Volume 63, Issue 5

the carillon the staff

editor-in-chief editor@carillonregina.com

taylor balfour

executive director business@carillonregina.com

jacob nelson

production manager production@carillonregina.com

morgan ortman

advertising manager advertising@carillonregina.com

ty cote

technical editor shae shackman carillontechnical@carillonregina.com multimedia/Graphics editors

kate thiessen sarah carrier mercedes redman

multimedia@carillonregina.com graphics@carillonregina.com copy editor copyeditor@carillonregina.com

hannah senicar

news editor news@carillonregina.com

sara birrell

a&c editor aandc@carillonregina.com

julia peterson

sports editor sports@carillonregina.com

ethan butterfield

op-ed editor op-ed@carillonregina.com

marty grande-sherbert

distribution manager distribution@carillonregina.com staff writer staff writer news writer

holly worby

reese estwick

a&c writer

kyle anderson

issac tamlin joseph holoein

sports writer

sarah nakonechny

web writer

gillian massie contributors isaac adeoluwa atayero, hummad ali, pratheeksha r. naik and andy tran

vol. 63

board of directors taylor balfour, lindsay holitzki, maddie ouelette, dustin smith. marty grande-sherbert, and jacob nelson

the paper

227 Riddell Center University of Regina - 3737 Wascana Parkway, Regina, SK, Canada S4S 0A2 www.carillonregina.com Ph: (306) 586 8867 Printed by Star Press Inc, Wainwright, AB The Carillon welcomes contributions.

Opinions expressed in the pages of the Carillon are expressly those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of The Carillon Newspaper Inc. Opinions expressed in advertisements appearing in the Carillon are those of the advertisers, and not necessarily of The Carillon Newspaper Inc. or its staff.

The Carillon is published no less than 11 times each semester during the fall and winter semesters and periodically throughout the summer. The Carillon is published by the Carillon Newspaper Inc., a non-profit organization. land acknowledgement The Carillon is written on treaty four territory. As such, the staff recognize that we are living, working, and telling stories on and of Indigenous lands. We recognize that we are on the traditional homelands of the Nakota, Lakota, and Dakota peoples, along with the homeland of the Métis nation. The carillon understands that it is pointless to acknowledge the land on which we work without speaking to our commitment to telling stories and prioritizing voices that further the return of the land to its place sacred place in the cultures of those that live here. the manifesto In keeping with our reckless, devil-may-care image, our office has absolutely no concrete information on the Carillon’s formative years readily available. What follows is the story that’s been passed down from editor to editor for over forty years.

In the late 1950s, the University of Regina planned the construction of several new buildings on the campus grounds. One of these proposed buildlings was a beltower on the academic green. If you look out on the academic green today, the first thing you’ll notice is that it has absolutely nothing resembling a belltower.

The University never got a belltower, but what it did get was the Carillon, a newspaper that serves as a symbolic bell tower on campus, a loud and clear voice belonging to each and every student.

the people’s friend; the tyrant’s foe

The University of Regina Students’ Newspaper Since 1962 September 17 - 23, 2020 | Volume 63, Issue 5 | carillonregina.com

news

Library open

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We have some good news! Everything else might be going to shit, but at least the library is (kinda) open, right?

Welcome back!

Thanks again to our amazing multimedia team, and Sarah in specific, for another amazing cover this week. We have so many amazing stories, opinions, and thoughts for you to read!

arts

Winter 2021 online

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Despite all hope, we are once again looking at another semester online.

Gillian Massie speaks to students and professors about the challenges they’ve experienced so far.

Drag Race Canada

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An exposed booty brings a little controversy in the first season of Canada’s Drag Race, but is the backlash warranted?

op-ed

sports

If you’re interested in having some of those thoughts be yours, don’t hesitate to reach out. All contributors will be compensated for their work.

Enjoy this issue!

Taylor Balfour Editor-in-Chief

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cover................................sarah carrier news.....................wikipedia commons news.......................................need pix a&c..............................................pikist a&c.........................................ava wild sports............................u of r athletics op-ed.........................................pxfuel

Artist spotlight: TOVA

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After his tenure as URSU prez, Victor Oriola brings some music in to our lives with TOVA.

Scholarly strike

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Indigenous people are often excluded from organized sports, which is why Taylor Balfour is calling for Canadian sports institutions to step up.

Covid stress test

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After months of isolation, Hummad Ali reflects on the impact Covid-related stress is having on our crtical thinking and mental wellbeing.

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editor: sara birrell news@carillonregina.com the carillon | september 17 - september 23, 2020

E-proctoring Part 2: Electric Booglaoo Potential privacy violations loom large

isaac tamlin news writer The University of Regina has done little to assuage the concerns many students are having regarding Proctortrack’s e-proctoring software. It’s also become painfully clear that the university does not care about students’ concerns and are determined to continue on their path of disregarding student’s privacy, mental health, and their ability to be their most successful.

Since last week the University of Regina has proceeded to release a “Remote Proctoring FAQ” listing many of the common concerns students are having about this e-proctoring software. To no one’s surprise, they haven’t managed to truly address any of them.

First of all their document states a couple of new things that bring up additional concerns among students. Primarily among them are student IDs for new students, particularly international students that might be out of the country. New students (or students that lost their ID) are required to send in a photo of themselves to be used as their new ID. This of course puts an excess burden on new and international students.

Another concern is the fact that “Proctortrack software records what is shown by the student’s webcam, and also what happens on the student’s computer screen, including all software that is running.” The issue with this of course, is that students might not even have software that is running but still showing notifications. For example, there are many apps that show notifications even when you’re not using them, such as Steam, Discord, Slack, Outlook, email, etc. Many of them have the potential to share potential sensitive data on their screen, which may be flagged as cheating and require a professor to go and look at them, seeing the potentially sensitive student data. It’s unreasonable to expect a student to uninstall all the apps on their personal computers just in order to take an exam. Besides that fact, that means accidentally minimizing an exam window allows the review to see all the files on a person’s desktop, again potentially showing sensitive private data.

That’s not even close to the invasion of privacy they admit to further down on the FAQ. “Be aware of what may be viewed by your webcam and, when possible, position the webcam to avoid recording pictures, documents or other objects containing personal images or information.” This creates a problem for many students.

If they want to take an exam in their room, they have to redecorate their room in order to keep potentially private items from appearing on the webcam. The only other option would be to take an exam outside of their personal

bedroom, which has it’s own issues, especially for people living in households with more than one person, because if you move outside of your own room you run the risk of someone walking into frame, or a conversation being overheard by your audio system and flagged as cheating.

Hannah Tait, a fourth-year student pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Bachelor of Business Administration at the University of Regina said in a draft of a letter addressed to the University that: “ProctorTrack is located within the United States. They claim to store data from Canadians on Canadian servers, so the Patriot Act does not apply. Even if the Patriot Act does not apply, there are other acts and policies

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exams. As pointed out by many students and teachers, there are other options that could be used in lieu of e-proctoring that are both less invasive, less work to implement, and better suited at assessing a student’s knowledge.

Using Zoom to watch students during exams is less invasive, and wouldn’t require students to have a third-party store information and use AI to flag people. Timed tests would reduce opportunity for cheating. Designing exams to test application of knowledge rather than straight regurgitation could also be used.

Multiple students have also brought up issues with the extra strain this is causing on student’s mental health. Elias Maze, a concerned student, has approached media and has sent messages to

enough time or information to make an educated decision due to the stressful time of year and conversion to online learning.”

Tait also had a number of points regarding the e-proctoring software and its various flaws, in particular its racial bias.

“Artificial intelligence (AI) is a feature of ProctorTrack used to automatically detect potential misconduct. AI has been recognized as a great tool, but it has flaws when it comes to identifying minority communities such as people of colour, elderly, or female. Developers tell the program what is suspicious. A large portion of software developers are Caucasian, able-bodied, cis men.

Facial recognition with artificial intelligence is undoubtedly new territory for society with many

Mandatory use of a program that uses artificial intelligence is potentially furthering institutionalized discrimination… Can we guarantee that the user experience of installing and using this software will provide an equal opportunity for all students to do well academically?

that would give the United States government access to our personal information. According the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data Act, CLOUD Act, American institutions can request to have our information regardless of where the data is stored. Additionally, information is stored for up to two years. In this climate it would not be a far leap to think ProctorTrack could be bought out, or put new policies in place, or have a data breech in the next two years. Once the biometric and identity data is submitted it is out of students, or the universities control. How many people will see this information without our knowledge?”

Even on a small scale Tait went on to say, “The movement of information through the professors network rests on the university and professors to protect the information they have access to. Are professors competent with security? What are the security protocols staff follow during work from home? Do their partners, roommates, or children have access to their computers?”

Which brings us to the next point, which is the fact that this will put extra strain on teachers and TAs. In an in-person proctoring exam, one professor can watch over all their students and make sure they’re not cheating.

In an e-proctored exam, each student has to be reviewed individually, meaning a lot more hours having to be put in by teachers and TAs to ensure the validity of

– Hannah Tait

the president and U of R administrator voicing concerns not just about privacy, but also students’ mental health. Tait also notes some of these concerns in regards to mental health.

“The installation of the software is an added stress point and invasion of privacy before the exam even starts. Additionally, when there is an issue with the software, students are expected to contact Proctortrack to rectify the issue. This is an added stressful responsibility with added security risks. Contacting a third party during a final puts exam performance at risk due to stress and availability of customer service.

Finally, students are not given

unexplored consequences, but the university is trusting it to monitor our diverse student population to maintain academic integrity.

Government bodies, Google, big banks and many other organizations recognize there are biases, sometimes racial, present in some artificial intelligence. Mandatory use of a program that uses artificial intelligence is potentially furthering institutionalized discrimination. Can we guarantee that students of colour or students with disabilities won’t be flagged then investigated disproportionately? Can we guarantee that the user experience of installing and using this software will provide an equal opportunity for all students

to do well academically?”

