The Campus – May 2, 2024

Page 4: Bishop’s, UdeS Muslim students associations partake in Ramadan festivities together

Total solar eclipse: Eastern Townships witnesses sun’s surrender to the moon

By Olivier Pontbriand Contributor

On April 8, crowds gathered on and around Bishop’s campus to watch the total solar eclipse and to form lifelong memories.

The festivities on campus were not left up to chance. Bishop’s community members planned for over a year to coordinate activities for the eclipse. However, the true hands-on preparation for student volunteers began on Saturday, April 6, with an important meeting concerning numerous tasks and safety protocols.

Distributing eclipse glasses was a challenging assignment for the student population since the date and location for

the glasses pick-up moved twice. Those outside the Bishop’s community had to register before Saturday to secure a pair of glasses. However, because of a surplus, glasses could be handed to everyone who attended.

The event on campus offered more than just a free pair of glasses: Oriana Valentina, a graduating student who volunteered for the kid’s entertainment section that day mentioned that activities for children were organized with the SportsPlex to promote their summer camp. “Parents were playing along, and it was really fun to offer something more to the community”.

New stand-alone space announced for Sexual Violence Support Centre

Stand-alone location among recommendations of a 2022 independent panel review

Content advisory: sexual violence

By Gabrielle Liu Editor-in-Chief

Bishop’s has announced a new stand-alone space for the Sexual Violence Support Centre (SVSC), aiming to have it renovated and ready for Fall 2024. For the last two years, the SVSC shared a space in the student union building (SUB) with BUnited. The stand-alone space is one of the recommendations of an independent review panel’s report on sexual violence prevention at Bishop’s.

The review, undertaken by the Canadian Centre for Legal Innovation in Sexual Assault Response (CCLISAR) was commissioned after “immediate attention, concern, and discussion” surrounding sexual violence at Bishop’s following the “message on the bridge” in November 2021. The report was released in June 2022.

Hopeful construction over the summer

The SVSC is set to occupy the first floor of Cormier House on 4 Harrold Drive – the path linking the SUB parking lot and the Panda daycare. Renovations will need to take place before the space is usable. Vice-Principal Student Affairs Stine Linden-Anderson told The Campus that the construction timeline depends on when contractors are available, and that they’re “really hopeful” the new space will be ready by fall. Linden-Anderson said two individual offices –one each for the sexual violence response advisors – and a common space are planned at the centre. She thinks the stand-alone space will feel quite private and imagines it will feel even safer than its current location.

Photo courtesy of Diane Sibai

Total solar eclipse

Continued from page 1

At the SportsPlex’s terrace, Bishop’s Arches Brewery invited guests to a special tasting of “Aura”, a beer specially brewed for the eclipse. The 300 litres of dark lager beer were a limited edition product for the Bishop’s event – a recipe of Giovanni Venditti, brewing science and sales coordinator. The beer sold out almost immediately at the local Maxi on Queen Street and was a hit at Doolittle’s. “The whole process takes about one month, with the fermentation considered. We did three batches of 100 litres, and the results are a dark beer but easy-to-drink beer with an IBU [of] around 25”, mentioned Simon Desrochers of the Arches Brewery. Students Alexandre Mador and Drew Henkel joined Desrochers on the terrace to serve the cold beer.

The 300 litres of dark lager beer were a limited edition product for the Bishop’s event

Although the main entrance and the parking lot in front of the SportsPlex were blocked to offer a safer environment to the people present for the event, no capacity limit restricted the gathering on Coulter Field. The area was decked out with a food truck and portable toilets to accommodate the crowd.

“The atmosphere was great, and everybody reacted the same way when totality started”

Many community members watched the eclipse on Coulter Field, but several students decided to observe from Abbott Field or Optimist Park. Alex Diotte, a sports studies student, watched from Coulter Field because

T“although members of the community showed up, it wasn’t too crowded. The atmosphere was great, and everybody reacted the same way when totality started”.

Across the bridge, Sam McNamee, a student watching from Optimist Park, stated that his “friends were playing football in the morning, and I joined them. People started coming in to watch [the eclipse] there, so we stayed. People were playing music and having

fun”.

