Concordia University’s weekly, independent student newspaper
theconcordian
VOLUME 34, ISSUE 22 | TUESDAY, MARCH 7, 2017
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theconcordian
A second half to remember Chu and her veterans lead women's hockey resurgence
Sports p. 12
also in this issue
news
life
arts
music
opinions
Our future after a Anti-black racism The harsh realities American literature Why journalism bomb threat p.3 in Canada p.5 of catcalling p.8 through music p. 11 school matters p. 15
news
NEWS EDITORS /// news@theconcordian.com SAVANNA CRAIG & NELLY SERANDOUR-AMAR ( @savannacraig @nellsamar03)
CITY IN BRIEF NELLY SERANDOUR-AMAR CO-NEWS EDITOR Toddler dies following wrong treatment
An internal investigation was launched by the Saint Justine Hospital, which will look into the death of a 23-month-old boy who w a s b e i n g t re a te d fo r cancer. According to CJAD news, the parents told the Journal de Montréal their baby was mistakenly given an overdose of potassium, which caused a series of heart attacks. Saint Justice does admit the medication given to the young boy played a role in his death but refused any sort of blame towards the care team. Montreal has growing number of potholes City statistics released that there are 53,000 potholes on Montreal’s roads, which is an increase from 45,000 a t t h i s t i m e l a s t ye a r. According to CTV News, city officials blamed these potholes were due to the weather, saying there were nine fewer days over this past winter where workers were able to repair these potholes were due to heavy snowfalls. The repairs are currently underway. Officials said the budget to fix the potholes is up 30 per cent this year and their productivity is up 20 per cent since last year. Man dies following domestic dispute A 28-year-old died after police responded to a call regarding a domestic dispute in Ile Bizard, according to C T V Ne w s . T h e p o lice received a call at 2:00 a.m. regarding an argument between the man and his parents. Once they arrived, the authorities found the man under the influence of alcohol and drugs. The man went into cardiac arrest and died while being transported to the hospital. The case has been transferred to the Bureau of Independent Investigators who have set up a command post near the home, according to CTV News.
FUNDRAISER
StrikeOut Cancer grants wishes Organization founded by Concordia student helps fundraise for Make-a-Wish Quebec
SAVANNA CRAIG CO-NEWS EDITOR Anthony Pacella, a Concordia student studying management at the John Molson School of Business (JMSB) created StrikeOut Cancer, an organization which holds events to fundraise for initiatives to help those living with cancer. StrikeOut Cancer was created as a surprise for his mother Mary Melillo Pacella, who was diagnosed with lung cancer. Before the passing of his mother, Pacella told her about StrikeOut Cancer, to which he said she gave Pacella a thumbs up in approval. “[In] August of 2010, my mother was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer,” Pacella said. His family was devastated—his mother had never smoked cigarettes, he said. “Unfortunately, my mother lost her life at the age of 52 to cancer on January 6, 2011,” Pacella said. “She left this world with two young children and a great husband.” Pacella had been raising money for StrikeOut Cancer initiatives during her treatment, however, he began planning his first events for the organization less than a few weeks after his mother’s passing.
Three months after his mother’s passing, StrikeOut Cancer hosted their first event, a Bowl-A-Thon, which is now an annual event held each spring. The Bowl-A-Thon is geared towards families in order to raise money for the St. Mary’s Hospital Foundation in Montreal— the same hospital where Pacella’s mother received treatment. He was 15 years old when he organized the first Bowl-A-Thon. In addition, StrikeOut Cancer organizes an annual gala in support of Make-A-Wish Quebec to grant the wishes of children with lifethreatening illnesses. Pacella said the gala is held in November, with tickets available for $100. The cost covers the event and a full-course dinner. “We raise thousands of dollars to make a child’s wishes come true,” Pacella said. He wanted StrikeOut Cancer to be involved with Make-AWish Quebec to contribute towards making children happy, he added. “We continue to strive and expand in order to help our community, but most importantly, our goal is to make a young child's wishes come true,” said Pacella. Pacella said while he enjoyed working with St. Mary’s Hospital,
he wanted to expand the StrikeOut Cancer initiative. “ I wa nte d to m a ke a g re ate r impact, and I feel like my $10,000 [raised] wouldn’t find the cure to cancer,” Pacella said. “But my $10,000 could hopefully impact a child’s life.” StrikeOut Cancer h a s h e lp e d t hre e children so far. “They Anth ony Pace lla phot ogra phed with all wanted to go to Chakameh, the most recent child his Disneyland,” Pacella organization helped. Photo courtesy of said. Anthony Pacella. The most recent gala, which was held on particularly looking for volunteers Nov. 7, 2016, honoured Chakameh, an eight-year-old to promote ticket sales, obtain more sponsors and spread awareness diagnosed with leukemia. “During my stay at Concordia, about StrikeOut Cancer. For more information about I hope that more people of Concordia hear about StrikeOut StrikeOut Cancer and details on and I hope to continuously gain their upcoming Bowl-A-Thon, visit StrikeOut Cancer’s website or more support,” Pacella said. Pacella hopes to have more Facebook page. This year’s Bowlsupport and involve more people A-Thon will be held on May 28 in in the StrikeOut Cancer initiative. at 1 p.m. at Le Centre de Quilles He encourages anyone who is 440, 2535 boul Curé-Labelle in interested to contact him—he is Laval.
CAMPUS
Studying while parenting
The Concordia University Student Parents Centre offers a community for student parents
CHLOË RANALDI CO-NEWS ASSISTANT Balancing school work, part-time jobs, family and friends can be a difficult task, especially for parents studying at Concordia who want to achieve their academic goals and support their children. The Concordia University Student Parents (CUSP) Centre, funded by the Dean of Students Office, offers support and services for parents studying at Concordia. Some 530 students are registered with CUSP and each day these numbers increase, said CUSP coordinator Sumaiya Gangat. “The centre is a safe and accessible space where student parents can congregate, voice their concerns, share common interests and develop a support network,” Gangat said. The centre offers a lounge to student parents, where they can bring their children with them to study, use a computer or take a break. The lounge is catered to fit the needs
of both parents and their children. “The CUSP Centre includes a lounge with couches, a computer lab with Internet access and a play area with books and toys for children, a kitchen and a nursery where mothers can breastfeed their babies or express milk,” Gangat told The Concordian.
“CUSP also provides referrals, resources and assistance to student parents pursuing their studies at Concordia,” Gangat said. “The centre helps students locate support services both within Concordia and the Montreal community at large.” The centre offers a variety of
The CUSP Centre is on the Sir George Williams campus at 1410 GuySt., in room 24 on the second floor. Photos by Alex Hutchins.
There is also a corner where children can watch movies. The CUSP Centre lets parents studying at Concordia know they are not alone, and allows them to interact with other parents who are raising a family while in school, said Gangat.
events and programs throughout the year, such as the Free Goods Bazaar, where lightly-used toys are donated to student parents. In addition, CUSP hosts monthly cookouts, where parents can cook together and bring home some of the leftovers from the evening. CUSP
also offers activities for Concordia students’ children, such as free art classes. “The centre is dedicated and continuously working to meet the needs of student parents at Concordia,” Gangat said. The centre opened in 2009, in response to a growing demand of student parents who asked the university for resources to help them balance school and being a parent. “We want student parents to know that they are not alone and that Concordia University Student Parent center offers them a community to get involved in.”Gangat said. “We are here to provide students with programs and services and want to ensure that our student parents have a fulfilling educational experience as possible.” The Concordia University Student Parents Centre is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The centre is on the Sir George Williams campus at 1410 Guy St., in room 24 on the second floor.
