The Cord Nov. 29, 2017

THE CORD THE TIE THAT BINDS WILFRID LAURIER UNIVERSITY SINCE 1926

VOLUME 58 ISSUE 14 • NOVEMBER 29, 2017

Back for round two

A breakdown of everything we know so far about the controversy surrounding Lindsay Shepherd News, page 3

PETITIONERS MEET WITH SU

PEELING BACK THE LAYERS

BIG SUGAR, SWEET SOUND

NOT UP FOR DEBATE

MEN’S HOCKEY VICTORY

Laurier Students for Pro-Choice seek change

Getting to the heart of the campus debate

Legendary Canadian blues band visits KW

Trans students prove resilient amidst hate

Golden Hawks beat McGill at home

News, page 4

Features, page 8

Arts & Life, page 10

Opinion, page 13

Sports, page 15 MADELINE MCINNIS/CREATIVE DIRECTOR

2 •

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

VOCAL CORD

What did you buy on sale on Black Friday?

The Cord

@cordnews

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PHOTO OF THE WEEK

“I didn’t buy anything.”

–Sarah Mellor, thirdyear business administration.

TANZEEL SAYANI/PHOTO EDITOR

On Nov. 24, a large group of activists assembled for a free speech protest on Veteran’s Green. Counter-protesters held a silent vigil across the street.

“Stickers off of Red Bubble.”

–Brittney Elford, firsyear psychology.

“Clothes.”

–Julia Xu, second-year economics.

“Two pairs of shoes: Converse and Vans.”

–Jessica Tan, third-year business administration.

Compiled by Erin Abe Photos by Luke Sarazin NEXT ISSUE DECEMBER 6, 2017

CORD STAFF

Letter to the Editor: Staff left off of task force Why is Deborah MacLatchy leaving out members of staff from the task force on freedom of expression? To me, this demonstrates the lack of respect that is generally shown for them on a daily basis. Their supervisors refer to them as “my staff,” as if they were serving them personally. This manner of elitist insult is endemic. More to the point, earlier this year, staff were forced to attend a pronoun workshop, where they were pretty much told flat out that they were transphobic if they didn’t get with the program and adopt the Newspeak. This workshop wasn’t optional: Laurier shoved it down their throats. The thinking seems to be that staff are mindless cattle, despite the fact that many have advanced degrees.

That said, it doesn’t require a university education to have an opinion and to deserve freedom of expression. The contempt shown toward staff at Laurier continues to appall.

Furthermore, the staff at Laurier are also subject to attacks upon their personal freedom for committing Thoughtcrimes.

Human Resources and supervisors interpret harassment policy in a freestyle manner. This allows them to trespass into an employee’s personal life as they see fit. Those members of staff without union representation are particularly vulnerable to being accused of

FEATURES EDITOR Karlis Wilde features@thecord.ca

LEAD REPORTER Erin Abe news@thecord.ca

ARTS & LIFE EDITOR Shyenne MacDonald arts@thecord.ca

LEAD SPORTS REPORTER Abdulhamid Ibrahim sports@thecord.ca

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Kurtis Rideout editor@thecord.ca

OPINION EDITOR Emily Waitson opinion@thecord.ca

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Madeline McInnis creative@thecord.ca

SPORTS EDITOR Pranav Desai sports@thecord.ca

WEB DIRECTOR Garrison Oosterhof online@thecord.ca

GRAPHICS EDITOR Alan Li graphics@thecord.ca

NEWS DIRECTOR Safina Husein news@thecord.ca

PHOTO EDITOR Tanzeel Sayani photos@thecord.ca

NEWS EDITOR Jake Watts news@thecord.ca

VIDEO EDITOR Sarah Tyler video@thecord.ca

NEWS EDITOR Nathalie Bouchard news@thecord.ca

WEB ASSISTANT Kate Weber online@thecord.ca

LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER Luke Sarazin photos@thecord.ca SENIOR COPY EDITOR Michael Oliveri copyeditor@thecord.ca SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR Danielle Deslauriers socialmedia@thecord.ca

wrongdoing. And yes, members of staff who’ve been forced to engage lawyers to defend themselves against the Thought Police at Laurier would probably be vocal on a task force. These people exist.

They are quiet and afraid, if they continue to work at Laurier at all.

I should think, given MacLatchy’s vehement denunciation of what happened to Lindsay Shepherd, that she would welcome the voices of these individuals.

–Dahlia Green

Letter to the Editor: To the trans community To the trans community and the questioning students at Wilfrid Laurier University: You are loved. You are important. You are resilient and strong even though you shouldn’t have to be. Your existence is meaningful to your family (blood, chosen or otherwise), your friends, and countless people you have yet to meet. The work you are doing to educate yourself is powerful and worthy of recognition. It is a declaration that you will not live small in a dangerous world.

No matter what course you choose in life, you are deserving of safety and joy. You are worthy of a life lived fiercely and without apology.

–Lindsay Jack, Laurier trans alumnus/alumna ‘12

CONTRIBUTORS

EDITOR’S CHOICE

Sara Burgess Tyler Currie Victoria Berndt Leah Shaw Megan Pitt Caitlyn Lourenco Hayley McGoldrick Joseph DeFilippis John McMorran Qiao Liu Willy Borys Sadman Sakib Rahman Dotun Jide Jay Rideout Adina Turkonje Sam Tundup

“Trans and non-binary students deserve a voice” by Jay Rideout

Letter to the Editor: What’s next?

Laurier has apologized, rallies have happened, and what’s next? I believe there are a few areas that are being neglected in our conversations about the Lindsay Shepherd case. I will focus, however, on employment standards. As a Laurier graduate student and employee, I am concerned by what did and did not happen in this situation.

Under the Employment Standards Act, and the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act there are provisions that if an allegation of harassment is made against an employee that an investigation must be conducted, which should include interviewing any witnesses and getting their statements as well. Further, the alleged harasser is to be informed of the allegation/s and have the opportunity to respond to the specific allegations that were made. Someone who is impartial and experienced in conducting workplace investigations should do the investigation.

As far as we know, that did not happen at Laurier.

Moving forward, Laurier is obligated to facilitate employee rights by training employees as outlined in these key pieces of legislation. If we want to mitigate the chances of an incident like this one happening again, we need to have comprehensive training in place for everyone who works at the university. Employees have the right to be treated fairly under legislation and graduate student

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES All advertising inquiries can be directed to Care Lucas at care.lucas@wlusp.com or 519-884-0710 ext. 3560.

COLOPHON The Cord is the official student newspaper of the Wilfrid Laurier University community.

Started in 1926 as the College Cord, The Cord is an editorially independent newspaper published by Wilfrid Laurier University Student Publications, Waterloo, a corporation without share capital. WLUSP is governed by its board of directors.

Opinions expressed within The Cord are those of the author and do not necessarily refl ect those of the editorial board, The Cord, WLUSP, WLU or CanWeb Printing Inc. All content appearing in The Cord bears the copyright expressly of their creator(s) and may not be used without written consent.

The Cord is created using Macintosh computers running OS X 10.10 using Adobe Creative Cloud. Canon cameras are used

for principal photography.

The Cord has been a proud member of the Ontario Press Council since 2006. Any unsatisfied complaints can be sent to the council at info@ontpress.com.

The Cord’s circulation for a normal Wednesday issue is 4,500 copies and enjoys a readership of over 10,000. Cord subscription rates are $20.00 per term for addresses within Canada.

The Cord has been a proud member of the Canadian University Press (CUP) since 2004.

PREAMBLE The Cord will keep faith with its readers by presenting news and expressions of opinions comprehensively, accurately and fairly.

The Cord believes in a balanced and impartial presentation of all relevant facts in a news report, and of all substantial opinions in a matter of controversy.

The staff of The Cord shall uphold all commonly held ethical conventions of journalism. When an error of omission or of commission has occurred, that error shall be acknowledged promptly.

When statements are made that are critical of an individual, or an organization, we shall give those affected the opportunity to

employees must be informed of their rights as workers. Further, Laurier must teach students that confronting differing opinions are an essential part of advancing critical thinking. If truth conquers all, then we can and will prove it.

– Julia Empey

Letter to the Editor: Baffled and disappointed I’m writing to register my disappointment and utter bafflement at the way this misguided free speech crusade has been handled at Laurier. When being respectful to a group of marginalized people seems like an assault on free speech, it only highlights how much privilege and how little conflict an individual can have. To the trans and non-binary individuals who are dealing with fallout of this situation in ways Ms Shepherd et al. will never experience, you matter. Your voices, your experiences, your contributions, and your thoughts matter. You deserve a safe and respectful community that supports you and challenges you to succeed without challenging your right to be there. You matter.

–Sarah Faber, BMusTh, 2008 Due to the amount of submissions received this week we have compiled all letters (including those unpublished) online at thecord.ca.

reply at the earliest time possible.

Ethical journalism requires impartiality, and consequently conflicts of interest and the appearance of conflicts of interest will be avoided by all staff.

The only limits of any newspaper are those of the world around it, and so The Cord will attempt to cover its world with a special focus on Wilfrid Laurier University, and the community of Kitchener-Waterloo, and with a special ear to the concerns of the students of Wilfrid Laurier University. Ultimately, The Cord will be bound by neither philosophy nor geography in its mandate.

The Cord has an obligation to foster freedom of the press and freedom of speech. This obligation is best fulfilled when debate and dissent are encouraged, both in the internal workings of the paper, and through The Cord’s contact with the student body.

The Cord will always attempt to do what is right, with fear of neither repercussions, nor retaliation. The purpose of the student press is to act as an agent of social awareness, and so shall conduct the affairs of our newspaper.

Quote of the week: “I like the monarchy, it’s like looking into a zoo ... they don’t really have a purpose anymore, but they are interesting to watch.”

- Web Director, Garrison Oosterhof, expressing his feelings toward the royal family.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

News

NEWS DIRECTOR SAFINA HUSEIN news@thecord.ca

• 3 NEWS EDITOR NATHALIE BOUCHARD news@thecord.ca

NEWS EDITOR JAKE WATTS news@thecord.ca

CONTROVERSY ON CAMPUS Lindsay Shepherd plays a clip from TVO’s The Agenda, which showcases a debate featuring controversial University of Toronto professor, Jordan Peterson, discussing “genders, rights and freedom speech.” Ensuing the clip was a class debate surrounding the use of they as a pronoun.

The class she showed it in was a first year tutorial for a course named Canadian Communication in Context.

8:42 p.m. – “Christie Blatchford: Thought police strike again as Wilfrid Laurier grad student is chastised for showing Jordan Peterson video” story is published by the National Post. Several major publications in Canada followed suit in condemning the university’s response.

Laurier professor William McNally launches a petition on Change.org named “Free Expression at Laurier”. “It is our view that the university community would be best served — and would live up to its own values and mission statement — by enshrining, in writing, a commitment to protect maximally free expression, critical inquiry and open debate,” the petition states.

It also goes on to claim that “It is axiomatic that intellectual inquiry, critical reflection and scholarly integrity are NOT POSSIBLE in an institution that prevents some ideas from being articulated. Any censorship of ideas, no matter how repugnant some may deem them, prevents Wilfrid Laurier University from meeting the chief values, or “cornerstones”, required to function as a university.” The petition has over 1000 supporters.

