The Fulcrum - Volume 79, Issue 8 - The Final Issue by The Fulcrum

79 PRINT VOLUMES OF THE FULCRUM

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IN THIS ISSUE Ottawa at 1 million P.7

What the population surge means for you

TA by day P.12

Find out what your ﬁne educators get up to after dark

The Final Word P.13

In light of the Fulcrum’s ﬁnal print issue, here’s a look at our last 77 years in print

Cavalry Award Winners P.22

Follow the Gee-Gees as they compete in the OUAs

Who will handle the UOSU’s finances? P.26

If the SFUO taught us anything it’s that student unions need third-party ﬁnancial oversight

David Graham can’t retire P.27

The VP academic is in for a surprise

Goodbye Ty P.28

Ty takes a break, welcoming some of Di’s classic questions

The University of Ottawa Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Union (UOSU) is holding a referendum from April 3rd to April 5th to determine the future of your student fees! Student fees pay for services such as academic support programs, counselling services and athletics. The fees also cover student clubs, faculty associations, and campus organizations like The Fulcrum. Students have the option to opt out of many of these fees come September if voted in. Make your voice heard, and vote in the referendum this coming week! THIS AD IS FROM THE FULCRUMâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S BOARD OF DIRECTORS

NEWS

NEWS EDITOR

Eric Davison news@thefulcrum.ca @NoSecondD

GEE-GEES TRACK COACH SUSPENDED FOR SEXUAL HARASSMENT INVESTIGATION ANDY MCINNIS’ SUSPENSION REPORT SHOWS COMPLAINTS FILED IN 2016, 2018 Savannah Awde Managing Editor

ight-year GeeGees track and field coach Andy McInnis has been suspended by Athletics Canada following several allegations under investigation of sexual harassment of a “serious nature” towards athletes and others during his time with the Ottawa Lions Track and Field Club.

The notice from the Athletics Canada commissioner indicates that the suspension will be in effect until the investigation results are released no later than June 30, 2019. The report further says that if a decision is not released in the matter interim suspension will be lifted. McInnis’ suspension applies to all Athletics Canada branches and clubs. The report, released on Monday March 25, details that McInnis has been on paid administrative leave or suspen-

sion from coaching and his role as club executive director with the Ottawa Lions since Sept. 13, 2018, as a result of sexual harassment complaints made to the club in 2018. McInnis was also “reprimanded by the club” after complaints of sexual harassment made in 2016. In addition, the commissioner wrote that McInnis violated his terms of administrative leave by attending and coaching Ottawa Lions athletes at a training camp in California during the last week of December 2018 and the first week of January 2019. According to a previous member of the University of Ottawa track team whose identity has been confirmed by the Fulcrum, the Ottawa Lions “club effectively operates the University of Ottawa Track and Field team.” U of O media relations manager Isabelle Mailloux-Pulkinghorn told the Fulcrum via email that McInnis is not an employee with the university, and that they have a service agreement contract with the Ottawa Lions Club to provide coaching services. “When a complaint was brought to our attention, we acted quickly to reprimand the individual and to contact his

employer,” Mailloux-Pulkinghorn said, reiterating the university’s zero-tolerance policy towards sexual violence. In a statement to athletes, the Ottawa Lions said that a “healthy, safe and secure sporting environment for all of our athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers and employees” is a top

priority, and encouraged anyone aware of misconduct to contact the club’s ombudsperson. On the same day as McInnis’ suspension, Ottawa Lions president Ken Porter was also suspended for failing to take adequate remedial action concerning McInnis’ breach of administrative leave.

McInnis has been on paid administrative leave since Sept. 13, 2018, as a result of sexual harassment complaints made to the Ottawa Lions club in 2018.

Photo: CC Wikicommons, cred_M.O. Stevens

ONTARIO SUNSHINE LIST REVEALS U OF O SALARIES

Over 1,500 U of O staff featured on list of high-earners Eric Davison News Editor

Ontario’s annual Sunshine List, which unmasks the salaries of the province’s most highly paid public employees, was released on March 26. The list covers provincial public sector employees who made more than $100,000 last year and includes everyone from professors to mechanics. The University of Ottawa maintains a notable presence

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on the list, with over 1,500 administrators, professors, and managers represented. Deans comfortably led the pack, with Jacques Bradwejn and Bernard Jasmin making over $400,000 each in 2018. The U of O pays professors above average as compared to other Canadian schools, with salaries higher than 80 per cent of other institutions. These salaries have been the target of some controversy as the school has steadily in-

creased tuition costs over the last 15 years. Ontario started publicly releasing public salaries in 1996 as part of Mike Harris’ ‘Common Sense Revolution.’ The program was intended to generate public accountability for what was seen as ballooning government spending. It was part of a larger series of reforms and cuts that Harris would push in an attempt to balance the province’s rising deficit.

The number of employees on those lists has exploded from just 4,457 in 1996 to over 151,000 in the latest iteration. But the list is not without its critics, who claim it unfairly targets bureaucrats and employees working overtime while ignoring the government’s biggest spenders. The list has never adjusted the cut-off point for inflation, causing many entries that would not have historically been included. A Bank of Can-

Photo: Pixbay, Mohamed Hassan

ada inflation calculator pins the original $100,000 amount at $152,000 in 2018 dollars, a number that would cut 85 per cent of the Sunshine List’s members. The list also exclusively includes compensation provided by salaries and taxable benefits. This arrangement caused the true cost of the province’s

highest paid contractors to be underreported. This was the case with ORNGE’s Chris Mazza, the CEO of Ontario’s private air ambulance service who spent millions of public dollars on lavish spending sprees while barely cracking the top of the list. — With files from Matt Gergyek.

NEWS | 5

U OF O PROF ARGUES WITH JOURNALIST OVER VENEZUELAN POLITICAL CRISIS

Nahon-Serfaty accused of disruptive behaviour at anti-intervention event

Dimitri Lascaris (L) says that U of O communications professor Isaac NahonSerfaty (R) interrupted his speaking event on March 23. Photo: via Twitter

Jacob Hoytema

Associate News Editor A dispute emerged late March between a University of Ottawa communications professor and an activist, journalist and former lawyer over the political crisis in Venezuela. On March 23, Dimitri Lascaris, a Green Party candidate and journalist, was giving a public talk in Ottawa on a recent trip he had taken to Venezuela. At the event, Lascaris spoke against Western intervention in Venezuela, and claimed the international critiques of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, and the media coverage of the Venezuelan crisis, were “imbalanced.” Isaac Nahon-Serfaty, a U of O communications professor who does not support the Maduro government, was present at the talk and has been disputing Lascaris’ portrayal of the Venezuelan crisis. After the event, NahonSerfaty published a blog post in which he alleged that Lascaris’ presentation was biased, and claimed that Lascaris is “an agent of Maduro’s propaganda.” Nahon-Serfaty is originally Venezuelan, and says he has

Lascaris subsequently published a blog post of his own in which he accused Nahon-Serfaty of interrupting his event, and said the latter “had to be restrained” from rushing against an audience member. spent most of his life in the capital of Caracas. Lascaris subsequently published a blog post of his own in which he accused NahonSerfaty of interrupting his event, and said the latter “had to be restrained” from rushing against an audience member during a question and answer period. The two men have continued their disagreement over Twitter in the subsequent days. Venezuela has been in a socioeconomic crisis for years, but recently plunged into political

dilemma after two men from opposing parties have made separate claims to the presidency. Maduro, the incumbent and successor of Hugo Chàvez, is recognized as president by Bolivia, Russia, China, and several other countries. Almost virtually all western nations, including Brazil, Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom, support Juan Guaidó, who was declared president by the Venezuelan National Assembly after that body found Maduro’s 2018 election victory invalid.

LAURIER UNIVERSITY LAUNCHES STUDY INTO LGBTQ+ EXPERIENCES

Students of marginalized gender and sexual identities asked to fill out online survey Jacob Hoytema

Associate News Editor A team of researchers from Wilfred Laurier University are conducting a study on the experiences of LGBTQ+ students in Ontario — and they’re asking students at the University of Ottawa to contribute. The study, entitled Thriving on Campus, hopes to capture the experiences of LGBTQ+ students in regards to the special challenges and discriminations they face in the campus environment, as well as “factors that promote resiliency.” Simon Coulombe, an assistant professor at Laurier and a co-investigator in the study, says that this study aims to fill a lack of research done in

6 | NEWS

this area. “We know from studies in the U.S. that LGBTQ+ people on campus … they report relatively high and concerning levels of discrimination on campus, and also more subtle forms of discrimination,” he said. Ultimately, Coulombe says he and his team hope the study can go on to improve policies and programming in academic institutions across the province. The study is currently in the first of four phases, and the research team is asking students to fill out an online survey. The later phases will see the researchers analyze the data they find, and contact survey respondents for follow-up interviews, where they will learn more about students’ experiences.

They are hoping to hear from a diverse and varied range of voices across the province, and are asking students at the U of O to fill out the survey. Coulombe says the team has put a lot of work into making the survey questions “fluid” in order to allow students the ability to describe themselves and their identity accurately. “In most general surveys for the general population, you have ‘men, women, and other.’ This was unacceptable to us, so we spent a lot of time reviewing best practices,” Coulombe says. “We’re providing a more comprehensive list of gender identities.” Respondents will be asked first to select all the gender options they identify with,

The survey phase of Thriving on Campus will be open until the end of April.

then to narrow it down to the single best one for statistical analysis. The survey is also completely bilingual, and doesn’t ask for names of respondents — though it does ask if they would be willing to take part in interviews for subsequent study phases. The survey will be open online until the end of April. The team, which is headed by Laurier professor Michael Woodford and also includes assistant professor Zack Marshall, intends to package the results once all four phases of the study are complete. Not only do they intend to release a series of webinars based on their findings, but they will produce “individualized reports” for various institutions across Ontario. “(LGBTQ+) students are interested in getting engaged (with these issues) in a real way,” Coulombe says. “From the start, we wanted to not

only document the experiences of (LGBTQ+) people, but also to look at the potential solutions that we can further explore and recommend to

the universities.” Students who identify with a minority gender or sexual identity can take the survey at the Thriving on Campus website.

“(LGBTQ+) students are interested in getting engaged (with these issues) in a real way,” — Simon Coulombe, assistant professor at Wilfred Laurier University.

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CONSTRUCTION BOOMS AS CITY HITS ONE MILLION PEOPLE

Ottawa is set to become a sea of infrastructure development this summer Eric Davison News Editor

The City of Ottawa will officially hit 1 million people in the coming months, according to population projections by Statistics Canada. The National Capital Region, covering Ottawa, Gatineau, and a dozen other townships is also projected to hit 1.5 million in the coming two years. The region has undergone a building boom as the city contends with a tight rental market, a growing tourism industry, and an overloaded transit system. The Ottawa planning office has more than 200 active projects for the urban core in various stages of approval covering condo towers, hotels, and office space. City departments are overhauling streets, revamping parks, and replacing the sewage system to keep up with the demands of a growing city. Students at the University of Ottawa can expect a sea of construction over the summer months. Here’s a breakdown of what downtown residents will get for a summer of noise, dust, and detours.

PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY ROADS The city will start the next phase of its Downtown Moves project this summer, with overhauls of Albert, Slater, Rideau, and Elgin streets at various stages of construction. The Downtown Moves plan’s stated goal is to create a pedestrian, cycling, and transit-friendly environment in urban Ottawa. Overhauls to Queen Street completed last year marked the first step of this project. Sidewalks were doubled or tripled in width, new public art was installed, and bare concrete was replaced with brickwork sidewalks. Vehicle lanes were tightened at the same time, with new traffic calming measures put in place to slow down traffic in the core and promote pedestrian safety.

BIKE LANES The city will be overhauling downtown bike lanes to bring them up to modern standards while also adding roughly 70 kilometers of new track around the city center.

These new paths include added curbs and safety barricades to keep cyclists separated from cars, new intersection signals to prevent collisions, and more space for cyclists to pass each other. “For students who live downtown on a budget, I can’t think of a better way of getting around (than cycling),” said Maya Wilson-Roberts, a communications student at the U of O. “The city can always be doing more, but I think what we’ve got right now is way better than what I had (growing up).” Ottawa now has one of the highest rates of commuters using active transport in Canada, with the rapid growth attributed to the expansion of dedicated bike lanes according to a report by a cycling advocacy group in Ottawa.

MORE HOUSING Student housing and new rentals are on the rise as Ottawa faces one of the tightest rental markets in Canada. Private residences across the city have sprung up in the last few years, promising a high-end

student experience to those who can afford them. Those projects are joined by two new student towers on Rideau, the much-advertised THEO residence, and three new projects in Sandy Hill. The rental market is also booming with new projects that promise to ease the city’s overheating market. This growth is best represented by Trinity Station, a monolithic 240-metre tall rental tower and shopping center that will cap out at more than double the height of the city’s tallest buildings. “It’s absolutely upsidedown bloody bugnuts,” said Thomas Plante, a masters student at the U of O. “I moved to Ottawa five years ago and my friends (in Toronto) wanted to know why I would move to such a sleepy city and I said the cheap rent. Well now the rent isn’t cheap and the city isn’t sleepy.”

TRAINS OC Transpo’s much anticipated Confederation Line is aiming to launch early this summer, one year behind its

Sandy Hill is the site of several new student-oriented buildings. Photo: Parker Townes

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“I moved to Ottawa five years ago and my friends (in Toronto) wanted to know why I would move to such a sleepy city and I said the cheap rent. Well now the rent isn’t cheap and the city isn’t sleepy.” —Thomas Plante, U of O student planned date according to reports from Ottawa’s City Council. The line will bring some relief to Ottawa’s snarled traffic and overloaded bus system. The line will connect the U of O to Centertown, Chinatown, and Carleton University while allowing students to seek cheaper rents outside Sandy Hill. “It really reframes the city for me,” said David Staynes, a resident of Sandy Hill. “A metro is a really big city thing to have, it lets people see parts of the city that used to be ignored. For me, the train is what separates small-town Ottawa and being a real national capital.” Construction on the system’s Stage 2 expansion plan will be shutting down Transitways in the east and west starting this summer. The expansion will mean closing the Trillium Line in 2020 for a significant upgrade involving new stations and bigger trains. The new lines will be opening in phases beginning in 2022 and will extend the system to Orleans, Algonquin College, La Cite, and the airport.

