the plant
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SINCE 1969 VOL 54 NO 4
MAY @THEPLANTNEWS THEPLANTNEWS.COM
2 THE PLANT
Letter from the Editor This Winter 2021 end-of-semester stress is incomparable. Somehow, I have to push through all the English homework I’ve been ignoring for four months in two days without having an entire mental breakdown...this shit’s tough, but once it’s over, I can truly enjoy the sweet, sweet freedoms of summer vacation. I hope your studying and exams go with ease– we all deserve that. The Plant holds a very special place in my heart–I wouldn’t be the person I am today without it. The meetings that become rant sessions, naps in the clubroom between classes (when they were in person), talking with and getting to know the staff, and never actually knowing the difference between the Liberal Arts and ALC programs, all mean a lot to me. As I watch The Plant grow, I see myself grow too. I’ve always considered this student newspaper to be a family, and I hope, through reading our monthly issues, that you feel this same way. Throughout the Fall and Winter semester, we’ve really published so much amazing work– from Ben’s monster of an archive article from November, Arts & Culture articles about everything under the sun, from Tinder to the Cottage Core trend, Dinu’s Plant roast this issue, Mayan’s never-failing doodles, Mia’s surprising takes on the Sports section, Laura’s “Do Lobsters Feel Pain?”, and Adela’s consistent comics, my team has managed to keep up The Plant’s legacy while also making it our own in inconsistent times. Julie and I have managed two major projects– digitizing our archives (coming soon to a theater near you!) and producing the first (of hopefully many) art zines, Sprout! I’d like to thank my entire team from the bottom of my heart. None of this would be possible without them! Watching the people work tireless and so passionately inspires me time and time again to do the same. I want to shout out Julie for being my right hand (wo)man this year, and being the rock to this whole operation. Ben’s dedication to line breaks, social media, and grammar rules never stops making me smile. Tomas’ cover concepts are truly works of art on their own and blow me away every time. And Pipa somehow managed to coordinate everyone’s work into one beautiful monthly issue in less than a week! Thanks again to Mia, Arwen, Julie, Jessica, Mayan, Beatriz, Dinu, Adela, Maija, Laura, Jill, as well as our past editors and staff writer, Frederic, Donte, and Alessandro, for all the amazing work they have produced this year. Our zine, Sprout, will be released next week, and we’re super excited to show contributors. Applications for the 2020-2021 Staff are still open until May 31, so please consider joining your own group of ragtag student writers if you’re interested in helping it stay alive. More information is available on our website, theplantnews.com. As always, thank you for reading The Plant. For the final time, please enjoy this month’s issue, and do listen to this month’s playlists while studying for those pesky finals.
Index
With love,
DAYLEN CONSERVE Editor-in-Chief
NEWS 3 ARTS & CULTURE 6 PLAYLIST 10 VISUAL ARTS 11 VOICES 14 CREATIVE WRITING 20 SPORTS 24 SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENT 25 CURIOSITIES 26
The Plant is an editorially autonomous student paper. All opinions expressed in The Plant do not necessarily belong to The Plant, but are those of individuals. All content submitted to The Plant or its staff belongs to the paper. We reserve the right to reject or edit all submissions for brevity, taste and legality. The Plant welcomes typed and signed letters to the editor under 400 words. Copyright 2021
NEWS 3 3
Conversion Therapy: Dawson’s Etcetera unsatisfied with federal effort to ban the outdated and ineffective practice JESSICA GEAREY News Editor
In October 2020, the federal government announced five new offenses that would be added to the Criminal Code in regards to conversion therapy. Although Canada is statistically one of the most progressive countries in the world in reference to LGBTQ2 rights, there is still more work to be done. Conversion therapy started around a century ago and is intended to psychologically change the sexual orientation and gender identity of LGBTQ2 people. There are multiple types of conversion therapy, some amounting to both physical and psychological torture such as electroshock therapy. Conversion therapy is banned in a select few provinces and territories in Canada, but some clarify that’s not enough. “To us the practice doesn’t work, it causes more harm than good,” says Arwyn Regimbal, commissioner of Etcetera at Dawson. Regimbal explains that there is no satisfaction with just a select few locations banning the practice. “We’re not satisfied with youth in Ontario, Quebec, and Vancouver (the only city in BC that conversion therapy is banned) being covered and protected, and then you cross provincial lines and all of a sudden it’s a problem again,” they say. Regimbal has been a part of Etcetera for three years and says that they joined at a time when the club was going through a rough period. “When I joined I kind of helped make sure it was an inclusive space for everyone,” they explain. The first major event during Regimbal’s first year was the sharing of a petition that was available on the Parliament website. Eventually the petition had gained enough attention for the government to respond to it. “Their response originally was that we don’t really need conversion therapy legislation
because there are already offenses in the Criminal Code that people can be charged with,” Regimbal explains, “we were just not satisfied with that.” Etcetera did as much as they could in order to give the issue it's deserved attention. They mobilized the Dawson community, called into the offices of the Prime Minister and Minister of Justice, held events, passed petitions and then presented them to the local member of Parliament, and overall it was a collective effort. “It was a pan Canadian effort, many people were involved in this and at the end of the day we helped get legislation tabled that would make it a criminal offence.”
To us the practice doesn’t work, it causes more harm than good. Even with the collective efforts of several LGBTQ2 activist groups across Canada there are still some people who are indifferent to the ever changing societal norms. Some members of The Conservative Party of Canada especially have halted progress. Most of the people undergoing conversion therapy are young, and while Regimbal admits that you can argue for the medical liberty of adolescents, there are border. “There’s quite a difference between consenting to vaccines, abortions and what not, and consenting to conversion therapy,” Regimbal states. There is also the subject of whether conversion therapy even works. “We’ve recently had Exodus, a massive player in the America market, close their doors,” Regimbal explains, “the founder has said they have never seen a successful gay conversion therapy.” Exodus International closed in 2013 and another big ministry more recently closed its doors as well. “Hope for Wholeness,” which was a prominent “ex-gay” ministry in fifteen American
states, closed its doors in June of 2020. The founder even came out as gay in 2017. So what is the Canadian government trying to do? Are they conforming to new norms? “It’s a thorny question,” Regimbal states. They explain that it can be difficult to see through the Canadian government's objectives. Regimbal explains that it’s rare these days to find people who agree that conversion therapy should be used and promoted. “I think a certain point of it is [the Canadian government] realizing ‘like wait, it's still allowed?’” they say. However, Regimbal does think that it’s not high enough on the priority list. “I think it’s due to the fact that we don’t really have statistics. We don’t know how many people are subject to this every year in Canada because it takes place in the shadows,” they explain. Regimbal thinks that the Canadian government's objective is a mixture of both conforming to new norms and prioritizing equal rights for all. They say that they could’ve let the bill die during the election and they didn't, which shows that it’s somewhat of a priority, but from Regimbal’s understanding it’s at a standstill. Overall, the practice is a pseudoscience and is discredited by multiple medical experts. “Everyone has the right to integrity and dignity,” Regimbal says, and conversion therapy “attacks people’s dignity, and at the end of the day we consider it a great harm.” p p
4 THE PLANT
#NotAllMen: Gender Based Activism or Perpetuation of Violence Against Women? KENZA BENNANI Contributor
On the evening of 3 March 2021, 33-year-old Sarah Everard called her boyfriend whilst walking home from a friend’s house in South London. When Everard didn’t show up the following morning, her boyfriend, fearing the worst, called the police. Almost a week after her disappearance, her body was discovered in the woods. Everard was murdered by Wayne Couzens, a serving police officer. Once the story broke, anger sparked across the globe prompting millions of women to spread awareness about violence against women on social media. The brutally honest discussions left several men feeling unjustifiably blamed for the matter, resulting in the start of the #NotAllMen movement. Since the start of the pandemic, there has been a major increase in domestic violence and femicides in Montreal and other areas in Quebec. Given these tragedies, feminists argued that #NotAllMen was a subtle way to divert from the topic, while simultaneously conforming to misogynistic ideas. The so-called “meninist” campaign took over the internet as more men attested to their innocence. As a unifying response, people declared #AllMen, to further emphasize women’s realities. What started out as nonaggressive conversations about women’s rights ended in warlike exchanges between men and women. Émilie DeGrandpré, a third semester Psychology student at Dawson, recalls having a heated debate on the topic. Her male friend claimed that categorizing all men as dangerous would only result in painting a negative image of them, without actually bettering women’s situations. She clarified that the generalization isn’t meant to attack men, but to showcase the fears of so many
