Volume 49 Issue 23

Volume 49 | Issue 23 | March 31, 2015

INside:

Fairness for International Students, Day of Action: Centre

How To undermine Trent’s Bookstore

Folk Fest Director How to Make a Zine, Calls out Board Community

Commentary on Rising Tuition

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Feature: Fairness for International Students Week & Day of Action in Photos Pages 10-12: Arts&Culture

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Correction: The comment piece “The Diva Cup - An iron fist” mistakenly refered to the device as being made of latex. It is in fact latex free.

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Arthur acknowledges Hayley Raymond, Miranda Rigby, and Paul Sanderson as staff collective members who made the cut for various reasons between Issue 22 and 23. The total number of staff members for Volume 49 is 50.

This Issue in History: Volume 1 (1966), Issue 23

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www.trentarthur.ca

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CampusNews

University bookstores and how to undermine them

By Ayesha Barmania

As we come to the end of the year, buying schoolbooks is one of the last things on our minds. But thinking ahead to next year, Arthur decided to look into the question of how exactly Trent’s bookstore works, and why book prices are set so high.

Currently, Trent University has a contract with Follett, a multinational conglomerate that operates over 900 university bookstores throughout North America. The bookstore holds obligations to both Trent University and Follett, but has some agency of its own.

While it is obliged to stock the store with all the necessary books for courses, it has the power to expand outwards into other products like clothing, stationary, and promotional goods.

This is the direction that Katie Van Rooyen, manager of the Trent Bookstore, hopes to take it in. “We’re trying to move away from offering only textbooks, but also look at offering clothing and computer accessories in store,” she said. “We’re trying to listen to what students are looking for, and we’re trying to make sure we accommodate students on what they need.” For this reason, the bookstore is rebranding to the Trent University Campus Store, to show its diversity of products.

This will all supplement the main function of the store, to sell books. Yet, as book sales keep the store busy for a few weeks at the beginning of each semester, Van Rooyen is hoping to make the business more functional at all times of the year with these other types of products.

As for books, the process works like this: Follett receives booklists from professors

for their courses and sets about acquiring these books. Because it such a large corporation, it is able to make deals with publishers to get books at a discounted rate. Follett has a large warehouse in Chicago where all of these books go. At the beginning of the semester, these books are shipped out to all the schools where they will be sold to students. Each individual institution has a contract with Follett that stipulates how much of a markup that the store can sell these books for. In exchange, Follett pays a lump sum of their monthly earnings to the university.

Due to these individualized contracts, campus bookstores are often not competitive with online book vendors or even local bookshops, and even across Follett store prices will vary. More and more students are turning to shops like Amazon.ca or Chapters Indigo to get their course texts for

sharply discounted rates than the campus shop.

Exorbitant book pricing is a growing problem across universities and many work around solutions have grown with it. The Google Chrome extension Occupy the Bookstore will compare the prices of the books on the Bookstore website with numerous Internet marketplaces. It does this by using the ISBN of the textbooks and searching for the same number across many sources.

At Trent specifically, the Trent Central Student Association (TCSA) offers a book consignment program that allows students to sell their books through their store. The student is able to set the price of their book with the only stipulation that the TCSA takes a portion of the sale. These books are registered in a database that is available online. Students looking for books then go

into the TCSA office and purchase the book there.

Trent Book Swap is a student run initiative that operates through a website and email list server. Students register the courses that they have and want books for. An email is sent to those looking for books with the email addresses of those selling books.

It is then up to the student who received the list to contact people and arrange prices, pick-up, etc.

There are also numerous Facebook groups for Trent students selling and looking for books, like Trent University Book Exchange and Trent Books for Sale. On these group pages students post photos or updates about the books they have and how much they are hoping to sell them for.

The Sadleir House Library, because most of its collection comes from students’ donations, has a fair collection of course texts that have been used in past years. Furthermore, Bata Library is obliged to have a copy of all books used in Trent University courses.

And of course, there are the cozy used bookstores around Peterborough’s downtown that are happy to offer many classic texts and course books to Trent students. In particular, Jokinen’s Books has a shelf at the front of the store every September with as many books used in Trent courses as Jokinen has in stock.

The beginning of a semester can be hard on every student’s bank account. There are so many options for acquiring course books that can take the edge off, even a little bit.

And who knows, you might even get lucky at OPIRG’s Free Market where I once found a textbook that would have cost me $110 for free.

