The Runner Volume 10, Issue 9

january 16, 2018 VOLUME 10 // ISSUE 9 kpu’s student newspaper

WILSON SCHOOL OF DESIGN OPENS IN RICHMOND KPU hopes the new building’s student-centred design will foster on-campus collaboration

Feature

Culture

Opinions

FPSE Fights for the Rights of Part-Time Profs

KPU Instructor Explores Vancouver’s Punk and Anarchist Roots

Fentanyl Dealers Should Be Charged with Manslaughter

2 table of contents

staff 04

News|Wilson School of Design Opens to Students

Coordinating Editor Alyssa Laube editor@runnermag.ca

Managing Editor

Connor Doyle managing@runnermag.ca

Production Manager

Melanie Tan production@runnermag.ca

Art Director

Nicola Kwit art@runnermag.ca

Photo Editor

Braden Klassen photos@runnermag.ca

While the building and classrooms are primarily for Design students, there will be opportunities for other faculties such as business, arts, or sciences to take advantage of the space.

08

features|FPSE Campaigns For “Precarious Profs”

“The Precarious Profs campaign is meant to highlight the plight of sessional and part-time contract workers and make our case to regular faculty, to students, to the public that equal work deserves equal pay,” explains FPSE President George Davison.

10

culture|KPU Instructor Explores Vancouver’s Punk and Anarchist Roots “Anarchism in Vancouver and other places was this really interesting political scene that brought together almost every other political activism that you can think of and mixed it,” says KPU History professor Dr. Eryk Martin.

13

opinions|Fentanyl Dealers Should Be Charged with Manslaughter

When a criminal shoots and murders a person in the Downtown Eastside, an investigation into the homicide is launched. But when an addict buys fentanyl-laced narcotics in a back alley and dies, most of the time the people responsible for lacing the drugs go unpunished.

Staff Writer

Joseph Keller staff@runnermag.ca

#FeatureTweets Web Editor

Mel Pomerleau web@runnermag.ca

Use #kpu or #runnermag in your tweet, and you could be featured in the next issue!

Community Reporter

Ashley Hyshka community@runnermag.ca

Operations Manager Scott Boux office@runnermag.ca 778-565-3801

contributors Mia Davison Katherine Dolmat Daniel Hauser Daniella Javier @RESLUS Isabelle Wirz

Cover by Tristan Johnston

Arbutus 3710/3720 12666 72 Ave. Surrey, B.C, V3W 2M8 778.565.3801 www.runnermag.ca Vol. 10, Issue no. 9 January 16 // 2018 ISSN# 1916 8241

Spring Semester 2018 Student Publication Fee opt-outs available in person from Jan. 16 - Mar. 16. Hours: 10 - 5 Monday to Friday.

Student ID & proof of registration and payment required.

Phone: 778-565-3801 PIPS office: Arbutus 3710, Surrey Campus.

Email: office@runnermag.ca

All submissions to The Runner are subject to editing for style, quality, length, and legality. The Runner will not publish material which the editors deem to be harmful or discriminatory. The views expressed within the publication are not necessarily those of The Runner staff or of the Polytechnic Ink Publishing Society.

The Runner is student-owned and operated by Kwantlen Polytechnic University students, published under the Polytechnic Ink Publishing Society. The Runner recognises that our work, both in and out of the office, takes place on unceded Coast and Strait Salish territories, specifically the shared traditional territories of the Kwantlen, Katzie, Semiahmoo, Sto:lo and Tsawwassen First Nations. Our name is inspired by the hun’qumi’num meaning of Kwantlen, which is tireless hunters or tireless runners. Just as KPU is adaptable and changing, so is The Runner.

From The Editor

editorial 3

Feeling distrustful of Canadian media?

Stay attentive

CityNews Toronto reporter Ginella Massa delivers her keynote speech at NASH 80, the Canadian University Press’ annual conference in Toronto. Jan. 4, 2018. (Camila Kukulski)

alyssa laube | Coordinating Editor The news bubble which many readers, reporters, and editors commonly find themselves trapped in has not become any less problematic over the past year, despite the anti-news rhetoric that continues to assail us. Unless you’re actively looking for media representations of beliefs that oppose your own, it can be difficult to find an article that is mentally or emotionally challenging but still well-done and dependable.

Readers on the web are often kept comfortably insulated within their online niches through the use of algorithms on sites like Facebook. This perpetuates the existence of the news bubble and leaves community mem-

bers out of touch with bold journalism that might otherwise change the way that they choose to navigate the world, oftentimes for the better.

For skeptical readers, this is one more reason to distrust publications that push their respective agendas.

These institutions create the impression that fair, honest news simply doesn’t exist—that exciting and brave stories aren’t being pitched, commissioned, or written in Canada—which, gratefully, is not true.

Six of The Runner’s staff members flew to Toronto this month to attend a symposium of student journalists in Canada. The event, titled NASH 80: Connect, invited experts from all over the country to speak to attendees about the greatest successes

and challenges of their careers thus far. Some of the most brilliant and inquisitive thinkers in the field were there, alongside many of the nation’s up-and-coming reporters.

From Canada’s western half came some familiar names; The Runner was able to spend quality time with The Capilano Courier, The Ubyssey, SFU’s The Peak, and many others.

Beyond that, the conference offered the opportunity to listen to vetted professionals give their advice for working in contemporary media.

On panels and from behind podiums, hundreds of young journalists heard from people like CityNews’ Ginella Massa, The Globe and Mail’s Robyn Doolittle, and Toronto journalist Desmond Cole, all of whom

left the audience applauding, humbled, and a little bit smarter.

What NASH communicated above all else was this: there is good journalistic work being done in Canada— work that is meaningful and backed by months of tedious research. But there are also many failings in our media that must be acknowledged and addressed by those both inside and outside of the industry.

As Canada’s first hijab-wearing television news reporter, Massa told the NASH audience about what it means to make space for yourself in your field when the higher-ups aren’t doing it for you. Cole, who examined the racism behind mass media coverage of several incidents in Toronto over the last year, described himself as potentially unemployable for encouraging criticism of the outlets he has contributed to. Doolittle spent 20 months investigating sexual assault cases that had been deemed “unfounded” by Canadian police after noticing that there was a gap in what was being published about the issue. For the sacrifices they made to create these works, the writers made Canadian media more inspiring, thought-provoking, and reflective of society.

To break the news bubble and the false perception that it causes, consumers of Canadian news are responsible for seeking this good work out.

It is there and available to you. Look in the nooks and crannies of the journalism world, and when you find a headline that shocks or excites you, read the whole piece. Share it with your friends. Follow the content producers who are dedicated to purposeful and ethical work. You’ll be doing yourself, and us, a favour.

BCGEU Calls For Housing Policy Reform

News Brief

daniel hauser The British Columbia Government Employee and Services Union (BCGEU) recently released its official housing policy, which focuses on the perceived shortage of affordable housing caused by issues such as foreign investment, inflation, and speculation predicated on an incomplete analysis of the local demographic and market trends.

Paul Finch—a representative of the BCGEU—says that he believes “we are experiencing the outgrowth of an offshore housing bubble to rival that of 2008,” and that the impact of this foreign capital on our domestic housing market is a dangerously volatile element that must be curtailed in order to house the province’s citizens.

He stresses that the BCGEU feels that the “existing high density housing stock is more than sufficient to meet current demand, and the primary issue with affordability is not one of real supply, but speculation.”

The plan includes various mea-

sures such as implementing a provincial Land Value Capture Tax to curb speculation, the addition of a “surcharge” to the existing Foreign Buyers Tax enacted by the former provincial government, and the closing of Property Transfer Tax loopholes frequently utilized by the upper and middle classes. It also aims to strengthen price controls on the private rental market and mandate construction of subsidized low-income housing. For this, developers and luxury home-buyers in the private sector would share the responsibility of footing the bill.

As a case study, Mr. Finch references the impact of the Evergreen Line Corridor on housing and rent prices in the surrounding area.

“The acquisition of wealth by the commodification of private real estate is immoral; particularly in cases where we are demolishing lowrise poor houses to make way for ivory towers that no one will ever be able to afford to live in,” he says.

“Most wealthy people are just going

to drive anyway, so if the public is going to support the development of this infrastructure, it’s only sensible to ensure that people living around it are of a calibre that would utilize it effectively.”

The BCGEU’s proposed policies come in spite of projections that the province’s population will grow by 600,000 over the next decade, with much of that growth taking place in the Lower Mainland.

Finch doubts that “the plan [will] address the perceived future supply problem.” He acknowledges that, “as population grows, demand for housing stock will inevitably rise,” but believes that it is still possible for housing demand to be met in the future.

While the housing policy debate remains ongoing, the BCGEU is confident that the Premier’s office will take their proposals under consideration when drafting the government’s official regional housing policy plan.

What’s Happening this month

jan. 16

Trades and Tech Expo

Ever wondered what KPU’s Cloverdale campus has to offer? Stop by to check out their shops or to find out if a trades and technology program would be right for you.

4:00 pm - 6:30 pm, KPU Tech, free.

jan. 19

Faculty Showcase - String Quartet KPU’s artists in residence, the Borealis String Quartet, will once again offer an elegant evening of music guaranteed to move you. This event is free for students in KPU’s Music programs.

7:30 pm, KPU Langley Auditorium, $20 ($15 for students and seniors).

jan. 22 kpu reads

This year, KPU will read and discuss Ari Goelman’s latest Young Adult novel The Innocence Treatment. Join your fellow literati to hear a short reading from the author followed by a meet and greet.

11:30 am - 12:30 pm, KPU Surrey Library, free.

jan. 22 kwantlen improv

You already make up essays on the fly, why not try your hand at improv? Daniel Chai of the famed The Fictionals offers this class for free for all KPU students, staff, and alumni.