MARCH 7, 2017
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CAMPUS
NATION IN BRIEF
Last week’s bomb threat: looking into the future
KATYA TEAGUE HEAD COPY EDITOR
Gender pay gap persists
The university and different student organizations give their take on how the situation was handled Wednesday morning
NELLY SERANDOUR-AMAR CO-NEWS EDITOR Less than a week after there was a bomb threat which targeted Concordia’s Muslim community, some organizations at Concordia community are looking back at how the university handled the situation. “I feel like the administration has not taken the right initiatives,” said Eamon Toohey, a member of Solidarity Concordia, a group working to make the university a more sustainable and equitable socio-economic system. Toohey believes the university’s administration could have made better decisions concerning students’ safety, like what the Concordia Student Union (CSU) proposed, which was to create an amnesty for students to miss classes for the rest of the week. Concordia spokesperson Chris Mota believes the university was responsive to the threat on Wednesday morning. “We did everything according to the book. We brought together our emergency team, we contacted the police who were on site very quickly and we did an assessment on the level of danger,” she said. “We made the decision to evacuate two of the downtown buildings because of their mention in the letter.” Mota told The Concordian that, if any other threats are made, the university will respond accordingly, as they did last week. “We are very fortunate that it was a hoax, but we do absolutely take a threat seriously, and we have a solid, committed security team working hard in the university to deal with it.” The Hall building (H), the Engineering, Computer Science, Visual Arts (EV) and the Guy-de Maisonneuve (GM) building were evacuated rapidly on Wednesday morning, at approximately 11:30 a.m. “The JSMB building wasn’t closed because it was not targeted in the letter,” Mota said. “Our experts, who evaluated the risk on campus, said
that there was [no threat] for this particular [building].” Mota said the university will discuss ways to ensure security of the Muslim community on Tuesday morning. As a response to last week’s threats and other recent attacks against the Muslim communities throughout Montreal and Quebec, such as the shooting at the Quebec City mosque on Jan. 29, the CSU announced on Monday via Facebook they would collect donations at each workshop during their AntiConsumerism Week. “All of the money collected will go towards the National Council of Canadian Muslims, an organization that advises and advocates on behalf of Canadian Muslims and others who have experienced violations of their human rights and civil liberties,” it was mentioned on the post. “[The] CSU has been encouraging people to use resources available to them off-and-on campus through a living Google document which has been disseminated through our networks,” general coordinator of the CSU, Lucinda Marshall-Kiparissis told The Concordian. The union encouraged their staff to not come to the office on Thursday and Friday “if they did not feel safe on campus while still compensating them for scheduled hours, if they did opt to not come in,” she said. The CSU’s current goal is to get the university to offer universal academic amnesty for students who missed class, assignments, exams or other academic activity from Wednesday to Friday. “The university decided to only encourage professors to offer academic amnesty to their students, but only for Wednesday from the evacuation time onwards and only for classes held in the evacuated buildings,” said Marshall-Kiparissis. According to Marshall-Kiparissis, many of the CSU members still feel unsafe on campus and feel the way the university handled the situation was incomplete. “My colleagues and I, at this point, will be trying to make this
The EV, GM and Hall buildings following a bomb threat. Photos by Gregory Todaro (above) and AnaHernandez(below).
According to recent annual data from Statistics Canada, the gap in annual earnings between men and women has barely changed in Canada over the past 20 years—it is still 74.2 cents on the dollar for full-time workers. The hourly wage for women last year was 87.9 cents for every dollar a man makes, according to the data. Although there are variations, this pay gap exists in every province and every major occupational group, reported the Globe and Mail. Canada has fallen to 35th place on the World Economic Forum’s global gender gap rating, from 19th place two years ago, according to the same source. Cabinet discusses asylum seekers
a Senate issue at their meeting next week.” The CSU is still working with the Concordia community, including the university, the Muslim Student Association (MSA) and other groups to plan different courses of action and support in relation to what happened last week. Additionally, the Arts and Science Federation of Associations (ASFA) will present a motion related to the bomb threat at their upcoming council meeting this Thursday. ASFA published a statement last Wednesday morning in support with the Muslim community. “We respect and recognize the diversified experiences of and barriers faced by all students at Concordia and, as per our anti-racism position, condemn all acts of discrimination and terrorism,” it said in the letter. Julia Sutera Sardo, VP of Internal Affairs and Administration told The Concordian that ASFA’s Advocacy Committee and the Women’s Studies Student Association reached out to the MSA about planning future events with them to help Muslim
students. “They responded that they were overwhelmed with support and they will let us know shortly,” said Sutera Sardo. The Concordian contacted the MSA about any plans going forward, but they did not respond before publication time.
Bail hearing postponed The bail hearing for Hisham Saadi, the 47-year-old man who is charged withcarrying outthe bombthreat letter, has been postponedto Wednesday, March 8, accordingto CBC News.The hearing was originally scheduled for last Friday but was pushed to Monday. The newly postponed date was requested after Saadi’s lawyer asked for time to review newevidencefromtheCrowninrelation to the bomb threats against Muslims that closed three Concordia university buildings,accordingtothesamesource. SaadiwasarrestedathisCote-des-Neiges apartmentearlyThursdaymorning.The apartmentbuildingwasevacuatedwhile police searched for explosives on Thursday, but none were found. Saadi isreportedlyaPhDstudentineconomics, according to CBC News.
Anin-depthdiscussionbetween Canada’s cabinet ministers on the political and practical pressures being placed on the government by the rising number of asylum seekers in Canada will take place this week, reported the Montreal Gazette. Border security, the RCMP and immigration officials are preparing for the number of illegal immigrants into Canada to drastically increase as the weather improves in the spring. According to the Montreal Gazette, the Conservative opposition is demanding charges be placed on illegal immigrants, though the Liberal government noted asylum claims must be heard first. Muslim youth offering answers Muslim youth across Canada knocked on their neighbours’ doors offering to answer questions and handed out flyers on Sunday as part of an initiative to counter misconceptions about Islam, reported CTV News. Although the initiative was planned weeks ago, it took place the day after rallies were held across Canada by those who oppose the Parliamentary motion to condemn Islamophobia (M-103). It’s important for Canadians to meet ordinary Muslims, to ask about their faith and their Canadian identity, Safwan Choudhry, a spokesperson for Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at Canada, told CTV News.
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WORLD IN BRIEF SAVANNA CRAIG CO-NEWS EDITOR Trump revises and re enacts immigration order US President Donald Trump signed a new executive order on March 6—similar to the executive order signed on January 27—however, with altercations to the original order. Instead of banning those from seven Muslim prominent countries, Iraq has been removed from the immigration ban. White House officials said Iraq has been expelled from the immigration ban due to the Iraqi government improving visa screening and data sharing. This ban will not affect those who have already been issued US visas, reported the New York Times. The ban on Syrian refugees has been shortened to a 120-day ban. South Korea condemns missiles fired by North Korea North Korea launched four missiles on the morning of March 6––as three landed in Japanese waters. South Korean President Hwang Kyo-ahn condemned these missiles, stating Seoul—the capital of South Korea—would launch a US anti-missile defence system regardless of criticism from China. However, North Korea cautioned US and South Korean military exercises would push the Korean peninsula en route to a nuclear catastrophe, reported The Guardian.
MARCH 7, 2017
PROTEST
Conflicting politics at City Hall
Four protest groups clashed outside Montreal City Hall over a free speech demonstration
IAN DOWN STAFF WRITER Four political groups clashed outside Montreal City Hall on Saturday over a free speech demonstration. Dozens of members of the Canadian Coalition of Concerned Citizens (CCCC) mobilized to support free speech and condemn federal anti-Islamophobia Motion 103 at 11:30 a.m. on March 4. They were greeted soon after by the left-wing activist group Action Antifasciste Montréal (AAM), who chanted, threw smoke bombs and tore up the CCCC’s protest signs. Throughout the demonstration, several small scuffles broke out between the two opposing groups. As police intervened and separated them, the CCCC was joined by members of la Meute (the Wolf Pack), a Québécois anti-Islamist group. Members bore black flags emblazoned with wolf paws and howled in unison at the opposing demonstrators. AAM, who opposes “austerity, inequality, racism, fascism, sexism,
homophobia, transphobia, capitalism and the State,” according to their Facebook page, were joined by a dozen other protesters organized by Solidarity Concordia, who marched from the university to offer support. Solidarit y Concordia was formed in response to the Quebec government’s proposed tuition hikes in 2015. CCCC founder Georges Hallak said he planned a peaceful demonstration. “This is about peace, this is about communication, this is about free speech,” he said in a phone interview with The Concordian. He said the group, which he founded five weeks ago, was there only to say, “no to [Motion 103], no to Trudeau, and [yes to] free speech.” “This Motion 103 is the beginning of Shariah Law in Canada,” he said. Hallak believes that, unless proper action is taken, all of Canada will be under Shariah law in 25 to 50 years. If passed by the House of Commons, M103 will compel the Canadian government to
“condemn Islamophobia and all forms of systemic racism and religious discrimination,” among other things. Many Cons er v at i ve MP s have criticized the motion. In a Facebook post, Conservative MP Maxime Bernier criticized it for not properly defining Islamophobia, and giving Islam special treatment over other religions. Demonstrator Marlo Turner Ritchie disagreed. “ The real threat here, the real menace à la societé, is racism, intolerance and fear-mon-
UK carbon emissions reach levels from 1894 Due to a decline in use of coal, according to an analysis by Carbon Brief, the emissions of carbon in the UK have sunk to the same levels emissions were in 1894. This is the same year the first petrol-powered car was patented by Karl Benz, reported The Independent. According to the same analysis, last year’s quantity of carbon dioxide recorded in the atmosphere came to 381 million tonnes. In 1894 it was recorded to be 382 million tonnes. Carbon Brief’s policy editor Simon Evans said this should not let the UK become content with its greenhouse gas emission efforts for reduction. Evans said the reduction has been focused on the power sector, however more progress should be made on the heat and transport sector.
Four political groups assembled to protest in front of City Hall. Photos by Ian Down and Nelly Serandour-Amar.
gering,” she said. “I think people want to send the strong message today that racist threats have no place in our homes, in our universities, in our daycare, in our government, in our place of business, in our streets,” Turner Ritchie added. After la Meute dispersed, the remaining protesters marched nor th on S aint-Denis Street towards Place Émilie-Gamelin, where CCCC protest signs and a garbage bin were set on fire. The crowd slowly scattered as police and firefighters put out the fire.
life
LIFE EDITOR /// life@theconcordian.com DANIELLE GASHER
PANEL
The fight against black gendered racism in Canada Why this side of the border shouldn’t be patting itself on the back
Panelists Robyn Maynard (left), Marlihan Lopez (centre) and J. Elise Barbara (right) discuss racism. Photo by Danielle Gasher.