In an interview with Art Exner, Associate Vice-President of Information Services at the University of Regina, he reiterated this: “It is important to maintain a perspective and understanding that this is new to the university and there is an understanding that students and teachers are both learning to use it. There are a lot of adaptations students and teachers are learning and wondering how to achieve learning outcomes. Proctoring is certainly something that does raise concerns and it is important that we give voice to those concerns and the ability to consider and respond to them in a thoughtful manner. These are systems are not without their side effects and we need to acknowledge that they exist and we need to understand that a group of very thoughtful individuals did weigh lots of thought on these that led to the decision on the whole that proctoring was an important thing for the university to implement.”

It’s obvious the university has resolved to wait for e-proctoring to prove itself to be the failure that many students are already concerned it will be. While they claim to be listening to students’ concerns, they have done nothing to help address them. Students should have the right to review the agreement signed by the University with Proctortrack to see what exactly they agreed on, and what this is costing the University and students. While you might not see a charge on your transcript that directly says “eProctoring,” it is still an extra thing the University has spent money on, especially when they claim there is no money to reduce tuition. By that time the results come back on the utility of Proctortrack it may already be too late, further causing students stress, affecting their academic performance, and adding to an already tumultuous 2020.

Mike Mozart

Track me.

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

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Archer library open for (some) business Library offering limited services hammad ali contributer The University of Regina’s Fall 2020 semester commenced in early September. Most instruction is being managed online, and students, staff, and faculty members alike are being encouraged to only visit campus when absolutely necessary. How are different university services adapting to these circumstances, and what can students expect to help them navigate the semester? We spoke to the University librarian, Mr. Brett Waytuck, to find out what the Archer Library is doing to support students during the Fall 2020 semester.

At present, the Archer library is still not completely open to students. However, since the beginning of the Fall term, there are 40 computers and 17 solo study spaces available for students to book online. These are all located on the main floor, and students can make a booking for up to three hours at a time. In light of the current circumstances, computers and study spots are not available for walk-in use. The library’s collections are not available for students to browse in person; only the main floor is currently open.

However, students are able to make requests for specific books they need, which can then be

picked up from the hallway by the Archer entrance. Unless subject to recall, all loans are good till the end of the Fall 2020 term. This is a change from the standard loan period of three weeks for undergraduate students. On a related note, the library waived all late fees until August 31, but has now reintroduced them since students are able to check out books for pickup or recall books. The library is also working on lockers where books will be placed for students to scan their student cards and pick up the material requested with minimal personal interaction. These are expected to be operational by the end of September. For access to archives, microfilms, and other special collections, arrangements can be made by emailing archives@uregina.ca.

Unfortunately, hardware like laptops, tablets, etc. are not available for loan until further notice.

Also for the Fall 2020 semester, textbooks being used for courses are not being placed on reserve. Instead, the library is working with faculty members to ensure that appropriate resources are being made available to students, usually through UR Courses. Students are also able to request books from any of the campus libraries, with all pickups being centrally handled by Archer. Among the other libraries on campus, Campion and Lu-

Wikipedia Commons

Archer Library

ther are closed. The First Nations University Library is open for limited hours, and has sign-in and screening processes in place for the duration of the Fall semester.

While in person facilities and services have had to be minimized, the library is working on supplementing these with online resources and services. The bulk of the resources in Archer library are available online, 24/7, for anyone with a valid student account and internet access regardless of their physical location.

Students are also able to book Zoom appointments with staff and/or librarians for consultation

or guidance with any project they are working on. Appointments can also be made to schedule an in-person visit to the library for access to special resources. The library is also in consultation with Hathitrust Digital Library. Once a formal agreement has been established, Archer Library will be able to circulate additional material in electronic format that is currently not possible to disseminate due to copyright concerns.

When asked about what to expect in the coming months, Mr. Waytuck mentioned that the library will be watching the University administration, and Ca-

nadian post-secondary institutes in general, to gradually work towards offering more services.

They are also always very keen on hearing feedback from all library users on what is working, and what more they could be doing under the circumstances. A summary of all the current services and operating procedures can be found at the following URL: https://uregina.libguides.com/ covid-19/students. Students are also able to consult a librarian about their needs and concerns through online chat at https:// www.uregina.ca/library/help/ chat-service.html.

Disappointment from students as Winter 2020 goes online COVID isn’t done with us gillian massie web writer With the 2021 Winter Semester to remain online, many students who thought the COVID-19 pandemic precautions would only be temporary will now have to adjust to online learning for two terms.

While the precautions are set to make sure students and staff remain healthy and safe, many students are frustrated with not being able to return for the winter semester. Furthermore, many students are having difficulty with online learning so far in the semester.

Fatigue and headaches are a common symptom of many students who are staring at their computer screens all day. Furthermore, many students find it difficult focus on lectures because there is not the connection between professors and students.

Chloe Gill, a second-year psychology student expanded on why it is difficult to connect with professors. “Quite often, even back when classes were in person, I would zone out and daydream as I just couldn’t stay focused, Gill said. “In person at least, I could snap back into it knowing I was in a classroom. Now that it’s online, I don’t have any pressure, per se, to keep my brain in line.”

To be on top of schoolwork, many students have compiled lists and purchased planners to make

sure their assignments were handed in on time. Even while being well prepared, students are still anxious about accidentally missing an assignment or exam.

“For me and I’m sure lots of other students, you always feel like you are missing a due date,” remarked Kori McGonigal, a second-year elementary education student.

As a new adjustment to learning for students and staff, it requires critics on both ends. For students, you need to try to be as attentive as possible, raise your hand, not physically, but by pressing the button, and make sure you turn off your microphone after speaking into it.

Advice for staff was expanded on by Gill, who wants reassurance from her professors. “Sending out an email the week of an important due date, like a quiz or major assignment, reminding [students] that they are due.”

Being removed from the university learning environment causes distractions. With financial difficulties caused by the effects of the pandemic, many students struggled to find work causing them to return to their families for the school year. Having a quiet and clean workspace is important for students to achieve academic success.

Although tuition rates were announced to remain flat, many still wish to receive relief from high tuition costs.

“They should decrease the fees because it’s too difficult for [students to pay] in this pandemic,” explained one student, “there are no job opportunities.”

The learning adjustments have caused high stress because students are trying to balance their schoolwork with making enough time away from the computer to relax and recharge. However, with the implementation of the new Proctortrack e-proctoring software for exams, many students are upset by potentially harmful and extremely intrusive

software. The software requires biometric authentication, which can’t be guaranteed to remain secure.

Gill expressed her anxiety towards the third-party software: “Why implement a proctoring service that would be easy for outside sources to hack?” [Editor’s note: Proctortrack’s FAQ says the company will maintain a security program that is “reasonably” designed to protect student privacy, confidentiality, and security. They also indicate that they will allow a “successor entity” to take over control of students’ information follow-

ing a merger or acquisition “provided the successor entity is subject to these same commitments”].

With the new term in full swing, many new experiences and learning curves will be thrown at students and staff members. Despite difficulties of online learning, many students are still grateful to be returning to classes.

Ultimately, McGonigal shows her support for continuing education: “We are lucky enough to get the opportunity that we can still be able to continue our studies online during this crazy time.”

Nedd Pix

R U Okay?

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

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As Canada’s first female finance minister, Freeland has a complicated legacy Imperial girlboss energy

gillian massie, sara birrell web writer, news editor With a highly decorated history and a diverse range of professions (journalist, author, politician), Chrystia Freeland is hardly unqualified for her new role as finance minister. But what can Canadians expect from the first woman to take this role?

With the hasty exit of Bill Morneau in the wake of this summer’s WE charity scandal, Chrystia Freeland becomes the first female finance minister in Canada.

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Doing a feminism

something that will benefit the Canadian economy more than austerity.

Freeland began her career as a journalist, receiving her education from Harvard University, then continuing to the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.

She worked for legacy media organizations such as the Washington Post and the Economist, later taking on senior roles at the Globe and Mail as Deputy Editor, and for Financial Times as Deputy Editor

doorway to her career in Parliament. After winning re-election for the University-Rosedale area, she was welcomed into the Cabinet as the new Minister of International Trade in 2015.

Freeland negotiated the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) Canada’s free trade agreement with the European Union, a keystone of her political career which was successfully signed on October 30, 2016, following a dramatic walk-

whose stated purpose was to interfere in Venezuela’s domestic affairs. As the South American petrostate’s economy flagged to crisis levels and President Nicolas Maduro failed to maintain the popularity of Hugo Chavez, who died in 2013, the Lima Group nations saw the opportunity to extinguish the remnants of Chavismo and the Bolivarian revolution. Freeland, along with the rest of the Lima Group, backed a failed coup by opposition leader

Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs. Her most notable contribution within the last year has been her battle to lower U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum.

Coming back up to date, a few weeks ago she was sworn in as the first female Finance Minister in Canada. With all things considered, there is a huge list of pros and cons.

On September 15, the U.S. government announced they would back off on a 10 per cent-

Canada’s finance minister is now more essential than ever amidst the COVID-19 crisis, as this is the person responsible for ensuring that the restructuring of Canada’s economy is equitable and fair.

It’s another step towards a more gender-neutral government, although putting more women in positions of power doesn’t necessarily translate into an improvement in the material conditions of the lives of ordinary women.