5:00 pm - 6:30 pm, Birch 250, free for KPU students.

jan. 25

“Summoning (No Words)”

Creative Writing and IDEA instructor Nicola Harwood will present on her project “Summoning (No Words)”, an interactive and immersive sound installation contructed from the female voice.

12:00 pm - 1:00 pm, Surrey Cedar Boardroom 2110, free.

jan. 25 KSA Open Mic

The last Thursday of every month is the KSA’s open mic and karaoke event. Sign up for the open mic in advance or watch your friends stumble their way through a half-remembered “Tequila Sunrise”.

6:00 pm - 8:00 pm, Grassroots, free.

4 news

Wilson School of Design Opens to Students

The architecture of the new building compliments the nature of the Design program tristan johnston | contributor After years of planning, construction, and some delays, Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s new design school building is open to students.

While some finishing touches are still being made to the Richmond campus location, many Design students are already taking classes in the new space.

“With the B.C. apparel sector poised for strong growth over the next 10 years, KPU’s expansion of Design education by an additional 140 seats is extremely timely,” said Melanie Mark, B.C. Minister of Advanced Education, Skills, and Training in a statement to The Runner. “Apparel is a thriving industry within British Columbia’s strong economy, making $3.8 billion in sales revenue and employing over 7,600 people in the province.”

Carolyn Robertson, Dean of the Wilson School of Design, considers the building to be a massive upgrade for both the Design program and the university at large.

“What we wanted to do was create a light and transparent environment that was really student-centered, and give them a chance to witness Design as a whole.”

While the building and classrooms are primarily for Design students, there will be opportunities for other faculties such as business, arts, or sciences to take advantage of the space.

Previously, Design students took their classes in the upper floors of the Richmond campus, which was darker and more difficult to navigate than the new building.

“We’ve provided much more of an environment where students can interact from all different programs,” says Robertson, gesturing towards a large space with a massive whiteboard and interactive projectors. The projectors have touch screens, and students can connect to them to collaborate with others in the area.

The architecture of the space is what one might expect of a building

Open space is possibly the defining visual feature of the interior of the building. (Tristan Johnston) meant for Design students. It was built with an open concept in mind, its centre a large space in the middle of the ground floor for lounging or, potentially, exhibitions. Every floor is designed to facilitate collaboration, including large white boards, couches, and plenty of wide glass windows which offer an impressive view of the mountains. Another unusual aspect of the building is its full-sized lockers, which Robertson says are for students to leave materials such as clothes, product design drafts, and posters in.

One of the other impressive elements of the building is the key card system. Students will have access to various parts of the building using personal key cards.

“They’re nesting. They’re finding their spots … [and] it’s really cool to watch,” says Robertson. “I’ve been checking in, asking them how they

like it. The feedback’s been really positive.”

Also in the building are sinks and fridges for students to use, which may be welcome, given the relentless hours fourth-year students in the Design program are known to work.

Robertson notes that students in that program don’t go to the library to get work done; instead, they use tools like laser cutters, printers, and sewing machines in the work spaces where they’re available.

Before the construction of the Wilson building, Robertson says that Design students were mostly confined to the few classrooms in Richmond Main that they were required to go to, and didn’t have much chance to meet with each other or think creatively in the space around them.

Now, she hopes that the new, open concept building will help inspire

The new building connects to the rest of Richmond campus via a sky bridge. This doorway can be found near the Student Enrolment Services area in the main building. (Tristan Johnston)

collaboration. “[The building] is pretty inspiring—light, transparency provides inspiration, collaboration,” she says.

“It’s what my faculty calls ‘collision space’ … where people come together and collide with their ideas. It’s a huge shift for us.”

At the top of the building is one of its only locked rooms, labelled “Design Research Network”, where private projects are worked on.

“We have been doing research within the School of Design for quite some time,” explains Robertson. “We’ve worked with the City of Surrey, different companies, different non-profits, and they bring their challenges to us, and that may or may not turn into a full-fledged research project. Students are coming to a stage where they want to commercialize and get patents and move them on.”

The construction of a new building such as the design school has been a compelling idea for KPU ever since 2012.

“We have this hub of technical apparel in B.C., so there’s Lulu, Arc’teryx, MEC, Mustang, SUGOi. There’s some really, really high end, successful companies in B.C.,” says Robertson. “Chip [Wilson, founder of Lululemon]’s goal was … to keep the industry strong here, and make this, because of our environment, the hub of technical apparel in the world.”

Wilson and his wife Shannon contributed $8 million of the total $36 million budgeted for the building, while their company, Lululemon, donated another $4 million. KPU and the B.C. government provided the remaining funds by contributing $12 million apiece.

“The funding for the Wilson School of Design building is part of a larger capital investment of $1 bil-

lion towards B.C.’s public post-secondary institutions and is motivated by our government’s commitment to provide accessible and affordable post-secondary education,” wrote Mark, in her statement.

While the project stayed within budget, it was beset by several delays, often concerning financial constraints and completing the building’s desired features. The Runner interviewed university president Alan Davis in July of 2016 as ground was breaking on the project. Then, Davis indicated that initial tender for the project was going over the $36 million that was allocated, but that KPU worked towards ensuring that the project would stay within budget.

Despite this, Davis assures that the intended functionality and sustainability features of the school were still part of the final design.

When walking into the Wilson building, to the left and through the doors of the sky bridge, is the Dean’s office. In the window of this office is a display of clothing, what appears to be a 3D printer and, perhaps unusually, a motorcycle.

“I wanted to put this motorcycle here because what people think most of design is fashion and pretty stuff,” says Robertson. “What they don’t get is that students are working from everything that I call ‘research to rack.’ It’s the idea, the market, the business plan, the branding plan, the construction, the textiles research— the whole scope of what they do is really involved and it has a business aspect as well.”

“We want the community, inside and outside, to understand what design is,” Robertson continues. “It’s not about making pretty stuff. It’s sustainable, ethical design—user-centered, human-centered design.”

News 5

B.C. Holds Public Consultations on Sexual Violence and Misconduct Policies

The Advanced Education Ministry has also issued guidelines to help post-secondary institutions develop and implement their policies Ashley Hyshka | community reporter The government of British Columbia recently announced that it will be hosting public consultations regarding the Sexual Violence and Misconduct Policy Act, which was enacted by all B.C. post-secondary institutions in May 2017.

This move, spearheaded by Advanced Education, Skills, and Training Minister Melanie Mark, builds upon the existing foundation of the Act and aims to raise awareness of the new policies. The Act states that all institutions must have a list of procedures on how to prevent and respond to allegations of sexual assault and misconduct reported by their community members.

“We also want to use feedback to ensure we have a strong policy framework in place that centers on the health, safety, and wellbeing of our post-secondary community,” wrote Mark in an emailed statement sent to The Runner on Dec. 11. “To remain relevant, these policies need to be reviewed—in consultation with the post-secondary community—at least once every three years or when directed by the Minister.”

Jane Fee, KPU Vice Provost, was the Chair of the President’s Advisory Group while it oversaw the drafting

of the university’s sexual violence and misconduct policy. She praises the implementation of the Sexual Violence and Misconduct Policy Act as well as Mark’s initiative.

“It’s a way of beginning a bit of a provincial dialogue amongst students about concerns that they might have beyond their own institution,” says Fee. KPU’s sexual violence and misconduct policy went through six months of redrafting and consultations, during which the public, students, the faculty association, and the Kwantlen Student Association were consulted.

According to Fee, the drafting of the policy was difficult because it had to align with the provincial legislation while also accommodating KPU’s existing policies and procedures.

Throughout the drafting process, and over the past couple of years, the school has provided “lots of avenues for students to disclose [an incident of assault or misconduct] without having to go through a formal reporting process,” says Fee. In comparison to other B.C. universities, such as UBC—which has been rocked by several high-profile incidents over the past few years— KPU hasn’t reported having a severe problem with sexual violence and misconduct. Fee partially attributes

The provincial government posted a video on YouTube titled “Sexual Violence Prevention and Responses on Post-Secondary Campuses” Nov. 28 2017. (ProvinceofBC) this to the institution’s lack of student residences, and argues that the issue still requires the communities utmost concern and attention.

“I think it’s a problem on every campus worldwide,” she says. “We have a responsibility as a university to educate our community and others about our zero tolerance for sexual violence.”

Fee adds that the university is in the process of hiring an employee responsible for creating education and awareness programs about sexual violence and safety in the KPU community.

Caitlin McCutchen, Women’s Rep-

resentative and VP External Life for the Kwantlen Student Association, commends Mark’s public consultations and says that she has been asked by the Ministry to help promote the new Sexual Violence and Misconduct Policy Act. With the implementation of the new provincial legislation, she says that students will know how to properly and safely report a case of sexual assault or misconduct.

Like Fee, McCutchen was heavily involved in consultations regarding KPU’s sexual violence and misconduct policy.

“Rape culture is permeated in society, especially amongst younger

folks,” she says. “These policies are set in place to help protect students, so I think it only makes sense to be actually asking the people that would be impacted by these policies. It’s really nice to have a government that wants to listen to students.”

McCutchen says the KSA will be hosting a “consent campaign” sometime in 2018. This initiative was included in the policy and will be held by the KSA once per year.

McCutchen hopes that she will be able to host the first campaign before her term as the women’s representative ends in March 2018.

KPU’s Operating Grants Lag Behind Enrolment Despite having more students than ever, KPU’s governmental funding has not increased proportionally Daniella Javier | contributor Out of B.C.’s top five post-secondary institutions, Kwantlen Polytechnic University experienced last year’s biggest single-year drop in operating grants.

