October 3, 2016

Vol. CXXXVII, No. 5 October 3, 2016 thevarsity.ca —— The University of Toronto’s Student Newspaper Since 1880

Editorial — page 11

Arts & Culture — page 14

Environmental justice The university and government continue to fail Indigenous peoples across Canada; we all have a responsibility to make amends

Creative collisions Cross-genre creations bear artistic fruit

“I exist” U of T community responds to Jordan Peterson on gender identities Tom Yun News Editor

U of T professor Jordan Peterson is facing criticism regarding his comments about non-binary gender identities and political correctness after his YouTube video “Fear and the Law” went viral last week.

The tenured psychology professor at U of T became the subject of national media attention after The Varsity reported on the first part of his YouTube lecture series called Professor against political correctness.

In an hour-long video, Peterson criticizes Bill C-16 — which would amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code to criminalize harassment and discrimination based on gender identity — and the Ontario Human Rights Commission’s policies on gender identity-based harassment and discrimination.

The Ontario Human Rights Commission defines gender identity as “each person’s internal and individual experience of gender. It is their sense of being a woman, a man, both, neither, or anywhere along the gender spectrum.”

“I don’t know what ‘neither’ means because I don’t know what the options are if you’re not a man or a woman,” Peterson states in his YouTube lecture. “It’s not obvious to me how you can be both because those are by definition binary categories.”

In an interview with The Varsity, Peterson insisted that he “wasn’t denying the existence of people who do not fit neatly into binary gender categories.”

Peterson asserts that the aforementioned government policies go too far in terms of accommodation for non-binary people and transgender people.

“What should you ask of the collective if you deviate in some manner? And you might say, ‘You should ask the collective to welcome you with open arms,’” he said.

“And I would say, ‘That’s probably asking too much.’ I think what you should ask the collective is [that] they tolerate your deviance without too much aggression.”

A number of U of T professors have contested the claims Peterson makes in the video.

A. W. Peet, a physics professor who identifies as non-binary and uses the pronoun ‘they,’ expressed disappointment with Peterson’s comments.

“It doesn’t really matter whether he thinks we exist or not because we do. I just wanted to say, ‘Excuse me, I exist. I’m non-binary and I’m also a full professor with the University of Toronto with tenure,” said Peet.

“So this is me standing up saying I don’t think this is good enough.”

Nicholas Matte, who teaches at the Mark S. Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity studies, disputed Peterson’s interpretations on gender.

“Unfortunately, there still are many branches of academia where new research has not been done in a way that would allow trans-positive information to be known,” said Matte. “Our academic field... can be used to justify the arguments that he is making, but that research is extremely questionable and also is not good research.”

He continued: “However, there is an extremely large body of excellent research that has been underway for many years — depending on how you measure it, up 60 years — to create more transpositive research.”

Peterson, page 3

Love and medicine Drs. Andrew and Cornelia Barnes are passionate about medicine and each other page 19

U of T student detained in Dhaka granted bail Tahmid Hasib Khan has been detained in Bangladesh since early July following café siege Kaitlyn Simpson Associate News Editor

After 3 months in Bangladeshi police custody, U of T student Tahmid Hasib Khan has been granted bail.

He was initially detained without charges by police so that he could be questioned regarding a Dhaka terrorist attack on July 1.

Bangladeshi police from the Counterterrorism and Transnational Crime Unit released a report on September 28 saying that Khan was not involved in perpetrating the attack.

Khan was with his friends at the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka when five extremists attacked the

bakery in a hostage situation, killing 20 people.

After a standoff with police officers, the siege ended with 13 survivors. Khan and British national Hasnat Karim were immediately taken in for questioning following the attack. Khan had limited communication with his family at first but quickly lost contact.

Following the incident, Khan’s whereabouts were unclear, but Dhaka Metropolitan Police officially arrested Khan on August 4, without laying charges.

With the efforts of Khan’s family and friends, a ‘Free Tahmid’ Facebook group has received significant support in its attempts to advocate

for Khan’s release since he was initially detained.

Joshua Grondin, U of T student and organizer of the Facebook group, told The Varsity that he is deeply relieved to hear that Khan has been released from custody. “It’s been a very long waiting game, and it definitely feels tough to have to sit back and watch your friend go through something like this,” he said. “I guess most of all I’m just overwhelmingly happy. I miss him so much, and it’s been really tough to not be able to hear from him or know how he’s doing.”

Khan was reportedly released Sunday.

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@kiwinerd | binary smasher: September 29, 2016 Jordan Peterson thinks my gender identity is up for debate. That’s a big NOPE. đ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľ

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@iHateCogsci | kĂŚsi: September 30, 2016 .@UofT Releasing a statement does not do anything material to make the University of Toronto a safer environment for trans people.

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@assu_uoft | ASSU: September 30, 2016 Is the term over yet? @jwvme_ | Jaren K. September 30, 2016 My “five cheese dipâ€? only lists 4 cheeses on the ingredients @mubawhat | //\//\ September 30, 2016 i cant write the letter G, it ends up looking like đ&#x;”Ľđ&#x;”Ľ

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@c32094 | Corinne October 1, 2016 Red wine and Bon Iver = how I pre for Nuit Blanche.

(Who wants to bet I won’t make it out of my house?)

Suspicious person

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OCTOBER 3, 2016 • 3

var.st/news Peterson, from cover reasonable to assume that some of the people in your political surrounds are going to be relatively radical LBGT [sic] activists.”

Peterson’s video lecture also calls gender-neutral pronouns “connected to… an entire underground apparatus of… radical left political motivations.”

Laying out a hypothetical situation in which a student asks to be addressed by a different pronoun, Peterson said, “If someone just came up to me and said that, I would definitely just tell them to go away. They have to have a reason to have a conversation with me.”

NATHAN CHAN/THE VARSITY

Jordan Peterson seen at a Campaign for Community event last Tuesday.

Ronald de Sousa, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, released a 30-minute response video on YouTube last Saturday, in which he addressed Peterson directly: “Your apparent ignorance of the vast literature attesting to the reality and the diversity of nonstandard forms of sex, gender, and sexual expression and orientation is really distressing.”

The ‘radical left’ Peterson’s video makes frequent references to what he perceives as a radical left-wing fringe movement.

“One of the things I’m afraid of with regards to all of the continual radical activism on the left is that they’re waking up the right,” he told The Varsity. “And all you have to do is look around. There’s a huge resurgence in right-wing parties in Europe.”

In the video, Peterson said he suspected that Ontario Premier

Kathleen Wynne’s sexual orientation and “social justice warrior-type activists [being] over-represented in the current provincial government” were factors in the state of the Ontario Human Rights Commission.

“I can’t help but manifest the suspicion that that’s partly because our current Premier is lesbian in her sexual preference and that in itself doesn’t bother me one way or another,” said Peterson in the video. “I don’t think it’s relevant to the political discussion except insofar as the LBGT [sic] community has become extraordinary good at organizing themselves and has a fairly pronounced and very, very sophisticated radical fringe.”

Peterson stood by this speculation: “It’s perfectly reasonable to question the company that they keep. If you’re a trade union leader, I presume you’re going to surround yourself with left-wing activists. If you’re a gay politician, I think it’s

Being non-binary at U of T Peet noted that the Ontario Human Rights Commission’s policies prohibit gender-based harassment, which include pronoun usage.

“Under paragraph 7.4, it defines the forms of gender-based harassment. One of them is refusing to refer to a person by their self-identified name and proper personal pronoun,” said Peet. “So, if he were to do that to an individual student, he would be contravening Ontario human rights law and the person affected could bring a complaint.”

Peet continued: “If he chooses to not use my they-them pronouns, for example if he meets me, or refused to call me by the name I choose, I could call Jordan ‘Julie’. I can call him every time I speak about him ‘Julie Peterson.’ He would not like that. That would be disrespectful to him. I’d be getting his name wrong and he would be justifiably angry.”

Peterson also suggested that his statements could be illegal.

“I think the legislation is written in such an incoherent way, the fact that I’m having this discussion with you could be construed to be illegal,” he said.

“And it might even be construed to be a hate crime because I’m daring to question the proposition that gender identity isn’t a

free-floating construct above biological sex. And we don’t know enough about these things to take them off the table.”

On Twitter, Peterson challenged Peet to a debate, to which Peet declined. Of this exchange, Peet said, “Gender identity of real life people is actually not up for debate. That’s one of the primary reasons why I refused to debate him in the format that he requested.”

When asked to describe their experience as a non-binary professor at U of T, Peet said, “I have been, in the large, very well supported by U of T. In particular, by the people in the university administration [and] people in the equity offices.”

Peet praised the Sexual and Gender Diversity Office on campus, saying, “They’ve been doing fabulous work. I have received personally a great deal of support from the SGDO, from all of the people there.

And when I’ve gone through certain issues, sometimes colleagues doing things, saying clumsy things, that kind of thing, they’ve helped my... individual issues, departmental things.”

Going forward U of T Media Relations Coordinator Althea Blackburn-Evans said that no formal complaints have been lodged against Peterson and noted that all members of the U of T community are bound by U of T’s polices and federal and provincial law.

Similar sentiments were echoed in a statement released by VicePresident, Human Resource & Equity Angela Hildyard and VicePresident & Provost Cheryl Regehr.

“We want to make sure that everyone here in our community feels respected and welcome and supported and we expect [that] all members of our community, including Professor Peterson, comply with U of T’s policies and guidelines,” said Blackburn-Evans.

“Students have a learning en-

vironment free from discrimination and harassment on any of the prohibited grounds of the Ontario Human Rights Code,“ she added.

Matte feels that the university’s statement “did not do anything to address safety,” as it did not direct students and faculty on how to make a formal complaint. He published a blog post on the Bonham Centre website “to make something available to people online” seeking support.

Peterson says that the second part of his YouTube series, which he hopes to have up by October 3, will focus on U of T’s Human Resources Department requirement for mandatory anti-racist training.

“I take exception to that for a variety of reasons. One is, it isn’t obvious that there is a racism problem on the U of T campus. Second is, it isn’t obvious to me that it’s reasonable to term people sufficiently racist when they haven’t done anything to deserve that epithet so you have to retrain them. Third, it isn’t obvious to me that you should make it mandatory,” Peterson said.

“And fourth, I don’t think the people who have been put in charge of the education program have the credentials or the ability to deliver what they claim to be able to deliver. And finally, I don’t believe that there’s any evidence that these anti-racist training programs actually produce a decrement in racism.

In fact, they might make people worse,” continued Peterson.

Although Peet declined Peterson’s request for a debate, they offered to have a cup of tea with him to discuss their experience as a nonbinary person.

“Somebody who’s as smart as Peterson could sit down and in a week, learn a great deal about gender identity and gender expression,” said Peet. “He could look in the places he’s been willfully refusing to look.”

U of T signs defaced with swastikas Incidents of vandalism reported by Hillel U of T Emaan Thaver Associate News Editor

Two University of Toronto building signs and an on-campus bus shelter were defaced with drawings of the swastika symbol over the weekend in an act of vandalism.

The first marking was found on Medical Sciences Building signage at 1 King’s College Circle on Friday.

A student passerby noticed the graffiti on Friday afternoon and brought it to the attention of Hillel U of T, a Jewish campus organization.

The group immediately reported the incident to campus security, after which the marking was promptly removed by university staff.

Rob Nagus, Director of Hillel U of T, told The Varsity that the organization was “pleased that the university responded quickly and removed the graffiti.”

The organization also posted a photograph of the graffiti to their Facebook page, assuring students that they would be “monitoring the situation and working with administration to ensure that the University of Toronto is a safe campus for all students.”

The swastika symbol is commonly associated with the atrocities committed by the Nazi Party, anti-Semitism, and racism.

University spokeswoman Althea Blackburn-Evans confirmed that the first marking was removed soon after it had been reported.

Blackburns-Evans added that the university’s Campus Police had filed a report with the Toronto Police and that an active investigation is underway, although “there are no leads or witnesses at this time.”

A second swastika symbol appeared on a bus shelter near the

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There were three instances of vandalism reported. southwest corner of St. George Street and Harbord Street later on Friday; it has since been removed.

In addition, on Saturday evening, a third symbol was discovered on

a signboard outside the Department of Sociology building at 725 Spadina Avenue.

It is unknown if the three incidents are connected. Nagus told

The Varsity that these incidents were reported as well.

At press time, the graffiti at the Department of Sociology building was still present.

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SCSU, UTSU butt heads over UTSU After Party transportation Tensions high after too many buses dispatched to the event Jenna Moon Varsity Contributor

Controversy is brewing over transportation decisions at the University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) After Party last month.

The After Party happened on September 9 at the Sound Academy and bussing was arranged between the three campuses and the club. According to a report from the UTSU, a “certain division curtailed the previous agreements and brought more buses than were originally agreed upon.”

Divisions refer to the student societies from the three campuses of the university — UTSU, the University of Toronto Mississauga Students’ Union (UTMSU), and the Scarborough Campus Students’ Union (SCSU). SCSU and UTMSU were responsible for arranging their own shuttles to the event, and the number of buses from each had been confirmed with the UTSU ahead of time. The division involved in this incident was the SCSU, but the report does not mention the name of the division.

UTSU Vice-President, Campus Life Shahin Imtiaz told The Varsity that SCSU had originally agreed to provide five buses, but instead sent seven.

“To someone who’s maybe not the organizer, the difference between 5 and 7 buses may not be super apparent” said Imtiaz. A UTSU executive told one of the excess busses that arrived at UTSG to turn back to UTSC due to the growing number of buses that were continuing to appear at the

Sound Academy.

Imtiaz also explained that the limit on the number of buses is a “sort of crowd control measure so that we don’t have an unexpected number of people show up, and Sound Academy… is sort of out of the way… so it’s not ideal to not know how many people are attending.” Despite this, the overflow of buses did not lead to many issues with crowd control.

In addition, UTSU learned upon arrival at the venue that there was no parking lot due to ongoing construction. “We were not told about this in advance… which made it even more confusing, and even potentially dangerous, when there are these buses, we have no place to park them, nothing to do with them, and more are coming that we didn’t authorize,” said Imtiaz.

The bussing incident has led to feelings of animosity amongst the UTSU staff. “I think the overarching idea is just that we had agreed to a certain thing, and we do it to make it a tri-campus event,” said Imtiaz.

Historically, the UTSU has kept frosh events open to all campuses, with costs of the events only borne by the UTSU. The UTSU Management Committee — which is comprised of President Jasmine Wong Denike, Vice-President Internal & Services Mathias Memmel, and Executive Director Tka Pinnock — made the decision to “ not allow this group to participate in future years unless an apology is issued and a formal-

Sound Academy is now operating under the name ‘Rebel’. MAISHA ISLAM/THE VARSITY ized agreement can be reached.”

When prompted to acknowledge the statement, Memmel stated in an email to The Varsity that the Management Committee hopes to work with the division involved to resolve the problem, but declined to comment further on the matter. Although Memmel was mum on the name of the division involved, Denike and SCSU President Jessica Kirk confirmed that it was SCSU that sent in the extra busses.