Canada’s finance minister is now more essential than ever amidst the COVID-19 crisis, as this is the person responsible for ensuring that the restructuring of Canada’s economy is equitable and fair. Freeland does not have a typical finance background, which may be considered risky, however many observers say she is more likely than Morneau to be liberal with social spending,

and U.S managing author. She also published two books, Sale of the Century: The Inside Story of the Second Russian Revolution, and Plutocrats: The Rise of the New Global Super-Rich and the Fall of Everyone Else, for which she received the Lionel Gerber Prize and the National Business Book Award. At a book signing for Plutocrats she met Justin Trudeau, which began their partnership.

In 2013, Freeland left the writing world to pursue a career in politics and had her first major success by winning the party nomination for the University-Rosedale area, opening the

out by Freeland. She also re-negotiated the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which is now known as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), and was signed successfully at the end of 2019.

In 2017 she was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, where she demonstrated her willingness to advance Canadian imperialism and meddle in the domestic affairs of other American states, contrary to the OAS charter.

Under Freeland’s leadership as Foreign Affairs Minister, Canada helmed the Lima Group, an organization of American states

Juan Guido, falsely claiming that Venezuela’s 2017 elections were fraudulent.

Freeland has also been called out for failing to denounce her grandfather, Michael Chomiak, a Ukranian nationalist and Nazi collaborator who was the chief editor of an antisemitic newspaper. While none of us, including Freeland, are culpable for the actions of our ancestors, all of us, including Freeland, are responsible for denouncing Nazism and antisemitism.

In 2019, Freeland was appointed by Trudeau as the Deputy Prime Minister of Canada and

tariff on aluminum after Freeland announced that Canada would “impose dollar-for-dollar countermeasures” in response.

Being a highly decorated, experienced, and popular candidate, Freeland has proven her own individual strength as a political leader. Her competency is not in doubt. However, many of her decisions, like the decision to back the Lima Group, show an anti-democratic bent that Canadians should be concerned about, especially considering Freeland’s star is likely to only keep rising.

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editor: julia peterson aandc@carillonregina.com the carillon | september 17 - september 23, 2020

Canada’s Drag Race judge faces backlash after performance critique Was a judge’s comment body shaming, or valid performance critique?

holly worby staff writer For years, Ru Paul’s Drag Race has been a beacon of hope around the world for those in the queer community. It showcases gender fluidity, performance art, reality TV, queer history lessons, soap-level drama, and some of the most impressive make-up and costume artistry I have ever seen.

Granted, I have also seen some of the worst make-up and costume artistry on the show, but they can’t all be winners, right?

In the past, the American version of Ru Paul’s Drag Race in

Pickist

Canada’s Drag Race aired its first season this year on Crave TV.

ic events that have transpired this year (my sincerest condolences to the generations who will have to study 2020 in their history course), Canada’s Drag Race aired its first season over the past few months on Crave. Rather than having one judge making the decision on who stays or sashays away, the Canadian spin-off employed three main judges with varying areas of expertise.

The first of these judges is Brooke Lynn Hytes herself, making her the first contestant to become a full-time judge in

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the bush when she was truly disappointed in someone’s runway performance, but she was speaking from years of personal experience, and the queens who took her tips quickly rose to the top.

The final judge for the Canadian show is Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman, a biracial gay man from Alberta with experience in both modelling and acting. His expertise was often called on for the acting challenges where he would coach the queens on everything from their expression to their essence. In the “Meet Your

queens what they can do to improve. I really respect Lemon for saying in an interview with NOW Magazine that “The judges are asked to critique us and are asked to better us. Part of their job is to break down every little thing about every girl. At the end of the day, I signed up to get critiqued.”

The critique that sparked controversy came from Bowyer-Chapman who, when critiquing Ilona Verley’s assless chaps in episode 6, said “I think that your mug is painted so gorgeously.

When I see that (bum) and a little

show’s fans continued to harass and verbally abuse Bowyer-Chapman, and he wound up deleting his twitter to distance himself from the abuse.

What I’d like to explain here is that there’s a difference between critiquing someone’s body and critiquing their performance and presentation. I saw this critique similarly to when Bowyer-Chapman told Jimbo in episode 4 that if she wants to paint her face and chest white for a visual effect, she needs to paint all her exposed skin, or it ruins the illusion she’s trying to create. Verley had the

These queens entered a drag competition with the goal to win, and the judges’ critiques are meant to help them do that.

— Holly Worby

the United States has allowed participation from international queens. Bebe Zahara Benet from Cameroon, Ongina from the Philippines, Kim Chi from South Korea, and Vivacious from Jamaica all became quick fan favourites in their respective seasons. The personal favourite for many avid watchers here in the north (myself included) was Brooke Lynn Hytes, a Canadian who placed second in season 11 to Yvie Oddly, and placed in the top three more often than any other contestant. Hytes was in the top three for nine separate weeks in her season – her consistency was astounding.

Among the dozens of histor-

franchise history. Hytes is a professional ballet dancer and an internationally-known drag queen who conducts herself with grace and poise that rivals Mama Ru’s.

Given that she’d gone through the experience of the competition herself, she could sympathize most with the ups and downs Canada’s queens experienced through the season.

Stacey McKenzie – a model and runway modelling coach who has also judged on Canada’s Next Top Model – Is the second of the three. Her advice throughout the season proved invaluable to the queens when it came to presentation and confidence in the delivery of their performances.

McKenzie wouldn’t beat around

Judges” video by Digital Spy GB, he said with a smile that “Our intention is to be of service to these queens and allow them to shine so we can show the world what we got up here in Canada.” Unfortunately, “what we got up here in Canada” at the moment is a whirlwind of cyberbullying and harassment.

There was moderate pushback from the queens regarding the judges’ critiques from day one, and it was one particular judge’s critique that seems to have been the catalyst for this current whirlwind. As someone who’s watched all of Ru Paul’s Drag Race, I’m rarely surprised when the judges give harsh critiques, since it’s their job to tell the competing

turnaround, a little full coverage foundation may have helped you out.” This comment was intended to mean that foundation on Verley’s exposed bum would have brought their look together better.

Hordes of audience members perceived that comment as Bowyer-Chapman body shaming Verley, and quickly jumped to social media on the offense. Hytes attempted to mediate later that night by saying “This was not meant as body-shaming whatsoever. From where we were sitting on the judges’ panel we could see red bumps and stuff that comes from shaving that we all get ... that’s where that critique was coming from.” Sadly this comment didn’t satisfy; scores of the

rest of their being decked out to the nines, so having no make-up on an area they were emphasizing took the audience out of the drag-illusion. It was a critique of Verley’s performance and presentation, not their body.

Here’s really what it boils down to: these queens entered a drag competition with the goal to win, and the judges’ critiques are meant to help them do that. The queens are there to give their best effort and the judges help them see what they could improve on because they have lived experiences these queens don’t have, and perspectives these queens may not be able to see from yet.

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

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A musing on the music of Oliver Riot This underrated bands shares a manager with Billie Eilish and FINNEAS

joseph holoein arts writer

Released in November of 2015, Oliver Riot’s five song EP Hallucinate is everything ethereal.

With a band composed of identical twin brothers, both multi-instrumentalists, Alexander and Benjamin Moore are phenomenal.

The brothers lived in Peru for the first five years of their childhood before moving to New Mexico, where they started playing Django Reinhardt-influenced Gypsy Jazz in coffee shops, brew-

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ent Showcase. With many other first place awards, the dynamic duo is far from finished.

What strikes people the most about the band is that they are relatively obscure. How does a band with so much talent not instantaneously receive their due?

Nevertheless, we can collectively expect to see this band rise to the top in the next year or two. Why? Because, while they are certainly talented, they also share a manager with Billie Eilish, FINNEAS and a number of other great artists: Danny Rukasin.

Who? Danny Rukasin.

tions “I” and “you,” perhaps it’s talking about the divide between mind and body. That feeling of losing control when the mind goes to the right, but the body shuffles left. This separation of oneself seems to be supported by the line, “Oh I’ve cracked, oh I.” It is a slow division of one into two.

Personally, my two favourite songs are “Ivory Black” and “Alcatraz.” Both are like sifting through the black sands of hell in search of something lost. The whole EP is some existential exploration. The songs are all connected by the duo’s life experienc-

Brothers, “Ivory Black” represents, “the confusion that comes from the increasingly deafening silence cabin fever has on the mind as it becomes more and more lost.”

In describing their music video for “Ivory Black,” they said, “From one moment to the next the character [in the video] neurotically shouts at her demons, then laughs with them in sombering surrender, attempting to hold on to a thin line between mania and reality,” a feeling they claim, “we’re both very familiar with.”

This is a truly beautiful mad-

twins clearly hold a special love of words and emotions. Their lyrics are sharp and poetic and the feelings presented are an immersive experience worth the listen.

Songs within this EP overlap in their sound and lyrics like an intricately woven tapestry all meant for the same purpose of exposing a twilight from within.

Shared themes of melancholy, emotion, and self-rejection make this EP feel like one “hallucination.”

From another perspective, the EP looks like one big love song to the self. A reflection and

Songs within this EP overlap in their sound and lyrics like an intricately woven tapestry all meant for the same purpose of exposing a twilight from within.

— Joseph Holoein

eries, and numerous street corners in Albuquerque.

According to Wikipedia, “The album was produced in its entirety by Real Miilk in the back room of a Korean Church. Alex lived in his van parked outside of the church while creating the record, and both brothers continued to do so while recording the duo’s next album.”

Their success led them to L.A., where they received first place at the Grammys L.A. Tal-

“Ben and Alex blend ethereal tropes and soothing melodies, along with unique conceptual expression about certain moments in our human condition and understanding of the world – all which has inspired fans all over the world in a way you don’t see often with other artists – and it’s beautiful,” he said.

The EP’s first song is called “We Popped the Moon.” It focuses on a regretful relapse into some past pattern. While the song men-

es.

When I searched, “what is ivory black?” I found out that it’s a pigment made from ivory or bone usually used in drawing or painting.

