The Concordian - March 1st, 2016

Concordia University’s weekly, independent student newspaper

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VOLUME 33, ISSUE 21 | TUESDAY, MARCH 1, 2016

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The fresh face of the Quebec Green Party Alex Tyrrell is leading the party to be more inclusive, feminist, and youth-led

News p. 3 also in this issue

life

arts

music

sports

opinions

Parties vs. peace Nuit Blanche takes Osheaga’s 2016 Drive of a ConU Drag queens and in the Plateau p. 6 Montreal p. 8-9 lineup highlights p. 11 champion p. 13 feminism p. 15

news

NEWS EDITORS /// news@theconcordian.com GREGORY TODARO (! @GCTodaro) & LAURA MARCHAND (! @Marchand_L)

CITY IN BRIEF

BY LAURA MARCHAND CO-NEWS EDITOR

Olympic authority invests “few million dollars” in tower The Régie des installations olympiques (RIO) has suggested new measures to bring the Olympic Tower into the 21st century—and it could include projections, speaker-voiced narration and more. The funicular, which takes passengers to the top of the tower, would be updated to the tune of “a few million dollars” according to CBC News. The funicular was built for the 1976 Olympic Games, but was not completed until much later, in 1987. The project would follow in the footsteps of similar initiatives, such as the EdgeWalk attraction at Toronto’s CN Tower. It was also reported that the project would likely double the amount of visitors to the structure, which was only paid off in 2006.

Montreal’s NDP association drops Mulcair Thomas Mulcair, Leader of the New Democratic Party, is up for a leadership review, and the fists are already flying: the leader of the NDP’s Montreal riding association, Alain Charbonneau, said he has no plans to support Mulcair at the convention in April. Speaking to CBC Montreal’s Daybreak, Charbonneau is quoted as saying the loss was “devastating” to the party, who was relegated to third-party status last October.

The 2015 election was the closest the party ever came to forming government.

Ubisoft warns against hostile French takeover The video game juggernaut Ubisoft is sounding the alarm over its place in Canada, reported The Globe and Mail. The studio behind such franchises as Assassin’s Creed, Prince of Persia and Tom Clancy warns that if the French company Vivendi SA succeeds in a hostile takeover of the company, the future of the Quebec-based branches is not guaranteed.

Currently, Ubisoft employs over 3,000 people in Montreal and reported over $2.1 billion in revenue in 2014. The Montreal studio was recently visited by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Feb. 25, who tried the company’s first venture into virtual reality.

FINANCE

Ontario reshuffles grant program

Changes cover students from province’s low-income households

BY LAURA MARCHAND CO-NEWS EDITOR It almost sounds too good to be true.

Ontario’s provincial government announced, alongside their new budget, a restructuring to the province’s university grant system.

By scraping existing tax credits, grants, and rebates, the government hopes to make tuition free for low-income students.

The new Ontario Student Grant (OSG) is planned as a streamlined system that will reward the average cost of tuition to 90 per cent of Ontario students from low-income families. A low-income family is defined as one that makes less than $50,000 a year.

University students from middle-income families—defined as a combined family income of less than $83,000 a year—will also be eligible to apply, with at least 50 per cent of them being granted, the government estimates.

Whether the student lives at home and other factors will affect the amount the student is given.

In addition to tuition, the National Post claims that the amount would theoretically be enough “to cover books, schools’ ancillary fees and some of their living costs.”

While Concordia University refused to comment on the effect this might potentially have on student enrollment from Ontario, Clea

Desjardins, a spokesperson for the university was able to confirm that 9.2 per cent of Concordia’s for-credit students were from out of province.

That figure translates to 4,052 students throughout the university.

The Concordia Student Union’s General Coordinator, Terry Wilkings, praised the initiative. “The CSU supports making higher education more accessible, financially and otherwise,” said Wilkings. “Until the logistics have been polished I personally remain cautiously optimistic about the announcement in Ontario.”

However, Wilkings also warned

against the possible effects it could have in other areas of education. “It could very well be a Trojan horse to further deregulate certain programs, like Quebec has done with international students.”

The initiative comes into effect in Fall 2017, leaving some existing students wondering if any relief is coming for them.

“I really want to see what they’re going to do about student debt that already exists,” said Alicia Chan, a Concordia student from Ontario who took out provincial and federal loans to pay for her education. “I

think it’s an important step in the right direction, but we’re still a long way from making post-secondary education accessible to everyone.”

When asked if the grants would have changed her mind about coming to Concordia, Chan says she doubts it would have made a difference. “I actually applied to Concordia on a whim because I fell in love with Montreal,” said Chan. “I think i would have ended up at Concordia anyway.”

Infographic by Laura Marchand with data from Statistics Canada and the Canadian University Survey Consortium.

The cost of education $7,868

$5,305

$2,799 QUEBEC

BRITISH COLUMBIA $26,819

The average student debt

Half of all students graduate with debt used to fund their education

ONTARIO

plus cred deb it card Ave t rage : $

2,22 4

40% of graduates say debt factors into whether they will pursue more education

CAMPUS

Bumpy road expected for BDS

String of defeats bring future of movement into question

BY LAURA MARCHAND CO-NEWS EDITOR Suffice it to say, it hasn’t been a g o o d we e k fo r th e B DS movement.

BDS—which stands for “Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions”—calls for organizations to boycott the State of Israel and Israeli products, citing the alleged abuses and exploitation of the Palestinian people. Concordia University was dragged into the battle of BDS in the fall of 2014, splitting the student population along ideological lines. After delays and postponements, ultimately the undergraduate student population narrowly passed the motion, the “Yes” camp winning by a mere 209 votes.

It hasn’t been smooth sailing since then. Concordia University

president Alan Shepard immediately condemned the vote on behalf of the university, writing that “a boycott barring us from contact with other universities and scholars would be contrary to the value of academic freedom that is a pillar of Concordia and of universities all over the world.”

Then, last November, student organizations on campus held the first Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Week—five days of events marking a year since Concordia’s student body passed the BDS motion. The week was marred by controversy for leaving some feeling alienated or attacked.

Now, the movement has suffered yet another blow: the Students’ Society of McGill University defeated a motion to support BDS by refusing to ratify the motion. It failed with 57

per cent of the votes going “No.” In a Facebook statement, the group Concordians United Against BDS praised McGill’s student body.

“Proud of ‘Vote No McGill’ and the entire McGill community for taking action against injustice on their campus,” it read. “This is a win for all of us.”

Then, on Feb. 22, Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government voted to support a motion brought forward by the Conservative Party, condemning BDS movements across the country. The motion claims that BDS “promotes the demonization and delegitimization of the State of Israel” and denounces “any and all attempts

by Canadian organizations, groups or individuals to promote the BDS movement, both here at home and abroad.” CBC News quoted one unnamed Conservative MP as

claiming that BDS was “the new anti-Semitism.”

Te r r y W i l k i n g s , G e n e r a l Coordinator for the Concordia Student Union (CSU), says this won’t affect the CSU’s involvement with BDS going forward.

“Our position as an organization rests on the urgent need to profoundly re-evaluate the mechanics of inequality both at home and abroad,” said Wilkings.

“A Conservative motion supported by the Trudeau government will not deter the CSU from raising valid questions about the illegal settlement activity and human rights violations being implemented

by Israel’s ruling party.”

Wilkings said that the CSU will continue to address the progressive issues of its electorate, including climate change, corporate welfare, and BDS.

MARCH 1, 2016

COVER STORY

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N AT I O N I N B R I E F

Alex Tyrrell on leading the Quebec Green Party while studying at Concordia Transforming the party into a feminist eco-socialist party and using homework to change the province CHANGING THE PARTY The province’s youngest party leader has completely refocused the Green’s ideology during his three years at the helm.

BY SAVANNA CRAIG ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Liberals dish out $3.5 million on advertising The Liberal government has spent $3.5 million in advertising since they came into power. In their first 100 days in office, six departments purchased government ads, according to CBC News. The Liberals promised to assign an advertising commissioner to super vise gover nment adver tising alongside the auditor general. The highest paid advertisements were for Veterans Affairs Canada, totaling about $2.26 million on advertising. National defence spent approximately $454,000 on a campaign targeted at millennials promoting the Canadian armed forces.

B.C. family fights to keep adopted daughter

BY SAVANNA CRAIG NEWS ASSISTANT EDITOR (! @savannacraig)

W

hile politicians typically spend their workdays in government offices or press conferences, the leader of the Quebec Green Party can be found attending classes at Concordia University.

Alex Tyrrell, at age 25 is curreAlex Tyrrell, at age 25 is currently the youngest leader in Quebec politic s, and was elected to leadership on Sept. 21, 2013. He began his studies at Concordia University as a part-time student in environmental science in 2011, and is planning to graduate next year.

Tyrrell described balancing being a student and the leader of the Quebec Green Party as being a unique challenge. “Not that many people have the opportunity to be in my position,” Tyrrell said. “It’s a really fun experience.”

