in campus gyms is overwhelming. A women’s-only space results in a different dynamic that may be conducive to a more relaxed workout for some. Some women

find the exclusive presence of other women is a positive social change; others have more immediate concerns about being pursued or harassed by men while working out.

Broad tendencies towards gender segregation should be avoided for several reasons, however.

Reinforcing a strict gender dichotomy is never ideal.

Humans should not be fixed in place; ideally they would be able to move freely through identities and space. In more concrete terms, gender segregation, especially at younger ages, results in poor socialization and discomfort around the opposite sex.

In effect, we can’t hide from each other. Excluding a gender from an entire gym

for hours at a time should be a last resort as it reinforces gendered stereotypes and a dichotomy. Not all men are creeps, and not all women are body-positive.

As an alternative to gender segregation, gym staff could get increased training in order to deal with situations where women feel threatened or otherwise uncomfortable.

Ryerson already has a women’s-only workout space. However, it has limited hours and can be rented out by third parties which further limits its availability.

If Ryerson can’t expand access to this resource, then women’s-only hours are acceptable until a suitable alternative is found.

— Journal Editorial Board

Jonah Eisen

Michael Wong Jessica Chong Anisa Rawhani Megan Scarth

Contributing Staff Staff Writers and Photographers Sophie Barkham Josh Burton Tiffany Lam Sean Liebich Filza Naveed

Contributors

Maria Stellato

Business Staff Business Manager

Jacob Rumball

Marketing Manager

Laura Russell

Sales Representatives

James Bolt Clara Lo Stephanie Stevens

Friday, January 17, 2014 • Issue 26 • Volume 141

The Queen’s Journal is an editorially autonomous newspaper published by the Alma Mater Society of Queen’s University, Kingston.

Editorial opinions expressed in the Journal are the sole responsibility of the Queen’s Journal Editorial Board, and are not necessarily those of the University, the AMS or their officers.

Contents © 2014 by the Queen’s Journal; all rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior permission of the Journal.

The Queen’s Journal is printed on a Goss Community press by Performance Group of Companies in Smiths Falls, Ontario.

Contributions from all members of the Queen’s and Kingston community are welcome. The Journal reserves the right to edit all submissions.

Subscriptions are available for $120.00 per year (plus applicable taxes).

Please address complaints and grievances to the Editors in Chief.

Please direct editorial, advertising and circulation enquiries to: 190 University Ave., Kingston, ON, K7L 3P4 Telephone: 613-533-2800 (editorial) 613-533-6711 (advertising) Fax: 613-533-6728 Email: journal_editors@ams.queensu.ca The Journal online: www.queensjournal.ca Circulation 6,000

Issue 27 of Volume 141 will be published on Tuesday, January 21, 2014.

•9

illustration by Katherine Boxall

health

Obesity due to inequality

A recent study shows that national rates of obesity for adolescents between 12 and 19 didn’t rise during the 2000s. However, “among teens from poorer, less well-educated families, obesity has continued to rise”.

Adolescents with well-educated parents, however, saw obesity rates decline from 14 per cent to seven per cent while those of the same age with parents with no more than high-school education had their rate of obesity rise from 20 per cent to 25 per cent.

There are innumerable possible causes for this discrepancy, as children from poorer backgrounds face incredible obstacles to maintaining good health.

For example, many poor parents can’t afford to enroll their children in physical activities or sports leagues. Poorer families

are more likely to live in “food deserts” where healthy foods like fresh fruits and vegetables are hard to access and junk food with high salt, fat and sugar content becomes a quick fix.

A child’s family context is also a very important determinate of their physical health. Children who lack supervision or a structured schedule might defer to less active lifestyle, and many poor families have parents working several jobs.

These challenges are occurring in the context of a widespread turn away from childhood play in modern North American society.

Children and adolescents are more likely to be found in a basement playing computer games than outside running around.

More specific to the American context, however, is an increase in economic inequality and reduced

social mobility. Those who are born at the bottom of the income scale are likely to stay there.

One reason for these phenomena is physical health. If children grow up unhealthy, they are less likely to have the wherewithal to study hard in school and progress into a fruitful career. It’s a self-reinforcing cycle that’s getting worse over time.

The changing rates of obesity in different social classes are concerning but should be seen for what they truly are: the result of cultural inequalities and the limited resources society provides for lower class families.

— Journal Editorial Board

Vincent Ben Matak

Against apathy Complacency isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

From a young age, we’re told to look at things with a glass half full mentality. Our culture is one that conditions us to look on the bright side of life, because we ought to be grateful for the things we have.

Being negative is looked down upon because, in some sense, it shows that we don’t appreciate what’s given to us. It is stigmatized.

At Queen’s, that attitude couldn’t be any more prevalent.

At a university that prides itself on its school spirit, we often overlook what’s wrong.

As we sing and sway to the Oil Thigh, we don’t think about the things that need to be changed.

We’re caught up living the experience Queen’s is renowned for — one that’s rooted in tradition and a strong academic reputation and student life.

There is a fundamental difference, however, between negativity and being critical. Oftentimes, people confuse the two — criticism is taken personally and often discarded without second thought. Criticism, which can be constructive, is often seen as negative.

As a result, we miss the opportunity to grow. We become, in effect, a complacent student body absorbed with ideals how Queen’s is, rather than how it ought to be.

Last year, roughly 41 per cent of Queen’s students voted in the AMS elections. The year before, voter turnout was a dismal 34 per cent.

Despite the increase in votes cast last year, I believe we can do better.

This week, the Journal released six features highlighting some issues this university faces, ranging from a displaced hockey team to the deceptive appearance of our campus buildings. The issues that we have highlighted, and continue to highlight in the Journal, represent real obstacles the University faces in reaching its full potential.