Extended hours at Bata Library

By Gord Ripley, Trent University Librarian

Where will you be in three weeks, at 12:30 in the morning? Sound asleep and dreaming of Spring, or burning the midnight oil? Some of you at least will be in the Bata Library, on the principle that cramming will squeeze out a few more marks. And good luck to you.

As has been the practice over the last few years, the Library will again be providing extended hours during the Spring examination period, beginning April 6 and running through to April 24. Bata will be open at 8:00 am and will close at 1:00 am, seven days per week. Normally, the Library is open until midnight, weekends excepted.

For these extended hours, library users have access to the Trent computer network and study space, including group study rooms. Research assistance and Circulation/Reserves service are unavailable during extended study hours, though books can be signed out with the self-checkout machine at the main door.

Questions can be forwarded by email to libraryhelp@trentu.ca, and a librarian will respond during regular library hours.

All library users must show a valid TrentU Card in order to gain entry and remain in the library after the regular closing time. Two uniformed security personnel will be present to ensure all library users feel safe and to provide assistance in the event of a medical or personal safety emergency.

Library users are expected to comply

with posted Library policies regarding appropriate use of the Library and to extend courtesy to other users.

A quick survey of extended hours at other Canadian universities indicates that Trent is doing well by comparison.

Lakehead, for example, stays open until midnight during exams, but not on weekends. Brock closes at 2:00 am, but opens later on Saturdays and Sundays. Western is open twenty-four hours a day, but do you really want to be studying at 4:30 in the morning? Nipissing closes at 10:30 pm during exams. Guelph is open 8:00 to 2:00 am.

Last Fall library staff kept a close eye on usage during the extended-hours period.

We found that after 1:00 am the number of people in the Library dropped off sharply.

Consequently we have decided to close at 1:00 am in April, but also to increase the extended hours period from two weeks to three weeks. Because the program is costly in terms of additional staff time, we’ll continue to monitor it carefully.

With support and funding from the Trent Central Students Association (TCSA), late night buses will be operating at Bata Library during the exam period.

The extended hours program goes ahead thanks to the combined efforts of Trent Provost Gary Boire, Associate Vice President Students Nona Robinson, Trent Security, OPSEU, Trent Central Students Association (TCSA), and Bata Library Client Support staff.

Good luck, and may your memory serve you well.

Volume 49 | Issue 23 | March 31, 2015

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Campus

President Groarke calls early retirement incentives a “win-win” as university continues to grapple with budget deficit

By Ugyen Wangmo

As Trent University gets on the bandwagon to steer the current budget challenges, the university recently announced a voluntary early retirement incentive for staff and faculty members.

Trent University One-Time Early Retirement Incentive Program, is a time sensitive opportunity to alleviate pressure on the budget, which was collectively agreed upon between the board of governors of Trent and the Trent University Faculty Association (TUFA) on March 9, 2015.

“It is an important decision to manage the budget pressure, and also provide opportunity for renewal,” said Trent University’s president and vice-chancellor, Dr. Leo Groarke. Because depending on how many people go, Dr. Groarke explained that there will be a certain number of new positions that come out of this, not to mention the possibilities it will allow Trent to rearrange what they can offer as a university.

“I will cautiously say that a significant number of people have expressed interest, but we need to be careful about jumping to conclusions because it is easy to express interest, but what really matters is how many people decide after they see the benefits in actual numbers,” said Dr. Groarke.

All universities these days are facing fiscal challenges and Trent is no different from that point of view, he said. Trent anticipates that in the current year in order to manage the budget they will have to cut five to seven millions dollars from the operating budget. So this program, even though it will put pressure on the budget in the short term, is however designed to reduce the budget in such a way that it will lessen any reduction to the budget in the future, he explained.

Since this program is meant to reduce the operating budget, whether someone will be able to take the program depends on if their leaving will reduce the operating budget, said Dr. Groarke. When people retire, the cost of running the university will be reduced significantly.

There is a staff package and faculty package that has been offered. To qualify for the staff, one needs to have 80 points, age plus the number of years of service, which he explained is a standard way of deciding the eligibility of pension plans. For instance, if an individual is 60 years old and has 20 years of service then they can apply. But for the faculty situation, it is much more open ended. Even though 65 is the normal retirement age to be entitled for normal

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pension (a pension penalty if they retire before 65 years), the benefit of this package is that the individual will get a year’s salary without any work obligations. A full year buyout, he noted.