Some students have told Tyrell they are impressed he was voted into office, other students are more curious about the relevance of the green party and its platform.

“Those are questions I get a lot and the answer is that the green party can contribute things to the debate that are otherwise absent,” Tyrrell said.

Tyrrell’s first involvement with the Quebec Green Party began when he ran in the 2012 election.

Prior to this, Tyrrell was involved

with the federal New Democratic Party (NDP) before the Orange Wave, during the era of Jack Layton. “I decided to switch to provincial politics, because the NDP had kind of taken a turn for the right under the leadership of Thomas Mulcair,” Tyrrell said.

What led Tyrrell to the green party over others was the party’s values, which corresponds most to his. He faced the Quebec general election only five months after becoming the party leader.

“Within five months we were able to completely redefine the ideology of the party around eco-socialism and also start with almost a brand new set of candidates,” he said.

Along with the change to be an eco-socialist party, the Quebec Green Par t y has progressed in other ways. Tyrrell said the party has become a youth-led movement. He added, previously the party was male dominated, but now there are a lot more women involved. Tyrrell said that in the 2012 election, of all of the provincial party candidates, only 20 per cent were women, being the lowest percentage of all the parties said Tyrrell. “We’ve managed to change that—it’s now written in our constitution that it’s a feminist party.”

The female candidacy is now at 35 per cent, but Tyrrell said the party wants to further strengthen female involvement. “We’re actually hoping to present a team of candidates in the 2018 provincial election [with a] majority of women candidates, which has never been

done in Quebec or in Canadian politics at this point,” Tyrrell said.

Tyrrell said being younger than most politicians requires him to prove himself. Most people however are positive towards the young politician.

“People want to see youth in politics,” Tyrrell said. “They want our generation to start coming up and start taking power.”

Tyrrell touched on how his first-hand learning experiences and excursions while at Concordia have given him added perspective.

His excursions have included visiting various peatlands, which are wetlands that accumulate dead moss and plants over time. He also had the opportunity to meet with environmental groups that protect these wetlands “I’m able to learn things in school about the environment and then apply them directly to issues that are actually happening in Quebec,” Tyrrell said.

Tyrrell said he frequently discusses Quebec Green Party policy and what issues the party should address with classmates and professors. He added that while people are becoming more concerned with climate change, Concordia is a great environment to become in tune with new approaches and resolutions to environmental issues as there are many ways to become educated and involved in sustainability.

In terms of Concordia making changes to be more environmentally friendly, Tyrrell is a strong advocate for ending investment

in fossil fuels.

“If Concordia were to become the first university to completely divest from fossil fuels, it would say a lot about the direction that the institution is going in and would attract a lot of people who are interested in doing research in terms of the environment,” he said.

Along with sustainability, Tyrrell feels a change for the greater would be for the university to be primarily run by students and faculty. “We think that across Quebec, students and professors between them should hold the majority of seats on both the senate and board of governors rather than the system we have now where students and professors are marginalized while institutional and corporate representatives make up the majority of both the board of governors and the university’s senate,” he said.

After graduation, Tyrrell will be gearing up for the provincial election on Oct. 1, 2018. “I definitely very much like being the leader of the Quebec Green Party and would like to continue building on what we’ve started here for some time,” he said.

He hopes the party can have a full team of 125 candidates for the first time. “With the environmental problems getting worse and worse as time goes on, naturally people will tend to support parties that have a very aggressive environmental program,” Tyrrell said.

“For us, it’s about presenting [a sustainable platform] in the hopes that people will look to us and choose to support us.”

Parents are fighting to adopt a Métis toddler they have cared for since birth. The couple is awaiting the verdict of their case in the Court of Appeal to keep the toddler. The Children’s Ministry wants to move the two-year-old daughter to Ontario to move in with her older siblings, despite never having met them, according to CTV News. The current foster mother said, “They have absolutely zero respect for the child’s needs. They’re mad at us and they’ve made it clear.” The couple is pursuing an interim order to prohibit the Children’s Ministry from moving the child.

B.C. family fights to keep adopted daughter On Sunday afternoon a male lion escaped from his enclosure from a small private zoo in Wendover, Ontario. The zoo owner then shot and killed the animal at 5:30 p.m., just an hour after police were called, according to the Ottawa Sun. The African lion was found by police near the entryway of the zoo, which is not fenced in. Zoo owner Kerri Bayford posted on their Facebook page to address the situation. “The risk to the public of trying to sedate the lion was simply too high as the sedative takes too long to kick in and this would have put everyone at risk,” Bayford said. She commented that the escape was a result of human error and no members of the public were present during the shooting.

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MARCH 1, 2016

WORLD IN BRIEF

CAMPUS

BY LAURA MARCHAND CO-NEWS EDITOR

Chantal Hébert on Quebec and Canada

Nigeria fires 24,000 workers who aren’t real As part of an anti-corruption initiative started by President Muhammadu B uhar i , t h e country’s Finance Ministry has identified almost 24,000 workers on the countr y ’s payroll who do not appear to exist. The BBC reported that the audit identified the names of the recipient bank account holders—through biometric data and bank verification numbers— and often found they did not correspond to the names the government had, leaving some employees to cash in multiple paychecks. The country is now expected to save approximately US$11.5 million a year. Nigeria’s economy, the largest in Africa, is facing rising inflation and a stock market slump after the collapse in oil prices.

Charges to be laid in 2011 Fukushima disaster Three men have been charged with professional negligence related to the 2011 disaster that struck Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The Associated Press reports the chairman and two executives of the Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) have been indicted.

Following an earthquake and subsequent tsunami, the facility’s three nuclear reactors began to melt down, irradiating the surrounding area and leading to the evacuation of thousands of residents. Reports have said TEPCO ignored tsunami safety measures, going as far as to collude with regulators.

Tensions mount at Macedonian border Refugees have clashed with police at the Macedonian-Greek border, demanding entrance to the country, the BBC reported.

Using a makeshift battering ram, the migrants appeared to tear down the barbed-wire fence erected by the Macedonian government. Police responded by firing tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowd. According to the BBC, over 7,000 migrants are stalled on the Greek side of the border, as the Balkan country refuses to let in more than a set amount of refugees a day. Since the start of 2016, around 120,000 migrants have arrived to Europe by sea—more than 10 times the migrants compared to January and February of last year.

Thinking Out Loud talk looks at the post-election landscape

BY GREGORY TODARO CO-NEWS EDITOR The relationship between the federal government and Quebec’s provincial government changed yet again after the resounding win for the Liberal Party of Canada during last year’s federal election. According to Chantal Hébert, these changes are just the beginning.

Hébert, national affairs writer for the Toronto Star and political columnist, will be speaking about these changes during a talk called “The post-election landscape— can Quebec and Canada really get along?” at Concordia University’s D.B. Clarke Theatre on March 2.

The talk, which begins at 7 p.m., is part of the university’s ongoing Thinking Out Loud conversation series.

Over her 40 years working as a journalist, Hébert has noticed a shift in the focus of politics and how that shift has played out in the ongoing relationship between Quebec and the rest of Canada.

“When I started covering politics, domestic arrangements within the federation were top-of-mind issues,” she said. “It impacted the Quebec discussion because the feeling was that Quebec’s survival as a French language society in North America could

be improved with domestic arrangements,” she added.

“I would argue that 40 years later the issues that are top-of-mind play out on such a global stage [that] the domestic arrangements … have taken s econd place to climate change, the so-called war on terror, the global economic issues,” Hébert said.

Hébert also plans on discussing the shift in the Quebec-Canada Toronto Star national affairs writer Chantal Hébert. relationship after the Liberal Party of Canada’s victory in October 2015. Harper. It’s a lot harder to look “ You can craf t a scenario “In the past, the provincial good or have the lead on so many where some action from the liberals in power and the federal issues when Justin Trudeau is federal government ... would liberals in power at the same the Prime Minister.” be so egregious to give liberal time has not resulted in great One example Hébert gave opponents in Quebec provincially h a r m o n y b e t w e e n Q u e b e c is how the provincial govern- a reason to strike back at the and Canada,” she said. “I find ment would “shine” at climate provincial liberals,” she said. “If a it really interesting to see how conferences compared to the similar decision was taken by the the arrival of a younger prime conservatives, but now Trudeau Harper government, it wouldn’t minister with a different team has become Canada’s “star” in reflect on the provincial liberals.” on Parliament Hill has brought that area.

Hébert hopes for a dialogue about new challenges for Philippe Héber t also believes that during the talk on March 2 with Couillard in the sense that it having liberals in power both in attendees. was easy to look good when Quebec and at the federal level “I’m really mostly trying to the government was disliked in has put the provincial liberals have an interesting discussion,” Quebec and headed by Stephen under more pressure. she said.

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Calling all cool cats!

Montreal might be a frozen wasteland, but that won’t stop us from planning for warm spring days and hotter summer nights.