“After receiving approval from UTSU’s President and the ED and communicating with their Orientation, one of our extra buses that was supposed to have gone back to Scarborough was reassigned to travel to Sound Academy,” explained Kirk. “The reason we had an extra bus to begin with, was that the Orientation Team anticipated more students wanting to use our

bus service to return to UTSC. It turns out we only ended up needing to use one bus to take students back to the Scarborough Campus.”

Kirk has also stated that she had reached out to Denike to debrief but had not received a response.

Denike told The Varsity that the union had agreed to let an extra Scarborough designated bus into the venue because it was not at capacity yet. She also explained that Kirk had only reached out to her to speak on September 29, with “no context given about a debrief of any kind.”

“We are still awaiting a response or explanation about why there were more than the 5 agreed-upon buses that were designated for Sound Academy to begin with,” said Denike.

The myriad of unforeseen issues is prompting the UTSU to rethink the way the After Party is run. Imti-

az stated that the UTSU staff “were extremely stressed, our executives were extremely stressed… We were thinking about foregoing and just re-visioning everything, kind of based on how negative everyone’s experiences were.”

Imtiaz cited accessibility concerns as one reason to reassess the event. She added that organizers “had to go out of our way to make it accessible, with gender-neutral washrooms and such… Maybe we can even do something closer to campus, something that’s maybe even outdoors, or large enough so that the students don’t need to be bussed out.”

Though the night was negative for the UTSU staff, the issues did not appear to affect students in attendance at the event. Imtiaz confirmed that despite the bussing issue, the event was a success overall.

U of T gets hold of The Golden Legend 500-year-old classic the oldest printed English text in U of T’s collection Alex Arabit Varsity Contributor

The University of Toronto’s Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library has recently acquired their oldest English print book: a 1507 copy of The Golden Legend.

The library is home to 800,000 rare books and is the largest rare book collection in Canada. The Golden Legend was originally compiled in 1260 by Jacobus De Voragine, a scholarly friar and later archbishop of Genoa. De Voragine aimed to encourage the faithful by preserving a vast store of information about the legends and traditions of the church.

In the book, he wrote stories about the lives of saints. The Golden Legend was the most read book in the Middle Ages after the Bible.

Later in the fifteenth century, a man named William Caxton translated the book from Latin to English, also adding stories from the bible.

This addition generated both negative and positive feedback. Caxton’s additions made the teachings of the Bible accessible to ordinary people, but it was also considered illegal at the time.

“Like most of our books from our rare book collection, I found them through dealer catalogues,” said Thomas Fisher Rare Book special librarian Pearce J. Carefoote.

Before the U of T library took possession of The Golden Legend, Carefoote explained that it was in London in a family’s private library. When asked what relevance The Golden Legend has today, Carefoote answered, “Well the stories themselves

are quaint and fun but not historical fact. What makes it important is how this is from very early English.”

Traces of readership from the Reformation period — which marked the beginning of the Protestant movement — is apparent. A reader during this period leaves traces of themselves, within The Golden Legend, through the scratching out of any mention of the Pope.

The page about Thomas Becket — the murdered archbishop of Canterbury, who King Henry VIII disliked — was blotted out with an X. The Golden Legend allows readers to enter into a world of the Reformation, the Middle Ages, early English printing, lives of saints, and more, making it applicable to many of the programs offered at U of T.

STEPHANIE XU/THE VARSITY

The Golden Legend is significant to the Protestant reformation period.

OCTOBER 3, 2016 • 5

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CFS gears up for Fight the Fees! campaign UTSU criticizes campaign for being too vague Katrina Wozniuk Varsity Contributor

The Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) is calling for a national day of action on November 2, as part of its Fight the Fees! campaign, which calls for universal, public post secondary education.

“Fight the Fees is part of a national campaign strategy adopted

by Canada’s Student Movement towards a national day of action on November 2nd,” CFS National Chairperson Bilan Arte told The Varsity. “The campaigns objective’s are to educate, agitate, and mobilize students across Canada to achieve universal, public post secondary education in our country.”

Currently, Ontario students, including University of Toronto students, pay some of the highest tuition fees in the country. The CFS reports that tuition fees in Ontario have increased five percent annually on average. The CFS intends to put pressure on the provincial and federal governments with this campaign.

The current provincial government tuition cap framework allows tuition to go up three to five percent annually for domestic undergraduate students in most programs of study. There is no cap for the amount an institution is allowed to raise tuition for international students.

While many students can apply for loans, they may still face massive amounts of student debt after

graduating. Accumulated debt after graduation is now estimated at an average of $37,000 for a student enroled in a four-year program.

The current tuition cap framework expires in 2017, which is why the CFS believes now is the best time to take action.

Free tuition is not a new idea, nor is it exclusive to Canada. Many countries have already opted for free or substantially subsidized tuition plans including Germany, Sweden, Finland, Norway, and France.

“Our campaign believes that access to university or college should be guaranteed and accessible to all, no matter how much money they or their families make, or which region of Canada they are from or happen to live in,” explained Arte.

“Canada is a wealthy country, and if our provincial and federal governments made it a priority to fund a universal system of post secondary education in this country, as exists in countless examples around of the world of countries with free education, this too could be a reality in Canada.”

However, not all student leaders are convinced by this campaign.

University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) Vice-President, Internal & Services Mathias Memmel, said that the union sent a letter to the CFS criticizing Fight the Fees! campaign.

According to the letter, the UTSU feels that the campaign does not

adequately address the concern of Ontario’s looming tuition fee cap framework expiry.

“We would prefer that the CFS focus on the Tuition Fee Framework as opposed to on another non-specific campaign for the abolition of tuition fees,” reads a portion of the letter.

“In this respect, Fight the Fees seems to favour restating CFS policy over advancing the interests of the students paying the highest fees in the most expensive city in the province.”

Memmel told The Varsity that the union is not opposed to participating in the CFS’s campaign: “The point of the letter was just to make clear to the CFS that, because of the shortcomings of Fight the Fees, we’ll also be running our own campaign, which will be our first priority.”

“The CFS always does a good job of making students aware of what’s happening to their fees, but because there’s so much distance between what the CFS is saying and what the government is considering, very little actually happens,” he continued.

“Barrier-free education is the goal of the movement, and we want to further that goal by pursuing narrower, policy-based goals—we want things to get tangibly better for students, even if only slightly at first.”

When asked about the UTSU’s criticism of the campaign, Arte responded by explaining that every student in Canada should have the right to go to school.

NATHAN CHAN/THE VARSITY

The CFS’s National Day of Action is scheduled for November 2.

“As we face this crisis, now is the time for a united student movement that will take action for a cause that ensures that all in our communities will have the opportunity and guaranteed right to get an education,”

she said. “I hope that executives at the University of Toronto Students’ Union will stand with us in that fight, and defend education for all on November 2.”

Three motions put forward for upcoming UTSU Annual General Meeting AGM to be held on October 27 Harleen Sandhu Varsity Contributor

With the University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) Annual General Meeting approaching later this month, three major member-submitted motions are on the agenda.

Engineering director Andrew Sweeny submitted a motion that builds on the topic of an upcoming referendum, in which the union will ask its members for an additional levy charge of $3.75 per semester. If the referendum question succeeds, the money from the levy would be restricted to use only on club funding, events, and services of the union.

None of the money would be allowed to be used on salaries or human resource expenses.

Sweeny’s motion proposes that spending on human resource expenses be further limited to no more than 42 per cent of the gross

revenue from the regular UTSU membership fees, and that at least 40 per cent of that revenue would be allocated for spending on student clubs, events and services.

Victoria College student Steven Warner, a former member of the UTSU Board of Directors, is moving for a disclosure of how much money the UTSU spends on levy groups. The UTSU currently receives $37.31 per fall/ winter term from all members, which goes toward its operating budget and levy groups. The UTSU operating budget only indicates how much money the UTSU directly spends itself, but not how much the levy groups receive or use.

All of the UTSU’s financial information is available through Audited Financial Statements, but the operating budget is much easier for students to access.

The final motion, which was submitted by Vice-President

Students vote at last year’s AGM. MALLIKA MAKKAR/THE VARSITY Internal & Services Mathias Memmel proposes changes to the UTSU’s bylaws to make the language of the bylaws consistent with the board structure changes

the union made last year. The UTSU was required to change the structure of its Board of Directors when the Canada Not-forprofit Corporations Act created

new regulations for not-for-profit organizations.

The AGM will be held on October 27 at the OISE Auditorium from 6:00–10:00 pm.

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UTSU, RSU team up to hold electoral reform town hall Town hall consultations to be reported to the Special Committee on Electoral Reform Kaitlyn Simpson Associate News Editor

The University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) and the Ryerson Students’ Union (RSU) teamed up with Leadnow, a political advocacy organization, to hold an electoral reform town hall last Thursday.

The town hall — held in the Ryerson Student Learning Centre — was designed specifically for students to give input on electoral reform.

Following the 2015 federal election, electoral reform has been a widely discussed issue in Canadian politics. During the campaign, Justin Trudeau promised to end the first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting system. Since then, a House of Commons Special Committee on Electoral Reform has been created and consultation sessions are being held across the country.

In September, Maryam Monsef, Minister for Democratic Institutions, held a consultation session at University College.

Using the information and suggestions gathered during these sessions, the goal is for these changes

to take effect during the next Federal election. This timeline requires a quick consultation period so that Elections Canada has time to implement these changes.

In addition, the federal Conservative Party is calling for a referendum to take place on electoral reform — something that Monsef has argued against.

Katelynn Northam, the Eastern Canada Field Organizer for Leadnow, facilitated the two-hour town hall. Presentations centred around Canada’s electoral system and alternatives to it. Small-group discussions on electoral representation and lowering the voting age followed.

Canada’s FPTP electoral system was critiqued heavily at the town hall.

Under FPTP, there is one seat to be won in each riding and whoever has a plurality of the votes wins the seat. This creates the possibility for parties to form a majority government without winning a majority of the popular vote.

Last election the Liberal Party won a majority government but re-

MAX XI/THE VARSITY

A Leadnow volunteer explains proportional representation. ceived only about 40 per cent of the popular vote.

Other electoral systems discussed included various majoritarian systems, proportional representation systems, and mixed systems.

At the town hall, UTSU President Jasmine Wong Denike spoke on the importance of young people voting: “The only way to get the government to notice student issues is to actually start voting, so it’s really

great that we’re here to talk about electoral reform.”

In their event description on their website, Leadnow stressed the importance of youth voices.

“Our current electoral system does not encourage political parties to work on issues that matter to young people. They say we’re an apathetic generation, but we are political and engaged in all sorts of ways, working hard to improve our communities,” a portion of the description reads.

Although the event was intended for U of T and Ryerson students, individuals from other schools and some members of the community also came out to give input and learn about Canada’s electoral processes.

Leadnow is holding another youth town hall on electoral reform at the 519 Community Centre on October 4. A report will be sent to the Special Committee on Electoral Reform following the two sessions.

The Committee on Electoral Reform is expected to produce a report to the House of Commons by December 1.

Citizen Lab exposes censorship software sale Canadian-made software allows Bahraini government complete control of country’s online activity Alex Arabit Varsity Contributor

A scathing report was published on September 21 by the Citizen Lab — an interdisciplinary research laboratory based in U of T’s Munk School of Global Affairs — outlining how a Canadian company called Netsweeper has sold software to Bahrain that facilitates the country’s extreme limits of online expression and high levels of internet censorship. The contract between Newsweeper and Bahrain is worth roughly $1.2 million and was created earlier this year.

Using a research tool called Zmap, the Citizen Lab scanned the Internet and found that Netsweeper, a Waterloo-based company, had installations being used to filter highly censored countries such as Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen, and most recently, the Kingdom of Bahrain.

A Zmap scan is able to identify the exact equipment being used for censorship, since certain filtering systems have “the equivalent of digital signatures,” Professor Robert Deibert, Director of the Citizen Lab, explained in a blog post announcing the release of the report.

The report indicated that Netsweeper has been involved with Bahrain since January 2016, when the country issued a tender for bidding on a national-level Internet

National protests have occurred in Bahrain. AL JAZEERA ENGLISH/CC FLICKR filtering system. Freedom House, a watchdog organization focused on civil liberties, reported that the citizens of the Kingdom of Bahrain have faced obstacles in accessing the Internet, limits on their content, and violations of user rights.

Despite this, Internet access is widespread at Bahraini schools, universities, shopping malls, and coffee shops.

However, Bahrain’s Internet

availability is strictly controlled by the government. During the anniversary of a national uprising on February 14, Bahrain’s Internet speed was reduced.

Along with controlling the speed, the government controls online content. In Bahrain, government agencies with the power to block websites without a court order include the Information Affairs Authority, the Ministry of Interior,

and the Ministry of State for Telecommunication.

Freedom House states, “IAA has blocked or shut down at least 1,000 websites, including human rights websites, blogs, online forums, and individual pages from social media networks.”

Between June 2014 and May 2015, at least 27 Bahraini citizens were arrested, detained, or prosecuted as a result of their online activity. For

example, on February 10, 2015, social media activist Jaleela al-Sayed Ameen was detained while her house was raided and her electronics were confiscated. She was later reportedly taken to the prison hospital due to ill treatment during her interrogation.

In Canada, Netsweeper has the support of both the provincial and federal governments in trade shows. According to Canada’s Trade Commissioner, government involvement at these trade shows includes assistance with “business-to-business meetings” and “networking events,” as well as provision of a “pavilion/exhibit.”

In his blog post, Deibert commented on the need for government regulation surrounding censorship and surveillance companies like Netsweeper. He spoke of “corporate social responsibility” for companies, as well as the government enforcing “export controls.”

“Taking these steps would help better synchronize Canada’s economic and human rights policies while also bringing the world of Internet filtering in line with widely recognized principles on how businesses should respect human rights,” he wrote.

Netsweeper CEO Perry Roach did not respond to The Varsity’s request for comment via his webpage.

OCTOBER 3, 2016 • 7

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Times Higher Education ranks University of Toronto twenty-second in the world U of T drops three positions from last year’s rankings Emaan Thaver Associate News Editor

Times Higher Education released its newest rankings report this month, placing the University of Toronto twenty-second out of 978 international institutions. The current ranking is three-spots below U of T’s placement in last year’s report.

Northwestern University and the University of Michigan’s rise in rankings this year meant that the University of Toronto did not make the elusive ‘top 20’.

U of T is one of three Canadian institutions to rank in the world’s top 100, alongside the University of British Columbia (UBC) and McGill University, both of which also experienced a fall in their respective positions this year. UBC currently stands at thirty-sixth in the world, while McGill University is ranked fortysecond; the universities are down two and four ranks respectively compared to last year’s report.

Despite the fall in global rankings, U of T retained its position as the top ranked university in Canada for the seventh year running.

Times Higher Education also published its annual subject-specific rankings list, with the University of Toronto dropping in ranks across several disciplines, including arts and humanities, life sciences, and engineering and technology.