A CLEANER RIVER Work on Ottawa’s Combined Sewage Storage Tunnel

(CSST) will resume this summer, with more road closures and construction sites around the core. The CSST is designed to prevent Ottawa’s frequent sewage overflows, that result in untreated waste being dumped into the Ottawa and Rideau rivers. The project is part of the City of Ottawa’s River Action plan, a project meant to decrease pollution and improve the habitat of the Ottawa River. The City claims that riverfront beaches will face fewer closures, and wildlife populations will be healthier once the project is complete.

BETTER PARKS The National Capital Commission will be overhauling several public spaces including Nepean Point and the riverfront. The point will be closed this summer to add a new amphitheatre, a lookout, new public art, and an expanded community garden. The NCC also plans to upgrade various riverfront parks with new event spaces, beaches, bike paths, and public art. The NCC and city will also be working on various projects to reinforce Ottawa’s shoreline and prevent its destruction from the river’s increasingly frequent flooding.

NEWS | 7

HOW LRT WILL CHANGE CAMPUS LIFE, COMMUTES NEXT FALL

Downtown core trips will be simpler, suburban students in for short-term complications Jacob Hoytema

Associate News Editor While we don’t yet have an opening date for Ottawa’s new light rail transit (LRT) system, it’s a safe bet that the new train will be carrying students to and from campus for the start of the new academic year in fall according to OC Transpo head John Manconi. The new Confederation Line, which will run through downtown and the University of Ottawa, has largely been touted by the city council and OC Transpo as the next big step forward in Ottawa’s transit system, and our maturity as a city. But the new train has its costs, depending on how short-term our thinking, or how long-distanced our commute to campus. Let’s deal with the obvious positives first: the train will make things a lot clearer both at U of O and in the downtown core in general. Mackenzie-King Bridge, behind the Rideau Centre, will be free of hundreds of express buses thanks to the new tunnel, meaning improved air quality for the bus-jammed street. And on campus, Laurier Station will cease to exist as a commuter hub; passengers and pedestrians will not have to fight over the narrow sidewalks outside Desmarais and Tabaret. Instead, train passengers will use the centrally located O-Train station behind Vanier Hall, with its walkable plazas and links to the Rideau Canal. But while the train will dramatically improve shortdistance trips to places like Centretown, Hintonburg or St. Laurent, those with longer commutes from the suburbs are worried their journeys will become a bit more complicated based on the OC Transpo online travel-planner. Matt Killeen, an undergraduate student who lives in Orleans, says that he has looked at his prospective trip with the planner, “and it just took longer, it seemed.” “I think it will be good once

8 | NEWS

there’s Stage 2, because as of now it just goes to Blair, and I’m in Orleans which is still another bus ride,” Killeen said. The Stage 2 expansions will bring the train to more suburbs in the West, South, and East. But for the next few years — and any student who is now in their undergrad — commutes could involve one or even two long bus trips before a short stint on the Confederation Line. Indeed, one user on the GeeGee’s subreddit commented on a Reddit thread that “LRT is going to worsen my Barrhaven commute hands down.” However, OC Transpo claims the LRT will improve the reliability of existing bus routes by dramatically shortening their length. They claim the main cause of OC Transpo’s poor on-time performance is lengthy routes that often see buses travelling across the city through unpredictable traffic. With the new LRT these routes will be cut down to less than half their original length and connected to the new line, reducing the chance that buses will get thrown off schedule. The Confederation Line will also provide a much faster route, via the north-south running Trillium Line, to places like Little Italy, South Keys, and Carleton University. If U of O students want to head to Carleton for a tussle, a staredown, or a dance-off, they will now be able to do so in less than 20 minutes by train. Even this will be disrupted, however, as the Trillium Line will close in 2020 for just under two years of renovations that will see larger, more frequent trains, an extension to the Ottawa Airport, and a complete overhaul to the line’s minimalist stations. The Confederation Line will not solve all of OC Transpo’s issues by itself. But it lays the foundation for the city’s expansive network plan including links to Barrhaven, Kanata, Aylmer, the airport, and Orleans.

The “lollipop” logo will mark O-Train stations throughout Ottawa, including the one on campus by the canal. Photo: Parker Townes

The new train has its costs, depending on how short-term our thinking, or how long-distanced our commute to campus. thefulcrum.ca

ARTS & CULTURE

A&C EDITOR Stephen Cook arts@thefulcrum.ca @stephencooked

NEW GALLERY 115 EXHIBITION BRINGS TOGETHER WORK BY STUDENTS AND PROFS

INTER-NOUS FEATURES DIVERSE ARTISTIC MEDIUMS, SHOWS OFF ARTS DEPARTMENT COMMUNITY Ryan Pepper

Fulcrum Freelancer

recent exhibition in Gallery 115 at the University of Ottawa put student-professor collaborations at the fore to highlight the influences, partnerships, and shared creativity between different generations of artists. It’s also an exhibit that explores how artists shape and represent the spaces around them. The name of the exhibition, Inter-NoUs, is a bilingual play on words that captures that relationship across different artistic practices and generations.

On display in the gallery are collages, oil paintings, photography, and audio-visual work. The gallery was curated by Collectif 4519, the collective name for the students of ART4519 Le commissariat en art contemporain. The course teaches students how to curate a gallery. Inter-NoUs is the class’ final project. “We wanted different artists, different mediums, different types of arts, because we wanted to create an interaction between teachers and students and all kinds of media,” said Rachel Goulet, a fourth-year French literature and art history student, and one of the curators of the gallery. “We have collage, painting, virtual reality: we really wanted to create a connection between all those different types of art.” The curators wanted to

Inter-NoUs explores the exchange between artists, space, and the legacy of generations. Photo: Courtesy of Gallery 115

a study of how we perceive ourselves; the second wall is called Sensorial-Landscape and features two artists from different countries whose work centres around travel; Pop-Body is a series of collages that show interactions between the human body and objects in the contemporary world; the fourth section is Inner-Landscape and demonstrates interior travel and how we’ve come so far in our lives.

“The general goal of this exhibition was to share. It was a communal place to share with others your experiences and thoughts,” said Goulet. The gallery features eleven artists, three of whom are professors. The collaborative theme was partly inspired by the ART4519 class since the students worked so closely with their professor, Analays Alvarez Hernandez, to design the exhibit. Alvarez Hernandez is

a professional curator and it is her first time teaching students how to build an exhibition. “We wanted to create that interaction between teachers and students, but most of the respondents were students,” said Goulet, offering a great chance to show off the student talent in the Visual Arts department. Inter-NoUs ran until April 4 at the University of Ottawa’s Gallery 115.

white people from the south arrive at the border of the reserve claiming to seek refuge from the anarchy of the cities, the community must navigate human compassion with centuries’ old colonial fears. For a remote community like Whitesky’s, heavily reliant on provincial power stations and grocery shipments from far-away cities, finding themselves cut off from everyone could conceivably mean catastrophe, even apocalypse.

But for elders like the protagonist’s auntie Aileen Jones, the loss of electricity is nowhere near the end of the world. That’s because for her, “‘(The world) already ended. It ended when the Zhaagnaash (white people) came into our original home down south on that bay and took it from us. That was our world.’” Jones’s perspective feeds the reader’s dramatic anxiety as the reserve’s gas-powered generators run dry and people begin to die in the cold. With the implications of a devastating power outage promptly outlined at the novel’s outset, Rice meticulously details the gradual unwinding of the community’s cohesion, delicately stepping along a line between building suspense and boring the reader. Though the most action-packed sequence finds itself on the final few pages of the novel, the lead-up reads quickly. Gradually, it becomes clear that some on the reserve

come to see the outage from their new white neighbours’ perspective: take charge or die, every man for himself. In the eerie silences that fill the community’s first days without electricity, Rice ensures that the narrator is powerless too in their control of the pace of the story. Rather, significant events impose themselves suddenly on the community and in the story. It is the arrival of a mysterious and massive white man, Justin Scott, that happens to the story. Like daintily stepping across crusty snow, all too aware that too much pressure could mean drowning in the depths of powder below the surface, the Anishinaabe community Rice creates exists on a precariously thin barrier separating them from the chaos ripping through southern cities. This only amplifies the apparent helplessness of the northern community as its members inevit-

ably divide into survivalist factions. Rice’s incarnation as a journalist (he works for CBC Sudbury) permits him to inform as well as entertain in this novel. For example, when early in the outage Whitesky and some friends opt to calm their nerves with a night of drinking, the author recalls the traumatic relationship many Indigenous communities have had with alcohol and drugs. According to the narrator, substance abuse “became so normal that everyone forgot about the root of this turmoil: their forced displacement from their homelands and the violent erasure of their culture, language and ceremonies.” As in his past works of fiction, Midnight Sweatlodge (2012) and Legacy (2014), Rice uses a veil of storytelling to allow his readers to live through the difficulties, complications and celebrations of reserve life.

MOON OF THE CRUSTED SNOW WAUBGESHIG RICE

Jensen Edwards Fulcrum Contributor

Waubgeshig Rice’s Moon of the Crusted Snow could be considered as a post-apocalyptic meditation on a “what-if?” writing prompt: what would happen if the power went out across the country? However, Rice layers pre-existing colonial threats and Anishinaabe

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values, traditions and practices to complicate the outcome. Trapped in his remote Anishinaabe community in northern Ontario by a power outage and the threat of a deep winter, the novel’s protagonist Evan Whitesky is an unassuming yet stabilizing force for his nation reeling from a lack of electricity and dwindling food resources. When

— Rachel Goulet, fourthyear French literature and art history student

emphasize the close-knit community aspect of the visual arts department in their exhibit, which is why they wanted to bring together students’ diverse works with pieces by professors. “It’s just to put all the work in the same room … so we can have a whole community interacting together,” said Goulet. Each wall is devoted to a different theme. Body-Identity is

LIT IN THE LIBRARY: Novel shows post-apocalyptic life for a people who have lived through trauma

“We wanted different artists, different mediums, different types of arts, because we wanted to create an interaction between teachers and students and all kinds of media.”

ARTS & CULTURE | 9

ARTS THORUGH THE AGES From reviewing Second World War camouflage training films to providing the nuances of orgy etiquette, Arts & Culture at the Fulcrum has maintained a steady (and often snarky) presence over the 79 years of the paperâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s publishing history. And while the section still has a bright and vibrant future online, we decided to get nostalgic and dig through the archives to present you with some of the classic hits from days of yore: Arts through the decades.

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Photos: The Fulcrum, Courtesy of the University of Ottawa Archives

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ARTS & CULTURE | 11

MOVIES YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN TA BY DAY, DEATH METAL BASSIST BY NIGHT PRISONERS (2013) Mixing masters with metal is essential, Lu says

Prisoners was Villeneuve’s ﬁrst English-language feature ﬁlm. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.

Lucas Gergyek

Fulcrum Contributor

WHY IT’S FAMOUS French Canadian filmmaker Denis Villeneuve is well decorated, to say the least — he’s collected a number of Academy Awards throughout his filmmaking journey. When he unleashed Prisoners, a film stacked with the likes of Jake Gyllenhaal, Hugh Jackman, Viola Davis and Dylan Minnette, he caught the attention of even the pickiest film festival goer. Prisoners pushes the boundaries of the thriller genre, posing the question: how far would you go to protect your child? The film focuses on the abduction of two young girls in suburban Pennsylvania and the subsequent chaos that follows. Films such as The Call, Taken and Savages have each taken a unique aim at the kidnapping plotline, but no such film paints the accompanying sense of dread and panic as thoughtfully as Prisoners.

WHY YOU HAVEN’T SEEN IT Prisoners is neither a lighthearted nor an easy watch. Unlike films which aim to tap into the viewer’s panic response, Prisoners gradually builds a sense of dread and unease in the viewer, begging those watching at home to deadbolt the door and triple-check on their sleeping loved ones. The film was Villeneuve’s first English-language feature film. Regardless of the all-star ensemble the film boasts, Prisoners

12 | ARTS & CULTURE

missed the surface for many because, at this time, Villeneuve was still largely unknown (he would go on to create Arrival, arguably one of the best films of the millennium thus far).

WHY IT MIGHT BE TOUGH TO GET THROUGH Prisoners challenges viewers to get comfortable with the sense of dread the film radiates. Viewers must come prepared to face strapping themes of loss, turbulence and anxiety, delivered by emotionally raw performances by some of Hollywood’s best. Inherently, the film begs viewers for a strong emotional response. The film is full of symbolism and subtle cues that the uninterested viewer might miss – either commit to being disturbed or give this one a skip. Moreover, a strong plot-twist might leave many viewers saying, “Huh?” But if you catch on, it’s an unbelievably satisfying twist. The film may also hit too close to home for some. Prisoners pushes past the ghost and zombie tropes many films are plagued with, but rather, centers around every parent’s worst nightmare – their children vanishing.

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT ANYWAY Beneath the anxiety-provoking plotline runs a number of important themes explored throughout the film. Prisoners questions morality and the boundaries of good and evil, exploit-

ing each character to situations most of us couldn’t even begin to imagine how we’d handle. Moreover, Prisoners has been praised for its cinematography. Sleepily rolling hills, suburbia and almost constant rainfall mirror the existential angst captured by Villeneuve throughout the film. In addition, Prisoners presents a top-notch cast who truly give some of their best work in this film.

FAMOUS LINES Keller Dover: Every day she’s wondering why I’m not there! Not you, but me! Detective Loki: With all due respect captain, go f**k yourself. Keller Dover: We hurt him until he talks or they’re going to die.