And now we know why the first line of the song says, “Crumple my bones, weave like the road.” With the name of the song being “Ivory Black,” the artists are emphasizing that the song derives from their very own bones.

According to the Moore

ness.

They additionally commented, “The mirage serves as a reflection of our own daily process – tangibly safe within the walls of a ‘literal home,’ while simultaneously wading in and out of delusion, lost in other realities.”

While the lyrics passionately describe the mixed sensations of suffering and insanity, the artists together delve depths unfathomable in the explication of their own human consciousness. The

realization of who the artists are as human beings. It celebrates the beauty in feeling low.

Oliver Riot shares momentary experiences in such a unique light, “I wanna be loud like white wine after a glass, warm like the sunshine kissing my back.” It’s hard to believe they only have a Youtube following of 4.25k.

Check out their EP and their new music and you will not be disappointed.

Oliver Riot

“I wanna be loud like white wine after a glass, warm like the sunshine kissing my back.”

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

carillonregina.com | the carillon |

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UR Courses header remains unchanged for Fall 2020 To everything, turn, turn, turn...

shae sackman technical editor

As a brief moment of respite from the controversial invigilation software currently lurking beneath the University of Regina’s UR Courses framework, you could contemplate trying to adjust to the new normal of a remote semester and the online learning environment being used to facilitate that.

With the Winter 2021 term announced to look much the same as our current one, UR Courses, the University’s online learning environment, is serving as our new classroom. The software underneath it, Moodle, is open

source, meaning that the code that runs the software is viewable to the public for modification, expanding upon or studying. This collaborative approach can make fixing bugs or errors, using the code in unique implementations, and creating new useful widgets for all much more accessible.

UR Courses’ unique implementation of this software has always featured a changing photograph of some of the stunning art around our beautiful campus.

The past years have featured outdoor, large-scale sculptures - a past winter semester featured a photograph of the late Joe Fafard’s Le jardin de l’esprit (Mind’s Garden). Depicting the history of

the province Fafard grew up in, this bronze piece evokes the importance of building experiencing things together as a community. This theme seems especially pointed as students at the University of Regina struggle together to face the many challenges and impacts of doing our best amid a pandemic.

Students are not the only ones doing their best in incredibly bizarre circumstances. The University of Regina IT department has been thrown a completely new set of expectations and needs from learners and teachers alike. Supporting a massive shift to remote learning and all the accompanying headaches with-

Kate Theissen

Our digital classroom space is missing its usual fall makeover

out the benefit of in-person collaboration is no simple task. With the world buying up technology and equipment as everyone else makes this same change, and the need to adapt to the new situation before then being able to teach others how to adapt, IT is doing a commendable job being flexible and accommodating.

However. September 2 came and went. The new semester began. In the shuffle of service outages and login problems on the first day of classes as systems were taxed with increased traffic. And the photograph in the background of the UR Courses environment remained the same as before. The UR Courses login landing page currently features a wonderfully balanced photo of Lionel Peyachew’s The Four Directions. Referencing the traditional Indigenous teaching tool of the Medicine Wheel, this industrial construction made with steel pipe and cable takes on an interesting form, becoming a curved, inflexible manifestation of a fluid form of knowledge gained from the land.

The Four Directions is no less striking this semester.

People use the seasons changing to mark the passage of time,

a signifier. An opportunity for a miniature New Year, a new starting point, the re-engagement with a specific set of tasks appropriate to the months. The pandemic has created a sort of liminal space that persists in a sort of never ending sequence of days that end in ‘y’.

The cues of seasonal activities and events on campus are absent and as students move forward, it seems like something is missing from the cycle of University life.

Being disappointed by the UR Courses online learning environment background photograph not changing when a new semester started this fall may initially seem a bit silly. But being greeted with a piece of our campus every morning when logging on is an opportunity for students to identify with their community. The physical space of the University of Regina is sorely missed by all, and using a very non-flashy, standard, out-of-the-box feature of Moodle’s core functionality to remind students of their campus home is a nice thing to be greeted with when completing the nth forum post required for their class.

How I keep calm: Throwback movies

A series featuring the different ways students are finding peace and contentment during the pandemic

gillian masie contributer As I sit here writing on a Saturday night at the beginning of the school year, I can’t help but reminisce on how Saturday nights were when I was a kid. Most weeks, Dad made homemade pizza, and then we would go to the local gas station and rent movies.

Now, I was well aware that Netflix was the newest, innovative streaming platform when I was eleven, and despite the urging proclamations from myself and other family members, my Dad refused to subscribe. Now, my Dad does not know how the internet works and probably never will, and since we only got rid of our old box television a year ago, Netflix was out of the question.

To make do, we either watched movies on our trusty DVD/VCR player or rented from the gas station.

Since I left home a few weeks ago, I have been weathering the stresses of online learning by enjoying some of my all-time favourite throwback movies. I started

with the Dreamworks classic, Kung-Fu Panda. The animated film stars Po, an out-of-shape panda struggling to learn kung-fu as he trains to fulfill his duty as the Dragon Warrior and defeat the villainous Tai Lung. The movie is hilarious from start to finish, as viewers watch Po’s struggles and successes with ridiculously enjoyable fight scenes peppered with comedic remarks.

Kung-Fu Panda will remain one of my favorite nostalgic movies for its action and humour. Po always makes me laugh, particularly when his food-oriented goals lead to his success in the Jade Palace. Furthermore, I will never forget walking out of the theater with my Dad giggling about Master Shifu’s secret move, the Wuxi Finger Hold.

I love a good adventure story, which is why I then moved on to rewatching The Princess Bride. After her love, Westley, dies at sea Princess Buttercup – unfortunately engaged to Prince Humperdink – Is kidnapped. Buttercup’s kidnapping is soon thwarted by the Dread Pirate Roberts, who

turns out to be Westley all along.

With Westley and Buttercup reunited, they have to stop Prince Humperdinck from separating the two from their happily ever after.

The Princess Bride is a fabulously fun film filled with quick quips and fast paced action sequences, including sword fights, chase scenes, and one epic swamp. Not only are all the characters loveable, but the side characters really elevate the story. From Vizzini shouting “inconceivable” at every possible moment to swashbuckling swordsman Inigo Montoya and the loveable Fezzik, the film is fabulous fun tied together by true love. The movie is a great stress relief, with an easy to follow plot and lots of laughs.

The nostalgia tour continues with my favourite Disney musical, Hercules. Following the journey of Hercules on his road to success, dodging all obstacles the evil Hades throws at him, Hercules is a Greek dream uplifted by its fantastic soundtrack. The dynamic Megara is a unique take on an anti-damsel-in-destress which is

How have you been keeping calm during the pandemic?

refreshing to see in a Disney movie. The Muses, a Greek chorus of five awesome women, narrate the movie with outstanding, powerhouse musical numbers including “Zero to Hero” and “The Gospel Truth.” The Hercules soundtrack was always a source of enjoyment for me and my mom – the lighthearted, joyful tunes kept us tapping our toes until the final scene.

A few honorable mentions to my throwback movie list include Indiana Jones, Flushed Away, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, and The Nightmare Before Christmas. My family particularly loves adventure movies, musicals and comedies.

The movie that circulated on repeat in my home was the claymation film Coraline.

Coraline, a curious, adventure seeking girl who is fed up with her parents, ventures one day through a mysterious door in the wall that leads to a utopian world. Her “Other Mother” gives her anything she wants, but Coraline soon finds out she has ulterior motives.

Coraline’s plucky and loyal

personality is a dynamic combo, and her talking cat sidekick is a scene-stealer. Furthermore, Coraline’s wacky neighbors add a bit of flair to the unique plot. The story of Coraline might be unusually spooky for a children’s movie, but since my mom and I both love Halloween, we ate it up.

Growing up, watching movies with my parents on Saturday evenings was a highlight of the week. While watching by myself has not been the same as watching with them, it brings back memories of the times my mom made popcorn and I made pillow forts for the complete family movie night experience.

At the end of the day when I return to my dorm, and bury myself in bed with my laptop, I find a lot of comfort with watching movies from my childhood. It still gives me something to look forward to as I continue to search for even more movies to add to my nostalgia playlist.

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

carillonregina.com | the carillon |

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Moving at a different frequency

How TOVA changed lanes and made waves isaac adeoluwa atayero contributer On June 1, student musician TOVA took to Instagram to thank his followers and supporters for getting his debut single “Fleeting’’ (feat. Tami) to 3,500 streams on Spotify. It was a moment of reflection for the singer and a true testament to the difference a year can make. This time last year, the persona TOVA wasn’t in existence. In fact, everyone referred to TOVA with a different name – his given name, Victor Adeolu Oriola.

Oriola was about to enter his third year as a Psychology major at the university and had been occupying the role of student body president of University of Regina’s Student’s Union for a couple months after a landslide victory. There were many things on the mind of the new URSU executive but music making was not one of them.

“This time last year I was focused on having a successful term as URSU President and navigating the welcome week events,” Oriola said.

The focus definitely paid off because Oriola truly did have a successful term. Whether it was tackling food insecurity in the student population by increasing the number of times the URSU Pantry and URSU breakfast took place, employing the services of a Sexual Health Outreach Coordinator or even implementing a summer U-Pass, Oriola and team gave their constituents their best.

Sometimes, however, the best

is not enough.

This was the case when Oriola lost the presidential race for a second term earlier this year to Gurjinder Singh Lehal. After giving so much of himself to a job that he cared so much about, Oriola had to find a way to find a new normal in his new reality.

It was time for him to start a new journey with an old friend, music.

“The result of the election allowed me to focus on new projects that excite me and allowed me to reinvent myself,” he said. “Being surrounded by a lot of talented musicians that are continually striving to improve motivated me to be brave and try something I could immerse myself and channel my energy.”