The latest edition of rankings revealed a downward trend for Canadian universities collectively as several institutions in China, Singapore, and Hong Kong climbed up the list. Both UBC and McGill were overtaken in this year’s rankings

by Tsinghua University and Peking University in China, which ranked at 35 and 29 respectively.

The National University of Singapore also jumped two spots up in the high-profile rankings, coming in just two levels below the University of Toronto at number 24.

The upward performance of several Asian institutions in international rankings is largely due to an increase in investment in higher education across that continent.

China, for example, has invested heavily in its own higher education system in recent years, with the government allocating $2.2 billion USD into the education sector as part of the country’s latest Five Year Plan.

The Times Higher Education university rankings judge institutions based on 13 performance indicators that fall under five weighted categories, including teaching at 30 per cent, research at 30 per cent, citations at 30 per cent, international outlook at 7.5 per cent and industry income at 2.5 per cent.

Earlier in September, U of T was ranked second in Canada in the QS World University Rankings and first in the Shanghaibased Academic Ranking of World Universities.

VANESSA WANG/THE VARSITY

Prime Minister of Barbados attends Town Hall at U of T Freundel Stuart talks economy, monarchy, Barbados-Canada relations Dan Silveira Varsity Contributor

Prime Minister of Barbados Freundel Stuart visited U of T to attend a town hall at Koffler House on September 25.

During the Town Hall meeting, Stuart — accompanied by his Minister of Education and Minister of Labour — spoke about the Barbadian economy, tourism, the country’s relationship with Canada, and the two countries’ relationships with the British government and monarchy.

Barbados will be celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of its independence on November 30.

Stuart, who has been the Prime Minister of Barbados since 2010, was proud to relay that the small state — with a population less than 300,000 people — has an economy that is “now approaching $9 billion in gross domestic product,” of which Health and Education makes up a “substantial part of the country’s budget because our human resource is to be regarded as our most precious resource.”

Tourism is a large part of Barbados’ service-based economy, contributing “about 12 percent of the gross domestic product,” which makes it their “principal foreign exchange earner.”

Stuart noted that their principle source market for tourism has shifted over the years from Canada to the United States to the United

Kingdom as their principle source market for tourism. However, Barbados is currently Canada’s “third largest investment in the area of international business,” adding “most of our international business comes from here in Canada.”

Stuart discussed the long-spanning relationship Barbados has had with Canada, but said “you cannot speak of the relationship between Barbados and Canada without acknowledging a very important historical fact.” Stuart went on to discuss the “Confederation Riots” of 1876 in Barbados, which resulted from the British government wanting Barbados to “enter a confederation with the other islands of the eastern Caribbean.” The Barbados government rejected the idea as they did not want “to allow the other islands of the eastern Caribbean to be a drag on Barbados’ development,” Stuart explained.

Stuart spoke of how the decision made by Barbados increased tensions with the British government, which ultimately led to people being prosecuted or losing their lives.

However, although Barbadians rejected participation in a Caribbean confederate they later offered to enter into “a confederal arrangement here in Canada” eight years later, although it “never became a reality.”

“I made the observation a point to let you know how strongly Barbadians have felt about Canada over the years, and how close the

relationship between the two countries has been,” Stuart said.

Following his speech, Stuart took questions from the audience.

Looking back over the previous six years he has been in office as Prime Minister, Stuart said: “I had views of what it would have been to be a great leader of a country, before I became a leader of a country, and for me the last six years have been a unique period of my own life not just because I’ve been the Prime Minister of Barbados but because the country was going through a most testing period since independence.”

Stuart said that the economic downturn currently felt in Barbados has been the “longest in Barbados post-independence history” and how through the crises he’s had to “keep Barbados steady.”

“I was aware and have been aware that, if I showed any signs of panic, any signs of anxiety, that it would filter right from the top down to society.” Stuart cited Roman poet Horace as an inspiration for him to not only “keep a cool head” but also to “radiate as Prime Minister of Barbados confidence in the promise and the future of Barbados,” noting that it is very important to understand that “we cannot afford to mistake a moment in time for eternity; this will pass.”

“We may not get back to the Barbados that preceded this crisis because the world has changed but

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Freundal Stewart leads a small island nation of almost 300,000 people. the Barbados that comes out will be the Barbados… that responds to the ideals which we have set ourselves in creation of a Barbados that is socially balanced, economically viable, and environmentally sound and characterized by those goals.”

He added, “So in terms of what it

takes to be a great leader, leadership is contextual.”

Disclosure: Dan Silveira was recently hired as an Advertising Executive for Varsity Publications Inc. He no longer contributes to The Varsity’s written content.

Comment

October 3, 2016 var.st/comment comment@thevarsity.ca

Confronting contradictions Takeaways from Naomi Klein’s lecture on intersectional justice Naomi Klein 's powerful speech on citizenship drew attention to energy justice. MAYA WONG/THE VARSITY

Ibnul Chowdhury Varsity Contributor

Toronto, like all urban spaces, is full of contradictions: gentrification and the rise of skyscraper condos is rampant while high cost of living and homelessness continues to plague many; the police force is militarized in spite of low crime rates; and the mantra of urban multiculturalism is a well-accepted myth despite deep-rooted structures of racism.

Yet, it is perhaps these very tensions that drive us to pursue meaningful dialogue and imagine reconciliations and resolutions.

Aimed at hosting conversation about “inclusion and citizenship” in Canada, the 6 Degrees conference was held last week in Toronto, headlined by activist and author Naomi Klein’s "LaFontaine-Baldwin Lecture."

Klein’s lecture aimed at healing fundamental contestations and contradictions that underline Canadian citizenship: its imagined versus its real history, the interests of the elites versus the marginalized masses, and, most importantly, the need to move from a nationalist framework towards a sense of post-national, intersectional justice.

According to Klein, we must “collectively retell” the story of Canada.

To better understand Canada today, Klein urged listeners to recognize the country’s colonial history of extraction. Whether through the fur trade, which exploited skilled Indigenous labour, or the residential schools, which extracted and systematically removed Indigenous children from their families, land, peoples, and resources have been used as expendable commodities by settler elites.

By evoking these memories, Klein and others challenge the nationalist tendency to mask truths and historicize Canada as an innocent and open place.

Klein reminds us that “the crime is still in progress.” Indeed, extraction within Canada today can be recognized in the country's fossil fuel dependence. While this has huge domestic

repercussions — especially through environmental degradation that disproportionately affects Indigenous peoples, as well as the economic costs made clear by the recent oil crisis — the problem is fundamentally global in nature. As in Syria and Iraq, Western wars fought over fossil fuels continue to force mass migration towards the West, subjecting migrants to racialization, criminalization, and detainment.

Moreover, as fossil fuel dependence continues to intensify climate change and proliferate natural disasters, millions of people — again largely racialized individuals — will become climate refugees.

Being a Torontonian or Canadian is in no sense monolithic. As the interconnected phenomena of extraction, war, and climate change disproportionately affect and accentuate the plight of marginalized peoples, we are swiftly revitalizing yet another contradiction: between the colonial 'extractive' elites on one hand and the colonized on the other.

Klein’s solution is to establish “energy justice” through the steps set out in the Leap Manifesto, which she co-authored with her spouse Avi Lewis. The manifesto demands a green, renewable energy-based economy that compensates and empowers the people most affected by extraction and tackles poverty and austerity simultaneously. In this sense, only intersectional justice — in which environmentalism is considered in conjunction with economic, migrant, Indigenous, gender, and racial justice — can situate Canada in the worldwide struggle to decolonize and re-imagine human relations.

Here at the university in the core of cosmopolitan Toronto, we students, too, struggle for decolonization and intersectional justice.

Whether by challenging the corporatization of our education through the 'PeterMunk OUT of UofT' campaign or taking part in movements such as Black Lives Matter and fossil fuel divestment campaigns, it is crucial that we continue to actively make our contestations clear in pursuit of a more inclusive, intersectional educational space.

However, the acknowledgement of intersectionality on its own is insufficient. How do we move from collective re-telling to 'collective re-doing'? Our movements are not inclusive if the most marginalized voices are not given the greatest amplification — too often their voices are essentialized and tokenized.

Consider the fact that 6 Degrees charged entry fees of up to hundreds of dollars, clearly excluding low-income participants. Klein’s lecture itself was symbolically at the centre of two groups at the margins: the Indigenous Smoke Trail Singers, which performed powwow drumming, and a group of Syrian refugee children performing “Singing for Peace” in Arabic, English, and French. While the appearances of these groups may be regarded favourably in terms of visibility, one can also argue that such presentations perpetuate the reduction of Indigeneity to musical performance and the reduction of Syria to child victimhood — in a manner that is simultaneously exploited to praise Canada by singing in both English and French, its two official languages.

Citizenship and justice are not just about including minority identities to make the nationalist narrative more inclusive. They are about collectively allowing the marginalized to own the platforms of communication, rather than merely being offered token representation by those with power.

Climate change demands a global definition of justice in the twenty-first century; it is not confined by borders but conversely undermines them through internationalized natural disasters, wars, and refugee crises. However, inclusion, citizenship, and resolution of tensions here in Toronto — like in any space — will demand the active participation and self-representation of the voices most burdened by injustice. Those in power must yield them that platform.

Ibnul Chowdhury is a second-year student at Trinity College studying South Asian Studies, Economics, and Peace, Conflict and Justice Studies.

OCTOBER 3, 2016 • 9

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When the majority rules, voters lose Why proportional representation is a much better system than first-past-the-post Christopher Chiasson Varsity Contributor

On September 18, an article was published in The Varsity entitled “Why the most ballots should constitute a win.” The author speaks in favour of the current first-past-thepost (FPTP) electoral system.

Although early in the article it states that “the main grievance against FPTP is its apparent undemocratic nature,” the author argues for the fact that regional representation should be our primary concern when picking the leaders of our country.

Even if there are other benefits offered by the FPTP system, an electoral system being undemocratic is not a minor concern. In fact, the democratic nature of any given electoral system should be our first concern.

When evaluating the results of the last federal election, Fairvote Canada reported that 49 per cent of voters cast their ballots for a losing candidate. This means that over 8.6 million people could have stayed home during the last election, and under the current framework, the results of the election would have been exactly the same. This situation causes many to feel dissatisfied with the electoral process.

Imagine being a Liberal supporter living in a rural Alberta riding, which has been won by a Conservative candidate for as long as the party has

existed. There is no real motivation for you to vote, for you know what the result is going to be and who is going to win. Moreover, even if you are aware of other Liberal supporters in your riding, so long as there is a definitive, predictable majority that supports another party, there is little motivation to vote in a FPTP system. In other words, when the most votes can guarantee a party a majority, you, as a supporter of a different party, might as well cast your ballot in the trash.

This is where a proportional representation (PR) system may come in handy. There are varying forms of PR, but in general it looks like this: the popular vote directly correlates to how seats are distributed in the House of Commons. This ensures that there is a direct connection between the support that each party garners within the community and the amount of representation that candidates obtain in the end.

Take the 2015 election: the Liberal Party received 39.5 per cent of the popular vote. Under the FPTP system, this equated to winning 184 seats or 54 per cent out of the 338 available. In a PR system, the seat count would be closer to 134, arguably more representative of the actual support the Liberals received.

Furthermore, under the PR system, it wouldn’t matter what a voter’s political inclinations were compared to those within their geographic proximity; every vote would count

OREOLUWA ADARA/THE VARSITY

towards a Member of Parliament (MP) being elected. This means the voices of all get to be heard, not just those fortunate enough to agree with their neighbours.

Although previously expressed opinions in The Varsity point to the PR system’s lack of regional representation, the current political culture of FPTP does not operate with regional representation in mind either.

This is because the overwhelming majority of party campaigning is conducted at the federal level.

Voters become very familiar with the policy and leadership of a party, but in the end, they often know very little about the party’s candidate in their riding.

In the past election, for example, voters in Toronto Centre voted for the Liberal Party — not necessarily

A tale of three campuses Two contributors reflect on the university's tri-campus relationship Ayesha Tak and Winnie Wang Varsity Contributors Even though U of T has three campuses — UTSG, UTM, and UTSC — students sometimes find that UTSG steals the show. While tourists flock to photograph squirrels at Trinity College, and resources are continually invested in pursuits at UTSG, the other two campuses do not seem to garner as much attention. Here, a UTM student and a former UTSC student reflect on their experiences and propose avenues for improvement regarding the cohesiveness of the university.

UTM I am a UTM student who has taken a few classes at UTSG since my second year. While UTM and UTSC students tend to know about UTSG, the same cannot be said about the reverse. A common thing that UTSG students wonder when I say that I am from UTM is whether the classes at UTM are easier. What many UTSG students don’t know is that their professors and TAs most likely go back and forth between the three campuses; tests, syllabi, and exams are frequently recycled between UTM and UTSG.

This lack of knowledge among the student body is unfortunate, because structurally, the relationship between UTM and UTSG is cohesive and encourages collaboration. The shuttle between UTM’s Instructional Building and UTSG’s Hart House mostly operates every 20– 30 minutes, which makes travel between the two campuses fairly easy. For UTM students the shuttle is free, while UTSG students must pay $6 to use the service. This fee should be removed altogether to encourage UTSG students to visit UTM more often.

The University of Toronto Students' Union has made strides in improving intercampus relationships: the annual tri-campus parade and other frosh week activities bring together all three campuses. However, more long-term solutions should be pursued, for this sense of ‘solidarity’ only lasts until the end of frosh week, at which point new students are once again alienated from students who attend other campuses.

A common way that a lot of first-year students make friends is by getting involved outside the classroom in extracurriculars, such as clubs and teams. Clubs should promote their events to students beyond their home campus, particularly because there are a lot of similar, or

Chrystia Freeland, the Liberal candidate in that riding.

The regional representation argument breaks down even further when you consider that MPs often have little choice in how they vote.

Party discipline is so severe in the House of Commons that MPs can face strict consequences for not voting with their party.

Though this is a problem independent of the electoral system itself — and one that should be explored in more detail — it undermines an MPs ability to represent their voters’ voices, and therefore, one of the alleged benefits of the FPTP system falls flat.

With all this in mind, why does Canada still use a FPTP system? In short, it’s because change is hard.

People have become so accustomed to the system that shifting to a new

even identical, clubs that can be found at both UTM and UTSG. Having collaborative events between clubs not only lowers expenses, but also allows the events to be run on a larger scale. Though this may be tricky to work out at first, such efforts will be worth it to ensure that students get the best experience.

Ayesha Tak is a fourth-year student at UTM studying Statistics and Sociology.

UTSC As a recent transfer student from UTSC, I’ve spent the past month at UTSG adjusting to everything. They are two very different campuses in terms of location, but I’ve found that what really distinguishes the two is the difference in resources.

During my first year at UTSC, I got involved in the University of Toronto International Health Program as a graphic designer for the Health and Human Rights Conference. I mentioned in my initial interview that I was a student at UTSC because they were based at UTSG. I was brought onto the team and invited to meetings — yet I only ended up attending the first one because the one and a half hour commute between campuses was simply not worth it. Most of my work was going to be completed remotely and I received minutes from all the meetings, but I wasn’t as involved as I would have liked to be.