FUN FACTS • Before being anchored by the likes of Hugh Jackman and Viola Davis, the script for Prisoners bounced around Hollywood for quite some time. It’s rumoured that other A-list actors Leonardo Dicaprio and Christian Bale were previously attached to the project. • The film centers around Detective Loki obsessively searching for two kidnapped children. Interestingly, in Norse Mythology a tale titled Loka Tattur describes how the god Loki persistently tries to protect a child from a giant named Skrymir.

Weiyun Lu leads a double life as both graduate student and musician. Photo: Parker Townes

“I’ve taken my work with me to shows. I’ve sat down and been revising a paper, got up and played my set, went back to schoolwork.” — Weiyun Lu, U of O grad student and Accursed Spawn bassist

Ryan Pepper

Fulcrum Freelancer Software engineering and death metal might not sound like a typical combination, but for U of O graduate student Weiyun Lu, he couldn’t imagine living any other way. Lu is pursuing a masters of computer science while also playing bass for local thrash and death metal band Accursed Spawn whose first full-length album was released late March 2019.. The band has been active since 2010, with Lu joining a few years ago after the band had started on their first full-length album. He described his audition for the band as a “trial by fire” as he was invited to play a set with the group in Montreal as a test-run. The new album was recorded in Ottawa and mastered in Montreal by Christian Donaldson, guitarist of metal band Cryptopsy. Lu says he listened to video game music growing up and was introduced to Japanese metal in high school. From there he got into Western metal, and

he’s been playing in the Ottawa scene for almost a decade. Lu got into the bass because of the instrument’s potential for counterpoint. He takes pride in not just copying the guitar line on bass but writing a unique piece of music that complements the melody. “Anyone can write a cool guitar riff because you can do whatever you want. Once there’s already something there and you want to write something else that’s not already there but fits it and doesn’t clash with it, I find that’s a different level of musical creativity that really speaks to me,” said Lu. Lu admits that balancing work and school isn’t always easy. He often brings his schoolwork with him to shows just to get a project done on time. “I’ve taken my work with me to shows,” Lu said. “I’ve sat down and been revising a paper, got up and played my set, went back to schoolwork.” It goes both ways though. Lu says that he’s been at academic conferences where he’ll be editing tablature in

Guitar Pro between talks. As a teaching assistant, Lu teaches a three-hour lab once and a week and prepares and helps grade tests. He doesn’t advertise that he’s a death metal bassist once school wraps up, but he admits that he’s been recognized at a show by one student. “It’s kind of like two separate lives almost,” Lu said. “Definitely a secret agent, double life kind of thing.” The band toured the east coast last summer and plays plenty of shows in Toronto and Montreal. They started looking for a label after they began recording their album, and now that they’ve signed they’ve been getting bigger shows. Balancing graduate school with music isn’t easy, but to Lu it’s essential. The graduate work gives him a much-needed day job — Lu also works parttime at a tech start-up and is hoping to turn that into a full-time job soon — while music is both a passion and a creative outlet. “It’s a very good outlet,” Lu said. “If I didn’t do the music thing I might go crazy.”

thefulcrum.ca

FROM 1942 TO BEYOND A short history of the Fulcrum MATT GERGYEK | FEATURES EDITOR

he Fulcrum was officially launched as the University of Ottawa’s English-language student newspaper in 1942 and has published uninterrupted (save a year-long hiatus in the late 60s, which we’ll get to) since. Even more interestingly, the roots of the English-language student publication on campus go back much deeper than the 1940s. Based on numerous trips to the U of O’s archives and interviews with alumni, this is the unofficial history of the Fulcrum.

1888: ROOTS OF THE FULCRUM IN THE OWL Decades before either the Fulcrum or La Rotonde were formed, the first English language student media outlet on the U of O campus was The Owl, a monthly journal formed in 1888. “(The Owl) comes not as a prognosticator to penetrate into the dim future: nor even owl-like, to fly in the dark,” the paper’s first “Salutatory” reads. “No: its aim is clear — to unite more closely, if such a thing be possible, the students of the past and present to their Alma Mater by furnishing them with short and we hope interesting accounts of her progress in every line.” The Owl featured a mix of school news, essays, short stories, poems and reviews. Oddly enough, the final edition of The Owl showed no sign of the journal slowing down. “Kindly notice that this issue completes our eleventh volume. And — to quote Shakespeare — The Owl, though slightly disfigured, is still in the ring,” the editors wrote. It’s unclear exactly what led to The Owl’s demise.

1898: THE UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA REVIEW REPLACES THE OWL The Owl was eventually replaced by The University of Ottawa Review in 1898.

“The Ottawa University Review is the organ of the students,” the eight editors of the first edition wrote. “Its object is to aid the students in their literary development, to chronicle their doings-in and out of class, and to unite more closely to their Alma Mater students of the past and the present.” The first edition of The Review included a collection of poems, a short story, a collection of editorials (“Explanatory,” “SelfLaudatory,” “Valedictory: Salutatory,” and “Informatory”), notable events that took place that month (“Assassination of the Empress of Austria”) a short section on school news, reviews of magazine articles and book, and a collection of local, alumni, and athletics news. Readers could subscribe to 10 editions of the paper for $1, while single copies of the paper went for 15 cents. The Review ceased publishing in June of 1915 due to a drop in the Anglophone student population, the U of O’s former chief archivist Michel Prévost wrote in 1992. “To those who are laying down the editorial pen to go out into the great world and fight life’s battle we wish Godspeed and every success,” The Review’s last editorial reads, titled “Ave Atque Vale” (“Hail and Farewell”).

1926: THE U OF O’S FIRST BILINGUAL PUBLICATION, THE V.A.R., DEBUTS The U of O’s first bilingual student newspaper, The V.A.R., debuted in 1926 and published until 1928. The V.A.R. published a mixture of essays, poems and short stories, university and local news, as well as sports coverage. French and English content was not incorporated together but published in separate papers at the same time. Interestingly, the French and English versions contained mainly dif-

ferent content. “This is Radio Station V-A-R broadcasting from the Philosopher’s quarters,” the front page of the first English edition reads, from November 1926. “Now take your hands right off the dials and sit back comfy in the old arm chair for you’ve just tuned in on one of the snappiest little radio stations this side of Hull.” Essentially, the “tabloid” was meant to “throw a little variety into the dull routine of our existence.”

1942: THE FULCRUM DEBUTS The Fulcrum hit newsstands for the first time in February of 1942, founded by the English Debating and Dramatic Society and led by Lorenzo Danis, who went on to launch the U of O’s Faculty of Medicine. “It is our hope that the Fulcrum will accomplish credibly the mission suggested by the definition of the word ‘Fulcrum’, ‘that by which influence is brought to bear,’” John Beahen, the paper’s first editor, wrote. Beahen later went on to become a Catholic bishop and was accused of both sexual abuse and sweeping sexual abuse allegations under the rug. He died in 1988.

origins of the Fulcrum’s relationship with the SFUO that lasted until mid-2005.

1951: THE FULCRUM SURVIVES A POTENTIAL MERGER WITH LA ROTONDE “Informed Quarters Say: Federation Bankrupt,” the Fulcrum’s frontpage headline read in October of 1951, detailing a debt of $3,000 for the SFUO, equivalent to just over $67,000 today. “The next few days will be decisive,” the editors wrote. One potential cost-saving measure on the table was the merging of the Fulcrum and La Rotonde under the name “The Ottawa.” The crisis was averted by the Fulcrum’s then editor-in-chief, Philip Nicolaides, who argued doing so would cause confusion and wouldn’t necessarily save cost, the Fulcrum wrote in November of 1951. The two papers did begin sharing office space at the new “student house,” located at 609 Cumberland Street, which is now near the site of Café Nostalgica.

1963: THE FULCRUM PUBLISHES WEEKLY

1946: ENGLISH STUDENTS ASSOCIATION TAKES OVER THE FULCRUM

The last issue of the Fulcrum in the 1962-1963 academic year brought along one of the paper’s numerous redesigns and reconfigurations, but also something the editors of neither the Fulcrum or La Rotonde had attempted thus far, according to the Fulcrum’s editors for the following year: a weekly publication cycle. The editors, in their September 1963 editorial, weren’t blunt about the fact that this wouldn’t be an easy task.

The English Students Association, a federated body of the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO), took over the Fulcrum, the

“Needless to say, such an undertaking will require a large and efficient staff,” they wrote. “Accordingly, we strongly urge everyone .... all those all

The Fulcrum was published eight times throughout the academic year and initially was only funded through alumni donations. In 1943 the Fulcrum turned to advertising for funding.

those who wish to have some experience in this line, to drop around the offices of the Fulcrum as soon as possible.”

1964: THE FULCRUM BECOMES MORE OUTSPOKEN Historically, the Fulcrum was a moderate newspaper up until the 1960s, according to Prévost. “It did not play an advocacy role and, unlike (La Rotonde), it never had a strained relationship with university authorities,” Prévost wrote, describing how three editors were fired in 1958 for publishing a report that the university didn’t agree with. The 1960s marked a change in the Fulcrum’s coverage, according to Prévost, and can be highlighted by one editorial from October of 1964. The editors criticized the U of O’s move to remove part of an issue of La Rotonde that the administration did not agree with. According to Prévost, the part of the issue in question was a piece criticizing the sight of Queen Elizabeth II in Quebec. The Fulcrum placed blame on La Rotonde but more importantly on the U of O’s administration, a paradigm shift in the Fulcrum’s editorial voice and a foreshadowing to one of our major roles today: holding the university accountable. “What the Fulcrum wants to know is why the Administration (sic) felt it was up to them to take the paper off the campus?”

1969: MEET ID MAGAZINE In 1969 the Fulcrum and La Rotonde shuttered their individual doors and joined forces to create a new student publication, ID Magazine, since “university papers were no longer managing to attract student interest,” Prévost wrote in his historical overview of both publications in 1992. “ID Magazine is part of a new approach to campus communications initiated during the summer by the staffs of the now-defunct French and English tabloid newspapers,”

the editors wrote in the first edition of ID, published in October 1969. “The magazine’s basic function is to serve (as) an opinion-making mechanism offering in-depth analysis of both academic and para-academic concerns.” ID, like the V.A.R., didn’t run identical articles in both French and English but offered different articles for French and English readers, packaged into the same magazine.

1970: THE FULCRUM RETURNS The Fulcrum made its return in September of 1970 with a tongue-in-cheek editorial. Ian Green, former editor-inchief of ID, was at its helm. “Like everything else at the students’ federation … we are operating on a threadbare budget,” the Fulcrum’s editors wrote, noting faculty associations were shouldering part of its costs and sending out a call for writers to contribute. “We will try our damndest to succeed, the rest is up to you.”

1988: MOVE TO 631 KING EDWARD AVENUE The Fulcrum moved to its current home at 631 King Edward Avenue from the University Centre (it’s unclear when the Fulcrum moved to the University Centre from Cumberland Street to begin with). We’re “right around the corner from Father and Sons Restaurant (FNS), where we will most likely be if you can’t find us in our very convenient spot,” the editors wrote in September 1988, which still rings decidedly true.

2005: THE FULCRUM GOES INDEPENDENT The fact that the Fulcrum was owned by the SFUO was always an intrinsic problem and a barrier to the newspaper doing its job properly, especially when it comes to editorial independence, according to Mary Cummins, Marcus McCann and Rob Fishbook, three Fulcrum alumni who negotiated the Fulcrum’s autonomy. Independence

from

the

SFUO was something that had been talked about within the Fulcrum for decades, but the final and conclusive push came with the summer issue of 2004, which the SFUO unsuccessfully tried to pull from stands. It featured a large and frosted mug of beer on the cover along with mentions of “frosh” throughout the issue (the SFUO preferred “101 week,” due to the negative connotations). And while the Fulcrum was going through a very profitable period, much of the extra revenue was used to subsidize other parts of the SFUO — preventing the paper from growing, according to Rob Fishbook, who was news editor at the time. As a result, the team worked with then-SFUO president Philip Lalibertié, who the editors say was very open to the idea of autonomy, through the 2004-05 academic year. Ownership of the Fulcrum officially transferred to the Fulcrum Publishing Society (also known as our board of directors) in June of 2005.

2015: THE FULCRUM HOSTS NASH 77 The Fulcrum hosted NASH 77, the annual Canadian University Press student journalism conference. The yearly theme was “access,” with a goal of educating “students about the role of the modern journalist in relation to the access they may or may not have,” noting “access is fundamentally what journalists seek today.” Peter Mansbridge, Diana Swaine, and Selena Ross spoke at the conference, to name a few journalists. The Fulcrum also hosted NASH 70 in 2008.

2018-19: THE FULCRUM BEGINS TO TRANSITION AWAY FROM PRINT This year the Fulcrum began printing only one special issue a month rather than publishing in print weekly, while continuing to publish online weekly with a revamped website.