According to an article by Business Insider Vancouver, operating grants—or funding that the provincial government provides to its public colleges and universities—at B.C.’s largest post-secondary schools have not been able to keep up with enrolment numbers. This means that UBC, SFU, BCIT, UVic, and KPU have all welcomed an increasing number of students while governmental grants have not risen proportionally with their student populations.

Of those five institutions, KPU and BCIT were the only two that suffered an operating grant drop during the five years between 2013 and 2017.

In 2017 alone, KPU’s operating grant fell by 1.5 per cent—representing approximately $1 million—while its operating grant per student fell by 3.3 per cent, thereby granting about $200 less per student.

A $15 million provincial cut to higher education funding greatly affected the base grants. Alan Davis, President and Vice Chancellor of

KPU, says that the change in government affected the budget cut, but that those funds haven’t been replaced despite the fact that the NDP is now in power.

“The new government has only been in power for a few months.

The previous government was really focussed on a balanced budget and everybody was subject to that … whether it was a good policy or not,” says Davis.

KPU generates its revenue from a variety of sectors, including government grants, tuition, fees from both domestic and international students, and other ancillary sources such as the bookstore. The government tends to provide grants in order to support a particular initiative—either for buying equipment or providing capital that the university can allocate for renovation or development.

“You have to separate the annual operating money from the long-term capital money,” says Davis.

Davis was surprised to learn that KPU’s operating grant declined more than that of other post-secondary institutions in the province. One reason he proposes for this may be that research universities typically outperform teaching universities and colleges in B.C. KPU, as a polytechnic

Although it continues to welcome more and more students each year, KPU’s government-sourced operating grant has been decreasing since 2013. (Braden Klassen) school, is a special purpose teaching university, while more traditionally prestigious institutions such as UBC and SFU are research universities. “[Research universities] need to be supported, but I don’t think they’ve endured as much as we have in … trying to meet all of the [public’s] needs,” says Davis.

Davis understands that universities like UBC and SFU have more expenses than KPU, but he would

like to see the province make a larger investment in education for all post-secondary schools.

“We believe that the communities will be stronger if there is more opportunity for post-secondary education that’s well-funded,” he says.

“We just want to be able to provide quality, access, and opportunity for our students.”

KPU administration will continue talking to members of the provincial

government about evenly distributing funding levels, including operating grant amounts, for all post-secondary schools.

“I think an independent review of funding levels across the system is warranted so that every institution and community is treated fairly and that the supply and demand of funded post-secondary seats better reflects the population,” says Davis.

6 news

City of Surrey Moves Forward with LRT Project

Two professionals involved with the construction of the contentious project discuss its potential Ashley Hyshka | community reporter The City of Surrey is committed to the idea that supporting Light Rapid Transit instead of a SkyTrain extension will help create a future with dependable public transportation for its citizens.

Working with the city, TransLink’s director of the Surrey LRT project, Stephan Mehr, believes that Light Rapid Transit will help transform Surrey in ways that a SkyTrain line cannot. Mehr—and by extension, Translink—arrived at this conclusion following community consultation that produced a lack of consensus regarding whether or not the general public supports the project.

“The LRT is going to serve the City of Surrey in terms of short, medium, and long-term demand,” he says. “It’s actually a very popular type of transport now for communities that are evolving.”

The LRT project was endorsed by the Surrey Mayor’s Council in 2014.

While the project has been approved by the city, it still needs formal approval from the government of B.C., including the Treasury Board, in order to obtain funds from the province.

Mehr says that TransLink submitted their business case to the Ministry of Transportation, and will soon

submit it to the Treasury Board. The entire project was first budgeted at $2.6 billion in 2016, but the updated cost for phase one is included in the business case. Final approval is expected sometime in the first quarter of 2018.

If the province approves the business case, the next phase will be to meet with contractors who are interested in taking on the project. Mehr adds that the proposal and selection process could take up to one year.

“That would mean that essentially, the start of construction—or at least the start of what I would call ‘implementation’—would be some time later in 2019,” says Mehr. “So that’s why we’re saying conservatively, we’re looking at third quarter 2019.”

The first and main phase of the project will span 10.4 kilometers, traveling down King George Boulevard and 104 Avenue through Newton, Surrey Central, and Guildford.

Phase two of the project, which should be in the upcoming Mayor’s Council’s 10-year vision plan, would begin at Surrey City Centre, travel along the Fraser Highway, and end at Langley Centre, adding another 17 kilometers of LRT track.

Mehr believes that the LRT will not only appeal to those who live in the local community, but also to businesses who wish to expand their

reach to Surrey. Because the network will be easily accessible on the street level, the LRT could lead to an economic and social boom along transit corridors over time.

“With the bus network and the way we at TransLink set up the connections to all of these rapid transit services … we’re actually going to be making much better connections and much more customer-friendly, comfortable transit opportunities throughout Surrey over the longer term,” says Mehr.

While the debate over how the merits of LRT compare to those of a SkyTrain extension has raged for quite some time, Mehr says that many of the surveys conducted by TransLink show more local support for LRT, and adds that there’s “a much greater-per-kilometer cost to SkyTrain.”

Paul Lee, LRT Program Manager for the City of Surrey, has been involved with the project since 2010.

He explains that, from the city’s point of view, it’s been a “top priority capital project” since its announcement in 2014.

Lee says he understands that many people are attached to the SkyTrain because it is the only form of rapid transit they’ve ever known, but adds that LRT is more than just a transportation project moving people from

(@RESLUS) one point to another.

“Street-oriented light rail will transform Surrey into connected, complete, and livable communities, making the city and the region more vibrant, accessible, competitive, and sustainable,” says Lee, reciting Surrey’s vision statement.

Vancouver, Richmond, Burnaby and Coquitlam have received rapid transit extensions, but it has been 23 years since Surrey’s system was last upgraded, which Lee feels is having a

negative effect on the city.

“On one hand, if you simply want to transport people at the fastest speed, and … affordability is not a consideration, then by all means, build SkyTrain,” says Lee. “A fast train is not want we want.”

The advocacy group SkyTrain for Surrey did not respond to The Runner’s interview requests before press time.

Former Hells Angel Hopes to Steer young people Away from Lives of Crime

Joe Calendino, co-founder of the Yo Bro Yo Girl Youth Initiative, wants to prepare kids to say no to gangs and drugs Ashley Hyshka | community reporter Since he was in eighth grade, Joe Calendino has been in and out of trouble.

The former Hells Angel, co-founder of the Yo Bro Yo Girl Youth Initiative, now spends his time mentoring youth in an effort to prevent them from taking the same turbulent path to adulthood that he did.

He recalls how, during his youth, he wanted to belong to a crew and be the “tough guy [with] the bravado.”

Calendino says that life in a gang was very different decades ago, when it was centred around “rumbles, baseball bats, [and] chains … opposed to what we’re dealing with in today’s era of guns and kids dying.”

He describes the “gradual escalation” that led people he grew up with to eventually became members of the Hells Angels. Calendino ultimately followed their lead, living as a fullpatch member of the notorious biker gang for nearly 10 years.

During that time, Calendino racked up numerous drug, weapons, and assault charges while also developing a drug addiction. He says that the club warned him multiple times regarding his reckless and violent behavior until they kicked him out of

the Hells Angels in 2005.

“After I got kicked out, I spiraled deeper into addiction … and I ended up homeless with nothing left,” he says.

Kevin Torvik, a man Calendino grew up with, ironically wound up becoming a police officer on a biker gang task force. Calendino was eventually arrested for selling $10 worth of crack cocaine to an undercover police officer. Torvik had attempted several times to rescue him from rock bottom, but Calendino says it was this event that finally made him listen.

Following his release from prison, Calendino co-founded the Yo Bro Yo Girl Youth Initiative. He struggled to get the organization off the ground but was aided by a woman named Brenda, who is now his wife. Having worked as the high incident coordinator for the Chilliwack School District, she brought two decades of experience working with at-risk youth with her. Combining their skills and experience, the pair succeeded in bringing Yo Bro Yo Girl to fruition in 2009.

“I never wanted to see a kid go through what I was going through,” says Calendino.

Yo Bro Yo Girl is a gang and drug prevention organization which works with various school districts across

The Yo Bro Yo Girl Youth Initiative is a gang and drug prevention organization which works in various school districts across Vancouver, Surrey, and Chilliwack. (Flickr/Joe Wolf) Vancouver, Surrey, and Chilliwack.

It provides curriculums, recreational activities, community outreach, sexual consent awareness, and what Calendino calls a “critical dialogue with youths” about their lifestyles for approximately 1,000 students each year.

Another facet of the program is that senior members of Yo Bro Yo Girl who were personally helped by the group go on to mentor younger

students. The organization’s website says that the mentors, “connect with at-risk youth to ensure that there’s always someone around who knows exactly how they feel.”

Greater Vancouver’s gang problem has plagued the city for more than a decade. Calendino believes that society has not adequately taught young people how to avoid a life of drugs and gangs. “[Gang violence] is not only a B.C.

problem. This is a national epidemic,” he says. “I believe that we have not prepared our youth with proper education, giving them the tools in their toolbox to understand if they go down this road that the end result will be death, incarceration, and addiction.”

8 features

Federation Of Post-Secondary Educators Campaigns For “Precarious Profs” The FPSE hopes to support the rights of part-time instructors in B.C.’s post-secondary institutions joseph keller | staff writer

Part-time professors, or “non-regular faculty” are often expected to work without knowing whether they will be retained at the end of the year. (Braden Klassen) For thousands of college and university instructors across the province, job security is far from guaranteed.

In B.C., around 30 per cent of post-secondary faculty and staff are employed on a part-time or temporary basis. According to the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of British Columbia, the working conditions for these educators are not equal to those of their full-time and permanent counterparts.