DANIELLE GASHER LIFE EDITOR Three prominent black Montreal-based activists came together on the evening of Feb. 28 to discuss the history of antiblack racism in Canada, contemporary issues for people of colour in the country, as well as issues faced by the coloured LGBTQ+ community.
The panel was organized by Concordia’s Centre for Gender Advocacy, and was part of the Centre’s Thick Skin speakers series—a series of curated discussions on race, gender and political resistance. The event was moderated by Jada Joseph, a peer support training and drop-in co-coordinator for the Centre. “I will attempt to do a synopsis of antiblack racism in Canada in 10 minutes,” panelist Robin Maynard said with a small laugh. Maynard is a Montreal-based feminist activist and writer. She is currently working on her first book, Policing Black Bodies: State Violence and Black Lives, which will be released this year. Maynard said the idea for her book came from her work with Stella, a Montreal non-profit organization that offers support and information for sex workers in the city. For almost 10 years, Maynard did streetbased outreach with sex workers in the city—providing them with psychological and emotional support, as well as health services. She said this work raised her awareness about deeply-rooted racism and violence against black women in Canada. “The level of extremely vindictive racialized targeting… like calling people monkeys, pointing guns at their heads… extremely horrific violence that was [happening]
almost daily, often including sexual assault, which was not being reported anywhere,” Maynard said about what she saw and heard about in her work. She wasn’t seeing these issues reflected in media outlets, so she took it upon herself to explore black women’s issues in a larger historical and socio-political context. Maynard gave the audience some historical context on anti-black racism in Canada. She said many Canadians assume black slavery was only present in the United States. The first black slave was brought to Quebec in 1628. While Canada didn’t have plantation-based slavery, Maynard said people bought and exploited black people for various types of labour, reducing them, as slavery does, to mere commodities. Maynard stressed that Canada was not transparent about its involvement in slavery. “In the 18th century, even as slavery is being practiced, you see the beginning of Canada’s self-representation as this benevolent state,” Maynard said. She said evidence of slavery in Canada was cast aside with its abolition in 1834. Following 1834, textbooks in Canadian schools made no mention of any black slavery in Canada’s history. “In Canada, Maynard explained the history of black people being viewed and treated as criminal, as dangerous or as unwanted can actually be traced back to the 17th and 18th centuries. Panelist Marlihan Lopez delved further
“
into these deep-rooted stereotypes, and how they influence the way black people are treated today in Canada and abroad. Lopez has a master’s degree in international development and has over a decade of experience in community organizing, feminist activism and cultural education. She said Cuba and Brazil contributed to the hypersexualisation of black women because of sex slavery. This hypersexualization is now deep-rooted worldwide.“ We carr y on these stereot ypes of sexual deviancy. So when we repor t [s e xual abuse], there’s a tendency of not being believed because we’re not associated with the ‘perfect victim’ which is white, which is middle-class,” Lopez said. According to a 2009 report by the American Bureau of Justice Statistics, one in 15 black women report sexual abuse. The same is true in Canada. According to the Canadian Women’s Foundation, “studies show that when women of colour report violence, their experiences are often taken less seriously within the criminal justice system and their perpetrators routinely receive less harsh punishments.” Lopez linked this back to the expectations of strength and resilience from black women. “The matriarch stereotype, the strong black women, autosufficient, ‘we don’t need to ask for help.’” Lopez said the fight against racism needs to be an intersectional fight—that is, a fight
We have to fight for
the liberation of all our
peoples. It’s necessary
for our movements to be intersectional.
”
that considers gender and class in addition to race. Intersectionality is the idea that we cannot consider social action on race issues independent from other connected issues regarding gender and class, for example. “We have to fight for the liberation of all our peoples. It’s necessary for our movements to be intersectional because, if not, we are going to keep perpetuating the same oppressive systems that we’re trying to combat,” said Lopez. “I’ve always felt that intersectionality multiplies itself exponentially,” said Montrealbased singer-songwriter and LGBTQ rights activist J. Elisa Barbara. Barbara explained that there are so many different elements of one’s identity that need to be considered when fighting for race equality. Barbara said while piercing the milieu wasn’t easy at first, they felt being a transgender black musician helped them thrive in the music industry in Montreal. “I initially felt a lot of resistance coming from people. And through the years, I’ve felt a shift in how open-minded people seem to be,” Barbara said. They felt there has been a shift in recent years in Montreal for transgender acceptance—a kind of left-leaning trend, especially present in the city’s music industry. “I initially felt a lot of resistance, coming from people. And through the years, I’ve felt a shift in how open-minded people seem to be,” said Barbara. However, they said they felt cynical about this acceptance, because “it might not last.” The next Thick Skin speakers series event will take place on Friday, March 9 at 11:30 a.m. in H-760. The discussion will explore Indigenous “feminisms and womanisms.”
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theconcordian
MARCH 7, 2017
DISCUSSION
What is the real key to happiness? A discussion reflects on illusive the “pursuit of happiness” GABRIELLE VENDETTE STAFF WRITER University of the Streets Café hosted yet another edition of its public discussions at Café Aux Deux Marie on St-Denis Street last Wednesday to discuss a hefty topic— the illusive pursuit of happiness. The talk was moderated by Anurag Dhir, a community engagement coordinator for McGill University’s Social Equity and Diversity Education Office. The event featured speakers who explored the idea of purposefulness and happiness in their line of work: Peter Hartman and Juniper Belshaw. Hartman is a motivational speaker and founder of Happy For A Change, an organization that explores happiness through community engagement. Belshaw currently works for the Cirque du Soleil as a senior advisor for talent management, but she used to work and volunteer a lot in the nonprofit sector. The atmosphere of the talk was quite relaxed. Once the speakers made their preliminary addresses, participants were encouraged to join in on the discussion. While the intention of the talk was to discuss how to lead a life of impact within a community, the natural course of discussion led to the attendees sharing their views on what happiness means to them and how to achieve a life of happiness. Most of the audience members agreed that living a life of happiness begins with the acceptance that things happen, and one can’t control everything. There was a general consensus that, to live a life of positive impact, one must first find positivity in their own life. This echoed the sentiments of Belshaw, who at the end of her
introduction said “maybe tonight I’m hoping to talk about how we build sustainable social change where we’re creating the world we want, but also living it as we do it.” Peter Hartman, who also organizes discussions about finding a purpose in life through his organization Happy For A Change, said he’s used to hearing a lot of discussions turn into talks about the pursuit of happiness. “There is overwhelmingly this focus on happiness,” he said. “I was hoping we would get beyond that… but I find it so useful, because every time we have that conversation we get a little bit further,” into what it means to lead a life of purpose, he said. Hartman explained that, for him, living a life of purpose means living a life of meaningful action. “It’s when there is intention behind the actions that you do,” he said. “It’s not just that you have relationships—it’s the manner in which you have relationships that contribute to your overall purpose.” Relationships, Hartman added, can be as basic as the contact a person has with a store clerk. This and other guiding principles are the basis of Happy for A Change—what he calls a philosophy and a movement—with the goal of using people’s own search for happiness to make a positive change in the world. “We understand that everybody is different and people want to work on different things, so we’re trying to find the lowest common denominator, what is the smallest action possible that we can convince people to do that would create change?” said Hartman. For
Event mediator Anurag Dhir is the community engagement coordinator for McGill University’s Social Equity and Diversity Education Office. Photos by Ana Hernandez.
the speaker, that action is going on social media. Hartman believes that going on social media is something that practically everyone does every day and he tries to harness its power by convincing people in the self-help industry to use their financial means to promote and market ideas that create a better society on social media. University of the Streets Café is a program part of Concordia’s Office of Community Engagement, which has existed for 15 years. According to Alex Megelas, the organizer of University of the Street Café programming, their mandate is to “promote a culture of community engagement at Concordia.” They
do so by creating links between staff, students and different community based groups and organizations. University of the Streets Café is one of their initiatives. Megelas said his principle role is to create discussions that reflect the goal of the program. This year, their goal is to look at city engagement and, more specifically, “how we live in cities as, individuals and together, [and] create shared experiences.” The next University of the Streets Café discussion called “Representative Democracy: How do we foster citizenship literacy”, and will be held on March 9 at 7 p.m. at Temps Libre at 5606 De Gaspé St.