In January, the Scarborough Campus Stu-

way of thinking can seem like treading unknown waters.

There are also political reasons, which are more pressing: politicians like having power, and FPTP makes it that much easier to hold onto it, given that majority governments are easier to obtain. This sounds great for those who support the government in power, but it can also create volatile, inefficient shifts in policy if the government frequently changes, for each new government may possibly completely invalidate previous work.

What is clear, however, is that neither of these reasons are particularly compelling in their case to maintain the status quo.

Christopher Chiasson is a secondyear student at Innis College studying Political Science and Economics.

dents’ Union started a movement to create a permanent, accessible, free shuttle service between UTSG and UTSC. Such a service existed until 1990, when it was cancelled due to low ridership, high costs, and potential risks.

Now, it’s needed more than ever: a 2014 U of T undergraduate survey reported that 66 per cent of students said improved transportation was “very important,” and 33 per cent of UTSG and UTSC students stated that they would be willing to pay extra for this service. At UTSC, complaints that there is 'nothing to do' could easily be solved with the implementation of the shuttle.

At UTSG, exploring different libraries, colleges, and instructional buildings to find a study spot is a fun task because there are so many options — yet, at Scarborough, there are 14 non-residence buildings in total and seats get filled up quickly.

Within one of those buildings is the only library on campus. It has two floors, a computer lab, and group study rooms, but it lacks in resources, often requiring students to commute or arrange otherwise to pick up copies of books that are only stocked downtown.

UTSG’s physical location puts it at an advantage when it comes to the opportunities available — yet, it’s important that all U of T students be able to easily access the same resources.

Winnie Wang is a second-year student at New College studying Neuroscience and Cinema Studies.

10 • THE VARSITY • COMMENT

comment@thevarsity.ca

t h g u bro

re e w e w y y r t n Wh ts, u n e o d u s c anadian st ts i h t to sui nC r o i u t p a er er

t-gen tion, care s r fi On lida a v y l fami

JIN PARK/THE VARSITY

MEET THE COMMENT TEAM Avneet Sharma Varsity Columnist Third-year student, English and Book and Media Studies Trinity College Interested in equity issues, pop culture, and Keeping Up with the Kardashians

"They wanted something better," Maria Qamar said in an episode of CBC Campus, discussing her parents’ decision to immigrate to Canada. “They could see [staying in Pakistan] not being a brighter future for us.”

Qamar is a Toronto-based pop artist, better known by her online persona 'Hatecopy.' Her art, which is published online on Instagram (@hatecopy), focuses on Desi cultural themes.

In the CBC Campus podcast, Qamar outlined her experiences as a Pakistani immigrant and how they facilitated her interest in art. Qamar faced family barriers to pursuing art as a career, as her parents did not allow her to follow this course of study.

“My love for art was literally always a secret from my parents, ever since they denied me the right to become [an artist],” she said.

Qamar’s story is not unique, as many students continue to face family pressures in respect to their post-secondary education decisions; this is especially true for first-generation Canadian students.

Considering that our choices as students significantly affect our careers and life paths, it is unfortunate that these pressures continue to play such a significant role.

Students should be able to pursue what they are truly interested in.

My parents had established lives and careers in India and Bangladesh before immigrating to Canada in 1989.

Here, my mother’s degree from the University of Dhaka

isn’t recognized — upon her arrival in Canada she had to take an entry-level job in order to support my siblings and me.

As a first-generation Canadian, you constantly hear of your parents’ sacrifices and, consequently, are instilled with feelings of debt and gratitude.

Parents will often steer their children towards a degree or program of study with a straightforward career path and visible opportunities to make money. In general, no parent wishes to see their child fail in life.

However, there is added burden placed on first-generation Canadians to validate the decisions and struggles that led their parents to leave their home country. There is an expectation placed upon many children of immigrants to study, get into an acclaimed university, and eventually have a stable, well-paying career.

Much of the time, these expectations can be rigid, allowing very little room for choice. For instance, when Qamar’s mother caught her drawing rather than studying, she told her daughter, “We didn’t bring you into this country for this.”

The cultural barrier between first-generation Canadians and their parents is also often a significant factor in their relationships, which can affect immigrant parents’ ideas of the opportunities that are available to students.

In Qamar’s case, the opportunities she wanted to pursue working in animation did not exist in Pakistan, where her parents grew up.

In my own experience, Desi communities tend to place high importance on theoretical education, emphasizing the need to pursue a university degree in a practical field that allows students to make enough money to support the hypothetical families that are expected following graduation.

Many first-generation Canadians are the first in their families to attend a North American university. This represents a whole new experience, not just for the student but for everyone in their family. Given that immigrant families are often unfamiliar with the courses of study offered at North American universities and the careers that

they may lead to, they may limit their children's opportunities by expecting them to pursue a familiar path. This often contradicts the reasons families may have chosen to immigrate to Canada in the first place: to provide opportunities for their children that were not available at home.

This troubled situation is often complicated further by finances, as parents may be a source of financial support for tuition and other expenses. Qamar’s parents were willing to pay for her college tuition, but not if she chose to study art. As a compromise, Qamar decided to enrol in Seneca College’s creative advertising and business program, in order to continue pursuing her interest in art and satisfy her parents’ expectations of studying business.

Qamar's compromise is exemplary of what students should do when confronted with such family pressures: take family perspectives into account but find a situation that ultimately works for them. At U of T, there are numerous interdisciplinary programs that offer students the opportunity to pursue what they are interested in while also learning practical skills that satisfy their parents' wishes.

Additionally, there are numerous extracurricular opportunities for students to pursue their passions. For budding writers, for example, there are numerous student publications on campus, including The Varsity, that allow students to pursue this interest, despite perhaps being enroled in a program that better satisfies their family’s expectations.

That said, taking family values into account does not necessarily mean that a student is required to find a middle ground or a point of compromise. Wherever possible, students should continue to pursue what they are interested in by any means available. By doing so, we may exercise our own agency while being mindful of opportunities that our families have granted us — this is certainly not an indication that we take those opportunities for granted.

Avneet Sharma is a second-year student at Trinity College studying English and Book and Media Studies. His column appears tri-weekly.

Editorial

October 3, 2016 var.st/comment comment@thevarsity.ca

Dirty politics How oppressive environmental policies are robbing Indigenous communities of their rights

Letters to the Editor Re: "A state under scrutiny" “Between 1948 and 2016, approx. 56,000 people have died in the Arab-Israeli conflict (all wars, intifadas, terrorist attacks, bombings of Gaza, etc.). Between 20102015, 400,000 people died in Syria. And yet it's Israel that gets 90% of the attention in the Middle East. Why? Because Jews are simply held to a higher standard. This sits among the many characteristics of anti-Semitism that isn't seen for any other nation.”

— David Haray (from web)

ELHAM NUMAN/THE VARSITY

The Two Row Wampum is the record of the agreement of peaceful coexistence between the Haudenesaunee peoples and Dutch settlers in 1613.

The Varsity Editorial Board In September, representatives from almost 300 Indigenous nations gathered in North Dakota to protest the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. The pipeline was intended to pass by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe reservation, which raised alarming concerns about potential contamination of their land and water. The protests against the project were not limited to what happened on site — solidarity was evident across the continent, including in the form of a demonstration in Toronto.

U of T is situated on land that has been used by humans for over 15,000 years. The land is the territory of the Huron-Wendat and Petun First Nations, the Seneca, and most recently, the Mississaugas of the Credit River.

As students of U of T — an institution that has inarguably benefited not only from Indigenous land, but from the power dynamics that govern relations between settlers and Indigenous communities — we all have a responsibility to educate ourselves with respect to the injustices faced by Indigenous peoples across the continent and the globe.

Since first contact, Indigenous-state relations in Canada has mostly revolved around the environment, land, and water.

For Canada, natural resources have been an economic commodity — yet for Indigenous peoples, they are tools of resistance and self-determination. Land and water use practices are so intertwined with everyday Indigenous life that the government’s regulation of the environment without consultation of the communities who utilize it is inherently oppressive.

In this way, environmental conflicts over Indigenous land and resources are more than a public health crisis. They exemplify the ongoing effects of past and present colonial oppression and the denial of Indigenous identity by the Canadian government.

Canada has a long history of environmental injustices towards Indigenous peoples, and we need not dig too deep to unearth its ugly truths.

The Oka, Ipperwash, and Burnt Church crises were violent conflicts in the 1990s that emerged from land and resource disputes. In the 1999 Burnt Church crisis, under pressure from non-Aboriginal fisheries, the federal government spent almost

$15 million to enforce the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) resource management regime, which used violence to prevent the Mi’kmaq people from exercising their Supreme Court-affirmed treaty right to fish in the Miramichi Bay. Though the Burnt Church First Nation intended on managing their own fisheries, the DFO essentially denied them their right to selfgovernment.

More recently, production of oil in the Athabasca oil sands has devastatingly impacted the surrounding nations, polluting their air and water supplies. It is common knowledge that fossil fuels are accelerating climate change. What many people fail to see is that oil and gas extraction directly and disproportionately impact the health and livelihood of Indigenous peoples, as reservations are often located near the sites of extraction.

Studies have shown increasing cancer rates in the Fort Chipewyan area reserves.

This rise in serious health issues is likely connected to the pollution and waste produced by the oil production processes as it flows downstream into Lake Athabasca, contaminating the main source of water and fish for many First Nations in the area.

The Crown has a fiduciary duty to consult and accommodate Indigenous peoples when the risk of infringement of treaty rights may result from any project. However, in reality, consultation is a mere formality and First Nations are given little to no input on resource extraction and land development projects that directly affect them.

The province of Alberta has come under much deserved criticism regarding the oil sands: first, for the lack of consultations when development of the sands began, and then, for favouring continued extraction of oil over the public health and social interests of local residents.

What is also clear is that U of T is far from blameless in such affairs — the University of Toronto Asset Management Corporation, the university-owned financial investment company, invests in fossil fuel companies such as Suncor Energy Inc. and Imperial Oil Ltd., which both currently operate in the Athabasca oil sands and wreak havoc in Indigenous communities. U of T President Meric Gertler chose to reject the presidential committee’s recommendations to divest from fossil fuels in March this year,

not only demonstrating a lack of respect and insight in regards to the environment, but also disregarding how its protection affects the well-being of Indigenous groups.

In 2015, Justin Trudeau committed to rebuilding nation-to-nation relationships with the First Nations in Canada by treating them as equal partners. But, as the approval of the Site C dam occurred despite the lack of proper consultation with Indigenous groups, this commitment already seems to be falling short. To meaningfully reconcile with the more than 600 First Nations that exist in Canada, the government must not just purport to engage with them — it is necessary to give Indigenous communities the power to make their own decisions about development on their own land.

Moving forward, the Canadian government must put the rights of First Nations above economic and political interests when crafting environmental policy. There are isolated instances of co-management and self-governance throughout the country, such as in Clayoquot Sound, BC, where land development projects must be approved by a council, as well as the majority of the general Indigenous population.

Though these types of management regimes are a step in the right direction, a more cohesive plan, one that harmonizes resource management and respect for Indigenous governance on a larger scale, needs to be put in place. Proper co-management solutions must combine scientific knowledge with traditional practices, which will develop systems of management that are both sustainable and just.

While such policy changes are in the works at the federal level, it is imperative that the university administration take seriously the recommendations that have been made to divest from fossil fuels, for doing so is a matter of much more than just symbolic importance.

Finally, as students in Toronto, we have a responsibility to learn about the land we live on and continue to use for our educational pursuits. Perhaps that means taking an Indigenous Studies course, pounding on the administration’s door and demanding divestment, or promoting and supporting Indigenous ventures within the community.

Fundamentally, it means acknowledging our place within settler-colonial power dynamics in Canada and the noxious ways in which we all benefit from them.

The Varsity's editorial board is elected by the masthead at the beginning of each semester. For more information about the editorial policy, email comment@thevarsity.ca.

Re: "Equality on the cutting room floor" “Fantastic and realistic statment by Julia Galle! We need more input of this type in the filmmaking industry.

Thank you Ms. Galle for representing a truly effort and dedication by women in an industry that has been ignored for decades.”

— Gypsy Lopez (from web) Re: "Why is climate change denial still an issue?"

“Skepticism is doubt. Questioning something is not denial although it can lead to that. Scientific investigation is not always pure or above being influenced by outside interests- the same as any area that influences public opinion and, more realistically, public spending. Look at recent revelations that the sugar industry influenced research to point the finger at fat as evil. Science is not some monolithic system that the public doesn't have the right to question. In fact from what I understand good science is about questioning otherwise it's just bad science. I believe humans are having an impact on the environment. But, I still am unsure of how huge, the time frame and solutions. Oh, yeah, and if the research is only altruistic or self serving or bolstering reputation and egos or a mix of these. Challenges to any research have to be debunked in a clear and final manner. If not, maybe the research has to be reviewed.”

— Ken Jarecki (from web) Re: "International students should be allowed to stay" “Just fyi, you might want to read up on StatsCan data or page through the OECD Education at a Glance 2015 or 2016. You'd be surprised to find that tuition makes up a very small part of a Canadian university's net cash flow.

Governmental transfers (i.e tax dollars) subsidize every Canadian student to the tune of about 20,000 bucks per year. Parents of international student haven't paid taxes here and therefore their kids don't get subsidized. While it may be disagreeable that the government is no longer supporting the OINP program, it's not as if the quality of education is going to collapse.”

— Alexander Chandler (from web) Re: "What should U of T prioritize for commuters?"

“I would add a university-subsidized commuter meal plan to the list! I bought the most expensive tupperware and it still somehow leaked all over the contents of my backpack this morning... Healthy lunch options on campus are scarce and unaffordable to students who don't have an income, and lugging lunch around all day along with a laptop and hardcover science textbooks is a nightmare! This is the 'other' that I voted for.”

— Nadia Woinowsky-Krieger (from web) Re: "Why the most ballots should constitute a win" “Simply put, there is no clear-cut and perfect alternative to FPTP. After looking at two alternatives, both of which seem essentially the same.”

— Eric Bannatyne (from web)

Letters to the editor should be directed to comment@thevarsity.ca. Please keep submissions to 250 words; letters may be edited for length and clarity.

D

r. William Ju — or as he likes to be called, ‘PBJ’ — is an Associate Professor in the Human Biology (HMB) Department. His focus is neuroscience, and he teaches intermediate level and specialized neuro classes, like HMB300 — Neurobiology of Behaviour.

Ju himself struggles with something that is widely affected by neurobiology: generalized anxiety. The experience and expertise that he brings students is not only academic but also personal.

Connecting with students I first heard Ju speak in a physiology course, PSL300, last summer. He walked up to the platform, looked out at all of us, and began to explain that he was feeling really anxious.

He pointed out that when he spoke in front of crowds, his anxiety levels rose and it was very difficult for him.

I had never heard a professor so candidly make a statement about mental illness, with which many students struggle daily, weekly, and sometimes even hourly.