As part of the FPSE’s advocacy, the organization has launched a campaign named Precarious Profs to address what it considers to be unfair practices by post-secondary institutions towards non-regular faculty.

“The Precarious Profs campaign is meant to highlight the plight of sessional and part-time contract workers and make our case to regular faculty, to students, to the public that equal work deserves equal pay,” explains FPSE President George Davison.

The Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of B.C. represents about 10,000 faculty and staff at teaching universities, colleges, and private sector institutions across the province. The organization provides lobbying, grievance support, bargaining support, and more for the employees it represents.

According to Davison, British Columbia currently has a lower ratio of non-regular professors to regular professors than in the United States and some other parts of Canada, such as Ontario. However, the FPSE is concerned that the number of non-regular professors in the province is steadily rising.

In its current form, Precarious

Profs is mainly an internal campaign.

The FPSE’s non-regular faculty committee has been busy gathering the stories of its members who work on a sessional or part-time basis to present how these practices affect post-secondary educators. Davison says that the goal of the campaign is to create awareness and solve these issues through collective bargaining with institutions rather than through legislation.

“We’re telling the stories of individuals who have the same qualifications as a full-time regular person, who teach the same classes that the regular professors teach, but get paid a fraction of what the regular professors do,” says Davison.

Each institution’s relevant policies and practices are different, but it is the stance of the FPSE that non-regular employees are commonly treated unfairly in a variety of ways by B.C.’s colleges and universities. In addition to being paid less often for teaching the same courses as full-time professors, non-regular professors also miss out on receiving the same benefit packages as full-time instructors. At some institutions, regular professors receive allowances for professional development, while non-regulars do not.

For professors working on a contract basis, finding their next job is a constant concern.

Teressa Fedorak has been working as a non-regular professor at Thompson Rivers University for about 15 years. Before being hired as a continuing sessional she had to interview each year for her next contract. She says that this arrangement can cause

mental stress and difficulty with making long-term personal plans.

“Non-regular faculty are always grasping for as much work as they can get in a semester, because next semester there might be nothing,” says Fedorak. “There’s sort of a mentality of always wondering and always worrying.”

Davison echoes that statement, saying that, for non-regular professors, “it’s a much more precarious world.”

It’s easy to see the allure of hiring non-regular faculty to institutions in B.C. Davison explains that, along with it being more cost effective, the contract arrangement provides more flexibility when hiring; institutions are able to sign someone to teach a course at the very last minute. In Vancouver, which is home to a large pool of educators looking for work, it’s very easy to find professors to fill these contract positions, he says.

Davison compares this practice to fast-food chains using temporary foreign workers to decrease the cost of doing business. He estimates that the number of non-regular educators in B.C. and elsewhere began to gradually rise in the mid-80s as a result of universities looking to cut operating expenses amidst a recession.

The FPSE has been lobbying for more full-time positions and fewer non-regulars since this trend began.

In 1998, and as a compromise between institutions and advocacy groups like the FPSE, negotiations to eliminate secondary scales and contract work resulted in a provincial agreement on “regularization procedures.” These procedures mandated

that non-regular faculty members who have worked half-time over two years and reasonably expect to continue doing so during their third year would be regularized, thus receiving the same benefits and pay scale as full-time faculty members.

Davison says that since 2000, when the provincial government under the B.C. Liberals cut back on operating funds, institutions have found ways around regularization. A common way to do this has been to give non-regular faculty slightly less than half-time work in the first two or three years of employment.

Despite the challenges this poses for some instructors, not all non-regular faculty see their employment situation as an issue. Cam Tucker, a non-regular journalism professor at KPU, says that his part-time status has allowed him to ease into his role as a relatively new educator.

“My status [as a sessional instructor] allows me to work as a journalist, both for a local daily newspaper and a national television network in the U.S. … in addition to teaching a course on sports journalism,” he says.

Tucker’s situation is not unique, particularly at a polytechnic institution like KPU where many professors are actively engaged in their fields.

“I would love to one day become a full-time faculty member at Kwantlen Polytechnic [University],” he says. “However, non-regular status was beneficial to myself because it allowed me to focus most of my energy into my one class and my students.”

Still, Fedorak argues that there are other concerns that should be shared

by all contract professors. One of those, which affects both regular and non-regular faculty but has a unique impact on sessional professors, is the threat against academic freedom and freedom of speech.

Sessional professors in particular may avoid speaking out for fear of not having their contracts renewed.

While institutions are prohibited from firing a faculty member for criticizing their institution or expressing a controversial viewpoint—as long as that viewpoint does not constitute hate speech—they can in some cases manipulate the language of a collective agreement in order to hire someone else for the next contract.

“Non-regular faculty do not have the ability to truly speak their mind or share their true thoughts,” says Fedorak.

It’s for this reason, she says, that few non-regular professors are willing to risk their careers by openly criticizing the working conditions caused by their non-regular status.

At the time of writing, the Precarious Profs campaign has received 206 signatures of support. The FPSE will be moving onto the next phases of the campaign in the coming months.

“It’s a matter of social justice. It’s a matter of fairness,” says Davison.

“Faculty who are as qualified as I am, who teach the same courses that I do, should be paid the same way and be treated fairly. The Precarious Profs campaign is trying to fix working conditions that have been allowed to deteriorate for some time.”

features 9

Can we Distance Artists from their Artwork?

A discussion about abusive artists and our moral decision to either support them or ignore them mel pomerleau | web editor & braden klassen | photo editor As more reports of sexual assault allegations and misconduct in Hollywood are made public with each day, discussions about blacklisting celebrities for their actions have become increasingly relevant. People are questioning if it’s okay to still see that movie starring an abusive artist, or to watch their Netflix special.

Two of The Runner’s staff members sat down to share our thoughts on when it is and isn’t okay to continue to support an artist after they’ve been accused of or proven guilty of physical or sexual assault.

Should we boycott art that was created by somebody who is abusive?

Braden Klassen: In some cases, yes, I would encourage people to boycott an artist’s work. The past couple of years have shown us that, a lot of the time, the justice systems in Canada and the U.S.A. are not equipped to deal with cases of sexual harassment fairly. The onus falls on the victim to prove their allegations in court, which is difficult in situations where the incident happened a long time ago, and the trial forces them to revisit traumatic memories of their experience. More and more, we’ve seen that justice is being exacted outside of the legal boundaries, which is a good thing—but it goes to show how the courts are systematically failing sexual assault victims.

House of Cards and Louie were cancelled, and Kevin Spacey and

Louie C.K. have been fired from their jobs and ostracized by future employers. The CBC fired Jian Ghomeshi and his career has seriously suffered despite the fact that he was acquitted in court. I’m not sure that this is enough, but it’s better than him getting away with it.

Mel Pomerleau: I have to agree; consumers should choose to boycott specific work when it doesn’t line up with their own values, but it goes further than that. We see, in some cases, the justice system failing the victims and I can only hope that these cases will serve to refine the court and justice systems to achieve a more just sentencing for offenders. However, until that happens, boycotting an artist’s work and voiced consumer outrage are necessary for companies and officials to feel the pressure and reprimand certain individuals for their behaviour.

When is it necessary to blacklist an artist and boycott their art?

M.P.: When to boycott an artist or their work is going to vary from case to case and person to person. Art, in the sense of music, film, or other entertainment mediums, is pretty widely accessible to people across the board. What’s important to keep in mind is it costs you virtually nothing to decide not to support a musician, actor, or program, and that’s exactly why there is a need for consumers to take a stand and choose not to consume media that doesn’t wholly align

with their own values.

B.K.: For me, an important factor in this decision is how directly the artist is supported by my choice to consume their art. I will never buy a Chris Brown album or a ticket to his show because I don’t want to have anything to do with supporting him financially. It’s the same as refusing to shop at Walmart because, in doing so, I would be supporting an organization that contradicts my values when it comes to ethical labour practices.

I also acknowledge that I’m privileged to be able to make that decision because I’m fortunate enough to have other options, and I can afford to take my business elsewhere, which isn’t the case for everybody.

I think how close the artist is to their work also factors into it. If their art represents something about them personally, then by boycotting it, you are, in a sense, protesting the artist themselves. Louis C.K. is the only person responsible for writing his jokes, so choosing not to support his comedy seems more personal and targeted than boycotting a movie that was made in collaboration with 150 other people.

M.P.: Everyone is going to have their own idea about where to draw the line between boycotting an artist’s work or not. I’ll admit, I’ve watched a Louis C.K. special and found it funny. In retrospect, his jokes are obviously a lot less funny and in some cases a little sick. I’ll never make the conscious decision to watch his special or watch shows or movies that he’s a part of, much like how I won’t watch reruns of The Cosby Show.

Are there times when it might be okay to continue to consume art that was created by an artist who’s facing allegations of physical abuse or sexual harassment?

(Nicola Kwit)

B.K.: I don’t think it’s my place to categorically say what everyone should or shouldn’t consume, but I do think that there are some circumstances that convince me that it’s okay to keep reading an author, or listen to a band, or watch a show starring someone accused of sexual harassment or misconduct as long as I acknowledge the harm that they’ve done. For example, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them stars Johnny Depp, a man who was accused of being physically abusive to his ex-wife, Amber Heard. By buying a ticket to see the movie in theatres, I am indirectly supporting his career, but I’m also supporting the careers of the hundred plus other people who worked on the movie.

M.P.: I don’t think it’s a matter of when should we not choose to boycott, because what matters to

someone is entirely their own business and varies from person to person. Acknowledging an individual’s wrongdoing is incredibly important and I would personally would like to see more of that from co-workers or productions.