Early afternoon – A student appears on campus with a sign saying “Lindsay Shepherd deserves an apology”.

The WLU Rainbow Centre in turn posts a sign to their office window saying “Trans students deserve an apology.

1:44 p.m. – An email containing written apologies from Laurier President, Deborah MacLatchy, and professor Nathan Rambukkana is sent out to all Laurier students.

11:47 p.m. – Deborah MacLatchy releases a video statement to YouTube doubling down on the sentiment expressed in her written apology.

Another petition — titled “Wilfrid Laurier University Faculty Petition” — is launched by Laurier professor, Greg Bird, on Change.org. The petition begins with the following statement: “We are Wilfrid Laurier University faculty members who are troubled by the events that have recently taken place on our campus and the impacts on trans, non-binary, and gender diverse students and faculty.” The petition serves as a call to action, asking the administration to issue a statement saying that “these actions will not be tolerated on our campus. That transphobia and all other forms of hate targeting persons on the basis of gender identity and expression are being carefully monitored and actions of harassment are reported to the relevant authorities.” The petition also challenges the university to “Establish measures to ensure the safety and protection of students and faculty who are being subjected to discrimination, harassment, and threats on their lives.” At the time of publishing the petition had over 350 supporters.

Editor-in-Chief, Kurtis Rideout, has assembled a timeline to help you sift through important updates.

Nov. 1

Nov. 8

Nov. 10

Nov. 14

Nov. 16

Shepherd is called into a meeting with her supervising professor, Nathan Rambukkana, assistant professor in communication studies at Laurier, Herbert Pimlott, associate professor in communication studies at Laurier and Adria Joel, manager of gendered violence prevention and support (acting) at Laurier’s Diversity and Equity Office.

3:26 p.m. – Shepherd creates an account on Twitter (@NewWorldHomonin) adding the following information to her bio: “Grad student @ WLU. Made this Twitter to address the Laurier situation in my own words. Otherwise, I do not really use social media.”

3:56 p.m. – Shepherd sends out her first tweet: “Laurier would not confirm what discussions have taken place with Shepherd, but say they have asked an unidentified “neutral third-party professional” to “gather the facts” of the case.” No discussions with me. I found out thru the news about this ‘investigation.”

She quickly amassed a large following (over 12000 at the time of publishing).

Nov. 20

Nov. 21

Nov. 21

The recording of Shepherd’s reprimand is acquired by The Cord and the mainstream media after Shepherd shares it with Global News.

In an appearance on The Andrew Lawton Show on AM980 CFPL in London, Ont., leader of the opposition, Andrew Scheer, condemned the university’s actions, stating the following: “To think that we’ve got to the state in Canada where a university would have an inquisition on a young grad student and make comparisons to Hitler, to bully her, to tell her that she committed acts of violence by showing a clip from a public broadcast on a public broadcaster, is ridiculous.”

Nov. 22

Andrew Scheer brings the controversy involving Shepherd to the attention of the House of Commons, condemning Wilfrid Laurier University.

Nov. 24

12 p.m. – A Free Speech Rally organized at Victoria Square in Brantford by student, Christian Mejia, in support of Shepherd is disrupted by counter-protesters.

Nov. 23 Nov. 24 Nov. 24

1 p.m. – A simultaneous protest takes place at University and Hazel in Waterloo. The protest is supported by several students and faculty members.

The protest is also attended by Lindsey Shepherd among other guests who spoke to address the crowd. Organizers of the protest motioned for Wilfrid Laurier Univeristy to update their policy on freedom of expression. Shortly before the protest was set to begin, a counterprotest organized across the street.

Shepherd appears on Radio Laurier for a live

with The Cord’s News Director, Safina Nov. 27 interview Husein.

LAYOUT BY KURTIS RIDEOUT/EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & MADELINE MCINNIS/CREATIVE DIRECTOR PHOTOS BY TANZEEL SAYANI/PHOTO EDITOR, NATHALIE BOUCHARD/NEWS EDITOR & CONTRIBUTED

4 • NEWS

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

ADVOCACY

Fighting for pro-choice rights NATHALIE BOUCHARD NEWS EDITOR

Representatives from Laurier Students for Pro-Choice recently met with the Students’ Union on Tuesday Nov. 28 to discuss the chalking demonstrations displayed

by Laurier LifeLink.

On Oct. 24 at 9:30 a.m. a message was sent from Communications, Public Affairs & Marketing (CPAM) to Laurier Waterloo campus students regarding a Laurier LifeLink demonstration taking place on the public sidewalks in front of Lazaridis Hall and in front of the main entrance to the Waterloo campus.

This demonstration created by Laurier LifeLink — a club funded by the Wilfrid Laurier University Students’ Union — consisted of written messages on sidewalks, all pertaining to the topic of abortion.

Brooke Dietrich, one of the members of Laurier Students for Pro-Choice, explained that they were shocked that this demonstration was happening on campus.

“Laurier Students for Pro-Choice is a group of students who have come together over the topic of bodily autonomy and the individual’s right to choose, we formed over the Pro-Life demonstration which took place [in] late October,” Dietrich said.

“We received the Facebook notification on behalf of the Students’ Union and were startled [that] this was happening on the Laurier campus.”

In order to combat the demonstration from Laurier LifeLink, Laurier Students for Pro-Choice participated in a counter protest demonstration and started a Change.org petition, aiming to hold the Students’ Union accountable for protecting students on campus.

Representatives from Laurier Students for Pro-Choice have since sat down with Kanwar Brar,

Students’ Union President and members of the Students’ Union to discuss the points within their petition, and how the Laurier LifeLink chalking demonstration was harmful to students’ emotional and mental wellbeing.

Alicia Hall, administrative coordinator for the Centre for Women and Trans people, stressed the four main points outlined in the Laurier Students for Pro-Choice petition.

“There were four main points [addressed in the petition],” Hall said.

Laurier Students for Pro-Choice is a group of students who have come together over the topic of bodily autonomy ...

-Brooke Dietrich, member of Laurier Students for Pro-Choice

“First [the petition asks that] they adopt a motion in taking a public pro-choice stance on issues of reproductive rights, and wouldn’t be supporting groups trying to take away those rights.”

“The second [request] is [to] suspend the funding that Laurier LifeLink receives … as a group that is being against reproductive rights, they shouldn’t be receiving funding through the students,” Hall said. “[The Third] is prohibiting anti-choice events that are approved by the Students’ Union from taking place on public areas on our campus … that means that students should have a choice about whether they are engaging with this [content] or not,” Hall said.

“The fourth point — which the

Students’ Union seems very open to — was that we asked them to implement a strike policy to ensure that there will be some kind of accountability after instances of harm.”

This meeting was also meant to inform the Students’ Union that the Gendered and Sexual Violence Policy and Procedures — which is part of the non-academic code of conduct — was not being upheld

by Laurier LifeLink.

“In particular we wanted to talk about them [Laurier LifeLink] violating the student code of conduct.

We felt that the protest fell into that category of gendered violence because it was against an individual’s reproductive rights,” Dietrich said.

In order for a claim to go through on the Sexual and Gendered Violence policy, there would have to be a complaint made by one person against another person. The policy does not account for a particular group which is violating this policy.

“The Sexual and Gendered Violence Policy is the right for a Laurier individual to not be harassed or judged [or otherwise harmed] … based on their gender or sexual orientation,” Dietrich said.

“Unfortunately, [Students’ Union president & CEO] Kanwar [Brar] let us know that, in order to pursue that, one individual would have to make a case against another single individual of the club, even though the club has to uphold those values.” “[In order to] challenge them [as a club] we would need to challenge another person [individually],” Dietrich said.

Brar declined when asked by The Cord to comment on the story, but noted that “Any violations of the Gendered and Sexual Violence policy are adjudicated through the Dean of Students Office,” adding that “The Students’ Union, including the Clubs and Associations Department, is not an adjudicator

SAFINA HUSIEN/FILE PHOTO

of any university policy, including Gendered and Sexual Violence.”

Vice President of Laurier LifeLink, Jonah Vanleeuwen, explains that the chalking display was meant to raise awareness on both the club and bioethical issues.

“Laurier LifeLink, in one of there mission statements, [says] that we are against abortion and euthanasia. The two [bioethical issues] that Laurier LifeLink mainly focuses on are abortion and euthanasia. It’s in our mission statement on our website,” Vanleeuwen said.

“The chalking display was mainly focused on various affirmations and slogans that were pretty much put on the sidewalk in order to help raise awareness on these different issues,” Vanleeuwen said.

Laurier LifeLink claims they are aware of the Sexual and Gendered Violence Policy and try their best to abide by the policies in place.

They claim that they have worked with the Students’ Union to improve their demonstrations.

“We’ve done a lot of work with the Students’ Union, and we’ve done our best to adhere to any policies that are instate … we ran the

chalking event by them [Students’ Union] and we’re doing our best in order to not come at this from a confrontational point,” Vanleeuwen said.

“We are not trying to harm women and we’re not trying to shame them in any way. The main goal of our club is to just raise awareness, and to get people thinking about this issue and as we said, to educate people on the movement.”

Moving forward, Laurier Students for Pro-Choice is planning to create a referendum question which is meant to ask for a policy from the Students’ Union stating that people [and] their reproductive rights are being supported.

“The Students’ Union made it clear what they want and they aren’t going to make any changes unless the students themselves say that they want it. They didn’t accept the Change.org petition essentially because you can’t prove that those are Laurier students,” Hall said. “The referendum would have the same impact of that first ask in the petition … it’s essentially asking for that policy to support reproductive rights.”

CANNABIS

Legalization of marijuana brings forth boycott event KARLIS WILDE FEATURES EDITOR

On July 1, 2018, marijuana will become legal in certain quantities across Canada.

Because of the conditions of the bill, the specific details regarding quantities, enforcement and distribution have been left to the individual provinces to decide.

While the project is unto itself divisive among Canadian citizens, the results of the 2015 federal election — with the enormous success of a Liberal party who promoted the legalization of cannabis as a significant part of their platform — demonstrate that the majority of citizens at least superficially appear to be in support of the overall plan.

Where discrepancies are found is in the semantics within that mission, especially against Ontario’s plan to create and maintain a ver-

itable, legally-enforced monopoly of Ontario Cannabis Retail Corporation stores across the province.

In a Facebook event page that, at the time of writing, has a subscription of more than 800 people interested or attending called “Boycott Ontario Cannabis Retail Corp.”

The backlash here is made plain: that this plan for legal dispensaries across Ontario is damaging and unproductive, and that the details of post-legalization distribution should be left in more capable and qualified hands.

As the goal on the page states: “The Cannabis community is being taken over by political gangsterism. We are being forced out of an industry by the people who rallied against us. We will not allow it.”

The event itself — a wide-ranging theme, with very few semantics formally decided — promises that details are to follow, but it is hosted by a pre-existing page called Ham-

ALAN LI/GRAPHICS EDITOR

ilton Votes Dispensaries, an advocacy group for locally established dispensaries that presently exist in a legal ‘grey area’ throughout the city of Hamilton.

The mission of the group is stated on their Facebook page: “2018

is the next municipal election, and we want Cannabis friendly councillors [sic] in our wards that support Cannabis Businesses in Hamilton.”