2019-20: THE FULCRUM GOES ONLINE ONLY Come the 2019-20 academic

year, the Fulcrum will transition exclusively to our website, making this our final print issue. And now, a final word from our current editor-in-chief, Anchal Sharma: The 2018-19 publishing year has been a long one here at the Fulcrum, from navigating dissolving student unions, to the Ford government’s ongoing cuts to education, not to mention a huge learning curve for the Fulcrum going digital. Returning to our roots from 1942, we published eight print issues this year, with online content in between. The loss of weekly print issues was an emotional one, but a necessary one, and allowed us to cover a wider range of stories with more frequency. This year was an experimental year for online, and we enjoyed the leisure of being more flexible with story deadlines, had the opportunity to conduct more investigative research, publish weekly videos, and run social media contests. With an online only news cycle in the coming academic year, students can expect a lot more from their publication. Look out for live-streaming on our social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, more video content, live-tweeting, and photo stories. We also plan on implementing more multimedia to our articles, so if you like Buzzfeed quizzes, and memes, or the Economist’s timeline’s and graphs, you’ll like ours even better. Seventy-seven years of print have offered students a lot in terms of building relationships, memories, and breaking memorable stories. While our transition is bittersweet, with an online platform, we hope to achieve even more. While we will no longer occupy stands on campus, we will remain alive in the hearts and minds of our readers (and on www.thefulcrum.ca).

hristopher Waddell leans back in his chair, squinting through the sunshine pouring into his corner office in Carleton University’s Richcraft Hall. Waddell’s career took him from publication to publication, city to city, and print to television, finally landing him here, a few stories above the Rideau River as a professor in the school of journalism and communication and director of the newly-launched media production and design program at Carleton. His eyes crinkle with a sarcastic smile when he’s asked if the death of print journalism is inevitable. “How do you feel about travel agents and record stores?” No industry has escaped the digital revolution of this millennium unscathed, but perhaps few industries have struggled to evolve as much as journalism, which clung to the traditional advertising revenue model even as social media conglomerates wrenched eyeballs and ad dollars from its ink-stained fingers. Advertising sales in the Canadian newspaper industry are steadily declining, down about 22 per cent in 2016 from 2014, according to a Statistics Canada study published in 2017. In the same year, digital advertising sales accounted for less than 15 per of all advertising sales. Facebook and Google established themselves as the masters of data analytics and the digital sphere before print publications had even begun developing their websites. Social media sites have the ability to collect detailed information about their users and sell it to advertisers to craft a catered and personalized experience, making them the perfect market for the advertising industry, something news publications can’t match. Brett Popplewell, a journalism professor at Carleton and career journalist, admits the traditional advertising model never stood a chance online.

“Who are you going to give your ad dollars to? You’re not going to give it to the magazine or the newspaper, you’re going to give it to Facebook, or Google because they know the person better,” he says. “So all of a sudden, the revenue stream that used to support journalism just disappears, and instead goes to this thing (social media) that’s actually eroding our concept of what news is.”

“(Who) makes sure there isn’t skullduggery and corruption going on at city hall or in the police force if you don’t have eyes on those institutions?”

As the revenue stream evaporates, local news outlets disappear with it. About 260 Canadian media outlets have gone under in the last decade, according to the Local News Research Project led by April Lindgreen, a journalism professor at Ryerson University

“The public is making poor choices at the local level just like they do at the federal level … they need accountability. Accountability happens because journalism is there. Even when it’s not a question of corruption, it’s a question of participation.”

“It’s been a technological crisis for the last decade or so, and an advertising crisis, and now it’s sort of an existential and geographic crisis,” says Popplewell. “If these things don’t exist — if the reporters and the institutions disappear from towns and campuses and cities and provinces — all of a sudden it’s just news darkness.”

BLACK SCREEN, BLANK PAGE, WHITE NOISE News darkness, news poverty, news deserts: There’s no shortage of terms coined in recent years to describe the phenomenon that has forced publications to wave the white flag and stop their presses. There’s also no shortage of consequences of their disappearance. Like Waddell, Paul Adams’ career spanned multiple mediums, including print, radio, and television, before he arrived as a professor at Carleton. He’s concerned the democratic function of civic education that was once a major part of the media’s role is lost when news goes digital, meaning news coverage in certain regions just disappears. “How do you find out about your local member of Parliament when there’s an election on, who goes to city council and tells you what’s happening in city council, who holds those institutions to account?” Adams asks.

“You need somebody to be the intermediary to communicate issues back to the public,” adds Karyn Pugliese, president of the Canadian Association of Journalists and director of news and current affairs at APTN.

Adams adds local news plays an important role in highlighting what people should know, or what they should be paying attention to. “There’s a saying in some academic circles that ‘the media doesn’t tell you what to think but they do tell you what to think about,’” he says. “Newspapers, by deciding that this story or that story was important, and by implication that other stories weren’t, really decided where people’s attention focused.”

DEMOCRATIC SHIFTS AND THE FOURTH ESTATE Democracy was once thought of as the product of three estates: clergy, nobility, and commoners. As society evolved and democracy strengthened, there emerged a fourth estate: the press. The media has played a fundamental role in the success of democracy, acting as the political agenda, the marketplace of ideas, and, most importantly, the protector of truth. But media has become domesticated, personalized for individual use. Recent decades witnessed the birth of social media, and the customization of exposure to not only news but also opinion, education, and even truth itself. This is concerning to the journalists who had to watch these changes unfold. Popplewell references a quote by 19th-century political sci-

entist Alexis de Tocqueville, who famously declared that “nothing but a newspaper can drop the same thought into a thousand minds at the same moment.” “That’s no longer a true statement,” he says. “The main thing that drops the same thought into a thousand minds is social media. But we all pick and choose who and what we follow. So is it dangerous to democracy when there is sort of no common understanding of reality? Yes. And we’re already seeing that.” In 2017, the Public Policy Forum released the Shattered Mirror report, which quoted the Uncertain Mirror, a 1970 Special Senate Committee on Mass Media report. It proclaimed that “in a land of bubblegum forests and lollipop trees, every man would have his own newspaper or broadcasting station, devoted exclusively to programming that man’s opinions and perceptions.” By 2017, this satirical criticism came startlingly true. The need for diversity in media has never been starker, but social media has concocted a world of lollipop trees. And while the subjectivity of reality may have started with social media, there is concern that news organizations are being forced to lean into it.

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“People used to study the coverage of the same story in the Globe and Mail and the National Post and it would reveal bias on both sides. That was the old story,” Popplewell says. “The new story is there’s a scandal on Parliament Hill and a large portion of the public might not know about it because they’re getting all their news from their news feeds, and they pick and choose to the point that they don’t know what the hell’s happening.”

PARADIGM SHIFTS IN MEDIA PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION We’re not quite there yet, but Popplewell warns that may be the path media is heading down.

About 260 Canadian media outlets have gone un Illustration:

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ions across re collapsing; uld care and g next

LCRUM FREELANCER

nder in the last decade, according to one count. : Kelsea Shore

As media outlets rely more on data analytics to tell them what their audiences are interested in, it becomes harder for people of different backgrounds, political affiliations, or communities to access the same stream of information. Experts are united on the importance of the media as the fourth estate. Where their opinions diverge is on the sustainability of the media’s role as a mechanism of accountability in its current form. As readers move away from print, they also move away from traditional means of news consumption in general. As a result, the way news is produced, presented and distributed digitally has had to change as well. “If you’re going to go into something that is subscription based, then your news has to be salable … it becomes more like a product,” argues Pugliese. “It means that you’re going to go for (news) that’s more profitable.” Another Statistics Canada study from 2016 found that every type of medium but the Internet, including print, radio and television, was being used to access news frequently in 2013 versus 2003. On the other hand, data from a 2017 Vividata study found that while the majority of baby boomers visit publications’ sites directly, and in doing so continue to access diverse content, 63 per cent of millennials find their news via social media, meaning it’s most likely targeted at them by algorithms tracking their established patterns of preference. Randy Boswell, a journalist and Carleton journalism professor, also worries that the news consumed by social media users is less diverse in perspectives, but also is engaged with less meaningfully. “There’s a lot of concern about not just misinformation, fake news and the bubbles that people might inhabit, but also just about the distraction,” Boswell says. “Of superficiality … of people feeling like they’re being informed but they’re really just learning more about the Kardashians.” The transition from print to

digital mediums doesn’t necessarily correspond to a decline in high-quality journalism. In fact, the importance of ensuring that it doesn’t has become a priority of journalists, professors, and students, and even the Canadian government.

local news plays in communities other than the theoretical one,” he says. “It’s great to talk about local news, but it feels a little bit like a romanticized version of a world that may have never existed.”

In the federal budget released on Mar. 19, provisions for the support of Canadian journalism were announced, including $595 million in subsidies and tax credits (for subscribers to digital publications).

The overwhelming response to questions about the future of journalism is that it’s uncertain.

While the governmental provisions are considered a step in the right direction, both Pugliese and Waddell think the initiatives are somewhat misguided. “Clearly the large news media organizations like the Globe and Mail and the National Post are going to benefit from this,” says Pugliese. “We’ve been seeing the emergence of startups trying to move into this space where the legacy media is failing, and they’re not going to benefit very well from what’s been announced.” “The problem with that is when those boutique tax credits have been tried in the past, the evidence is that it overwhelmingly benefits people who are already doing it, it doesn’t actually bring in new people,” adds Waddell. In the 2018 budget, the government proposed $50 million to support news in underserved communities. However, the government failed to provide mechanisms for the implementation of this money, and no mention was made of it in this year’s legislation. “It’s incredibly important because of the number of newspapers that have shut down or news services that have shut down,” says Pugliese. “There’s no shortage of underserved communities.” Waddell is less inclined to hope for local news initiatives. “I mean, where have the people gone that used to read newspapers? I think that we need to answer some questions before we really know how much of a role that

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When asked about the widespread fear among journalism students that the industry will be in shambles by the time they graduate, Waddell didn’t hesitate to respond with another smile: “It probably already is.” That said, Waddell insists that the advantages introduced by multimedia and virtual reality have the potential to revolutionize storytelling in the near future. He also urges the government to rethink their investment in legacy media. “I think the organizations that are going to have the most difficulty surviving are precisely the ones the government is trying to subsidize, which are the mainstream organizations that try to do everything for everyone,” he says. “I think if you’re going to subsidize anyone, you should be subsidizing people who have demonstrated some sort of ability to survive. The big ones haven’t actually.” Boswell shares Waddell’s optimism regarding journalism’s adaptability and the importance of continuing to encourage young journalists. “I’m not just whistling through the graveyard,” he says. “I really do feel that the entire world is moving in a digital direction. Having a range of communication skills, storytelling skills, visual skills, and audio skills positions young people pretty well for a wide range of job opportunities.” “I think there’s going to be a restart,” Pugliese says. “First of all, the government money, whether people think it’s good or evil, it’s going to support the legacy media and it’s going to be around a little while longer while we go through the transition. Then

you’ve got the smaller startups. We can put a lot of hope in those smaller startups.” Pugliese cites the Logic, the Discourse, and the Halifax Examiner as examples of Canadian publications who have been able to use the Internet to find a niche market and create a sustainable business. “People always focus on the 260 news outlets that closed in the last decade, but 93 outlets launched in that same period,” adds Pugliese. The media industry is in a time of flux, and changes will continue to occur while it recalibrates to the digital world. However, most journalists, Pugliese among them, are confident that journalism will emerge from this time of transformation different, certainly, but robust. “Democracies don’t work without journalism, Pugliese says bluntly. “We don’t have journalism because there’s a democracy; We have a democracy because there’s journalism. So we have to have journalism in Canada. And I think Canadians realize that.”

“It’s been a technological crisis for the last decade or so, and an advertising crisis, and now it’s sort of an existential crisis. If these things don’t exist - if the reporters and the institutions disappear from towns, campuses, cities, provinces - all of a sudden it’s just news darkness.” — Brett Popplewell, journalism professor at Carleton University

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Fulcrum alumni reflect on their time at the paper MATT GERGYEK & RYAN PEPPER

FEATURES EDITOR, FULCRUM FREELANCER

s the Fulcrum approaches its 80th production cycle, thousands of our alumni are out in the world, many of them holding their time at the Fulcrum close to heart. These are some of their stories.

describes pulling all-nighters piecing pages together by hand, driving the copy to the printer, circling back for breakfast and then heading out on campus to distribute the paper before starting the cycle all over again. At the Fulcrum, Picard recalls writing about HIV/AIDS as a social-political issue on campus, a foreshadowing to his career today and a major advantage when he was assigned to cover similar stories at the Globe when he first started off.

ANDRÉ PICARD

ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR (1981-1982), EDITORIN-CHIEF (1982-83) André Picard, the health columnist at the Globe and Mail who was once a business student at the U of O, says he probably wouldn’t have become a journalist in the first place if it weren’t for the Fulcrum. “Some people say, ‘I always dreamed of being a journalist,’ but I never had that dream at all,” he says. “(The Fulcrum) shaped my career.” Picard’s journalism career was kickstarted by his love for music. He began by reviewing records for the Fulcrum before becoming the arts and culture editor and then editor-in-chief. Picard

“We were not unopinionated journalists, we would take a stand on things, … injustices against people,” he says. “Forty years later, I’m still writing about it.” Picard took a job at the Canadian University Press (CUP) after he finished up at the Fulcrum and later earned a journalism degree from Carleton University. From there he took a summer job at the Globe and hasn’t left since. One of Picard’s major stories from his over 30 years at the Globe was his work into Canada’s tainted blood scandal, what he calls the country’s “worst-ever preventable public-health disaster.” While Picard wasn’t the only journalist working on the story he kept it close to heart, eventually publishing one of his five bestselling books, The Gift of Death, on the story.

a little hand-written thumbs up on it. “We were right,” she says. “(I) realized you really do need to have the guts to stand up.”

MICHELLE LALONDE ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR (1984-85), EDITOR-INCHIEF (1985-86)

Michelle Lalonde, now a reporter at the Montreal Gazette, remembers the day she decided to get involved with the Fulcrum as a psychology and English literature student vividly.

After finishing her term as editor-in-chief, Lalonde worked for CUP, first as an Ontario field worker and then as national bureau chief. She went on to complete a master of journalism degree at Ryerson University, where she interned for the Globe and Mail before finding fulltime work at the Gazette in 1991.

Lalonde’s highlight from her time at the Fulcrum was a story she wrote on an incoming Student Federation University of Ottawa (SFUO) vice-president (finance) who was accused of paying someone to take a summer course for him. Someone — whom she believed to be the professor of the course — leaked her the tip, which she later confirmed through interviews and reporting. “(The SFUO) actually called the printer and tried to stop the presses,” she says. “I remember driving to the printer … and going in there and saying ‘you have to run the story.’” The story ran, and a few days later she found a business card in her mailbox from the professor of the course, with

Chiu is now manages the team of visual storytellers a the Globe in both digital and print mediums. At the Globe, he’s led three redesigns of the print and digital editions and has won three National Newspaper Awards.