TECH
My personal experience having a YouTube channel How YouTube taught me life skills and how to be confident and happy
MINA MAZUMDER ASSISTANT LIFE EDITOR I started my YouTube channel four years ago. In the beginning, the purpose was basically to post random music video covers of some of my favourite songs. Now, my YouTube channel has evolved and completely
shifted focus—I now film and post videos about beauty, food as well as lifestyle-type videos. I’ve also recently started filming videos of my travel getaways and story-time videos. I plan on expanding on more aspects of myself for others to see. When I started out, I was definitely nervous about filming videos and having them posted
on a platform as big as YouTube. However, I knew that, if anyone could do it, I could. I’ve always had the courage in me to do anything I want. I’ve never really been afraid of what other people think. However, I faced some disapproval when I first started out. My mom and sister judged me for the videos I posted on my channel. They called them stupid and useless. For a while, I felt discouraged about this negative feedback. Recently, I saw insulting comments posted on my videos. I deleted them and pretended they never existed. Of course, deep down, it hurts. When you film videos and post them online, you need to be prepared for any comment that may come your way—the good, the bad and the ugly. You need to shrug off the hateful comments and keep moving forward. This is my current mindset for my YouTube journey, and it feels good. I have gained enough selftrust and confidence through YouTube— I know I am doing this for nobody else but me. My YouTube channel means a lot to me. It’s the place where I can truly express myself with people around the world. Filming videos has definitely boosted my confidence. I can see myself evolving and becoming more “social” online by reaching out to people
from all over. It makes me feel free to say and do whatever I want. It has also helped me practice speaking aloud and in front of a camera. These skills translate well in my academic life. My channel has also forced me to be more socially-active with friends and when meeting or talking to strangers. I also like the idea of helping people through my YouTube videos. I want to be a role model for others. Making these videos has made me want to help others overcome the same struggles I’ve dealt with in my life, including bullying and issues with self-image. I also want my YouTube channel to be a light, fun environment where I can also post funny skits, travel adventures and videos about makeup. If you’re thinking about starting a YouTube channel, be yourself and do not be afraid to express yourself and branch out. This will help you develop a thick skin and ignore hateful comments because, at the end of the day, you are doing what makes you happy. There are always going to be people online hating on your channel, but use it as motivation to make your content better and take more risks through your videos. As Walt Disney once said: “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” Graphic by Florence Yee.
arts
ARTS EDITOR /// arts@theconcordian.com TIFFANY LAFLEUR
FILM OPINION
The irrelevance of the best picture winner Not winning a Best Picture at The Oscars is inconsequential in the long run
ROMINA FLORENCIA ARRIETA STAFF WRITER Last week’s Oscar ceremony proved to one of the most eventful in the Academy’s history. The night was a collection of great TV moments, including Auli'i Cravalho from Disney’s Moana being hit over the head by a backup dancer’s prop during her performance, and Denzel Washington marrying two tourists. It was one of the rare award ceremonies that managed to keep my attention throughout its three-hour runtime. However, the broadcast ended abruptly after one of the greatest mistakes ever made at the Oscars: the wrong movie was called as the winner of Best Picture—the most prestigious honour in
the cinematic industry. The Best Picture winner is always one which creates friction and frustration amongst movie enthusiasts and the public. Often, more culturally-relevant films are snubbed, with the award going to a forgettable and generic film which will be forgotten in a couple of years, such as last year when Spotlight won instead of Mad Max: Fury Road. Several of the most popular and revered directors in cinematic history, such as Quentin Tarantino, Alfred Hitchcock and Stanley Kubrick have never won a Best Picture award. The Best Picture winner is selected by a voting system including all the members of the Academy, composed of over 6,000 individuals. The membership status is obtained by invitation or by winning an Academy Award. Therefore,
any previous actor or director who won an Oscar during their career is eligible to vote for the Best Picture winner. Hence, the system can quickly become biased as the members can cast their votes for their friends and colleagues. Moreover, cinema is a subjective topic, making the result open for discussion and debate. In order to win the Best Picture award, a film must be able to reach a larger audience, and must appeal to the majority of the Academy’s members. This explains how movies which tend to push the boundaries of cinema, or are targeted at a niche audience are not likely to win an award at the ceremony. Nicolas Winding Refn’s latest thriller, Neon Demon, whose cinematography mirrors La La Land’s in terms of precision and astonishing shots, did not get nominated for any category.
A reason for this might be because it dealt with sensitive and shocking topics, such as cannibalism, pedophilia and necrophilia, therefore narrowing its mass appeal. There is also a tendency to avoid mainstream releases like superhero movies—they are often overlooked by the Academy’s members due to their escapist and sometimes childish nature. Even though the mix-up which occurred during the announcement of this year’s Best Picture category was an entertaining moment, the outcome does not truly matter in the long term. Both Moonlight and La La Land were incredible films that equally deserved the award. But what makes a film stand the test of time is not necessarily the number of awards it brings in, but the impact it has on the collective consciousness of the audience.
EXHIBITION
Epigram(me): Putting yourself on the map Concordia alumna's exhibition bends space by using old maps as a medium JOHN CAIRNS CONTRIBUTOR Trusting in her artistic instinct, when Audrey “Em” Meubus came across a collection of Montreal maps from the 1980s, she knew she had to do something with them. “I’ve always liked maps for what they represent—it’s finding yourself, and it’s the comforting feelings they evoke,” she said. This discovery was the beginning of a project culminating in Epigram(me), Meubus' first solo exhibition as an illustrator. Meubus, who completed her BFA in film animation at Concordia in 2013, has worked on stop-motion animation sets for works such as The Little Prince. For her latest project, Meubus drew upon her skills as a writer, illustrator and animator to superimpose her striking, emblematic drawings on carefully-selected and significant sections of the city maps. These works drew strong positive responses from Meubus’ friends and family. “I would have them forming around these maps, and I knew I was onto something… people were connecting [with them],” she said. The strength of Meubus’ work comes from
their symbolic meaning. Viewing an illustration superimposed over a map of a familiar area can generate strong personal responses connected to memory and belonging. The dark, graphic lines of Meubus’ illustrations contrast starkly with the sun-faded maps, making for an interesting aesthetic and contrast, engaging both the mind and emotions. After having experimented with maps as a medium, the next step was teaming up with Studio Beluga, a Montreal-based non-profit organization run by a collective of artists, art professionals and curators. According to their website, the studio was established with the goal of facilitating artistic practices and forming a creative community. “I know a lot of musicians and people from the theatre world, and that’s how I first came upon Studio Beluga,” she said. “I approached them, time went by until they eventually told me they had a space and I jumped on it.” The final ingredient in the realization of Meubus’ project was the imposition of a strict two-week time limit on her creative process, in which she created the six pieces that were part of her exhibition. “I do my best work on a deadline. I have all these ideas and just have to get them out
of my head as fast as possible,” she said. “If I hit a wall with one of them, I can just put it aside and work on another one. This speedy and concentrated method allows me to not get bored with what I’m doing.” Although her backdrops and drawings have particular personal significance, Meubus said she wants the viewer to find their own personal meaning in her work—hence the addition of (me) to Epigram. The name
highlights her desire to spark the memory and imagination of the viewer in their own unique and distinctive fashion. In this way, the audience can rediscover something of themselves in these works, between Meubus’ illustrations and the locations the maps portray. The exhibition runs at Théâtre Sainte-Catherine The exhibition combines until April 15. thefamiliarityofMontreal maps with Meubus’ illustrations.
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theconcordian
MARCH 7, 2017
FILM
Marvel walks a dark path with Logan
Latest superhero film featuring Wolverine is a worthy end to the story JULIAN NASIELSKI CONTRIBUTOR Only a few moments into Logan, our protagonist is met with a confrontation. As the last installment to be included in the Wolverine saga, I felt the battle would be somewhat predictable. Perhaps the grizzled hero would swipe his claws across the villains’ chests or throw them around. What happened instead was surprising. Logan begins with a brutal and extremely violent fight sequence that is worthy of the film’s R rating. This battle sets the tone for the rest of the movie and reminds the audience that this is a dark movie, peppered with lighthearted moments to create strong contrast. In other words, Logan is a different Marvel movie. The plot is not Logan’s strongest point—it essentially boils down to a ‘get from X to Y’ process. However, as is the case with many stories, it’s not so much about the destination but the journey itself. Loosely-based on the comic book series Old Man Logan, the film takes place in the future of the X-Men universe, when mutants have seemingly gone extinct. Logan, played by Hugh Jackman for the last time, is tasked with keeping a younger mutant, Laura (Dafne Keen), safe. Along for the ride is series-veteran Professor Xavier (Patrick Stewart) who has deteriorated into a much weaker version of himself. Surprisingly, Professor
X winds up providing the narrative with much needed-levity through his brash and vulgar interactions with Logan. My biggest complaint, if any, is that the relationship between Logan and Laura felt underdeveloped. There are plenty of interactions between the two, all of which are performed excellently. However, by the time these interactions begin to feel truly meaningful, the film rushes to a close. Ultimately, the audience is left wanting more from an already lengthy film of two hours and 17 minutes.
Compared to other Marvel films, the action in this film is unparalleled. The fights are more akin to those in Deadpool, which focus strongly on brutality and gore. This works well with the darker tones of the story, and had me wincing and cringing as the beloved steel-clawed mutant hacked off limbs and impaled heads with his signature claws. This may point to Marvel’s acknowledgment of an older fanbase. With the success of Deadpool, it seems Marvel is willing to pursue the R-rating by tackling bloodier scenes and
harsher themes such as mortality and aging. In the end, Logan is a worthy send off for both the character and Hugh Jackman. All loose ends are tied up, and the conclusion is both satisfying and incredibly powerful. If there were to be a Marvel film to reinvigorate the now-tired superhero genre, this would absolutely be it.
Logan is meant to be the last installment in the Wolverine franchise.
DOCUMENTARY
When a compliment isn’t a compliment Concordia alumna filmmaker tackles catcalling and street harassment Lafayette was inspired to create a film on catcalling after the Women’s March in Washington.