In the meantime, the university is planning some replacements but will have to judge the situation on a case by case basis.

For instance, for a staff position they will leave it just the way it is but for a teaching position, for every two that leave they have guaranteed to provide one replacement, it was explained.

President Groarke said that they may in the short term have to do contract positions, but will hire full time positions in the following year.

He also pointed out that in terms of reemployment, if a full time faculty member takes the incentives, then they cannot come back as a full time faculty member but they could still teach part time, which again is up to the individual themselves and departments that hire those part timers. Teaching part time from a cost point of view is a very effective way to provide teaching, he noted.

On the other hand, if no one takes this program then they will have more of a challenge managing the budget, resulting in cuts to avoid deficit. However, decisions have not been made. They will meet with different budget managers in the weeks to come, and as such they are currently not certain as to what they would do. At this time they are not planning on layoffs but might be in a situation where Trent cannot hire as many instructors as it would like to

hire, and there might have to be some adjustments from that point of view, says Dr. Groarke.

Besides this program, to address the budget challenge, one of the things Trent is doing is to identify why Trent has deficit.

According to Dr. Groarke, one of the principal reasons is Trent’s significant pension liabilities, which is currently spending seven million dollars a year, so they are trying to actively solve that problem.

Another thing they are trying to do is grow the number of students, and that has a significant impact on the budget. He said that there is especially more room for students in Durham, and hopes that it will offer some relief from a budget point of view.

“This is intended as a win-win situation – an opportunity which provides incentives and makes it easy for those faculty and staff who want to retire to do so. It is also a win for the university in so far as their retiring will help with the budget issues,” stated President Groarke. But it is up to them to think about their own situation and to make their decisions accordingly, he added.

“I haven’t given it a lot of thought because I am not ready to retire myself,” said Chemistry Professor, Dr. Andrew Vreugdenhil. But he thinks that it is a good opportunity for the university to get some faculty renewal. Also, with the abolishment of mandatory retirement, it can be a viable opportunity for those those who are just looking for an excuse to retire. But that is coupled with the fact that the university needs to replace faculty or commit to pro-

viding new resources so that the university can carry out the skills and expertise that are lost when those people retire, said Dr. Vreugdenhil.

“It can be an opportunity but we will certainly lose some skilled people if they feel that they are going to take hold of this opportunity,” he added.

It is a good incentive, said Professor of Sociology, Dr. Stephen Katz. But the only disadvantage is the urgency in which they are asking them to make the decision. Dr. Katz said that retirement is a big decision, for instance some of them have sabbatical planned, or research projects and office matters that need to be dealt with. It is not something one can make a snap decision about, opined Dr. Katz.

He also mentioned that one of the advantages of it is that it incentives the administration towards a future replacement plan that hopefully translates into attaining intelligent replacements.

When asked who were the target employees of the package, Dr. Katz said that the seniors were the obvious target. If he were 65 years old he would surely take it.

However, he will not because of the penalty one has to pay for each year of life if they retire early, he said.

On the other hand a few other staff and faculty members Arthur talked to either said that it is too soon to comment, or that it is too personal of an affair to make public.

In the meantime, the deadline for eligible employees to accept the one-time retirement incentive is April 30, 2015.

Campus

Student Centre Challenge asks Trent staff and faculty to contribute

By Zachary Cox

Recently, Trent University launched a campaign, the Trent Student Centre Challenge, encouraging faculty and staff to donate to the Student Centre project. The Challenge is going to be the source of a portion of the project’s $4 million fundraising goal. The premise is that staff and faculty will match the contributions that students will be making once the student centre levy comes into effect with the beginning of the next academic year in September.

Sherry Booth, Trent University’s Campaign Director, is pleased that the Student Centre project is underway, saying that students have been working towards getting a student centre for a while now, and “to have them finally succeed is really an exciting point for us.”

She also says that university staff also strongly believe in the project, and therefore the Trent Student Centre Challenge provides an opportunity for them to make a contribution of their own. “The Student Centre Challenge is really because the faculty and staff feel very strongly that this is something the university – and more so the students – need. A part of the plan to make this a reality is fundraising for this.”

The Challenge was developed with the help of several students, such as the former Trent Central Student Association President Braden Freer, and Board of Governors member Dorcas Mensah.

Booth says that the concept was created around the idea of how staff and faculty can make similar contributions to the students, saying: “It really was ‘the students have done this, what can we ask the faculty and staff to do?’”