This year’s editorial team has—and continues to be—stellar, but what can we say? Gotta graduate sometime. And that means

all of The Concordian’s editorial positions will be up for grabs soon!

So pull out those dusty typewriters, polish up on your photography experience, wax your mustaches into pleasing curls, and replace the batteries in your recorders. It’s street-hitting, question-asking, answerdemanding, corruption-uncovering, politics-following time. We need a team to follow school politics, clear a path through Montreal’s nightlife scene, brave smelly locker rooms to interview star-athletes, tackle modern human rights issues, and identify the best damn slice of pizza in the city.

Want to blog about LGBTQIA+ communities in the city?

Have an itch to cover everything underground and musical pumping through Montreal’s speakers? Want an outlet to vent about modern racism? Are you an uncanny newshound just waiting to be unleashed on university politics?

send your application to

applications@theconcordian.com with your CV, résumé, and three writing samples (500 words max each) attached.

Or drop by a Friday meeting for more information.

All prefered-pronouns, religions, non-conformers, races, ages and identities welcome.

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life

LIFE EDITOR /// life@theconcordian.com CRISTINA SANZA (! @Cristina_Sanza)

CITY

Late-night partiers vs. long-time residents

The Plateau-Mont-Royal is Montreal’s most densely populated borough, known for its narrow tree-lined streets and colourful staircases. Photos by Kelsey Litwin.

Is there room for both fun and quiet in Montreal’s Plateau-Mont-Royal?

BY DANIEL SUCAR CONTRIBUTOR Amid the commemorative monuments and frozen ponds of the desolate La Fontaine Park, Plateau-Mont-Royal locals provided insight on the rising tension between new and long-time borough residents.

Known for its bohemian vitality and distinct architectural style, the Plateau-MontRoyal is a hub for Montreal’s thriving arts and entertainment scene. In recent years, the borough evolved from a predominantly working class neighbourhood to a district dominated by upscale restaurants and trendy nightclubs, according to Anita Lavallée, a retired professor who has dwelled in the Plateau for nearly 20 years.

“The Plateau is being taken over by rich, young individuals,” she said. “There is an imbalance among the poorer, veteran residents and the new, bourgeois residents.”

However, according to Lavallée, the very elements that define the PlateauMont-Royal will also be its downfall, as the borough’s trendiness represents a source of appeal for young individuals bent on changing the area.

“It’s a whole new city,” said Lavallée.

“Artists and students bring something to the table, but they’re tossing us all aside and making it unbearable for us to live here.

Thanks to them, [Mont-Royal] street has been reinvented. Old stores have been shut down, upscale clubs have become popular and noise has been as disruptive as ever.”

Noise issues occupy a primary concern for older residents of the Plateau-Mont-Royal.

Recently, long-time borough inhabitants expressed displeasure concerning the bombardment of noise emanating from bars, restaurants, clubs, live music venues and other locations serving predominantly younger residents.

At the monthly council meeting in February, concerned citizen Lucie Ruelland called for the implementation of stricter noise regulation by presenting a petition comprised of 141 signatures to borough Mayor Luc Ferrandez.

“We want swift measures to be taken to give us back our rights as borough residents,” said Ruelland while handing the petition to Ferrandez. “We want tranquility, quietude, security and respect of private property.”

Last year, the noise issue came to a head in a standoff between older locals and the Divan Orange, a live music venue dedicated to the support of the underground scene that is managed by young Plateau residents. In a span of two months, the residents living above the venue issued 85 telephone calls to the police, resulting in a total fine of $18,000 for the Divan Orange.

“The establishment was almost forced to shut down,” said 27-year-old Simon Lévesque, who works at the Divan Orange and resides in the Plateau-Mont-Royal.

“The venue was in serious danger.”

The live venue endured nearly eight months of complaints and police intervention before eventually paying the frustrated resident $10,000 to relocate.

The Divan Orange is still contesting the hefty fines.

“Countless places in the Plateau have also experienced complaints from residents,” commented Lévesque. “Why would you choose to live in a neighbourhood that’s renowned for its noise and busy nightlife?

What do you expect?”

“This isn’t youth in revolt, this is older residents being unable to accept that the borough is changing,” said 20-year-old Stephanie Sullivan, a student who is considering moving to the Plateau-Mont-Royal. “Above all, this is gentrification.”

Sullivan said the arrival of younger residents should not be met with hostility, rather, gentrification should be celebrated for its beneficial rejuvenation of the borough. According to Sullivan, through the renovations commissioned by new, young residents, the upkeep of Plateau-Mont-Royal can be maintained.

“I feel attacked by older residents when I come to the Plateau,” said Sullivan.

“If older individuals choose to live near downtown Montreal, that’s their problem.

They shouldn’t take their annoyance out on the youth through petty complaints.”

While accusations of uptight conservatism and denunciations of disruptive rowdiness run amok in the Plateau-Mont-Royal, some

residents predict a harmonious future for the trendy borough.

“New and old Plateau residents all have one thing in common; they love the area,” said 53-year-old François Berthiaume, a barista at local coffeehouse Dudley & Dudley. “That’s why they live here. While the neighbourhood has become flooded with young students, long-time residents and new residents will live peacefully out of a sheer appreciation of the area.”

MARCH 1, 2016

theconcordian

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GAMING

Venture through the Wyoming wilderness

Firewatch is an indie game that takes adventure and dialogue to the next level

BY SIMON NEW CONTRIBUTOR Firewatch, a game that is essentially a hiking simulator, will go down as one of the most engaging experiences in gaming this year.

Set in the summer of 1989 in the Wyoming wilderness, the player controls Henry, a newly hired forest fire lookout who takes the job as a means of escape from his life back home.

The game plays in first-person, with Henry assigned to menial tasks around the forest, using a compass to get around as well as a map that he scribbles notes on as the game progresses.

Henry’s only source of human contact is with another ranger, Delilah, via a walkie-talkie. The player can choose responses to his invisible comrade. As Henry receives missions through the static, he and Delilah cultivate a friendship through what is Firewatch’s biggest strength, its dialogue.

Immersive is a word that gets tossed around all too often in gaming, but playing through this game, my whole conscience went into choosing what to say next. The game lets you comment on set pieces and

various objects in the world, to elicit a radio response from Delilah in a neighbouring watchtower. I found myself calling out every rock and twig to hear the two main characters converse in what turned into some hilarious moments, some dramatic interludes and some surprisingly profound banter.

The main story is short. If you’re like me, you will finish it in an afternoon, not once wanting to put the controller down because the game is near-perfectly paced. Every time I got an instruction to check out a gang of campers on the other side of the forest, for example, I never got bored on the way to my destination. During the trek, I was either enjoying the characters chit-chat or getting alerts about scary things happening in the Wyoming forest.

Without spoiling anything, the way the game blends serene with extreme makes for a plot that varies in mood. For instance, after running for my life, I was content to relax in the forest twilight. The landscapes are gorgeous as well, with an almost cel-shaded look. The mood of the scene changes with the vibrant colour palette. The sound design is poignant as well, with every crunch of a leaf or bounce of a rock putting you deeper

and deeper into Henry’s shoes. Although the game isn’t doing anything graphically or sonically intricate, the game itself is still captivating.

This game is an adventure for the average Joe. Amidst AAA blockbuster action titles, Firewatch excels with not much more than relatable, nuanced characters and engaging dialogue, making more of an impact through its commentary on trust and relationships than its point-and-click gameplay. The game gains speed at the perfect pace and the story is a hell of a ride.

The game ends rather abruptly, which will leave some players disappointed, but in avoidance of spoilers, the ending does its job of answering the questions that need to be answered. If you’re looking for a gripping ‘choose your own adventure’ story disguised as a videogame, check out Firewatch. " Firewatch is available on Windows, Mac, Linux and PS4.

Illustration by Thom Bell.

TECHNOLOGY

How has your cell phone use affected you?

A recent event highlighted how technology has hindered and helped our relationships

BY KRYSTINA SCENNA STAFF WRITER It’s inevitable that technology plays an integral and consequential role in our daily lives. It’s also inevitable that nearly every young adult who owns a digital device has and is experiencing a love/ hate relationship with it.

Tieja Thomas is a researcher and educator who did her doctoral research on how socio-political phenomena such as hate, violence and oppression unfold in online environments. During a talk orga-

nized by Concordia’s Office of Community Engagement at La Petite Cuillère on Thursday, she admitted to her unhealthy dependency on technology.

“I’m not entirely comfortable with this dependency I have on technology. I worry about how screens affect my sleep, how social media affects my relationships and how an inundation of information affects my attention span,” said Thomas.

For Thomas, impatience is the unfortunate side effect of owning and constantly using technological devices.

“I have a tendency to think that all

technology should just work,” said Thomas.

“That every screen is a touch screen and there should be no lag time.”

Some audience members argued that technology enables us to be patient at times when we have to wait in a long line or a waiting room. In instances like these, digital devices act as pacifiers. They calm us down from the anxiety and uneasiness we get from staring at a wall, or even other human beings. They bring us into another more individualistic, highly customized world.