The page cites that Hamilton’s decisions for dispensaries, control

and sale of product should remain within the lines their municipality has already decided, citing the success of their 23 dispensaries throughout the city as proof. On a wider scale, this makes the Ontario government’s plan to create their own stores to sell specifically selected product — all through the power of local dollars and federal support to create a monopoly — at least partially problematic.

The Cord reached out to Hamilton Votes Dispensaries, but they declined to make any kind of comment.

The purpose of their boycott, as can be gleaned from the event page, is that there is value, community and career focus in the pre-existing conditions across Ontario, and to entirely supplant that product demand could be seen as contrary to positive free-market approaches through which Canada has previously blossomed.

NEWS • 5

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017 COLLABORATION

Project creates new vision for University Avenue ERIN ABE LEAD REPORTER

The City of Waterloo and Region of Waterloo have partnered up with the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University and Conestoga College to create the University Gateway Project in order to develop a new vision for the future of University Avenue.

The first public consultation was held on Thursday, Nov. 23 at St. Michael’s Church, where the team begun working with the public to decide on what should be changed in the University corridor.

A date of when work will begin has yet to be determined.

The project has begun and is in its first phase which focuses on community input for future projects.

In order to gain input, the team has been using questionnaires, social media and VoxWaterloo, an online 3D model of the corridor, so participants can share their comments and ideas.

The project is looking at the University corridor, which includes the road between University Avenue and Conestoga Parkway and University Avenue and Westmount Road, passing all three post-secondary institutions.

“University Avenue is a unique place in the city and Region,” Ric Martins, policy planner and growth management for the City of Waterloo, said.

University Avenue is a unique place in the city and Region. It is often the first place people see when they visit the community.

-Ric Martins, policy planner and growth management for the City of Waterloo

QIAO LIO/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

“It is often the first place people see when they visit the community.”

The first step of the project was to gain insight from community members.

The first meeting featured presentations and a question and answer session to keep community members informed and listen to concerns, ideas and thoughts about the upcoming University Avenue makeover.

A major concern of the public so far has been the lack of safety many feel when using University Avenue.

“I think most people just don’t feel safe. When you come off that expressway people are going quickly,” Adam Holland, senior

landscape architect for IBI Group, said.

The high speed of cars has been a major concern, especially when considering the other modes of transportation on University Avenue.

In addition to safety, the project has talked about distinguishing a brand standard for the corridor, which would include creating a sense of specific identity for University Avenue.

The possibilities of integrating patios and celebrating each university and college more have been some ideas.

“The corridor area has great potential to become an even more unique place to showcase the city and the region as a centre for

learning, innovation, discovery and entrepreneurship. The study will aim to create an overall vision for the corridor and serve as a guide for future projects,” Martins said.

The end of the meeting allowed community members to write down concerns and ideas they have and post them on that specific part of a map of University Avenue in order for the team to create a plan that benefits everyone.

“They want more sophisticated looks, a lot of technology companies are coming here they really want to celebrate that this is the gateway to the city,” Holland said.

Specific projects for the street have yet to be determined, although the team is working to

create changes while considering the many travelers and visitors who take University Avenue.

“There are three excellent post-secondary institutions located all on the same street, there are numerous businesses located there as well,” Martins said.

“The road is a key link for automobile and transit users and has a lot of pedestrian cyclists.”

University Avenue is one of the busiest roadways in the City of Waterloo and the project team is working to address its many challenges.

“A public meeting is important to introduce the study to the public and to gain feedback from those who interact with the corridor most often,” Martins said.

Feedback from the first meeting will help shape future phases of the study‚ like what to prioritize et cetera.”

LABOUR put back into the community.”

Employers who pay their employees at least the living wage are doing so voluntarily.

All businesses have the opportunity to commit to paying the living wage of their community as a minimum wage for employees.

This means that more people will have more money in their pockets which they will be able to put back into the community.

-Anne Coleman, program manager for Living Wage Waterloo Region

ALAN LI/GRAPHICS EDITOR

Waterloo Region increases new minimum wage for 2018 ERIN ABE LEAD REPORTER

The Living Wage Waterloo Region released their most recent report on the hourly wage for 2018 last week.

The new living wage for the Waterloo region sits at 16 dollars and 10 cents per hour for 2018.

The living wage is the hourly

wage an employee needs to earn to cover their family’s basic expenses within their community.

Since the announcement of the increase of the minimum wage for Ontario, the Living Wage for Waterloo region is glad to see the gap between the two beginning to close.

The minimum wage will rise to 14 dollars per hour on Jan. 1, 2018

and 15 dollars per hour in 2019.

This is an increase from the current rate of $11.60 per hour in 2017.

“We are narrowing that gap between the minimum wage and the living wage which is great,” Anne Coleman, program manager for Living Wage Waterloo Region, said.

“This means that more people will have more money in their pockets which they will be able to

“Someone who is working full time at the current minimum wage of $11.60 doesn’t have enough money to cover all of their expenses,” Coleman said.

Currently there are 44 employers in the Waterloo Region who pay their employees at least the minimum living wage and these employers are recognized through the Ontario Living Wage Network. “[These employers] go above and beyond for their employees,” Coleman said. “[They] have made a real commitment to the living wage and that makes a difference for their employees in the community.”

Although — along with the many benefits of raising the minimum wage — the increase may also make people ineligible for some government funding programs such as the Ontario Works program or any program based off income and assets per home.

“It’s a good thing that it increases the income coming into the home, but it might affect some of their eligibility for the program [Ontario Works],” Carolyn Schoenfeldt, director of employment and income services at Region of Waterloo, said.

The Waterloo Region has committed to recalculating the living wage every year to keep the community and employers up to date with the current costs and considerations.

This includes food, clothing, shelter, childcare, transportation, medical expenses, recreation and a modest vacation.

Each category is researched for prices specific within each community in order to get the most accurate calculation. “[It’s important] for employers to know that they are providing a wage for the employees to pay for their basic expenses and have a little extra to be a part of the community,” Coleman said.

The living wage minimum is used as a practical tool to reduce poverty through paid work.

“As the gap between the minimum wage and the living wage decreases, that is only going to be a positive for workers in low wage positions,” Coleman said.

6 • NEWS

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

ACTIVISM

Collaborative report works to tackle mental health SAFINA HUSEIN NEWS DIRECTOR

A collaborative report, In It Together: Taking Action on Student Mental Health, was recently released as a call to the Province for greater action regarding the challenges and difficulties pertaining to mental health which continues to increase among students in Ontario.

The report was compiled by four partners: the College Student Alliance, the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA), Colleges Ontario and the Council of Ontario Universities.

The partners involved make up the four groups who represent colleges and universities in Ontario and more than 220,000 students.

The report presents a unique approach to tackling mental health in Ontario due to its collaborative approach and the united stance which all four parties have taken in presenting the report’s suggestions to the provincial government.

“Students and administrators wanted clarity and direction and commitment and we realized that this is an issue that not a single one of our groups is going to solve but it needs a collaborative approach,” Andrew Clubine, president of OUSA, said.

“So we came together understanding that this is a big problem and it’s a big challenge.”

substantial changes, frankly, is budgets,” Clubine said.

Additionally, within the report is an integrated strategy which encourages teaching resiliency and coping that starts as early as kindergarten.

Although almost three quarters of mental health onsets between the ages of 18 and 24, many of these cases come as a result of something that occurs previous to this age bracket.

Allowing children in elementary school to become comfortable talking about how they’re feeling and how their emotions might effect how they’re doing at school at a young age can install the im-

portance of coping and encourage resiliency throughout all levels of school.

“We won’t deal with this issue by dealing with it isolated at one age group. That’s part of our call in the report. And the best way of explaining it is we’re underscoring the importance of wellness programming when students are young,” Clubine said.

However, the aspect which makes the report most unique is its collaborative approach.

“It was the first time [the government has] seen the four of us sitting together in a room asking for the same thing,” Clubine said.

“I’m hopeful that’ll be effective

because it’s the four largest voices in the post-secondary sector saying this is something we need to deal with and this is something we need to deal with together.”

Stephanie Bellotto, vice-president: university affairs at Laurier’s Students’ Union, explained that in addition to the report, mental health has been an ongoing priority at Laurier within the Students’ Union and from university faculty and administration.

“Laurier currently does really well holding relations with health services in the community and they recognize that there isn’t just one need when it comes to mental health, as every student has different experiences and different needs,” Bellotto said Bellotto and other representatives from Laurier will be advocating for the recommendations made within the report to the provincial government on Nov. 26 in Toronto.

“I think this report is going to raise awareness and let students know that they’re not alone. It’s also going to ensure that the government knows that providing supporting services on mental health is constantly a priority,” Bellotto said. “It’s also a way for letting institutions know that it is a priority to keep enhancing mental health support and services that we have on campus.”

happened to Lindsay won’t happen again,” Danudjaja said.

Finlay, on the other hand, hopes that the university takes steps to expand on their consideration of trans people.

“We’d love to see an acknowledgement by the university of the impacts of the situation on trans folks, and an acknowledgement of their own commitment to uphold diversity inclusion,” Finlay said.

“We would really like to see them take tangible steps to address this both within the context of freedom of speech and the way the institution organizes around that and takes stances on that with

their own task force that they’ve assembled, but also beyond that as well,” Finlay said.

Anton Abaev, Laurier student and another organizer of the free speech demonstration, talked about how the presence of the counter demonstration embodies one of their fundamental aims in promoting free speech.

“I think it’s great that they came out. I think this is actually what we’re fighting for. For their right to do that. For their right to have freedom of speech as well,” Abaev said.

Counter protester, Milas Hewson, doubled down on the senti-

ment that Finlay expressed, noting the absences of trans voices in the recent discussions surrounding freedom of speech.

“I think it’s important that trans voices are included as we move forward,” Hewson said.

“So what we’d really like to see moving forward is that this investigation continues to happen, that the truth of what happened in this classroom can come out, and that we can have this conversation in a way that … actually brings it back to the issue at hand, which is that transphobia is being covered up using this freedom of speech discourse.”

ALAN LI/GRAPHICS EDITOR

The report provides comprehensive recommendations, such as free mental health care and services for students both on and off campus that are not currently funded by OHIP, enhanced government investment in transition programs for secondary students as they get ready to enter post-secondary, an update to Ontario’s Comprehensive Mental Health and Addictions Strategy, among other suggestions.

“The report … makes recommendations on a system level.

So you wont see a ton of stuff about that you’ll be able to assess simply by going to your campus clinic. Where we’re hoping to see

FREE SPEECH

Students protest JAKE WATTS NEWS EDITOR

This story was previously published on The Cord’s website. Due to the immediacy and importance of the topic, it was deemed worthy of publishing in the Nov. 29 edition of The Cord.

On Nov. 24, a student-organized demonstration for free speech, attracting a large number of participants, occurred on the Veteran’s Green memorial at the intersection of University Avenue and Hazel Street.

Not too long after the demonstration for free speech commenced, a counter-demonstration in support of trans students began across the street.

Both demonstrations came in the wake of a controversy surrounding Wilfrid Laurier University’s handling of the situation involving graduate student Lindsay Shepherd, who neutrally showed a clip of a debate featuring University of Toronto professor Jordan Peterson to her tutorial group.