April 8 brought communities together on and around campus to witness a stunning three and a half minutes of darkness. The diverse gathering spots, from Coulter Field to Optimist Park, allowed people to enjoy the eclipse in their preferred setting, surrounded by friends and family. The meticulous planning and grand event left participants in awe of the celestial spectacle.

he Campus acknowledges that land on which we operate is stolen land, the traditional territory of the Abenaki people. We live, learn, work, and play on this land, home to Indigenous peoples still living. Canada was founded through colonization, a system rooted in oppression and the abuse of power over others, continuing to affect First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities today. As a student newspaper, The Campus has a responsibility to highlight truth. We are committed to prioritizing underrepresented voices in our community and proactively highlighting Indigenous peoples’ histories and ongoing realities, including their resilience and achievements. We recognize our work plays a role in shaping public perceptions, being able to call-out injustice but also call-in action. We emphasize that we must go beyond a land acknowledgement, which is only one step towards reconciliation. It is the stories in our paper – told with respect, accuracy, and integrity – and the respect and humility we show to the land and others that is more important than what is written in a land acknowledgement. Actionable steps to go beyond a land acknowledgement include educating ourselves and others, and supporting Indigenous traditions, movements, and businesses.

Photo courtesy of Gabrielle Liu

The eclipse as seen from Optimist Park

Stand-alone space for SVSC

Continued from page 1

Stand-alone space “survivor centred”, no longer multipurpose

Olivia Woods, the Student Representative’s Council’s (SRC) vice president of student life, called the move a “huge step for Bishop’s” and “survivor-centred”. The SVSC’s current location at the heart of campus can make it difficult to visit comfortably, she noted. Though there will be other offices on the second floor of 4 Harrold, Woods comments that a stand-alone space doesn’t mean the centre needs a separate building. Rather, the SVSC will no longer be a multi-purpose space, as it is currently.

Sexual violence response advisor Gabrielle Joncas-Brunet notes that the new space will be “designated” and “intentional”, describing both anticipations for the change and mixed feelings. They note that there are positives to the current space shared with BUnited: the SVSC is central on campus and close to Student Services, helping staff feel connected to the centre. There are also multiple points of entry into the space.

Second sexual violence response advisor

The SVSC used to be staffed by two advisors, upon CCLISAR’s recommendation to have at least two instead of one. Former advisor

Dominique Pelletier resigned several weeks ago.

Linden-Anderson says it is certainly the hope the second advisor will be hired by the fall of 2024.

She said the job description is currently being updated before the job posting is made, as the role of the advisor has evolved since its creation. If the second advisor is not hired soon, Bishop’s would fail to maintain the CCLISAR’s recommendation to have at least two advisors at the centre.

Two and a half years after the bridge, where is Bishop’s with the remaining panel recommendations?

CCLISAR’s report set out 45 specific policy recommendations under 14 categories. Among uncompleted recommendations, one is the stand-alone space now in progress.

Another recommendation in progress is to “amend the sexual violence policy to clearly prohibit faculty-student relations”. Currently, faculty-student relations are prohibited only for studentathletes and coaches. LindenAnderson says the committee responsible for the sexual violence policy revisions is expanding on a draft of best practices provided by CCLISAR.

CCLISAR also recommended that Bishop’s conduct a “gender audit of sport” and develop “guidelines for promoting

gender equity in social media communications”. LindenAnderson says it has been a challenge finding internal resources at Bishop’s for the audit, and they’re still looking for outside companies to conduct it.

Another remaining recommendation is that the Committee for the Prevention of Harassment and Sexual Violence meets at least twice a year and that the Principal attend these meetings. The committee currently meets monthly. Principal Sebastien Lebel-Grenier has attended one committee meeting this year. The office of the principal told The Campus that he intends to attend meetings in the future.

SVSC’s work over the last two years

Joncas-Brunet says the centre has moved towards supporting the greater community beyond individual advising. Both JoncasBrunet and Linden-Anderson highlight that the use of the centre has increased this year. This does not necessarily mean there is more violence on campus. Rather, students are more comfortable using the SVSC’s services.

Joncas-Brunet comments that highlights of their work this year include integrating anti-oppressive and intersectional lenses when addressing sexual violence and

gender-based violence. They said the centre provided more training to the SRC, resident assistants and O-Week leaders. Joncas-Brunet says they hope this “trickles down” into the community. Fees related to going to the hospital began to be covered this year, such as taxi and ambulance fees, making sure costs would not prevent someone from accessing the services they wanted.