In 2012, Maclean’s announced a “mental health crisis on campus.” As a student struggling with her own mental health problems, knowing that a professor was also struggling brought me hope that the stigma surrounding mental health was not only fading among students, but among the teaching stream as well.

As I got to know Ju over the intervening weeks, I learned about his use of social media with students, even receiving a ‘friend request’ on Facebook from him. He had taken the time to remember me from his class.

When the first midterm came along, he messaged me over Facebook inviting me to come into the department to help ease my anxiety. I went in and he took the time to go over the material I needed to know. He even mentioned that I was overwhelmed and at my limit of information.

What makes Ju so different from other professors? What made him decide to ‘friend’ me on Facebook, to reach out to me, and to mentor me?

I decided to ask him myself.

I travelled down the yellowing corridors of Wetmore Hall — past the photographs of years of alumni, to the tucked-away HMB Department.

No one is at the reception to greet me, but every time I walk in, a smiling face peeks around a corner and familiar students are greeted by their first names. When I walk in, I feel at home.

A true part of the HMB family, Ju greeted me with a smile, exclaiming he had just returned from a classroom, and his anxiety levels were rising due to malfunctioning technology.

He invited me to sit in his office and immediately I saw all the cards lined upon the window ledge with ‘Thank You’ written across the front. A pile of stickers sat to the side, ‘Neuroscience Ambassador’ emblazoned on them.

“I’m going to make a guarantee that I’m go-

Bill Ju

ing to learn everyone’s names this semester,” he told me. “Don’t you always kind of like it when your prof knows who you are and knows you as a human being instead of just someone in the class?”

“U of T is kind of a really big school and the classes are really big and everyone knows it’s that way and everyone knows it’s a problem, so why doesn’t someone do something about it?” Ju questioned.

Acknowledging mental health U of T is the largest university in Canada: 80,000 students are enroled in its three campuses. It is easy to get lost, to slip through the cracks. It can be uncomfortable for students to speak about their struggles, and when it comes to professors, some may not know where to turn. Paniz Bastan Hagh, a Neuroscience major, understands this.

“When I was going through a difficult time, both emotionally and academically, regardless of the fact that I wasn’t even a student of Ju’s yet, he replied to me quicker than even the department or my own professors at the time,” said Bastan Hagh, who is currently enroled in Ju’s HMB300 class.

“He eased my mind about all the concerns I had and was a huge help. After that, I realized I could rely on him,” Bastan Hagh continued.

Perhaps the reason Ju is so relatable to students, is that he does not hesitate to talk about his own experiences.

“I happen to talk a lot about social anxiety,” Ju explained. “And I think part of that is, I’m in neuroscience – we talk about mental health… It’s just a natural extension of what we talk about in the classroom.”

As mental health issues become more openly acknowledged — thanks to national initiatives like ‘Bell Let’s Talk’, which saw Canadian Olympic medalist Clara Hughes acting as an ambassador for mental health awareness — these issues are filtering through to academic institutions like U of T and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. Mental health awareness is simply starting to become part of the university’s discourse.

When I asked Ju if he feels like he’s made a difference for students, he laughed a little.

“I don’t know. I know it helps me to talk about it,” Ju said. “It makes me really nervous and anxious in a social situation, especially when students are looking to me for leadership and I kept ducking out of the room. I’d leave for a couple minutes, then come back again, and students were wondering what’s going on, and I had to tell them quite honestly.”

“At least for me, talking about it helps,” he continued. “If I have these kinds of issues and students are wondering, ‘That kind of behaviour is a little bit odd’… at least for those students, they may understand that behaviour a little bit better...

They may see it in other students and have a little bit more [of an] open mind about it.”

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Hum Bill Dr. Ju talks mental health, social media, helping to make U of T ‘smaller’ Kelly Aiello Varsity Contributor

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Creating community with the CMT Communication is only one strategy among many for dealing with anxiety. I learned about resiliency — and how U of T is helping to foster resiliency in students — at the Science as a Critical Practice: Preparing for Your Senior Year and Beyond conference on September 9.

Resiliency is a schema from which individuals can draw, in order to overcome challenges. To build resiliency, individuals must foster their own community by reaching out to others. A reciprocal relationship between students and professors goes a long way in accomplishing this.

I asked Ju about his methods of building resiliency, including the Course Management Committee (CMT), an initiative fostered by the HMB department to empower students.

The CMT gives students responsibility over their own courses and a voice in the decisionmaking process.

Ju is adamant that he does not lead the CMT but rather guides students, ensuring they have input into their own courses.

CMT meetings include all students who wish to attend, and they cover any course issues, syllabi, and assignments. There is also a Facebook page for CMT members.

Not only does the CMT offer student connections, it also allows students to converse with professors outside of the classroom and gives them a platform to voice their concerns, including those regarding mental health issues. “[We’ve] done the CMT for a number of years — this is why we get students who can come back and train, a form of pedagogy. They will go off and present what this experience is like and why students would want to do this or other profs want to do this.”

Ju is adamant that he is not the only other professor who takes these or similar inclusivity initiatives with his students. When I drop the word “champion,” he shakes his head emphatically.

“It’s very nice to hear, but the reality is, I’m not,” Ju said. “Often times you’ll hear about things because one person talks about it. It doesn’t mean that there are not other people who are interested in it.”

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Social media presence One major difference between Ju and other professors is his use of social media to communicate with students.

“I didn’t hear of anything close to [the CMT] before I enroled in his class and came upon his Facebook posts,” said Saberina Ahmed, a Neuroscience major. “It was refreshing.”

A study conducted in 2013 investigated this very topic, finding that professors’ Facebook profiles did indeed affect students’ perceptions of them. Those perceptions, either positive or negative, tended to be very strong.

As Ju stated, to what extent a professor

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may want to keep his or her private life truly private should have no bearing on that professor’s openness to students — and indeed, many U of T professors have an open door or open email policy. He may appear more accessible than most, simply because his social media presence is quite strong — he has over 4,500 Facebook friends.

“It eases a [student’s] mind when they know their professor actually genuinely understands and is willing to support their students,” Bastan Hagh said. “I really appreciate how he brings up his own mental health issues and tries to break the stigma towards mental health. It almost brought me to tears in my first class to hear about how much he cares for those of us who are going through a hard time.”

By making himself more available outside typical classroom time, office hours, or email, Ju has given rise to a community of students who not only reach out to him but also to each other. That community seems to be expanding.

While Ju may be a social media expert, his emphasis is always on classroom dynamics.

“It’s supposed to be about the students and how things work in the classroom that makes students feel like they are the main focal point,” he explained. “And I think this is an ongoing change in the way that we are doing things.”

So should professors put themselves out there? There is no right or wrong answer; it’s simply a matter of personal choice. Nevertheless, the fact remains that social media is one possible way of bringing lives closer together.

Of the 80,000 or so students that attend U of T, many have probably formed meaningful connections this way.

Before the end of our interview, I glanced one last time around Ju’s office, taking note of the neuroscience paraphernalia, the dual monitors on his desk, and the lecture slides lighting the screens.

“Students are important and they should feel like they are important,” Ju said. “Hopefully any student that walks in and talks to [undergraduate administrators doesn’t] feel like, ‘They just want me out of here.’”

As if on cue, I heard laughter out in the hallway, the atmosphere easing up at the end of a long day.

Before I left Ju’s office, he added, “I don’t want [class] to be a stage version of Hamlet. I don’t want to be up there every week performing a soliloquy to you. I want it to be an ongoing discussion, and I want you to be involved.”

As a member of the CMT who’s engaged in social media discussions with Ju and my peers, I have also come to feel more like a part of a community — like U of T is my home. I have come to feel the care that Ju seeks to foster on campus.

“I’m not paying tuition,” Ju expressed with a smile. “In theory, I work for you.”

PHOTOS BY NATHAN CHAN/THE VARSITY ILLUSTRATION BY CORALS ZHENG/THE VARSITY STICKER ILLUSTRATION BY JENNIFER CHIN

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2016

Arts&Culture

ONLINE EXCLUSIVE

October 3, 2016 var.st/arts arts@thevarsity.ca

Shine Theory offers a framework for women to exercise mutual empowerment.

Read more at: var.st/shine

Mixing media

Collaboration is redefining artistry in Toronto Corey Van Den Hoogenband Varsity Contributor

The old adage says it takes 10,000 hours of practice to excel at any one thing. The implication is that success comes from picking a path early in life and sticking to it.

Yet, within Toronto’s widening artistic landscape, that’s far from the case. Today, fewer artists are subscribing to a single discipline and instead are opting to experiment with multiple art forms to create some of Canada’s most original works.

Alex Jansen, owner and Creative Producer of multimedia production company Pop Sandbox in Toronto, understands this. Jansen and co. created 2016’s Loud on Planet X, a rhythm-shooter video game that features the music and likenesses of Shad, Lights, July Talk, and more.

At first glance, Loud is an affectionate ‘northern’ twist on games like Guitar Hero and Plants vs. Zombies, but upon closer inspection, the indie hybrid is emblematic of a culture shift within Toronto’s artistic community where collaboration and bridging media are quite literally redefining artistry.

“I always loved comics, film, video games, music as a kid, but you had to choose one to hone in on. Now I don’t think you do,” said Jansen. Before Loud, Pop Sandbox made their name with the award winning, first-ofits-kind documentary graphic novel Kenk: A Graphic Portrait. The book blended journalistic and documentary storytelling with a comic book visual style to tell the story of prolific bike thief Igor Kenk in a previously unexplored format.

A graduate of Queen’s University, Jansen began his career in film production before growing frustrated with the logistics of distributing features. Jansen retained the production, distribution, and marketing skills he’d picked up in the industry but decided whatever came next wouldn’t be constrained by a single medium.

The freedom to tear down artistic silos became part of Pop Sandbox’s mission statement: “The whole idea with Pop Sandbox was the ‘sandbox’ being a creative environment where you can take people from different disciplines and churn out different projects but not being tied to any one medium.”

On university campuses, students are breaking away from unilinear methods of storytelling. Sina Dolati, U of T student and and co-founder of The Labyrinth Pictures, experimented with gamifying filmmaking in the interactive short 3 Minutes.

The short film plays out like a chooseyour-own-adventure novel, asking its online viewer to select one of several story paths for the protagonist to take and creating a network of different viewing experiences based on the person watching.

That Toronto, of all places, is host to this new wave of media mixing is not without reason. The Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent on Recordings (FACTOR) traditionally provides funding for the recording and distribution of Canadian music that they deem commercially viable, but recently it has allocated funds for new forms

of content distribution. FACTOR’s digital marketing initiative seeks unconventional platforms to spread Canadian music to broader audiences, providing grants to projects like Loud on Planet X, in order to incubate and incentivize artists experimenting with new formats.

The provincial government has also helped shape the creative cluster around Toronto. In 2009, the government of Ontario offered French video game company Ubisoft $263 million dollars over 10 years to establish a development studio in the province that would create 800 new jobs.

Ubisoft chose Toronto, in part, because of the talent pool of artists from disciplines outside of gaming already present in the city. With games constantly pushing the technical bar forward to tell bigger, more ambitious stories, companies like Ubisoft increasingly rely on talent and knowledge spillover from industries like film, music, and dance.

With all of these initiatives, Jansen’s explanation of the unfiltered creativity around him is simple. “You have these creative talents that are interested in breaking out of just their silo, and then you also have funding models that are supporting that. And then you have this community in Toronto where you just have two of the most incredible communities that are also super collaborative — it’s this perfect storm for coming up with some really interesting things.”

Powerful art does not need to fit a single medium’s standard. Today’s creators know this and flood to places like Toronto, where experimentation with form is celebrated by like-minded innovators, as well as financial backers.

Innovation is tough to define and harder to find, but one thing is certain: it doesn’t come from following the rules. When rule breakers are seen as ground breakers, and collaborators become innovators, our Canadian art can flourish in new ways.

Disclosure: The Varsity's Video Editor, Shaq Hosein, is a co-founder of The Labyrinth Pictures.

SCREENSHOTS VIA LOUD ON PLANET X PS4 PHOTO COURTESY OF ALEX JENSEN

OCTOBER 3, 2016 • 15

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AGENDA: 1. Call to Order and Statements 2. Approval of Agenda 3. Approval of Minutes 4. Presidential Address and Question Period 5. Receipt of Audited Financial Statements 6. Appointment of Auditors 7. Bylaw Amendments & ;]bW]\a AcP[WbbSR Pg ;S[PS`a( & ;]bW]\ b] /[S\R 0cRUSb >`]QSaa & ;]bW]\ b] /[S\R 0cRUSb >]ZWQg

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16 • THE VARSITY • ARTS & CULTURE

arts@thevarsity.ca

Much ado about mushrooms Event explores the case for legalizing psychedelic drugs Molly Dawe Varsity Contributor

Students across North America are playing a key role in the burgeoning psychedelic awareness movement. The Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy (CSSDP) chapter at U of T, which is part of the 920 Coalition movement promoting the role of psychedelics in culture and medicine, hosted an event at UTSG called "Mycelium: Mapping the Mind with Mushrooms."

The goal of the event was to create a

safe environment where individuals could discuss their own psychedelic experiences and benefit from the cross-disciplinary wisdom of anthropologist Marc Blainey, psychotherapist and writer Anderson Todd, and U of T professor Dr. John Vervaeke.

Students were drawn to the event for various reasons. Some students were interested in or affected by mental health issues like anxiety and depression, afflictions which research has suggested could

VIVIAN TONG/THE VARSITY

be treated with therapeutic doses of psilocybin. It has been shown that the plant activates the same regions of the brain as anti-depressants.

Others view using 'mushrooms' as a potential way to explore their creative and artistic potential. Mushrooms have been used to access visionary states for the production of artwork since the time of the Aztecs and the Mayans, who left behind sacramental mushroom sculptures. Of course, others indulge purely for recreation and self-exploration.

The event is a step toward opening a dialogue on the subject of drug use within academia. However, psychoactive mushrooms remain a scheduled drug in Canada.

Changing the public’s perception depends on countering the perceived dangers of their use. As more people learn of the recently recorded health benefits, the 920 Coalition expects its numbers will grow.

Daniel Greig, CSSDP’s director at U of T, offered his take on the mushroom phenomenon.

The Varsity — What prompted you to organize this event?

Daniel Greig — My investment and interest [is] in researching psychedelic compounds. We have a profound tool for both self and scientific inquiry at our disposal, and it is nothing short of an injustice to prevent researchers and conscientious

adults from making use of them. I started hosting 920 events last year. There were about 50 people overall and this year the event blossomed to around 200 people.

TV — While there are stories of healing trips, there are also numerous stories of bad trips. How should this be prevented?

DG — 'Bad trip' does not mean 'bad for you.' Stanislav Grof’s work with LSD in the 1950s and 60s implies that bad trips are necessary for effective healing. Specifically, he focuses on the regularity with which his patients would eventually vividly hallucinate the experience of their biological birth… a horrifying experience, but one that would ultimately end up resolving the psychological complexes that were causing their suffering.