At the Gazette, she’s covered Indigenous issues, poverty, and the environment, among other beats. These days she’s full-circle, reporting lately on sexual violence on post-secondary campuses.

While walking through the University Centre one day, mulling over how to launch her career as a writer, she was called over to the Fulcrum’s table and pushed herself to sign up as a volunteer. From there, she didn’t look back. “I just remember feeling like these are my people,” Lalonde says, who started off volunteering as an arts writer before becoming editor of that section, and eventually editor-in-chief. “They’re fired up about stuff, they’re smart, funny, curious, the kind of people you want to be around.”

Chiu became a bureau chief and the Ontario director at CUP and then moved to La Rotonde as creative director and deputy editor. After leaving student journalism he became a news designer at the Toronto Star before joining the Globe.

SONIA DESMARAIS SPORTS EDITOR (1989-90), EDITOR-IN-CHIEF (1990-91)

JASON CHIU

ART DIRECTOR (2006-07) Jason Chiu, now the deputy head of visual journalism at the Globe and Mail, was interested in exploring photography while he was a history student at the U of O. He started as a volunteer photographer for the Fulcrum, became the staff photographer, and then the art director from 2006-07. “There’s probably no experience like working at a student newspaper,” Chiu says. “Being involved in journalism, especially at a very young age, helps you understand institutions … society … (and how to) give a voice to people who don’t have their own.” “Life is not always a perfect equilibrium all the time,” he adds. “From time to time, there are people that have to call power to account and highlight successes … and journalism is something that can do that.”

Sonia Desmarais, now an investigative producer at Radio-Canada, knew she always wanted to be a journalist but wasn’t sure where to start. She brought this up in a bar with some friends, including a player on the football team, who brought up the idea of doing a profile on linebackers who, he said, are left out of the spotlight. She did the story, brought it to the Fulcrum, and walked out the door with three more assignments on her plate. “It was like from one day to the next, I was a journalist, and I never looked back,” Desmarais says, who took history and political science at the U of O. “I was addicted, right away.” True to the roots of her first story, Desmarais went on to become the sports editor in 1989-90, before becoming editor-in-chief the following academic year. After getting hooked on journalism at the Fulcrum, Desmarais started working part-time at the Ottawa Citizen and then went on to complete a master’s of jour-

nalism at Concordia University. At Concordia, Desmarais started as a researcher for CBC/Radio-Canada, gradually working her way up to her current gig as an investigative producer and journalist for Radio-Canada’s investigative show, Enquête. “Choosing to walk in that door (of the Fulcrum) and submit an article absolutely changed my life, absolutely,” Desmarais says. And while the journalism industry is in a state of struggle and change, Desmarais encourages anyone considering a career as a journalist to go for it. “It’s the most amazing career you can have, to be a journalist,” she says. “I’m surrounded by people who have no regrets.”

including assigning a feature story on city architecture and hookah culture. Hassannia earned film degree from Carleton University, which she credits for helping develop her critical thinking, but she’s clear about the skills she learned at the Fulcrum: “I learned how to write.” From there, Hassannia eventually moved to Toronto where she began writing about film, TV, culture and psychology for a number of publications, including the National Post and the Atlantic. She put out a book in 2014, Asghar Farhadi: Life and Cinema, that follows the career of the Iranian director of the same name, known for his Academy Award-winning 2011 film, A Separation. One of Hassannia’s favourite movies of last year? Burning, directed by Lee Chang-dong and starring Yoo Ah-In, Steven Yeun, and Jun Jong-Seo. Her tips for budding film critics? “Try to limit the plot summary to a few sentences … (and) focus on just one element that struck you,” she tells the Fulcrum later via email. “Hot takes are where it’s at.”

“I never went to journalism school, I didn’t have the benefit of whatever you learn in there, so the closest thing I had were editors who were only a couple years older than me … even though it turns out they’re a bunch of jokers like the rest of us,” Taylor-Vaisey says. “It was a lot of fun to learn that way, because everyone was roughly in the same place, professionally, but also we’re all learning how to be adults at the same time, so it was a really collegiate environment.” Taylor-Vaisey credits his time as a student journalist with getting him to where he is now as an associate editor at Maclean’s. He’s recently written about the 2019 federal budget and the SNC-Lavalin controversy. He uses those skills he learned as a student journalist every day in the newsroom. “It was an absolutely magical place to work,” Taylor-Vaisey said, who described his time as sports editor as the best job he’s ever had.

TINA HASSANNIA

ONLINE EDITOR (2006-07), ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR (2007-08) Tina Hassannia got her start at the Fulcrum in her first year at the U of O in 2004 as an arts and culture writer. One of Hassannia’s first articles (and one she still cherishes and keeps a copy of to this day) was her review of Arcade Fire’s Funeral, where she reflected on celebrating a person’s life after death rather than mourning it. “We back away from music that bashes us over the heads with emotion,” Hassannia, a communications student, wrote in October 2004. “Yet, some bands manage to hit us with their poignancy and it actually stings, in a good way.” Hassannia went on to become the 2007-08 arts and culture editor at the Fulcrum where she brought her own special touch to the section,

EMMA GODMERE

NEWS EDITOR (2008-09), EDITOR-IN-CHIEF (2009-10)

NICK TAYLOR-VAISEY

SPORTS EDITOR (2006-07), NEWS EDITOR (2007-08) Nick Taylor-Vaisey describes his start at the Fulcrum while he was studying political science as typical to most other fledgling student journalists: He was “tired of being a boring person” and found the Fulcrum to be a great outlet to both maximize his time as a student and explore his own interests.

Emma Godmere had her eyes on the Fulcrum before she even started at the U of O as a history and communications student. Godmere, an Ottawa native, remembers bussing down Laurier Avenue in high school and picking up copies of the paper. Like many alumni, seeing her byline in the Fulcrum a few years later was a special feeling for Godmere. “That first time was so exhilarating,” she says. Godmere, who graduated high school a year early, may

“School’s great, but getting involved with the Fulcrum is so much better.” — Katherine DeClerq, Fulcrum alum The Fulcrum will go into its 80th production cycle in the 2019-2020 academic year. Illustrations: Rame Abdulkader well have been one of the Fulcrum’s youngest editorsin-chief. She took on the job at just 19 years old after she was news editor the year before. She was also involved with CHUO. “It was a really interesting moment as a student journalist,” Godmere says, reflecting on covering the swine flu and mental health crises on campus. “Here’s a bigger story that’s affecting a lot of people ... across North America and the world right now, and here’s a very specific example of it having a very pointed and very big impact on our campus.” Godmere became Ottawa bureau chief, national bureau chief and then national conference coordinator at CUP. She then worked as a digital editor at Metro before she took a job at CBC, where she’s now a writer, producer and music programmer for CBC Radio Q.

KATHERINE DECLERQ NEWS EDITOR (2010-11), SPORTS EDITOR (2011-12)

Katherine DeClerq came to the U of O as a political sci-

ence and history student just over a decade ago knowing she wanted to get involved in student journalism. “In high school, my friend and I put together this tiny, 8 x 11 newspaper and I did want to continue that in university,” she says, remembering showing up at to her first volunteer meeting at Fulcrum with writing samples in hand. After getting her first news story published, DeClerq mailed copies back to her friends and family in Toronto. “I loved how I became part of this university culture that I was afraid in my first year that I wouldn’t fit in to,” DeClerq says, who later became the Fulcrum’s news and then sports editor. “But here I am, now I know how the (university) government works, I’m going to sports games … and a lot of students don’t get that experience.” It was never a dull moment for DeClerq: She got the chance to interview both Alex Trebek (U of O alum and host of Jeopardy) and Michelle Bachelet (the first female president of Chile). DeClerq went on to become CUP’s Ontario bureau chief and enrolled in the master’s of journalism program at Ryerson University, where she interned at Maclean’s, the Toronto Star and later freelanced while working as editor-in-chief of Women’s Post. She’s currently a web writer with CTV News Toronto. “School’s great,” she says, “but getting involved with the Fulcrum is so much better.”

THE FULCRUM, THEN AND NOW

The Fulcrum’s archives provide a look into historical shifts at the U of O and across Canada ZOË MASON | FULCRUM FREELANCER

he past 77 years have been characterized by some of the most brutal conflicts, close misses, and great triumphs in the history of human achievement. From the waging of war to the negotiation of peace and the formation of institutions to maintain it, the Fulcrum has witnessed and documented it all since its establishment in 1942. There is a need then for the Canadian perspective, raw and immediate, rather than imbued with the wisdom of retrospect. For that, there is no better place than the stacks of archived copies of the Fulcrum, their yellowed pages filled with the interpretations of distant past by young Canadians for whom it was the urgent present.

IN THE BEGINNING... The first-ever copy of the Fulcrum was released in winter of 1942, where the editors proclaimed their motives for the establishment of a campus publication. “You, sons and friends of Ottawa U., will lend to it the support you have never failed to show your College and to the cause of Catholic education,” they wrote, revealing a significant amount about the early identity of the U of O. The university was once, at its core, a Catholic institution for the education of young men. Like the world around it, however, the Fulcrum and the U of O changed with time. The content of this first issue is a testament to the concerns and interests of the student body at the time. Some stories are unimaginably foreign, such as the

short article about the negative consequences of showing anti-Nazi propaganda. Some are familiar, like the column detailing the exploits of the varsity hockey team.

GLOBAL CONFLICT, AS SEEN FROM OTTAWA Despite the occasional elements of familiarity, the severity of the topics covered in the early days of the Fulcrum is striking. A particularly heavy issue published in April 1945 provides precious Canadian insight on the state of global affairs. “A Citizen of the World,” reads the front page headline preceding an obituary for Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who died from natural causes while he was the 32nd president of the United States. Among the praise for his achievements is a short description of the man, noting that he loved baseball, dogs, and fishing in Canada. The news section of the April 1945 issue reads like a history textbook: A piece titled “No V-E Day Tomorrow” tentatively declares the impending surrender of Nazi Germany. The article warns against anticipating a peace as sudden and absolute as the armistice that concluded the First World War, but it nonetheless insists that “it seems as if the fate of Germany is sealed beyond all possible hope of redemption.” In actuality, VE day would be declared less than a month later. The following article, “Treatment of Germany,” hints at the upcoming Cold War, which started just two years later.

“Most of this discussion, knowing no regulation except the dictates of prejudice and unfounded opinion, is fruitless,” the article reads. “Whether there can be reconciliation between the Russian aim, which amounts to unconditional obliteration of the German nation as such, and the Anglo-American view which now falls short of such an extreme, is open to question.” The Fulcrum’s coverage of this era reveals that Canadian youth had both a realistic and diplomatic interpretation of events. This continued to be illustrated throughout the early years of the Cold War. “A Debatable Question” is the title spanning two analyses of the Suez Crisis published in November 1956, divided into two subsections: “Egypt’s Case” and “Britain’s Case.” “The world was shaken, bewildered, saddened,” writes Louis de Salaberry in “Egypt’s Case.” “Nations who have always believed in the fair-play of the British and the goodwill of the French now shake their heads and ask, ‘Is there no one left to be trusted?’” “Obviously, Britain must have thought that the fighting in, and around the Suez Canal would reach uncontrollable heights,” Mimi Panet began in her counter-argument, “Britain’s Case.” “Britain and France saw no other course than to begin armed combat, with the obvious hopes that the United Nations would intervene and bring peace between Egypt and Israel.”

Sheltered from the direct influence of the paranoia and self-righteousness of the American-Soviet debate, the Fulcrum actually rarely succumbed to the propagandistic Western bias that plagued many publications during the Cold War era — with a few notable exceptions. In a personal favourite piece, “The International Situation and You” published in September 1954, Tony Enriquez points to alleged communist infiltration of the International Union of Students (IUS), which the now nonexistent National Federation of Canadian University Students was once affiliated with. The IUS met yearly to discuss the concerns shared among students around the globe, beginning in the years immediately after the Second World War. “Unfortunately even at that time, and without the slightest suspicion of good-willed delegates, the representatives from the Communist countries were busy preparing the road for their future control of the organization,” writes Enriquez. He also accuses the IUS of distributing “blatant propaganda against ‘capitalist warmongers.’” In what amounts to nearly two full pages of newsprint, Enriquez rails against communism and the students who impose it via an institution designed for peaceful engagement and education. The Fulcrum was able to uphold impressive standards of journalistic integrity and impartiality throughout many of the era’s most polarizing conflicts, but shows feelings

The Fulcrum’s full archives can be accessed at th Photos: The Fulcrum via Uni

he U of O archives in the basement of Marie Curie. iversity of Ottawa Archives

of suspicion and resentment resonated with Canadian youth.

JUST WATCH ME As fascinating as the Canadian perspective on international conflict is, it’s also refreshing to read about events here in Canada from the perspective of the youth who lived through them. Perhaps Canada’s most notorious crisis struck in October of 1970 in Montreal due to the violent actions of the radical Quebec nationalist group, the Front de Liberation du Québec (FLQ). The October Crisis prompted a suspension of civil liberties, a variety of memorable statements from then-prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, and of course, ample coverage in the Fulcrum. At the U of O, a student council meeting negotiated the university’s position on the events in Montreal. The violence of the FLQ was widely condemned but what is more surprising is the degree to which students condemned the actions of the government as well. “In so far as the governments have continually used terrorist methods, those of the RCMP represent physical terrorism on the part of the government, statements of Prime Minister Trudeau concerning the consequences of Quebec independence represent psychological terrorism,” reads an excerpt from the motion that was eventually agreed to by the council. The language used to condemn the government’s enactment of the War Measures Act may be exaggerated but represents a reconciliation of French-Canadian secessionist interests with widespread humanitarian concern and the defence of fundamental democratic rights.