Some argue that the university’s handling of the situation reveals a neglect of the basic principle of free speech, while others argue that their handling of the situation reveals a lack of consideration for trans and non-binary students.

Toby Finlay, an organizer for the counter-demonstration and administrator for Laurier’s Rainbow Centre, joined their compatriots, all donned with signs pinned to

their chests reading “trans people deserve justice,” in a line facing the free speech demonstration across the street.

In an interview, Finlay claimed that the free speech demonstration they were responding to functioned to silence trans voices.

“The realities of transphobia that are really at the core of this issue have been erased under a larger freedom of speech narrative, and so we think that has really functioned to silence a lot of trans people’s voices,” Finlay said.

The freedom of speech demonstration on the other side of the street, equipped with its own microphone and PA system, brought out presenters that included Lindsay Shepherd herself, a Laurier faculty member and speeches prepared by local politicians.

Erik Danudjaja, third-year Laurier student and one of the organizers of the free speech demonstration, claimed that their hope is to get Laurier to adopt a new free speech policy.

“We don’t want to just demonstrate, talk about it for a week, and then forget about it.”

“We actually have a policy in place. So we just came from the President of Laurier’s office, and we handed to the secretary a document detailing how we could improve free speech here at Laurier,” Danudjaja said.

“Our hope is that we can get something along those lines passed here at Laurier so what

TANZEEL SAYANI/PHOTO EDITOR

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

Dear Life Dear Life is your opportunity to write a letter to your life, allowing you to vent your anger with life’s little frustrations in a completely public forum.

All submissions to Dear Life are anonymous and therefore do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Cord or WLUSP. They should be no longer than 100 words and must be addressed to your life. Submissions can be sent to dearlife@thecord.ca no later than Monday at noon each week.

Dear Social Justice Warriors, Destroying newspapers does nothing to further your cause. If you have a problem with the content, raise your point in a rational, logical and intellectual manner rather than destroying the work of your fellow students.

Sincerely, Someone who cares Dear Life, I am deeply troubled by the events that have been making news over the past week. I have tried really hard to understand both sides of this TA issue.

I do not believe that the TA intended to cause harm by showing this video and presenting the argument. I however do not agree with opening the floor to this discussion in a first year tutorial.

In no instance should trans folks validity ever come up in a grammar debate. Ever. Undoubtedly she made the classroom completely unsafe for first year trans folks.

Whether the complaint was from a Trans student or from an Ally, all Trans folks, and other marginalized groups must be treated with dignity and respect.

I don’t believe that this was on par with Nazism and I think it was false for her supervisor to make that comparison, that aside, I don’t agree with the university issuing an apology.

As a Laurier Alum, should be able to proudly share that I enjoyed every second of my scholarship at Laurier, however I cannot stand by the dismissal of transphobic behaviours, intentional or otherwise.

Sincerely, This is not the Laurier that I loved.

Honestly felt quite angry today when I found the cord ripped up.

I enjoy reading the paper during my lunch and the opinion section is usually a beautiful way for me to stay up to date with current events and to see an interesting point of view into intelligent peoples opinions into these matters. I just wish the person/people who did this would grow up and treat the writers, editors and volunteers with some respect. They worked hard and I hope people like that can apologize to people like me who just want to read the paper over lunch.

Sincerely, Klug Dear Life, The Free Speech Controversy is the equivalent of Canada’s Watergate. First the left tells Profs how to teach. Then the Prof tells

the students what to think. And then an election like the one in 2015 roles around and the same university campuses that suppress free speech are allowed to host temporary election offices in an environment where the students’ voting choices are induced. This is a violation of the Elections Canada Act: Section 482(b), which finds anyone who “induces a person to vote or refrain from voting or to vote or refrain from voting for a particular candidate at an election” guilty of intimidation of the electoral process. Anyone convicted under s. 482(b) faces, on a summary conviction, a maximum $2,000 fine, or a maximum of one year in prison, or both. On an indictment, individuals found guilty face a maximum of five years in prison, a maximum $5,000 fine, or both.

The Millennial vote was the difference maker that got Trudeau a majority over a minority government where he has now flat out lied to the public about modest deficits and conducting a referendum on electoral reform. Add to this the high likelihood for voter fraud where some motivated individuals could vote say in an advance poll in their home riding in Toronto and then vote again on election day at the Campus poll for the riding they resign at for school in Waterloo. Where is the accountability? And the way the TA was bullied in the recording seemed to indicate some kind of cover up perhaps on behalf of the Liberal Party.

I would love to know if any of the involved Professors and University administration are donors or registered members of the Liberal and NDP parties who make it a long standing mission to cleanse Conservative beliefs and ideology off of the modern university campus. There needs to be a special commission set up at the Federal level to resolve this matter. And Laurier as an institution should be reprimanded for violating the Elections Canada Act. Sincerely, Concerned Canadian Dear Life, I read the article in last week’s issue titled “My heart left soaring while the critics are roaring” which was a movie review on recently released blockbuster Justice League. All I could do was laugh. I like the writer also saw the film on its official release date at Conestoga Galaxy heck we may have been at the same showtime. However, unlike her I agree with the critics and the Rotten Tomatoes score of 40%. I didn’t even know she was a female till I read the flaws she listed towards the end of her piece which included obsession with Wonder Woman’s underwear and Superman’s mustache lol. I’m sorry but let’s be frank one of the major selling points in the current DC universe to generate ticket sales particularly male is the fact that Wonder Woman is hot. Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman and Will Smith as Deadshot are the only slam dunk casting decisions that DC got right. She also ends the review saying “If DC keeps utilizing these inherent differences and carves out a way to stand apart, I think they’re going to be okay”. I’m sorry DC did stand apart before in a successful way through the Nolan/Bale Batman trilogy. The

GAMES • 7 reason it was successful compared to the current fleet of DC disasters is because each of those films cast actual actors as villains - Cillian Murphy, Heath Ledger and Tom Hardy instead of overthought CGI experiments. A recent Forbes article predicts Justice League at minimum will lose $50M USD. A superhero film that is not profitable joining the likes of The Green Lantern and Fantastic 4 in 2017 please say it ain’t so. DC needs to re-cast top end talent opposite their heroes to excite fans and bounce back in their rivalry with Marvel. Joe Manganiello as Deathstroke seems to be the right start.

Sincerely, Commited Cord Reader Dear Life, After learning more about the free speech controversy on campus and also witnessing the rally this weekend I can easily say I am ashamed both for myself and my university.

Recent events like the censorship of TA Lindsey Sheppard and likely many students and TAs before her have made me re-evaluate my choice of university and business school here at Laurier. I am actually a 2nd generation Laurier BBA student since both my father and older sister are former graduates of the same program. Like my sister I was recently accepted into the BBA co-op program for my 2nd year and presently preparing for my first work term this spring.

However, I chose Laurier over many other top university business programs that I got accepted into like Ivey, Queens, Schulich and Rotman because of my life long dream to become an entrepreneur and start my own business. I felt the opportunities in the growing KW tech sector, the big business school in a small university feel, the co-op program and continuing the family legacy was too good a mix to pass up. I worked really hard in my first year to get on the Dean’s list and get accepted into co-op while taking entry-level positions in clubs. Now I am proud to say I am an executive in an SBE club.

What I’m not proud to say is that I am beginning to question myself if Laurier is the right environment for me to explore my entrepreneurial curiosities. How can a school that suppresses free speech be the right place for a potential entrepreneur to think boldly and share ideas?

Be the right place to collaborate with peers and take risks? I use to be able to answer these questions so fast but now I just picture the protest I saw and text from the articles I read. After speaking with my father and sister who learned of the controversy themselves and were both angry but also well aware that this had been happening when they attended the school too. They both agreed they would no longer donate to the school something they each had been doing since they respectively graduated. My father told me that now that this scandal is public his alma mater is no longer worthy of his support and his younger son’s enrollment.

He called a friend of his who is an Ivey Alumni who connected me with an academic adviser that gave me advice and sent me the instructions to apply to the HBA program as a student from another institution. This was a program I got accepted to alongside Laurier two years ago but I guess today I

realize I made the wrong choice.

I have the grades, the resume and the reasoning and aspirations to support my application so I’m very confident I will get in. I rarely doubt myself but when I do I act fast to relinquish those doubts.

SUDOKU

Sincerely, Golden Hawk No More Dear Life, I have so much to say.

Sincerely, Staying quite tho

8 •

FEATU

FEATURES EDITOR/KARLIS WILDE/FEATURES@THECORD.CA

The big debat

News Director Safina Husi latest scandal from

Almost three weeks ago, Lindsay Shepherd, a Laurier graduate student and a good thing to discuss and get engaged w teaching assistant, was reprimanded for showing a TVO clip of a Jordan Peterson grammar in any way,” said Hallie Schuele debate within her first year communications tutorial and then leading a discusstudies who is also in Shepherd’s tutorial sion about the use of gendered pronouns, sparking controversy throughout the Several students also explained that di Wilfrid Laurier University campus and among media outlets on an international something Shepherd brings to her tutoria scale.

“That’s the whole point of communicat Since Shepherd’s situation was publicized, administration at Laurier has been Canada. It was a huge debate and there w criticized for condemning what Shepherd and others feel is her right to freedom was a discussion and it would be wrong t of expression within the class-room while others have criticized their lack of supwhat their viewpoint is regardless of the t port and inclusivity towards the trans and non-binary community on campus.

However, since Laurier president Debo As a result of the large scale on which the situation is currently being disogy to Shepherd last week, there has been cussed, two very firm sides of a complex debate have emerged. online — targeted mainly at the WLU Rai On one side of the debate, individuals are fighting to defend freedom of spoken out in defence of trans and non-b expression on campus. A petition made by William McNally, associate professor matter of the tutorial discussion. of finance at the School of Business and Economics at Laurier, asks that Laurier Toby Finlay, administrator at Laurier’s adopt a freedom of expression policy similar to the one developed by the Univerbeing received at the centre has blown up sity of Chicago. verbally violent to those being targeted.

The policy adopted by the University of Chicago, which was first approved in “There’s no words to describe how muc 2015, essentially places freedom of expression above all other values. The princibeen taken up in ways that fully don’t un ples stress a commitment to allowing students to voice their thoughts and ideas and non-binary people] exist in, and that regardless of how offensive they might be to others.

Finlay said.

The petition was created approximately two weeks ago In addition to receiving dozens of on and currently holds over 1100 signatures. page — many from people who do not On the other side of the debate, individuals are faculty — the WLU Rainbow Centre ha fighting to defend the rights and equality of trans, that include threats, slurs and more th non-binary and gender diverse students and comment box at the centre, and by in faculty in the community. centre in person to confront those pre Another petition, made by Greg Bird, assistant “I think it’s really telling that this is professor in sociology, cultural analysis and social folks try to talk about the transphobi theory, works to establish protective measures [the transphobia] that exists within o to ensure the safety of those being subjected to “If we are not able to engage i harassment and discrimination on campus. without it being led to a positio The petition was created approximately four Laurier community and in the days ago and currently holds over 350 signafor ourselves within those com tures. really big problem.”

Both petitions are demanding enhanced acAlicia Hall, coordinator for L countability from Laurier’s administration.