“Technology has supported, in very real ways, some of my most fulfilling

relationships,” said Thomas. “I receive pictures of my nieces almost daily via text, WhatsApp, email, or audio video clips and Skype calls. It’s so exciting to see them grow even though I’m very far from them.”

Thomas also met her partner on an online dating site and wonders if they would have ever crossed paths in a different era where dating technology was not at their fingertips.

In contrast, the talk also highlighted how this dependency on technology has had a negative impact on keeping deep, real-life relationships.

According to research conducted by Thomas, people nowadays say they have two real friends whereas 15 years ago people said they had four real friends. The plethora of information we consume on our devices has been said to negatively impact our real life exchanges as it has made us more distracted than ever.

Additionally, online platforms (such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube) that have become so embedded in our social lives they have facilitated the creation of many online communities. Many have sparked social movements discussing important and timely socio-political issues. However, Thomas is concerned with whether online movements are actually making a difference. “Social media can facilitate this armchair activism, ‘click-tivism’,” she said. “If someone posts something about a social injustice and you like it, is that doing enough?”

Whether the effects of digital technology are beneficial or detrimental to users, it’s undeniable that digital devices have had a significant impact in our non-virtual lives.

Graphic by Florence Yee.

arts

ARTS EDITORS /// arts@theconcordian.com LYDIA ANDERSON (! @LydiaAndersonn) & ELIJAH BUKREEV (! @ElijahBukreev)

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Place des Arts

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UQÀM

In a perfect contrast, the events organized around UQÀM were quiet, attracting only those who preferred a peaceful, reflective and ultimately more artsy and academic atmosphere to the loud spectacle of Place des Arts. The ever-present smell of wood fires was not from children roasting marshmallows but young people trying to keep warm while caught up in conversation. Grave, ominous music played over kaleidoscopic images projected onto a church while streaks of light connected trees, as if representing some energy running between them. It was an opportunity to experience the architecture of the place in a new way; an exhibition devoted to Montreal architecture, presented inside, was a perfect addition to the event. In keeping with its academic tone and setting, the area offered activities that put personal expression and political debate to the forefront in an artistically daring way. Most striking was the hanging of messages of hope locked in miniature bottles, to be read only in case of “doubt.”

— Elijah Bukreev

It’s safe to say the place was absolutely unrecognizable.

One surfaces out of the metro and finds themselves in the middle of an attraction park straight out of Shenzhen, the featured international city of the night. It took a few minutes to adjust to the plethora of lights, smells and sights all around the main streets of Place des Arts.

Huge crowds, people flying on a zip-line right above your head, others zipping by your side on a giant slide.

Snowflakes turning red, blue or green from the amount of lights flashing from above. Smells of cotton candy, poutine, maple syrup and marshmallows burning over a fire all merging into one intoxicatingly sweet aroma.

Such were the pleasures of Nuit Blanche in the arts district of the city. A towering ferris wheel stood in the centre of it all, giving people a chance to look down at all the madness occurring below. How spectacular that organizers would succeed at effectively supplanting one city with another—looking at pictures of Shenzhen exhibited outside, you’d swear you were there. Chinese culture was present mostly in the form of Mr. Monopoly-like Confucius figures, but it was the transformation of Place des Arts that left the biggest impression.

— Elijah Bukreev

The Phi Centre

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Hidden away in the historic district was one of the most popular parties of the night, a multidisciplinary celebration of art known as La Nuit Tribe. All with the psychedelic music of acclaimed DJs blasting in its pleasantly foggy interiors, the Centre treated visitors to the work of MissMe, as well as to a whole new programming for its Virtual Reality Garden.

MissMe, a masked Montreal-based street artist, was on site to create a collage from images she had made with a view to challenge typical representation of the female body. Her message resonated with the public, as the room gradually filled up to watch her cover the walls of the upper-floor exhibition room with her designs. The new works of virtual reality unveiled at Nuit Blanche confirmed that, apart from its potential for news media and storytelling, the medium can be experimented with to create unique works of contemporary art. These 360-degree pieces, which use urban overtones that align nicely with MissMe’s style, must be experienced to understand why virtual reality might soon become a vital part of our artistic landscape.

— Elijah Bukreev

MARCH 1, 2016

theconcordian

EVENT

Musée d’art contemporain The familiar, lofty foyer of the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal was soaked in lustrous red light beams as people excited their creativity with the crayons, paint and paper provided. Along with art workshops, visitors were able to peruse longstanding exhibitions L’Œil et l’Esprit and New Discoveries and Other Obsessions. The show-stealer under the MAC’s roof, however, was the work of Icelandic artist Ragnar Kjartansson.

Marking his first major show in Canada, Kjartansson has laid siege to the MAC and claimed victory with his three video installations, The Visitors (2012), A Lot of Sorrow (2013-2014) and World Light – The Life and Death of an Artist (2015). The Visitors, the most enchanting, is a nine-channel projection showing Kjartansson and his friends performing the same song, with various instruments and vocals, from different rooms of an old house in upstate New York. For nearly an hour the group—apart but connected by headphones—performed simultaneously while being filmed. They were divided in space but connected by music, in the end producing a hypnotic melody that echoes throughout the MAC’s chamber of beautiful videos. It’s a breathtaking combination of resplendent music, immersive art and cinematography. The MAC was the first stop of many on a promising Nuit Blanche, but despite all that was waiting, the room, so filled with evident passion and incredible harmonies and imagery, was nearly too alluring to leave.

— Lydia Anderson

Nuit Blanche in MTL

Here’s a quick look at some of the night’s most memorable shows, parties and exhibitions

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PHOTOS: MARIE-PIERRE SAVARD (1, 2, 5), PHI CENTRE (3), ELISABET DAVIDS (5), PIERRE A. LEPETIT (6)

You know a good show is beginning when the banality of a woman checking the microphone turns into the sensual performance of a powerful climax.

Espace Scuderi opened two months ago in the Gay Village and, having already seen great success with their recent erotic art exposition, the intimate space hosted a modern burlesque show for Nuit Blanche.

Performances were dramatic, theatrical, amusing, intimate or abstract and interludes were filled with sexy comedic relief. Nudity, eroticism and sensuality were expressed in both a playful, entertaining way and as beautiful tools of expression. The room resonated with the hooting sounds of an engaged audience and was filled with a high, frisky energy. The performers were in conversation with their audience and the small space facilitated the more personal experience.

The audience members were even offered to participate in the last segment of the show. Those who chose to participate gathered in the front with the performers, closed their eyes and followed an instructive voice. What started as focus on breathing gradually turned into the respectful but erotic exploration of adjacent bodies with closed eyes. “It’s a really open space,” said Nathan A. Scuderi, the founder. “That’s why it’s not called Galerie Scuderi, but Espace Scuderi.”

Having been open for only two months, it has proved its validity and potential as a venue. Whether it’s because of sexual frustration or not, Espace Scuderi will leave you wanting more.

— Lydia Anderson

Fresh Paint The Nuit Blanche festivities were particularly noteworthy this year for Fresh Paint—a volunteer-run project founded in 2011 with a focus on street art—as the evening marked the opening of their new gallery location on Ste. Catherine Street. “[Fresh Paint is] kind of the baby of the Under Pressure festival,” said Chani Caron Piché, the communications manager for Fresh Paint Gallery. “We wanted to bring street artists and graffiti writers out of the street and bring them in galleries to help them develop their art and their career.” Entering the bright location from the snowy exterior meant being greeted by the familiar sight of a red stripe and blue ribbon that marked the Pabst cans in many of the hands of Nuit Blanchers wandering around the room. Accompanied by a live DJ set, the evening featured four artists collaborating in a live-painting session to produce a large mural that sweeps across one of the gallery walls. Additionally, along with the offering of a new gallery exhibition that was full of politically-charged and unique works, guests were also invited to engage and collaborate by adding their creative touches to a painting at the front of the venue. The works featured in the gallery space have distinct, recognizable styles, emblematic of the graffiti and street art movements, especially as some of those stylistic signatures can be recognized on Montreal streets. That in itself gives the space an authentic and relatable essence.

— Lydia Anderson

Espace Scuderi

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music

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Quickspins

MUSIC EDITOR /// music@theconcordian.com SAMUEL PROVOST-WALKER

Get the playlist: http://spoti.fi/1oUYGzu

RECOMMENDATIONS

WOLFMOTHER

A beginner’s guide to space rock

Victorious (UMe, 2016)

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SPACE PIONEERS (1) Spiritualized (2) Brian Eno (3) Hawkwind

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BY CALVIN CASHEN ASSISTANT MUSIC EDITOR

with the rapid fire complexity of prog-rock, this cosmic soundscape wraps you in a space rock chokehold and rarely leaves any breathing room.

Space rock is a subgenre with tracings back to progressive and psychedelic rock, shoegaze, and alternative rock.