The solution was to emulate the student contributions. Beginning with the start of the next academic year, Trent students will pay a $95 levy to the Student Centre project. The Student Centre Challenge asks that administration staff and faculty match or even multiply the $95 contribution the students make.

“The actual challenge […] is really to match – double match, triple match, quadruple match, or more – the student levy,” says Booth. “The students are putting down $95 a year going forward, and we’re asking faculty, staff, and board members to make a five year pledge.”

Booth indicated that the Challenge was also based on inclusivity and a sense of “marching along together.” By giving staff and faculty members a chance to contribute, they get a sense of involvement with the project.

“The overall goal for the fundraising component of the student centre is over four million dollars so it’s a fairly heavy

price tag, but it’s a participation thing and I think it’s a little bit of a unifying thing as well for campus to rally around this important initiative,” said Booth. “The expectation is not that we’re fundraising from the students, this is really an initiative for the rest of the Trent family to rise to the challenge and help where they can and how they can.”

TCSA Acting President Myra Asmar also commended the Challenge’s inclusivity. ““I think it’s really great that the university has started this because now it’s involving the whole university so it’s not just the students but the faculty and staff,” she said, adding that involving the campus as a whole will help build excitement for the project.

Excitement appears to be building, as the Challenge has been welcomed favourably so far. With a month yet to go before the April 30 deadline, Booth says that pledges are being received every day, though results and current totals are not

being publicly announced yet. “We’re early into the challenge now, a few weeks in, and I must say we’re receiving a really wonderful response.”

Booth is also hopeful that those who have already pledged to the Challenge will encourage others to do so. “We obviously are asking for some strong fundraising leadership from the senior administration of the university so those that can step up, we’re asking them to do so because $4 million is a substantial goal.”

The $4 million fundraising goal will not be met solely through the Trent Student Centre Challenge, but the initiative provides a base for the campaign to go outside the school as well. By demonstrating that the entire campus has done their part in raising funds, external funding sources can be approached.

“Not only did the students show their leadership, but everyone on campus stepped up where they could and how they could. “That’s a great message to take out: we’ve done it at home, everyone here is rallying but we need your help,” says Booth.

Booth also explained that an initiative is going to be established at the Durham campus, one that ties directly in with student life there. More details will be announced in conjunction with the April 10 celebration of the Durham campus’ 40th anniversary.

In the meantime, fundraising continues in Peterborough, and Booth encourages those who have yet to take part to do so: “We’re still extending the challenge, pledge today!” Those interested in making a pledge or learning more about the initiative can visit mycommunity.trentu. ca/student-centre-challenge.

New Arthur editors elected for Volume 50

By Pat Reddick

Arthur’s most hotly contested elections in recent memory saw Zara Syed and Yumna Leghari chosen as editors of Volume 50.

Syed and Leghari ran on a slate of diversity and inclusion, while promising a nonheirarchical organizational structure. They also sought to bring back the Street Style column, add a Humans of Peterborough column, and see into starting internship and co-op programs for the paper.

Four editorial options were presented to the Staff Collective. Ayesha Barmania and Ugyen Wangmo both ran as singular editors, and Jack Smye and Renzo Costa ran as a co-editorial team.

About 30 Staff Collective members, including the candidates, showed up to the election, with seven more having their

voices heard via proxy.

The staff collective was also larger than average, totaling 50 names after past-editor Miranda Rigby petitioned to be included.

Several contributions she made to the paper are reused in each issue, including the Sadleir House graphic on page two.

Paul Sanderson’s name was mistakenly left off the list, increasing the total to 50.

The large slate of candidates made for lengthy proceedings. Each team had 10 minutes to present their platforms, and two minutes to answer each question. After only eight questions, the staff collective voted unanimously to proceed to voting.

This came two hours into the meeting.

Acting TCSA President Mayra Asmar acted as the elections’ scrutineer.

An outpouring of interest was shown for Staff Collective Director positions on Arthur’s Board. Five candidates were nominated on the spot, and given a single sentence to pitch themselves.

Voting was delayed slightly to check whether Arthur’s bylaws stipulated that only three directors could be elected after one member in attendance suggested all five candidates should be acclaimed.

It was clarified by the editors that not only was it a bylaw, it was also a bylaw that the minority of the board must be paid staff positions. Since one member was paid staff already, only two more could be elected.