Jason Momoa, in a 2011 panel discussion at comic-con, made some lewd remarks about how the best thing about being in Game of Thrones was being able to “rape beautiful women.” In the clip, you see actors alongside him literally face-palm, but no one spoke out against these remarks. I’m not saying crucify everyone involved, I’m not even saying crucify Momoa himself. He has since apologized on Instagram, and it seems genuine.

In the case of J.K. Rowling she acknowledged and defended the decision to keep Johnny Depp in the upcoming film Fantastic Beasts, and while it might not have been exactly what fans had hoped for, it shows she isn’t ignoring sexual assault and misconduct in Hollywood, something that cannot be ignored anymore.

A public acknowledgment opens up the conversation, can push forward accountability, and has the potential to show the consumer that people involved in the entertainment industry aren’t simply ignoring the allegations and abusive behaviours.

B.K.: Sometimes it’s also just impractical to completely stop supporting an abusive artist. If you subscribe to Netflix, you are indirectly supporting Kevin Spacey and paying his salary for his work on House of Cards. Does that mean you should cancel your subscription, essentially boycotting every other show Netflix has ever produced? I don’t think a lot of people would be willing to do that.

If an artist attempts to show accountability for their actions, does that make it any better?

B.K.: I want to preface my answer by saying that I fully believe that no one has the right to forgive anyone for anything except the victims— that’s not my choice to make.

If an artist takes responsibility for their actions and puts in the effort to make amends with the people they hurt, I think that could influence my decision to continue to enjoy their art. However, we should be critical about the reasons why they might be making such efforts in the first place.

Are they being proactive and genuine or are they just doing this out of self-preservation? Louie C.K.’s public apology, for example, looked like a step in the right direction, but it seems like he just did it defensively, since he had consistently denied allegations against him and lied to save his reputation for years.

M.P.: No one has to accept your apology. In fact, an apology can only go so far, but I do believe it to be a necessary step to move forward, both for the victim and the accused or offender—not even just an apology, but an honest and sincere admission of guilt.

That being said, don’t expect everything to be “okay” just because an artist or public figure has decided it’s time to publicly apologize. It’s not okay to constantly deny allegations and then finally admit defeat and apologize. I’m not trying to focus on any one specific public figure here, because in the midst of all the allegations that come out there’s a lot of denial, and as things are settled or further investigated, I’m sure there’ll be more attempts to save face with just-a-little-too-late apologies.

Being accountable for your actions is so much more than just a public apology, so be critical of the efforts being made by celebrities and public figures in light of these accusations.

B.K.: Exactly. An apology might be a first step, but there are a number of things that people can do beyond that to show that they actually care about this issue outside of their own involvement. So far we’ve seen a bunch of public apologies and PR stuff, but when it comes down to actually doing something, none of these men seem to be interested in trying to affect larger changes, which I think is an obvious hypocrisy. I doubt that Bill Cosby or Harvey Weinstein are going to be donating to women’s shelters anytime soon.

Why should the public make these decisions?

M.P.: Outside of the justice system, it is the majority that dictates what is deemed socially acceptable and what is not. If enough people speak out against hateful and abusive actions and speech, we can change social norms. Relatively speaking, it’s so simple to take a stand and say, “Hey, I’m not gonna support so-andso anymore because it turns out they’re a shitty person by my ethical standards and here’s why.”

B.K.: It’s important for people to pay attention to these issues and everyone has the power to boycott.

Sometimes it’s the only thing we can do, but at least it’s doing something.

Public backlash is a powerful force in these people’s lives and can bring about real and drastic consequences for them. The outrage that these people are facing should make this behaviour less likely to occur in the future, and we can hopefully make a difference in putting a stop to the normalization of sexual harassment and rape culture.

10 culture

A Radical Tradition: KPU instructor Explores Vancouver’s History of Anarchism and Punk Rock

“This is not a boring political speech. This is a fast-paced, angry, aggressive punk song.” joseph keller | staff writer In his upcoming book, Kwantlen Polytechnic University history professor Dr. Eryk Martin explores Vancouver’s history of radicalism through the lenses of anarchism and punk rock.

Martin was inspired to write Black Flags Rising: Anarchism, Activism, and the Vancouver Five, 1967-1984 because of his own experiences growing up amidst the Vancouver-area counterculture. He says that the roots of anarchism in Vancouver run deep but have remained largely unexplored by local historians.

“Anarchism in Vancouver and other places was this really interesting political scene that brought together almost every other political activism that you can think of and mixed it,” says Martin. “The anarchist scene in Vancouver brought together Indigenous politics, feminism, anti-racism, environmentalism, anti-imperialism, alternative forms of living, alternative education. Pretty much any form of dissent you can look at through the lens of anarchism.”

Black Flags Rising uses the experiences of a Vancouver-based anarchist group called Direct Action—deemed the “Vancouver Five” by the media at the time—and an affiliated group

called Woman’s Fire Brigade to tell a broader story about anarchist activism and radical politics in Vancouver.

These groups were responsible for several acts of extreme anarchist activism in Canada in the 70s, including the bombings of a BC Hydro substation on Vancouver Island and a factory in Toronto that was building navigation systems for U.S. cruise missiles. The Woman’s Fire Brigade was best known for acts of arson on several pornography stores around Vancouver. Martin’s book looks at the roots of anarchism in Vancouver as early as the 1950s and draws connections between Vancouver-based movements and the wider world.

“Vancouver has a very strong anarchist tradition and I think that, because radical traditions in Vancouver are generally strong, the diversity, the dynamic nature of anarchist activism is inseparable from the broader power of the left,” says Martin.

Radical movements of the 20th century were also connected to contemporary music scenes. This connection is more than just thematic in the case of Vancouver’s anarchism and punk scenes—Gerry Hannah, who was one of the members of the Vancouver Five, was also the frontman of Vancouver-based punk band Subhumans.

In his history classes at KPU, Martin uses the punk scene of the 1970s as an example of the culture of political anger during the era.

“The expansion of anarchism went hand-in-hand with the expansion of punk,” explains Martin. “There’s this radical tradition that gets expressed not only in political activism but also in music.”

In particular, Martin likes to use the song “Oh Canaduh” by the Subhumans as an example of a song that captures what people in the punk scene and anarchist movement were thinking and feeling at the time. “[Oh Canaduh] really speaks to the economic crisis of the 1970s, this emerging cynicism and radicalism,” he says. “The song talks about environmental problems, about corporate greed. All of these things are really relevant ways of picking apart the 1970s, but in a fun, entertaining way.

This is not a boring political speech.

This is a fast-paced, angry, aggressive punk song.”

Even before the emergence of punk rock in the city, Vancouver had a culture of radical music that fuelled movements like Greenpeace and anti war projects in the 60s.

“The idea that you would use popular rock n’ roll music as a political medium that makes politics rele-

Members of the legendary Vancouver punk band D.O.A. (Wikimedia Commons) vant to youth culture is absolutely essential for explaining why punk developed in Vancouver,” says Martin. “Yes, people in Vancouver were drawing from the Ramones and Sex Pistols, but they also have their own traditions, their own local culture in Vancouver that explains why punk is so deeply rooted in this place.”

Martin’s interest in radical movements stems from his experience growing up in the punk and metal scenes on Vancouver Island during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He was profoundly captivated by music

that was loud and aggressive and yet made commentary about social issues that he couldn’t find elsewhere.

Instead of strictly learning about history, politics, and international relations at school, Martin turned to music.

“I looked at these movements, both in music and around me, and I wanted to find out where they came from.

What are the origins of these things?

That took me back to the 1980s, and that took me back to the 1960s,” he says.

Coffee & Islam Challenges Misconceptions about muslims from canadian cafes Vancouver locals who want to know more about the faith can now do so over a cup of joe

alyssa laube | Coordinating Editor British Columbians who have found themselves with unanswered questions about Islam can now pursue a greater understanding of the religion by having a personal conversation, and a hot drink, with a local Muslim.

As part of the Coffee & Islam campaign, Canadian Muslims are making themselves available to anybody with an inquisitive mind to sit down in a coffee shop and talk about their faith. Officially launched in November, people like Tariq Azeem, a Missionary Ahmadiyya Muslim living in Vancouver, have been hosting these meetings for over a year.

Azeem is a congregation leader for the Muslim community in this city, and like all of the volunteers with Coffee & Islam, everything he does, he does for free.

His work as an educator on Islam goes beyond the time he spends in coffee shops. Azeem says that he tries to bring his desire to explain what it means to be Muslim into his everyday life.

“Because there are so many misconceptions regarding our faith, partially due to media and partially because of the actions of some

so-called Muslims, it is our goal to remove those misconceptions by sitting down with individuals, families, groups, and educating them regarding the real teaching of Islam,” says Azeem. “We feel this is necessary because, if people don’t find out about the actual faith, they start painting all people with the same brush. That is very dangerous not only for Muslims but for society in general.”

Some of the most common questions that he receives are about Jihad, a topic which he calls “very misunderstood.” Azeem has also noticed a great deal of confusion around the status of women in Islam, the details of whether or why Muslims actively speak out against extremists, and what Sharia Law is.

“My main message when I talk to them is that every religion teaches two basic things: love God and love his creations. This is a message that is common among all faiths and religions. This is what we need to adhere to,” says Azeem. “[People] need to understand that the holy Quran in itself teaches peace.

The holy Quran tells us that if you have killed one person, it is as if you have killed the entirety of humanity.

This is Islam,” he continues. “The

message of Islam is love for all, hatred for none. If we understand this message, then we would not be afraid of Islam or people who follow true Islam.”

According to Statistics Canada, hate crimes against Muslims rose by 60 per cent in 2015 compared to the previous year, peaking at 159 incidents nationwide. While they began decreasing in number last year, many Canadians still report experiencing extreme racism, xenophobia, and Islamophobia being perpetrated by those who are not educated about Islam. With this campaign, Azeem and his peers are hoping to identify and correct misconceptions prevalent in the media, both to readers and news creators.