BRIAN ENO Other contemporary genres like stoner SPHERES LL APO O: ATMO metal and electronica have paved the road CKS DT AND SOUN RA for fusion genres. David Bowie famously (1983) dealt with space by integrating its otherworldly outline into his stage personas The great ambient master Brian Eno has and lyrical content. such an extensive back catalogue that he’s With no boundaries limiting its influ- capable of occupying any style with the ence, space rock has been natural skill of a virtuoso. reshaped in a seemingly His 1983 soundtrack (loosely With no boundendless amount of contexts. considered a concept record) aries limiting Apollo spares no expense in It has no particular structure its influence, delivering a trance inducing or rigid framework to speak space rock has e xper ience—tit anic yet of, meaning the genre’s been reshaped ethereal. The album is a fabric can break through in a seemingly soundtrack recorded for the the outermost reaches of feature length documentary sound and existence. In no endless amount For All Mankind. particular order, here’s a list of contexts.

Upon first listen, Eno’s of four grade A space rock work on the album has a efforts that have gone on to define and recontextualize the genre’s somewhat sedative effect, containing dark textures with a shapeless ambient aesthetic. infinite void of possibility.

The recurring themes of space are seated at the album’s forefront, and are made evident SHORTLIST through Eno’s devout need to warp sound.

Eno tinkered with the sonic foundations of HAWKWIND steel guitar and synthesizers to produce SPACE RITUAL the “floating” effects he desired. Many of (1973) the tracks feature backwards synth notes Marketed as “88 minutes of brain-dam- that were then layered with reverb and age” upon release, this major space rock finally merged together into an elongated effort is a two-disc live album replete with tone. Apollo perfectly taps into that smooth psychedelic guitar licks and a shameless electronic sound that composes space liking to science fiction. The album docu- rock’s plodding instrumentals. ments Hawkwind’s 1972 tour in support of Doremi Fasol Latido, which comprised of HUM intergalactic set pieces and plenty of rayT AN ASTRONAU ER EF PR D YOU’ gun stage lights. The songs are strikingly ) 95 (19 spacey but are distinguished by Hawkwind’s You’d Prefer An Astronaut is perhaps the natural prog-rock finesse. As a whole, the album creates a fully immersive auditory most underrated record that falls under the experience through the insertion of multiple vague space rock umbrella. By the early sounds. Gently weaving electronic synths ‘90s, space rock was readily categorized

as a fusion genre. Numerous British and American “shoegazers” experimented strenuously with the concurrent noisepop and metal movements to create a sound that’s as compelling as it is irregular. Hum is overtly space rock, utilizing euphoric feedback with droning reverb.

Hum established a unique form of space rock with this major label debut. Fantastic tracks like “Stars” and “Little Dipper” loom over the same space rock motifs—vast intergalactic settings with an obsession for enigmatic female beings. Oozing guitar leads thrust these concepts of space into heavenly elation.

SPIRITUALIZED NTLEMEN LADIES AND GE IN SPACE G IN AT O WE ARE FL (1997)

Drawing on the raucous art-rock of the Velvet Underground and drug-addled minimalism of Spacemen 3 (of which Spiritualized’s brainchild Jason Pierce was a member), Ladies And Gentlemen is a perilous expedition into love and existentialism; space merely acts as a backdrop. Enlisting the London Community Gospel and guest appearances from the Balanescu and Dr. John, this hour long epic details a lush gospel framework and pairs it with space rock’s sonic ideals. With the prevailing sound scope of Spacemen 3 still intact, Spiritualized fleshes out their signature neo-psychedelica with heart-shattering vocal performances and sequenced Elvis samples. This record is on an entirely different scale than any other space rock related work, and has experienced acclaim as a bona-fide masterpiece. Spiritualized elaborates not only on space rock but the contours of music entirely. By fusing his vast selection of influences with striking sonic composites, Pierce ends up fashioning something transcendent for virgin ears.

Ambition like that is as unmatchable as space rock itself.

For a band that has not even been around for two decades, Wolfmother feels vintage. It’s as if the band’s roots lie in the bedrock of rock itself and yet nothing about the group feels original. Their newest album, Victorious, never shakes the feeling that it is an amalgamation of great rock icons. These songs can best be summed up by listing their recipes; one track is two parts Jack White, one part Led Zeppelin with a pinch of Ozzy Osbourne while the next is three parts Deep Purple and one part Axl Rose with a zest of Franz Ferdinand. Victorious walks the fine line between genre love letter and stalker copycat. That’s not to say that the album isn’t good—just don’t be surprised if you get an overwhelming sense of déjà entendu whilst partaking. # Trial track: “Gypsy Caravan”

7/10

— Justinas Staskevicius

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE

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Painting With (Domino Records, 2016)

A complete 180 from the dizzying cacophony of Centipede Hz, Painting With is by all accounts too nondescript for its own good. Though Animal Collective double down on the sunny, gleeful pop that made their previous albums so infectiously appealing, the trio seem more content with playing with bright sounds than crafting compelling pop songs. Whereas opener “Floridada” strikes an ideal balance of colourful tones, never quite veering into self-parody, “Hocus Pocus” and “Summing the Wretch” feel more like tedious rhythmic exercises than pleasant psychedelic pop. Though never a chore, its Beach Boys influence shining through at every turn, Painting With is ultimately beset by its lack of ambition. Given that this incarnation of the band is capable of delivering an album like 2009’s unforgettable Merriweather Post Pavilion, one can’t help but be a bit underwhelmed. # Trial track: “Golden Gal”

6/10

— Samuel Provost-Walker

theconcordian

MARCH 1, 2016

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FESTIVAL

Bands and artists to catch at Osheaga ‘16 Cap off the summer in style with these stellar, must-see acts

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AVOID THIS VARIOUS ARTIST

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S

Star Wars Headspace (Hollywood, 2016)

Star Wars is impossible to avoid; even if you’ve been living under a rock these past few months, that rock has undoubtedly been rebranded with a nice Star Wars sticker by now. Headspace, the latest reminder by Disney, is an utterly baffling and thoroughly ill-conceived compilation straight from Hell. Assembling respected electronic artists like Flying Lotus, Bonobo and Rustie and handing them the keys to the Star Wars sound effects library, producer Rick Rubin and his lackeys phone in 15 tracks, many of which are genuinely unlistenable. There’s little to no effort made to blend the samples with their musical counterparts, rendering the whole thing all but pointless. Claude VonStroke’s “R2 Knows,” however, is already a top contender for worst song of 2016. Don’t let the names attached fool you; Star Wars Headspace is a futile exercise in brand synergy. # Trial track: “Bounty Hunters”

2/10

— Samuel Provost-Walker

AGORAPHOBIC

NOSEBLEED

Arc (Relapse Records, 2016)

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Though Agoraphobic Nosebleed’s genre of choice has always been grindcore, there’s something endearing about their stabs at sludge and doom metal. Arc, their latest EP, is a minute collection of Sabbathinspired guitar licks pushed through a set of Orange full stacks. Though Agoraphobic Nosebleed bring nothing that sludge metal pioneers like Melvins haven’t brought time and time again, Arc’s guilty pleasures lie in its southern rock twang; opener “Not a Daughter” resembles a collection of discarded Down riffs before settling into an effective, slow-churning groove. There’s also singer Katherine Katz, whose vocals are absolutely feral and dripping with anguish. In the end, it’s Arc’s modest thrills that help Agoraphobic Nosebleed mildly subvert expectations, its derivative nature finding some form of validation. # Trial track: “Not a Daughter”

6/10

— Samuel Provost-Walker

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CATCH THESE DYNAMIC ARTISTS THIS JULY

(1) Radiohead (2) Little Simz (3) Kurt Vile & The Violators (4) Skepta

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BY SAMUEL PROVOST-WALKER MUSIC EDITOR With every passing year, Montreal’s Osheaga Music and Arts Festival grows larger both in scale and in attendance with its programmers consistently enlisting some truly crowd-pleasing, multi-genre spanning acts.

This year is no different for the city’s biggest festival—this side of the esteemed Jazzfest of course; variety is Osheaga’s middle name. Though comparatively low in high profile hip-hop acts, this year’s lineup is nonetheless jam-packed with flavour, its headliners being nothing to scoff at.

As we anxiously wait for the final acts to be announced, here are a handful of acts we’re already hotly anticipating come July.

LITTLE SIMZ Hailing from North London, Simbi Ajikawo, better known as Little Simz, is as prolific as she is undeniably fiery. Since 2013, the British rapper has put out over seven releases, from mixtapes to EPs, each with their own distinct blend of U.K. hip hop and the electronica-driven atmosphere of mid ‘00s grime. Her unstoppable flow and unexpectedly visceral aggression on the mic has earned her accolades from some of the genre’s biggest names, including Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z and Dizzee Rascal, the latter even offering her some studio time. Though younger than most of her peers, Little Simz showcases an incredibly assured hold on her craft, her acclaimed full-length debut A Curious Tale of Trials + Persons playing up some of her greatest strengths. The album’s hit single “Dead Body” perfectly encapsulates her cold and calculated, gut punch delivery.