MAGGIE HOPE ASSISTANT ARTS EDITOR It was the Women’s March on Washington that i n s p i re d Co n co rd i a alumna Karina Lafayette to begin investigating individual cases of catcalling and street harassment. Currently working as a filmmaker in Toronto, she started a conversation with her friends about their personal experiences and began sharing their stories. Lafayette said she felt compelled to make something out of the conversations she’d heard surrounding the march and in her circle, and decided to create an online survey. She asked women to describe their worst experiences with catcalling and street harassment.
What began as a few responses quickly grew into over 40 haunting confessions. Lafayette said she was not surprised by how many women responded, given the prevalence of catcalling in modern society. She was surprised, however, by how candidly and openly the participants told their stories. “Sometimes we’re told it’s supposed to be a compliment,” Lafayette said. She said this could be a reason why street harassment isn’t discussed often or in much detail. To many who do not experience it and to the
perpetrators themselves, street harassment is seen as flattery and is not perceived as offensive. Because of this, explaining how an experience of catcalling can be taken negatively becomes difficult, and the subject itself becomes almost taboo. Over whelmed by the number of responses, Lafayette decided to convert the stories into a short film. She was careful not to censor anything—she wanted to accurately portray the reality of being catcalled. Lafayette explained due to the extremely disrespectful language often used by catcallers, if she had chosen to censor the quotes, it would have taken away from the film’s meaning. “Most of them already contain some type of derogatory term or insult,” she said. “It would be like censoring pretty much the entire film.” The film, Give Me A Smile, begins with a shot of a woman walking down the street, followed by an image of her doing her hair and makeup, and then one shot—from a bird’s eye view—of her walking down stairs and pausing at a door to go outside. Lafayette’s voice recites her own poem, Eve’s Apple, as the camera continues to follow the woman outside and down a dimly lit street. The poem describes the harmful consequences that catcalling and misogyny can have on a woman’s self esteem. The responses to her survey appear written on the screen: “slut,” “Here kitty kitty…” and “Damn baby girl! Come here, I got what
you’re looking for.” The camera follows the woman down the dark streets, as more catcalling quotes flash across the screen. The soundtrack of rock music gives particularly disturbing and graphic quotes even more of an unsettling air. The film concludes with a shot of the Toronto mural titled “The Awakening,” a simple image of two faces pressed up against each other. Their eyes are closed and their faces wear a solemn expression. The final shot evokes a feeling of intimacy, which provides a link to the vulnerable position that victims of street harassment are subjected to. The music then fades and the credits roll. Lafayette said she hopes her film initiates a conversation about catcalling and common misconceptions about what it feels like to be on the receiving end. She said she wanted to shed light on women’s experiences, and allow them to see they are not alone in what they have been subjected to. “[I want] to show people that catcalling and street harassment in general shouldn’t be taken lightly, because it can relate to many other situations. At the same time, I kind of want to debunk this whole myth of it being a compliment,” she said. “I myself, every time I experienced it, I thought I was in the wrong. But by listening to other people, that’s when I realized that it’s actually a form of bullying.” Give Me A Smile can be viewed on Lafayette’s YouTube channel, Carus Productions.
etc
Fe a t u r e d C o n c o r d i a A r t i s t vicky morin ouellette
My process revolves around the paradox of life and human creations. My attention is on life and death, what dies and is born, between what is constructed and what is worn down. Whether I am looking at the environment, technology, communications or industrialization, I look at how a fault emerges between nature, life, humanity and its actions. The exploitation of the planet's natural resources has limits that have already been reached. The earth, air and water have undergone transformations which have affected their composition to the point where they're just shadows of what they used to be before we arrived. This vivid interest for humanity's effect on life on Earth is reflected in the mediums and methods that I use. Whether it is in photography, video or installations, depicting the process of transformation is essential. RHIZOME EFFECT, 2016.
Rhizome Effect (2016) represents the idea of identity, of nature and technology by offering a new outlook on the domestication and appropriation of nature by mankind. The installation is set up in a space predefined by a semi-circle that is part of the room. The dome is constructed from curved wooden strips attached by red clamps. The audience is invited to enter and discover the various elements installed there. Displayed on the ground, furniture and ceiling are several manufactured products imitating nature with other objects directly tied to it. A hand made of plaster, a
deer's skull, wooden blocks, tables, a frame, a bench, a collection of seashells, stones, pieces of driftwood and a variety of glass pieces polished by the sea are artefacts installed all over the room. Each item is attached by a fine red thread symbolizing the Rhizome concept, a system in which everything is linked. A video projection called Survol (2016) is playing in a frame on the ground and is visible from both inside and outside of the dome, thanks to a sheet of translucent wax paper. The video, as revealed by its name, shows the overlooking of the Bas-Laurentienne region.
DESTAILS FROM RHIZOME EFFECT, 2016. DETAILS FROM SCIENCE INEXACT, 2015. IN COLLABORATION WITH PAMELA SIMARD.
music
Quickspins
MUSIC EDITOR /// music@theconcordian.com SANDRA HERCEGOVÁ
1 LORDE
PROFILE
Get a hold of The Holds
The Montreal indie-rock band is soon to release an LP album
“Green Light” (Lava, Republic, 2017)
Nearly four years after her debut album was released, Auckland indie-pop sensation Lorde has returned with a triumphant lead single from her much-anticipated second album, Melodrama. The track is poppy and upbeat. On first listen, it may seem like a departure from Lorde’s early hits like “Royals” and “Team.” But behind the soaring piano melody, “Green Light” has all the elements of the alt-pop style Lorde is known for, from the synths and kick drums to the wise-beyond-her-years lyricism. The tonal shift between the song’s haunting refrain and fast-paced chorus is jarring, but that’s exactly what’s made the 20-year-old singer so successful. Very few musicians can make something so weird work so well, especially on a dance track. Long-time fans will probably miss the layered harmonies and obscure poetics of her debut album, Pure Heroine, but overall, “Green Light” is a solid comeback and an exciting taste of what’s to come from Lorde in the next year. 11 Trial Track: “Green Light”
From left to right, Ryan Setton, Eric D Hein, Alex Lebel, André Galamba and Justin Wiley. Photo by Rome Legion.
EMILY VIDAL ASSISTANT MUSIC EDITOR Montreal band The Holds may have only been together for a year and half, but their unique sound cannot be missed. Their swampy, soulful, indie-rock vibe has garnered a lot of reaction from people across both Quebec and Ontario following a twoweek tour for their self-titled EP last year. The EP was released in January 2016, and the band is now excited to have new music on the horizon. The lead singer of the band, Ryan Setton, said their soon-to-be released full-length album is very different from anything they’ve done before. “[Our sound] has changed a lot actually,” Setton said. “Obviously the instrumentation is somewhat the same, but there’s definitely more keys on the new stuff, and the songs are more dynamic, in that there’s more of a story in the music. There are things that are constantly changing and shifting throughout the tracks, whereas before, our songs were a bit more cut and dry.” Setton first started performing cover songs at bars around Montreal with Justin Wiley, the drummer of The Holds, five years ago. After years of covering other bands’ material, they both wanted to start creating their own original music. That’s when bassist Andre Galamba, keyboard player Alex Lebel and guitarist Eric Hein came in. These three musicians had the talent, personality and chemistry Setton and Wiley were looking for. Setton said their album is currently in pre-production, but the goal is to release it by this summer. The band also hopes to tour Canada for the upcoming album. Their new release signifies something much more profound for Setton. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited about something, out of all the things I’ve done, than this
record that’s coming out now. Sometimes when I listen to it, I can’t even believe that it’s happening,” he said. Setton is not new to the music industry— he has been performing on stage for over 14 years. He has been playing piano and guitar for most of his life, and began singing in his 20s. “Music’s always been like air to breathe, you know what I mean? Like a higher consciousness or something,” he said. “It makes you feel good, motivates you, connects you to something, to other people.” But having a career in music has come with its challenges over the years, including criticism. “For a long time, I was not sure of myself,” he said. “At one point I almost threw in the towel.” While creating music over the past year for the new album, something just clicked for Setton. “After playing shows for so long and being in many situations where I was frustrated, I think I got to the breaking point where I let go, and I really don’t care what anyone [says],” he said. “I’m not going to put myself down for any reason. I’m just going to do what I do, and to the best of my ability.” Setton said the songs he’s created over the past year are more in tune with who he is, both as a person and artist, than ever before. “[The new album] is so in line with [what] I’ve always wanted to do, but I guess I’ve never been able to achieve,” he said. “Just the sound that we have and the songs that we have right now on this upcoming record, it just makes so much sense to me when I hear them.” The members of The Holds also inspire Setton to tap into his full musical potential. “With the right group of people and the right circumstances, now there’s all this creative energy flowing,” he said. “Alex Lebel—he’s definitely, in my personal, biased opinion, one of the best key players in Montreal,” Setton said. “It’s just such a natural,
raw talent that he has. He just adds such a spark and a finesse to everything he plays.” According to Setton, Galamba, who is originally from Brazil, is an intelligent and intuitive player who adds an air of confidence to the music. “[He] is very well-versed in world music. He plays jazz, he plays Latin music, all kinds of different styles,” Setton said. Hein has a lot in common with Setton in terms of musical interests. “Eric and I, we both grew up playing blues and rock and roll, playing by ear. He plays most of the lead guitar in the band, so that gives it it’s bluesy, kind of juke joint, classic 60s vibe,” he said. Setton said Wiley motivates him in many ways. “Justin is a very disciplined drummer and person in general. He’s very motivated, and his energy in music, in the jam room and outside in life is very positive and energetic. It’s just an amazing thing to have someone like that in a band, who constantly keeps everyone on their toes, but is also a great drummer, and adds a lot of unique style.” Setton said he strives to bring romance back to rock and roll. “Even though a lot of our songs are pretty rocking, I’m heavily influenced by classic soul and R&B.” Setton said they try to make their music relatable to everyone. “We’re definitely influenced by the blues, and talking a lot about travelling, feeling good, feeling bad. Very simple, everyday things that everyone feels.” he said. “We’re talking about human relationships, we’re talking about love, loss and things like that. Which in itself is profound, I think.” Whether the band’s music is heard at a bar in downtown Montreal, or on their albums, the band’s goal is to inspire others to be genuine. “Remember to be yourself, because that’s when the true art comes out,” Setton said. “That is the most important thing to say: in anything that you do, just uncompromisingly be yourself.”