women. “When 93% of women get sexually assaulted in their lives, I rather consider the entire group as a threat,” DeGrandpé explains. Indeed, according to the World Health Organization, 1 in 3 women globally experience physical or sexual violence. “Assuming it’s all men is just survival in our society,” DeGranpré states. Ziad Hafez, a Science student at André-Gasset, finds both movements annoying and pointless. “It’s basic semantics, even though people say they don't really mean all men when they say it, the reality is, they do,” Hafez states. However, he doesn’t believe that the issue of sexual harassment should be met with #NotAllMen either. He recalls seeing comments under sexual assault survivors’ TikToks, flooded with the hashtag. “That's not really the first reaction you're supposed to have when you hear those kinds of stories,” Hafez says. Johanne Rabbat, the coordinator of Women’s and Gender Studies at Dawson, comments on the possible cause for men’s reactions. She theorizes that because they are part of a more privileged group, men may actually feel complicit to the problem. Looking at areas such as salaries, jobs, or violence, women are not at a level of equality with men. Rabbat mentioned that whilst it is normal for men to feel targeted, such defensiveness won’t help anyone move forward. She wants to encourage men to side for support and participate in important conversations. “That’s how we’re going to move forward and gain a better understanding of each other. It’s through that dialogue!” she says. DeGrandpé mentions how out of all the #NotAllMen supporters she knows, none are actively engaging in other conversations about women’s rights. “The only way you're not a
part of the problem is if you're actually outspoken about it,” she states, “saying ‘not all men’ just further justifies women’s points!” She compared the situation to someone witnessing a crime and not reporting it. Rabbat emphasizes the same point, explaining how men don’t always realize which of their actions cause acts of violence towards women to continue. “You are supporting the system by being silent or not doing anything. It’s a form of micro-aggression,” she says.
You are supporting the system by being silent or not doing anything. It’s a form of micro-aggression. Indeed, many would argue that the violent forms of masculinity, embedded within society, are what creates unsafe environments for women. Contrarily, Hafez attributes harassment to inadequate parenting. “I was always taught to treat women with respect,” he explains. Hafez also believes that some people simply cannot control themselves. “That can only be resolved at home, perhaps by another woman, like your mom.” However, DeGrandpé thinks that blaming individuals for a systemic issue is misinformed. She alludes to the system’s damaging impact on men, specifically concerning societal pressures and discrimination towards femininity: “I just don't understand why this is an argument between men and women. We're all victims of the system and we could change it if more acknowledged the issues.” p p
NEWS 5 5
Are Vaccinations Luck of the Draw? JACQUELINE LISBONA Contributor
On Wednesday, April 21 I arrived at the MUHC Glen hospital for my first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. Armed with my printed offer of employment from my camp in one hand, and my Medicare card in the other, I stood squarely on the red circles on the floor. As I approached the front desk, I handed the nurse my proof of eligibility and my card was stamped and ready to go. However, right as I picked up my documents, a supervisor interjected and asked me why I was there. I explained that I had been hired at an overnight camp in Quyon. She told me that I wasn’t eligible to receive the vaccine because camps only start in three months. She said to come back when my age group window is open and to “wait my turn.” This came as a surprise seeing as Legault announced that people who are primary and secondary school staff, public safety workers, slaughterhouse workers, mining workers and staff in childcare facilities are eligible to receive a vaccine. This information can be found on the Clic Santé website. I seemingly fell under this category, so what was the problem? There is an inconsistency in vaccine eligibility among the young adult age group. Some have successfully received the vaccine at various locations including the Glen, Palais de Congrés and Décarie Square, and passed through no questions asked, while others showed the exact same documentation and were denied. This begs the question: why are people with the same proof of eligibility receiving different treatment? After speaking with people about their vaccine experience, it is apparent that the rules are unclear. Whether or not a person gets the vaccine is purely at the discretion of each individual worker. Emma Grover, a second semester Social Science student at Dawson is working at an
Photo VIA CTV NEWS MONTREAL
overnight camp in the Laurentians this summer. Her vaccination appointment was at Palais De Congrès where she breezed right through and was back in her car in less than 30 minutes. She explains that she didn’t experience any issues. “All they asked was for me to show them my offer of employment and my Medicare card,” she says, “then my card was stamped, and I sat down to receive my vaccine.” On the contrary, a Marianopolis student, who is working at the same overnight camp as I am and has asked to remain anonymous, was rejected from two different sites. “The first time I went to my vaccination appointment at the Palais de Congrès I showed my documents and they told me I wasn’t eligible because it is only for people who are currently working.” They also describe the environment as unwelcoming, and they were receiving mean looks from those who were waiting in line. “I went home and rebooked my appointment on Clic Santé for the following day at the Glen where I was denied again after begging the nurse.” They recall the nurse denying them again because their age group was not yet eligible and camp employment hasn’t started. Why are there no criteria to check off before letting people through? And if the vaccines are for people currently working in childcare,
why are so many of those workers being rejected? Second semester Health Science student Sahra Zimmer is a lifeguard and swim instructor. Her boss told her that she was eligible to be vaccinated as long as pay stubs were provided. Several of her colleagues were vaccinated while Zimmer was turned away from both the Glen and Decarie Square even with the same documentation as her colleagues. Zimmer was in luck on her third try, when she finally received her vaccine at Palais de Congres. There have also been instances of non-essential workers receiving left-over doses usually around the later parts of the day. Second semester Child Studies student Madi Farkas recalls going to Decarie Square around 8pm. It took her a total of 30 minutes to wait in line, receive the vaccine and wait the mandatory 15 minutes after receiving it. “It was easy, fast and I wasn’t questioned once.” In the government's haste to get through the pandemic, the rules on how we get there are disjointed, circuitous and often illogical. While Clic Santé may claim to be a straightforward path to the holy grail of vaccination, in reality, the path to vaccination is survival of the fittest. p p
6 THE PLANT
Leap: ALC 2021 Festival JULIE JACQUES Managing Editor
Dawson’s 2021 ALC festival allowed its graduating cohort, spread out in six profiles, to display their works in diverse, unique ways, per pandemic restrictions. Beginning in early May and spanning three weeks, students of the ALC program are participating in what the coordinators have entitled Leap. This acronym stands for Learning, Energized, Across Profiles. These profiles, of course, range from Languages to Interactive Media Art, and many others. As countless things, the ALC festival has been adapted to live in an online setting. The Literature Academic Profile Conference, which, I am told, usually takes place at Dawson, in an overcrowded room, with those who can’t get seats standing in the back of the room, took place on Zoom. “While I was ecstatic to have been chosen for the conference,” a Literature student explains, “I couldn’t help but feel a little bit cheated.” Ever since what would be their first and only fully in-person semester at Dawson, students of all profiles had been looking forward to this festival, an opportunity to showcase their work. “I’m saddened that we had to do it over Zoom,” the student explains, “but I’m glad we got to do it at all. It was a
Photo VIA DAWSONCOLLEGE.QC.CA
great experience– one that last years’ cohort unfortunately had to pass up.” The Winter 2020 festival was not the same online experience we have now– there was no time for planning. This sentiment is shared by Anne Parker, a Cinema and Communications student involved in the preparation of Media Night, set to take place on May 28. “Trying to plan such a familiar and celebrated event,” she explains, “and living up to the past versions while also being incredibly limited is quite difficult.” However, Parker notes that both teachers and students have “tried all year to try and find the best way to display students’ work, so [she] knows there has been much thought in the final method.” In the end, Parker announces, “I think everyone has accepted the situation.” In fact, many profiles have been working on their own websites for Leap. Maija Baroni, an Arts and Culture student, announces she has actually “found a new passion for creating websites” due to her final project. She thinks that the “website idea was accessible to everyone” and is excited to peruse her cohort’s work.