In the end, Miranda Rigby, and current staff members Keila MacPherson and Caleigh Boyle were elected to the board.

To the current editors’ chagrin, there was no leftover sushi by the night’s end.

Volume 49 | Issue 23 | March 31, 2015

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Campus: Perspectives

Perspective: We have always lived in their castles

By Brian Hough

Having recently, finally, been diagnosed as autistic it really opened my eyes to how many popular misconceptions about autism there is, not just among the general public, but also the general ‘literature’ surrounding autism.

As such I was going to write one longer, critical essay on autism, education and the fluid nature of disability (which will be going up online later this week), and then I had this really fantastic short piece all done up for the print edition. It was about 800 words and was going to show how we see ourselves and the neurotypical world through our eyes.

That little piece was such a gem. There was one part where, in response to claims in the ‘general literature’ that see autistic people as incapable of empathy, I was going to point out that most of our emotional and social communication is nonverbal.

So claiming that autistic lack the cognitive or neurological capacity for empathy was like putting ‘Crime And Punishment’ in its original Russian in front of an Ontario high school student and then coming to the conclusion that they were illiterate rather than just unskilled in the Russian language.

(Of course in the original, it was much, much wittier than that- seriously you might have even peed a little.)

I was going to talk about how the notion that autistic people are often characterized by having ‘unusual’ or ‘irrational’ fixations when from, the autistic person’s perspective, the entire neurotypical world is compromised of an endless serious of bizarre and incomprehensible ritualistic behaviour (small talk ‘for its own sake’, properly ironing or tucking in clothes, not doing this or doing that) that the the average neurotypical (NT) can only justify by saying ‘just because’ or its ‘not done that way’,

as if the fact the people don’t normally do things that way means that it’s only way to do something.

So many of these little things that compromise the NT culture are such pointless wastes of energy that as autistic, you’re constantly struggling to comport yourself to them even though they make no sense, nobody can justify them and everyone seems to agree that they’re irrational and serve no purpose- yet do them anyways for the sake of other people who agree that they’re irrational and gain nothing from them (i.e.

Everyone says things like ‘you can’t judge a book by its cover’ but guaranteed that the majority of the people who say things like that, when doing the hiring, will hire the better dressed, charismatic person than the slightly dishevelled introvert with objectively better qualifications- why? ‘Just because’, ‘that’s the way it is’).

I was going to close that discussion with some question like ‘should autistic people characterized as having unusual and focused proclivities? Or should they be characterized by having far less ‘unusual’, ‘irrational’ or ritualistic behaviour? Is it a product of able-ism/neurotypicism science that fails to ignore just how truly filled with with mindless nonsense and empty gestures the NT world appears to autistic people?

Because the worst part about how rigidly fixed in their ways NT’s are, the worst part is how savagely they police those rituals in terms of social and economic exclusion if you fail to meet them (or the weird way, that if you forget something or fail to accord yourself to rituals NT’s will almost always jump to the conclusion that this somehow how a personal sleight or act of disrepect towards them and then use that to rationalize all kinds of verbal and emotional abuse #insightful #amirite?).

That’s what I was going to do at any rate.

Right up until 2pm on Saturday, well past my deadline, having run into the same brick wall over and over again- how little I can assume the reader to even know about autism. The article I intended to write was never going to work because simply explaining what autism is would have taken most of the wordspace.

In many ways it speaks to the problem that organizations like the Autism SelfAdvocacy Network try to address- the fact that majority of ‘awareness’ campaigns and literature surrounding autism are produced by non-autistic people — professionals, parents etc but not autistic .

Nowhere is that more prominent than the visceral animosity the autistic community has for the organization AutismSpeaks.

While AutismSpeaks has been responsible for spearheading campaigns like ‘Light It Up Blue’ and ‘World Autism Day’ and bringing autism into public consciousness, it has been heavily criticized for campaigns that quite consistently paint Autism as an ‘epidemic’ and ‘illness’ or a ‘burden’. That’s just the beginning of their problems: there are no autistic people on their board, the majority of their research funding goes into ‘cures’ and ‘preventions’ rather than educational and social accommodation programs, staff members and promotional material has occasionally implied or expressed sympathies with parents who murder their autistic children (rather than seeing it as a horrific hate crime).

In fact, AutismSpeaks’ characterization of autism in its campaigns has been so badly handled that autistic author and rights activist and leader John Elder Robison resigned in 2013 after AS co-founder Suzanne Wright published an op-ed to the Washington Times comparing autistic people to kidnapping victims and using a lot of misleading and misrepresentative statistics in the process.

