first play productions of 2013 in Focus
See Page 11
T h u r s d ay , F e b r u a r y 1 4 , 2 0 1 3 — I s s u e 3 4
the journal Queen’s University — Since 1873
Do the Harlem Shake
Inside
Study abroad
Program revised
Feature Queen’s updates its Campus Master Plan. Page 3
Queen’s-Fudan exchange transfers to new department
News Getting to know the new members of AMS council. Page 4
B y Vincent M atak Assistant News Editor
Dialogue Interpreting Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation. Page 7
Sports Queen’s comes close at figure skating OUAs. Page 15
Hundreds of students participate in the recording of a “Harlem Shake” video — inspired by the popular YouTube trend — in the ARC last night.
Photo by Tiffany Lam
Politics
Justin Trudeau returns to campus The candidate for leadership of the Liberal party spoke to a full crowd on Wednesday B y H olly Tousignant News Editor Liberal leadership hopeful Justin Trudeau stopped in Kingston yesterday to speak to students and local supporters. Trudeau spoke to a packed house in Wallace Hall, his second time on campus in less than a year and a half. By the start of the event, the hall was at full capacity, with most people standing along the walls or at the back of the room. “I’m going to do something different here today,” Trudeau
told the crowd, and to that end, answered questions from those in attendance rather than deliver a prepared speech. “What matters the most to me is that politics be an open conversation.” He was introduced by Peter Milliken, former Speaker of the House and MP for Kingston and the Islands, who spoke about his personal connection to Trudeau and his late father Pierre Elliot. Kingstonian John Matheson, a former politician and the leader of the parliamentary committee
Trudeau answers questions from students and supporters.
Photo by Alex Choi
tasked with choosing the country’s current flag, was also in attendance. The first question Trudeau answered was in regards to national
youth service. He discussed the Katimavik youth volunteer program, which was started by See Trudeau on page 5
Activism
Raising red flags Campaign addresses gender-based violence B y R achel H erscovici Assistant News Editor Red flag posters are being hung on campus this Valentine’s Day to educate and encourage students to speak up on the topic of unhealthy relationships. “One of the issues … is the subject of gender based violence with sexual health, sexual violence, relationship violence,” said Arig Girgrah, vice provost and dean of student affairs. “These issues are cultural and the way to change a culture is for the people that belong in that culture to be engaged.” Girgrah said the campaign, originally from Virginia, was started at Queen’s last year. It’s important to look into issues that are relevant to students concerning health and safety, she added. “We’re hopeful that it may be
a bit of a flagship ... one of the ongoing initiatives that might help us address these issues on campus.” The campaign will feature six informational posters hung until March 1, surrounding the idea of “relationship red flags” which are signals of an unhealthy relationship. These posters, appearing all over campus including the ARC, feature unhealthy situations like coercion, emotional abuse, sexual assault, victim blaming, excessive jealousy and isolation. “The idea of the posters is not only that they provide information, but also they help to promote skills one could use to respond,” said Kate Humphrys, coordinator of Health Education and Health Promotion at Health Counselling and Disability Services. “Providing skills and giving people the See Valentine’s on page 5
The Queen’s-Fudan exchange program is seeing a cultural shift. The program, originally offered through the department of global development studies (DEVS), will now be administered by the department of languages, literatures and cultures (LLCU), in order to attract more students. DEVS began offering the semester-long exchange to students eight years ago as a means to promote cross-cultural learning in development work. It combined in-class learning at Fudan University in Shanghai with internships at local NGO’s. The program was acclaimed by the government of the People’s Republic of China as a Model Bilingual Education Program in 2009. Discussions on whether to transfer the program began in September, according to Donato Santeramo, LLCU acting department head. The department, which was established in 2011, will administer the 2013 program. Part of the reasoning behind the transfer to LLCU is the department’s capacity to broaden the program, through a focus on language and culture. Prior to the shift, the program typically drew students from DEVS, history and political studies. “The idea is to widen the scope of the program by focusing on culture, language and acquisition,” Santeramo said. “We hope that this program will enhance the department and the University’s momentum for internationalization.” This year will mark the beginning of a transition period for LLCU, which will negotiate with Fudan University an agreement for restructuring course and work models. The process will be finalized in the summer. Queen’s courses offered this year at Fudan will remain similar to previous years, Santoramo added. These include Introduction to Chinese History and Culture, See Deptartment on page 5