As campaigning for this year’s elections races begin, we ought to reflect how we would like our university to be, rather than accepting it merely forwhatitis.Wehavetheopportunity to engage with our community in a way that will shape how we see it in the future.

We need to take advantage of that.

Vince is the News Editor at the Journal.

He’s a fourth-year philosophy major.

10 • queensjournal.ca

Janina Enrile

Fifth year advocate I feel like I’m in purgatory.

I could go anywhere with my life, and that’s something most fifth-years can understand. But it’s not necessarily a bad thing.

As a fifth-year student, I’m consistently met with sympathy — people think that I’ve somehow screwed up, or that I’m a lazy student.

It’s only when I follow it with “but I work over 60 hours a week on campus” do their expressions soften. I’m not as dumb or lazy as they thought.

This stigma is incredibly undeserved.

That’s not to say that the fifth-year student isn’t a nervous wreck. Grad school applications don’t get easier over time — believe me — but there’s something to be said for knowing thyself.

The fifth-year student is making a choice that’s smarter than most others.

While fourth-years might be plagued with cliché anxieties and obsessively reading thinkpieces about the “20-something struggle”, the fifth year is usually a bit more relaxed — probably with a drink in hand.

Friday, January 17, 2014 We’ve been trained to compress our education into four years. While that works for some students, there are those of us who are getting more out of our wonder years by taking some extra time.

That’s not to say that the fifth-year student isn’t a nervous wreck. Grad school applications don’t get easier over time believe me - but there’s something to be said for knowing thyself.

Once upon a time, the Ontario curriculum had what was called grade 13. This was an extra year, tacked onto the end of high school, which allowed students to take a bit more time with their secondary education.

They could stop and smell the textbooks, perhaps.

It takes a mature person to know what they want to do with their life.

More mature yet, are the people who know that it takes time.

Now that grade 13 is gone, some students choose to take a gap year anyway. I still see the same condescending looks given to them — like they, similar to the fifth-year, couldn’t handle that quick jump to the “logical” next step.

Whether it’s to work at the student paper, or to get a higher GPA for that dream school, the fifth year is not something to sneer at.

It takes a mature person to know what they want to do with their life. More mature yet, are the people who know that it takes time.

Janina is the Editor in Chief of the Journal. She’s a fifth-year English major.

DIALOGUE

FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014

QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

OPINIONS — YOUR PERSPECTIVE

• 11

Talking heads ... around campus PHOTOS BY ERIN SYLVESTER

What’s your favourite movie of 2013?

SUPPLIED

Neil Young has recently spoken out against the expansion of oil sands development, like this Syncrude plant.

ACTIVISM

Criticism should bring Young down “Old man” tells you why you shouldn’t be helpless in face of Alberta’s cowboys in the oil sands

MARIA STELLATO, ARTSCI ’14

of a new album, and Young will make little money over it. All proceeds will go to financing the continuing legal costs for the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation community.

Of course, Young is no stranger to the political stage. Since the 1970s, he’s been vocal about North American political and social issues, such as homelessness, the degradation of the environment and the Bush administration’s military policies. Despite the more pastoral nature of Harvest (1972), as he mentioned in his diatribe on CBC Radio, many of his betterknown songs, such as

“Rock stars don’t need oil” and a comparison of Fort McMurray to Hiroshima are probably two quotes you’ve heard about Neil Young’s recent comments on Shell’s Jackpine oil sands expansion onto Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation territory.

At the very least, they were the first comments I’d ever heard regarding the Jackpine oil sands expansion, despite two years of ongoing legal battles.

Is it ignorance that kept me from being informed on this issue? Is it only because a celebrity mentioned it that suddenly, not only I, but the whole country is paying attention?

That’s very likely the case.

In an interview “Southern with Jian Ghomeshi M a n , ” “Rockin’ on CBC Radio, Young in the Free World” replied incredulously and “Ohio” are to the insinuation very explicit in their that celebrities should detach themselves from political content. political activism, saying: Raising awareness “Musicians should stay for any cause needs out of politics? Is that both publicity and a great Canadian belief, money.

Celebrities that your profession aren’t exactly short on either one. should be weighed The history of celebrities carefully when stating beliefs? Haven’t I as spokespeople in Western always written and culture goes back for about a sang about what century — further than I can concerned me?” trace in a single opinion piece.

I don’t think he’s From Orson Welles to wrong, but perhaps Warren Beatty to modern what he needed was day activist powerhouses a bit more caution with Brad Pitt and Angelina SUPPLIED his words.

Jolie, some of society’s On Sunday, Young began most rich and influential his four-city tour in Toronto; have historically taken some a tour solely about activism. Its of their wealth and put it to title, “Honour the Treaties” is honourable use. a demand for the Canadian Another example of this government to respect the unselfish intent is the late and constitutionally-entrenched right of great Hollywood actress Elizabeth First Nations communities to be Taylor, whose philanthropic consulted in the case of potential endeavours focused on — but infringement by corporations or were not limited to — advocacy policies on their cultural grounds. for AIDS. As it stands, the “Honour the She was one of the first Treaties” tour isn’t in promotion celebrities to show consideration

and tolerance to the stigmatized victims, and co-founded the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR). She was also a compassionate woman who discreetly visited hospitalized patients, both friend and strangers, and paid their medical expenses.

As it stands, the “Honour the Treaties” tour isn’t in promotion of a new album, and Young will make little money over it. All proceeds will go to financing the continuing legal costs for the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation community.

Not every celebrity activist, musician or actor sets out to be the next Elizabeth Taylor, but that doesn’t make his or her contribution invalid.

As a society, we place grand importance on the lives of the rich and famous. If they do something, we — the students, the workforce and the people who watch television or read a paper — are going to hear about it, whether it’s positive or negative.

It’s beneficial that they can use their fame as an instrument to promote awareness to their chosen cause, because it sparks public interest and support.