Enter TOVA. Everything about Oriola’s journey as an artist has been marked with intentionality and elevation. His debut single, “Fleeting” (feat. Tami), was released on May 15 to much acclaim as the same students who used to share his election campaign posters began to share the artwork for his new song. It was a weird time for everyone.

“The music and the self expression that comes with it marked a shift from the perception that people otherwise have of me,” Oriola said. “That, by itself, is fairly dramatic in its own right and did not necessarily require any additional effort to delineate the difference between the two facets of my life.”

While TOVA’s music was well received, he joined artists all over the world in figuring out how to promote new material during a

pandemic and a time of social unrest.

“While there are more important issues to be addressed than the publication of music, it is also important for us as a society to have stories portraying Black people outside of the lens of victims fighting against unjust systems,” he said. “While we should call attention to these unjust systems, it is also important for us to create a space for Black expression.”

Following the events which occurred at the time of the release, TOVA took a break from promoting “Fleeting” and worked to draw attention to social issues. He performed a cover of Cynthia Erivo’s “Stand Up” at the Black Lives Matter protest in Regina with a group of musicians and continued to advocate for BIPOC lives everywhere.

During this time, however, he was also putting the finishing touches on his upcoming debut EP and his latest record, “Frequency” (feat. Zweii). Creating during this time was essential to the singer/songwriter because for him it is essential to show that “there is space for Black people to succeed – to tell stories in which they are protagonists and removed from the conventional framing where they are often portrayed as people that things happen to. We need to tell stories of people doing cool and awesome things too.”

TOVA has indeed been doing awesome things. “Frequency,” which was released on August 28, has already amassed over 2,500

Isaac Adeoluwa Atayero

Victor Adeolu Oriola has reinvented himself as TOVA

listens across all streaming platforms. He performed a four song set at Regina’s oldest music venue, The Exchange, and has had his music played on 91.3FM CJTR and CBC Radio One Saskatoon.

While all these accomplishments are remarkable in their own right, it is his work ethic that truly stands out as exceptional.

His frequent collaborator and A-list mixing engineer, Walter Ernest, describes watching TOVA make music at Blue Door Recording as nothing short of genius.

“Not only is he an exceptional vocalist, he can hear entire orchestrations, complex rhythms and layers of harmonies in his

head,” Ernest said. “His ability to bring together a room full of talented musicians to bring his vision to life is admirable. All this cannot be mentioned without saying how good of a friend and colleague he is to everyone in his path.”

As TOVA enters his final year at the U of R, he has quite a journey to look back on. Switching gears and evolving with such ease in little to no time is no easy feat but TOVA has been able to do with an air of sophistication, grace and poise. Although it is impossible to tell what TOVA will be up to in a year, one thing is for sure, he will continue to live his truth at his own frequency.

Nothing short of the best: The Lancaster Taphouse Big news for Regina’s Lancaster Taphouse! joseph holoein arts writer Since 2013, The Lancaster has been providing the Queen City with the very best. With a freshly revised menu following their COVID closure and award-winning chef Joel Williams at the helm, this place should be your next visit.

The Lancaster is located in Harbour Landing along Gordon Road. It is a welcoming restaurant with a great layout for socializing. There’s an elevated section near the windows with chairs, and while this spot is great for casual dining it would also work perfectly for a job interview or semi-casual meeting. There’s a mix of chairs and booths, and the large booths are always a highlight for when you go with friends. The bar area is also a great space with televisions and 13 local beer taps.

Clearly, the taphouse Draws inspiration from the British Isles and beyond.

“We feature a traditional pub menu based on the classic traditions of the Irish, Scottish, English, German and North American public houses,” said Tim

Rogers, one of the owners.

While many of these inspirations are grounded with their roots in historical Europe, The Lancaster puts an original spin on the concept by supporting local.

“The Lancaster is local,” said Rogers. “From as much locally sourced product as we can, to being proudly part of the local sports, arts, and music community.”

There are a number of ways to get the best experience out of visiting the The Lancaster, but my personal advice is to bring friends, order the ale pretzels, and try a flight or “plank” of beers.

It’s a great way to experience the unique flavours of some of Saskatchewan’s most talented breweries. The prices are relatively cheap for the quality, and in the past (though this has been temporarily suspended), Happy Hour was always a highlight.

Executive chef Joel Williams was born and raised in Regina and holds 24 years of professional experience. “[He trained] with some of this city and province’s top chefs along the way,” said Rogers “Joel is the creative culinary force be-

hind both the Lancaster and the Capitol Restaurant and Bar, which we unfortunately had to close due to COVID.” During the shutdown, however, Williams and Rogers worked on rebuilding their classic menu.

“All this time gave us the freedom to really deep dive and carefully craft this new menu that we are so proud of,” said Rogers.

Still, COVID hasn’t been easy on this local institution. “[Lancaster’s is] currently av-

eraging about 25 per cent of normal sales at this time,” said Rogers. “We are fortunate to live in a city, province, and country who have all provided and continue to provide help to see us through this time.”

And they are also taking precautions to keep the staff and in-person diners safe. Right now, the tables are placed at a minimum of two metres apart and there is a six-customer-per-table limit. All members of staff wear

masks and sanitize their hands, and the bar - a high-contact area - is behind plexiglass. They have also made digital menus available to reduce unnecessary contact.

When I asked about any exciting future plans, Rogers said that big things are coming.

“We are incredibly excited to announce ... that The Lancaster will be opening its second location downtown this fall!”

Now, that’s some news we can toast to!

Pxhere

The Lancaster features 13 local beers on tap.

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editor: ethan butterfield sports@carillonregina.com the carillon | september 17 - september 23, 2020

Strike in response to racial injustice should include Canadian sports The Scholar Strike should influence more than just universities

taylor balfour editor-in-chief On Sept. 9-10, scholars across Canada participated in a global strike in an act of solidarity with the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. These two days on strike were to be used to “pause teaching and administrative duties” and to instead “organize public digital teach-ins on police brutality and violence in our communities from both historical and contemporary perspectives,” according to Scholar Strike Canada’s website.

Also acknowledged on their website is the fact that the movement began thanks to Anthea Butler, the Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Africana Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, and Kevin Gannon, a Professor of History at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa.

The two were inspired to start the movement after NBA players went on a brief strike in August, and WNBA players began advocating for racial and social justice.

The Canadian BLM movement advocates against the oppression and violence committed against “all Black communities, including African, Caribbean, Afro-Indigenous, migrant, queer, trans, and disabled Black communities”.

For centuries in Canada, Indigenous people have faced racialized hardships and violence.

Indigenous culture has been so deeply wounded by colonialism that many facets of their culture, including sports, has been forever changed, In 2009, Daniel Alexander Henhawk, an undergraduate student at the University of Waterloo, wrote a thesis entitled “Aboriginal Participation in Sport:

Wikipedia Commons

Making a difference.

Critical Issues of Race, Culture and Power” based on conversations surrounding three generational cohorts in his family. The goal of the project was to analyze and better understand the Indigenous experience within sports in Canada.

“Most of our culture, which was deeply rooted in an environmental ethic, has been destroyed.” Henhawk states, “The details of our historical existence, prior to and after European engagement, are vague, distorted, have been changed completely or lost altogether.”

“What was once a distinctly

mission (TRC) offered recommendations to Canada sports programs to “reduce barriers and become more inclusive of Indigenous athletes” according to CBC. The panel gathered to discuss how not enough has been done to reach that goal.

The discussion was hosted by CBC’S Duncan McCue and featured various Indigenous Olympic athletes and scholars. Spencer O’Brien of the Haida and Kwakwaka’wakw Nations, Trina Pauls from the Tahltan and Tlingit Nations, and Waneek Horn-Miller from Kahnawake in Quebec – the first Mohawk woman from

people from all over different countries because it’s an international competition.”

“When it comes to the other sports I’ve played, I’ve definitely found a lack of diversity and a lack of support for Indigenous athletes, my age especially.”

The Scholar Strike represents more than a two-day strike by academics. Striking scholars have been arranging, sharing, attending, and hosting digital teach-ins across the country to further discuss and demand action for racial injustices inflicted in our country.

This strike is no-longer a call-toaction; it is action, and it’s global

“

It is important for sport institutions in Canada to know that they, too, can take steps to make a positive change in our world. They are not exempt from the discrimination brought to light elsewhere in the world.”

– Taylor Balfour

lived culture is now mostly known only through oral story-telling and the written accounts of European colonists and non-Aboriginal scholars,” he continues. “The change and damage to our indigenous culture has been so brutal and so extensive that for many us ignorance about our history has become the norm.”

In June, during the coronavirus lockdown, CBC Sports and CBC Indigenous released a digital panel discussion entitled “Where do the TRC’s calls for action on Indigenous sports stand?” 2020 marks five years since Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Com-

Canada to make it to the Olympics in 2000 – were in attendance on the panel.

The panel’s scholars included Dr. Lynn Lavallée, an Anishinaabe/Métis instructor at Ryerson University, and Serene Porter, who was the Executive Director of Partnerships and Marketing with the 2021 North American Indigenous Games (NAIG).

“I feel lucky because it is Indigenous based and you get support.” Trina Pauls, a theme who competed in the Arctic Winter Games, stated on the call. “The whole Arctic Winter Games is so inclusive, very diverse, we have

action at that.

While we reflect on the strike, it is important for sport institutions in Canada to know that they, too, can take steps to make a positive change in our world. They are not exempt from the discrimination brought to light elsewhere in the world.

The coronavirus pandemic and lockdown is the ideal time to make influential change. We can use this time to emerge from the pandemic with changes set in motion to allow equality in sports in Canada.