Given her already proven body of work as

well as her numerous show stopping radio show appearances, Little Simz is bound to blow the proverbial roof off this summer.

KURT VILE & THE VIOLATORS Having just played a sold-out Corona Theatre mere days ago, Kurt Vile and his band The Violators are already yearning to come back to our great city—not that we’re complaining. Though characterized by a laid-back, lackadaisical delivery and layers upon layers of reverberated psychedelic guitar tones, Vile’s oddball vocal delivery, engaging song structures and manic, livewire performances separate them from the pack.

“Freak Train,” a concert staple from his 2009 album Childish Prodigy, serves up a chaotic, freight train-like urgency and continues to bewilder newer audiences with its amusing and spontaneous barrage of fuzzy guitars.

The Pennsylvania-based singer/songwriter also has an impressively cohesive yet dynamic body of work under his belt, from the moody solitude of Smoke Ring for My Halo to the sunny uplift of Wakin on a Pretty Daze. As a late-summer treat, you couldn’t really ask for more.

TODD TERJE & THE OLSENS If the last few years in music have taught us anything, it’s that disco is here to stay. Though not as widespread and all-consuming as it was in the ‘70s, disco has found a new life in electronic music, specifically the throbbing stylings of ‘80s Italo disco pioneered by the likes of Giorgio Moroder. Though Norway’s Todd Terje owes much to Moroder’s signature pulsating loops and bright synths, his marriage of old trappings and new sensibilities is unquestionably modern and inviting.

Terje’s full-length debut, the incredibly well-received and aptly-titled It’s Album

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Time, created a huge splash, benefitting from the appearance of his 2012 summer hit “Inspector Norse.” Rather than play a DJ set and call it a day, Terje has enlisted a full live multi-instrumentalist band, complete with a conga player and percussionist. The energy is real and the results simply can’t be missed.

SKEPTA “Who’s Skepta?” For many Westerners, this was the question they asked themselves at the end of Kanye West’s 2015 BRIT Awards performance. While performing his new single “All Day” with a veritable cavalcade of rappers on-stage, West was heard shouting “Yo Skepta! Thank you” before bringing the song to a close. So who is Skepta? Only one of the U.K.’s biggest grime artists, his speedy, precise flow and imposing demeanor simply unmistakable. Though it’s taken him seemingly forever to break out of his home country, Skepta isn’t going anywhere; his 2015 single “Shutdown” proved to be a huge hit, gaining support from many North American artists.

With Drake recently signing to Skepta’s label and helping U.K. hip hop and grime cross over to the Western mainstream, it’s pretty likely we’ll be hearing about Skepta in the foreseeable future.

RADIOHEAD Let’s face it. If you’re going to Osheaga this year, you’re almost certainly going to catch Radiohead. You probably don’t need convincing. And if you do, know that they put on one of the best concerts around, with jam-packed, career-spanning setlists and genuinely awe-inspiring live mixing.

They also tend to have pretty great light shows. Just go. Go see them. Do it. Go. But most of all, enjoy.

sports

SPORTS EDITOR /// sports@theconcordian.com ALEXANDER COLE (! @a_cole39)

WOMEN’S HOCKEY

Stingers season ends against the Carabins A 3-0 loss to the Université de Montréal has eliminated Concordia from the playoffs

BY ALEXANDER COLE SPORTS EDITOR After almost defeating the Carabins in double overtime in game one of their best of three playoff series, the Stingers lost at home on Feb. 27 by a score of 3-0 which knocks them out of the playoffs and ends their season. “[The team] gave ever ything they could,” said assistant coach Mike McGrath.

“There’s a reason why the Carabins have won National championships the last couple of years. Our girls put up a fantastic effort and a great season so we’re very proud of them.”

For Stingers captain Erica Porter, the loss was an emotional one as it marked the end of her career at Concordia.

“I don’t know what my life is without hockey,” Porter said. “Without these girls it is going to be completely different. I honestly wish them the best of luck next year and I’m still going to try and be a part of the team.”

When asked on whether or not she would pursue professional hockey, Porter had a definitive answer.

“I honestly think that this was the end of my career,” Porter said. “I’m going to focus on school and getting the job that I want.”

The game did not start well for the Stingers, as just 73 seconds in, the Carabins offense put pressure on the Stingers which led to a broken play where Stingers goaltender Briar Bache was unable to freeze the puck. Carabins forward Alexandra Labelle was then able to find the loose puck under Bache’s pad and shovelled it in.

For the rest of the period, both teams exchanged shots on net but were unable to generate any big scoring chances. This changed near the end of the period when the Stingers were called for a penalty. With 27 seconds left in the period, Carabins forward Ariane Barker took a wrist shot that went blocker-side on Bache. After the first period, it was 2-0 in favour of the Carabins.

The second period went by quickly with neither team scoring. Carabins goaltender Marie-Pier Chabot was able to keep her team’s lead at two, and finished the game with 15 saves for the shutout.

To start the third period, the Carabins put the game away after Carabins forward Casandra Dupuis capitalized on a loose puck in front of the Stingers net which made the game 3-0 with little time left for the Stingers to come back.

The Stingers ran into penalty trouble at the end of the game and were unable to

The Stingers come together after being eliminated from the playoffs.

Photo by Marie-Pierre Savard.

generate any offense in order to make the comeback. When the final buzzer rang, it signalled the end of the Stingers season.

Coach Julie Chu decided to start Bache in nets during the playoffs over regular season starter Katherine Purchase.

For Bache, winning the net was a nice vote of confidence.

“It was a good feeling. It’s always good

to know that you have your team’s and your coaches’ confidence,” said Bache. “I have a year of eligibility left so I’m going to come back and we’ll all build on what we did this year.”

At the end of the game, the team came together at centre ice and saluted the crowd with their sticks in the air to commemorate the end of the season.

SARAH AND THE HABS

Should the Habs start to intentionally lose?

Finishing lower in the standings could give the Habs a better draft pick for next season

BY SARAH KOSSITS STAFF WRITER As the end of the NHL season approaches, there are three different scenarios that a team can find themselves in.

The first scenario is that a team is comfortably in a playoff spot and they will likely remain in one. The second scenario is that a team is guaranteed to not make the playoffs, so they just finish their season and hit the golf course. The third scenario, which is the one the Habs are in, is that a team currently sits outside of a playoff spot, but with a final push can finish in one.

Now, here is the question that Habs fans are asking: should we make that final push, or should we tank?

While I understand the temptation to try and get Auston Matthews, the 18-year-old who will likely go first in this year’s draft, I will lose so much respect for the franchise if that’s what they decide to do.

While there’s a plethora of problems with the Habs this season, I think they can be fixed by making some trades and changing the coach. The team would have to move some players that the fans likely don’t want them to move, but that’s what happens when an organization overpays certain players.

It reduces the cap space to work with and gives them few trade options.

According to the website General Fanager, the Habs will have a little over a million dollars to work with over the summer, which isn’t very much. Unless any big trades are made, we have absolutely no reason to tank for Matthews.

If the team doesn’t want to lose Carey Price when he becomes an unrestricted free agent in three years, then they’ll have to at least match Subban’s contract for him. If we tank for Matthews, we probably won’t even have the money to keep him around.

However, my real objection to tanking for a draft pick has nothing to do with money. It has to do with pride. In my hockey career, there have been some tournaments where, as a team, we collectively acknowledged that if we go out and lose on purpose the road to the cup will be easier for us.

Have we ever gone out and intentionally lost?

No. It’s just not something that you do. It’s embarrassing, and it’s obvious when a team is trying to lose.

In professional hockey, there are more things to consider. Fans will stop buying tickets if they know that they’ll be paying to watch their team lose. The Canadiens are known for being a team that the entire city can be proud of; they are a team of

underdogs who manage to do alright and get through adversity. By tanking, the team is essentially saying “we cannot get through this, and we need an 18-year-old to save us.”

If the Habs decide to make a final playoff push and fall short, I will still be proud. I will

have faith that the organization will make the right decisions to better the team over the summer because they don’t like losing.

If the Habs purposely tank, then we’re down a deeper hole than I thought we were.

Graphic by Charlotte Bracho.

MARCH 1, 2016

theconcordian

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PROFILE

Marilyse Roy-Viau: The drive of a champion A look at the fourth-year forward’s passion for the sport of basketball BOOKS AND BASKETS (1) Marilyse Roy-Viau has one year left of CIS eligibility.

(2) Roy-Viau has averaged 14 points per game this season.

Photos by Brianna Thicke.

BY CASEY DULSON STAFF WRITER

R o y -V i a u s a i d .

“Since that was my overall goal, that’s f you attend a Stingers women’s w hen I b e c ame basketball game, it would be hard to competitive.” miss fourth-year forward, Marilyse Despite her Roy-Viau. When she is on the court, tough demeanor she plays with an aggressive edge and o n t h e c o u r t , is always in the middle of the action. Last Roy-Viau’s of fseason, Roy-Viau was named as an RSEQ court personality all–star after leading the Réseau du sport is much different. étudiant du Québec in scoring.