People, explained that, due to t Within the free speech debate, many are in those being targeted to see facu associate McNally, professor up and push for equality on camp support of Shepherd’s actions, including several m ia ill -W students who are in her tutorial. They believe her “The overwhelming thought that I reprimand was unnecessary due to the neutral stance are allies?’” Hall said. she took within the class.

“Having other people be there and stan “[Shepherd] didn’t have a view point, she didn’t want to say and I’m really thankful that the person w anything. She just asked us what we thought and everyone kind form to invite other people to start stand Faculty signing the petition in defenc of spoke on that,” said Nathan Romero, a first-year student in however, have also received some backla film studies who was in one of Shepherd’s tutorial’s when the Peterson video was shown.

“Faculty and staff are scared to come to “There were a lot of questions about ignorance and about what this [topic] receiving threats, extensive rants on their means, that’s what could have made some people mad — it’s just not a wellmuch more. This weekend I was emailed known kind of thing.” ments saying that I need to return to ‘Clu In a previous interview with Shepherd, she also reiterated to The Cord that, “Our campus is not safe right now. Peo although her stance was neutral, some of the perspectives which her students a sad place to be. People have been silenc brought forth during the discussion which took place after she showed the video, hypocritical that some of those attacking could have been perceived as transphobic. speech.”

“I guess maybe some of the views that were expressed in the class may have For Finlay and Hall, a major issue and been perceived as transphobic; however that would be a complaint on behalf of support and resources that university adm the person who said it and not myself. I remember one guy said “I identify as a MacLatchy’s apology and beyond her sta pixie stick, please address me as a pixie stick.” And I mean, when I hear some“They didn’t address, at all, the actual c thing like that, I just [put on a] straight face,” Shepherd said. started this all and that’s the fact that wha A consensus among several students in Shepherd’s tutorial who spoke to The should be some type of measure taken to Cord was that the Peterson clip did not further Shepherd’s lesson on pronouns ed on our campus,” Hall said. in grammar. They agreed, however, that the video was a positive way to allow the Hall explained that, for many trans and class to engage in a discussion. apology from president MacLatchy indica “I don’t think it really did anything with the lesson but I feel like it was a good Laurier’s administration is freedom of ex topic to engage in especially because our class doesn’t really talk as much. It was respect for trans people in the communit

t upset People ge And at things. e should w not therefore nything discuss a ne gets that anyo ut? upset abo

URES

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017 • 9

te on campus

ien delves deeper into the m new perspectives

with but I don’t think it contributed to er, a first-year student in communication l. iscussing relevant topics in the news is als each week to spark discussion. tions — what’s going on in the world or were people talking on both sides, but it to tell people that they can’t talk about topic,” Romero said. orah MacLatchy released a public apoln an influx of hostility on campus and inbow Centre and individuals who have binary rights and against the subject

s Rainbow Centre, said the backlash p and has been both emotionally and

ch those Facebook comments have nderstand the context in which [trans t are so blatantly transphobic,”

ne-star reviews on their Facebook t appear to be WLU students or as received numerous messages hrough social media, emails, a ndividuals who have come to the resent. s what happens when trans ia that we’re experiencing or our communities,” Finlay said. in these conversations …. on where we are not safe in the spaces that we’ve already defined mmunities, then I think we have a

An apolog y is necessary, but so much mor e than an apolog y is necessary.

Laurier’s Centre for Women and Trans the hostility on campus, it is relieving for ulty and others in the community stand pus through the petition.

I couldn’t get out of my head is ‘where

nd up for us, it really does feel amazing who created the petition made that platding up as well.” ce of trans and non-binary students, ash. o work right now. Some professors are r work phones and work emails, and d by someone making anti-semitic comub Med Levant,’” Bird said in a statement. ople feel exposed and threatened. It is ced out of fear of being attacked. It is g us are claiming to be proponents of free

concern is the lack of accountability, ministration has addressed, both within atement. core issue at hand which is really what at Lindsay did was harmful. There o ensure that trans students are protect-

d non-binary folks on campus, the ated to them that the main priority for xpression in contrast to the safety and ty.

Furthermore, in an earlier statement released by the university, it was announced that an independent third party would be conducting an investigation surrounding the situation in order to neutrally gather facts from all parties and to assess how to move forward.

“I think that it was a premature apology, and by not going through the channels that the university itself played out in order to provide a voice for trans students and for everyone else, certain voices were very much left out of the equation and this has now been incorporated into the way the university presents itself on this issue,” Finlay said.

McNally, however, believes that the defence of free speech rights is a separate issue from trans and non-binary rights.

“I just don’t think trans rights are part of this. Trans people should absolutely have rights and be equal like anybody else, you never want to compromise those rights, trample on their rights or anything. I just think that’s a separate topic here,” McNally said.

“There’s a world view that sees every event through the lens of oppression of minority groups and can’t interpret events in any other way and so they’re looking at this and going … this is all about just trying to silence transgendered people. And that’s not at all what it’s about. It’s not re-lated to that, it’s just related to the ability of people at universities to engage in pretty much any topic of inquiry that they want to without censor.”

McNally iterated that there’s a fine balance between protecting rights of inclusivity and rights of free speech.

“People get upset at things. And should we therefore not discuss anything that anyone gets upset about? It’s not just transgender students.

There’s lots of topics — what about gay rights, gay marriage, what about climate change?”

- Toby Fin McNally said. at Laurier’slay, administrator Rainbow C Finlay, however, explained that there are inherentre ent power dynamics that are frequently misunderstood within this debate and the discussions that are being had.

“You have one side of the conversation that is tasked with defending their experiences of gender and reality against the other side which refuses to respect and uphold their experience of gender,” Finlay said.

“These are conversations that fundamentally ask us to defend our sense of reality to operate from a position where we are already at a disadvantage in the debate because we are already having ourselves put into question and I think that people who don’t have to experience that won’t see, or many won’t see, the really harmful implications of this.”

McNally said that developing a system in which both sides of this debate are satisfied would be difficult.

“You’ve got to balance free speech against other rights like inclusivity. I don’t even know how to implement that. Those two things are going to come into conflict at some point, and then the question is who exactly gets to speak and who doesn’t,” McNally said.

“That just worries me. That gets into very repressive environments, potentially, where you’re forbidden to say certain things and I don’t think that’s what a university is all about.”

Trans and non-binary individuals and their allies, however, have reiterated that this debate has essentially silenced their voices and, as a result, they will continue to seek proper support and an apology in regards to the lack of inclusivity being brought forth by the university.

“An apology is necessary, but so much more than an apology is necessary,” Finlay said.

“Adequate supports are needed to be put in place, preventative strategies that will provide trans folks safety in the future from these forms of violence that are targeting them … there’s so much more that needs to be done and this is particularly ridiculous when nothing has been done as of this point.”

PHOTOS BY: TANZEEL SAYANI/PHOTO EDITOR & GARRISON OOSTERHOF/ WEB DIRECTOR LAYOUT BY: MADELINE MCINNIS/CREATIVE DIRECTOR

10 •

Arts & Life

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017 ARTS & LIFE EDITOR SHYENNE MACDONALD arts@thecord.ca

ACTIVITIES

Arts & crafts with The Cord You get to a certain point in the semester where you just can’t read anymore. We, at The Cord, understand that struggle. We too get tired of reading from time to time.

That’s why we’ve taken it upon ourselves to give you suggestions of what you can do with The Cord when you can’t look at another word. You may recall that last issue met a troubling demise, so to avoid such tragedies for the future, check out our list compiled by the Editorial Board.

If you must tear us apart, do so creatively. Here’s the Ed Board’s suggestions on what to do if you’re done reading 1) A Bust for Extra Credit: Try a Papier-mâché bust of your professor. Of course we can’t guarantee it will work — no professor has written to us in pleas that we suggest you take on an art project — but you never know, often the best gifts are the most unexpected.

2) Make a hat: Nothing says stylish than wearing the latest issue of The Cord on your head. Dazzle the whole university with this bold fashion choice!

3) Use us as a doormat: Want to literally walk all over us? Throw a few copies of The Cord on the ground and keep your shoes clean!

4) Make a raft: Sometimes life’s

troubles become too much to handle, grab a few dozen stacks of The Cord and try to float away from it all.

6) Make 10,000 paper airplanes: Could you really use a wish right now? A la B.o.B, pretend these newsworthy planes are shooting stars!

7) Build a house: Worried about the current housing market? So are we. Try and build a house out of newspaper, after all those avocadoes we’ll need all the help we can get.

8) Bring out your inner Pablo Escobar: But instead of two million dollars, burn 1000 copies of The

Cord (because you don’t have two million dollars and you are not Pablo Escobar).

9) Get loud: Nothing says fun like DIY noise-makers. If you roll up The Cord, it actually turns into a decent horn!

10) Get revenge: On house flies, that is. It’s common knowledge that newspapers are the world’s best fly-swatters.

But the absolute best thing you can do with The Cord? Actually read it. We put hours of effort into designing a paper worthy of Wilfrid Laurier University and while everyone may not agree with what gets published it’s still important to remain informed. So, before you embark on these creative endeavours — which, by the way, we definitely recommend ones that wouldn’t endanger your life — try reading the paper first.

11) Special Snowflakes: Nothing says special like holiday decorations that are up-to-date with campus news.

12) Let’s wrap this up: does anyone actually buy wrapping paper

MUSIC

Big Sugar is a big success!

KURTIS RIDEOUT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

On Saturday, Nov. 25 I had the pleasure of seeing Big Sugar for the first time. Finally. I say finally because I have been waiting to see them in concert since the first time I heard “Turn the Lights On” in the back of my uncle’s van when I was five.

“This is my favourite song,” I declared.

Big Sugar intersects in a lot of weird ways for me personally. For example, songs like “All Hell for a Basement” — which details the struggles that Newfoundlander’s face when they head out west to find work — hits very close to home, as my Newfie relatives made their own journey’s to the mainland seeking out opportunity among other things.

The band also has an apparent fascination with the American car brand Dodge — not unlike my own father and brother — as they seem to reference them on at least two of their album covers.

I walked into Maxwell’s with some expectations. Those expectations were not what one might have guessed though.

As a band that is quickly approaching their 30-year mark, I did not place too much hope on the

energy of the group.

More of my anticipations were based around whether or not they would play the hits — which they definitely did.

When the band opened up with a recent cut, titled “Never Been Done Before”, front man and guitar player, Gordie Johnson had a clear message to convey.

The band’s set was filled with improvised jams, genre blending and, of course, the perfect amount of Canadiana.

“I’m back to let ya’ll know / I’m here / let’s get on with the show.”

The band launched into their set with intensity and passion, spearheaded by their guitar virtuoso of a front man.

Instantly I realized that this group did not intend on slowing down any time soon.

Soon after they began their set, they satisfied the hungry crowd with their very first hit, “Diggin’ a Hole”.

“I’m feeling twice my age,” Johnson crooned into the microphone

over the chunky, distorted guitar riff.

Not a very accurate statement these days, if you ask me. I had to have been the youngest person in the 19 plus crowd, and Johnson — who in 2012 was told by doctor’s that he might not play guitar again — appeared to have twice as much energy as I do on any given Saturday night. Never mind the fact that they played the Danforth in Toronto just 24 hours prior.