THE NEW MILLENNIUM The U of O was in the middle of a scandalous frosh week sex scandal in September of 2001. An article by Adam Grachnik titled “The Fall Guy” detailed the misfortunes of a frosh guide who put on a pornographic show, sits next

to a half-page spread by Mark Greenan about the tragedy unfolding in the United States. “In what will likely turn out to be the deadliest terrorist attack in North American history, key U.S. landmarks — the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon — were hit by hijacked planes in the early morning hours of Sept. 11,” writes Greenan, who goes on to reveal fear among Canadian politicians. “‘(Ottawa) is the number one political institution in Canada. This could be the number one target outside of the United States,’” a concerned Canadian Alliance member of Parliament told Greenan. In a column appropriately titled “It’s a scary, scary world,” Laura Payton wrote about her disgust regarding the brutal beating of a 15-year-old Muslim boy in Orléans, just outside Ottawa, and other instances of Islamophobic prejudice. “The world is seriously going to hell. This boy did not fly a jet into a building and the chances are slim that he or any student at the U of O had anything to do with the attacks in the U.S.,” she wrote, “All peace-loving citizens need to stick together. After all, racially-motivated violence is just as sinister as terrorism.”

THE PRINTING PRESSES HALT Sifting through the boxes in the musty basement of Marie Curie is an incredibly humbling experience, as a student and a writer. The pages of the Fulcrum have been home to powerful voices, who have grappled with events and issues that are somehow both incomprehensibly large in scope, and yet somehow still condensed into bite-sized pieces of literature that pertain directly to the lives and perspectives of students here in Ottawa. The future of the Fulcrum may not be in print, but it promises to continue being an instrument of expression, discussion, and investigation for generations to come. Here’s to many more.

From the waging of war to the negotiation of peace and the formation of institutions to maintain it, the Fulcrum has witnessed and documented it all since its establishment in 1942.

SPORTS

SPORTS EDITOR Andrew Price sports@thefulcrum.ca @APricey47

Sports Editors

HERE ARE YOUR 201819 CAVALRY WINNERS

Charley Dutil & Andrew Price

2018-19 CAVALRY AWARDS Every year for our last edition, the Fulcrum gives out the Cavalry Awards to the most deserving student-athletes.

In one of the best years for Gee-Gees teams and athletes as a whole, there was a big crop to choose from, but only a select few could be chosen. Following a round of voting, four of the top varsity athletes were called upon, and from that, two have been named “MVPs”. We also have awards for coach, rookie, and leader of the year. So without further ado, here are your 2018–19 Cavalry Award winners.

FEMALE MVP: EMMA LEFEBVRE, WOMEN’S SOCCER

MALE MVP: STEPHEN EVANS, TRACK & FIELD

COACH OF THE YEAR: STEVE JOHNSON, WOMEN’S SOCCER

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: YVAN MONGO, MEN’S HOCKEY

LEADER OF THE YEAR: ERIC LOCKE, MEN’S HOCKEY

In her third campaign with the red horses, Lefebvre proved herself a clutch playoff performer. In the Gees’ OUA quarterfinal game versus the U of T, Lefebvre was dominant, scoring both goals in a 2–0 win. The thirdyear nursing student would also put up solid efforts in the semis and finals, recording a shot in both games, albeit failing to score herself. In an interview given to the Fulcrum in October, Lefebvre talked about how a change of mentality lead to her strong 2018 season. “My attitude towards soccer has changed. Instead of going out on the pitch and hoping to score, I tell myself that I’m going to score regardless of who we might be playing that night,’’ Lefebvre said. Shortly after this interview, Lefebvre would lead her team to a national championship on home turf, the second in program history and first since 1996. She scored two goals in the tournament.

The runner from Ottawa was fast in 2019. Evans, who studies political science at the U of O, won the U Sports gold medal in the 600-metre dash in Winnipeg. Evans was also dominant in this year’s OUAs, taking home the gold in his main 600-metre event and the kilometre race. In his fourth year with the GeeGees, Evans was one of the lone bright spots on a struggling men’s track and field team — being the only member to have won a medal at either the provincial or national level in the last few years.

In his 25th season with the GeeGees, Johnson coached his team to an outstanding 20–1–1 regular season, and eventually the ultimate prize in a U Sports gold medal. For the first time since 1996, the U of O was able to capture the coveted national championship, defeating the Trinity Western Spartans. The final match was a bit of a nailbiter, with Miranda Smith finally scoring the gamewinner off a laser in the second half. The victory earned Johnson the male coach of the year accolade from the Ottawa Sports Awards committee. Johnson maintains the team had such success partly because they were able to gel as a unit perhaps more than in previous seasons. “This was a group I think really liked each other. We had year-end meetings and one of the topics that came up fairly often was just how players enjoyed the season, so regardless of the fact we won nationals or that we had so much success on the field, they felt like there was success as a team off the field,” Johnson said.

In his first season wearing the grey and garnet, Mongo put up 20 points and helped bolster a strong third line on a stacked Gee-Gees team. The former Blainville-Boisbriand Armada player had an amazing shootout goal in the first game of the season versus Carleton, fueling his early success to become an important cornerstone of one of the best U Sports men’s hockey teams in the country. Despite a tremendous season, the Gee-Gees suffered an early playoff exit at the hands of the Queen’s Gaels. Nevertheless, look for Mongo to continue to be an asset in the years to come.

Nicknamed “Locker” by his teammates, the men’s hockey captain led the third-year team to the best regular season performance by any team in the OUA East division. An All-Canadian athlete, Locke received a medal from the GovernorGeneral for his efforts on and off the ice this past season. The Toronto native is currently enrolled in medical school and maintains one of the highest averages in the program on top of being a great leader on the ice.

RUNNER-UP: SAMANTHA ALI, WOMEN’S RUGBY

22 | SPORTS

RUNNER-UP: CODY DROVER, MEN’S HOCKEY These are but some of the great athletes and coaches who contributed to a great 2018–19 season for the University of Ottawa. Photos: Dasser Kamran, David Gilmore, UOttawa Sports Services, and Parker Townes.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: JEN BOYD (WOMEN’S RUGBY), PATRICK GRANDMAITRE (MEN’S HOCKEY), ANDY SPARKS (WOMEN’S BASKETBALL)

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: GUILLAUME PÉPIN AND KEVIN CIVIL, MEN’S BASKETBALL

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: DANA BULLOCH (VOLLEYBALL), JAMES FLEMMING (MEN’S RUGBY), SARAH BESSELINK (WOMEN’S BASKETBALL)

In one of the best years for Gee-Gees teams and athletes as a whole, there was a big crop to choose from, but only a select few could be chosen. thefulcrum.ca

THIS YEAR’S TOP CLUBS

ROWING, NORDIQ SKIING CLAIM TOP CLUBS AWARDS IN READER’S CHOICE SHOWDOWN Andrew Price Sports Editor

For the second consecutive week, the Fulcrum decided to put it to a vote to name who would receive accolades once again. This time, it was the best of the less-recognized competitive and varsity clubs up for selection. Here are the top two competitive and varsity clubs respectively as voted by you, the readers.

UOTTAWA ROWING, BEST VARSITY CLUB After graduating from competitive club to varsity club status little over a year ago, the rowing team has made some significant strides. The women’s pair on the rowing team placed sixth at the Ontario University Ath-

letics (OUA) championships in October, hosted by the Brock Badgers in St. Catherine’s. For Madeleine Soubry, upcoming chair with the rowing club, there were several highlights to their first season as a varsity club, rather than one overarching highlight — but she referred particularly to the fresh start at the dawn of the season. “To see these women and these men come in and get in boats, it’s really exciting. From my perspective I was a novice, and to see the new generation come in — athletes that are so motivated, that are learning so quickly, it’s incredible to see them,” Soubry said. After their strong performance this season, several female rowers from the team are going to get varsity sta-

FULCFIT FOOD SERIES VEGETARIAN STEW

Getting protein into your vegetarian diet

This is for those meatlovers who scoff at the lack of protein in vegetarian/vegan diets! Photo: Dolly Montufar

thefulcrum.ca

Here are two of the best clubs on campus voted in by the U of O community. Photos: Courtesy of David Gilmore and UOttawa Nordiq, respectively.

tus for the upcoming year, allowing them access to the High Performance Centre at the U of O for training. “You know we have national-level athletes competing, and to have that opportunity to have them in those highperformance centres can only be an advantage,” Soubry said. “Being able to use those resources from the university and working with them is absolutely incredible, it’s a really great opportunity.” RUNNER-UP: MEN’S GOLF

Dolly Montufar Fulcrum Contributor

The most popular query vegetarians hear on a regular basis is how they get enough protein throughout the day. With this surprisingly easy recipe, it will be a breeze for you to get your daily dose, as one serving of the stew has 21 grams of protein. Here’s how it goes.

UOTTAWA NORDIQ SKIING, BEST COMPETITIVE CLUB This time around, the best competitive club just happened to be the newest competitive club at the U of O: Nordiq skiing. After graduating from student club to competitive club status themselves last year, Nordiq skiing was able to field a team at OUAs hosted by Nipissing University. The men’s team finished fourth while the women’s finished fifth, with a total of 11 individuals making it out to the

tournament. “We didn’t know how we would fall relative to the top three teams (Carleton, Lakehead, Nipissing). So it was an exciting event for us to finally be sending a team after so long,” Zeke Williams, skier with the U of O, told the Fulcrum back in early March. “With that in mind we went in with no major expectations, but it ended up being quite competitive.” Following that, some of the skiers competed at the Canadian National Championships at their home club of

INGREDIENTS: • Two tablespoons of olive oil in a pot • Two tomatoes, diced • One large potato, diced • One cup of dry lentils (not red), rinsed • ½ cup of barley • Four cups of vegetable broth plus one cup of water • One teaspoon of salt • ½ teaspoon of garlic powder • ½ Jamaican all-spice • Salt and pepper to taste • One package of veggie ground round beef • Optional: basil for garnish • Serves four

DIRECTIONS: For the Main Stew: 1. Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the tomatoes and sauté for about 10 minutes at medium high heat.

Nakkertok in Gatineau. Emily Heroux placed 26th in the individual aggregate category for skiers under 23, and Ben Milley fared well as an individual, scoring just behind Carleton’s Ezra Pierce in terms of points by Day Four of the competition. The men’s team finished ninth in their respective category. RUNNER-UP: WOMEN’S ULTIMATE FRISBEE — With files from Gustavo Silva.

2. Add lentils, barley, potatoes, vegetable broth, water, one teaspoon of salt, ½ teaspoon of garlic powder, ½ teaspoon of Jamaican all-spice. Let the soup reach a boil, then reduce heat to low-medium and cover for about 35 minutes, or until lentils and potatoes are softened. 3. Remove from heat and stir through the pot. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with basil (optional). For the Veggie Ground Beef: 1. Put one tablespoon of olive oil on a pan. 2. Crumble up the veggie ground beef and put it on the pan on medium-high. 3. Stir and cook for five minutes. Be careful, any more and you might burn it (I did). And assuming you don’t burn it, serve and get that sweet, sweet protein.

SPORTS | 23

UOTTAWA SPORT BUSINESS CLUB OPEN FOR BUSINESS

U of O club looks to recruit new members Charley Dutil

Associate Sports Editor In 2014, a group of human kinetics graduate students founded a club designed to help students engage and partake in sports business discussion and events, calling it the U of O Sports Business Club (UOSBC). Built on commitment, the members of the club pride themselves on their professionalism and their passion for the administrative side of sports. Always looking for new members, the club has many options. For the casual sports enthusiast, an ambassadorship program that lets members do what they can, and for more entrenched sports business lovers,

a potentially more defined role. “Opportunities are there. I managed to get my internship with the Ottawa Pro Sports Management group through one of our former presidents. The links you make here are important and give employers a chance to see you for more than just your resume. They see your commitment and passion,” Tanya Sesiakin, internal relations with the UOSBC said. Aside from working with industry professionals, the UOSBC also has partnerships with organizations such as Badminton Canada and Ottawa Pro Sports Management. The club also works closely with multiple U of O professors, notably Benoit Seguin, director of the School of Human

Kinetics, and Eric Macintosh, associate professor of the Faculty of Health Sciences, feeding off their expertise in sports management. The members of the UOSBC routinely write blog posts discussing and debating sports business issues. Most members are also big sports fans, and the club represents a golden opportunity to connect with other sports fanatics. “Although most of our members are in human kinetics, our club is open to students of all programs that are passionate about learning the business side of sports,’’ Zachary Pilling, internal relations with the UOSBC said. The UOSBC will host the biggest sports business confer-

ence in the city of Ottawa in October and is actively looking for new members to help organize the event.

If you like the business side of sport as much as the game itself, this might be the club for you. Photo: CC, via Flickr

“Although most of our members are in human kinetics, our club is open to students of all programs that are passionate about learning the business side of sports.” — Zachary Pilling, internal relations with the UOSBC

THE BOXSCORE: READERS’ CHOICE RESULTS TOP ATHLETE Emma Lefebvre

TOP ATHLETE 49

Lefebvre-Okankwu

Cody Drover

TOP VARSITY CLUB 80

Jamie Harry

Rowing

151

Men’s golf

TOP COMPETITIVE CLUB Gage Sabean

Stephen Evans

24 | SPORTS

Maude Levesque-Ryan

298

Samantha Ali

Nordiq skiing

573

Women’s ultimate

499

thefulcrum.ca

OPINIONS

OPINIONS EDITOR Hanna Méthot

opinions@thefulcrum.ca @HannaMethot

STUDENT UNIONS NEED THIRDPARTY FINANCIAL OVERSIGHT

ACCOUNTABILITY NEEDED AMID LOW VOTER TURNOUT, STRUGGLING STUDENT MEDIA Hanna Methot Opinions Editor

he need for financial oversight when it comes to student unions is one we here at the U of O are all too familiar with. In case you’re not in the know, this past school year has been full of allegations of financial mismanagement and fraud against executive members of the now-former student union, the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO).