“A lot of people Roy-Viau started playing basketball when that I’ve played she was in the third-grade after her gym against have said teacher taught her the rules of the game. that I was the “I was just playing outside by myself, m e a n e s t t h i n g shooting around when my gym teacher ever,” Roy-Viau happened to come outside and ask if I said. “Now that they wanted to play basketball,” Roy-Viau said. know me, they say “I knew my brother was on the team but I that I’m the sweetest had no idea that there was a team for girls.” thing ever.”

She admits that her favourite memory Over the last three seasons, the from this time was the adrenaline of running Stingers have lost a few talented players. back and forth on the court.

This includes two-time RSEQ MVP and Roy-Viau is studying leisure sciences at All-Canadian guard Kaylah Barrett who Concordia and is always trying to balance retired last year. Another key player was her school work and with point guard Ashley Clarke basketball. For Roy-Viau who graduated two years ago.

“We always school always comes first.

Both players still make regular “The workload in the appearances at Stingers games look forward to program is not as much as and they have both influenced going into their other programs,” Roy-Viau Roy-Viau’s game. gym and beating said. “But I organized myself “Both players were talented them because to have only three classes on the court and being able we know we per semester so that I can to play with them was fun,” can.” focus on my classes.”

Roy-Viau said. “We are actually MARILYSE ROY-VIAU Her favourite place to really good friends. It was fun do her school work is at to be around people that want the athletics complex at the to have fun and win.”

Loyola campus because This season, Roy-Viau is the women’s basketball team has its own third in RSEQ scoring and is currently study room. averaging 14 points per a game. She On the court, Roy-Viau is known across has scored 210 points in 15 games this the province as one of the most competi- season. tive players in the league. Her aggressive In April, the Stingers parted ways with style of play started during her days at coach Keith Pruden who led the team for Dawson College.

20 years. In July, the Stingers hired Tenicha “When you are in college, you all have the Gittens, which according to Roy-Viau, has same goal, which is to win a championship,” ignited more passion in the team.

I

“With Keith, we were just going with the flow and being relaxed,” Roy-Viau said.

“Now with coach Gittens, we are more explosive, energetic and passionate in practice and games.”

Gittens’ coaching style has transformed Roy-Viau into the the type of player she is today.

“I was just playing like I was comfortable,” said Roy-Viau. “[Gittens] pushed me out of my comfort zone which is a challenge even today when the season is almost over.”

For Roy-Viau, this season has been a journey.

“Personally it has been up and down and I need to be more consistent,” RoyViau said. “I’m pretty satisfied with this new beginning.”

Throughout her career, Roy-Viau has won many awards from being named to the CIS all-rookie team to being named an RSEQ all-star the last three years. For Roy-Viau, there are a couple of milestones missing.

“It’s just a bonus but I have not won an RSEQ championship so I’m never satisfied,” said Roy-Viau. “I just wanted to be a champion.”

And that means taking home a national

championship.

“I’ve won a lot of provincials, a lot of awards, a lot games however I have not won the biggest game yet,” Roy-Viau said.

In the first round of the playoffs this year, the Stingers will be playing the McGill Martlets, where Roy-Viau will get the chance to accomplish what she has yet to do. “[Beating] McGill on their home court would mean everything to me,” RoyViau said.

The Stingers have played the Martlets tight all season. The last time the two teams met at McGill, the Martlets won 72-70 in overtime.

“We always play good when we are at McGill, I don’t know why—maybe it’s the gym or the ambiance,” said Roy-Viau.

“We always look forward to going into their gym and beating them because we know we can.”

Roy-Viau has one more year left of CIS eligibility but she has not decided if she will turn pro or not. For her, it all depends on how healthy she can keep her body.

“Right now I’m playing in my fourth year and I’m 24 years-old. [Sometimes] I can barely walk after one game,” Roy-Viau said. “[However going pro] would be a dream.”

opinions OPINIONS EDITOR /// opinions@theconcordian.com DAVID EASEY

EDITORIAL

Police brutality is out of control in Montreal A Quebec court ruled on Friday ex-Mon- Occhietti for having an open bottle of beer are trying to serve and protect down with treal police officer Stéfanie Trudeau, in hand while letting friends into his studio those who are here to abuse and violate. better known as ‘Agent 728,’ is guilty in the Plateau, according to the Montreal The several cops who arrived as backup for an assault during an arrest she made Gazette. This lead to Occhietti’s friend, Serge to the scene wrote reports saying Lavoie in October 2012, according to the Lavoie, being arrested for obstruction. That was “heavily intoxicated” according to the Montreal Gazette. In January, a court ruled included Trudeau running after Lavoie as Montreal Gazette, which was later found that Toronto police Const. James Forcillo he fled back indoors, illegally entering to be unsupported by evidence. The judge was guilty of attempted murder after he shot 18-year-old Sammy Yatim nine times because Yatim was holding a knife while on an empty streetcar, according to the CBC News. In October of last year, The Concordian covered the sixth-annual vigil for the more than 60 people killed by Montreal police since 1987.

It’s easy for police brutality in Canada to be overlooked when compared to the shock and extreme nature of violence by police in the U.S., like the shooting of 12-year-old Tamir Rice in Cleveland for playing with a toy gun in 2014 or the shooting of seven-year-old Aiyana Jones during a raid in Detroit in 2010. Problems with Canada’s police brutality gets lost when compared to the towering issues coming out of the south, but violence playing out in our own Montrealers gather to mourn victims of police brutality at the Oct. 22, 2015 vigil for victims backyard is just as serious with of police killings. Photo by Gregory Todaro. life-and death consequences.

Turning back to Trudeau’s case, the atmosphere of police brutality becomes the apartment and dragging Lavoie back said Lavoie seems sober enough while his clear. This was an officer already known on out to the street in a choke-hold. A judge face was being crushed against a stairwell the Internet for liberally pepper-spraying later found these two arrests to be illegal. and while he was crying for help while protesters during the Spring 2012 student Now, when dealing with police brutality in a chokehold in the video of the arrest.

So here’s the question: why didn’t those protests. That is, dousing a male protester it is always important to remember that several officers, who arrived as backup, file in a chemical vomiting agent for protesting the few bad apples do not represent the the proposed increase in tuition fees. whole force. But in Montreal there seems honest reports on Trudeau’s use of force The incident in October 2012 started to be a sick atmosphere of cops protecting instead of reports lying about the victim off with Trudeau attempting to ticket Rudi cops, which is dragging the officers who being drunk?

Montrealers are well known for their willingness to protest what they deem unfair, and police brutality is no exception.

But municipal bylaw P-6 forces protesters to present their itinerary to police 24 hours before any protest. Not submitting an itinerary, or straying from that itinerary, can lead police to kettle and mass-arrest protesters and slap them with $600 tickets, according to Vice. However, the Montreal Gazette repor ted judges throwing a large amount of these tickets out because individual protestors were not found to be directly involved in the organization of the event in question. This clearly makes bylaw P-6 look like it’s just an intimidation tactic used by police to restrict protesters from voicing their discontentment about police brutality, alongside any other political issue going against the state.

Even at the Oct. 22, 2015 vigil for victims of police killings, The Concordian’s news editor Gregory Todaro saw police officers snickering amongst themselves as they looked out at the gathered crowd.

Police officers are here to serve and protect. Without them there would be violence, chaos and no rule of law. But the current system of police not policing their own is flawed and in desperate need of change. Police officers need to be reminded that their power comes from citizens agreeing to give them power. And right now, citizens aren’t being shown that their investment is paying off. Police officers need to straighten up right now—or we’re going to start calling for a much bigger change.

NATURE VS. NURTURE

Stubborn sexuality: born this way Exploring the multiple facets of sexual orientation and discussing the fluidity

BY BRIANNA BALLARD CONTRIBUTOR Can anyone really say they choose who they’re sexually attracted to?

For a long time, the LGBTQIA+ communities have been saying people have no control over sexual attraction. Many disagree, and say that sexuality is derived from being conditioned a certain way, and it’s a result of one’s upbringing.

But, according to scientific research

from Northwestern University, there could be a correlation between people’s sexual orientation and their biology, and now more than ever people are arguing that we are born with whatever sexual orientation we have.

As a bisexual woman, I can say that I never had a choice.

Science aside, it doesn’t take much to realize that attraction is not a voluntary, conscious decision. Remember your first crush? Chances are your heart beat faster, your cheeks flushed, and nerves took over every time you tried

to talk to them. Like anyone, you probably wished these incriminating symptoms would vanish into thin air, but you had no control over it, right?

Attraction isn’t a switch that you can turn on and off. And for a lot of people, this means they experience sexual or romantic feelings towards the same sex, opposite sex, for all sexes or no sexes, regardless of whether they actually want to or not.