The band’s set was filled with improvised jams, genre blending and, of course, the perfect amount of Canadiana.

After debuting some new songs, Johnson thanked the audience for their patience and proceeded to dive right back into the classics, making generous use of his slide, a talk box and also switching back and forth between his signature and double-neck guitars.

Before re-returning to the stage for a multitude of encores, the band collected in front of the audience and opened up “All Hell for a Basement” with an intimate penny whistle jam.

“Do you know how hard it was to find someone to play the maritime penny whistle?” Johnson asked the crowd, minutes before he exploded into an intense rendition of O Canada.

When they finished the national anthem Johnson flipped his double-neck guitar upside down behind his head, revealing a large, custom painting of a Canadian flag.

SADMAN SAKIB RAHMAN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

ARTS & LIFE • 11

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017 SOCIAL MEDIA The world needs to see how cute I am with bear ears (which is very).

Instagram 1. If you’re in a relationship, don’t go on a double-tap spree on somebody else’s selfies. If you think that’s controlling, too bad, you don’t get to do whatever you want all the time. Respect your partner enough to act like you’re in a relationship, even when you’re online.

2. Don’t let your friend’s photo’s go unliked.

If your friend only has five likes, then it’s your obligation to swoop in there like a hero and throw on a comment for good measure. I assure you, they’ve done the same.

3. Don’t crop someone out of the photo. Who is that mysterious elbow floating beside you? To whom does that phantom foot belong?

We’ll never know because you had to be the centre of attention and crop them out.

ALAN LI/GRAPHIC EDITOR

Don’t be a tool, follow the rules!

The unwritten laws of social media in the age of receipts be following for Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

Snapchat SHYENNE MACDONALD ARTS & LIFE EDITOR

Is social media presence becoming too muddled for you to understand? Are you lost? Take my proverbial hand and allow me to guide you through this mess we’ve all helped to create. Here are the unwritten rules you should always

1. I’m not going to say don’t snap drunk — because there’s nothing more simultaneously terrifying and amusing of going through your story the next morning. But my advice is to never try to snap a specific person drunk, it’s like drunk texting but so much worse. I learned that one the hard way.

2. If someone has the courtesy

to send you a humorous and ugly snap, have the courtesy to send one back.

Someone went out of their way to make themselves ugly to make you laugh and you don’t even send back a “lol”?

3. Try not to post to your story and then send the same snap to someone individually.

Okay, I’ve been guilty of this, but here’s my excuse: if I look adorable in a snap — those filters make us all so cute — I don’t want just one person to see it.

4. Don’t use inspirational quotes. Using anything that can be found on BrainyQuote stopped being unique during the Myspace era, at least attempt originality.

Facebook Is there a dumpster fire worse than Facebook? No. We all hate it, but we’re sick and we can’t log off.

There’s no amount of rules to save it, but lets try some anyways.

1. Don’t be a cryptic. There’s nothing more aggravating than a vague post. “Now I know I was a fool.”

Give me the details! If I’m on this site wasting my life away at least make it worth while and share why you’re such fool.

2. Online PDA is worse than real life PDA. If you see a couple making out on bench you can go, “gross … but young love” and walk away.

Seeing those endless posts about how “I’ve finally found my true love” is probably the fakest thing we see on a regular basis. We all see through your façade and it’s an unstable relationship that you feel you need to validate on Facebook.

For shame.

3. Mind your unfriending. Anyone you’ve met in post-secondary I would keep on your roster. It’s shocking who becomes successful after they complete their undergraduate. That person who barely made it through your first-year seminar may be useful to you outside the lecture hall. Keep it in mind next time you go through a purge on your friends list.

Twitter 1. Don’t vie for followers. It’s desperate, you can do better than a #followforfollow. And if you can’t, accept that like the rest of us you’re just not that interesting.

Not everyone is going to be a social media star and why would you want to be?

2. Remember that everything is public. To avoid making a serious blunder a la Ted Cruz, keep those likes in mind. Your boss can easily go and check what you’ve been liking, so keep it PG. 3. Follow your dreams. If you know someone who is successful in the field you want to enter, follow their twitter. You’d be surprised what you learn. I follow David Gaider, creator of the Dragon Age video game series. I get tons of tips about writing and working in video games.

We have a chance to paint whatever picture we want of ourselves. It’s easy to mess up and pull “receipts” on each other. But follow these golden rules and you should be able to come out of this social media hellscape with the best version of yourself on display for the world to see.

12 •

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

Editorial

OPINION EDITOR EMILY WAITSON opinion@thecord.ca

Destroying our paper does nothing to silence our voices flow of information to the student body, it trashed the countless hours of work put in by The Cord’s staff and volunteers, as well as the high cost that goes into printing these papers every week.

It is not up to one person or a group of people to destroy other people’s copies that they technically pay for with their tuition, hindering their right to engage with news and be informed.

Their goal — whatever that ill intentioned idea may be — is fruitless, as the paper has gotten more positive attention from this occurring than anything negative.

Our community is filled with various opinions and stances on issues happening in our world today.

There should be other ways to voice how you feel if you’re against what we publish, all of which are open to people to communicate through in a productive and civil manner.

All Laurier students are welcome to volunteer to write for The Cord and use their articles as a platform to share their opinions. As well, you can also submit a letter to the editor or an anonymous Dear Life to express any concerns.

Though our efforts as a team were insulted, we won’t allow this incident to affect our work moving forward. Our integrity as a media platform has not been compromised and we work to incorporate as many voices as possible with the channels we have available to do so.

Amidst all of this controversy, we have come together to rise above these actions and prove that our voice as a news publication will not be silenced, despite those who try to prove otherwise.

On Nov. 22, hundreds of copies of The Cord were destroyed at several of our distribution spots. Shortly afterwards, a pile of ripped up newspapers were left on our office doorstep.

The response to these actions has been primarily beneficial, but it’s also provided others with a means to pick sides with their own politically fuelled debates.

It is important moving forward from this incident, that people don’t make speculations about the reasons behind these actions.

Furthering the divide between two sides of the recent free speech controversy, many have used this to score political points regarding who they believe is responsible.

Currently, we believe that what happened to the newspapers is not affiliated with the content regarding Lindsay Shepherd that was in the paper last week.

We are still waiting for more information to come out about this and everyone still doesn’t know all of the details regarding it.

Knowing this, it is important that, moving forward, the focus is placed on the behaviour itself, rather than the reason behind it. Beyond making assumptions regarding the logic of this conduct, the outcome has indicated that one person’s actions do not reflect an entire group.

Regardless, if they were against the actual cover and content, they’re not accurately representing any movement effectively and the outpouring of support from various sources has proven this.

The destruction of these newspapers holds more of an impact than what may be assumed.

Ripping up at least a few hundred papers not only blocked the

ALAN LI/GRAPHICS EDITOR

The other side of free speech ALAN LI GRAPHICS EDITOR

These unsigned editorials are based off informal discussions and then agreed upon by the majority of The Cord’s editorial board, including the Editor-in-Chief and Opinion Editor. The arguments made may reference any facts that have been made available through interviews, documents or other sources. The views presented do not necessarily reflect those of The Cord’s volunteers, staff or WLUSP.

THE CORD IS PUBLISHED BY WILFRID LAURIER UNIVERSITY STUDENT PUBLICATIONS 205 REGINA ST. N., WATERLOO

WLUSP ADMINISTRATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS CHAIR Andreas Patsiaouros VICE-CHAIR Lisa Irimescu DIRECTOR Alan Li DIRECTOR Benjamin Cooke

DIRECTOR/CORPORATE SECRETARY Noa Salamon

PRESIDENT Andreas Patsiaouros president@wlusp.com

DIRECTOR Hayley H.G. Watson

FINANCE MANAGER Randy Moore randy@rcmbrooks. com

DIRECTOR Rosalind Horne TREASURER John Pehar

ADVERTISING MANAGER Caroline Lucas care.lucas@wlusp. com

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Lakyn Barton lakyn.barton@wlusp. com HR MANAGER Paige Bush hr@wlusp.com WEB MANAGER Sam Nabi sam.nabi@wlusp.com

When somebody has the courage to admit that they feel unsafe, my instinctive reaction would be to try and understand why.

I find the Lindsay Shepherd controversy so appalling because in the ensuing media storm there has been a startling lack of analysis about why the complaint was issued in the first place. Media outlets, students, professors, alumni and spectators have decided that the appropriate reaction to a student(s) feeling of vulnerability is to pivot the discussion and argue that professor Nathan Rambukkana’s actions were an infringement on freedom of speech instead, without making an honest effort to understand why Rambukkana thought those actions were needed.

That’s why I am so ambivalent about president MacLatchy’s apology. On one hand, I feel like Shepherd’s disciplinary meeting was conducted in an unprofessional manner, and I do think that she deserves an apology for that.

On the other hand, I’m concerned that the apology is going to

reinforce a narrative that “university students are using ‘hurt feelings’ as a tactic to shut down ideas that they dislike,” because this narrative is too often used to dismiss complaints made by students without giving them due process.

Why might a clip of Jordan Peterson, played ‘neutrally’ without first contextualizing the debate, be inappropriate for the classroom?

It’s important to recognize that professors curate the content they present. On any given issue, they exclude perspectives that are ridiculous and untrue. When two sides are presented neutrally in the classroom it implies that the professor, and by extension the university, believes that both sides are reasonable.

Peterson came to prominence after refusing to call his trans students by their pronouns in the classroom, a decision which he explained to be a reaction to the government’s debate over Bill C-16.

If you believe that a teacher has a responsibility to make reasonable accommodations to help their students succeed, like I do, I think we can recognize that it is irresponsible to sacrifice the well-being of an already marginalized group of students in order to make a statement.

Furthermore, after rising to prominence, Peterson decided

to make a crowdfunding page to support the dissemination of his views, earning over half a million dollars a year. Note that Peterson knows that a large portion of this support come from members of the alt-right who repurpose his content to advocate for the ridicule and assault of trans students. Despite that, Peterson never directly confronts his alt-right followers and continues to receive financial support from them.

Finally, and most unbelievably of all, Peterson openly participates in the “doxxing” — the release of personal information — of trans students and their allies online.

The individuals “doxxed” by Peterson and his followers wake up to find dozens of hate messages and death threats. It is only with immense public pressure that Peterson apologized and denounced these actions.

If I were a trans student, seeing this man portrayed as a reasonable authority on gender pronouns would terrify me.

So I quietly implore those of us who identify as reasonable, non-partisan thinkers — please stop oversimplifying this debate.

Universities are currently facing a problem that requires a great deal of sensitivity, empathy and nuance from both sides — because after all, we are fighting to make Laurier a better place for students.

• 13

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

Opinion

OPINION EDITOR EMILY WAITSON opinion@thecord.ca

Trans and non-binary students deserve a voice

the space to speak — or if you are harassed and attacked when you do — then “freedom of speech” doesn’t actually matter, or benefit you to say the least.

It is being made clear that those who have the platform to share their perspectives are not concerning themselves with the fact that there is a large, mostly unacknowledged group that doesn’t share the same set of privileges.

We have talked a lot about “freedom of speech” throughout these past weeks.

But we have given almost no time to address how trans and non-binary students — as well as staff and community members — have been impacted by the growing amounts of transphobia on the Laurier campuses. We need to be giving space to trans and non-binary folks who have been, since day one, asking for their voices to be heard.