TV — What are the main legal challenges that advocates, such as yourself, face?

DG — Being taken seriously — there is much stigma towards people who use drugs, and this is extended to the those that advocate for reforming policies to prevent the harms that are caused by a black market, such as an increased chance of consuming dangerous adulterants like fentanyl.

Word on the Street The festival hosted over 200 editors, writers, publishers Lola Borissenko Varsity Contributor

This year’s Word on the Street festival paid tribute to Canadian authors, literary organizations, publishers, and magazines. On a beautiful Sunday at Harbourfront Centre, the weather was perfect for literary enthusiasts, who attended the event with more than 50 publishers, 60 independent authors, and 30 magazines on site. A total of eight nifty booksellers were also in attendance.

Free to the public, many tents were full of books and journals, while the festival featured several performance pieces and talks.

TVO Kids offered three pirate shows for young viewers, and acclaimed Canadian author André Alexis introduced his latest crime novel The Hidden Keys. Publishers and stores like BMV had a chance to sell some of their books and expand their readership by chatting with curious visitors.

Lauren McKeon, editor of Canadian periodical THIS Magazine, was enthusiastic about sharing her experience at the festival.

“We’ve been doing Word on the Street for years and years now,” she said. “And we love it because it gives us a chance to meet our readers and to get feedback, and [to] hopefully introduce the magazine to new readers as well.”

Although THIS Magazine has been around for 50 years, McKeon pointed out that more readers are discovering it every year, and

events like Word on the Street certainly contribute to its exposure.

Biblioasis, one of Canada’s prominent publishers based in Windsor, Ontario, also sought to expand its readership and introduce festival attendees to its works of fiction and poetry. One example is the CNQ: Canadian Notes & Queries, a journal dedicated to artistic and literary criticism since 1968 that typically solicits its content from Canadian writers and, more specifically, journalists, while occasionally considering unsolicited submissions.

Apart from its range of literary press and collections of fiction, Word on the Street offered educational opportunities for those who wish to pursue a career in publishing or creative writing. Representatives from Humber College offered pamphlets promoting intensive writing courses, where students are able to learn from authors like Dianne Warren, Ashley Little, and Joseph Kertes. For readers interested in international experiences and foreign literature, The Japan Foundation of Toronto invited audiences to free movie nights, lectures, and Japanese lessons.

With over 200 editors, writers and publishers, Word on the Street’s success was due in part to the sense of community the festival fosters. Dozens of volunteers helped prepare the festival and ensure that literary enthusiasts were able to gain the most out of their experience — a celebration of reading, communication, and literacy.

MIA CARNEVALE/THE VARSITY

OCTOBER 3, 2016 • 17

var.st/arts

The Side Piece

A meeting of the minds Creative Minds sought to discuss art’s role in social justice Farida Abdelmeguied Varsity Contributor

On September 20, the Art Gallery of Ontario presented Creative Minds, a new semi-annual series held in collaboration with several institutions — such as Massey Hall, Banff Centre, and CBC Arts — that is aimed at initiating thought-provoking conversation about the arts.

The first event of the series, “Art and Social Justice,” featured four artists in conversation about the relationship between art and social justice. It covered issues of resistance and reconciliation, confidence and criticism in existing social movements, and receiving blowback as artists. André Alexis, Buffy SainteMarie, Deepa Mehta, and Rebecca Belmore were featured artists of the event.

"Art and Social Justice" began with a deep and soulful performance by Measha Brueggergosman, a worldrenowned soprano.

As the evening went on, the artists provided their opinions on the definition of social justice; it seemed to be

challenging for those who have long been involved with social justice advocacy.

As they spoke, Alexis introduced the notion of one citizenship for all and how society must live up to its promises; Sainte-Marie made a striking statement in saying that growing up, she was told she couldn't identify as Indian because there weren't anymore Indians. She noted that social justice is the idea that nobody should be told such a thing, and that no group should overpower another.

Alexis brought forward two other interesting notions. The first was that he was very aware of the social problem of 'blackness' and was expected to express his experience of it in his writing. He made it clear that he, a black man, does not seek to focus on blackness because there are other things he could talk about. He asked: how come white people don’t have to talk about the social circumstances of 'whiteness'?

The other notion was the concept of an endpoint for the need of the Civil Rights movement. He asked the audience to think about the question:

How do you procrastinate?

We asked students about their offline modes of procrastination “When I need to procrastinate, I will sing and dance in [front of] a mirror as much as I possibly can to avoid thinking about the problem.

And I was very happy when I found out that my room had two mirrors, because it allowed for multi-dimensional dancing.”

— Anushka Kurian, first-year

“I procrastinate by clipping my nails. Sometimes I even paint them.”

— Julia Irion, fourth-year English and Portuguese

“Usually when I have a lot of work to do, I just take naps, even if I’m not tired, so that I can avoid all of my responsibilities!”

— Jack McCrossin, first-year Urban Studies

“I like to read this book, it's on body language. What I do is basically read a chapter, and then go talk to my parents and try to identify all the stuff I learned in that book. It’s pretty fun.”

— Shannon*, second-year Pharmacy

“Most of the time, I procrastinate by playing with my bearded dragon. He’s a lizard. His name is Mushu. Oh, and sometimes I walk home if the weather is nice.”

— Marvy*, third-year Political Science

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ART GALLERY OF ONTARIO

The first event of the series featured André Alexis, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Deepa Mehta, and Rebecca Belmore. when would black people feel like the world is safe for them? He suggested that social justice requires that all people feel safe.

When asked whether the artists felt obligated to produce art, Mehta expressed that at times, she takes action when a story moves her — when she hears a story and is outraged.

Other times, she feels obligated to uncover the truth of something.

The artists ended the discussion

by emphasizing the importance of the future generation. Belmore talked about a video of a girl dressed in traditional aboriginal dress, dancing in a government building in an act of defiance; she explained how the girl sometimes experiences anxiety, but she does it anyway.

Belmore noted that we need more of that kind of attitude: the fear is a given, but the desire to defy and resist must be greater.

PHOTOS VIA PIOTR LOHUNKO/TOOKAPIC, EVAN-AMOS/PUBLIC DOMAIN, PENGUIN BOOKS LIMITED, DENNIS HAARPER/CC FLICKR

Amelia Bailey Varsity Contributor Each school year leads to a constant cycle of trying to get ourselves to sit down, focus, and complete our schoolwork, as everything else suddenly seems much more interesting. The Internet is an obvious choice for most forays into the thick of procrastination, but what do people do offline?

We surveyed several students to see what they do to avoid responsibilities in the real world.

“I normally bake something that the rest of my family doesn’t know how to make, since I look productive without doing actual work. Both the baking and the looking productive seems to keep my family appeased.”

— Bailey Irene, second-year History

“I guess I procrastinate by socializing with my roommates. Mostly chatting about school, work, life, and [online] games. Ironically, I spend a portion of my offline procrastination talking [with my roommates] about how I procrastinate online.”

— Thomas Zheng, second-year Biochemistry and Chemistry

Did you know?

Bikechain is a non-profit, volunteer run bicycle repair shop located in the North Borden Building at 563 Spadina Crescent. They offer repair services, programs, and events, and they have open hours specifically for women, trans, and non-binary cyclists — all the more reason to bike it to class.

Protip: Go to sleep. This one seems like a no-brainer, but allnighters are less likely to make you successful than getting a good night's sleep. Getting at least eight hours of sleep helps improve memory and performance, boosts your immune system, and even spurs creativity. Rest well, friends!

Events: U of T Spotlight Theatre Criticism Seminar with Glenn Sumi October 5 University College, room 376 Repair Café October 5 Hart House, East Common Room Screemers October 7–8, 14–15, 21–23, 26–31 CNE, Queen Elizabeth Building UTM Communication in Family Life October 7 Davis Building, Council Chambers, room 3130 Toronto Poetry Slam October 8, 21 The Drake Hotel Toronto After Dark Film Festival October 13 to 21 Bloor Street Cinema and Scotiabank Theatre

“One way that I procrastinate is just reading a book in the backyard. But not a school book, obviously. I like to read romance novels.”

— Ferry Anthony, fourth-year Philosophy and Religion

“I just play around with make-up and skincare and [other] fun things!”

— Sylvia Battaglia, third-year Political Science and Philosophy

“My main way of procrastinating is list-making and just trying to get myself organized but not actually accomplishing anything!”

— Hannah*, second-year Linguistics *Surname omitted at individual's request.

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Science

ONLINE EXCLUSIVE

U of T prof takes job at Apple.

Read more at: var.st/mikeevans

October 3, 2016 var.st/science science@thevarsity.ca

Translating competency into sustained interest A student’s opinion on STEM education Osman Mahamud Varsity Contributor

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are ubiquitous. We use STEM to solve everyday problems and to make informed decisions, but more importantly, we rely on groundbreaking STEM-based discoveries and advancements to provide new knowledge and opportunities that lead to improvements in our standards of living and quality of life.

In a knowledge-oriented world, the government of Canada recognizes that scientific and technological innovations drive modern economies. To compete, Canada will need STEM-literate graduates.

So how are we faring as a nation? When it comes to scientific competency, Canada is doing quite well.

Canada took part in the most recent iteration of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), along with 65 other nations.

PISA measures student performance in mathematics, reading, and science literacy. Roughly 21, 000 15-year-old Canadians from 900 schools across 10 provinces participated.

Following this program, the Council of Ministers of Education Canada published a report titled Measuring up: Canadian Results of the OECD PISA Study that showed Canada scoring well above international averages for mathematics, reading, and science literacy.

The only other nations to top Canada across the board were China, Singapore, Korea, and Japan. Canadian students are clearly compe-

tent, but there are some areas where Canada can improve.

In a 2012 report titled Spotlight on Science Learning – A benchmark of Canadian talent, the charitable organizations Let’s Talk Science and Amgen showed that interest in continuing STEM education into senior years of high school and beyond was weak amongst Canadian students.

With many school boards across Canada implementing compulsory science and technology courses until only grade 10, a significant proportion of youth choose to drop STEM education altogether after this level. In Ontario, only 37 per cent, 34 per cent, and 24 per cent of grade 11 students opt to take biology, chemistry and physics, respectively. These numbers drop further in grade 12, with 16 per cent, 17 per cent ,and 10 per cent of students enroling, respectively.

In 2010, Ipsos Reid, commissioned by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, released a report titled Canadian Youth Science Monitor: Prepared for the Canada Foundation for Innovation. They found an inverse relationship between STEM interest and age, with 78 per cent of ages 12–13 being very or somewhat interested in science, compared to 67 per cent of ages 14–16 and 58 per cent of ages 17–18.

Although Canadian youth are STEM competent, we are clearly not doing a good enough job in keeping our youth interested or helping them understand the importance and relevance of STEM education. Simply put we are in need of a culture shift.

We must revitalize our youth’s interest in STEM with compelling programming, draw

NISHA ROHRA/THE VARSITY

Interest in STEM subjects tends to peak at a young age then quickly trails off. attention to the relevancy of STEM education, and shift the STEM narrative from ‘complicated and difficult’ to ‘interesting and inspiring.’

To achieve this we must engage stakeholders to reform current STEM curricula across Canada and build better connections between prospective career opportunities and STEM learning demands. On top of support from municipal, provincial, and federal governments, private entities should be called upon to drive the implementation of these effective STEM teaching and learning programs.

To complement traditional educational programs, non-profit STEM learning and outreach organizations will need to continue to step up and offer engaging programs outside of formal education systems.

Moreover, parents must use their influence to discuss with their children the importance of STEM education. At the end of the day, a pro-STEM agenda doesn’t mean every child should pursue sciences and don a white coat.

It does, however, encourage the development of skills and attitudes around problem-solving and critical thinking.

The innovators of tomorrow will rely heavily on STEM. It is up to educators, parents, nonprofits, and the various governing bodies to promote a lasting interest in STEM and nurture the development of STEM competencies.

Pushing the needle forward with respect to meaningful exposure to STEM will ultimately open more doors for our youth and our nation as a whole.

Should we fear genetic discrimination?

The information that makes us who we are lies within our nuclei Govind Mohan Varsity Contributor

In May, Bill S-201 passed to the second reading stage in the House of Commons. This bill, designed to prevent genetic discrimination, is particularly exigent because of recent advances in biomedical technology.

The bill would make it illegal for any person to require an individual to take or disclose the results of a genetic test. Without legislation on this issue, Canadians are currently susceptible to the possibility of being discriminated against on the basis of information that could be revealed by a genetic test.

While Bill S-201 is a necessary step to protect Canadians from this type of discrimination, Canada’s insurance industry might have reason to oppose it. Since they are a large part of the Canadian economy, they could possibly have a say in the outcome of the proceedings.

Some argue that insurance companies have a right to know the results of these tests, since they insure against health issues. They argue that they should be able to charge higher premiums if an insurance recipient is at higher risk for illness or disease.

There are currently over 33,000 genetic tests for thousands of conditions. While

ZAHRA DANAEI/THE VARSITY

some of these tests can predict the chance of an individual developing a disease, none can predict when the symptoms will set in or their severity.

Often, even major tests, such as a breast cancer screening, cannot predict whether one is certain to develop a disease; they can only show whether one is predisposed to or has a greater likelihood of developing the disease.

Further, our genetic information is the base

code for our bodies in their entirety. It is us at our most basic level, and this could be reason enough for us to seek privacy in regards to our own genetic information.

Genetic testing is an important measure to understand the risks one faces and, subsequently, make decisions to reduce these risks.

As an example, Angelina Jolie took a test after her mother succumbed to breast cancer and found that she too carried the gene predis-

posing her to it. She then decided to undergo preventative surgery, reducing her risk of contracting cancer from about 87 per cent down to 5 per cent. Following suit, women began to take more genetic tests, becoming a trend that is now dubbed the “Angelina Jolie effect.”

Nevertheless, fear of genetic discrimination has caused a decline in the number of people who wish to take this test.

For these reasons, many believe it is imperative that the bill should pass. The sponsor for the bill, MP Rob Oliphant of the Don Valley West riding, is of the same view, calling it a ‘three-legged stool.’ Oliphant believes if any of the pieces of the legislation are removed, it would lose its integrity.

“Our job as federal legislators is to put into place laws that will protect Canadians. We have the criminal law power to do that work.

That criminal law will state what is unacceptable conduct, and then prohibit that conduct.

That is what Canadians expect us to do on their behalf,” he said.

Overall, this bill seems to be a step in the right direction. Our DNA defines us, containing our past, present, and future within it. For that reason, we have a right to the privacy that Bill S-201 seeks to protect.

OCTOBER 3, 2016 • 19

var.st/science

Their story

A couple of doctors The relationship of Drs. Andrew and Cornelia Baines exemplifies successful academic and romantic partnership

NATHAN CHAN/THE VARSITY

electrolyte balance, which led him to pursue kidney research.

“I was very interested in the kidney for two reasons. One, I really liked the look of it. I loved looking at it under a microscope — really cool structure! And the other one was that [C. Baines] had kidney disease,” he explained.