Following the allegations, there was an audit conducted by PwC. Although the results were in favour of the executives, university administration went forward with a referendum as the results failed to regain their confidence. The need for financial

oversight of student unions is also being debated at Ryerson University, following allegations against Ryerson Student Union executives. Initial allegations stated that there was approximately $250K of frivolous expenses paid for on the union’s credit cards. Now, the forensic audit being conducted has a scope of $700K. While these two scandals are not reflective of student unions in general, they are far from rare. With limited involvement in the voting process, (the most recent referendum had 17 per cent voter turnout) students are seemingly unwilling to hold unions accountable, at least through the ballot. Early prevention of corruption seems impossible when there is limited transparency and a limited number of students willing to do some-

thing about it. Student media, another common way to hold the student fed accountable, is also facing difficulties. If it weren’t for Ryerson’s student newspaper, the Eyeopener, investigating and bringing this matter to light, this financial mismanagement could have just gone on. The role of student media was vital in learning about this corruption, but with the Student Choice Initiative, funding for student media will most likely decrease over the next few years. With voters traditionally failing to hold student unions fiscally accountable, and the instability of student media, third-party oversight and intervention needs to be implemented. It doesn’t need to be the university itself, as many are rightfully cautious of university involvement in union

Few students received emails or notifications regarding an erratic driver on campus. Photo: Jacob Hoytema

U OF O NEEDS A BETTER ALERT SYSTEM uoAlert falls short with app, needs text/email alerts Anchal Sharma Editor-in-Chief

On Wednesday March 20, a van sped through campus, leaving students in shock after the driver crashed into multiple vehicles and drove through pe-

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destrian walkways. After a police chase and firetrucks barricading Cumberland street, the driver was in police custody and charged with eight criminal offences. Media outlets swarmed the U of O and Jacques Frémont

was on the scene, reassuring students that they were safe following the incident. Why then, weren’t all students alerted of it? uoAlert is an emergency alert system designed by the University of Ottawa to alert

Financial oversight is much needed. Photo: CC, Matt Madd via Flickr

affairs, but perhaps a body separate from the union? Maybe the officials could be appointed and agreed upon by both the university and the union. Or have a certain number of students and members of faculty involved. With a body like this, we need to prevent any corruption or favorability towards any elected

officials. There are, of course, third-party companies and advisors that can be contracted in to play this role as well, which is probably the optimal solution. Financial oversight is a need illustrated by recent scandals playing out in Ontario universities. With current political action taking

place on the provincial level, it’s more important than ever that students feel as though they can trust their student union with financial management. Having a body to provide financial oversight, lead early intervention, and interfere if necessary, is a vital need that the UOSU should seek to implement.

students when an emergency takes place on campus. Seems pretty straightforward, but seeing as students did not consistently receive such an alert, a better system needs to be implemented. Currently uoAlert only sends push notifications to students who download their mobile app, SecurUO, compatible with android and iOS. While there are no numbers on how many downloads have been made for the app, SecurUO only has one user review, made a year ago. In addition to a mobile app, uoAlert also boasts a desktop app for Windows and Mac called Alertus, which offers screen alerts in an emergency. There have been no apparent marketing initiatives for either app, leaving students new and old in the dark about the emergency services offered on campus. The University of Ottawa website further instructs students to email the emergency management program for alternative alert options, but does not specify on their website what those options are.

uoAlert does suggest on their website that in the case of emergencies they will tweet information related to the incident, stating “When uoAlert is activated, the University will tweet updates using the Twitter handle @ uOttawaAlert. Other Twitter handles, such as @uOttawa, will also retweet messages. As a follower, you’ll be asked to retweet all related posts to help spread the word,” however, a quick Twitter search indicates that their last tweet was in October 2018. So what exactly constitutes an emergency in the U of O’s eyes? Was an erratic driver not enough cause for concern to warrant a warning to students to stay away from the area where the driver was seen, causing pedestrians to run for their lives? Or is the system simply flawed? Many students didn’t even receive emails from uoAlert about the incident, myself included, and the ones who did say they got them following the driver’s arrest. For all their efforts, if people

aren’t getting notified, there has to be a simpler solution. One such solution would be a proximity marketing device. The device is fairly cheap and uses bluetooth technology to send push notifications to mobile devices within a certain radius. Since it would only be used for emergencies, it wouldn’t be an annoyance, and the onus wouldn’t be on students to download an app in order to receive notifications. Another option would simply be to email students as an emergency is ongoing rather than after the fact. Most students don’t have the app, but all students receive emails from the administration, and it is by far the most convenient way to stay informed of minor changes and big emergencies. Otherwise, uoAlert is doing students a disservice by making them responsible for their own safety. With so much on our plates already, and the thousands we pay to be on campus, the least the U of O can do is make sure it’s a safe space for students.

OPINIONS | 25

THE CASE FOR BEING A CAMP COUNSELLOR The summer job shaped me, and continues to shape me, into the person I am today Matt Gergyek Features Editor

It’s a beautiful day in the peak of summer 2016: the sun is high and bright, almost surreal looking in a picturesque and cloudless aquamarine sky. It’s one of those days where the stifling heat is beat back just enough by the gentlest of breezes to give way to a, dare I say, perfect temperature. Mother Nature, at least, seems to be totally at peace. I can’t help but stay fixated on the sun and the sky, trying to forget for just a second that my world is one of cataclysmic chaos unfolding in front of my very eyes. I’m at Wild Water Works, a massive water park in my hometown of Hamilton, chest deep in a wave pool that smells strongly of chlorine and faintly of urine. But I’m not here for leisure: I’m on the clock as a camp counsellor at a popular summer day-camp in the region, tasked with minding a group of close to 30 kids aged six to 10. As I stand there in the water desperately trying to do a headcount of the bobbing bodies wearing our camp’s baby blue t-shirts, mentally preparing a list of things I’ll need to do and needs I’ll have to attend to, I’m tackled by a hoard of laughing campers and plunged

beneath the water. Beneath the waves I let out an inaudible scream, coming up for air with a smile painted across my face just in time. Days at summer camp don’t always go quite like this, but sometimes they do. Anyone who’s ever worked as a camp counsellor will tell you when they do go like this, they can take a lot out of you. They’ll tell you of the war wounds you come home with, scratches covering your back and bruises sprouting on your thighs and arms, sometimes accompanied by the occasional bite mark. They’ll tell you about the stress of the job, those constant and relentless fears that you’re missing a kid (you’re not) or that a camper with an allergy got into the exact food they’re allergic to (they didn’t). But they’ll also tell you just how worth it the job is, no matter how tough a shift might be. I’m not one for cliches, but being a summer camp counsellor is so much more than a job: for me, it was a key component of my growth as a person and an employee, regardless of the field of work. Nearly two years have come and gone since I spent a summer as a camp counsellor, but the skills and lessons I learned there are still strikingly fresh

in my mind. In fact, in job interviews I often find myself bringing up my experiences at that camp, explaining how it taught me to mediate the toughest of conflicts (who stole whose cookie?), to listen and respond effectively to diverse needs (so you need me to check if there’s a monster behind that wall?), and to solve complex problems (this is why we can’t hit others!) But in all seriousness, these are majorly important skills to have. On the other hand, some of my fondest and most cherished memories growing up can be traced back to one of the numerous summers my brother and I spent at summer camp. It’s where I learned to be myself, to make friends, to collaborate with others and, most of all, to never be afraid to try something new. So while I know being a camp counsellor is integral to personal growth and the development of important life and employment skills, it’s equally as important to the kids these counsellors work with. I honestly think everyone should spend a summer as a camp counsellor. I’m not arguing every young person should be forced into this type of job, but that more young people should give it a shot. I, for one, wouldn’t be the person I am today without it.

I worked as a camp counsellor during the summer of 2016. Photo: CC, Mohd Fazlin Mohd Effendy Ooi via Flickr

26 | OPINIONS

Why is it that clubs receive so much less attention and coverage on campus than varsity teams? Photo: CC, Mohamed Hassan via Pxhere

GEE-GEES COMPETITIVE CLUBS SHOULD GET MORE COVERAGE Sports Services’ lackluster promotion of clubs hurts their competitiveness Charley Dutil

Associate Sports Editor A few weeks ago, I was live-tweeting the Women’s basketball Ontario University Athletics (OUA) finals and tweeted out a seemingly innocent tweet about the numerous Gee-Gees teams having won OUA’s this year. Little did I know that I, the Fulcrum’s associate sports editor — who’s supposed to know pretty much anything about campus teams — would totally ignore a varsity clubs championship. So that got me thinking… why is it that clubs receive so much less attention and coverage on campus than varsity teams? After all, they are composed of athletes that are as passionate and as competitive in their own respective sports as varsity athletes. Already receiving way less funding then varsity teams, clubs must often rely on alternate sources of funding to keep afloat as the levy from Sports Services doesn’t suffice. With that said, Gee-Gees sport clubs receive a certain amount of money from the student federation (to be de-

termined come this fall…) but must mostly rely on fundraisers and private sponsors. Competitive clubs rely on capable individuals who volunteer their time to fundraise just to put a team on the field. These same individuals often coach and invest lots of time in making their club as competitive as possible, and not being recognized by sports services and campus media is an absolute farce. I’ll be the first one to admit that our coverage at the Fulcrum of sports clubs has been lackluster. We have at times written the odd story on the Nordiq ski club or the men’s rugby team, but for the most part, we have been oblivious to sports clubs on campus and I take full responsibility for that. However, our lack of attention for U of O varsity and competitive clubs can also be attributed to the fact that Sport Services does zero promotion for its clubs. On the new GeeGees website, all competitive clubs are restricted to one page where basic information such as tryout, historical championships, and coaches’ email addresses are shown. Meanwhile, varsity teams have rosters with headshots, stats,

coaches, schedules and results. Furthermore, most GeeGees teams have social media accounts that are professionally run by public relations staff who run varsity teams’ Twitter accounts as if they’re NHL or NBA teams. Clubs have none of that, in fact, the Gee-Gees general social media account — which usually promotes most varsity games, regardless of their importance — does not post anything on their account about clubs even if said clubs are in OUA finals or other important games. This impedes competitive and varsity clubs since students usually find out about big campus events through Gee-Gees social media accounts. Therefore, most of their seats are empty and they miss out on potential revenue from ticket sales. I umpired the Gee-Gees baseball team multiple times this season at the Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton stadium, and I would amuse myself between innings by counting the blue empty seats and trying to figure out exactly how many seats there are in the stadium. 10,332. It’s 10,332.

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McDonald’s raccoon having a rocky start to campus life U OF O CLAIMS NEWEST STUDENT NOT HAVING A ROUGH TRANSITION, JUST NAPPING A LOT

“I’ve seen a lot at the Rideau McDonald’s, but the University of Ottawa is something else.” Photo: Rame Abdulkader

h Awde

Savanna

Tomato Reporter

Recently accepted to the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Science to study animal behaviour, the McDonald’s raccoon landed on campus this Thursday to figure out if U of O campus life is a good fit for him. But the visit left the raccoon, and students, questioning whether the U of O is truly the caring and inclusive campus it claims to be. The Tomato investigated the scene on Thursday after receiving several distressed reports from students. Things reportedly got off to a shaky start for the raccoon: During his first walk on campus down the main drag, he got into that awkward which-way-isthis-person-walking dance with another student — trying to get out of the way, he nearly collided into several overcaffeinated students. After sustaining a few glares, the raccoon nervously cleared his throat and continued past the res complex to find a place to eat. He noticed a good looking half-eaten sandwich sitting atop a shiny garbage bin, and plopped

down on a picnic bench to calm himself down with a bite to eat. But then, students began to turn their noses up at the smell of his food. “It was kind of exotic-smelling,” Becky Smith told the Tomato. “But honestly, way too much for my nose. That picnic table will probably smell like it for weeks.” After several students began pointing, the shy raccoon started to feel short of breath and shaky. This led even more people to raise their eyebrows, and soon he ascended a nearby tree in hopes of evading the collective gaze. The raccoon recounted to the Tomato that despite having some distance from the crowd, he still became dizzy with anxiety and thought he might be having a heart attack. To his chagrin, other students only noticed him and began lending a sympathetic ear when he was already way up in his tree. The university took a different approach however, insisting via Twitter that the raccoon was only taking a peaceful nap. “It’s ridiculous to hear that,”

the raccoon said in reaction to the university’s response. “It seems like they’ll say just about anything to avoid shouldering the blame when a student is having a tough time on campus.” Even more outrageous than the tweet was the response from onlookers, who suggested the raccoon should try yoga, or eat some quinoa. “Don’t worry, it’s all in your head!” one student yelled. “You should really put yourself out there more, make some friends maybe?” suggested another. Eventually, the raccoon calmed down and shimmied down the tree to try that funny sounding dish the students had been so emphatically yelling about earlier, and maybe find a yoga buddy. But to his surprise, as soon as he came down the students were back to business — headphones in, eyes down, small-talking only if absolutely necessary. The raccoon scratched his head, and turned to the Tomato reporters. “I’ve seen a lot at the Rideau McDonald’s, but the University of Ottawa is something else.”