With its awareness campaigns rife with inaccurate and negative portrayals of the lives autistic people and its emphasis on understanding it as a disease, combined with its emphasis on eugenics as a legitimate medical response to Autism, for many people within the ASD community having AS as ‘flagbearer’ for autism awareness is like having the Ferguson police force as the keynote speakers at a Black History Month event.

To make matters worse, all this ‘awareness’ doesn’t seem to be doing anyone any good. The fact is, that these awareness campaigns rarely penetrate farther than ‘there is something called Autism, don’t hate.’

When basic understanding is so lackingthis is hardly enough.

And if you don’t believe me, or think I’m being ‘ungrateful’ for all this awareness then I challenge you to visit the World Autism Awareness Day page right now.

No seriously, stop reading this and go look at it- there’s almost zero actual information about autism and just pictures of autistic kids wearing branded LIUB, WAAD and AS clothing, business carrying LIUB lightbulbs (money from which goes to Autism Speaks, (instead of you know, autistic people). Judging by their Facebook page, it seems like most of the effort put into these awareness campaigns seems directed at raising awareness about the awareness campaign.

‘Awareness’ is not nearly as needed as understanding.

Instead, these campaigns, fundraisers etc seem less and less like they’re less about us.

More and more often we appear only as props in other people’s self promotion when it is convenient and when not- back into the discursive castles in which we shall always have lived and appearing only as glimpses caught in windows amongst rumours of ghostly occupancy.

let they’ve chosen. Can we look the gender outlaw in the next stall in the eye, shrug and say, “NBD?” If we look at Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we realize that it’s important to be safe and comfortable and fed before we can aspire to do much of anything. We have to fulfil our most immediate needs before we can focus on emotional or spiritual needs.

So, when queer students aren’t having their basic needs met, or are harassed and bothered while going about their business, we can see why this is a pretty serious issue. I really don’t think it should be. Because let’s face it. We all have the power to make every space positive, friendly, safe, or at least accessible. Because of this, I think it should be as simple as ahem, “Evacuating” in a neutral, inoffensive environment and then washing our hands of the whole affair.

Because currently, I’d rather move onto something else. This the last article I’m going to write for the year, and it’s about poop. Makin’ my dad proud, one toilet joke at a time!

On a more serious note, there are a ton of concerns with this issue. For some reason, people seem to think that they’ll be sharing a washroom with creepy men as soon as a space is declared gender neutral.

Perhaps Trent should have “gender neutral” and “creeper” washrooms? I’m a little concerned that people think a stick person in a dress is imbued with the magical power to ward of creepers. Let’s face it, creepers will go where they will, and education, not stick people, will solve the problem.

This bathroom debate draws up questions about who has access to space, as well as questions about gender policing. Who is entitled and privileged to take up public space? It’s usually not us queers, and as a white cis queer I’m allowed to access more spaces than most. So, here’s a basic field guide to humans of the bathroom: Person peeing, washing their hands?

Desperately avoiding eye contact, but exhibiting a gender presentation at odds with yours? They’re probably allowed, you judge Judy you.

Person standing in dark shadowy corner wearing a trench coat and breathing heavily? Probably a creeper. I recommend garlic.

A hand reaching out of the toilet? You’re playing Majora’s Mask and I can’t help you.

No one can help you.

My stance on gender neutral washrooms is overwhelmingly pro, and while I’d love to get into a larger discussion on gender and safety on campus, I’m really sick of tałking about this shit.

P.S. The TQC is hosting a big gala knock-your-socks off drag show at Market Hall on April 3. The washrooms will not be gendered.

P.P.S. any one experiencing harassment at Trent University? The TQC wants to know, in order to better serve the Queer community. Email, drop by our office or send us an anonymous tumblr ask. Yes, we even have a Tumblr.

Perspective: A real world guide to the gender neutral washroom debate

By Quinn Ferentzy

Since I’m an active Trent Queer Collective (TQC) hub member, I was approached by Arthur and asked to write a short opinion piece on gender neutral washrooms.

And this is a short op-ed, so I won’t bother trying to cram in all my thoughts on gendered spaces. I’ll just put a disclaimer that while I am a member of the TQC, my views don’t represent us as an organization because well, we’re people. Although, what the TQC would like to see in the future would be the permanent instalment of a “code of conduct” in all Trent bathrooms, explaining to students their rights, and what is expected of them in this space. It would be pretty basic anti-gender identity discrimination type stuff. It wouldn’t hurt,

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we promise!