With this impetus and further support from a professor, A. Baines went on to conduct kidney research and hold various positions such as Principal of New College, Chair of Clinical Biochemistry, and Vice-Dean, Education for the Faculty of Medicine at U of T. Unlike the Baines, many students aren’t accepted into medical school on their first, second, or even third attempts. While they made it clear that the decision to continue applying is specific and variable to each individual, they did have some general advice on medical school and life as a whole.

A. Baines pointed out, “It depends on the motivation for applying. [Being] a doctor is like being a priest; something that you really need to feel like you have an affinity for, a desire to do.”

C. Baines recommended a “diversity of experience; don’t only study that which you think will amplify your chosen career. Be aware of the rest of the world and participate.”

Despite their demanding workloads, the Baines have always managed to find time to spend with each other. While acknowledging that “compatibility of lifestyle is important,” A. Baines contended that “compatibility of temperament and interest is the most important” to maintaining a relationship.

C. Baines added that they choose to spend their free time doing activities with each other. “That helps counter the demands of

the work because you know that when work is over and tasks are over, we’re going to be together,” she explained Neither of the Baines show signs of slowing down as they age.

Decades after her unpleasant experience with sexism in medical school, C. Baines had to take a stand against baseless accusations again. Her study showed that breast screening may not be effective in preventing death due to cancer, a highly controversial report that she defended.

“I have been… accused of fraud, accused of murder — which is clearly not true. I think my mother, by bringing me up with standards different to those in the community, made me think, ‘I do what I decide to do and disregard, as much as possible, negative feedback,’” she commented.

Meanwhile, A. Baines started the highly successful Augusta Stowe-Gullen stream of Vic One, where he matches first-year students with scientists in the field to design and compose grant proposals. At the end of the year, the Baines invite the ‘Stoweners’ to their home to celebrate a year of learning and hard work.

When asked where they get their continuing drive, the Baines responded instantly, with heartfelt conviction. C. Baines began, “We’re doing what we like doing, we’re still growing.” A. Baines added, “I am the one who benefits, I learn so much from the Stoweners.” Then C. Baines finished, “It’s been a wonderful experience for us both.”

Today, the Baines continue to enjoy lives filled with activity and inspiration: they live life to the fullest and teach by example.

As A. Baines put it: “Be greedy for life. Be interested. Be curious. Be adventurous.”

Drs. Andrew and Cornelia Baines enjoying quality time at their home.

Ramana Trivedi Varsity Contributor

Together, they have earned two MDs, one PhD, one MSc, two professorships, and over 6,000 citations. They have travelled the world, recorded music, and pioneered the Augusta Stowe-Gullen stream of Vic One. They have served as principal, viceprincipal, vice-dean, and chair. They have rubbed shoulders with the likes of Dr. Ursula Franklin. Fundamentally, they have altered international conversation on breast cancer screening.

But anyone that has met Drs. Andrew and Cornelia Baines won’t immediately talk of their titles or accolades. Instead, they will speak of their humble brilliance, genuine care, and ability to inspire. If the word ‘successful’ can ever be appropriately used, it is in reference to these two giants in our midst.

And through more than 60 years of continuing achievement, they have always had one constant: each other. This is their story.

Since the age of two, C. Baines was convinced she wanted to become a doctor. Today, that idea is commonplace: a standard line in any application to medical school.

But in the 1950s, the idea of a woman aspiring toward a career in medicine was far less common.

In her own words, “It was very obvious to anybody at that time that a woman who wanted to go into medicine could not be normal. So, the conclusion was, that my mother had a very abnormal daughter.” Even some of her peers at medical school were shockingly sexist. C. Baines recalled: “[They said] it was a disgrace that I was in medicine because all I was going to do is get married and I’d never use my education and I should have never been allowed to come in.”

But none of these comments ever dis-

suaded C. Baines from pursuing her aims.

She had two very supportive parents, crediting her mother for teaching her “to have a thick skin.”

“I endured during public school… a lot, and I mean a lot, of bullying… People that are different are always bullied, and that’s the way of the world. What it meant was that I ended up gaining a very strong sense of ‘You choose what you want to do, and if other people don’t like it, too bad for them,’” explained C. Baines.

A. Baines was more undecided on his life path as a teenager. He recalled wanting to be an artist, a civil engineer, and a physicist before finally settling on medicine.

When asked how students today who are similarly undecided can find their passions, he responded: “I think the most important thing is to do what seems right for you, not what you think is being imposed on you as ‘right.’ I think the thing that is difficult for many young people, particularly when they’re unsure, is choosing your acquaintances, and ultimately your friends, as the ones who challenge you, the ones who make you think out of the box, [the ones who] make you strive to do better. I think you do most of your learning… from your colleagues, the students.”

A. Baines went on to complete his PhD, and credited the late Franklin as someone “who’s influenced [both him and C. Baines].

She really did act as a mentor for me when I was doing my PhD. She would put problems before me that were big issues.” In fewer words: “She made me think”.

A. Baines was convinced he would never go into research after “[sitting] in a little room, making sections of monkey hearts to look for the innervation.” He recalled thinking, “This is so awful!” Ultimately, however, he found that he loved studying fluid and

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20 • THE VARSITY • SCIENCE

science@thevarsity.ca

Communication is key

Science Around Town

Does the onus of scientific communication lie with the scientists?

Ian T.D. Thomson Varsity Contributor

At a dinner celebrating the twenty-fifth anniversary of the George Connell Lectureship at the University of Toronto Department of Biochemistry, André Picard, a health reporter at The Globe and Mail, discussed the state of the relationship between biomedical research and public communication.

“Too much of what you do is a mystery to people,” Picard said to a group of U of T scientists.

“You can’t expect people to embrace the notion that investing in biomedical research is a good thing if they don’t see the practical outcomes of research in their everyday lives.”

Picard’s comments bring forth the disconnect between the scientist and the masses.

His words also query the researcher’s role in making science accessible.

Having worked as a researcher in a laboratory and as a reporter for a newspaper though, I do not fully agree with Picard’s thoughts. While effective communication of scientific findings to the public is undoubtedly positive, he does not seem to consider many of the other obstacles that researchers already face.

Basic and applied research In an increasingly skeptical world, there are many people who question the validity of science. Scientists would be better off from a public relations standpoint if they could directly communicate their research in layman’s terms.

Additionally, scientists are largely dependent on media outlets to communicate their research, where their well-developed research thesis is liable to be taken out of context and misinterpreted.

However, if the scientific community is forced to focus on making science applicable and relevant to everyday life, we begin to ignore the importance of basic scientific research that is not seen as a means to an end.

This kind of research aims to increase understanding nature and its laws. It is studying the unknown, and it may not be possible for a scientist to articulate utilitarian benefits of these efforts.

In these cases, researchers don’t yet consider how their findings may one day be applied to the general public. But that doesn’t make the ideas and pursuit any less relevant.

In fact, through basic research, scientists are provided the means to test theories practically. Chemists in 1945 developed the nuclear magnetic resonance machine with no apparent application in mind, simply to determine the structure of chemicals. Years later, scientists applied the technology to magnetic resonance imagery to investigate internal issues of the body.

Science has been and always will be steadily incremental and a cocktail of both basic and applied research. If the pursuit of only practical outcomes is prioritized ahead of basic research, it will be a more challenging road ahead for science as a whole.

The purpose and art of science While there are merits to having scientists focus on accessibility, this does not mean that it is the scientist’s responsibility to make their research more comprehensible.

Telling Stories in Virtual Reality Hosted by Isaac Olowolafe Jr. of the Digital Media Experience Lab, this seminar features Matt Whelan, filmmaker and founder of GoodTh.inc, who will be discussing storytelling via virtual reality.

Date: Monday, October 3 Time: 5:00–6:00 pm Location: Ryerson Student Learning Centre, 341 Yonge Street Admission: Free with registration Forensic Pathology – Past, Present, Future Hosted by Dr. Michael Pollanen, founding Program Director of U of T Forensic Pathology residency, the talk features Dr. Christopher Milroy, registered forensic pathologist from the University of Ottawa, who will be discussing the emerging field of forensic pathology.

EGLE MARIJA RAMANAUSKAITE/CC FLICKR

If research is done in a forest and no one is around to learn about its findings, did the finding even occur?

The vocation of the scientist is the pursuit of science, or in Aristotelian terms, the ‘telos.’ The goal of science can be knowledge itself or its practical application; these are not mutually exclusive pursuits.

Seen this way, the objective of research must not be subverted to simply produce ideas that are easily marketed for mass appeal.

In a description of basic research, the National Science Foundation said ,“Creativeness in science is of a cloth with that of the poet or painter.”

Much like an artist doing art for art’s sake, so too should scientists be allowed independence free of cynicism and public questioning.

Grants and jargon Applications for funding through grants, such as the ones offered by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, can be a very time-consuming process for researchers, as they try to justify why they are pursuing their interests. A further appeal to gain public support through exclusive pragmatism will continue to take researchers away from doing their primary work.

“Grant-writing is very discouraging,” said Dr. Marvin J.S. Ferrer, who is pursuing a masters in Public Policy at the University of Toronto. Watching established professors struggle to get them made me question if it was the kind of career I wanted for myself, since it seemed, at times, that grant-writing became the all-consuming concern, rather than actual science.”

It can also be argued that researchers can’t necessarily make their research more comprehensive. Complicated terminology or ‘jargon’ is needed to describe the intricacies of a specific study. Instead of being upset with sci-

entists for their apparent inability to communicate concisely, we should be commending those individuals for pushing the boundaries of their fields to the extent where complicated terminology is needed.

Where does the onus lie?

“We need to create an environment in which ideas can flourish — to give scientists the time and the money to study problems, and the freedom to find solutions,” said Picard.

An environment like this is possible for scientists. However, it does not come from researchers pandering to the trending fields of study. It comes from free, independent media platforms serving as translators for scientific ideas.

Science news outlets should target audiences outside of academia. While they should maintain their academic content, they should attempt to bridge the gap between the public and science.

A good example of this would be Science News’ YouTube page, which regularly provides short videos on the latest scientific discoveries. One video presents Harvard research on antibiotic resistance, showing the Escherichia coli bacteria expanding inward against higher and higher concentrations of trimethoprim and ciprofloxacin antibiotic.

Approximately two minutes long, the video displays striking and digestible science.

“Scientists spend a lot of time becoming specialized at doing science. They can be very, very good at it. The more [time] they spend doing other things, the less science they do,” said Ferrer.

He added, “I hope we can rely on the others who specialize in communication to accurately and truthfully share their wonderful results for the rest of the population to enjoy.”

Date: Monday, October 3 Time: 4:00–5:00 pm Location: George Ignatieff Theatre, 15 Devonshire Place WISE & Cheese Networking U of T Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) presents a great opportunity for students to directly interact with 20 representatives from various sectors, including: consulting, technology, software, investment, construction, and industry products.

Students are encouraged to bring their resumes.

Date: Tuesday, October 4 Time: 7:00–9:00 pm Location: Hart House, 7 Hart House Circle RM: Debates Room Admission: $10 deposit reimbursed upon attendance Medtech Sector — Specific Business Modelling & Strategies Sunnybrook Research Institute presents a lecture featuring Dr. Harold Wodlinger, consultant to the medical device industry. The lecture will focus on various business models for medical-technology start ups, the pros and cons of each model, and how to use various strategies to implement them early in their development.

Date: Thursday, October 6 Time: 5:00–6:00 pm Location: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, 2075 Bayview Avenue Admission: Free with registration

Sports

October 3, 2016 var.st/sports sports@thevarsity.ca

Why we care about

sports

From primitive cave paintings to an $83 billion industry, sport has been part of our lives for millennia

MIA CARNEVALE/THE VARSITY

Danielle King Varsity Contributor

Last week, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared September 20 to be the first International Day of University Sport.

The day is meant to recognize the importance of sport within academia and to encourage the development of high-quality physical facilities.

As students at a university with 85,000 students, 44 varsity sports teams, and the country’s largest intramural program, we should indeed be celebrating.

Sports have always been an integral part of human society. Fifteen-thousand year old cave paintings in Lascaux, France depict sprinters and wrestlers; the Ancient Greeks hosted their version of the Olympics as early as 796 BC.

While often associated with fun and competition, many sports find their origins within the military tradition: they were developed to aid warriors in their training. The Maori of New Zealand used sport-like games for thousands of years as a way to train their young warriors for battle; now they dominate the rugby field like no other country can.

Across all of human history, sports evolve and change, becoming an increasingly prominent part of our social structure. The 1896 revival of the Olympics in Greece featured only nine sports, while the next Summer Games in Japan will host 33 different sports and a total of 324 events.

The popularity of sport is growing steadily.

The economic impact of the North American sports market is proof of this. The industry brought in an estimated $83 billion in 2015 alone. In situations like the 2004–2005 NHL

lockout, where sports are suspended, their absence can be quantified: the NHL lockout, which lasted 10 months, is estimated to have cost the Canadian economy $170 million. But, the importance of sport is not limited to social and economic factors.

Studies find many psychological benefits to sports, in addition to the well-documented health and mental wellness aspects.

Just watching sports and cheering on your favourite team has a positive impact. Watching sports can cater to the fundamental human need of belonging to a group. Fans of a team often feel connected to other fans — in much the same way that parishioners of a church feel connected to other members of that church. Teams provide a sense of unity and community. Sports teams can bridge the gaps between genders, races, classes, occupations, and ages — bringing people together in a way

few other things can.

Per the Seattle Times, “Rooting for your favorite team makes you feel better about your life. Because it does. Virtually every study shows precisely that: The sense of goodwill, bonding and shared purpose that comes with being a fan has a ripple effect that can benefit all aspects of living.”

The pleasure of watching sport is neurologically ‘wired’. When a favourite athlete or team wins, a large surge of dopamine is released. Dopamine is a powerful neurotransmitter, and in such quantities, it activates the pleasure centres of the brain, increasing learning and memory. This increase in memory helps explain why fans continue to watch sports so religiously: to recreate the physiological excitement they previously experienced.

Furthermore, scientists have discovered ‘mirror neurons’; they are accurately named, because your brain reacts to certain actions the same way, whether you are completing said actions or watching someone else do them.

This explains the surges in testosterone observed among many sports spectators, and why so many of them feel such intense connections to their favourite teams. Watching LeBron James shoot your team’s winning shot will create a chemical reaction in your brain very similar to you making the shot yourself.

While the evidence is clear that playing sports can have innumerable positive impacts on your mental and physical health, it is increasingly clear that simply caring about sports can provide similar benefits. It isn’t an accident that sports have continued in society for thousands of years. They teach us important lessons; they bring us together; they create communities; they increase social bonds; they bring out the absolute best in human performance.

That is why in a world as divided as ours, our common love of sports is something to care about — something to be celebrate.

Will Twitter make channel surfing a thing of the past?

Twitter signs deals to livestream video for professional sports Isaac Consenstein Varsity Contributor

Bereft of a television in the age of Internet broadcast blackouts, a typical university student wrestles with poor quality streaming as part of an ongoing struggle to follow their favourite sports teams.