However, Baroni expresses some regret in not being able to display her project in a gallery. “Having people directly coming up to you to give feedback or discuss your work must be so rewarding,” she says. The lack of a “reward” or in-person validation, “makes it hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel and do your best,” which was “definitely a personal struggle” of hers. Many students in the 2021 graduating cohort have only had one in-person semester. They were thrown into this pandemic, with everyone else, thinking that things would be over soon. The culmination of their CEGEP experience,which many of them had been looking forward to since enrollment, had an anti-climactic end. However, they managed to stay motivated despite the lack of a big party at the end of the line, and their works are ready to be admired by their classmates, teachers, family, and friends. Show your support and discover everything ALC has to offer on the ALC festival page. You can still catch the Arts and Culture “Connection” exhibition on May 21, Cinema and Communications’ Media Night on May 28, and many other profiles’ works displayed now, like the Languages Profile personal projects in the form of blogs! p
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ARTS & CULTURE 7 7
Sowing the Seeds of Wellbeing span and self-esteem, create a sense of community and sociability, and even assuage existential fears.
Photo VIA 123RF.COM
ARWEN LAWLESS LOW Staff Writer
Sometimes I pretend I’m in a garden. It’s 11pm, and I’m hunkering down to finish up a position paper for Model United Nations or an article for The Plant. I quickly look up “garden ambience” on YouTube and play whatever the first result is. The sounds of chirping birds and a bubbling brook soothe me and set me free from the stress of deadlines. A small part of me is raptured up into this lush world, where one can lie back and watch the grass grow. In reality, I’m boxed into my bedroom, 20 feet above ground in an apartment. The only greenery is a dying houseplant. So why does my brain want to teleport me to this idyllic garden, somewhere I have no real experience with? It might be because there’s something almost intrinsically human about gardening. Indeed, the origins of civilization have often been traced back to the start of agriculture, some 10 000 years ago. This is mainly speculation on my part, but it would make sense for us to find something that kept us alive rewarding. Perhaps, then, my escapist gardening fantasies are instinctive, the muscle
memory of thousands of years worth of toiling the land. When I’m experiencing higher levels of stress and feeling detached from the demands of my extracurriculars, maybe my imagination tries to subconsciously tie me to something familiar, and as simply grounding as knowing your work allows your survival.
Perhaps, then, my escapist gardening fantasies are instinctive, the muscle memory of thousands of years worth of toiling the land. More likely though, this is a fantastical thought coming from someone so detached from hard labor that grueling subsistence agriculture seems appealing. Regardless, research has shown that there are actual, concrete benefits from gardening on mental health. A 2017 meta-analysis compiled by Masashi Soga, Kevin J. Gaston and Yuichi Yamaura of 21 case studies across the world showed that gardening had beneficial effects on mental health. Gardening was found to help participants cope with depression, improve their attention
The effects of gardening on well-being can be seen indirectly in this practice’s popularity. One 2015 survey found that 117 million Americans, a third of the population of the United States, actively gardened. Interestingly, a study by Dalhousie’s Agri-Food Analytics Lab revealed that 51% of Canadians had grown their own food during the pandemic, and cited benefits such as relaxation and physical exercise to be the motivating factors. This rings true for Mia Kennedy, the Sports Editor here at The Plant and a gardening aficionado, who said that she enjoyed this hobby because it allowed her to “get the wellness benefits from being out in nature and doing exercise all in one.” Mia recently partook in an event organized by the Green Earth Club, which saw Dawson students come together and make “seed bombs” as a part of their ongoing Rewilding Lawns initiative. Students created mud balls filled with seeds that are native to local ecosystems in hopes of bringing wildlife back. Liam Gaither, the environmental science student who first proposed this project, wanted to encourage club members to break their “discomfort around getting dirt under their fingernails” and help them become “more observant with regard to their surrounding neighborhood and landscape.” For Mia, who experiences eco-anxiety, the kind of healthier gardening that Rewilding Lawns encourages helps people regain a feeling of control over the climate crisis. As we finish up the school year and plan our holidays, consider adding gardening to your summer bucket list! You might be sowing the seeds to your own well-being. p p
8 THE PLANT
Raya and the Last Dragon: Why It’s A Step Forward for Today’s Generation various East-Asian films today getting critical acclaim, like Parasite, or Minari. But where was all the South-East Asian representation in film?
Photo VIA DISNEY.COM
JULIA QUYNH Staff Writer
Fang. Heart. Spine. Talon. Tail. Long ago, the five nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Fang region attacked. Only Sisu, the last dragon, could stop them, but when the world needed her most, she vanished. Despite Raya and the Last Dragon's storyline being reminiscent to Avatar, Disney's latest animated movie is a step forward for Southeast Asian representation in Hollywood. Raya is Disney’s latest fantasy animation movie, with a titular Southeast Asian princess, voiced by Kelly Marie Tran, the first Southeast Asian actress to lead an animated feature from the studio. I grew up wondering why no Disney princess ever looked like me. Being Southeast Asian, I questioned why none of the on-screen Disney princesses ever resembled anyone around me. Sure, there was Mulan, and
The film is truly a melting pot of cultures. Bits and pieces of Southeast Asian cultures can be seen everywhere in this film, from unique architecture of the five different regions in the film, to the costumes adorned by the different characters. The team’s extensive research was evidently seen in the small details of the film. For once, the characters weren’t fighting with Kung-Fu or Taekwondo, but instead, Pencek Silat from Indonesia and Muay Thai from Thailand. Even the character Sisu, doesn’t look like your average fire-breathing dragon. The dragon was inspired by the water deity legend known as nagas from Southeast Asia and are well-known to bring great auspiciousness. Members of the production team travelled to Thailand, Laos, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia and Singapore to learn about the wide variety of cultures in South-East Asia. The film was co-written by Vietnamese American screenwriter Qui Nguyen and Malaysian screenwriter Adele Lim, and the artistic direction of the movie was led by the Head of Story, Fawn Veerasunthorn, a Thai American. They strived to enhance the authenticity of Southeast Asia in the film’s details, and also formed the Southeast Asia Story Trust, a group of consultants with expertise ranging from music, choreography, architecture, and martial arts. The key creative team consisted of people from Southeast Asian backgrounds who shared their own backgrounds and added details they felt were important to the film. “It was fun to have Fawn, myself, Adele, members in our animation, story teams, to arm wrestle a little bit
about what things we can celebrate in our cultures,” Nguyen says in an interview with Time. “We were all pitching different dishes and when you could get one little dish in there that was super recognizable, it meant so much.” Food is often recognized as a love language in Asian cultures, where asking if you’ve eaten yet is a sign of affection, as strange as it sounds. Food is also a constant theme, and symbol of unity throughout the whole film, and at one point, it’s used as a meaningful metaphor to represent harmony. While Benja, Raya’s father, is making tom yum soup, he plans to make peace with all five regions over a meal and uses delicacies from all five regions to make one delicious soup: shrimp paste from Tail, lemongrass from Talon, bamboo shoots from Spine, chili from Fang, and palm sugar from Heart. While watching Raya making a peace offering with bánh tét, a glutinous rice cake I frequently saw while my family celebrated the Vietnamese New Year, I excitedly whispered to my friend sitting next to me in the cinema hall, “That’s a Vietnamese food!” I was elated at seeing a sign of my own culture in a Disney film, especially when it was something not commonly seen on screen. Southeast Asian representation in film has long been inaccurate or non-existent, but Raya breaks ground for representation and opens a door for more opportunities. I only wished Disney could have made a film based on Southeast Asian cultures earlier. Just as Gold House’s Bing Chen says in an interview with Time, celebration comes with the expectation that historic moments in representation don’t end with just one film. “I love ‘firsts’ for our community,” he says. “Because we need firsts to get to ‘nexts’.” p p
ARTS AND CULTURE 9 9
TV vs Cinema: A Battle to Win the Oscars BEATRIZ NEVES Arts & Culture Editor
From the end of the 19th to the mid-20th century, that we can safely call the Golden Age of the film industry, cinema's only real rival was theatre. Theatre was significantly inferior to the new technology in both versatilities and accessibility. The studios competed with each other, having no other competitors, astonishing audiences with more and more sophisticated scenarios and special effects. Then, everything changed with the mass production of televisions. Later, they compromised: TV channels bought old films to broadcast, and the film industry began to use the advertising opportunities to attract people to premieres. There was a clear difference between TV and cinema, which involved the most prestigious cinema festival: The Oscars. It was always a cinema festival that for many years did not include television. Aside from bestowing international recognition and prestige, an Academy Award can play a crucial role in the success of the major winners. The Best Picture award, for example, can significantly increase the box office earnings of the winning film. The award often results in higher salaries, increased media attention, and better film offers for actors and directors.