Of course, the role of celebrities as activists is problematic in the sense that we run the risk of perpetuating the idea of a celebrity as someone to be idolized.

John Lennon, for example, is still posthumously touted as a great peace activist. The positive image he construed in the 1970s with his political activism and lyrics, followed by his untimely murder, resulted in his societal deification and the world forgetting about his alleged domestic abuse.

Of course, the role of celebrities as activists is problematic in the sense that we run the risk of perpetuating the idea of a celebrity as someone to be idolized.

In fairness to Neil Young, I don’t think he’s set out to deify himself or to proclaim to be a champion of a group of people to

which he doesn’t belong. I can’t agree more with the message of the tour: Canada has a responsibility to respect both the land and culture of the First Nations community.

The injustice of this particular situation, however, is that the attention is detracted from the indigenous community. It’s making headlines, but for all the wrong reasons. Instead of being reported as a matter of politics and cultural importance, it’s reported as celebrity news.

Young, who declared the issue to be “worse than Hiroshima”, doesn’t help this. This grandiose comparison to nuclear devastation is certainly startling and altogether insensitive. No two tragedies are comparable in the first place, and seeing as over 100,000 civilians were killed in the Hiroshima bombing, he hasn’t done much for the cause apart from stirring controversy.

The injustice of this particular situation ... is that the attention is detracted from the indigenous community.

It’s making headlines, but for all the wrong reasons ... it’s reported as celebrity news.

Thus the focus swings from what the struggle means for the community of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation to outlandish comments that are followed up with the quote: “I want my grandchildren to look up and see a blue sky.” While his comment is sincere in its pleasant imagery, he undermines the indigenous struggle by transferring generational succession of the land onto his own descendants.

The fact that he makes these comments from a settler’s perspective may problematize the tour’s authenticity, but I don’t doubt his intentions are pure. The problem of expansion onto First Nations land is one that is ongoing and worthy of attention.

I’m sure Neil Young has a heart of gold, and though I do believe that humanity needs its heroes, those who wish to step up to the plate should perhaps choose their words more wisely so that they don’t undermine their intentions.

“Life of Pi, because the 3D animation and they detail in the animals’ movements were really cool.”

SOPHIA GORE, ARTSCI ’15

“Gravity, because the plot was different from other movies and it was well-designed.”

AAYUSH GOEL, COMM ’17

“Wolf of Wall Street, because I like stories that are about the transformation of a character.”

CURTIS HOFF, ARTSCI ’13

“Frozen, because it was a cute movie with good musical numbers.”

KATE ANGUS, ARTSCI ’16

“Gravity, because the technique is good.”

JIMMY ZHANG, SCI ’16

Follow us on Twitter @QJDialogue

14 • queensjournal.ca

Friday, January 17, 2014

Societal dialogue Jacqueline Hoang Nguyen is this semester’s Koerner artist in residence

Arts

Jacqueline Hoang Nguyen is a Montreal-born research artist, based in Brooklyn and Stockholm. Her objective is to stimulate dialogue within society through her works. The above are two examples of her work: For An Epidemic Resistance (2009, right) and Épilogue (Relevé des positions successives) (2013).

B y F ilza N aveed Staff Writer A true artist is always deeply involved in facilitating and fostering a dialogue with society.

Currently based in New York City’s Brooklyn and Stockholm, Sweden, Jacqueline

Hoang Nguyen’s work is steeped in critical and political analysis, dealing with diverse issues such as multiculturalism, historicity, feminism and immigration.

Nguyen is this winter’s Queen’s artist-in-residence, as part of the Koerner Artist in Residence Program, an annual professional residency in the Fine Art

program.

She’s taken part in similar programs before, but this particular experience is new to her.

“This is the first time that I will be an artist-in-residence at a university,” she said, “and I’m excited to provide artistic instruction to students.”

Photos Supplied By Leo Sjölund and João Enxuto

The residency program enables students to gain valuable feedback and mentorship from a renowned artist.

“I am happy to be a part of this program as I have only been to Kingston once before,” Nguyen said. “Being a visual artist definitely requires investment in what you are doing and a particular dialogue with peers, other artists and practitioners.”

Nguyen will be giving a variety of talks See Making on page 18

Interview

Passion play Rural Alberta Advantage brings hometown nostalgia B y F ilza N aveed Staff Writer

Formed in 2005, Rural Alberta Advantage have been compared to a hybrid of Neutral Milk Hotel and Arcade Fire.

Supplied

If you play music with a passion, you must do it for yourself.

That’s Nils Edenloff’s motto.

“If you just keep playing music for yourself, eventually your audience will respond to it at some point,” he said.

Canadian indie rock band Rural Alberta Advantage tributes this piece of advice to their success. Aside from Edenloff, the band includes percussionist Paul Banwatt and See Articulating on page 18

Friday, January 17, 2014

Arts

queensjournal.ca

• 15

Cirque du Soleil behind the scenes

The media was invited to a behind the scenes tour of the Cirque du Soleil set-up at the K-Rock Centre yesterday afternoon.

Photos by Tiffany Lam

ARTS

16 •QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

It’s Here!

GET THE LATEST OFFICE SUITE

Did we mention ... It’s FREE! Got Questions

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www.queensu.ca/its

FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014

Friday, January 17, 2014

Arts

queensjournal.ca

• 17

Movie Review

A story of survival A powerful narrative follows the life of a young girl during the Holocaust B y J essica C hong Blogs Editor The Book Thief, playing at the Screening Room starting Friday, offers a precious piece of humanity within the film’s delicately interwoven relationships.

After her brother passes away during transit, Liesel (Sophie Nélisse) is left alone to start her new orphan life in a small German town, raised by foster parents.

With only a photo of her brother and a gravedigger’s handbook, Liesel has few possessions to remind her of her former life.