Vancouver has proven to be one of the most responsive communities to Coffee & Islam, according to Azeem.

He notes that he “received very good media coverage when the campaign was launched,” and hopes to continue doing meaningful work in the community well into the future.

“People are willing to listen. When they learn about Islam, they realize that there is very little that they know themselves,” says Azeem. “Talk to a Muslim who practices his faith and

you will be very comfortable. You will find out that there’s not much difference between people of different faiths. They all want the same thing for themselves, for their families, and for their cultures. They all want peace in their society and in the world.”

To get in touch with a representative from Coffee & Islam about organizing a meet-up, send a message through the campaign’s online contact form. Azeem encourages those who live in Metro Vancouver to get in touch with him directly at tariq.azeem@ahmadiyya.ca.

Tariq Azeem, an Imam from Vancouver who volunteers with the Coffee & Islam campaign, is dedicated to educating the community about his faith. (Alyssa Laube)

culture 11

Rank and File Readers Select 2017 “Scumbag of the Year”

Loblaws CEO Galen Weston Jr. received this year’s “honour” joseph keller | staff writer The readers of trade unionist publication Rank and File have made their selection for who they believe to be Canada’s worst person in a position of power in 2017.

The publication has been running a “Scumbag of the Year” poll for the past four years as a way to bring attention to practices that they believe hurt Canadian workers. This year, the “honour” of receiving this title went to Loblaws CEO Galen Weston Jr. Weston had criticized the Ontario Liberals’ plan to increase minimum wage, citing potential loss of revenue while the company was making record-breaking profits. Rank and File’s announcement about Weston was delivered as Loblaws was making national headlines for a 12 yearlong price fixing scheme on bread.

“We want people to be aware that there’s some bad people out there … who are basically killing jobs, killing communities, and making life harder for working class people to access the country,” says Rank and File Editor David Bush. “And I also want people to be angry about it. I think that part of our goal is to stoke that anger.”

Rank and File is a Canadian labour news and analysis website which, for the past five years, has been covering issues that concern workers such as strikes, lockouts, employment insurance, pension issues, and employment-based racism. Bush says that the decline of labour news journalism in Canada and beyond has made Rank and File an important publication for Canadian workers.

As Bush points out, the growing

trend of a small number of media companies owning the bulk of mainstream publications coupled with shrinking newsrooms across the country has led to fewer specialized reporting positions. That includes those dedicated to reporting labour news.

“The crisis in media means that a voice for workers is just not there, and when labour news is covered, it’s covered not as part of a sustained or developed beat, as journalism that can really understand the context of the issues and know the people and really understand what is happening.

It is done by business reporters or other kinds of beat reporters,” says Bush. “It’s a major problem and that’s why we exist.”

The “Scumbag of the Year” competition is one of Rank and File’s most popular fixtures with readers. In 2015, when Canada Post CEO Deepak Chopra was selected for the title by Rank and File readers, the resulting influx of readers to the publication’s website was enough to overload its servers and temporarily shut it down.

The process of selecting each year’s Scumbag is entirely reader-driven. Rank and File begins the process by making an open call for nominations on their website. Then, the most nominated names are made public on an online poll.

“Some of these people are part of corporations or part of entities that have really been at the forefront of screwing over a lot of people, whether that be from firings, robbing people’s pensions, forcing people out on lockouts, whether that’s pushing through terrible policies at the gov-

Mia Davison

Loblaws CEO Galen Weston Jr. was voted by Rank and File’s readership “Scumbag of the Year 2017” for a price fixing scheme on bread. (Nicola Kwit) ernmental level,” says Bush.

He explains that the idea behind the competition is to name and shame those behind what they see as some of the most harmful practices in Canadian business and government.

Ultimately, they aim to hold these people accountable and spur change.

“It’s not just about the individuals, how bad some of these people are, but it is about using them as symbols of something that’s deeply wrong in

our society,” says Bush.

Galen Weston Jr. edged out the likes of Ontario College Employer Council CEO Don Sinclair, Sears Holdings CEO Eddie Lampert, Postmedia President and CEO Paul Godfrey, and others for this year’s title.

Weston/Loblaws did not respond to The Runner’s comment requests before press time.

kdocs talks wants to talk about docs, k?

The video series will feature discussions from the annual KPU documentary festival joseph keller | staff writer Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s yearly documentary film festival, KDocs, has introduced its own smallscale take on the TED Talks format.

The videos in the series, titled KDocs Talks, are presented in a similar format as the festival’s existing footage of past keynote speeches, but will feature a higher production value.

“I think viewers will get the full sense of what really happens at KDocs,” says KDocs Community Outreach Coordinator Greg Chan.

“They’re really getting almost the full experience of being there.”

All KDocs Talks videos are offered under creative commons with permission granted for viewers to use, share and edit them as they please, so long as KDocs is credited.

Chan says that the idea for KDocs Talks came about when members of

the festival’s organizing team realised how much discussion was being generated at their events. They wanted to capture that discussion to share with those who couldn’t attend, so they hired an editor and a producer to make videos of the panel discussions and ensuing audience discussion.

“Usually, at intermission and between documentaries, the conversation spills out into the lobby and we have really good discussions out there, and [KDocs founder and festival organiser Janice Morris] and I always say, ‘We should film this,’” says Chan. “We should have something that captures it so that people who aren’t able to come to the panels or the keynotes or even to the films themselves can get a sense of what we do.”

So far, the KDocs Talks YouTube channel includes seven videos from last year’s festival keynotes.

In one, KPU Criminology Depart-

History Class will create app to explore surrey’s past

ment chairperson Dr. Wade Deisman discusses the complexities and pitfalls of having conversations about police enforcement as an introduction to the film Do Not Resist, a documentary on the militarization of American police forces.

In another, Dr. Faith Bondar, Executive Director of Inclusion BC, speaks about the changing language used to describe intellectual disabilities in advance of KDocs’ screening of Life, Animated, a documentary about the use of animated films to teach reading, writing, and communication skills to people with autism.

All KDocs Talks videos are intended to get people talking about some of the most pressing social justice issues in today’s society.

Several improvements have been planned for the 2018 iterations of KDocs Talks, the most significant of which is the inclusion of panel discussions and question periods.

Chan says that the team also plans to improve the production quality on the videos by purchasing a second camera and focusing on the technical aspects of filming.

Other planned KDocs additions include a Snapchat channel for posting snippets of KDocs events in real time, as well as a podcast that will feature interviews with KDocs speakers who have questions that the team wasn’t able to ask at the panel discussions.

Chan says that he’s encouraged by the feedback he has received about the videos, adding that KPU professors have already begun showing KDocs Talks to their classes.

Most university students have sat through a tiresome lecture and reached for their phones to alleviate the boredom. But for students in Kyle Jackson’s History 2390 class, “History Go! An Interactive Historical Experience”, using their phones will become part of the lesson.

Beyond simply taking a history course, they are also creating an app about the city of Surrey and its past, thereby providing both visitors and locals with a chance to learn about the history of the area as they explore it.

Those enrolled in the course argue that Surrey has much more history to offer than most might realize.

“It’s a very unique place and there are so many stories yet to be told,” says Kate Heikkila, the reference specialist with Surrey Archives. “But it’s a perception that, just because it’s recent, [the city] doesn’t have history.”

The KPU history class will be digging through maps, pictures, and other documents with Surrey Archives to discover long-hidden and forgotten stories that are key to the development of our community. As Jackson mentions, the history of the Indigenous people inhabiting Surrey dates back tens of thousands of years, and the class will work to cover these events as well as those that focus on European settlers.

Still, the history of Surrey typically remains unnoticed, perhaps because the city itself is largely unknown.

Because of this, the History 2390 app will also benefit many who do not live here.

Generally, history lives in textbooks, class lectures, and essays, which are not easily accessible or inviting for the average person. The prevalence of this environment, in which academia has no audience and the audience has no academia, is what Jackson hopes to change. Instead of turning to unreliable sources such as Wikipedia, community members who are not enrolled in post-secondary school will be able to use the app to access quality historical records.

Jackson says that the course’s objective is “modernizing history” through “a lot of fun and experimenting.” He encourages students who are interested to join the course, adding that history “has to be tech savvy to stay relevant.”

Heikkila hopes that users of the app will get a taste of what Surrey’s history has to offer and then pursue it further independently. She holds the same hope for the students who are currently researching, and feels that details about our heritage is information we all deserve to have.

12 opinion

KPU, Follow These New Year’s Resolutions

2018 doesn’t have to be 2017 part two ashley hyshka | community reporter Well, KPU family, it’s finally a new year. This is the time to start working on all of our resolutions for 2018— most of which we’ve already given up by the second week of January but, hey, it’s the thought that counts.

As students, we’re constantly under pressure to meet our academic standards, and yet many of us choose to weigh ourselves down even more in order to accomplish personal goals for the new year.

Why should the university that we attend get away so easily? Here are just a few resolutions that KPU can take on for itself until it’s time to welcome 2019.

Student Residences First and foremost, KPU needs to address its lack of student housing.

The university should make this a top priority. KPU encompasses five campuses—the newest being in the Civic Plaza at Surrey Central, due to open later this year—which spans three separate municipalities. Being a commuter school, KPU is at a disadvantage because our university campuses are so sprawled out. Having a student residence would ease congestion on transit, free up space in the rental market, and provide students with affordable housing—something Metro Vancouver is in dire need of.

Obviously, student residences can-

not just spring up like weeds, but right now it feels like KPU’s current and prospective students are destined to be left in the cold.