Toward the end of his thesis, Henhawk unpacks how colonial-

ism has caused lasting damage that, to this day, causes further discrimination for Indigenous athletes. “Colonialism has taken on many forms. For Aboriginal people, it started with the degrading of our culture with the idea that we were primitive and paganistic with the application of such labels as savage and uncivilized,” he writes.

“Today, colonialism is still at work, legitimizing certain values and perspectives on the purpose and meaning of life, work, religion, and economics and for the purposes of this study, sport. It continues because there are no lived contradictions that define an opposite perspective or viewpoint.”

The Scholar Strike is a statement that calls for larger action and change not just in classrooms, not just in our educational institutions, but everywhere. It calls for change in our homes, schools, cities, families, and sports.

Black Lives Matter and Indigenous Lives Matter are deeply intertwined in our country. They cannot be separated from one another. The Black Lives Canada website expresses their goal clearly: “In our movement for Black liberation, we join calls to decolonize Turtle Island and Nunavut Nunangat.”

“Our struggles are tied up with the struggles of the Indigenous people of the land on which many of our ancestors were brought and forced into brutalization – a living apocalypse. There is no Black Liberation without Indigenous Liberation on Turtle Island.”

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sports

The weekly Butterfield breakdown Bringing major league news to you ethan butterfield sports editor Hey all, I hope the first week or so back hasn’t been too difficult with the new socially distanced learning that’s taking place across the University. I understand that some people don’t have the same lax schedule that other individuals do, so as a new series (who knows how long it’ll last) I’m going to help you keep up with the latest and greatest in the world of sports. I’m throwing together a quick and effective “what’s what” as to what’s happening in the national and international areas of various major leagues. Those interested can check out the news below: NHL: We’re getting down to the Stanley Cup Finalists now, although both Conference Final series haven’t ended yet. The Dallas Stars and The Tampa Light-

“

ing are now in prime position to move on to the final best of 7, but as any big hockey fan will tell you, it ain’t over until it’s over.

In other news, the free agency (set to start October 9) is also on the back of everyone’s minds as we get closer to a Cup champion.

There’s a couple of big names up for grabs right now, with Taylor Hall, Torey Krug, Ilya Kovalchuk and Corey Crawford making up just a few that people should look out for.

NFL: It was a big opening week for a lot of teams out there in the National Football League. As per my last sports article, there were a couple of interesting match-ups that actually ended up being interesting (see, not just throwing darts and seeing what sticks). The Arizona Cardinals and 49ers was one of the bigger upsets, showing that either the Cardinals have

something special with the addition of DeAndre Hopkins (who recently received a two-year contract extension) or that the 49ers still haven’t shaken off that Super Bowl upset.

Cam Newton also had a successful debut as quarterback (QB) for the New England Patriots, defeating an abysmal-looking Dolphins. Ol’ Ryan Fitzpatrick certainly didn’t make the case to keep his position as starter in that game, throwing just under 200 yards and three interceptions.

In some other rapid-fire updates, Tom Brady lost his first game as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB, losing to Drew Brees and that stacked Saints team. The Chicago Bears had an impressive comeback win, showing that the Lions just continue to find new ways to lose. Joe Burrow lost his debut game with the Cincinnati Bengals after field goal kicker Randy Bullock missed a tying

kick in the final seconds. And, finally, the Las Vegas Raiders got their first win as a franchise.

MLB: The Major League Baseball playoffs inch ever closer, with the Wild Card Series (best of the three format) starting on September 29. The standings as of right now have some really interesting match-ups with regards to overall standings. Canada’s own Toronto Blue Jays are currently ranked number five and are being placed against the Minnesota Twins, who come in at number four.

Another series I’m personally excited for (assuming it pans out that way) will be the number three Oakland A’s versus the number six Houston Astros. I just feel that it has a lot of potential for some really great moments there.

NBA: Unfortunately, The Toronto

I’m throwing together a quick and effective “what’s what” as to what’s happening in the national and international areas of various major leagues.

Raptors have seen an end to their playoff run, losing a Game 7 ‘winner takes all’ match-up against the Boston Celtics 92 to 87 despite the best efforts of Fred VanFleet and Kyle Lowery, who both ended up scoring over 30 points.

Moving forward to the conference finals, the current set match-up for the Eastern final will be the the Celtics and the Miami Heat. While in the West, we have the Los Angeles Lakers patiently waiting for their next opponent.

This will either come in the form of the Denver Nuggets, who were able to extend their lifespan to a Game Seven with a 111 point victory, or the Los Angeles Clippers who, despite starting out a strong three games to one, have metaphorically dropped the ball.

Personally, I’d like to see an LA versus LA match-up if only for the inter-city bragging rights.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this rundown, fingers crossed that there was enough in it to hold your attention. I do my best to keep the news as relevant or ‘up and coming’ as possible but sometimes there can be things that end up being a bit stale. Regardless, I look forward to bringing you the major news of the major leagues from week to week.

— Ethan Butterfield

Ethan Butterfield

Bringing it all together so you don’t have to

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

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13

Student athletes permitted to practice on-campus Small glimmers during crazy times

holly worby staff writer If this year has taught us anything, it is that the key to success is the ability to adapt when necessary.

Unfortunately for University of Regina athletes, they haven’t had much of a chance to try to adapt to our new ways of doing things, but the University has been working hard to begin to make that op-

U of R Athletics

Back to the grind

supervised access to the high-performance weight room. Use of the pool is still pending approval by the University Executive Team (UET), but Robertson is hopeful they’ll be able to offer that to athletes as well.

“The health and safety of the staff and student-athletes were the driving factors in making the

cross country and track and field coach for the past six years, and competed with the track team himself from 2004-2009. His base-rule for practices this fall will be, “If you’re sick you stay home, it’s not the time to tough through things right now.” Flu season is rapidly approaching and, unfortunately, it’s anyone’s guess how

we’re not allowed to train, you’re opening athletes up to injuries.

It’s good to get athletes back into a good headspace, safely allowing them to do the sport they’re here to play.”

At present there’s been no official decision made on the possibility of games and meets for the winter season, but Huber says

athletes as they navigate a very different season.”

Respect is a natural response when someone’s able to walk the walk and talk the talk, and Robertson has undoubtedly shown that she can do both through this process. Her “walk” has been the ability to orchestrate new procedures and policies for both

“

We have to get back in and train, because as of right now we have to plan that we could have a season in January.

– Wade Huber

portunity possible.

Lisa Robertson, Director of Sport, Community Engagement, and Athlete Development, said that though there are no plans for competitions or meets in the fall, they will be allowing athletes who play for University teams to return to campus for practices and the use of gym facilities. The current plan is for student athletes to be able to use gyms one and three, the turf field, the track, some areas of the Fitness and Leisure Centre, and

decision to return to training on campus,” said Robertson when asked about the factors that led to their decisions and procedures. “We based all our protocols on the Re-Open Sask. plan and in many cases our protocols are stricter.” These protocols include daily COVID-19 screening, contact tracing, smaller training groups, three-metre social distancing when individuals aren’t masked, and leaving the locker rooms closed.

Wade Huber has been the

that will impact the spread of coronavirus. If you stay home when sick you’ll be protecting yourself from catching something additional to what you’ve already caught, and you’ll protect others from having their immune systems unnecessarily burdened.

Huber had a unique take on why he believed it was important to get athletes practicing again.

“We have to get back in and train, because as of right now we have to plan that we could have a season in January. I think if

they’re expecting to hear a decision by mid-October.

Melanie Sanford, who’s been coaching women’s volleyball at the University for 19 years, reports that her team has been cooperative and understanding regarding the new procedures.

“If we do not follow them, we will not be allowed to practice,” she mentioned, so there’s really no room for people who are unwilling to adjust. “It is important to adapt to the new reality and provide support to our student

coaches and student athletes, and to work in tandem with University administration and the UET to ensure our campus is as safe as possible for the teams’ return.

Her “talk” can be summed up in this Winston Churchill quote that she includes in her email signature: “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it’s the courage to continue that counts.”

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

carillonregina.com | the carillon | 14

sports

Opening up as an athlete Progress is a slow and painful road ethan butterfield sports editor There is an interesting, almost unspoken mentality that surrounds athletes. For a bit of context, the headspace of a competitor is something that is truly unique. The pure focus and raw talent that an individual can bring to the field, court, or arena is staggering to say the least. But that competitive headspace, that ‘winning mentality’ if you will, comes from one’s own desire to do well, as well as one’s own desire to not let down your team.

Now, granted, this is nothing new. I mean, duh, right?

Of course competitive athletes have a winning mentality that’s what makes them competitive athletes, but there’s more that goes on there then I think people realize. What happens when something comes above that winning mentality? What happens when the mental aspect of your game becomes affected? Well, even now in 2020, feels like something that we’re just looking into.

The reason for this discussion, now especially, is based around a recent incident that took place in the NFL. Fox Sports personality, Skip Bayless, made some rather disheartening comments

with regards to current quarterback (QB) Dak Prescott’s mental health. Bayless’s comments were based around how Prescott’s talking about his depression was a sign of weakness in the game of football.

“He’s the quarterback of America’s team [The Dallas Cowboys],” Bayless said. “The sport that he plays is dog-eat-dog. It is no compassion, no quarter given

on the football field. If you reveal publicly any little weakness, it can affect your team’s ability to believe in you in the toughest spot.”

These comments were met with criticism by many individuals, some of which went to Twitter to express their disbelief at what Bayless had said.

Fox did make a statement following Bayless’s comments, revealing that there was no sup-

@torellosports comments on the situation.

port from the organization with regards to what was said.

“At FOX Sports, we are proud of Dak Prescott for publicly revealing his struggle with depression and mental health,” said the network. “No matter the cause of the struggles, FOX Sports believes Dak showed tremendous courage which is evident in both his leadership on the Dallas Cowboys and in his character off the field. We do not agree with Skip Bayless’ opinion on Undisputed this morning. We have addressed the significance of this matter with Skip and how his insensitive comments were received by people internally at Fox Sports and our audience.”