VP academic and provost short one credit to retirement DAVID GRAHAM WILL HAVE TO MAKE UP COURSEWORK WITH AN EXTRA YEAR ON STAFF Jacob Hoytema

minute to check up on this stuff,

Reports indicate that, due to clerical oversight or personal negligence, vice-president academic and university provost David Graham is one half-credit short of the requirements to retire this spring. Graham had announced his retirement several weeks ago, but now that will all have to be set back a full year because of one measly half-credit. “Ah shit; esti de tabarnak,” Graham was heard saying as he frantically refreshed his uoZone page, praying it would show a different result, his moustache bristling with despair. According to a Tomato investigation, Graham wishes he hadn’t waited until the last

attention to prerequisites during his (admittedly wilder and more carefree) freshman years on campus. The setback also puts Graham in danger of embarrassment from his colleagues, who will all have moved on by that point, leaving only him behind in the throes of campus life. “Having to do a victory lap? That’s rough,” a friend of Graham’s with knowledge of the situation told the Tomato. “At least we’ll be able to come visit him at our old stompin’ grounds whenever (myself or other retirees) come back to visit Ottawa.” Eyewitnesses saw Graham hurriedly taking a Lyft to the registrar’s office at 6 a.m. and waiting for staff to arrive so he

Associate tomato Editor and regrets not paying more

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could beg them for an exception. “Please, I need this! Il me faut, il me faut,” Graham was heard wailing at that still-dark hour, his forehead pressed against the office window. This passed for two-anda-half hours until the registrar arrived and let the visiblyupset Graham into her office. Witnesses say the meeting lasted about two minutes and only confirmed the sad news that Graham had himself discovered earlier. Sources say that Graham will now have to find new roommates for the 2019-20 academic year, as his current ones will be retiring without him this spring. He made a Facebook post proclaiming as much last week, but the post only garnered two “likes,” one “sad” react, and no

“Ah shit; esti de tabarnak,” Graham was heard saying as he frantically refreshed his uoZone page. Photo: Jacob Hoytema

Graham wishes he hadn’t waited until the last minute to check up on this stuff, and regrets not paying more attention to prerequisites during his (admittedly wilder and more carefree) freshman years on campus. comments. Graham is reportedly considering making a post to Craigslist. Seeing as a full year doing only one half-credit will give him a lot of spare time, sources say Graham has been shipping his resume around for a part-time job, and has landed an interview for the position

of vice president, bagels at the Learning Crossroads building Tim Hortons. Experts also anticipate an extended period of awkwardness, as Graham will have to make friends with a new class of younger administrators several years below him and who have probably

already known each other a long time. Graham’s wife could not be reached for comment, but sources with knowledge of the matter state that she still intends to have a blast at Osheaga this summer even if the “no-longerretiring David” will be unavailable to join her.

THE TOMATO | 27

FEATURES EDITOR Matt Gergyek

DISTRACTIONS FAN FAVOURITES DI’S LOOK HAS EVOLVED THROUGHOUT THE YEARS DEAR READERS,

DEAR DI: SEPTEMBER 21, 2011

DEAR DI: MARCH 28, 2013

DEAR DI,

I usually talk to my friends about sex, but I have a secret I could never reveal except under the guise of anonymity. To put it bluntly, I’m really turned on by Gee-Gee, the school mascot. I can’t explain it, but I just find him really sexy and I feel aroused whenever I see him. This isn’t the first time I’ve found myself attracted to mascots. Please tell me you’ve heard this before and I’m not the only one out there who feels this way about Gee-Gee!

I think I’m in love with you. I’ve never known a woman who is so passionate and open about sex. I love to be adventurous and bed — nothing is off the table with me. You seem so intelligent and sexy and I think we would click on so many levels if you would just reveal your identity to me. Can I meet you somewhere, Di? I will rock your world, I promise! I’m crazy about you!

After a fun year, it’s time to give the spotlight back to my partner-in-crime, Di Daniels. She’s had a great few months of vacation, but now it’s time to welcome her back. To do so, I’m going to dig up some of her favourite columns from the decades she’s been working at the Fulcrum. A final note: Just because the Fulcrum’s print issues are disappearing, doesn’t mean Di (or maybe even me, if you’ll have me back) are evaporating into thin air too. Di will still be online and on Instagram, answering your love and sex questions every week.

—GIDDY UP, I GUESS

LOVE, TY

Breathe easy, GUIG. I suspect what you’re feeling is simply a little furry love. Although not mainstream, the furry world is alive and well, and will likely be willing to welcome you with open arms.

DEAR GUIG, I won’t lie to you — I have never had a reader fess up to feeling frisky at the sight of our gallant Gee-Gee. But sexual attraction to mascots in general? Sure, I’ve heard of it, and probably more often than you’d think.

In the simplest of terms, a furry enthusiast is someone with an interest in anthropomorphic animals (animals with human attributes). This interest may manifest itself sexually, artistically, or otherwise. Many furry lovers create their own personas, costumes, and artwork, while others simply have an appreciation for anthropomorphism. I strongly encourage you to peruse a few online furry communities. Doing a little research will help you understand and accept your attraction and will connect you to others who share your affinity for fur. The fact that Gee-Gee gets your juices flowing may make you feel a little alienated from your friends, but I’m inclined to believe you will find you fit right in with the furries.

Illustrations: The Fulcrum 28 | DISTRACTIONS

features@thefulcrum.ca @mattgergyek

LOVE, DI

—MARRY ME, DI DANIELS DEAR MMDD, I receive my fair share of fan mail, but rarely do I get a letter as impassioned as this! How flattering — you’ve really made me blush. Unfortunately, flattery will only get you so far. When I decided to write this column, I made a promise to myself I would never reveal my true identity to anyone but my co-workers. My anonymity is extremely important to me. Not only does it allow me to answer my readers’ questions as honestly as possible, but it also fosters a certain level of trust between my audience and myself — they don’t know who I am and I don’t know who they are. Anonymity puts us all on level playing ground, so to speak You’re right — I am passionate and open about sex, but guess what? So are countless other women! We may be a little harder to find, but we’re out there. If you’re having difficulty finding fellow fuck fiends, why not create an online dating profile? Make it clear you’re looking for a sexually adventurous gal who likes a challenge in the bedroom and I’m sure you’ll have some responses in no time. I am sorry to miss out on what I’m sure would be a fantastic time in bed with you, but I hope you won’t be discouraged. Your freak in the sheets is out there somewhere.

LOVE, DI thefulcrum.ca

APRIL 3 TO SEPT. 1, 2019

THRYLLABUS

THURSDAY, APRIL 4

FRIDAY, MAY 10

SATURDAY, JULY 13

Commemorating Ottawa LRT Second Anniversary, Parliament Hill — 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Ottawa Beer Fest, Aberdeen Pavilion — 3 p.m. to 12 a.m.

HOPE Volleyball SummerFest, Mooney’s Bay — 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

FRIDAY, MAY 10 TO SUNDAY, MAY 12

THURSDAY, AUGUST 1 TO MONDAY, AUG.5

10th Annual Ottawa Bunny Hop bar crawl — 7 p.m.

Ottawa Comiccon, EY Centre

Ottawa International Buskerfest, Sparks Street

Brain and Mental Health Art Show, Lansdowne Park Horticulture Building — 6 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19 TO SUNDAY, JUNE 23

FRIDAY, APRIL 5

SATURDAY, APRIL 6 Vegan Night Market: Second Course, TD Place — 7:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. FRIDAY, APRIL 19 TO SATURDAY, APRIL 20 Grilled Cheese Festival, Ottawa city hall — 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

EATS ARTS

FRIDAY, APRIL 26 Thomas Rhett at the Canadian Tire Centre — 7:30 p.m. SATURDAY, APRIL 27

SPORTS FUN THINKING

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Palooza Beer Pong Festival, Aberdeen Pavilion — 12 p.m. THURSDAY, MAY 2 TO SUNDAY, MAY 5 Ottawa Poutine Festival, Ottawa city hall — 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Ottawa Ribfest on Sparks Street THURSDAY, JUNE 20 TO SUNDAY, JUNE 23 Ottawa Summer Solstice Indigenous Festival, Vincent Massey Park SATURDAY, JUNE 22 TO SUNDAY, JUNE 23 Escapade Music Festival at Lansdowne Park featuring Martin Garrix, Zeds Dead, DJ Snake, Tchami x Malaa and Loud Luxury THURSDAY, JULY 4 TO SUNDAY, JULY 14 Bluesfest at Lebreton Flats featuring the Killers, Backstreet Boys, Eric Church, Kygo TUESDAY, JULY 9 TO SUNDAY, SEPT. 8 Northern Lights bilingual sound and light show on Parliament Hill, nightly

SATURDAY, AUGUST 10 TO SATURDAY, AUG. 24 Casino du Lac-Leamy Sound of Light Festival (Wednesdays and Saturdays) FRIDAY, AUGUST 16 TO SUNDAY, AUG. 25 Capital Fair, Rideau Carleton Raceway SUNDAY, AUG. 18 Shawn Mendes at the Canadian Tire Centre — 7:30 p.m. SUNDAY, AUG. 18 TO SUNDAY, AUG. 25 Ottawa Capital Pride, various locals FRIDAY, AUG. 23 Come From Away musical, National Arts Centre — 8 p.m. THURSDAY, AUG. 29 TO MONDAY, SEPT. 2 Gatineau Hot Air Balloon Festival, Baie Park

DISTRACTIONS | 29

30 |

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Volume 79, Issue 8, APRIL 3, 2019 In print since 1942. Phone: (613) 695-0061 | Fax: (613) 695-9006 631 King Edward Ave. Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5 Don’t recycle this. Keep it forever.

THE FINAL WORD

Anchal “The Fulcrum” Sharma Editor-in-Chief editor@thefulcrum.ca Adam “The Leveller” Gibbard Production Manager production@thefulcrum.ca Savannah “Politico” Awde Managing Editor content@thefulcrum.ca Eric “The Walrus” Davison News Editor news@thefulcrum.ca Stephen “Toronto Star” Cook Arts and Culture Editor arts@thefulcrum.ca Matt “The New York Times” Gergyek Features Editor features@thefulcrum.ca Andrew “The Charlatan” Price Sports Editor sports@thefulcrum.ca Hanna “The Atlantic” Méthot Opinions Editor opinions@thefulcrum.ca Rame “The New Yorker” Abdulkader Visual Editor visual@thefulcrum.ca Christine “The Globe and Mail” Wang Social Media Manager social@thefulcrum.ca Jacob “Ottawa Citizen” Hoytema Associate News Editor associate.news@thefulcrum.ca Charley “The Washington Post” Dutil Associate Sports Editor associatesports@thefulcrum.ca Parker “National Geographic” Townes Staff Photographer photographer@thefulcrum.ca Dorian “Canadian Business” Ghosn General Manager manager@thefulcrum.ca Kaylum “La Rotonde” Bobal Advertising Manager ads@thefulcrum.ca Videographer videographer@thefulcrum.ca

Ryan Pepper Zoë Mason Lucas Gergyek Kelsea Shore Jensen Edwards Dolly Cepeda Montufar

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Raghad “LA Times” Sheikh-Khalil Katelyn “Macleans” Murray Graham “Wall Street Journal” Robertson Jonathan “Metro” Rausseo Justin “The Guardian” Turcotte Donya “Der Spiegel” Ashnaei

Dayne “Montreal Gazette” Moyer Rachel “National Post” Hammond

Cover art: Adam Gibbard

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his year has been a rollercoaster. Starting our transition online hasn’t been easy. We’ve faced financial challenges, and broke important stories, but it’s the end of the publishing year, and we made it. None of it could have been done without you. Whether you contributed to the paper, sent us a pitch or a news tip, or simply picked up a copy of our special issues on stands every month and shared a story with your friends, thank you. Thank you to our volunteers who continue to astound us with their talent and enthusiasm, and to editors past for working so hard to make the last 77 years of print possible. Thank you for being the giants whose shoulders we could stand on, and for paving the way for our transition to online. Thank you also, to our readers for making every

We <3 you. Photo: CC, Max Pixel, edits by Adam Gibbard

gruelling night, every impossible deadline, and every embarrassing photo shoot worth it. Thanks to our Board of Directors for pushing us into the digital world, and for directors of the past for facilitating our independence from the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO) and keeping us financially afloat since then. Thank you to the SFUO for always giving us something to write about it. Thank you to everyone who supported the Fulcrum in print, and to those who stood by us when we chose to drop the medium. The sentimental value of print is not lost on us, and we appreciate everyone who helped us through this transition, everyone who made special issues possible, and everyone who had the courage to walk into our office and share their stories with us. While the Fulcrum will

no longer exist in print, we look forward to the possibilities that are open to us online, and we’re excited and determined to continue producing high-quality journalism, relevant to you. We may not be on stands but we will still strive to be your number-one source for all things U of O. Finally, a special thank you goes out to the following people and publications for their overwhelming support for our GoFundMe campaign to help us fund our last print issue ever, a reality which didn’t seem possible at the time due to a delay in receiving our student levies this year.* With your help, we exceeded our goal of $3,022 by a full grand, within 48 hours. To everyone who has supported us through each transition over the years, thank you for believing in student journalism.

*Andrew Wilkinson, The Eyeopener, The Ubyssey, Evan Annett, Andrew Price, Anchal Sharma, Gobind Sharma, Devyn Barrie, Kyle Darbyson, Temur Durrani, Alanna Rizza, Hannah Berge, Reut Cohen, Jacob Dubé, Zak Vescera, Brandon Buechler, Samantha McCabe, Sammy Smart, Frankie Hart, Sophie Alicia Sutcliffe, Andrew McWhinney, Jason Herring, Zeahaa Rehman, Rithikha Rajamohan, Salomon Benrimoh, Jack O. Denton, Loranne Brown, Rebecca Peterson, Derek Baker, Hamzah M., Adam Travis, Michael Clarke, Tobin Ng, Amy O’Kruk, Jacob Lorinc, Emily Sams, Margaret Grayson, Graham Robertson, Elliott Lockington, Marguerite Gollish, Mikayla Goddard, Halla Bertrand, Vassi Sharlandjieva, Mel Woods, Nick Pearce, Carol Clifford-Smith, Alex McKeen, Robin Pianosi, Iain Sellers, Simon Gollish, Michael Conley, Marissa Phul, Andrea Ross, Henry Anderson, S. Isaacs. All donations were refunded upon receival of our student levies in March.

EDITORIAL | 31

-30Find us online at thefulcrum.ca

To write for us over the summer contact editor@thefulcrum.ca