8/10
—Megan Hunt, Assistant News Editor
2 FUTURE
HNDRXX
(Freebandz, 2017) Fresh off releasing his eponymous project just a week prior, Future returns with HNDRXX. Putting out projects so close together is risky for an artist who is often critiqued for being too formulaic, but HNDRXX will put those claims to rest. This album serves as a companion piece to FUTURE, though it’s completely different stylistically. The soundscape is extremely melodic and atmospheric. The content is much more introspective. In “Selfish,” featuring Rihanna, the pair harmonize beautifully together. They sing about getting back into a broken relationship for selfish reasons. “Use Me” has Future rapping about his frustrations with a significant other using him for fame. “Incredible” sees him talking about having trust issues until meeting the right one, over a bass-driven, synthpop-inspired instrumental. With this album, Future took a risk and it paid off in a major way. HNDRXX may be his best body of work thus far. 11 Trial Track: “Selfish” ft. Rihanna
9.5/10
—Wesley McLean , Staff Writer
MARCH 7, 2017
theconcordian
11
PROFILE
3 JOHN MAYER
The Great Novel's road to rock Montreal folk-rock band explores American literature through their lyrics
The Search for Everything - Wave Two (Columbia Records - 2017) John Mayer released the second round of tracks from his upcoming album, The Search for Everything. The album’s songs have been teased to fans in sets of four, Wave Two being the second set. In the opening track, “Still Feel Like Your Man,” Mayer confesses he has not let go of a past love. The song is full of groove and smooth vocal harmonies. The change of tempo in the bridge gives the blues-pop track an extra level of dimension. The ballad of the bunch, “Emoji of a Wave,” features a simple guitar melody. The echo-y oohs and ahs sung in the chorus can put you into a relaxing daydream. The energy picks right back up with “Helpless,” where Mayer’s electric guitar takes the lead—it lends itself to a few punchy solos that take up nearly half of the song. When looking at Wave One and Wave Two as one unit, it’s clear Mayer is staying true to his original blues-pop roots, but still adding a hint of country and folk here and there. 11 Trial Track: “Still Feel Like Your Man”
8/10
—Cristina Sanza, Editor-in-Chief
4 ED SHEERAN
÷ (Atlantic Records, 2017)
After taking a break from social media for a year to travel the world, singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran is back with his third studio album, ÷. From incorporating the Irish fiddle in “Galway Girl,” to the high-energy afrobeats in “Bibia Be Ye Ye”—where he also sings in Twi, a common dialect in Ghana—it’s evident his time away inspired him. While some tracks feature Sheeran singing with just a guitar or piano, such as the emotional closing track “Save Myself,” overall, the album is more instrumentally dynamic when compared to his first two albums. “Perfect” is the ultimate love ballad and is sure to be the first dance song at every wedding this summer. The sassiness in “New Man” is humorous, as Sheeran sing-raps about an ex lover who’s now with someone who’s the opposite of him: “He wears sunglasses indoors, in winter, at nighttime, and every time a rap song comes on, he makes a gun sign.” ÷ is sure to please the bulk of Sheeran fans—it’s dynamic, but he doesn’t stray too far from the acoustic style that makes him so popular. 11 Trial Track: “Galway Girl”
7.5/10
—Cristina Sanza, Editor-in-Chief
Portrait of Montreal's folk-rock band, The Great Novel. Photo by Jay Kearney.
SANDRA HERCEGOVÁ MUSIC EDITOR You’ve got to shed your skin on the road of existence,” is The Great Novel’s mantra of their new album, Skins. The Montreal folk-rock band released the record on March 3 at La Sala Rossa. The lineup consists of Endrick Tremblay on lead vocals, guitar and harmonica, Marc Olivier Tremblay Drapeau on double bass and vocals, and Gabrièle Côté on vocals and percussion. The album explores new tones and narrative styles. Skins has a vintage Americana feel to it—it’s the ideal soundtrack for an escapade to California’s Big Sur. It’s been four years since the band’s inception, and The Great Novel is continuously jamming, performing and touring together. Originally, Tremblay began this band with a solo project in mind. “At first I wanted to write songs on my own,” he said. “The idea was to have a backup band, then it became a collaborative project where everyone gives their ideas.” “I’ve been a musician for a long time, mostly doing covers, bluesy stuff. At that time, I was obsessed with Robert Plant’s album, Raising Sand. It’s a folk album that has a rock vibe—I love how that sounds together,” Tremblay said. Then Tremblay met Côté. “She had a good voice, so we tried to make some songs together,” he said. Drapeau eventually joined the picture alongside their former drummer, Tristan Forget. According to Tremblay, initially, there were no drums and their music was much more smooth. “We then decided to add drums. Turned out the drummer was so good that we asked him to join the band,” he said. The band then started to write more music together. “I chose these members because I was looking for that type of instrumentation,” Tremblay said. The band then traded their upright bass and acoustic guitar for the electric bass. “That’s when we became more rock. Our tones are much more classic rock than in our first album,” Tremblay said. According to Tremblay, their lyrics are influenced by legendary authors in American literature, such as Mark Twain, Charles Bukowski, Jack Kerouac and J.D Salinger. “I was at a point of my life where I discovered a passion for books, especially
American literature,” he said. As a FrenchCanadian, he said he didn’t get a chance to read the classics, such as How to Kill a Mockingbird, in elementary or high school. He read them later on in life and was fascinated. “These books have a particular quality about them. Since they are American, the writing has a street style. It has more action and rhythm,” Tremblay said. With his passion for American books and the band searching for an original name, the expression “The great American novel” came to mind. “So why not call us The Great Novel,” said Tremblay. However, The Great Novel has also been inspired by a Canadian book, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz by Mordecai Richler. It takes place in Montreal in the 1930s. “It’s about a Jewish man who wanted to get rich and would do anything for it,” Tremblay said. “I live a bohemian lifestyle and my life goals aren’t money-oriented. I thought it would be interesting to write in the skin of a character who has different values than myself.” Overall, Skins explores a variety of characters through storytelling. Its lyrics touch subjects of youth, eroticism, hard work and poverty. Their new record took the band over a year to prepare. “We just wanted to do something unique, to experiment with sound texture and tonality,” Tremblay said. The album was recorded in just 10 days. “Those days were intense emotionally. It was 10 days of us just being together. It was a moment in time that we will never forget,” Tremblay said. The Great Novel’s music video for their single “Get Me Some Land” explores
retro-American cinematography. It feels as if you are watching a short thriller film, and the song just blends in seamlessly with the narrative. “As I described our lyrics to Pablo, our video producer, our song made him think of the American film Barfly, written by Charles Bukowski,” Tremblay said. The main actors of the music video are The Great Novel band members themselves. “I wanted to have that experience of being an actor for fun,” Tremblay said. “It turned out to be an intense and hard experience. They had to change my style. They gave me a moustache.” In the video, Côté plays the bartender and Drapeau plays the man who beats up Tremblay. “My brother played the motorcycle club guy, someone from our hometown passed us his truck—we had a small budget and had to do the whole thing in two nights,” Tremblay said. The band has been on the road recently touring across Ontario and through the Maritimes. “People love to enjoy and party to our music, especially in the countryside. We were once booked for a one-hour show and ended up playing for four hours,” Tremblay said. The band is curious to see how people will react to their new rock album. They are headed to France in the spring for a European tour. According to Tremblay, The Great Novel is a band that has family spirit. “We have been through so many things together, personal issues, so many hours on the road, but we are always there for each other. They are going to be part of my life for as long as I live,” Tremblay said.
sports
SPORTS EDITOR /// sports@theconcordian.com ALEXANDER COLE ( @AlexCole_80)
COVER STORY
Turning it around at the end of the season Fresh off winning RSEQ Coach of the Year, Julie Chu talks about her team’s season
The team made a huge improvement from the first half to the second half of the season. Photo by Alex Hutchins.