year, Netflix cleaned up in nominations for the 93rd Academy Awards, reflecting what a pivotal year it was for the movie business in the age of the couch-bound filmgoer. Netflix won seven Oscars overall. Disney + and Amazon studios both earned two, and even Facebook won its first ever Oscar.
It was always a cinema festival that for many years did not include television. Before the pandemic, many of the nominees were not available worldwide. They were reserved for US viewers or shown in exclusive movie theatres. According to the Youtuber film critic and cinema student Amanda Doria, "the most positive thing to come out of this is that the world can watch and properly follow the Oscars." Streaming companies made high-profile movies available to a large part of the world that did not have that privilege before. Yet, the Oscars is a cinema festival, not a TV festival. "Cinema has a different language than television. Watching a cinema movie through a television does not have the same impact, which can have an influence
Unfortunately, the film industry was directly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Movie theatres closed all across the world, influencing the box office and opening night of many movies. On the other hand, streaming companies such as Netflix, Disney + and Amazon Prime saw an opportunity to release their original movies on their platforms and earn their spot on the Oscars. Netflix, in particular, has released some Oscar-winning original movies before the pandemic, such as Marriage Story and Roma. But this
Photo VIA VOX
on the festival," says Amanda. The atmosphere of the cinema is different from the one at home. When you go to a movie theatre, you can get a better viewing experience. The bigger screens and realistic sound effects make it feel like the real world, especially in Hollywood movies. Movies are made with the size of the screen and the environment in which the audience is watching in mind, affecting everything from the development of the story to the size of the frame they are filming. The experience of watching a film in a movie theatre is undeniably better than at home. For instance, in some cinemas, their screens are as big as a 6-story building, and in some cinemas, the sound is so good that you have a mega immersion in the film, making the whole experience even better. For the future of cinema versus streaming companies, Amanda believes that people will probably not abandon movie theatres. "People will go back for the nostalgia and the undeniable better experience that it offers," says Amanda. Only the future tells us what will happen to the cinema industry, the streaming companies and the Oscars. Until then, we sit in our couches and enjoy the new Netflix original. p p
10 THE PLANT
PLAYLIST
Playlist by
JILL GOLDENBERG
Visual Arts Editor
VISUAL ARTS 11 11
Photo by PHIA DOLGIN @_PHI_A_
Photo by DAHLIA MALFARA @DAHLIA_.M
12 THE PLANT
Photo by JILL GOLDENBERG @JILLGOLDENPHOTOGRAPHY
Photo by MORGANA FOLLMANN @IAMTHECOLORS
Photo by LUCIA FOSTER @LUCH1A
VISUAL ARTS 13 13
Photo by RAVEN EDWARDS-BROWN @RAVEN.EDWARDS426
14 THE PLANT
As Seen On Zoom: Pass the Torch Edition Daylen Conserve interviews next year’s Editor-in-Chief, Pipa Jones
Daylen Conserve Editor-in-Chief
I say, I’ve always loved pretending that I hold the most crucial role.
As this year comes to an end, so does my time as Editor-in-Chief at The Plant, but I am glad to announce my successor: Pipa Jones, our current graphic designer. They are a first year graphic design student, an amazing photographer and an avid plant collector.
Are you excited for the possibility of in person classes next year?
What are your favourite memories from The Plant? Honestly, it’s the 6pm Monday meetings where I get to log onto Zoom and witness absolute nonsense for 45 minutes. Do important things get discussed? Absolutely. Am I crying of laughter every five seconds? Also yes. Who knew the Plant meetings were gonna be this entertaining? (I didn’t). What are you looking forward to as the next Editor-in-Chief ? Hmm, definitely getting to see the amazing work that everyone produces. And I’m already anticipating the feeling of each new issue release and the knowledge that we’re sending out an awesome issue once again. Also, seeing my name at the top of the staff credits... Any big changes planned? Whatever my team peer pressures me into doing. *laughs over the internet* In all seriousness, we are opening up a new position (is this where I tell people to apply for next year’s team?) and maybe we’ll add a few new fun sections to the newspaper? Stay tuned Plantlings!! Big things coming *insert that emoji... y’all know the one* How would you describe the graphic designer to EIC pipeline? It’s sudden, it’s jarring, but what can
To be completely honest…yes and no. Yes, because I crave that social interaction, and I do think in-person teaching is much easier and more effective in terms of student-teacher relations and just for overall comprehension. However, I’m hesitant because I’m not sure we’ll be ready to do it safely. I want it as long as the threat of transmission and infection is very very low. Also, I’m a big fan of just turning off my camera and clocking out of class whenever I want to (for legal reasons this is a joke). Talk about your plant collection! Dear reader, if you’ve seen a contributor’s deadline post on our Instagram recently, you’ve already met some of my babes ;) The first plant that I absolutely must mention is the spider plant that I received from the Plant team of Winter 2019!! She is thriving and I will forever be grateful to the Plant for this gift (Answer to question 3—I’m bringing back the plant giveaways for contributors). Next, most notable because of their size, are my two Hoyas from my grandparents and a thing that looks like a Yucca (unconfirmed). My desktop companions include multiple water-propagated philodendrons, an aloe, a Chinese Money Plant, a sweet potato, and too many baby succulents. Window dwellers are my very colourful Croton named Crouton, even more baby succs*, some wild grass from a seed bomb, and my wonderful living stones. Can’t forget the ones scattered through my apartment: my Pink Polka Dot plant (it’s actually pink, I’m mesmerized), my Purple Queen (trandescantia zebrine—very purple), and mother
plant philodendron. May we also acknowledge the 40 beautiful succs and cacti I had to leave at my parents’ house when I moved out because I don’t have enough window space for them :( (Next on the list is a Fiddle Leaf Fig!) I can feel Daylen rolling their eyes at the length of my last answer so here are my last words: Thank you for having me. I cannot wait to carry on the Plant’s legacy, see you next semester! XOXO Your future ruling entity, Pipa <3 * Section Editor’s Note: Pretty sure this word is cool kid slang for succulents.** ** Graphic Designer's editing note: yes excatly cool yes of course. p p