This could soon change. Twitter recently signed a deal with the NFL, the MLB, and the NHL to livestream video content of their games. In addition to the games being livestreamed, Twitter has also agreed to broadcast exclusive NBA content.

As Twitter’s shares have fallen 26 per cent over the past year, the company has been looking for new ways to encourage people to use its service. It recently signed a deal with the NFL allowing them to stream 10 Thursday Night Football games for roughly $10 million.

While this news is exciting for the Twitter users in the United States and several other countries, the typical Canadian student won’t benefit. Following the deals, Rogers Communications issued a statement to Canadians that livestreaming would not apply to the Canadian market.

Since Rogers’ Sportsnet owns Canadian broadcast rights to Thursday Night Football, they were able to pull the plug on the Twitter

ELHAM NUMAN/THE VARSITY

deal applying to viewers in Canada. Future Blue Jays games and NHL games will also be blacked out, as Rogers owns those broadcast rights too.

Live sporting events have always been a reason for people to put away their laptops or smartphones and turn on their television sets. New York Times staff editor Benjamin Hoffman explains that live sports are the central reason for “prospective cable-cutters to stay connected.”

Since people don’t always have access to a TV while a game is going on though, Twitter capitalized on the huge market of potential

viewers who are not yet served. It’s too bad that this still doesn’t serve Canadians.

Outside of Canada, Twitter hopes to entice more people to use its site and to begin “the next generation of real-time content,” explained Anthony Noto, Twitter’s Chief Financial Officer.

Twitter’s reputation and platform accompanied it to the bargaining table, allowing it to beat higher bidding competitors for the rights to livestream the games. Brian Rolapp, the NFL’s Executive Vice-President of Media explained, “We did not take the highest bidder on the table… We want to

see how they use the unique platform, and syndicated tweets all over the internet.”

James Cakmak, an analyst, wrote that, “This is a bigger strategic effort for Twitter than it would have been for any of the other reported companies… It will be interesting to see how exactly they leverage [the deal].”

September 15 marked the first live football game broadcasted on Twitter. The feedback about the first week’s broadcast included some criticism but was generally positive.

One issue was that the Twitter telecast was delayed, allowing people to read tweets about the game before the telecast was able to catch up. While this may have hampered the viewing experience, it is likely that the issue will be resolved quickly.

The Twitter viewership paled in comparison to that of the major TV networks; their 2.1 million viewers made up only 14 per cent of the average TV audience for a Thursday night game. This percentage doesn’t tell the entire story, as roughly 281.25 million people have access to CBS, and Twitter has only 66 million users in the US. Twitter is making aggressive moves to increase their following and enhance the live experience for its users. However, for the foreseeable future, Canadian media companies like Rogers will continue to have the power to stop Canadian Twitter users from enjoying these broadcasts.

22 • THE VARSITY • SPORTS

sports@thevarsity.ca

We The North is back in town Off-season signings and a look ahead

Following the team’s record season last year, the Raptors regular season starts October 26. ADAM BAILEY /CC FLICKR Barry Sangha Varsity Contributor

With a minute and 33 seconds left on the clock in the fourth quarter of game six of the Eastern Conference finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers were in cruise control with a comfortable 23-point lead against the Toronto Raptors.

Despite the fact that there was seemingly no coming back, Raptors fans stuck with their team; they poured their hearts out. For the final minute of the Raptors season and for several minutes after the game ended, the fans proceeded to cheer, even when no signs of life were left on the court.

Although the game ended in a tragic loss on our home court, the Raptors undoubtedly defied all basketball logic by making it to six games against the Cavaliers. Last season was the best in franchise history and this season

is gearing up to be just as good.

Training camp officially began on September 27, signalling the unofficial start to the NBA season in Toronto. The team that reported to camp consists largely of the same core players seen in the 2015–2016 squad, however, with some minor changes.

The Toronto Raptors signed forward Jared Sullinger from free agency and added first round draft picks Jakob Poeltl and Pascal Siakam. Bismack Biyombo, Luis Scola, James Johnson, and Jason Thompson are all absent from this year’s roster.

The ‘star acquisition’ was Sullinger, who seemingly provides the short-term answer to the Raptor’s power forward problem. Drafted in 2012, Sullinger was a bit of an enigma.

Everyone knew what the Ohio State AllAmerican had to offer the league, but after a red flag by NBA doctors amid the pre-draft process, his career longevity was in question.

Although he has since proved himself, Sullinger has battled problems with weight gain. This past season, Sullinger reported to training camp twenty pounds overweight and by mid-season he weighed over three hundred pounds and was unable to play for prolonged periods of time. The Raptors signed him to a deal of only one year — perhaps in light of this.

The Raptors have not yet found a long-term solution for the power forward position, but with an all-star backcourt in DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry, the Raptors have a solid foundation to start the regular season.

The Raptors will be exposed, however, in the post-season, due to lack of star power up front.

Even during the first round of the playoffs last year, the Raptors struggled to beat a depleted Indiana Pacers squad in seven games because of the Pacers’ superstar forward Paul

George. They ran into the same problem facing Cleveland and LeBron James. Despite this, the Raptors continue to boast some of the best regular season performances in the league and show no signs of slowing down.

Following an Olympic gold-medal performance by DeRozan and Lowry and a rehabilitation period for starters DeMarre Carroll and Jonas Valanciunas, the Raptors core seems rejuvenated and ready for the coming season.

In the NBA summer league, two of the team’s young guns looked especially promising. Norman Powell boasted another MVP calibre tournament and Delon Wright looks to be a solid contributor in the coming years. The Raptors have much the same roster that was just two wins away from the NBA finals last year — with the added experience, the Raptors are looking towards exceeding expectations for a fourth straight season.

A legend passes Arnold Palmer dies at age 87 Victor Ruso Varsity Contributor

NORTH CAROLINA DIGITAL HERITAGE CENTER/CC FLICKR

A young Arnold Palmer lines up a putt.

The impact of Arnold Palmer on golf cannot be measured in pars or birdies. The impact of Palmer outside of sport transcends conventional human measurements. The man was called ‘The King’ by fans, and arguably, he lived up to that nickname in every facet of his life.

Palmer was one of the first captivating faces of golf. He is known for bringing popularity to the sport. His passion and flare for the sport defined what golf is today. From the recognizable hair glistening in the sunlight as he walked down fairways, to his practice of mixing iced tea and lemonade, Palmer was iconic.

Palmer was known for his electric swing, which zigged while other swings zagged. His powerful yet elegant swing is best described as a masterpiece.

That magnificent swing led Palmer to rack up 95 professional wins, including seven major championships.

His three-way rivalry with Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus is one of the most compelling storylines in golf history. Palmer’s participation in the rivalry helped elevate the magnitude of major tournaments to the level of importance that they enjoy today. These majors, particularly The Masters Tournament, was the scene of historic finishes by the trio.

Look no further than a course in our university’s backyard

to see how powerful Palmer’s company truly was. Palmer won his very first PGA Tour event, the 1955 Canadian Open, at Weston Golf and Country Club in Etobicoke, Ontario. Nestled along the banks of the Humber River, Weston has a statue of Palmer holding the 1955 Canadian Open Trophy, which sits adjacent to the club house before the first tee. The first hole is named in honour of Palmer. Pictures of Palmer are abundant upon the clubhouse walls. Palmer simply winning a tournament there has defined one of the most prominent courses in Canada. That’s the type of mark Palmer was able to leave.

For all his endeavours on the course, Palmer’s impact outside of the golfing community is not to be forgotten. Not many people can boast having a drink named after them, and yet Palmer finds himself in that exclusive club, as his name is given to the mixture of iced tea and lemonade. His charitable contributions remind us that Palmer appreciated his status and strived to use that influence to make the lives of others better. His foundation is known for its work with the children’s hospital in Orlando that also bears his name.

Palmer will always be remembered as the person who brought golf to the mainstream, while living life off the course with the same passion and respect that he was known for on the course. Palmer is no longer with us, but his spirit lives within every drive, chip, and putt.

OCTOBER 3, 2016 • 23

var.st/sports

On September 25 2016, the Hart House Recreational Athletics Committee hosted a Fall 4k Fun Run, which started at 10:00 am and departed from Hart House. From there, the participants, myself among them, circled Queen’s Park twice, King’s College Circle once, and then ran through Philosopher’s Walk to the Varsity Centre.

The cost of the event was $10.00 for Hart House members and students, which is fairly inexpensive compared to other runs of this kind.

While the information participants were provided with leading up to the event was limited, after showing up at the predetermined spot at the predetermined time, the route was made very clear by a man with a booming voice and strategically placed volunteers who directed you with all the gusto of a ground air traffic controller.

Upon finishing the race, the same volunteers provided the runners with food and water — they were very understanding when I went back for my sixth cup of water in two minutes. A group photo was taken, and then the runners dispersed.

I probably got lapped. I’m a very casual runner and this was the first official ‘run’ I’ve taken part in. Some of my preconceived notions were reinforced, but I definitely gained new perspective on them.

It seemed like everyone was part human and part machine. Also, since it was ‘only’

Toronto Blue Jays vs. Baltimore Orioles Wild Card Game The 2016 MLB season draws to a close as the Jays and the Orioles fight for the AL East wild card spot in the postseason.

Date: October 4 Time: 8:00 pm Location: Rogers Centre Cost: Free on TV, varying prices for tickets MALCOLM MURDOCH /CC FLICKR

Supporters line the streets to indiscriminately cheer on runners. a 4k run, I felt the pressure to keep going, despite wanting to take a break.

As it turns out, these were both good things. I don’t think I’ve ever run 4k faster, despite being one of the last to finish. When people cheer you on at the finish line, it becomes clear that the community is very supportive. Everyone had to start running somewhere, after all.

I always thought running was the easiest way to maintain an effort at ‘healthy living’.

Only over the course of the last year has running become something important to me.

I know that I’m in the process of learning

to love running; as part of that process, I have to keep three things in mind. First, accept it. Accept that you’re going on a run today, and don’t let yourself think otherwise.

Second, be patient with your body. It’s okay to walk if you need to. Running is also about enjoying the city and exploring — it’s not all about fitness. And third, don’t focus on the numbers. You’ll get a sense of what they are, even if you don’t keep track — you get better, and the numbers get better too.

When I signed up for the run, I was really nervous. When I finished the run, I was at my own best.

So You Think You Know Sports?

Hurling: the fastest sport on earth Raghad A.K Varsity Contributor

The world of sport is far more diverse than what you see offered at sports bars. This series will profile the lesser-known, the more interesting, and the downright peculiar sports that you haven’t heard of until now.

The thud of a lacrosse ball’s impact with the boards at a box lacrosse game is thunderous.

It reverberates in your chest, as the crack of a baseball striking a bat on a crisp October night slices through silence with the ability to bring 50,000 people to their feet.

For three millennia, amateur athletes have engaged in hurling, a sport that combines the frightening speed of lacrosse with the sound and excitement of a ball coming off a bat.

Hurling is an ancient Irish sport of Gaelic origin, and it is considered the fastest sport on earth. The cork and leather ball, called a ‘sliotar’, travels off the stick, or a ‘hurley’, at upwards of 100/mph.

Often, the ball is fired at players who are wearing only a plastic helmet for protection.

The hurley looks like a cross between a wooden scimitar and a field hockey stick; it has a handle and shaft ending in a flat, twosided blade.

Teams include 15 players including a goalkeeper. Each is equipped with a hurley and the objective is to strike the sliotar into the opposing teams’ goalpost for points. The goal looks like a soccer net with football uprights attached to the top.

Sport

Sean Xu Varsity Contributor

un Aro d T

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A student makes his first foray into U of T’s running community

s

The Fall 4k Fun Run that was surprisingly fun

Teams score one point for striking the ball over the crossbar and through the uprights, and three points for scoring the ball into the net. Incredibly, players are actually expected to catch the small hurtling ball with their bare hands, or they can pick up the ball with the hurley.

A player can travel four consecutive steps with the sliotar in his hand. Afterwards, if players wants to continue advancing with the ball, they have to balance it on the hurley while running. At any time, a player can choose to pass the ball by hitting it with the hurley.

Players must wear helmets, which only became mandatory in 2010, and goalkeepers are required to wear facemasks. Otherwise, no protective equipment is required.

Hurling is not for the lighthearted; the sport can be dangerous. In 1997, a goalkeeper took a shot to the groin, shattering one testicle and having to remove half of the second one.

Despite the dangers, hurling has a lot of parallels with well-known North American sports, and it is not a far stretch to foresee the sport taking off here, even on our own campus.

U of T men’s baseball This week pits the Varsity Blues men’s baseball team against two worthy opponents: McMaster University and Queen’s University.

U of T vs. McMaster double header Date: October 5 Time: 12:00 pm, 3:30 pm Location: Dan Lang Field Cost: Free U of T vs. Queen’s double header Date: October 7 Time: 12:00 pm, 3:30 pm Location: Dan Lang Field Cost: Free Drop-in indoor cricket With cricket equipment available for loan from the Athletic Centre Equipment Desk, you can stop in for a beginner-friendly informal game of cricket.

Date: October 6 Time: 12:30–1:50 pm Location: Athletic Centre Cost: Free MoveU Tri-Campus Field Trip Mixed in with typical autumn pleasures — apple cider pressing, a BBQ lunch, and jam sessions — this universitywide field trip incorporates hiking and other sports in a fresh, outdoor setting.

Register by October 7 on the MoveU website or Hart House Hub. Date: October 13 Time: 9:45 am to 5:00 pm Location: Hart House Farm Pick up: Yorkdale Shopping Mall Cost: $20 Toronto Raptors vs. San Lorenzo de Almagro After reading our article “We The North is back in town”, you’ll definitely need to check out this Raptors preseason game.

Date: October 14 Time: 7:00 pm Location: Air Canada Centre Cost: Free on TV, varying prices for tickets

JOHN O LOUGHLIN /CC FLICKR

It may be ancient, but this electrifying sport is starting to receive international recognition.

OCTOBER 3, 2016 • 24

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Who can run?

— One (1) Mississauga Director: any full-time undergraduate student who pays the Varsity Publications levy and is enroled at UTM. If no nominations are received for the Mississauga category, a general category director will be elected.

— Two (two) General Directors: any full-time undergraduate student who pays the Varsity Publications levy.

Varsity Publications Board of Directors By-Election: Call for Nominations

Varsity Publications in the not-for-profit corporation that publishes The Varsity.

There are three (3) vacant seats of the corporation’s Board of Directors.

A by-election to fill these seats will be held from October 31 to November 2, 2016.

Nomination: Eligible students who wish to run for one of these positions must complete a nomination form and obtain the signatures of twenty-five (25) members.

Members are full-time undergraduate students who pay the Varsity Publications levy.

Completed forms may be scanned and emailed to the CRO (CRO@thevarsity.ca) or submitted in person to room 200, 21 Sussex Avenue, Toronto ON, M5S 1J6 Nomination forms may be found online at: thevarsity.ca/board-of-directors/board-election

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