The visually-powerful landscape of the cold, bleary countryside conveys a sense of foreboding death. It’s fitting then that death acts as the omniscient narrator.

Her foster parents initially

appear as polar opposites. Hans (Geoffrey Rush) is a caring father and Rosa (Emily Watson) as a cruel mother. Despite this difference, they both express genuine love for Liesel, through expanding her vocabulary and not punishing her when she stole a book.

Both adoptive parents sustain a convincing performance through sincerity and connection.

The film, adapted from Markus Zusak’s 2006 bestselling novel, moves at a beautiful and natural pace. Director Brian Percival, best known for Downton Abbey, artfully communicates one girl’s survival of the Holocaust experience.

Liesel’s progression from a quiet illiterate girl to an inquisitive, well-read one creates a mesmerizing narrative of one child’s sense of isolation and trauma. The movie gets its name

from the way in which books, “borrowed” from the General’s house, signifies an escape from harsh realities.

Delicate and touching is the bond formed between Jewish refugee Max (Ben Schnetzer) and Liesel, as Hans and Rosa offer him protection by hiding him in their basement.

Significant events, like book burning and Kristallnacht juxtaposed against childlike faces, dressed in their Hitler Youth uniforms provides one of the film’s most powerful images.

Rudy (Nico Liersch) persists in befriending Liesel and becomes her crutch of companionship.

Over time, their bond strengthens — trust and secrets become the fabric of their friendship.

Combined together, these

Sophie Nélisse and Ben Schnetzer bond in the basement, a place of protection from the Nazi regime.

Supplied

Supplied

Leisel steals a book from the ashes.

moments evoke an uncanny, reeling reaction to the perpetual violence seen in the film.

The Book Thief confronts the fact that even the youngest must face the most atrocious social realities during war, all while artfully showcasing the vulnerability and

resilience of humanity.

The Book Thief will be playing at the Screening Room on Princess St. from Jan. 17 to 26. Specific showtimes can be found at: http://www. moviesinkingston.com/calendar.html.

Arts

18 •queensjournal.ca

Friday, January 17, 2014

Making an impact Continued from page 14

around campus next week. She plans to discuss the practice of making art, her earlier work and ideas she’s been investigating in relation to her work.

A French-Canadian of Vietnamese origin, Nguyen’s parents were Canadian immigrants.

The themes of immigration and multiculturalism resonate in her work.

“I became interested in the daily realities of being an immigrant and representing that in my artwork, particularly because it was an experience that informed my understanding of who I am,” she said.

“Being part of a minority in Canada and the daughter of immigrants was an issue that I had to deal with.”

One of Nguyen’s ongoing projects that explores the mundane imagery of immigrant realities is The Making of an Archive.

It involves collecting a series of photographs that attempt to construct multicultural Canada.

Aside from the themes of immigration and multiculturalism, Nguyen said feminism and feminist theories have also been crucial in shaping and inspiring her.

“I have always been invested in the humanities, particularly with forms of expression, and feminist theories are important in defining my work,” she said.

Nguyen said she sees this

opportunity as a chance to engage with society as an artist. This dialogue, she said, is a constant The band believes personal passion is the key to success. ongoing process.

“Five to seven years from now, I hope to continue being an artist who is constantly evolving and learning, and is always invested in defining what it means to be an artist,” Nguyen said.

Continued from page 14 vibe for what’s working with our music and what’s not.”

Jacqueline Hoang Nguyen will be vocalist Amy Cole.

He said he remembers the speaking on the following dates: “We’re excited about playing in recording process with nostalgia, Jan. 21 from noon to 1:30 p.m.

Kingston again as we love the feel remarking on the excitement of (Kinesiology Building room 100), of the Grad Club, and how the hearing what you’ve envisioned Jan. 21 from 7 to 9 p.m. (Agnes audience is so close to us there,” come to life.

Etherington Art Centre) and Jan. 29 Edenloff said. “It really gives us a “The best part about the from 7 to 9 p.m. (Modern Fuel recording process this time was Artist-Run Centre). our new studio in Toronto. It really helped energize us and got us working on the process of recording, which is always fun and stimulating,” Edenloff said.

Recording, he said, is a highly collaborative project.

“We’re always really immersed in our music and we’re passionate when we’re recording. The same goes for our songwriting process,” he said. “We always ask each other for opinions and advice when writing our songs. We really work well together as a team.”

Edenloff is the chief songwriter of the group. Most of his writing inspiration comes from his life in Alberta.

Music, he said, has always been an integral part of his life, whether he was involved in making it or enjoying it as an audience member.

The band officially formed in 2005 and since they’ve been Supplied nominated for two JUNO awards Nguyen’s ongoing project The Making of an Archive.

Supplied

Articulating a vision

The Journal Staff compiles a list of popular film releases in 2013 — and you won’t see all of them at the Oscars in March.

in 2012, for both New Group of the Year and Music Video of the Year.

“I still cannot believe that we have come this far and made it big.

We don’t really have a long-term plan right now,” he said, “but we’re hoping we continue on our way to success.”

The band, he said, is enthusiastic about trying out some new songs, as it is always refreshing for the audience as well as the band to play something unfamiliar.

“We’ve been playing our songs for a couple of years now. It’s exciting trying new things and communicating your passion to your audience,” he said.

There’s a danger and excitement in live performance, he said. This drive to articulate their vision and share their passion is what usually inspires the band’s best shows.

“At the Grad Club … the audience is literally in your face,” Edenloff said. “It makes the art of communicating and sharing music much more involved and passionate.”

Rural Alberta Advantage will be playing a sold out show at the Grad Club on Jan. 18.

Graphic by Jonah Eisen

Friday, January 17, 2014

queensjournal.ca

Crossfit

Club stalled indefinitely

• 19

Sports

CrossFit Tricolour was finally ratified last May. Now, they’re back to square one B y S ean S utherland Assistant Sports Editor Only seven months after being sanctioned by Athletics and Recreation, CrossFit Tricolour has hit another standstill.

