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FEATURES
THE CAMPUS NOVEMBER 23, 2020
Jeremy Audet, Features Editor » thecampus.features@gmail.com
Women in Muslim-Arab societies: a lecture by Dr. Osire Glacier
Photo of Tahani Madmad. Photo courtesy of Dr. Osire Glacier
This fall, Bishop’s University established its first-ever Social Change Hub: a small group of faculty and students who organized a few significant events during the semester. Its last event of the semester, a talk by Dr. Osire Glacier, gave a comprehensive introduction to women’s rights in Muslim societies. Several progressive ArabMuslim women were introduced by Glacier as she spoke passionately of women’s participation in anti-colonial and anti-misogynist struggles. “Women in Muslim Societies: A
Multitude of Voices” presented a case study of Morocco, a country with a rich history of significant female figures going against the misogynistic status quo. Dr. Glacier, a professor at Bishop’s in the History and Global Studies Department and the Religion Department, has published a thorough body of research on the issues of Arab-Muslim women throughout history. Her many books, published within the past decade, all address the condition of women in Morocco. Glacier’s presentation linked how we construct femininity to how we construct power but pressed that the dominant power structures in many Muslim-Arab countries had been, or still are, heavily misogynistic and masculine. Negotiating with the history of modern feminism, of the bourgeois class, and of the Islamic tradition, Glacier spoke of the many dreams that women, throughout an oppressive history, had and succeeded in realizing. The women she presented, such as Halima Embark Warzazi, Hakima Chaoui, Khadija Ryadi, Asma Larambert, and Tahani Madmad, are recognized defendants of human rights, environmental issues, economic and social rights, and gender equality. These women had to, in their struggles for equality, go against their societies’ constitutions. Glacier mentioned how the oppression of women is legislated in these constitutions and in the traditions, religion, and cultures of Muslim-Arab countries. Evidently, the elite of these countries have no interest in straying far from these constitutions, but such traditionalism comes with significant international consequences. Most importantly, according to Glacier, it fabricates an “us vs. them” identity, creating a divide in the
The Johnson Greenhouse When walking onto campus for the first time, one of the first things I noticed was the greenhouse over Johnson Building. As I observed it, I thought that this building that shone brightly in the night with the characteristic tint of sodium lamps must certainly be the crown jewel of the Biology Department. I was not wrong. The Johnson Greenhouse, which stands on the roof of the eponymous building, is not the original hothouse. The antecedent of the current greenhouse was built in the ’70s, and it served faithfully until it was time to renovate. Construction of the new greenhouse began in 2017 and had finished by 2019. The new greenhouse was even built with a climate control system. As its name implies, this system controls the climate... and it has opened a new world of possibilities! One can now cultivate in the Johnson Greenhouse all year long, and the greenhouse can mimic more tropical climates. This increases the longevity and diversity of what can be grown, truly expanding the possibilities for students and faculty. The greenhouse is overseen by Genevieve Levasseur (B.Sc., M.Sc.), the Biology Technician and the Biochemistry & Animal Care Coordinator. Although her background is in molecular biology, she believes she does her job well. “I’m not too bad at gardening,” she jokes, admitting the hardest part of her job is managing disease and pests. You might be wondering what is growing in there, and
Jeremy Audet Features Editor
Middle East between people and countries. How do we fare here in Canada, in the so-called Western world? An ocean separates our societies, but Glacier recognizes that many of the systemic issues that women in the Middle East face are present in our country. Although Canada has been improving over the past years on the issue of gender equality, we are not yet in the realm of full equality, far from it. According to the Canadian Women’s Foundation, in 2016 women in Canada made, on average, 75 cents to the dollar earned by a male with the same education and position. When you factor in race and ethnicity, the divide widens. Dr. Glacier claims that to be a woman immigrant in Canada puts one at a major disadvantage. The worst economic situation, according to her, however, is for Indigenous women living in Canada. An Indigenous woman faces three important systemic barriers: racism, sexism, and colonialism. To say that our Western democratic country fares well in the issues of gender equality is wrong. There is still a long way to go, and the changes that need to be implemented must go much further than Trudeau’s famous but performative “Because it’s 2015” quip five years ago. Dr. Glacier calls for the education of the public, recognition of the actors of oppression in our societies, and the prioritization of gender equality in our so-called progressive country. The Social Change Hub has been organizing similar seminars and presentations all semester and will continue to do so in the winter of 2021. These seminars are free of charge and available to all Bishop’s students.
Virginia Rufina Marquez-Pacheco Science & Technology Contributor
that depends on the season. During the spring semester, the Biology Department offers a course titled Organic Gardening (BIO 111), which is open to all students no matter their program. According to Levasseur, the greenhouse is used to give the students some practical experience by having them plant and grow vegetables and herbs from their seeds. It is fully equipped with seedling tables, smart pots and more. In this class, students learn the basics of growing plants in an organic and eco-friendly way. The department does not only teach organic growing practices, but it also follows them in the green house. Again, according to Genevieve Levasseur, no chemicals are used if they do not have to be used. Instead, the plants are grown using natural fertilizers, and if an outbreak or disease occurs, natural remedies and predator insects are utilized. In one anecdote, Levasseur tells of an instance where they had a pest problem. It was resolved by purchasing ladybug eggs and allowing them to hatch. These ladybugs, which are predators to the pests, soon ate the problematic insects, thus saving the plants and adding beauty to the ecosystem. Aside from organic gardening, the greenhouse hosts a collection of diverse living plants used as specimens to teach students. Plus, the hops used in the brewing of Bishop’s very own beer at the Bishop’s Arches Brewery
Truth and Reconciliation: five years later On November 10, this year’s Donald Lecture series kicked off with a talk by Marie Wilson, one of the three commissioners of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) from 2009-2015. Warranted by her long and wide-spanning career as a journalist, Wilson has become a highly distinguished and recognized figure in Canada, but she called her role on the TRC “the great pride” of her life. Tuning in from her home in Yellowknife, NT, Wilson spoke earnestly and profoundly of the thousands of cases of which she had heard during her time as commissioner and of which she continues to hear.
are being grown in Johnson Greenhouse. A study is being done to determine whether hops could be grown all yearround in the Greenhouse to supply the brewery a few floors down. In these times of COVID-19, Genevieve Levasseur says that activity at the greenhouse has slowed down. Less plants are growing, research is stagnant, and student exposure to the greenhouse with its ecosystem has been reduced to online demonstrations. However, the hopes are to get the greenhouse up and running to its full potential once it becomes safe to increase in-person contact. A line of interesting research is being planned regarding hops cultivation, aquatic plants, and more.
Inside the Johnson Greenhouse. Photo courtesy of Virginia Rufina Marquez-Pacheco
Jeremy Audet Features Editor
Introduced by principal Michael Goldbloom and following an acknowledgement of the traditional Abenaki land on which Bishop’s is built, Wilson stated an acknowledgement of her own. She recognized not only the traditional land she lives and works on in the Northwest Territories, but the chiefs of these Nations and the many residential school survivors “to whom we owe this moment in Canadian history.” At its conclusion in 2015, the TRC, the first such commission in the world to specifically address child victims, presented 94 calls to action to the Federal and Provincial governments. These calls, written to incite remedy and change,