Speaking of everything being beautiful and nothing hurting, my stance on discussing bathroom politics is that we should, as glorious angels/unicorns, just photosynthesize sunlight and moonbeams for food and allow all to waste to seep out of our pores in a scented mist. Clearly, we have no need for toilets of any kind. Let alone doors with stick people on them.

Or wait, no. Let me try again.

We live in a real world and people have bodies with needs and even though I’d rather pretend that nobody poops, this is not true. Someday, we’ll have stillsuits to combat a global drought! But for now, people who don’t like or identify with a binary gender have just as much right to poop without getting harassed about which toi-

LocalPage Former Peterborough Folk Festival executive director blasts board for being “disrespectful” and “apathetic”

By Yumna Leghari

On February 28th, Peterborough local, and musician Nicholas Ferrio submitted a letter to the Peterborough Folk Festival’s (PFF) Board of Director’s Chair, Malcolm Byrd, announcing his resignation from his position as Artistic and Executive Director.

During Ferrio’s time with the PFF, he increased the initiatives funding by 25% by finding $16,100 in previously unexplored municipal and provincial resources, and by applying various fundraising strategies.

The Festival takes place every August at Nichols Oval Park, and features prominent local and nation-wide musicians. It’s run mostly by volunteers, who are then led by a governing board of directors.

I spoke with Ferrio about his experience working with the PFF, and gained insight into what led to his decision to resign from his position.

His resignation letter read, “On February 22, 2015, the board presented me with a contract for the position of Executive Director for $3,000… and a contract for the Artistic Director position for $1,000. Both of these contracts offers came with the expectation that I would complete the same amount of work I did in previous years for far less compensation.”

Conveying his emotions towards his departure from the PFF, Ferrio told me, “I came to Peterborough in 2006, and found the festival, which I immediately knew I wanted to be a part of it for a long time. It’s been emotionally exhausting to have this forced away; I didn’t have an option but to move on. Part of the reason I resigned was due to the board’s lack of communication.

They didn’t respond to numerous requests that had an effect on the festival, and grants that could have helped the festivals budget were ignored.”

Poor communication is a major concern Ferrio has with the board, who he believes has missed key funding opportunities by ignoring requests and grants that the festival is eligible for.

“The board acknowledged that I did a lot of work, they just didn’t seem to value the effort. They wanted me to do work with no contract. There were grants I had to write that I won’t be paid for. All the work I did will go forward as unpaid work. I believe their strategy was to not respond to me, so that I would quit.”

I asked Ferrio about the allegations of receiving abusive emails which was outlined in his resignation letter.

He explained, “A coordinator was sending ‘reply all’ email’s that were super aggres-

sive. I felt unsafe and threatened. I brought this to the board’s attention, and they told me to draft a code of conduct document. I researched code of conduct mandates that other Canadian art organizations use, and sent it to them. They never addressed the issue. They were apathetic; it was so intense to experience this, because when I’ve had issues working anywhere else, it’s handled directly, and the board to just forget about it is disrespectful.”

Ferrio believes that the PFF’s board of directors is philosophically against paying someone to do the work required, stating, “It goes against all trends in the Canadian Arts community, I just don’t understand.”

I approached Malcolm Byrd, the Chair of the PFF, with some candid inquiries concerning the matter, and he replied, “For specific responses to your questions, we feel that our response is covered in the press release.”

While the press release does not address the claims Ferrio makes against the PFF Board, Byrd is eager to establish that the Board is moving forward with this year’s event and is seeking volunteer coordinators.

In the vein of poor communication, Ferrio relayed that any claims of physical accountability, responsible governance,

violations of by-laws and Chair duties were evaded successfully by the board.

“Since I’ve resigned, I’ve had interviews with other festivals, who offer proper payment, health coverage, and dental; they treat you like a person with a job. The PFF is a lot of work, I would spend 35 hours a week working, and when it got closer to the festival, I was working full time. I make music for a living, and I get paid $3,000 a weekend at some events. Most artists get paid more than I did as Artistic and Executive Director, it just really doesn’t add up to me,” Ferrio said.

He continued, “I love this festival. I think it’s an incredible institution that deserves to be held to higher standards. I hope a bunch of amazing, and successful people get involved. I couldn’t continue to work with those people in good faith because I don’t think that they were working in good faith for the festival.”