The student club was forced to suspend operations indefinitely on Dec. 4, after learning they had been classified as a “for-profit” organization and could no longer be insured under University policy.

Forty-three days later, the situation has yet to be resolved.

CrossFit Tricolour was initially ratified as a recreational club in May after months of discussions with Athletics and Recreation. They’ve been running group workouts in the ARC and MacGillivray-Brown Hall since the summer.

Club founders Callum Owen, Storm Patterson and Alex Wilson said they don’t derive any profit from the operation.

“We think we’ve been … one

of the highest revenue-generating clubs in Queen’s history, if not the highest,” said Owen, PheKin ‘15. “That’s revenue that totally goes back into reinvesting in club equipment and to better the member experience.”

Owen said the group has over $50,000 worth of workout equipment stored in MacGillivray-Brown, and that problems arose in the fall when the organizers sought to insure it.

“If you go in there right now and you steal it all, or you burn it all or damage it, whatever you do, none of it is covered under the ARC’s insurance policy,” he said. “We thought, ‘that’s ridiculous’ — that’s the entire year’s worth wasted if we don’t look into a way to better protect that.”

The organizers said they initially met with Athletics and Recreation and members of the University’s Human Resources department

Football

That’s it, on to Winnipeg Revered defensive coordinator Pat Tracey set to take his talents to the CFL B y J osh B urton Staff Writer Queen’s football is facing the bittersweet departure of a key member of its coaching staff.

On Jan. 7, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers hired longtime Gaels defensive coordinator Pat Tracey as their new special teams coordinator.

Tracey started at Queen’s in 2000 as a special-teams coach, moving to his current position after one season and becoming a full-time assistant of head coach Pat Sheahan in 2008.

Considered the preeminent defensive mind in the OUA, Tracey’s defences often topped the province in many categories. Under his reign, Queen’s defence was Ontario’s best overall five times, finishing first against the run and pass in multiple seasons.

“Coach Tracey has done a tremendous job here in his 14 years as my assistant,” Sheahan said. “He had great passion for the defence — he was one of those guys who was all in.”

Tracey’s career highlights include capturing the Vanier Cup in 2009, a year his unit led the OUA in overall defence, and a 2011 regular season in which the Gaels’ defence didn’t concede a rushing touchdown.

PHOTO BY CHARLOTTE GAGNIER

CrossFit Tricolour organizers Alex Wilson, Callum Owen and Storm Patterson (pictured left to right) were forced to suspend operations on Dec. 4, after running official group workouts since the summer.

in mid-November to discuss insurance. Patterson characterized the meeting as an “interrogation” about several different issues, including equipment ownership and member liability.

“If they were, in fact, reasonable questions for the ARC to ask, they should have addressed before they ever sanctioned us,” Owen said.

“We’re in a position where we haven’t been re-granted our club status based on what we think is an unfair prejudice against our operation.”

Owen said the organizers received an email from Catherine Hagerman from the University’s Human Resources office on Nov. 27, informing them of their for-profit classification and demanding they cease operations.

On Dec. 2, according to Owen, Athletics and Recreation emailed them a similar notice, saying CrossFit Tricolour would be forced See Six on page 23

“You don’t win consistently without great defence,” Sheahan said. “We’ve had four defensive coordinators over the last 60 years at Queen’s, and all of them won a national championship.”

During his 13-year tenure at the head of the Gaels defence, Tracey helped mold many players into all-stars. His program produced four CIS and eight OUA award winners, in addition to 39 conference All-Stars and 16 CIS All-Canadians.

Cornerback Andrew Lue, linebacker Sam Sabourin and defensive lineman Derek Wiggan are See Newest on page 23

JOURNAL FILE PHOTOS

Tracey’s defences were often top in the OUA, featuring lineman John Miniaci (top) and this blistering hit from 2007 (bottom).

Graphic by jonah Eisen

20 •queensjournal.ca

Sports

Friday, January 17, 2014

SPORTS

FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

Sibling partnership ‘Sisterly sixth sense’ binds Hagarty duo on the court B Y S EAN L IEBICH Staff Writer Family values carry over from the Hagarty household to the Queen’s volleyball court.

Sisters Brett and Katie Hagarty, from Aurora, Ont., are making a big impact on the women’s volleyball team. They’re the second set of sisters to play for the Gaels in the last five years.

Katie, a fourth-year middle blocker, joined the team in 2010 and helped them win the OUA provincial title in her second season.

Brett is a second-year outside hitter; she joined her older sister in 2012, immediately playing her way onto the Gaels roster and the OUA all-rookie squad.

Both sisters agreed that team performance is more important than individual accolades.

“My goals are never really oriented

JOURNAL FILE PHOTO

Katie Hagarty joined the Gaels in 2010, and her sister followed two years later.

around those awards,” Brett said. “They’re more oriented around how the team is doing.”

Last year, there were two sister tandems on the women’s team: The Hagarty sisters, and graduating player Katie Neville and her second-year sister Shannon, who’s still on the team.

Along with Gaels head coach Joely Christian-Macfarlane, the sister pairs have helped foster the family culture that’s been so vital to the team’s success.

Christian-Macfarlane initially scouted and recruited Katie Hagarty, but Brett didn’t need to be sold on Queen’s.

“I kind of just knew I wanted to come here,” Brett said. “I knew I was going into a great volleyball program and a great academic school, plus having Katie here was another draw.”

The Hagarty sisters aren’t only contributing to the team atmosphere and culture. They’re also major factors on the court, both offensively and defensively.

Brett currently leads the team in digs with 150, and Katie is second at 84. Katie has also notched 16.5 blocks this season, and is on pace for a career best in the category.