Photo VIA PIPA JONES
VOICES 15 15
The Great Plant Roast of 2021: Let’s Pop Some Corn DINU MAHAPATUNA Voices Editor Welcome one and all, to the Great Plant Roast of 2021! Drumroll please, since our first award goes to.... The staff-writers! You’re staff ! That writes! Sometimes, well! Thank you for doing a better job at meeting monthly deadlines than our own section editors. Maija Baroni! You’re gorgeous and I love you. But because this is a roast: Maija, you’re hideous and I hate you. Julia Quynh, we all resent the fact that you don’t live in this country. Stop being happy on Instagram. It makes me want to find you and rob you. Actually, if you keep flaunting your riches on social media, someone else might do the hard stuff for me. And Arwen Low! I both fear and anticipate the day you finally get your sex advice column. On that day, people will look to the sky and expect to be smited off the face of the Earth. Or they might get it on, Lil Nas X bouncing ass on Satan style. Tomas! Tomas! You have done nothing to hurt me, so you may pass… For now… JK! How old are you? I ask since no one under the age of fifty is flitting around on facebook as if it’s a sock-hop except maybe you. You art nice, but your senior friends wouldn’t exactly appreciate your hooligan style. Beatriz Neves! You laugh a lot. Which makes me suspicious.... I’m going to have to keep an eye on you. Adela Pirillo! You are curious… Curiously awful at making juicy horoscopes! Girl we want you to roast us or promise us true love is imminent. Nothing less will do! Dinu Mahapatuna! What a goddess. Super sexy, super smart… Need I say more? Psyche! Recipe Ramble sucks! You suck! No you suck! You swallow! Touché.... Mayan Godmaire! I still don’t think we know how to say your name right (and
Photo: A very iconic screenshot by Dinu Mahapatuna later improved by the icon themself, Pipa Jones. that’s coming from someone who’s been called Dino). I would roast you further, but I actually can’t think of anything bad to say, because holy shit are you easy to fall in love with… Poetry time: Mayan is a girl Who sometimes looks stoned as hell. Too bad haikus suck. Wanna fuck? Mia Kennedy! Why are you in charge of Sports? Seriously. Who made that call? You’re about as athletic as a Klingon orgy. Wait. On second thought… Darn it, the empire strikes again. Jessica Gearey! You are well and truly over all of us and can we blame you? Honestly, I can't remember what your voice sounds like. Have you spoken ever? Do you exist? Wait, is Jessica a person or are we all Jessica? Laura Gervais! Someone else at this publication I’ve never heard speak. You have the job that sounds the smartest, but that smart people are too busy to read. Thank you for doing what none of us wanted to do, but we needed, because… Reasons. Scientific reasons. Your section is the literary equivalent of kale, but I promise, someone out there is forcing themselves to consume it (us included). Jill Goldenberg! Or as I like to call you, Photo Girl! Snap, snap. Hear that? That’s the sound of our publication cracking its skull on your club as your kind bombards the internet with aesthetic visuals. Ooga booga pretty picture is nice for see. Words? No! Words bad. Grrrrr.
Pipa Jones! You’re the epitome of unproblematic. Or so you’d think… Well buster, I’ve caught you red-handed for hipster plant trafficking! Leave those poor seedlings alone! Stop bringing them into your cramped studio and having your way with them you, you, MONSTER! Benjamin Wexler! Pipa and Mayan might be our resident hipsters, but you are single-handedly our resident snob. Fifty years from now, I wouldn’t be surprised to see you with a plate of cheddar in one hand and (what you’d call) a chalice of wine in the other as you lecture a group of college students on the infinite merits of saying tomato instead of tomato. They’d say, ‘Who’s this guy again?” And you’d ride your ego into the sky as your hair waves in the wind. Julie Jacques! You’re the mother I never had... And never asked for. Sometimes, right as I’m falling asleep, I startle awake to your face, looming above mine, whispering, “Where’s your article?” You have the aura of a tiger that somehow became the COO of a Fortune 500 and, in an alternate universe, the rest of us are your prey, begging for the sweet release of death. Daylen Conserve! Admit it: You’re a furry. The Hello Kitty obsession, the bear hats… What will it take for you to see the light? It’s a disco ball shining over you and your anthropomorphic buddies as you grind your fluffy, tailed butts together. That’s all from me! Better get some aloe vera for those burns. p p
16 THE PLANT
Ask The Plant BENJAMIN WEXLER Copy Editor
Dear The Plant, How do I write a good Ask The Plant? Sincerely, Very Real Question Asker Well, the first thing you need to understand about writing an Ask The Plant is that disinterested snark is far more valuable than strong writing or inspiring content. This is a simple task. The most journalistic research that can reasonably be expected of you is a quick look at the last Ask The Plant — that allows the writing style to spread like an infectious disease. But you knew that already, you rascal, volunteering for the column with four essays due. Of course, sincerity is always an option. I know that cynicism has been weighing on you, a great ball and chain floating like a dark cloud above your head. Smash it to pieces and take care of yourself by telling your reader to do the same. Life is hard when you are writing Ask The Plant — try breathing. Like really breathing. No, not like that, like really breathing. In. And out. I give up. If they want real life advice, send them to the horoscopes. No, this is Ask the Plant. Sentence structure? Not at all. Answering your own fucking questions? That’s where it’s at. And why not ask them rhetorically? Why not? As the saying goes, the road to hell is paved with lazy questions. That’s not the saying? I don’t care. This is your linguistic playground. The edge of the map, the collapse of everything. Here be dragons, you hope, but all of the dragons sort of breathe fire just the same. Maybe I am a little mean-spirited. But you see, that’s the way the world is sometimes — your asshole copy editor bullies you. Oho, my sharp quips disguise a worldly wisdom (as should be the case in any good Ask The Plant). With every standard already broken, when all else fails, descend into absurdity. You have five hundred words to fill, so either you can write as many sentences of abject ridiculousness as it takes you to get there, or you can cut the throat of an English professor with their own marking pen over your keyboard as a sacrifice to the gods of word count. Remember, so long as it is nonsensical, it is funny.