We need to acknowledge that

“debates” that invalidate the existence of trans and non-binary people, or dehumanize us based on gender, are both a form of transphobia and a form of gendered violence.

And we need to acknowledge that there is no “neutral” way to demand that someone defend their existence and their right to a safe school and work environment.

In the past few years we have seen conversations around trans and non-binary individuals and their experiences take the world at storm.

We have seen actresses and writers — such as Laverne Cox and Janet Mock — carve out spaces for themselves in industries that actively resist such advances.

We have seen increased push for awareness around trans specific issues.

But we have also seen increases in public conversation made to

dehumanize and to demonize us.

Our desire to use bathrooms that we feel most comfortable in has become an international debate.

Our lack of access to resources such as health care and housing has been ignored.

And, on Nov. 20 — while this media storm was taking place — we mourned the highest rate of deaths ever recorded for trans women of colour murdered across North America.

Still, when we speak out, we are often reminded that “the world is hard and you just need to toughen up” or that “we would never make it in the real world.”

Believe me, we know the real world is tough.

We live and die in it every day.

With trans and non-binary folks of color — particularly trans women of colour — facing some of the harshest backlash, that is already apparent.

But this, far from proving our invalidity, proves that we are resilient.

That we have continuously fought for our right to safety and security, and that we will continue to do so, wherever we are.

Trans and non-binary people exist. We have always existed and we always will. This is fact.

Our rights are not up for public debate.

Our existence is not up for public debate.

Our safety and survival is not up for public debate.

regions that are not a part of a fair trade system haven’t even tasted chocolate.

Fair trade guarantees that cocoa will be distributed among local regions as well, so that what is grown is not entirely for distant countries.

According to Fair Trade U.K., 25 per cent of all fair trade cocoa growers are women.

This helps increase the status and importance of women in these communities.

Women are often paid much less than men and do not own any land that they work on.

As a result of the lack of ownership, this leads to the inability for women to get a line of credit or loans to increase the quality of their crops and obtain better equipment so that working conditions are less harsh.

Fair trade allows for equal pay so that women can invest in their farms.

Education is a key aspect to cocoa communities and with Fairtrade Africa training cocoa farmers on financial management.

Farmers and importantly, women farmers, are given an education.

The improvement of education and equal pay allows for children’s lives to remain carefree from forced labor.

The cocoa production in Ghana and the Ivory Coast is at an all time high and environmental problems also arise because of it.

Some of the problems include: water and soil contamination from harsh pesticides, ozone layer depletion and abiotic depletion.

Fairtrade chocolate benefits our planet by pushing cocoa compa-

nies to follow fair trade environmental steps.

It helps develop sustainable harvests that increase biodiversity and preserve valuable ecosystems.

On top of that, fair trade decreases the need of harsh chemical pesticides as most of the cocoa is grown in shade which actually helps farmers of a variety of products such as fresh fruit.

This chocolate proves to be a safer alternative for intake and minimizes our environmental footprint on the earth.

The registered brands provided

by Fairtrade Canada are: Cadbury, Divine, Ross Chocolates, Theobroma, Valrhona, Rochef, Whistler Chocolate, OMG’s Candy, Prana and many more.

Over 1500 chocolate products bear the Fairtrade label.

JAY RIDEOUT OPINION COLUMNIST

Over the last few weeks, I’ve watched an endless stream of articles get published alleging that “freedom of speech” is under attack at Wilfrid Laurier University.

A number of articles have also been written from the perspective of individuals who have claimed that they are being silenced by the university and the community; a situation that seems to be filled with irony, to say the least.

But here’s the thing: it becomes harder to weigh in on a conversation when that conversation is about your own right to safety and security.

It becomes harder to remain calm and articulate yourself when that conversation is about whether or not you — and everyone like you — are legitimate and worthy of care and support.

And, frankly, it’s harder to have a conversation when the vast majority of public discourse is saying that a debate about your existence is solely tied to “freedom of speech” and should, in turn, be celebrated.

I am speaking now as a non-binary staff member and I — as well as other trans and non-binary folks on campus — am saying that our

TANZEEL SAYANI/PHOTO EDITOR

voices are the ones that are actively being silenced. And when we vocalize this, we are met with great backlash.

We are told that we are not being silenced; that we are just too sensitive.

That we’re over reacting and that the real issue here is that we are aiming to take away others’ rights to free expression.

But if I ask anything from the Laurier community and others right now, it is to recognize those whose voices they are hearing the most. The ones who have been quoted by most major news sources.

Who is getting endless time to explain their perspective on this story? And more importantly, who is not?

“Freedom of Speech” is an interesting thing. See, it only works for those who already have a voice and a platform. If you are not given

Ethics of chocolate ADINA TURKONJE STAFF WRITER

Chocolate is one of the world’s favourite products, but producing it presents harsh difficulties, as it poses tough tasks for cocoa farmers.

Most people don’t have a clue where their chocolate bar was made or by who.

The Ivory Coast produces the largest volume of chocolate and 40 per cent of global supply. The primary locations of growth are regions of Africa, Latin America and Asia.

The high demand for it means the increase of its international price.

The Dark Side of Chocolate, a 2010 documentary directed by Danish journalist Miki Mistrati, exposed the chocolate industry of exploitation and slavery for forcing children to harvest chocolate even after certain industries pledged to end it.

The footage was shot with a secret camera that showed viewers the truth about big chocolate companies, their race for profits and

their careless attitudes towards the exploitation of children.

In a study provided by Tulane University in 2010, it was revealed that over 1.8 million children work on cocoa farms in Ghana and the Ivory Coast.

These children work in harsh conditions where they are forced to work on the farm and are withheld from attending school.

Ghana and the Ivory Coast live on less than a dollar a day and poverty has become the result of it.

Fair trade helps places like Ghana and the Ivory Coast by guaranteeing minimum prices by investing in local communities so that farmers and communities have a better future ahead.

And the cocoa used in fair trade chocolate isn’t harvested by children.

Buying fair trade chocolate does make an impact on the lives of cocoa farmers and their families.

According to Fairtrade Canada, as of 2014, there are 140,000 fairtrade cocoa farmers in Western Africa.

The sale volumes for cocoa fair trade grew by 17 per cent.

Through the system of fair trade, workers are paid fairly and healthcare institutions, housing facilities and schools are improved in the process.

Most cocoa farmers in these

ALAN LI/GRAPHICS EDITOR

14 • OPINION

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

ALAN LI/GRAPHICS EDITOR

The value of the Justice League SAM TUNDUP STAFF WRITER

I once wondered what makes the Justice League so powerful, besides heroes that have superpowers that everybody dreams of having.

I’m counting down the days un-

til I get the chance to see the new Justice League movie that’s coming out, a film that I’ve been waiting to watch for over a decade.

Prior to watching the trailer I realized just how many life lessons I’ve learned from this group of heroes.

This movie certainly conjures up a lot of childhood memories, but I mainly look back on how the Justice League taught me the value of teamwork.

They represent the importance

of having others by your side when facing challenges, something that holds a great deal of meaning behind it.

I believe that no matter where you are in your life, knowing how to work with others is a crucial skill.

Especially when you want to accomplish an important task that you can’t do alone.

Looking at the Justice League, I’m aware that each hero has their own unique skillset.

They have traits that can accomplish many wonders, but when trying to save the world from destruction from the likes of Lex Luthor, Darkseid, or more recently Steppenwolf, every vigilante has learned one cannot always do everything.

For instance, Batman is the brains of the group but has no superpowers.

Superman is invulnerable to every kind of threat except Kryptonite.

Aquaman can talk to sea life, but can get dehydrated like a normal human.

From pointing out these weaknesses, the Justice League has continuously reminded people from all walks of life that they’re not perfect.

However, each individual brings something special to the table that the other heroes can benefit from.

What I also found inspiring about the Justice League is that all heroes continuously chucked their egos out the door.

They began to trust and work alongside one another when trying to save the world from a threat that was bigger than one hero could handle alone.

In contrast to the real world, I’m always thankful that I have a team that is willing to support me when I need help.

Whether it’s school or any of the places I volunteer at, I have always learned something new from a fellow teammate.

It’s important to realize that we individually all have our unique abilities much like superheroes, but when we unite with others we are much stronger.

From teachers, students and employees, teamwork is essential when aiming to achieve goals and solutions.

From watching the Justice

League, I’ve always got enjoyment by helping students, friends and co-workers.

I realized that playing to a teammate’s ability can be beneficial.

I think it’s important to realize that you don’t always have to be alone when facing challenges in life.

This movie certainly conjures up a lot of childhood memories, but I mainly look back on how the Justice League taught me the value of teamwork.

Having a good team player at your side can certainly help reduce stress and difficulty.

I have applied the teachings of the Justice League in my life as it has made me a stronger person.

Working together can lead to so many positive outcomes.

You can apply it to anything from learning new skills, succeeding at difficult tasks, self discovery and improvement which I have seen happen.

I find it heartwarming that we can find strength from helping one another and receiving it from others.

In comparison to the Justice League, we all have our own power that makes us awesome and unique.

However, there is a team somewhere out there who is willing to help make you more powerful.

Watching movies shouldn’t be a social experience KARLIS WILDE FEATURES EDITOR

Somehow, the concept of going to see a film has become tied up with forms of direct interaction; a person goes to the show with friends, or on a date.

This is curious and especially flawed because cinema is not inherently a social experience. A movie — at least a good movie — is generally crafted to captivate the senses.

It is a visual and audial experience that is intended to fully capture one’s attention and enrapture them in the world contained onscreen.

I love movies, and I love the cinematic experience of sitting disconnected from the world for several hours in a dark room, watching thoughtful dialogue and brilliant action unfold on big screens.

But the way our world consumes movies is beginning to destroy the sanctity of that experience.

What a person does in their own living room is their own choice: if

someone decides to turn on the television and then divide their attention between it and conversations with the people around them, or if they decide to play on their phone for the entire duration, that’s their own choice.

These products are made in formats consumable within the home, by whatever terms a person wants to organize that experience.

But when you extend this method to the confines of the cinema — and this is hard to say without sounding like the cheap, nagging ads that play before the movie — you’re disrupting people around you.

And, worse, you’re actually actively detracting from the cinematic experience.

Because when you talk to your friends, when you pull out your phone, you’re not just momentarily interrupting the scene; you’re pulling the people around you out of their deep involvement with the picture unfolding onscreen.

You’re severing an intimate bond between a person and a work of art.

And Snapchat? Two of the four times I’ve gone to the movies in the last three weeks people have pulled out their phones to record scenes from the screen to send

LUKE SARAZIN/LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER

to their friends — an act that not only flashes rude, bright lights all around the cinema and in the eyes of those sitting behind you, but even qualifies as a downright illegal reproduction of a film to which you do not hold any of the rights.

There is no right or wrong in any of this — except for the criminal fact of unauthorized reproduction — and, in recent trips, I’ve noticed less and less enforcement of notalking and no cell phone policies in theatres.

People talk more during movies

than they used to and people text more during movies, no matter how detrimental it is to the cinematic experience.

That’s a part of the latest generation: our attentions are divided between a thousand different things at once. You can’t exactly mandate a method by which everyone is forced to enjoy films in the same way.