Offensively, Brett sits second on the team in points with 111, followed closely by her sister’s 96.

The sisters are now in their second season together at Queen’s, and their previous experience playing on the same team is proving to be valuable. The pair played together at Aurora High School, as well as in beach volleyball.

“I think we complement each other well because she’s really good at things that I’m not good at,” Brett said. “I think her blocking

WOMEN’S FOOTBALL

Golden, but not Gaels

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is really good, and I think that’s probably the weakest part of my game.”

Their complementary playing style and extensive experience together has generated great chemistry between the sisters.

“I trust her more than I would trust the average player, because I already know what she’s doing — I know what she’s thinking,” Brett said.

“Sometimes we just know, because we’re so alike,” Katie added.

The Hagarty sisters are the ideal candidates for the volleyball program that Christian-Macfarlane is nurturing.

“They come from a great family and sporting background,” Christian-Macfarlane said. “When you think of an ideal family, the Hagartys come to mind.”

Christian-Macfarlane said she doesn’t actively recruit sisters to come to Queen’s, but instead develops relationships with her players and their families.

“My relationship with the older sisters and with the families builds a sense of trust with them,” she said.

“They know that their kids, if they want to pursue the game beyond high school and want to pursue it at a university level and be Brett Hagarty ranks second on the Gaels with 111 points. successful, I will take care of them.”

JOURNAL FILE PHOTO

Nominate a GREAT Queen’s instructor

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2014

Alumni Award for Excellence in Teaching.

Deadline is February 28, 2014.

Nominations are accepted from Queen’s students, faculty, staff, and alumni.

Submit online: queensu.ca/alumni

Laurier tournament a focal point for women’s squad B Y N ICK FARIS Sports Editor With a championship season in their rearview mirror, Queen’s former women’s football team is starting anew.

As a recreational club under Queen’s Athletics and Recreation, the squad won last year’s Wilfrid Laurier University Lettermen tournament — the pinnacle of Ontario Powderpuff football.

They’ve since undergone a name change emblematic of the team’s transition. Once known as Queen’s Powderpuff, they’re now the Golden Gals, a Kingston-based club with no affiliation to the University or Athletics and Recreation.

The club was desanctioned last year, according to Jeff Downie, associate director of Athletics.

“Queen’s University does not currently participate in Powderpuff Football. Athletics and Recreation desanctioned the club last year due to disciplinary issues,” he told the Journal via email.

The Golden Gals said the split wasn’t about the club’s relationship with Athletics and Recreation.

“It wasn’t about going independent,” said Kasha Lee, PheKin ‘14. “It was about making sure there was a team, and there was the opportunity for other people to experience the sport.”

Lee is the new club’s de facto leader, both on and off the field. The fourth-year quarterback played competitive touch football throughout high school and continued with the sport at Queen’s.

Her club competes against teams from

other Ontario schools, with most of those squads operating independently from their respective universities.

Along with the elimination of “Queen’s” from their moniker, the Golden Gals See Back on page 23

• 21

alumni@queensu.ca queensu.ca/alumni/ 613.533.2060

22 •QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

SPORTS

FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014

Sports

Friday, January 17, 2014

queensjournal.ca

• 23

Six weeks and counting Newest Blue Bomber Continued from page 19

to suspend operations within 48 hours. All three parties next met on Dec. 11, at which point the University put forth a list of 11 concerns that CrossFit was expected to resolve, including the nature of their affiliation with CrossFit, Inc. The club’s current affiliation agreement is signed in Owen’s name, but according to the organizers, the University is seeking to have the affiliation go through Queen’s.

Owen said CrossFit Tricolour has completed all the requests, with the exception of changing the affiliation, as an individual with their level one CrossFit certification must sign the agreement.

He said a solution to this issue could come through changing the club’s name and removing any reference to CrossFit. “We don’t actually have to use the CrossFit name to do these workouts,” Owen said. “If worst comes to worst, we can call ourselves the Queen’s Fitness Club, the Queen’s Exercise Team, the Queen’s We Love to Do High-Intensity Physical Activity.

It doesn’t matter.”

According to Owen, he was told this wasn’t a viable option after presenting it to Athletics and Recreation.

In an interview with the Journal, Associate Director of Athletics, Business Development and Facilities Jeff Downie said Athletics and Recreation is opposed to CrossFit Tricolour going by a different name because of

CrossFit’s overall brand.

“CrossFit … wouldn’t agree with [changing the name],” Downie said. “They don’t want you running CrossFit style activities under a different name. They’ve got a brand and a licensing agreement.”

Downie said Athletics and Recreation’s issue with CrossFit Tricolour doesn’t come from the activity itself, but in setting up a suitable framework heading forward.

“The club framework is very much about students starting an activity when they’re here, setting up succession planning, and a program that can be passed along to other students,” he said. “These guys have struggled with what they want it to be.”

Downie said Athletics and Recreation is hoping to ensure that CrossFit Tricolour is operating as a club and not as a business on campus by clarifying several issues affecting the club.

In regards to the major issue of affiliation, Downie said he thinks an agreement can be reached with CrossFit. “The agreement actually alludes to a university affiliate,” he said, “so I’m sure there’s a version of that agreement that can be University-owned.”

With the suspension of operations still going on, the CrossFit Tricolour organizers have reached out to others about the situation, including Principal Daniel Woolf.

On Monday, Woolf tweeted, “I am in receipt of correspondence on this matter, and will review with Athletics and Recreation.”

CrossFit Tricolour was initially sanctioned as a recreational club in May 2013.

Continued from page 19

all top-10 ranked 2014 CFL Draft prospects.

All three flourished in Tracey’s system, often acting as leaders of their respective position group.

Tracey schemed his defences to take away opposing teams’ best plays and playmakers, forcing offences to play to their weaknesses.

Player deployment fluctuated every week, as Tracey would move players into the matchups that best suited them.