VOICES 17 17
(Obviously, that is the case with my well-integrated example of the teacher sacrifice. It is impossible that one would hear of a student doing such a thing. Especially if said student wore rubber gloves and had a bucket of hydrofluoric acid at hand. (Yes, my only point of reference here is Breaking Bad. Shut up. This is my Ask The Plant. I ask the questions here.)) Now we’re coming to the end. We’re going to try sincerity again. I know it didn’t go very well last time, but do your best. Something cheap and sweet. You owe yourself that much. Writing has value. Sharing has value. There is value in the collective delusion that constitutes a student newspaper — the delusion that anyone has read this far. Every letter is an act of love. No. That’s not right. Not quite. I am finished now. Goodnight. The Plant
Photo VIA DREW COFFMAN/FLICKR
18 THE PLANT
CÉGEP and Bill 101 MYLÈNE KONO Contributor
David Soto sat at his desk, quietly contemplating his life-long dream of becoming a translator. His right leg bounced up and down as he stared at his open laptop’s blank screen. All of his friends had already committed to a CEGEP but Soto had yet to receive an answer from Dawson. He picked at the Band-Aids wrapped around the tips of his fingers; he had a habit of biting his nails when he was anxious. Eventually, he mustered up the courage to start typing his login information onto the Dawson website. When the status of his admission popped up on the screen, his jaw dropped. In a mix of excitement and disbelief, he grabbed the computer and ran to the living room to share the big news with his family. Soto would be attending the Language program at Dawson in the coming year. In recent news, it has been discovered that Soto may well be part of one of the few remaining cohorts to have the option of attending an anglophone CEGEP. On 18 April 2021, the Parti Québécois voted in overwhelming majority to support a new proposal that would affect the current Bill 101, also known as the Charter of the French Language. If this political party were brought to power at the next election, students who were denied an English education in secondary school would now also be forced to continue their collegiate studies in French. Julie Deschamps, a Dawson student who is studying in English for the first time, was quite unhappy when she heard about the proposal: “I would have to sacrifice an education that felt perfect for me just because it was in English.” According to a survey conducted in 2011 by the Fédération des Cégeps, Deschamps is not the only student opposing the new proposal: 62% of young adults agree with her. But why is the Parti Québécois in support of this proposal
despite this information? Paul StPierre Plamondon, the current leader of the PQ, stated that they were looking to counteract the decline of French in Québec. The fight to preserve French is not a new one and has been a topic of controversy in the past. During the Saint-Léonard crisis, French Canadians and Italians fought over the language in which their kids would acquire schooling. A few years later, in 1977, René Lévesque’s Péquiste government passed the 101 bill with heavy support from the francophone population. Pierre Elliot Trudeau, then Prime Minister, was critical of this change. Paul Déon is also in disagreement with the bill and believes that Québec needs to adapt to the linguistic changes it’s facing. The Dawson student is convinced that “the 101 law is holding Québec back”.
I would have to sacrifice an education that felt perfect for me just because it was in English. Good or bad, the Charter of the French Language is here to stay. But would extending its effect onto collegiate studies in Québec benefit anyone? The Ministry of Education states that 6,4% of francophone students attended English CEGEPs between 2020 and 2021. In contrast, 11,4% of anglophone students and nearly 66% of allophone students made the switch to a French college. This means that non-francophone students are choosing to pursue their studies in French. They are making this decision by their own free will and without any governmental interference. Unfortunately, the Parti Québécois is still looking to control students’ futures in the name of protecting French.
If the proposal were put into effect, Soto would pursue his schooling in another province. After years of patiently waiting to graduate out of the French school system, students are ready to begin their education in the most widely spoken language around the world and Soto is convinced that “the 101 proposal would only drive people away.” At the age that students are entering CEGEP, there are possibilities for them to attend school in other provinces if they are unhappy with their options in Québec. Instead of encouraging post-secondary education in French, the PQ may be mistakenly forcing some students to pursue their anglophone education somewhere else. The French language has been a point of contention in Québec for most of the province’s existence, and laws are consistently being implemented in hopes of helping the language regain popularity. Young and old Québécois alike are proud of their culture and rightly want to ensure its protection. However, students resent the possibility of losing their freedom to choose the language they pursue their collegiate studies in. “I deserve to study in the language of my choice” explains Soto. “This proposal is absurd” says Paul. “Once you’re 18, you should be allowed to study wherever you want” pleads Deschamps. The Parti Québécois must remember to protect the needs of the people before those of a language. p p
VOICES 19 19
Crocs & the Comeback of Ugly Fashion MAIJA BARONI Staff Writer
Good or bad, the Charter of the Previously labelled fashion no-no's like the colour brown, socks with sandals, and the classic 80’s mullet seem to be making a comeback on our feeds -- and an increasing number of people are starting to consider them 'cool' again. However, perhaps the most surprising trend to come back into style is Crocs. Or, as Urban Dictionary defines them, "quite possibly the ugliest but most comfortable shoes ever." Formerly only worn by kids below the age of 9, nurses who spend their whole day on their feet, or middle-aged science teachers, the rubber clogs are now being adopted by Gen Z. According to the Washington Post, Crocs suffered a loss of 185 million dollars in 2008, having "mountains of shoes and no one to buy them". Now, CBC reports that Crocs Inc.'s stock price has more than doubled since the beginning of 2020. Many are pegging Crocs' renewed success on celebrity endorsements, with stars like Justin Bieber
and Post-Malone designing collabs that sometimes sell out within an hour of their release. Likewise, social media influencers like Emma Chamberlain are also frequently wearing a pair in their Instagram posts, rapidly bringing Crocs back to the social scene. On the other hand, though some are dismissing Crocs as proof of fashion's cyclical nature and claim every trend eventually bounces back within 20-30 years, their revival could be due to something else. Like countless other things, Crocs' glorious comeback might really be credited to the COVID-19 pandemic. It's no surprise that comfortable items have been everyone's fashion favourite over the last year. Staying in our homes has made us a lot less likely to endure uncomfortable clothing or shoes—especially if no one is there to see them. Thus, Crocs provide the same desired Covid-life comfort as a pair of slippers while also being a more socially acceptable option to wear out of the house. (Just barely, though.)
Furthermore, these ugly but comfy shoes could also be interpreted as a bold fashion statement. Crocs and other viral Y2K staples seem to be the exact opposite of the minimal aesthetic that has dominated social media and the fashion industry for so long. Made popular by the Kardashians, the tight-fitting and neutral-toned style is gradually being rejected by teenagers. Instead, replaced by iDadcore or Y2K, their strange colours, patterns, and silhouettes rebel against the aforementioned plain style, while adding some visual excitement and needed functionality to everyday fashion. Another important factor of Crocs’ resurgence could be nostalgia. According to VICE, psychologists claim "nostalgia is often associated with positive emotions, offering a comforting anchor during stressful times," such as a global pandemic. This could explain why Gen Z has embraced nostalgic fashion on Tik Tok, finding solace in their childhood Y2K pieces like rhinestone tanks and low-waisted jeans. And Crocs, of course. In that sense, rediscovering nostalgic pieces is a reminder of simpler, more joyous pre-COVID days, making it an understandable coping mechanism during the unprecedented times we're living. Regardless, whether Crocs' sudden boost in popularity was caused by cyclical fashion, the COVID-19 pandemic, or maybe just really great marketing, they're destined to be one of the top shoes this summer. In other words, if you've always secretly loved Crocs but felt too embarrassed to wear them in public, there could not be a better time to justify spending $60 on a rubber clog that Time Magazine included on a list of the 50 worst inventions. Right now might be your only chance to proudly wear them out of the house, so take advantage before it's too late!
Photo VIA CROC SHOES/TWITTER
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20 THE PLANT
Mythical Liftoff There is a theme that appeared in this month’s section without coercing. Many of these pieces treat something mortal that feels grandiose, somewhat like a curse turned either holy or ecstatic. This brings some mystery into the last Issue of the year, so we can all now coast out into summer on a raft of velvet and burning stars. Enjoy and let linger these mystical and mythical works. Peace and Love Always, MAYAN GODMAIRE
Creative Writing Editor
the lovers CYRIELLE OUEDRAOGO Contributor he lays his hands upon her own and feels the way his dermis burns, the subtle tremors of his bones, the way his empty stomach churns, and sees the eyes of the needles, the muddled streams of holy blood spreading into stains immortal, or dissolving into the mud. and she breathes softly, not a sound as she quells her premature grief, and turns her eye upon the ground where he lays still, as if a thief, and slowly lifts each punctured hand, his hollow eyes falling upon the mangled flesh she understands, this confounding phenomenon, as she brings her lips to the wounds and swipes her morphine tongue across the sea of crimson, aching blooms of this affliction, of this cross.
Illustrations by
MAYAN GODMAIRE
Creative Writing Editor
and as his eyes study her face against the blue tarp of the sky he surrenders a tear, for grace, for this is heaven, liquefied.