Prescott also responded to Bayless’s comments, stating that leaders who don’t open up to their team or in general are “fake” and that “being a leader is about being genuine and being real.”

Moving away from Prescott and Bayless, even now in 2020, the idea of opening up is something we still can’t seem to grasp.

Talking about mental health and the effect it can have on people.

And I’m willing to wager that there is no outlet for players when it comes to trying to discuss depression. Firstly, because

if your mind is not in the game, then you’re most likely going to be pulled out of the game. And secondly, those who do speak up are continually labelled as weak individuals.

The winning mentality is something that, with regards to those who battle depression or the like in sports, comes above all else. Recently, we’ve seen more of a course-correction when it comes to sports with a more open dialogue, but it’s still not there yet. Not nearly as there as people would like.

One can only hope that Prescott sharing his mental state will allow other athletes, whether professional or not, to not feel shame or not be considered weak when discussing their mental health. Comments like Bayless’s are outdated and need to be addressed in order to continue to make real progress.

Pikist

The internal battles are just as important.

op-ed

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editor: marty grande-sherbert op-ed@carillonregina.com the carillon | september 17 - september 23, 2020

Webcam requirements are an education paywall

Students don’t need another burden as they struggle to pay tuition No member of the University of Regina campus community found adapting to the COVID-19 shutdown easy. In what felt like a day, our city entirely shut down. All schools moved online, our stores closed and switched to delivery, and life as we knew it, as least for the foreseeable future, had been changed.

I hoped that moving through this pandemic could result in us being more patient and compassionate toward each other. In a lot of ways, that’s exactly what I saw.

I saw friends and loved ones donate

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only trying to keep everyone safe.

Then, anger over wearing masks grew.

People sanitizing before entering stories is no longer as common. The rush to get students back in physical classrooms sparked up, originally with almost no social-distancing or safety regulations.

Now that the fall semester has started, I see it in many of the “requirements” set by individual professors for online teaching. In specific, I see it in the webcam requirements many professors are enforcing.

Professors cannot demand that stu-

working webcam or can afford to go out and buy a webcam is not only unfair, but it is ridiculously cruel in a pandemic when many Canadians – including young students – have lost their jobs.

An average webcam can cost anywhere from 30-130 dollars. When we are all still facing a worldwide health crisis; I think it’s fair to assume that not everyone may have that kind of ‘pocket change’ to spend. Not every student has 50 dollars to spend on a webcam. Some students can barely pay for tuition as is.

a change in education they didn’t have a choice or say in?

To expect students to be able to pay these additional prices, and making it a class requirement to do so, isolates hundreds of students from an educational experience that they are paying practically the same price for as compared to an in-person education in a classroom.

Now, I’m not saying I expect the university or professors to pay for student webcams. The more accessible option is to allow students to attend class without a

Not every student has 50 dollars to spend on a webcam. Some students can barely pay for tuition as is.”

— Taylor Balfour

money or food to those in need, I saw firsthand the amount of people that were going to donate blood every day, and I saw professors, some of my own, offer to help students with money from their own pockets just because they wanted to help.

I had a lot of hope that, leading into the fall semester, the same compassion was going to be extended. But as restrictions began lessening and doors began opening, I saw less of that. I saw people growing more impatient with others who have been unable to turn out the same amount of work. I’ve seen disappointment at waiting times, and frustration at employees who are

dents turn on their webcams for Zoom classes. If that is a requirement to be set, it feels only fair that the university should supply webcams, or should specify those requirements during class registration.

By demanding that students turn on their webcams for every class, you are anticipating that they have a computer, have a webcam, have a microphone, have a space in their home environment where they are able to attend class, amongst a slew of other factors. Additionally, if a student does not have a private space in their home to attend class, privacy issues come into play.

Expecting that students either have a

Global News reported in July that many educational institutions across the country were going forward with a tuition raise despite COVID-19 pandemic’s workfrom-home model. The University of Calgary, University of Winnipeg, Saint Mary’s University and McGill University are only a few of the schools listed, all raises varying from 2-3 per cent.

It’s no secret that students are already struggling to pay ever-raising tuition costs.

University professors and administrators know this, so how can it possibly be expected that on top of those costs, students purchase a slew of new digital equipment for

camera. We need to stop continually hiding education behind paywalls. It is unfair, cruel, and morally bankrupt.

Students are paying the same price as an in-person student, and are being told if they are not willing to purchase an additional piece of equipment out of pocket, they cannot participate in the class. Making that a standard for all students during a global quarantine is ridiculous. Plain and simple.

taylor balfour editor-in-chief

pxhere

“You should have thought of that before you became peasants.” - Admin (probably)

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

op-ed

carillonregina.com | the carillon |

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Tristen Durocher’s ceremony exposes Sask Party’s negligence Our government just took a space of community grieving to court Tristen Durocher, a 24-year-old Métis fiddler from La Ronge, finished a 44day long ceremonial fast this week along with the Walking With Our Angels group, who joined in an over 600-kilometre walk to Regina from La Ronge. The 44 days in that fast corresponded to the 44 Saskatchewan MLAs who voted down a suicide prevention bill, one seriously needed for Indigenous youth in the north. This bill was proposed to address the gaps of our current “Pillars of Life” model, which does not account for the needs of many northern communities.

In a previous piece, I wrote about how Durocher’s ceremony was part of a pattern of racism being unjustly left out of the conversation surrounding mental health and suicide. Those feelings are unchanged. I have read the accounts of so many people over these 44 days who were comforted and heartened by their visits to the camp at Wascana, precisely because, I think, these deaths are no longer allowed to pass while pushed aside by our government’s horrible sense of “priorities.” Now, I am writing to express my deep respect and appreciation for Durocher and all who supported him – emotionally, spiritually and materially – but mostly to express my deep disappointment and disgust with a city and province that, with the power they had, turned a blind eye to the people they claim to serve.

As Durocher said in an interview with PA Now, in the days that people gathered only steps away from the legislative building where the people with the power to create more robust suicide prevention plans worked, there was a deeply shameful lack of response. Tristen cites “no acknowledgment of our [Walking With Our Angels’] existence here[,] outside of minister Lori Carr coming to tell me she’s working on a court injunction for our removal from the park.”

The priority for the city of Regina was to eject the ceremony, the teepee, and the

needpix

Not the first time a teepee has been a legal target in this city.

photos of people who had lost their lives – not to do anything to address why that space came together, not to pay respects to the people who were honored there.

This was a loud announcement that the Saskatchewan government, that Canada at large, values the colonial notion of land as property more than they value the lives on that land. And although it was a victory when the judge in this case ruled that the ceremony “was allowed” to continue without incident, the very fact that Indigenous people on Treaty 4 territory need to fight to congregate on their own territory, that this state would see a Metis man taken to court for engaging in ceremony to address community grief, is absolutely monstrous.

Many of those who had been with

Walking With Our Angels for its journey and stay joined Durocher in cutting their hair, joining their braids together in a noose, and then burning it to symbolize “that [they] are done allowing our state halls of power to have heartlessness, contempt, and let it burn policies when it comes to the lethal realities taking place on Indigenous communities across the province.” The city of Regina, our province, our state, and those who represent it should watch this in deep shame.

Scott Moe has apparently just sent a letter to Trudeau with suggestions for his throne speech. He talks about the carbon tax, infrastructure projects, and “western alienation.” But he didn’t have a second to look a suicide epidemic in the eye. Jason

Kenney came down here from Alberta to defend a statue of John A. MacDonald; how much longer do we have to wonder where sympathy lies?

For everyone who was involved in delivering tea, firewood, funds, and setting up camp, and for everyone who has done too much grieving because of negligence and institutional violence, we all need to raise an alarm to the state of our suicide prevention and mental health services. We need to support grassroots community care like Durocher’s whenever we see it, too. Meanwhile, we can keep wondering how Scott Moe could watch this all happen and go to

marty grande-sherbert op-ed editor

The problems with lockdown online Hateful comments, toxic trends and “doom scrolling” don’t help When I had to travel to Edmonton to take an exam in August, I couldn’t help but visit West Edmonton Mall and set aside an entire day for Jasper. The exam had been scheduled after getting cancelled twice, and it had been filling up my schedule for two months, so doing some sight-seeing during the trip was a must (with safety precautions in place, of course). And despite all those Instagram-worthy snow-capped mountains I took pictures of, I wouldn’t dare to upload anything about it on my social media; at least not until 2 weeks had passed, mandatorily with hashtags “#LatePost” “#Throwback.” This is because I didn’t intend to be subject to all the hatred online.

Given that the urge to travel is real, with all the apprehension about the virus it is understandable how paranoid people can be about others travelling. However, this leads to unsolicited hate comments and people avoiding contact.

When the lockdown was first announced in countries around the world, many people put up throwback posts reminiscing about how things were before. This led to comments on posts such as “Don’t make this all about you,” “Think about people affected by this,” “Don’t meet with us till 14 days have passed,” and so on. In these times, we are fortunate to have our travel memories and souvenirs; when people share them, it seems unfortunate that it results in negative comments. I’ve seen

this happen to a friend of mine, who was shunned by someone in the grocery store after she posted a travel picture. This upset her and she swore not to post on social media again. To those who decide to make the move and travel, it is recommended that they travel with precautions in place and isolate as the province says. But commenting on this is not necessary; a friend on social media may not know the intent behind a person travelling, or what precautions they took.