He utilized Lue as a shutdown back against wide and slot receivers, and started the versatile Justin Baronaitis as linebacker, defensive back and safety in different games.

The constant changes demanded persistent practice and dedication from both players and coaches.

“Coach Tracey is the hardest working member of Queen’s defence,” Lue said. “He demands a lot from his players, but always has us prepared for a game.”

Follow @QJSports.

Tracey’s promotion should come as no surprise to the Queen’s community.

Following the 2009 national championship, other CFL teams have snatched up several members of the coaching staff, including the Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ hiring of assistants Ryan Sheahan and Grant Schelske.

Ex-Gaels coaches have even made an impact south of the border. Three are currently working on successful careers coaching American high school football.

The rise of many of them to higher levels is indicative of the CFL’s recent acceptance of the CIS product. Andrew Bucholtz, editor of Yahoo Canada’s 55-Yard Line CFL blog, said this shift has coincided with the addition of full-time assistants in many CIS programs.

The more hours that can be put into recruiting, film-study, and coaching, the better the overall product a school can produce.

“The excellent thing about full-time assistants is they can devote all their time to football,” said Bucholtz, a former Journal Sports Editor. “They don’t have to worry about working or having a job in the off-season.

“Queen’s should look to hire another full-time assistant as Tracey’s replacement, as it’s a huge benefit to the team and would likely attract a higher calibre of coach.”

JOurnal File photo

Back on the gridiron Continued from page 21

removed any reference to their sport’s traditional nickname.

“I’ve never actually liked the name ‘Powderpuff’,” Lee said. She characterized the women’s game as “semi-tackle,” with blocking permitted at the line of scrimmage and flag football rules applying in the open field. ”People read the word ‘Powderpuff,’ see it and they chuckle,” Lee added. “[Now,] people will maybe take us more seriously, hopefully.”

The new women’s football club is split into two distinct teams — Blue and Gold — with roughly 25 players suiting up for each side.

They’re coached by a collection of Queen’s football players, including defensive back Justin Baronaitis and receiver Aaron Gazendam, but the coaching staff is far from the only unit to feature marquee Gaels.

According to Lee, approximately two-thirds of this year’s squad is made up of current or former varsity athletes, moonlighting as football players for the winter season.

“They’re looking for a sport to play — the same thing we were looking for when we left high school,” Lee said. “It’s safe to say they found a new sport to love.”

The influx of talent has paid off. In last season’s Lettermen tournament final, women’s soccer defender Mikyla Kay booted

a last-second field goal against York, clinching the Blue team a championship.

“We had the chance to either just go for it or kick it,” Lee said. “Our field goals weren’t on point all day. When she hit it, it was perfect.”

The Laurier tournament is a staple of the women’s football season, and a chance for this year’s Golden Gals to retain their title.

The Blue team won all six of their games last March, conceding just six points all weekend.

Off the field, it serves a greater purpose.

The 2014 Lettermen tournament is set for Feb. 7-8, and the goal is to top last year’s mark of $7,000 fundraised for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

“A lot of people on the team, coaches included, have family members that are affected with breast cancer,” Lee said. “The proceeds from the Laurier tournament are donated to the breast cancer foundation.

That’s a big reason we want to attend it.”

For now, they’re practicing every weekend, charting plays and learning defensive formations. This season will mark the end of Lee’s university career, but she’s hoping it could spur a new beginning.

“There was no way I would go my last year without playing a sport that I love so much,” Lee said. “I would hate to see this die down or shut down, because I know the popularity is there — I know the skill is there.

“It’s one of the highlights of my university experience by far. I’ve met the greatest people and played the greatest game.”

ACROSS 1. Second person 4. Tosses in 8. Without 12. Hostel 13. Regimen 14. Resign 15. Meager amount 17. Pre-swan 18. Moe, Larry or Curly 19. Actress Longoria 21. Disencumber 22. Felt sorry for 26. Verboten 29. Matterhorn, e.g.

30. Aye canceler 31. Dogfight participants 32. Have bills 33. Farm measure 34. Answer to the Riddle of the Sphinx 35. Everything 36. Young horses 37. Inky black 39. Standard 40. Scenery chewer 41. Assault 45. Actress Pinkett Smith 48. “Mutiny on the Bounty” island 50. N. Mex. neighbor 51. Hip bones 52. Fawn’s mama 53. Mercedes- — 54. Oodles 55. Wool provider

DOWN 1. Shrill barks 2. Not procrastinating 3. “Do — others ...”

4. Slow, musically 5. Ate 6. Calendar abbr.

7. Spire 8. Crouch

9. Fourth before 6-Down 10. Zero 11. Pigpen 16. Matadors’ foes 20. Red-carpet type 23. Bygone Peruvian 24. Count counterpart 25. Coloring agents 26. Pack down 27. “Super-food” berry 28. Crooked 29. Piercing implement 32. Puget Sound capital 33. Heart line?

35. “Eureka!”

36. Nabob 38. Actor Palminteri 39. Barbecue site 42. Staffer 43. Cornfield intruder 44. Dandling locale 45. Poke 46. Exist 47. Noise 49. Under the weather

Last Issue’s Answers

24 •queensjournal.ca

Friday, January 17, 2014

postscript

Let’s talk about sex People living with invisabilities may be suffering in silence

Photo by Sophie Barkham

B y R achel H erscovici Features Editor I’m a 20-something living with an invisability and yes, I have sex.

Arthritis is commonly viewed as an “old person’s disease”, but that’s not the case for many young people out there. While it affects every aspect of your day-to-day life, sex oftentimes gets left out of the discussion.

Sex with an invisability is real.

We’re out there, but no one is talking about it.

When I started having sex, I was lost, like many people are, except I didn’t have a resource to turn to that wasn’t dedicated to an older population with stale scientific diagrams.