“It’s a top priority for the SRC and the university to work collaboratively on the prevention of sexual violence,” said Woods. “There is always more work to be done”. Looking forward, she hopes to see the sexual violence policy include protection for students in experiential learning contexts and more action addressing locker room talk.

Linden-Anderson is finishing her term as vice principal student affairs this June but will return to Bishop’s to teach. “It’s been an honour and privilege doing this difficult work”, she said. “This work will not be done until sexual violence is eradicated”. For questions and support regarding sexual or gender-based violence, community members can reach out to the Sexual Violence Support Centre at svsc@ ubishops.ca by email or Teams. The SVSC remains open during the summer.

The SVSC is set to occupy the first floor of 4 Harrold Drive. The building is situated on the same path on campus where the Principal’s House and the Griffin (alumni) House located. Photo courtesy of Emily Crunican

Bishop’s, UdeS Muslim students associations partake in Ramadan festivities together

By Irma Susset Contributor, Incoming Editor-in-Chief

March 10, 2024, marked the beginning of the month of Ramadan, a holy month for Muslims. During Ramadan, Muslims fast from dawn until sundown. Continuing with their tradition, the Université de Sherbrooke Muslim Students Association (AMUS) offered free dinners every night on their campus to break fasts together and foster a sense of community during this holy month. This year, AMUS hosted two of these dinners, called iftars, with the Bishop’s University Muslim Students Association (MSA).

Over a hundred students regularly attend the AMUS’ Ramadan events which encompass the breaking of the fast, two of the nightly prayers; Maghrib and Isha, the iftar meal as well as the Tarawih prayer, a voluntary prayer unique to Ramadan which involves reading portions of the Quran every night of the month. These events are full of happiness, generosity, patience and dedication, and are open to all.

“Although I am not Muslim, I felt at home, and learned a lot about Islam at these events. For me, attending dinners hosted by the AMUS was an opportunity to spend time with my friends and it felt like being with family. “ – Hannah Augustin, Université de Sherbrooke student

The idea to host iftar at Bishop’s came to fruition as the AMUS and MSA organized transportation for dozens of students to come to the Lennoxville campus for iftar and to meet new members of the community. Ziyad Omar, MSA member at Bishop’s said “I find it awesome that BU hosted iftar dinners this year”. He said “it gave us the opportunity to have the event right at home on our campus.” Ziyad, like many others, would normally go to downtown Sherbrooke to participate in the AMUS’ events.

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“I loved meeting people from the community outside Bishop’s. I met many people I had a lot in common with that I would not have had the chance to meet if it were not for this event.” – Diane Drak Alsibai, Bishop’s University student

Traditionally, Ramadan is a time to be spent with family. Several students spent Ramadan alone this year due to moving abroad to study in Estrie. For many, this time of nostalgia for large family gatherings was replaced with the joy of finding a community to share evenings with and celebrate together. Syrine Mensi, AMUS member and Université de Sherbrooke student shared that “Being away from my family during Ramadan for the first time was hard, but thanks to these events I feel the AMUS has become my second family away from home.” Many students took advantage of these nights to spend some time socializing with their peers as the end of the semester rapidly approached.

AMUS member Amina Ferraoun, another student studying abroad at Université de Sherbrooke, shared similar sentiments: “These thirty days gave me the opportunity to get together at the university, helping me forget the distance separating my family and I. This is an experience I will forever cherish.”

“The AMUS has been a blessing for me. It was heartwarming to see everyone gather and hang out together. I think it was a great opportunity to join both universities’ Muslim communities at Bishop’s.” –Mariam Ndiaye, event volunteer and AMUS member

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Despite the importance of Ramadan in the lives of Muslims, Google searches about celebrating Ramadan in Sherbrooke yield exclusively news articles from years prior. Both associations repeatedly promoted the dinners on their social media platforms, but there remains a segment of the larger Estrie Muslim demographic who may have missed out on these opportunities to connect with their community throughout the month. Many students were likely unaware of the recurring events organized by the AMUS until the month began.

Maroua Qarmad, a student at Cégep de Sherbrooke said, “I’m extremely grateful for the AMUS, and all the volunteers. I am thankful to have made so many new friends and to have been able to celebrate with them.”

The AMUS hosted these nights thanks to generous food donations by Sherbrooke community members. Student volunteers help organize and distribute the meals as well as clean up after every meal to ensure the events go smoothly. This generous team’s efforts made the month-long observance’s festivities a recurring success.

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