CREATIVE WRITING 21
Too much, ALESSANDRO MORTELLARO Contributor Too much what? Is it an abundance Of something (un)wanted? Or merely being overwhelmed? Too much power Given and imposed upon us. What have we done? What will we do?! Robbed of our will To feel—to understand Each other’s blood Splattering screams. They’ve told us to keep Swimming upwards if we wish to Reach the surface; if we wish To breathe. There is no surface. Just water. Too much water.
Icarus’s Curse GEORGIA SVOURENOS Contributor As she gazed at his unconscious body, lips parted and lightly snoring, she couldn’t overcome her sudden need to touch him. Since the moment she laid her eyes on him, almost a decade prior, she felt an attachment, a cord permanently suspended between them. Sometimes that cord was taught and tight and he was present. Other times, that cord was limp and loose, for such a long while at times that she would wonder if the cord disappeared. Inevitably, be it days, weeks, months, or even years, the cord would be reinforced, stronger than before. What they had was a weakness, a disease. This isn’t normal, she would tell herself. But then she would look into his eyes or hear his unmistakable laughter and forget all about her worries; she could laugh with him until her last breath. Then she remembered a story she was told as a child. A story about a boy with wings crafted by feathers and wax. His father had warned him not to fly too close to the water, for fear of water touching the wings and dismantling them. He told his beloved son to avoid the sun, as well, for fear that the heat would melt the wax that held the feathers together. He should stay in the middle, stay safe. He would eventually succumb to hubris and fly too close to the sun, his fate foreshadowed by his father’s warnings. She sometimes felt like that boy, flying too close to the sun, responsible for her own demise. She wasn’t scared, she simply savored every moment a little more until she, too, would be enclosed by the crashing waves.
22 THE PLANT
My Oldest Friend Loves Windows CARSON SAWYER LAFRAMBOISE Contributor My house is up in the Utilitarian Meadows. It’s an ironic name, since most of the houses have small windows. There’s a small town beneath us with all the minimum necessities. Everyone will lock their doors but not their windows. My living room in particular, has full floor to ceiling windows out back and around the street corner. It’s fenced so no one can see me through it, but who would spy on a seventy- year old man watching his TV when they can hardly see him through the built-up scratches on the windows? Artie will keep them safe. My sisters and brother were kind kids, always playful when we lived back in Ontario, but I was “too old” for them while my bullies were fine. Xavier once threw a rock at me and broke a window I was carrying while his sister, Rebecca, shoved me to the ground. I had shards of glass in my knees and left palm. They jumped on the remaining shards and my siblings joined them, but how could we blame them; they were only six. I snuck out of my room that night with a broom and dustbin in my bad hand and a light in the other to clean up the mess. That was when I met Artie. I called him Artichoke, since he was incredibly chubby and had greenish fur. He looked like a bear but his paws were wider and fitted with transparent claws, his legs were just a few centimeters longer than one, and he had a bunny-like tail. He was adorable with his front legs curled up and his small whimper somewhere between a fox and a chimp, but his face was off. He had a long, skinless snout with flat gray teeth and six canines that rivaled the blades on his paws and the glass. They were unevenly spread across what I assumed to be a grin until I realized it must have been impossible for him to even shut his mouth. His eyes were a lighter shade of green than his fur, but they shined orange in the night. He tilted his head and let escape from his nose a gust of cold air and walked towards me, sniffing. His growl rattled when he looked at the glass I scooped up; he had scars across his legs and back and his skinned nose looked polished, giving me the feeling that there was never muscle there to begin with. He glared up at me and started to whimper again. Artie swept the glass shards into the dustbin. I was unlucky enough to watch Rebecca throw another rock at me but fortunate enough for it to miss and break another window. I was annoyed that I didn’t do anything, but as I walked in the twilight that night, Artie was eating from an old bag and he was gently tapping at the window of an abandoned house next to the forest. His claws scraped the glass as he cooed at the trails he made, sticking out a yellow tongue and perking up wolf-like ears I had not seen before and he froze. His head snapped towards me and he dashed. I thought he would eat me right there, so I was even more surprised when all he did was sniff me again. This time he gave a shout that was almost human and walked into the trees.
Xavier and Rebecca’s mom and dad wouldn’t stop screaming and mine joined them. My bullies and my kin vanished. My mom couldn’t handle seeing what had happened to them, neither could I. When I left the town, I had not seen Artie in over ten years until my wife, Karol, spoke to me. She was pregnant, but what made me absolutely ecstatic was when I saw the scratched windows. Nothing got out of hand in town with Artie as the invisible security guard, but things becamerisky when some punks thought it would be funny to break Artie’s favourite window in our backyard. Two bodies were found covered in uneven bite marks consisting of what looked like human teeth and knives. The only reason why it was investigated was because there was a trail of broken glass leading to the crime scene. It started to happen more often this year and everyone is getting a little concerned with their windows being covered in scratches. Our son came asking about it, since we had these markings for as long as we lived here. I told him not to worry. Artie just likes windows, but I am uneasy now. I fell through my floor to ceiling window last week and Artie is not happy.
CREATIVE WRITING 23
THE BRAVE MEMBERS OF THE PLANT TEAM WRITE HAIKUS!
On Architecture ARWEN LOW Staff Writer Brutalist blemish Reason needs some rococo De con struc tion ism
On Return MAYAN GODMAIRE Creative Writing Editor
On Good Eatin’ MIA KENNEDY Sports Editor Chicken, Chicken, Goose I am vegetarian Chicken, Chicken Loose
Each year a new spring Gaze at life with a freshness Thunderstorm flowers
On Short Poetry DINU MAHAPATUNA Voices Editor
On Sainthood DAYLEN CONSERVE Editor-in-Chief I’m a patron saint of saying I will do things then not doing it
Here is a haiku: It sucks just as much as all other haikus, dude.
On Lust Waiting to be Love PIPA JONES Graphic Designer brown eyes like the sun look up in the red-lit night brown eyes, please don’t leave
On Breathing JULIE JACQUES Managing Editor I am out of breath– Over committed, you can Find me at my desk.
24 THE PLANT
SPORTS 24
Halftime and High-tops: Where Fashion meets Fitness An Ode to Michael Jordan MIA KENNEDY Sports Editor
It began in 1985 when the first pair of Air Jordans were released. Micheal Jordan wore the black and red prototype shoes at a basketball game, where they were immediately banned for not conforming with the colours of the Chicago Bulls uniform. This sparked rumours that the shoes were what made Jordan such a remarkable athlete, rumours reflected in Nike’s advertising. “It’s gotta be the shoes,” one ad boasted under an image of Jordan dunking. Michael Jordan had already influenced the fashion world through his baggy shorts, sleek berets, and gold hoops, but his collaboration with Nike started a sneaker revolution that’s still alive today.
an easy gateway into fashion. They pop. People notice your shoes when you walk into a room.” Both Justin and Kyle recognize the legendary status of Air Jordans. “Jordans go way back in terms of influence. It’s kind of wild that the first sneaker in the Jordan line still has the highest resale value,” says Kyle. Jordans are “top-tier stuff,” as Justin puts it. Some fans are so eager to add them to their collection that online bids can easily reach the thousands. Although Justin hasn’t waited in long lines for “drops” or bid online for shoes like some fans, he’s built up a solid collection. “I think I have about nine pairs right now. The most I’ve spent on one pair is probably about 500$.”