Youthful sex forums or resources don’t typically dedicate a section to the arthritic, making the whole experience seem foreign, scary and serious.

Was this all telling me that only old people, or no people with arthritis have sex? Can I only have sex like an old person?

Obviously not.

Eventually, I just dove into bed with my boyfriend and we figured it out as we went along. While it definitely isn’t always easy, we’ve had mind-blowing sex that went beyond what those brochures made me believe.

I soon realized that sex didn’t have to be so serious just because I had arthritis — in fact, it was really fun.

According to research, an orgasm has been found to block pain in some cases.

I’m not saying it works for everyone, but for me, it’s real. My boyfriend is literally like medicine to me.

It was an empowering discovery that I could have sex and not be seen as my invisability.

I knew I couldn’t be the only person facing these challenges.

Amy Hanes, ArtSci ’14, now you’re an adult, people not see it as was diagnosed with epilepsy might at age 12. Ten years later, she much as they would if finds herself unable to have an you were a kid.”

Body image is something that intimate relationship.

While there are many also plays a role in Hanes’ life different types of epilepsy, and relationships.

“With the medicine I take my Hanes experiences a type of epilepsy that involves grand weight goes up and down, up and mal seizures, which leads to a down,” she said. “How can I be in loss of consciousness and a relationship with someone else when I don’t know myself because violent contractions.

Since the beginning of the things keep changing so much?”

Sometimes it can academic year, she’s experienced be overwhelming. four seizures.

“I can’t seem to sleep,” she said.

It takes Hanes at least a day to recover. She said it can be “I sort of think, ‘what happens hard for others to understand if I fall asleep and never wake that it isn’t just the two minutes up again’, which is kind of a of her life taken by a scary thought.”

“There are ups and downs,” seizure — her invisability takes over the rest of her life she said.

But Hanes isn’t short on a sense as well.

“I feel like I’ve been living at of humour about her situation. Her the bottom of the well,” she said. positivity is inspiring and is another “It’s like you’re so dizzy from example of how living with an all the medicine that you’re invisability doesn’t have to be all taking and you don’t really know sad and serious. what’s going on.”

Nausea and fatigue are also side How can I be in effects Hanes experiences on a a relationship with daily basis, but she pushes through someone else when to attend all her classes.

I don’t know myself “I think a lot of people because things keep identify me first and foremost as having epilepsy, so it’s sort of changing so much? a risk if you get too involved with somebody — Amy Hanes, ArtSci ’14 and seeing them as their condition,” Hanes said.

Justine Fehr, ArtSci’ 13, is using She said it can sometimes become like a parent-child her invisablity to spice up her relationship instead of a sex life.

Fehr is living with a pain relationship based upon disorder caused by a nerve block equal footing.

“I think [epilepsy] has acted from a surgery gone wrong in as a barrier to a really serious Texas when she was 15, and subsequently developed colitis. relationship,” she said.

When Fehr returned to Canada, Hanes also finds that there aren’t many resources about sex the damage had been done and open discussion when it comes and doctors worked to figure to sex and epilepsy for someone out what was wrong with no records to go off of. her age.

Essentially, all the nerves in her “The thing is [epilepsy] is usually associated with younger left leg from the hip down are children,” she said. “It’s sort of fried, leaving her with pain and hard to struggle with the idea that limited mobility.

“

”

She now has a pump placed in her abdomen that distributes medication to her spinal cord that takes her pain down to a functional level.

“I got my pump put in at the children’s hospital, so no one is coming up to me and being like, ‘oh hey, this is how the pump could influence your sex life’,” Fehr said.

“I think the biggest thing for me is having an understanding partner.”

Fehr has been dating her boyfriend for four and a half years. Conversation and a blunt and sarcastic approach to her invisability is key for her.

“I think [another big] thing for me has been integrating a warm up into foreplay,” she said.

Not every day is a good day, and sometimes, she has to figure out how to make it something special. Sometimes, it involves costumes or lingerie.

“It’s important to be creative and use [your invisability] to have fun in a way that could theoretically give you more possibilities instead of looking at it like it’s some sort of crutch,” she said.

She noted that it’s not about covering her invisability up, but using what she has to make her feel sexy.

It can be hard for people to understand pain when it isn’t an obvious, tangible injury, Fehr explained.

“For me, casual sex would have been just a daunting thing,” she said. “Even in first year of university, all my roommates are going out and trying to pick up guys ... but [my invisability] is not a conversation I’m going to have at 2 a.m. on the way home from Ale.” Having realistic expectations is also important to having a functional sex life with an invisaibility.

“As much as we plan and prepare, I can have a flare up at any given

moment and [sex] is the last thing on my mind,” she said. “It’s just not going to happen.”

She noted that it’s important to know that this isn’t a reflection of anyone in the relationship, but rather the disease itself.

“Even at our age, you can have illness and you can have disability which are things that people don’t associate with a 5’ 8’’ blonde,” she said.

But it is a reality for a lot of people, and Fehr is a strong advocate for open communication and trying out anything that suits you best.

“Just because you have a limitation it doesn’t mean you have nothing going on or you are not able to be a young adult,” she said.

Mary Louise Adams, a professor in the School of Health and Kinesiology, says that everyone, invisability or not, should be communicating with each other to have the best sex life.

“Everybody should be talking about the kind of sexual activities that work for them, the kinds of things they’re attracted to, how their desire is best fulfilled by a partner,” she said.

While not everyone’s sexual desires are the same, it’s important to understand that there doesn’t have to be limitations to your desires, whatever they may be.

“I think people should be able to express themselves however they want and they should be helped, or facilitated or supported,” Adams said.

Adams suggests talking to other people who have similar experiences and looking for information.

“If you don’t find it, create it,” she said.

So let’s do it.

People with invisabilities have sex. There, we said it. What’s your story?