If KPU wants to attract more enrollment and increase its status, then it must provide the facilities that allow students to thrive and feel more at home in their university community.

Semester-Exclusive Course Selections You know what I hate? When I’m mere semesters away from graduation and I succumb to internal panic because KPU isn’t currently offering the courses I need to graduate. Often, they aren’t offering them the following semester either.

During the spring 2017 semester, one of my journalism classes had students fill out a sheet that listed all of the journalism and communications courses offered by KPU and select which ones we wanted to see in the coming semesters. Many of us in that class will be convocating in spring 2018, so this was a greatly appreciated gesture. I think that other faculties should implement a similar system.

Security Cameras Finally, for the love of God, turn on KPU Surrey’s bloody security cameras.

Let’s be real, installing security cameras on campus but keeping them non-operational is like having

One of several CCTV cameras installed on the KPU Surrey campus in Oct. 2016, none of which are yet operational. KPU should make turning these cameras on a top priority for the new year.

(Tommy Nguyen) a Tyrannosaurus rex without teeth.

Intimidating, yes, but not entirely useful.

A Message to KPU Students I think I’ve officially thrown KPU under the bus enough for one article, so the final New Year’s resolution I have to offer is addressed directly to KPU’s students.

Our school gets a bad rap because of its status. As a university, it’s only in its infancy, and when compared to more prestigious institutions like UBC and SFU, KPU sometimes seems like it’s in the minor leagues.

Hold your head high as you walk through the halls of KPU Richmond, Surrey, Langley, and Cloverdale.

KPU is slowly starting to make a name for itself in the university community. Between our polytechnic status, unique academic programs, and spearheading various first-of-its-kind initiatives and studies, people in B.C. are beginning to notice us.

Maybe our Bachelor’s degrees won’t have the name of a prestigious university on them, but completing a four-year program is a pretty major accomplishment in itself. And honestly, many employers don’t care about the name of the university any-

way.

When I first applied to KPU I was disappointed because I wouldn’t be attending one of Metro Vancouver’s high-profile universities. But now that I’m one semester away from graduation, I’m proud to call myself a soon-to-be graduate of Kwantlen Polytechnic University.

Plus, we have brewing and marijuana programs, and that’s pretty badass. Can UBC say they have those programs? I don’t think so.

Cannabis Sales Need to Involve a Mental Health-Conscious Marketing Plan

Governments face tough decisions about how to market the drug properly as legalization draws nearer Katherine Dolmat | contributor Legalization of recreational marijuana use in Canada is expected to be debated and ultimately implemented this year, and while this comes as a welcome change for many residents, there are reasons to be cautious about it.

Under the Cannabis Act, or Bill C-45, the federal government will oversee production and manufacturing of the drug, while each province and territory is responsible for regulating sales and distribution. The federal government has also set minimum standards and limits for the age of consumption, drug-impaired driving, personal possession, and cultivation, and has given provincial government the authority to implement further restrictions. British Columbia has set the minimum age of consumption at 19.

But more than these regulations, what’s really up for debate within provincial governments is how to market cannabis. Medical marijuana is currently under similar restrictions as tobacco with regards to advertising, but with legalization that might

change.

For cannabis growers, branding is important to get consumers to switch from using the illegal market to legal retailers, but there is also an argument for putting strict limits on it for health reasons.

Although many users safely enjoy the medical and recreational consumption of marijuana, what people need to keep in mind is that cannabis becoming legal does not necessarily mean that it’s a good idea for everyone to consume it.

According to Health Canada, negative health effects caused by cannabis consumption include anxiety, panic, paranoia, hallucinations, and other psychotic symptoms. These symptoms can be more severe and longer-lasting for young adults under 25 years old. This age group is especially vulnerable because the THC in cannabis affects brain development during these years. With extended usage of the drug, some of the side effects can become irreversible.

The concern with the marketing of cannabis is that consumers may think it’s completely harmless if it’s advertised like alcohol. Many more Cana-

dians have experienced the effects of drinking alcohol than the effects of cannabis. Because of that, emphasis needs to be put on being cautious when experimenting once marijuana is accessible.

While legalization means that there will be less risk of Canadians consuming contaminated or laced cannabis, there are other factors to consider before using the drug. Peo-

ple need to be educated on its effects, risk factors that increase adverse side effects, and how the drug interacts with other substances such as alcohol and tobacco.

I’m all for legalizing marijuana, but I also know that young people need to be vigilant with their mental health. Cannabis is said to have many health benefits, especially for the treatment of depression and anx-

iety, but it can also create problems in people who are predisposed to psychosis. While many people consume the drug on a daily basis with no negative effects, you never know how it will affect you until you use it, and it’s important to take it slow and educate yourself before trying something new.

(Nicola Kwit)

opinion 13

the ndp should not have tolerated The Site C Dam Provincial leadership has failed to support sustainability, equality, and conservation Isabelle Wirz A decision has finally been made about the controversial Site C Dam. The current Premier of B.C., John Horgan, announced on Dec. 11 that the project will be going forward.

The Site C Dam received its name as the third site for a major provincial dam—the first site being for the W.A.C. Bennett Dam and the second for the Peace Canyon Dam. The name “Site C” was catchy enough to stick and will now, in the eyes of many, go down in history as a Canadian environmental and political blunder during a pivotal time for global climate change.

The world is looking toward environmental and sustainable options for the future, and Premier Horgan let British Columbians down in failing to represent our commitment to sustainability.

The reasons that Horgan gave for continuing with the project do not have nearly enough weight to balance the negative consequences of the dam being built. He mentioned that it was a “difficult decision” for him to decide to continue its development. Dealing with the aftermath of the previous government’s choice to begin the project is an unfortunate position to be in, but he still squan-

dered his opportunity to take an environmentalist approach to being the leader of the province.

After the announcement was made, both the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association and BC Hydro were obviously pleased. Claims that the dam will reduce climate change and create enough jobs to justify its impact are easily disproved. A simple Google search of the project will bring numerous reports that show the adverse impacts of building the dam.

It will flood valuable fertile farmland, destroy Indigenous people’s land and way of life, and drown unique and fragile ecosystems housing at-risk and endangered species—all, ultimately, to create a power source and some temporary jobs.

Sustainability is becoming increasingly important to citizens. On Nov. 27, a report was released from the University of British Columbia that disproved every reason Horgan had for deciding to continue the project.

Analysis of possible alternative energy projects in the report showed that they would lead to 22 to 50 per cent more jobs created than Site C will.

The report also explained cost-effective methods of electrical energy production with less involved risk, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and less detrimental effects on ecological

An artistic rendering of the completed Site C Dam on the Peace River close to Fort St. John.

(Flickr/Province of British Columbia) habitats.

Horgan stated that he could not keep the taxpayers in B.C. on the hook for the $4 billion already sunk into the dam, but to me, money spent is money spent. That money is already gone, so why not invest in a better future for everyone? The initial budget was expected to be around $8 billion, with the updated number at $10.9 billion. The dam is to be completed by 2024, but is apparently behind schedule, and when it’s done, studies have predicted that hydro

costs in the Peace River region will soar. Citizens will still have to pay high costs for this project, all while dealing with 5,550 hectares of valuable land being flooded.

Indigenous communities such as Prophet First Nations and Moberly West Nations have said that they will pursue court rulings to stop the construction of the dam. On Nov. 11, Horgan said that said he is “not the first person to stand before you and disappoint Indigenous people” in the past 150 years. This statement could

not be more true, and yet, knowing this, he chose not to inspire change or promote equality.

I urge everyone to research the Site C Dam in full, and if you disagree with the Premier’s decision, contact your local governmental representative and have your voice heard. I do not think that the decision to continue Site C has by any means brought an end to the issue, and I really hope that, as a population, we can urge the government to make the most responsible choice.

Fentanyl Dealers Should Face Manslaughter Charges for Causing Fatal Overdoses

Offenders ought to pay the price for the 1,200 people who died from overdoses in B.C. last year ashley hyshka | community reporter Society is quick to write off the drug users on Vancouver’s streets as expendable, or as junkies unworthy of our attention and the government’s cash. Even though media covers the province’s fentanyl crisis, the reports are so frequent that they often go unnoticed, and they don’t typically mention the people who supply the fentanyl.

British Columbia has announced that it is considering stricter punishments for dealers who knowingly sell fentanyl-laced narcotics. By doing so, it follows in the steps of Alberta and Ontario, two provinces which, since October of last year, have been charging alleged fentanyl dealers with manslaughter, according to Global BC. “We strongly believe that, if you’re dealing fentanyl, you’re dealing death,” said Solicitor General Mike Farnworth in the Global BC article.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid and painkiller which is often cut with other drugs (commonly cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine), acting as a “buffer” between the various chemical components. It produces a more potent high for those taking what otherwise might be perceived as poor quality narcotics. By adding it to the product, its volume grows,

increasing the amount of money that drug dealers can make by selling one supply.

Let me put it this way—according to the CBC, a dose of fentanyl the size of a grain of sand can kill you.

Vancouver has not faced a public health crisis on this scale since the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The province must put its foot down and address the crisis from more than a public health and harm reduction vantagepoint, it must see the act of supplying fentanyl to users as an attempt to end a life.

When a criminal shoots and murders a person in the Downtown Eastside, an investigation into the homicide is launched. But when an addict buys fentanyl-laced narcotics in a back alley and dies, most of the time the people responsible for lacing the drugs go unpunished.

For those drug users, it is a sad and lonely death—and I think their deaths warrant justice.

In both scenarios, a person was killed by the actions of another.

Therefore, the sentence for knowingly dealing fentanyl should be one of

manslaughter or murder.

Who are we to decide whose life has more merit—that of a wealthy young adult who overdosed during a party, or of an addict who died alone on the street in the middle of the pouring rain? We must treat each death as the tragedy that it is.