ALEXANDER COLE SPORTS EDITOR After winning only three of the team’s first 10 games, the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team was able to turn their season around and win seven of their last 10 games, cementing themselves as a real contender in their division. “I think the biggest part is focusing on one day at a time,” Stingers head coach Julie Chu said. “In the fall, when you’re not winning, you can get off track really easily. But we have a great team dynamic that allows us to continue to work hard even when things get tough.” In a division with powerhouses such as the Université de Montréal Carabins and the McGill Martlets, winning can be tough. There are five teams in the division which means in a 20 game season, you see each team five times. In the beginning of the season, the team struggled to beat teams like the Carabins and the Martlets. However, after a few adjustments going into the last stretch of the season, the Stingers were able to pull off some big wins. The biggest of those wins occurred just a week ago when the Stingers swept the Carabins in the first round of the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) division playoffs. Having won the U SPORTS championship the year before, the Carabins were heavily favoured. However, the Stingers pulled off the upset, thanks to their hard work and attention to detail. “We do a lot of video sessions as a
team to breakdown the areas that we want to improve on and also look at what we do well,” Chu said. “Players are welcome every week to look at videos individually, and it’s been a huge tool for us to teach players what they have to do in order to make good decisions on the ice.” The team’s ability to beat the Carabins is also a testament to their trust in the system Chu has put into place. Despite a rough first half of the year, Chu said her team stayed the course and was able to execute in the latter half of the season. With strong performances from everyone on the team—not just its star players—Chu said the team showed plenty of character. “It was great to see our players step up in the series,” Chu said. “There were a lot of shutdown plays from our defence, and everyone fills a role. Some roles get more recognition than others because they require a goal or a save, but it doesn’t mean one role is more important than the other. The win against the Carabins gave the team a spot in the RSEQ final against the McGill Martlets. In that series, the team lost in two games, but worked hard through the series. The team’s trip to the conference finals was their first since 2005. Their game-one win against the Carabins was their first playoff win since 2006. Making the conference final also cemented the team’s spot at nationals this year, which
Julie Chu won RSEQ Coach of the Year after a 10-9-1 season. Photo by Brianna Thicke.
hosts eight teams featuring the two best from each conference. “One of our goals was finishing top two in the RSEQ because we knew that would bring us to nationals,” Chu said. “One of the biggest challenges is that, with all the milestones we achieved, it feels like a mini-championship in itself. But with nationals three weeks away, we can’t think about that now—we have to look at what’s in front of us.” Before the team’s playoff series against the Carabins, Chu was named RSEQ Coach of the Year. While the honour is an individual one, Chu said it’s her team and the rest of her coaching staff that have helped turn the team into what they are today. “We have an incredible coaching staff here and this award is a testament to them,
so I can’t take the credit,” Chu said. “My name might be on the certificate but it’s really about all of our coaches and, ultimately, our team going out and executing. You can have great coaches who run great practices and systems but you need a team that’s going to buy in, and if the team hadn’t, we wouldn’t be talking about this.” No matter what happens at nationals, the Stingers have had one of their best seasons in the last decade and, with a strong staff behind them, the future is bright. As Chu reiterated, the whole season has truly been a team effort. “I know, for me, the people I am surrounded by are absolutely tremendous and a huge reason why our team has gotten so many recognitions this year,” said Chu.
MARCH 7, 2017
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Talking to a French Survivor Football player Jeremih Mogni shares his journey to Canadian university football
Jeremih Mogni was a receiver but is now a cornerback for the Stingers. Photo by Liam Mahoney.
NICHOLAS DI GIOVANNI ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR Jeremih Mogni has a pair of cleats hanging in his room, with “2017” written on them. That’s when the cornerback for the Concordia Stingers football team aims to return from a season-ending injury. Mogni tore his right ACL two days before the start of the 2016 football season, but admits the injury was a life-changing event. “When I say to others that it’s the best injury that’s happened to me in my life, they say, ‘what are you saying?’” Mogni said. “It made me better as a person.” Like many student-athletes, Mogni has faced many challenges as young adult. This dreadful injury has been Mogni’s toughest roadblock yet. But a knee injury wasn’t going to hold him back. “I came too far, I paved a long path to get here. It’s impossible that one injury like that ruins my dreams and my objectives,” Mogni said. Mogni’s journey to Concordia is an interesting and unique one. It started in Sevran, France, an impoverished suburb just outside of Paris. The town saw over 10,000 crimes committed in 2014, according to Linternaute.
“[It’s] One of the most dangerous cities in France,” Mogni said. “It’s crazy, a lot of drugs.” This rough lifestyle did not knock Mogni or his tough character down. Rather, it helped him become stronger and realize the only way out is through success. He said too many athletes from Sevran don’t grasp that concept. “I know there are a lot of guys like me there who could be here and are stronger than players here, but it’s their choices that makes the differences,” Mogni said. Mogni is lucky to have made the right choices which allowed him to excel in his football career. Surprisingly, he only began playing football as a teenager. He practised taekwondo as a kid, and did not watch his first football game on TV until he was 15 years old. He immediately fell in love with the sport and started playing flag football. He eventually got into tackle football at 17. In 2013, at 19 years old, he came to Canada to play for CEGEP de Thetford. He helped contribute to a rebuilding football team, as they went to the Division III semifinals in 2013, and finals in 2014. He just missed out on a championship ring, as the CEGEP won the Division III championship last season, while he was playing in his
rookie year with the Stingers. Mogni played as a receiver with Thetford and in his first season with the Stingers, but was asked to switch to cornerback this year. He was climbing up the ranks until his injury stunted his growth. With his dreams on the brink of falling apart, he remembered his journey. He remembered all the guys who could be in his position, and he took a positive view on life. “Sometimes, like after my surgery, I wanted to quit, I wanted to find something else,” Mogni said. “But I think of where I came from. I think of the guys who want to be here. I am blessed.” Mogni, who comes from a family of six children, also thought about how his mother has supported him over the course of his football journey. He said he plays for his family and has never played for only himself. “People around me think I play football to go to the NFL or CFL,” Mogni said. “But in reality, I never started football with that in my head. I started football because I loved it, and I wanted a way to make my life better, and that of my parents.” For these reasons, Mogni sees himself as a survivor, and created a group called the “French Survivors.” The group consists of five hard-working football players in the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) division who hail from France. He said he hopes to grow the French Survivors and include students from other sports and disciplines too. “French Survivors is not just about football, it’s about life,” Mogni said. “You’re struggling to pay rent, but you’re still going to school to play football and earn a degree. You are a survivor.” The group's origin story reflects the kind of life Mogni has lived. He said he was sitting in his dorm room in Thetford Mines, and he thought, “Life is tough.” Looking back on it, he wanted to create the group to unite football players who were going through tough times. Mogni made the group after getting injured, and he said he has matured since. He views life in a positive way, and knows everything happens for a reason. He said he kept wondering why he was injured. He’d heard about ACL injuries happening to other players but never considered that it might happen to him. He has allowed it to become a positive experience he has grown from. After all, he is a survivor. “Everything starts in the head. If everything is well in the head, everything else will be fine,” he said. “You have to stay positive. Life is made of steps, and you can’t be crying, ‘oh why always me?’ There’s always worse than you in the world.”
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theconcordian
Rant of the Week BY ALEXANDER COLE
LD WIN ÉLEMENT SHOU YEAR COACH OF THE At the end of every U SPORTS hockey season, one coach from each division is awarded the title of Coach of the Year. While I usually use this column as an opportunity to rant, this week I would like to use it as an opportunity to commend someone. That someone is Stingers men’s hockey head coach Marc-André Élement. While it may seem like I’m being a homer by advocating for my university team’s coach, Élement’s work with this Stingers squad has been some of the most impressive work in the league. Last season, the Stingers finished with 10 wins—good enough to place seventh in their division. It was Élement’s first season as head coach but, at the time, he was only there on an interim basis. The team struggled on defence and in goal, but could score when they needed to. Their identity was offense, but they just needed that push on the backend to turn them into a serious contender. In the offseason, Élement went after the best recruits he could find. The Stingers coaching staff worked tirelessly to recruit players like forwards Anthony De Luca, Philippe Sanche and Anthony Beauregard, as well as defencemen Anthony Gingras, Alexandre Gosselin and Matthieu Desautels. He even found himself a goalie in Philippe Cadorette. With his new squad, the Stingers won 19 games, finished second in the division and won their first playoff series in 16 years. They were also ranked seventh nationwide. Throughout the season, the team pulled off big wins against Queen’s, the Université de Québec à Trois-Rivières, Ryerson and Guelph, which cemented them as one of the best teams in the country. As someone who covered the team from week to week, I noticed Élement was all business in interviews and never made excuses for his team. He knew what his team needed to do to win night in and night out and was able to get the best out of his players. The players I interviewed throughout the season had glowing reviews for their coach, who helped turn the team into a real threat. Élement may not be the one scoring the goals, but he’s the one who has made the team’s success possible. This is something that needs to be recognized.
The French Survivors are a group of five football players from France. Photo courtesy of Jeremih Mogni.
opinions OPINIONS EDITOR /// opinions@theconcordian.com DAVID EASEY
Aside from the editorial, the articles that appear in the opinions section do not necessarily reflect the points of view of our staff.