Arguably, it can be a lot easier to be straight. Heterosexual people aren’t expected to come out, they don’t have to justify their sexuality, and they don’t face the danger that some people face when they are openly gay. Like a lot of people, I had difficulty coming to terms with being attracted to the same sex, and sometimes, I wish I had a choice—but I don’t, and I never will.

An article published by The Telegraph highlighted some of the aspects of the research done at Northwestern University.

The results revealed that we cannot choose our sexual orientation and suggested that

genetics perhaps play a partial role in sexual orientation—although the scientists could not concretely confirm this.

Furthermore, trying to stop someone from being gay through certain therapies doesn’t actually work. According to a report from the American Psychological Association, gay conversion therapy is completely ineffective, and in reality it can be extremely harmful. It’s not possible to change someone’s sexuality from homosexual to heterosexual through conditioning and therapy.

However, although scientific proof speaks volumes, we shouldn’t need it. Is being gay so horrible that we have no other way to justify it other than “we were born this way?” Truth be told, if I did have a choice, I wouldn’t choose to be straight. I feel that my sexuality has been a fundamental part of my life. Sexual attraction is something that happens without a conscious decision, and this is not only an opinion anymore—it’s becoming fact.

Graphic by Florence Yee.

MARCH 1, 2016

theconcordian

15

SUBCULTURE

Please don’t hate on my queens

Exploring the topic of drag queens and modern feminism

BY MARCO SAVERIANO STAFF WRITER Ever since the art of drag broke into the mainstream, there has been scrutiny. As an art form that was always on the fringe of society, not everybody understands what drag queens represent, but that hasn’t stopped society from passing judgment.

I consider myself to be an avid drag enthusiast, and it shocked me recently when a friend implied that drag queens were anti-feminist. This isn’t the first time I’ve heard these kind of accusations, and it leaves me wondering if the people passing these judgments have ever actually encountered a drag queen.

Drag performers have always been strong advocates for equal rights. Back in the 1960s, drag queens and trans activists were at the forefront of the Stonewall riots that changed the face of the gay rights movement. For those who don’t know, the Stonewall riots were a series of demonstrations held by members of the LGBTQ communities in New York following a violent police raid at the Stonewall Inn; after years of being discriminated against, beaten, and arrested simply for being gay or trans, the community finally fought back and changed history as we know it. They fought for the rights of not only the LGBTQ communities, but for every oppressed group, because they too understood the pain of oppression.

Some drag performers may indulge in female stereotypes at times, but drag queens have also celebrated strong-willed women.

Icons like Cher and Madonna remain drag favourites because they represent powerful female energy; they dared to be different and rose to the top in a male-dominated

world. Drag queens are inspired by feminist figures, but then people have the audacity to call them anti-feminist.

It’s not about men using their gender privilege to capitalize on femininity; it’s about people—men, women, and those who don’t conform to either—expressing themselves through their art. It’s about performance, and being able to take on a character that allows you to let go of reality.

For some people, that involves putting on a wig, breasts, and makeup and being the strong woman they need to give them the confidence they lack in their everyday life.

Throughout history, our fragile idea of masculinity has always been restrictive in terms of how men express themselves creatively. Even in 2016, not everyone is comfortable with a man embracing a more traditionally feminine style. Drag is just an outlet for performers to break down those barriers and explore another side of themselves.

With all that said, it’s worth mentioning that this whole argument stems from a very narrow-minded, mainstream idea of what drag is in the first place. To the average consumer, a drag queen is a larger-thanlife personality in an extravagant, sequined outfit, clownish makeup, and a crazy wig, who makes crass jokes and lip syncs pop songs. And while that is a perfectly respectable form of drag, it is not the only kind. When a lot of people think drag queen, they think Divine, RuPaul, Lady Bunny, or the queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race, but drag does not always mean a man dressing as a flamboyant caricature of a woman.

Some drag performers, dating back to the club kid scene in the ‘80s and ‘90s, take on very artistic, conceptual characters that are about more than

Drag queen Billy L’Amour in all her glamour and glory. Photo by George Fok.

glamour, lip-syncing, or comedy. In fact, a lot of these performers don’t subscribe to one gender, and instead choose to be more fluid, drawing inspiration from both male and female ideals.

That’s not to say only men can be drag performers either. There are drag kings— women who take on male characters—and, more recently gaining popularity, bio (or “faux”) queens, who are biological women performing as drag queens. This argument also discounts the many trans women who consider themselves drag performers. Would you say they are anti-feminist?

Why are we putting feminism, and drag for that matter, into such a narrow box? There are countless ways to interpret feminism, and there are so many different forms of drag. It’s hard to generalize an entire art form as being “anti-feminist” when it not only recognizes and celebrates strong female figures, but also encompasses so many varied, unique types of artists.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and if someone thinks drag goes against their idea of feminism, then so be it. But like RuPaul always says, “Unless they paying your bills, pay those bitches no mind.”

POP CULTURE

Why the Kesha case is significant to our society Analyzing the court case that gained the attention of both the media and the world

BY DIANDRA D’ALESSIO CONTRIBUTOR Have you ever wondered what happened to celebrities who seem to disappear from public consciousness? Maybe they’ve retired, wanted to raise a family out of the spotlight, or have moved on to other projects.

This is not the case for Kesha, or as we’ve known her for most of her career, Ke$ha.

The reason she hasn’t released music for over three years, in fact, is far more sinister.

Since October 2014, she’s been embroiled in a contentious legal battle with her producer Dr. Luke, over allegations that he emotionally and sexually abused her over the 10 years they’ve worked together. Last week, a New York Supreme Court denied Kesha’s request that she be released from her contract with Kemosabe Records, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment, which is owned by Dr. Luke. Essentially, this means that Kesha will be forced to continue to work with her alleged abuser, and he will forever profit from the royalties generated from her music.

Pictures of Kesha after the verdict show a devastated woman, and not the confident singer-songwriter the world has come to know. Her career began when she was 18, and apart from her two albums, she has co-written songs for Miley Cyrus, Miranda Cosgrove, and Britney Spears, among others.

Kesha’s music has many themes, including individuality, magic, rebellion, and most famously, partying, but there is more to her than meets the ear. She obtained a near-perfect score on her SATs in high school according to the Huffington Post, and aside from her music career, she has become renowned for her LGBT and animal rights activism. As of 2016, Kesha has received 64 award nominations, winning 15, and has sold over 60 million albums worldwide.

But with fame often comes a dark side.

In the winter of 2014, Kesha underwent treatment for bulimia, which her mother said was the result of Dr. Luke pressuring her to lose weight according to People.

When I first heard about this, I was saddened, but not surprised. Watch the music video for her and Pitbull’s song

“Timber” and you’ll see just how thin she got. It was clear that whatever was happening to her was bad.

What is perhaps most unsettling about the case is that this is yet another instance where powerful men seem to have the upper hand. Dr. Luke is one of the biggest players in the music industry today, having produced and written dozens of hit songs and albums within the past 10 years. He’s probably been somehow involved in the Top 40 song you’re listening to right now. And as the Bill Cosby and Jian Ghomeshi cases have shown, he’s not the first entertainment heavyweight to get entangled in abuse allegations and unfortunately won’t be the last.

Whether or not Dr. Luke is guilty of abusing Kesha, the overwhelming support she has received since the ruling is incredibly touching, and perhaps revealing. Several musicians, including Lady Gaga, Tegan and Sara, Lorde, Halsey, and Miley Cyrus tweeted in solidarity, while Taylor Swift donated $250,000 to help cover Kesha’s financial fees according to Rolling Stone. Adele voiced her support during an acceptance speech at the 2016 Brit Awards,

and Jack Antonoff and Zedd offered to be her producers.

Even those outside the music world, including George Takei, Anne Hathaway, and Mariska Hargitay rallied to her defense.

Kesha may have lost the battle, but Dr. Luke hasn’t won the war.

Ultimately, two things are certain—for now, Kesha must be under Dr. Luke’s label, and despite the court’s findings, only she and Dr. Luke know what really happened.

And yet, while she is clearly upset with the outcome, I argue that something good will come out of this.

The truth always comes out in the end, but more concretely, the case has grown into something bigger than itself. It’s not only about rape culture, the (alleged) abuse of power, and the dark underbelly of stardom.

It’s also about how others will reach out to those who need help, and whether they do so through thoughts, words, or actions, they show that people care. As Kesha wrote in her first public statement since the verdict, “We’re all in this together.

You are not alone.”

etc

theconcordian TINDER OF THE GODS

Photos of the week % @JOHNCASEYART John Casey (@JohnCaseyArt) is an Oakland-based artist who creates interesting portrait art. The art evokes a surrealism and transports to a different realm.

PHOTO BY CCARLSTEAD.

HORUS

Classics student · Early morning classes only · Sassy ringleader who enjoys a stiff drink · Gender neutral & modern romantic · · En/Fr/Ancient Greek

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