Opponents to this notion say that increasing the prison sentence for fentanyl dealers will not make a difference in slowing the epidemic, but how can they know for sure?

Maybe the threat of facing manslaughter or murder charges will be

enough for dealers to reconsider the consequences of their actions. Until we put stiffer sentences in place for people who knowingly deal fentanyl-laced drugs, no one can be certain of whether doing so is a deterrent for that behaviour. It at least deserves to be tested out.

Fentanyl dealers show depraved indifference when it comes to ending the life of another human being. The criminal justice system should offer them the same amount of mercy.

In the heart of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside is a mural that reads, “We Are In The Middle Of An Overdose Crisis.” With 1,200 overdose deaths across the province in 2017, it is a plea which often falls on deaf ears. (Ashley Hyshka)

14 columns

Artist Spotlight: Tim the Mute

As Tim Clapp, Kingfisher Bluez, and Tim the Mute, he thrives on raw emotion and “simply not knowing the consequences”

alyssa laube | coordinating editor If you’ve ever seen Tim the Mute live, you’ll know him as the guy who smiles ear-to-ear on stage while singing about some of the bleakest topics explorable through popular music.

As a songwriter, Tim Clapp refuses to shy away from the personal and taboo; subjects like mental illness, toxic relationships, and sexuality come up often in his diary-like verses and refrains, which are regularly sprinkled with jokes and references to relieve the unavoidable tension.

During these moments, when he’s softly but surely singing about crying or masturbating (or both) and plucking at his guitar, it can be awkward, but never forgettable. That’s the first priority for a band that has been one man’s passion project ever since the days of his adolescence, which was nurtured off the Sunshine Coast of B.C. “If you’re honest and can express who you are, people will always respond to it. There’s something about seeing all of someone,” says Clapp. “I write lyrics the same way that I talk, and I want people to feel like they’re listening to me talk to them when they’re listening to the record. That’s the way that I try to

connect myself, trying to be the purest version of myself as possible, like an elevator pitch of my personality.”

That freedom of expression is why Clapp always looks so excited on stage, and the reason why he has been writing with Tim the Mute for so long. The name of the band is a throwback to the frontman’s childhood, which he spent largely without speaking, making eye contact, or feeling a sense of belonging with those around him.

He describes his persona as Tim the Mute as “an alter ego to express that side of [himself]” and “amplify this really small and quiet person that [he] was” while growing up in a small town called Roberts Creek.

There, at the ripe age of 14, Tim started booking shows with a handful of close friends to play punk in the town hall, local mom and pop diners, and now-condemned holes in the wall. This would lead him to hopping a ferry to Vancouver promptly after graduating from high school and starting his own record label, Kingfisher Bluez, which now has over 100 releases to its name.

“I think a lot of Kingfisher Bluez and a lot of my life is a testament to how much you can do by simply not knowing the consequences,” he

laughs. “Vancouver’s nice because it’s a challenge. The thing with Vancouver is that if you’re a punk, if you’re into DIY, if you’re into music, every single thing is working against you.”

“When I moved to Vancouver, I felt like the scene was really unapproachable [and] it took me a couple years of living here before I was like, ‘Maybe I’ll just start a label and put my friends’ music out,’” he says. “I had no idea that it would ever be on me. I never thought of it being a fixture of the local music scene, but now people recognize it, I think. I really only did it because I felt like there was no outlet for it.”

Now, Kingfisher Bluez is one of the only labels to press original records in Vancouver. It is a considerable player in the local music scene, regularly hosting shows, some of which promote bills featuring Tim the Mute and the bands that Clapp manages.

While the first iteration of Tim the Mute was constituted by what he describes as “the only four people on the Sunshine Coast who were into music,” he’s now playing with three other musicians who he’s grateful to call friends: Jasper Lastoria on guitar, Michael Phillet on drums, and Kyle Goddard on bass. The four of them

Tim Clapp is the face behind local record label Kingfisher Bluez and his band, Tim the Mute. (Alyssa Laube) recently toured the UK and are now preparing to release their third full album, Do In Yourself, at a local show sometime this March.

Expect to hear influences like The Replacements and Built to Spill on the album. Expect undertones of anger, abandonment, and loneliness that come with writing a breakup record. And above all else, expect

some of Tim’s trademarks: unabashedly personal lyrics, charmingly warbling, nasal vocals, and two-to-threechord songwriting with the punk heart that got him from playing in Robert’s Creek’s modest music scene to Vancouver’s over a decade ago.

Afterthought: british columbia’s circus of Proportional Representation

Electoral reform would open the door to democratic diversity, not radicalism and fringe movements BRADEN KLASSEN | PHOTO EDITOR Decisions are hard. Democracy is complicated. Would reforming the current electoral system and instituting proportional representation help make it easier for British Columbians to elect the policymakers they wish to see leading the province?

Probably. The whole point of proportional representation systems like “mixed-member proportional” or “single-transferable-vote” is to ensure that the makeup of MLAs in legislature more accurately reflects the multifaceted tastes of the electorate. These systems accomplish that by putting more weight on the number of votes for each member or party, and less weight on factors like riding size and location and cultural/ socioeconomic demographics.

But is that what we really need?

Critics of PR point out that this opens up the floodgates for fringe parties and radical interests to gain political footholds, which is true. However, oftentimes, the extent to which this will influence politics is exaggerated, even alarmist.

The fringe parties of B.C. don’t consist of shadowy alt-right brigades or radical anti-establishment saboteurs—we’re talking about the Marijuana Party, the Sex Party, the Libertarian Party, the Excalibur Party, and the Rhino Party. Who’s to say that the

addition of some members of these more colourful parties to our legislature would be all that terrible of an idea?

PR is supposed to be an antidote to many aspects of B.C.’s often bemoaned “first-past-the-post” electoral system, wherein the larger parties are given systemic advantages over smaller opposing parties. Commonly, people who support smaller parties are pressured into voting for a party they deem to be the lesser of the evils, because if they don’t, they feel like they’re wasting their vote. It’s called strategic voting, and it looks something like this: Imagine trying to order pizza for a group of five people. Two people want pepperoni, one wants cheese, one wants pineapple, and one wants anchovies. The pizza place—we’ll call them “First-Past-The-Pizza”— will only split the pizza into two different kinds, so what do you do? Pepperoni has a clear majority, so it’s up to the other three to compromise. You take a vote and explain that somebody’s going to have to give up what they want, and then you end up with a half pepperoni, half pineapple pizza.

Why? Because the anchovy person is obviously crazy and is going to stick to their fish-loving guns no matter what, and the pineapple person has principles and sees nothing wrong with pineapple as a delicious topping,

(Nicola Kwit) leaving it to the cheese supporter to break the tie.

The cheese supporter realizes that if they don’t compromise and vote for pineapple, there’s a real chance that half of the pizza could end up covered in cat food, so they strategically vote for pineapple. The pizza shows up and only 60 per cent of people there are happy with it, but at least nobody starves.

Since 1871, this is how the government of this province has been elected.

Democracy. It’s a slice.

First-past-the-post was originally developed to represent the inhabitants of England, a smallish island off the coast of continental Europe; there is an argument to be made that this style of legislation was never intended to represent a large political arena like B.C. British Columbia is seven times larger than the country of England, but we use the same electoral system.

Does that really make sense? Some British Columbians inhabit spaces

that are vastly different than others, and this diversity of views is stymied and underrepresented in our parliament.

Twentieth century journalist and author H. L. Mencken wrote, “Democracy is the art and science of running the circus from the monkey cage.”

Perhaps it’s time we get rid of the cage and let the circus have a say in running itself for a bit.

PROCRASTINATION HOROSCOPES Sagittarius Nov. 23 - Dec 21

Capricorn Dec. 22 - Jan 20

Aquarius Jan 21 - Feb 19

Have you considered spending the year as a Bog Witch?

Remember, any man who trusts himself or his family to a horse stronger than himself is lacking in common sense and wholly devoid of ordinary prudence.

Put some time in with your significant other. Go skiing together. Go hiking together. Cook dinner together. Sing a song together. FORM INTO ONE SUPER BEING AND DESTROY THE ENEMY together.

Pisces Feb 20 - Mar 20

Aries Mar 21 - Apr 19

Taurus Apr 20 - May 20

If your beau proposes to you but doesn’t give you a shrunken human skull on the end of a chain as an engagement present, you gotta be like, “Bro, where’s the skull?!”

Your career as a karate instructor will be tragically curtailed when the parents find out you are aggressively unqualified and simply enjoy kicking children.

One of these days you are going to have to confront the fact that all those years of Dungeons and Dragons prepared you for your eventual conversion to Satanism.

Gemini May 21 - Jun 20

Cancer Jun 21 - Jul 23

Leo Jul 24 - Aug 23

A surprising amount of religious texts and end-of-the-world prophesies have mentioned those hideous shoes you’re wearing.

Neato, my cheetos.

Make 2018 the year you finally prove that the moon is just the back of the sun.

Virgo Aug 24 - Sept 23

Libra Sept 24 - Oct 23

Scorpio Oct 24 - Nov 22

If you ever find yourself crying in France, to avoid embarrassment just insist that you aren’t crying, but instead, “Il pleut on mon face.”

You’re supposed to be dumpster diving for ham scraps you six piece Chicken McNobody.

This Tuesday you will learn that you can, in fact, put a price tag on happiness.

That price tag is $865, and it will buy you four unicorns from a country wizard.

SUDOKU

THE DOODLE BOX Last issue’s answers.

Look for the answers in the next issue of The Runner.

We’ve merely started the creation, you get to finish it!

Tweet a photo of your drawing with #runnerdoodles and you could be featured in the next issue!