EDITORIAL
Standing in solidarity with Muslims at Concordia
Our worst nightmares came true on Wednesday morning as an ominous announcement echoed through the hallways, telling students and staff to evacuate both the Hall and EV buildings. As students and staff flooded onto the streets of downtown Montreal, news circulated there was a bomb threat. A letter had been sent to various student groups and media outlets. The letter referred specifically to Muslims and said the organization will not tolerate "Friday prayers and the often anti-Christian and anti-Jewish speeches," going on at Concordia, referring to the fact that the 7th floor of the Hall building is used as a prayer space for Muslim students. It also demanded Concordia stop all religion-related activities on campus and that the organization is ready to “fight Moslems.”
After a search by the SPVM, no explosives were found. According to the Montreal Gazette, the suspect Hisham Saadi, 47, was arrested early Thursday morning at his apartment in Cote-des-Neiges. Saadi was charged with inciting terrorism fears, transmitting death threats, and mischief in connection to the bomb threat sent out on Wednesday. This bomb threat came at a time when Concordia’s Muslim Student Association was hosting an “Islamic Awareness Week,” which included a variety of lectures and activities aimed at educating Concordia students about the religion. It is terrifying to see something like this happen at Concordia University, a school filled with so many students from different parts of the world. The letter sent out on Wednesday points towards a harsher, more dangerous
reality: the reality of Islamophobia. With this incident, we at The Concordian were also reminded of the threat and terror Muslims faced during the Quebec mosque shooting only a little over a month ago. On Jan. 29, a gunman opened fire in a mosque in Quebec City, killing six innocent people. There have also been multiple incidents of mosques being defaced and vandalized in the past few months, creating a climate of fear for many individuals who practice Islam. Here at The Concordian—where we have Muslim editors on our masthead—we completely and fully stand in solidarity with the Muslim community during these disturbing times. We denounce the threats made by this pitiful and cowardly individual. Saadi clearly seeks to disrupt and divide our university while instilling a culture of fear and
hatred. We will not stand for this and will do all in our power to fight back against those who seek to harm students, staff and anyone else in the greater Montreal community. The letter had said, “Now that President Trump is in office south of the border, things have changed.” And that is true—the political climate has changed and divisiveness seems to be the new norm. Hate is being normalized. We at The Concordian urge people to stand up and denounce any kind of behaviour that incites terror or fear, and to always protect innocent minorities who are being threatened every day. Our university has always stood as a beacon of acceptance and diversity. We must in turn fight to preserve this treasured space and speak out against those who seek to destroy it. Graphic by Florence Yee.
EDUCATION
Why I value my journalism degree
My response to the large amount of hate on my program of study DANIELLE GASHER LIFE EDITOR I have come to the realization that having to defend journalism on a daily basis comes with the territory of studying journalism. “Good luck getting a job” and “What do you plan on doing with that?” are things I hear regularly. I can handle that. But perhaps the comment I get the most, and the comment that irks me the most, is “You’re studying journalism? That’s kind of a useless degree.” Or even, “Just be a journalist, you don’t need a degree for that.” Society seems increasingly distrustful of "the media." I put “the media” in quotation marks because the term, although commonly used, doesn’t really mean anything. As senior editor for The Atlantic James Hamblin wrote last month, “the term has been weaponized.” The Atlantic senior editor Derek Thompson writes, “‘the media,’ like ‘technology,’ is not a single, tangible object but rather an information galaxy, a vast and complex star system composed of diverse and opposing organizations, which are themselves composed of a motley group of people, each of whom are neither all good nor all bad, but mostly flawed media merchants with individual strengths, weaknesses, biases and blindspots.” To summarize briefly, “the media” is too much of an all-encompassing term that muddles the individuality of journalists and
organizations. I believe this homogenizing of individual journalists and news organizations is toxic for the understanding of a complex industry and profession. Being a journalist is no less important than it was two decades ago—it is just easier to mimic today. A distrust in news organizations is understandable. With the ever-increasing importance of social media and speed in people’s lives, clickbait and fake news weasel their way to the top of our newsfeeds. But as renowned journalist Christiane Amanpour said at the 2016 meeting for the Committee to Protect Journalists, “we must fight for the truth in a post-truth world.” I am grateful for my journalism degree because I believe a good, balanced training, including lessons on ethics, law, image, sound, writing and history, is an important part of succeeding in the fight for “truth in a post-truth world.” I believe journalism schools are the light of hope for the next generation of aspiring journalists, who are being increasingly exposed to lazy publishing and public relations painted as journalism. Concordia has one of the best journalism schools in the country. The program is known for training honest and professional journalists who have moved on to work for reputable organizations like the Montreal Gazette, the Globe and Mail, CBC, CTV and the New York Times.
The hands-on training I have been receiving since the beginning of my studies blows me away. Our teachers have us going out, conducting interviews, gathering sound and images—the same way producers or editors at CBC expect their journalists to gather a story. Professors have been throwing us into scrums, crowds, conferences, courtrooms, protests, and expect excellence from us in return. Journalism school has consistently ranked at the top of “Most Useless Major” lists on blogs and websites like Business Insider and the Huffington Post. Its value has also been questioned in articles from The Guardian , Complex magazine and Forbes. While the hate or disdain for journalism school has been discussed over the years, there is simultaneously a common desire for more truthful,
honest journalism. CBC’s The Sunday Edition host Michael Enright once said, “citizen journalism is like citizen dentists… I’d rather not.” So for those who complain or criticize this “useless degree,” but also complain about “sloppy journalism,” it may be time to think about the importance of proper journalistic training for the next generation of storytellers and for the future of news. Graphic by Florence Yee.
MARCH 7, 2017
theconcordian
COMEDY
Where does comedy stand when it comes to racial jokes? An examination of comedy in today’s society where political correctness must always be observed MATTHEW COYTE STAFF WRITER Comedian George Lopez came under fire for a joke he told at one of his shows on Feb. 4. During a segment, he joked that “there are only two rules in a Latino family: don’t date black people, and don’t park in front of the house.” In response, a heckler stood up, gave Lopez the middle finger and was subsequently kicked out of the venue. While the woman was being escorted out of the building, Lopez called her a “b*tch” and remarked that “four seats just opened up.” Taken out of context, Lopez’s comments to the heckler may seem harsh—many people were upset. Most of the outrage, however, has been directed at the joke itself, which many claim is racist. Others have criticized the comedian for his overly mean-spirited and “sexist” remarks to the woman. The thing is, these were not statements. They were jokes. They were funny jokes too, if you dig beneath the surface. Calling the joke "insensitive" just because he identifies a race in his joke, and ignoring what he means is sensationalizing his intent. I don't know all the details and intricacies of the Latino community, but if you decipher the joke, it's obvious Lopez is poking fun at the Latino community and how close-minded some Latinos are when it comes to interracial dating. He goes on to emphasize how ridiculous this is by comparing it to something as trivial as parking in front of the house.
This joke works in all the ways a good joke should, and most of the crowd reacted accordingly. Removing these jokes from their context and slapping them on a headline takes away all the built-up irony and energy from the show. This isn't the first time a comedy show has been bombarded with such misunderstanding. Every few months, a different comedian is discussed on Good Morning America and, every time, they miss the point completely. In the case of Lopez, as is the case for many situations like his, you can hear the crowd laughing in the video. Conversations that follow incidents like this usually bring up two questions: who decides what is funny, and what was the comedian’s intention? Comedians are quick to respond because only they can decide what their intentions were with regards to the jokes they told. Deciding who determines whether a joke is offensive—the audience or the comedian—has been an ongoing issue for as long as comedy has been around. The notion that comedians are responsible for the reactions of others goes against the model of the genre. It’s impossible to predict how an audience member or listener will interpret or react to a joke, and in every case, someone is bound to be offended. "It's a very childish era," comedian Bill Burr noted on his podcast in July 2013. "If I did a joke about chopping a guy's hand off, you're telling me that there are people in the crowd who, when they hear that joke, are going to head off and do it?"
Often, comedians will push the limits of what is "acceptable,” just to circumvent expectations. The comedian's role is to observe and reflect on everyday situations, and to twist them or reveal their absurdities in a comedic and entertaining way. Comedy as an art form exposes the underlying thoughts of a society. To look back on the material of past comedians is to reflect on human history. Of course, there are times when comedians’ jokes fall flat, but even in those cases, the intention of the comedian trumps the interpretation of the audience. If a joke doesn't get a laugh, that doesn't mean it's suddenly not a joke, but that the comedian needs new material. Comedy at its finest—the George Carlins, the Jerry Seinfelds, the Louis CKs—presents society without any makeup. Great jokes will always target and comment on societ y’s biggest issues. Even comedy at its dumbest, at its raunchiest, is a laugh. Comedy is an escape from the daily grind of life, and to confuse that escape with reality is simply ridiculous. When the irony is removed from the situation, the presentation, the delivery, and the comedian, all you are left with is a statement. Statements can be offensive, hurtful, racist, sexist. Jokes aren't immune to this, but to hold them to the same standard is laughable. Graphic by Thom Bell.
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