That number may raise some eyebrows, but sneakers are more than just shoes for Justin. “I just feel good when I wear them. They make me feel confident.” For Kyle, who’s been building his collection for five years, they’re cultural artifacts as well as fashion statements. “They make me feel connected to the culture. It’s like a wine pairing. You admire the craftsmanship and the culture behind the shoe. There’s this thing when you have sneakers; it becomes a piece of art. You don’t want to tarnish it.” Although Micheal Jordan’s impact on the fashion world is largely recognized by “sneakerheads”, who knows just how mainstream sneaker collecting could get? Maybe one day wearable art will make its way to a museum near you. p p
“Sneakerhead” culture began in the 1980s, when basketball’s influence on fashion coincided with the growth of hip hop. The variety of signature basketball shoes and the popularity of sneakers in hip hop made sneaker collecting go global within a decade of its emergence. Today, it’s still flourishing. What started with a pair of iconic black and red shoes has turned into a thriving culture, with the most dedicated fans, “sneakerheads,” sometimes spending thousands of dollars in online bids or waiting in line for days for a new pair to drop. Justin MacLellan, who’s completing a technique in mechanical engineering at Cégep de St-Jean, thinks sneakers can make or break an outfit. “Sneakers are a huge part of my fashion. Even if an outfit is not great, a good pair of sneakers can tie the whole thing together.” Kyle Balian, a firstyear Dawson student in Enriched Pure and Applied Science, feels similarly. He says he loves sneakers “because they’re
Michael Jordan dunking in the first shoes he released with Nike. / Photo VIA SNEAKERNEWS
SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENT 25 25
Do Lobsters Feel Pain? LAURA GERVAIS Science Editor
Foodies of Dawson, I officially welcome you to lobster season! Spring is in the air -- after a winter that seems to have lasted ages -- and with this time of new beginnings, these scrumptious crustaceans arrive en masse in grocery stores. It may surprise you to hear that lobster was not always considered the delicacy it is today. Before it was food fit for kings, it was peasant food — only fed to servants and prisoners. In the 17th century, lobsters were so abundant that they would wash up on shores in such large quantities, so they were not seen as rare or valuable. People of the time were mostly repulsed by them for their insect resemblance and their ecological status as bottom-dwellers. Back then, lobster was cooked after being dead for a few hours. This time interval between death and consumption allowed for digestive enzymes to seep through the meat and harmful bacteria to grow, making for a truly grotesque culinary experience. Lobster only gained its recognition as a luxury in the 1950s, partly because it was one of the foods not rationed during the second World War. It became a good source of protein available to all. Before long, lobster became known for its exquisite taste (thanks to being properly cooked!) and evolved into the expensive treat it is now. Many people are concerned about whether or not lobsters feel pain when they are boiled alive. If you have ever attempted at making a luxurious lobster dinner, you’ve probably heard a scream-like sound coming from the pot. This horrifying screech, however, is not the lobster crying out in pain. In fact, Robert C. Bayer, the executive director of The Lobster Institute at the University of Maine, explains that it is “air that has been trapped in the stomach and forced
Photo VIA MAINE LOBSTER NOW
through the mouth after being out of water for short periods of time.”
research must be conducted before coming to a firm conclusion.
Some scientists argue that lobsters definitely do not feel pain. Joseph Ayers of Northeastern University claims that they “lack the brain anatomy needed to feel pain.” Lobsters, like insects, do not have brains, and according to the Lobster Institute, an organism must possess a complex nervous system for there to be any perception of pain. However, some say there is a possibility that they do suffer.
In some countries — namely New Zealand and Switzerland — it is illegal to boil lobsters while they are still alive. Stunning a lobster before boiling it has been named a more humane way of ending its life. Illegalizing the boiling of lobsters leaves some scientists stupefied, as the belief that these creatures lack the capacity to suffer is widespread. On the other hand, some say it’s better to be safe than sorry.
It’s been studied in the lab that crabs try to avoid electric shocks, which gives the impression that they must feel discomfort, if not pain. Jeff Shields, a marine biologist, explained that "it’s unclear whether the reaction to negative stimuli is a pain response or simply an avoidance response/” In other words, we just don’t yet know if crustaceans do indeed feel pain. It’s impossible to know what goes through a lobster’s “mind,” so more
If any of you do have lobster sometime soon, try not to feel too remorseful! The odds that they do feel pain are low, but nonetheless they are present. So, before you drop the creature into a boiling pot of water, let it rest on ice for a few minutes. This will slow its simple nervous system which will in turn decrease the chances of it feeling pain, and then you can enjoy your bisque guilt-free. p p
26 THE PLANT
7 TIPS AND TRICKS FOR A STRESS-FREE EXAM SEASON: • Get a good night’s sleep • Meditate or do yoga • Take a study break • Eat some good food • Drink water and avoid energy drinks • Unplug, even if it’s for 10-15 minutes • Listen to your favourite music
HOROSCOPES Just like that, the semester is over, finally. Congratulations on getting through it. I have had a blast being The Plant’s Curiosities editor this year. I’ll leave you with a few intentions to set yourself for this next few months. I hope you enjoy your summer! BIRTHDAY: If you were born May 20th, happy happy happy birthday! Also, if you were born November 19th, happy happy happy half birthday! ARIES (mar. 20 - apr. 18): Be willing to receive, Aries Remember to surround yourself with people that support you. Start the season off fresh! TAURUS (apr. 19 - may 20): New opportunities are coming this summer. Learn to welcome them with excitement. GEMINI (may 21 - june 20): You’re getting closer and closer to the light at the end of the tunnel. This summer is going to be a good one. Keep going!
CANCER (june 21 - july 22): Follow your intuition this summer, Cancers. Remember not to let what everyone else has to say bother you. LEO (july 23 - aug. 22): This summer is all about prioritizing yourself, Leos. It is time to start setting, working, and achieving your goals. If anyone can do it, it's you. VIRGO (aug. 23 - sept. 22): You and your emotions are valid! Use this summer to fully express them. It’ll take a weight off your shoulders. LIBRA (sept.23 - oct. 22): Your intuition is more powerful than anyone’s advice. Focus on trusting yourself, Libras. SCORPIO (oct. 23 - nov. 21): You’ve got to work differently if you want to see changes, Scorpios! Whatever your personal goal may be, start focusing on them this summer.
SAGITTARIUS (nov. 22 - dec. 21) : Practice gratitude this summer, Sagittarians. Life might not go exactly as you plan, but learning to accept and appreciate what you have now is the key to happiness. CAPRICORN (dec.22 - jan. 19): Set aside some time for your own goals too Capricorns! These next few months, focus on your favorite hobbies that you missed during the school season. AQUARIUS (jan. 20 - feb. 18): This summer, instead of wasting your energy on comparison, focus on self growth. You are the one that makes it all happen. Have faith in yourself ! PISCES (feb. 19 - mar. 19) : Let the past go and focus on your new adventures. This summer is yours for the taking, Pisces!
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COMIC
Curiosities by
ADELA PIRILLO Curiosities Editor
28 THE PLANT
MASTHEAD
CONTRIBUTORS
Daylen Conserve Editor-in-Chief
Tomas Oyarzun Cover Artist
Benjamin Wexler Copy Editor
Maija Baroni Staff Writer
Julie Jacques Managing Editor
Julia Quynh Staff Writer
Pipa Jones Graphic Designer
Arwen Low Staff Writer
Jessica Gearey News Editor
Kenza Bennani Jacqueline Lisbona Lucia Foster Dahlia Malfara Morgana Follmann Phia Dolgin Raven Edwards-Brown Mylène Kono Cyrielle Ouedraogo Carson Sawyer Laframboise Georgia Svourenos Anastasia Papakonstantinou Alessandro Mortellaro
Beatriz Neves Arts & Culture Editor Jill Goldenberg Visual Arts Editor Laura Gervais Sciences Editor Mia Kennedy Sports Editor Mayan Godmaire Creative Writing Editor Dinu Mahapatuna Voices Editor Adela Pirillo Curiosities Editor
CONTACT The Plant Newspaper Dawson College 3040 Rue Sherbrooke O Montréal, QC H3Z 1A4 2C.15 theplantnews.com theplantnewspaper@gmail.com @theplantnews