When subjected to isolation, certain people’s creativity can run wild, and technology gives an outlet to this. At times, though, creativity can be malicious. Take, for example, TikTok, where videos have the tendency to become a viral sensation overnight. While I’m not denying that there are some catchy bops and dance moves on the app, some recent popular trends include “Reading a dirty text message in front of family members” and “invading your pet’s personal space.” Most recently, the viral sensation (as they call it) is to “compare your current significant other with your ex.” I can only imagine the toxicity in such trends that might catch on like wildfire, harming many people’s relationships. These are my primary deterrents from using social media. We have to fight the virus together, instead of being fixated on personal conflicts and supporting upsetting posts.

needpix

I’ve seen a flame war or two in my time

My online experience has changed drastically during this COVID. I started to over-analyse and worry about whether I should post a simple picture or status, so as to not invite remarks. It’s the same for my contacts. The content I get on my feeds primarily involves protests: protests against wearing masks, if not protests about racism.

There is always some journalist pulling out old controversial topics to debate again, on internet feuds going on about Trump’s or Elon Musk’s latest tweet. Hence, I believe “doom scrolling” isn’t a good idea; social

media should be used to connect with our loved ones who’re currently staying away from us. We should use our feeds wisely to stay updated with what’s happening around the world, such as the crashing economy, the COVID situation around the world, or the ongoing vaccine trials.

pratheeksha r naik contributer

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

carillonregina.com | the carillon |

op-ed

17

COVID-19 is a stress test

Critical thinking suffers in quarantine

pxfuel

Watching the world burn.

At some point in the second or third week of March, our lives changed significantly.

Many of us were told to work from home, and the university campus was deserted within days. Many non-emergency medical appointments got cancelled, restaurants closed or moved to takeaway and delivery only, and Zoom became the most installed app in recent history.

In the six or seven months since then, the world changed drastically. Many have lost their jobs. Many businesses closed permanently. In the middle of this pandemic, some of the bravest protests were staged in defense of the dignity of human life. And no small number of people, myself included, witnessed most of this on a screen from

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on social media. When having a conversation in person, I may still disagree with you, but it is a lot less likely that I will call you the worst human being to ever walk the earth. Yet, on social media, all our reactions seem to be at the extreme ends of a spectrum. People say things to each other they never would in person. Maybe it is the distance and anonymity to blame. Maybe social media gives us illusion that there is nothing we have in common with the person we disagree with. Reality, however, is far more nuanced.

Often, the person I am caught up in a vicious battle of words with online has far more in common with me than I think.

Maybe this is easier to notice in person?

leads to stagnation, not progress.

With my bias as someone with a career in science, I also see that the pandemic has exposed a lack of critical thinking as a flaw in our world. I am unsure how we got here, but we have a problem. As depicted by a cartoon I saw a while back, people who read one viral post about viruses suddenly believe they know more than scientists who spent decades studying the field. At the very least, they believe that every scientist in every corner of the world is lying, and the only honest media is the sites they read regularly. As depicted in the movie Contagion, conspiracy theories go hand in hand with any global crisis. Nevertheless, it is disheartening to see so many people believe

many have found themselves without a job or income. Students are finding it hard to meet all the expectations of their schoolwork without access to facilities on campus.

There are no easy answers to these problems, but clearly we have failed society in many ways. Looked at another way, there is much that can and should be improved. Unlike many of my peers, I firmly believe that the lockdown was the right decision, and any reopening has to be done with extreme caution. We cannot open up and “hope for the best.” Sweden, and for a brief little while the UK, tried that route with not exactly desirable results.

At the risk of sounding naive, we will get through this pandemic. At the risk of

We need to start the work of repairing the flaws in our world that have been exposed in the last few months.

their living rooms or bedrooms. As we have heard only a million times now, this is the “new normal.” We are required to physically distance ourselves in an effort to slow down the spread of COVID-19, to give our healthcare workers and researchers a chance at a fair fight. While this makes perfect sense, there are associated costs with the very way our society is likely to function for the near future. As someone recently remarked to me, the pandemic has been a stress test, exposing many aspects of the world that had been rotting away for years, and finally collapsed in face of this somewhat novel challenge.

One thing that many have remarked on, and became all the more visible in the lockdown, is how people behave differently

Who knows. What I do know is that I have been called a litany of labels far more often online than I ever have in person. It’s almost like today’s individually tailored newsfeeds are making us prickly to the most minor disagreement. We are living in the ultimate echo chamber, with algorithms boasting how they can only show us things similar to ones we enjoyed in the past. But then what about novel perspectives, or uncommon ways to think about the commonplace? Where is the room for a completely original idea, one unlike anything that has been seen before? On a less grandiose scale, what about something I may not necessarily find pleasant, but should see anyway? I fear a lifestyle where we only see things we find pleasant. That

— Hummad Ali

everyone but their favorite media is lying to them. Scientists and researchers are not above criticism, but the current worldview many have that depicts them as scheming villains seems unfounded. While everyone has a right to expound their theories online, it is a grave concern when these theories come in the way of proper measures to tackle a pandemic (think masks) or offer treatment (think vaccines).

Lastly, the months of isolation and being stuck at home has taken a toll on everyone’s mental health. It is hard to even tell who has it worse — those with a family and children, who have had no personal space for the last six months, or those living alone, who are missing out on much-needed social interactions. On top of that,

sounding pessimistic though, there will be other challenges in our future. We need to start the work of repairing the flaws in our world that have been exposed in the last few months. Many people, including Bill Gates, had been warning us that a global pandemic was just around the corner, and we ignored them. Maybe we need to sit up and take notice of what else people have been warning us about, and take steps to not be caught as unaware as we were back in March 2020.

hammad ali contributer

carillonregina.com | the carillon |18

op-ed

sept 17 - sept 23, 2020

Struggling through pandemic, work and school The changes, the setbacks, and how to laugh through it all

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, students have been concerned about what their work and school lives will look like. As the 2020 summer quickly approached, many students faced the reality that there just was not any work for them.

Companies and businesses were not hiring any more due to the financial effects of the pandemic or other misfortunes.

This lack of financial stability, in turn, put a major stress on students – even with the Canada Emergency Student Benefit (CESB) or Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). For many, it was not enough, and did not replace reliable employment. Uncertainty left many students

been much of a break, therefore, since the lockdown went into effect, and considering all of the things students enjoy doing have been taken away or are unsafe to do, all the stress is just building up inside, damaging our well-being.

Personally, I have a job that I absolutely love and is in my field. Once the pandemic hit, though, our projects were put on hold and I was out of work for months. When I had the opportunity to return to work, I was unable to do the job because my internet connection at my parents’ house was not strong enough to support the programs I need to run – I am still dealing with this struggle and am barely able to work, which

concerned that I will not be able to stay on top of a full term, the many volunteer projects I am working on, and my job responsibilities. The biggest challenge that I have faced is gaining any ounce of motivation to do anything, besides watch endless hours of Netflix and TikToks.

As the majority of my classes are asynchronous and without Zoom lectures, I feel as though there is nothing reminding me or holding me accountable to actually getting the work done – or even remembering that I am currently enrolled in classes or have a job. I am a person who craves structure but am very scattered, so I surround myself with spaces (like classrooms) and people

connections to truly learn and grasp concepts.

Zoom can be a burden due to internet connection, distractions, profs not knowing the program and wasting twenty minutes going, “how do I share my screen?” But it is important to take those opportunities to laugh with your professor and peers, because you are all going through the same tough time and the mood needs lightening.

I’ve experienced this shared humor myself: in one of my classes, our prof was trying to figure out screen sharing and one of my classmates, not knowing their microphone was on, began singing/scatting to a beat.

The class all began laughing and expressed

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The Fall 2020 term has begun, and I still do not feel ready to begin the year-long distance learning adventure.

—Reese Estwick

questioning whether or not they were even able to return to university for the Fall 2020 and Winter 2021 terms.

Many students rely on working fulltime in the summer, so without the ability to get out of the house, gain experience, and connect with others, these people were left feeling more isolated than ever – an isolation on top of the one that comes with the lengthy quarantine. The disruption takes a toll on both physical and mental health.

For students that were able to work over the summer, though, things were no easier, as there has not been a free moment to process what is really going on in the world. The days have run together since March, and it feels as though each day is only thirty seconds long. There has not

has impacted me financially and mentally as well. Working remotely and being away from my coworkers and office has made it impossible to get in the headspace to get the work done when I have the opportunity.

The changes that COVID has brought upon my professional life have greatly impacted my ability to do the work, and do it to the best of my abilities – I fear that I, alongside my fellow students, am going to be feeling similarly about my ability to complete the Fall 2020 and Winter 2021 terms.

The Fall 2020 term has begun, and I still do not feel ready to begin the year-long distance learning “adventure.” As my mental health has plummeted, I spend all my days walking across the room from my bed to my desk and back to my bed, and I am

(like peers) to provide me with a sense of structure and accountability I can’t create alone. This means online classes and independent learning have been quite the challenge for me, and I am sure I am not the only person feeling this way.

Many students have raised the objection that online classes should not cost the same as in-person classes, and although I very much agree in terms of quality of education, I have also realized that we are essentially paying for the credits. Three credits is three credits, regardless of how you get them – but given the current situation and struggles that students are facing, I think that we should at least be getting Zoom lectures in each class so we have the opportunity to connect with our professors and classmates. Many need the face-to-face

how much we loved their song – we spent the last hour of that class all typing in the chat about how our five-minute breaks from now on are karaoke time, and we are making a class album. We could have been annoyed by the chat popping up and distracting from the lecture, but instead, we all just laughed and bonded through that experience.

Both work and school are very difficult situations to navigate in the new pandemic world, but remember to laugh and connect with people wherever you can get it, because we are all going through this together.

reese estwick staff writer

pikist

How many are using their table as an office?

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editors: sarah carrier, mercedes redman, kate thiessen graphics@carillonregina.com the carillon | september 17 - september 23, 2020