And movie theatres — at least the big ones — are corporate institutions that care less about preserving the art and experience

of cinema than they do about the bottom line.

What can a person even do?

It’s a sad state of things when the experience itself is diluted so that texters and talkers are to be the new typical clientele of the cinema.

Maybe that’s the sad future and maybe that’s the death of film. Maybe the folks like me, the ones who actually enjoy watching movies, are no longer the crowd catered to in the cinema.

Maybe we will just have to stay home.

15 •

Sports

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017 SPORTS EDITOR PRANAV DESAI sports@thecord.ca

MEN’S HOCKEY

Laurier pulls off biggest win of the season JOSEPH DEFILIPPIS CORD SPORTS

The Wilfrid Laurier University men’s hockey team suffered a tough defeat at home to Concordia this past weekend, before rebounding with an upset victory over top ranked McGill.

In the first game of the weekend on Friday night, the Concordia Stingers squeezed out a 3-1 win over the Golden Hawks at Sun Life Arena. Concordia would get on the board early, with Philippe Sanche picking up a goal for the Stingers inside the first five minutes of play.

The Stingers’ lead would grow to 3-0 before the 15-minute mark of the first period, prompting Laurier to pull goalie Chris Festarini in favour of Colin Furlong.

Despite being behind a few goals, the Hawks didn’t quit, playing a strong second period.

This was capped off with a late goal from Trevor Sauder, pulling Laurier within two heading into the third.

However, Concordia held onto this lead until the final buzzer, largely thanks to a phenomenal third period from goalie Marc-Antoine Turcotte, who finished the contest with stopping 23 of 24 attempts.

“I thought for the most part it was a pretty evenly played game,” head coach Greg Puhalski said

DOTUN JIDE/CORD PHOTOGRAPHY

about his team’s performance following the loss.

“We made some bad mistakes and they were able to capitalize early. Sometimes the game is about making the most of your opportunities and Concordia did [that] when they had their chances.”

When asked about potential areas of improvement, Puhalski

stated that “a lot of the opportunities that Concordia got offensively were when we mismanaged the puck and turned it over.”

“We had full control of the puck and we tried to make too much of a play when a play wasn’t there to be made,” Puhalski said.

Game two of the weekend saw Laurier pull off one of their biggest

wins of the season so far; a 5-2 defeat of a very strong McGill team, who are currently ranked fifth in all of Canada.

The Golden Hawks got on the score sheet in the first period with a goal from Brandon Robinson, but still found themselves trailing 2-1 going into the second.

Laurier would pull the game back to even, with Christian Mroczkowski picking up his first goal of the season, just a few minutes into the second period.

The Hawks saw an opportunity to pull off the upset and didn’t squander their chances.

Andrew Fritsch scored early in the third period, and Laurier added two more late, on route to handing McGill their second loss in their last ten games.

Robinson added an assist on Fritsch’s eventual game winner, which along with his first period goal, helped him increase his team lead in points to 12.

Colin Furlong followed up his solid relief effort in Friday night’s game with a strong 28 save performance in the win.

At the midway point of the season, the Golden Hawks find themselves with a 9-3-2 record, good enough for third place in the OUA West Division.

Laurier’s next game will be taking place at 11 a.m. on Nov. 30 against the University of Waterloo.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Battling adversity ABDULHAMID IBRAHIM LEAD SPORTS REPORTER

After two straight weekends at home, the Wilfrid Laurier University women’s basketball team got back on the road as they headed to Toronto to play the University of Toronto Varsity Blues and the Ryerson Rams.

The Varsity Blues were their first opponent of the weekend. U of T got right to it, wasting no time at the beginning of the game.

Playing with plenty of energy and with a “get after it” mentality, they jumped out to a 20-10 lead at the end of the first only allowing Laurier to score on four field goals.

Laurier livened up though, as they opened the second quarter with an 8-1 run.

U of T got back on their feet soon enough and did not allow the Hawks to get within less than three points.

Winning the turnover battle and dominating the offensive glass, the Blues would go into halftime up eight.

In the third quarter, things got interesting. Laurier would slowly chip away at U of T’s lead, even taking the lead at one point, playing better than they had earlier in the game on both ends of the floor.

They went on an 8-1 run in the last 2:27 to finish out the quarter down one, with the score being 49-48.

The fourth turned out to be quite the battle. About halfway through quarter, U of T went up 57-55 after a 6-0 run.

Following that, Laurier went on a 7-0 run that U of T answered with a 6-0 run, taking a 63-62 lead with 1:37 left.

Fast forward to it being 65-65; Irena Rynkiewicz hit a 3-pointer with 26 seconds left.

With Keyira Parkes of U of T only able to make two out of three free throws, down three and with 18 seconds left, Nicole Morrison sealed it with a free throw, making the final score 69-67 for Laurier.

“The biggest thing was our defensive intensity against U of T. In the first quarter, it wasn’t there. We knew they were a good rebounding team, they rebound from the guard position as well as they do from the forward position and that really hurt us,” head coach, Paul Falco said.

“I think the girls dug in and we slowly chipped away and we were able to get the stops we needed, the rebounds we needed and that got our transition game going. That was a big part of that comeback.”

TANZEEL SAYANI/PHOTO EDITOR

Next up were the Ryerson Rams, who ran out of the gates with a 13-2 run in under three minutes, forcing an early timeout by Laurier to set things straight.

They came out of the timeout playing better on both ends, but ultimately finished the quarter down nine.

“Well, we had to try and find a way to stop [Rams forward Sofia] Paska inside. We tried to change our double team on her and try and make someone else hurt us and sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn’t,” Falco said.

In the second quarter, Ryerson came out holding Laurier down for much of the quarter.

With 2:30 left, a shot-clock

buzzer beating three-pointer by Leyki Sorri of Ryerson pushed the lead to 13.

After a three for an answer from Brianna Iannazzo, Ryerson closed the quarter on an 8-0 run in the last 1:08.

Capped off by a buzzer-beating three pointer from Sofia Paska of the Rams, Ryerson went up 18 going into halftime.

In the third quarter, Laurier turned it out around. For the first 5:13 of the quarter, Laurier would go on a 10-2 run cutting the lead down to 10.

After being able to cut the lead down to seven with 2:35 to go, Ryerson pushed back, finishing the quarter up 11 again.

“I thought we battled for rebounds better in that third quarter, and anytime we get stops and rebounds, we’re usually a pretty good transition team,” Falco said.

“And I think we got our transition game going and we started finishing a little better. We were able to knock down some shots and get to the free throw line and sort of get back in it.”

In the fourth, Ryerson started out on a 6-0 run pushing the lead to 17. From there, the lowest the Rams let their lead fall to was 11, as they went on to win 72-59.

Next up for Laurier will be a matchup against the Waterloo Warriors on Dec. 1 at home looking to get to 6-4 heading into the break.

16 • SPORTS

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2017

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Road woes continue for the Golden Hawks JOHN MCMORRAN STAFF WRITER

On a two game road-trip to Toronto, the Wilfrid Laurier men’s basketball team faced off against the University of Toronto on Friday night and Ryerson University on Saturday night.

The Golden Hawks returned home having lost both games, but head coach Justin Serresse sounded more like a coach on a mission than one guiding a team on a three-game losing streak.

“We’re a team that never gives up. I don’t like when people give up on themselves. I’m a competitor so I don’t want my team to ever, ever, ever quit. That’s how we were able to keep [both games] close.”

This determination was displayed by the rapid turnaround in performance between the game against U of T and the game against Ryerson.

When describing the mistakes that cost them the game against U of T, Coach Serresse said, “definitely our turnovers. We struggled at times, but it’s not like it was through the whole game. We had

TANZEEL SAYANI/PHOTO EDITOR

quarters with two or three turnovers, then quarters with seven or eight.”

Alternately, against Ryerson, the Golden Hawks stood toe-to-toe with last year’s OUA champions and didn’t bat an eye, heading into the half down by only three points.

Unfortunately, the performance petered out in the third quarter, but the toughness and effort required for victory was evident during the entire match.

“We actually made a run against [a zone defense] we don’t see often. We were executing really well in the second quarter. There were quarters we [won] tonight.”

With the second youngest roster in the OUA and a second-year head coach at the helm, Laurier is experiencing growing pains, but on a team brimming with talent and potential, these pains seem fixable rather than fatal.

Going forward, coach Serresse

described his points of emphasis as follows: “Turnovers and rebounding are the two things that we want to take care of every night, [they are] something we can control.”

Coach Serresse proceeded to explain what it will take to win during the second stretch of the season: “We’re a young team ... we can’t get down. If you don’t love the grind, then you don’t deserve to be a winner. We’re going to [have] some

games like that. It’s just eliminating those young mistakes, from players to coaches.”

“I made a lot of mistakes last night [in the game against U of T].

I wasn’t happy with my coaching.

There’s a few things we need to clean up. We can’t be bothered and we can’t be sad. We just have to keep working,” Serresse said.

Looking forward to the game against Waterloo, the Golden Hawks will try to snap their three game skid and enter the winter break on a positive note. “We have a lot of young guys and the university lifestyle is brand new for them. The first semester is always the most challenging, so I think it’s going to be good for us to get stronger, to get healthy ... then readjust.”

The season is long, the Golden Hawks still have more than half of their schedule left to play and as the young team meshes and their experience grows, the victories will only occur more frequently.

Although the trip to Toronto was not productive if measured in wins and losses, the lessons learned and the experience gained will serve this team well.

WOMEN’S HOCKEY

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Hawks lose a thriller HAYLEY MCGOLDRICK STAFF WRITER

The Wilfrid Laurier University women’s hockey team took on the nationally ranked Brock Badgers at home on Thursday night in their second match up against a nationally ranked team this season.

Brock opened up the scoring five minutes into the game, taking the lead early in the first, but Laurier’s Emily Woodhouse answered with one of her own just 21 seconds later, keeping Laurier in the game.

Brock answered back just two minutes later, leaving the score at 2-1 ending the first period.

The Badgers would extend their lead to 3-1 seven minutes into the second on a power play, but when given a power play opportunity of their own, Laurier responded with a goal off of Jaden Head, the team’s leading scorer this season with three goals.

Goalie Hannah Miller saved 31 of 34 shots, while Laurier only took 26 shots on their opponent.

The game was very fast paced and physical, with both teams receiving three penalties each, including both teams down a player for roughing penalties and

a four-minute minor for head contact. Physicality was a major reason that Laurier held their own in the game, as they refused to be pushed around by Brock. Brock would end up taking the game 3-2, but Laurier held a nationally ranked team to a one-goal lead, a tremendous feat regardless.

Head coach, Rick Osborne was very impressed by the way the Golden Hawks played against such a tough team.

“We needed to neutralize their three or four best players — with one of them being their goaltender — and a few players that play a lot of minutes. We did a good job but their top end players still made the difference in a game that could have gone either way,” Osborne said. Although the game resulted in a loss, playing such a hard game against Brock provided a lot of takeaways for the Laurier team.

As Coach Osborne puts it: “I would like to see our players have more buy-in to some basic tactics and individual skills that we work on in practice and be better at transferring this to game day.”

The Hawks’ next game is against the University of Toronto on Saturday, Dec. 2.