In response to Ferrio’s resignation, the board wrote, “We extend our sincere thanks to Nick for all of his hard work over the last year and a half … Mr. Ferrio’s announcement was unexpected, but it has not prevented or deterred the board of organizations membership from continuing to plan and organize the 26th annual festival.”

Column: Booklover’s guide to Peterborough bookstores

By Brian Hough

Dixon’s Bookstore

Water St. between Simcoe St. and Hunter St. Christine DePizan’s The Book Of The City Of Ladies is in the classic lit section for ($5.95) and is a really interesting read in proto-feminism as imagined by a late medieval Venetian author.

In the Canlit section look for Writing The Circle ($5.95), a really fantastic looking collection of Western Canadian Native Women’s short fiction.

Thea’s:

Water St. between Simcoe St. and Hunter St. For ($4) you can pick up a Sergio Ramirez collection entitled simply Stories. In addition to being an internationally acclaimed writer, Ramirez also served as Vice Presi-

dent of Nicaragua under the Daniel Ortega administration between 1985 and 1990.

Set in Bratislava in what was formerly known as Czechoslovakia during the dying days of communist rule, Martin Simecka’s literary debut The Year Of The Frog is available for ($8).

Scholar’s:

Water St. between Simcoe St. and Hunter St. In the Philosophy section look for iconic Canadian social and communication theorist, Marshall McLuhan’s The Gutenberg Galaxy for ($7.95). In this seminal work, McLuhan introduces important concepts like ‘media ecologies’ as well as the ‘global village’ as he tracks the development of human consciousness in its interactions with the history of media technologies.

Find the Asian PEN anthology ($18/ hardcover) for an excellent collection of

short fiction and poetry from authors all across East, SouthEast and South Asia.

Books and Things:

Water St. between Simcoe St. and Hunter St. Sitting in the window is Canadian activist and journalist, Naomi Klein’s book of essays, Fences And Windows, about the struggles against globalization across the world.

Go to the Canlit section and find the wide variety of Michael Ondaatje’s works including short story collection Running In The Family, Divisadero, the latest The Cat’s Table and almost his entire corpus on one shelf.

Mark Jokinen’s: George St. between King and Sherbrooke David Foster Wallace’s Brief Interviews With Hideous Men is in the literature sec-

tion for ($10) as is an interesting looking An Anthology Of Erotic Prose edited by Derek Parker and being sold for ($15).

Famed ‘beat-generation’ novelist and poet, Jack Kerouac’s Dharma Bums can be had for only ($12) and will probably not last on shelves for very long.

Knotaknew:

George St. at the corner of Sherbrooke St. Legendary comedian Steve Martin successfully turned his hand to fiction with Shopgirl- in the Lit section for ($7.95).

Also, Haruki Marukami has made an international claim for himself as a magical realist of the highest order. Marukami’s works have been so popular in his native Japan that his most recent work was sold in vending machines in subway stations. His 2001 novel, Sputnik Sweetheart is sitting in the Lit section for ($9.50).

Volume 49 | Issue 23 | March 31, 2015

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ArtsPages Artist weighs in: Peterborough gateway sign emulates the city

By Jordan Porter

In collaboration with local landscape architecture firm, Basterfield and Associates, Peterborough is in the process of creating a new gateway sign along Highway 115.

Basterfield handed in their submission to the Peterborough City Council on March 18, however councilors were not sold on the design, and wanted Basterfield to go back to the drawing board. They wanted the sign to be a representation of the Peterborough community and capture what the city is really about.

The submission featured the name PETERBOROUGH in large bold letters, with a cool stainless steel background, separate from the base, which was black, and the negative space was intended to be the ripples of a moonlit lake, reflecting off each letter.

I’m not personally from Peterborough, however my grandparents have lived here for most of my life. I remember the odd summer weekends, or March breaks with a few of our cousins and taking the tour of Peterborough.

I’m not saying that I think the memory of us each getting a few dollars and buying as much candy as we can is worthy of going up on a new sign to emulate some of Peterborough’s greatest assets, although we did buy that candy and go to Del Crary Park to camp out, listen to some music, and maybe

get a caricature drawn of us in the summer.

Or we laced up our skates and joined a pick up game of hockey at the locks to pass the time in the winter. Peterborough has a lot of stunning features, as long as you’re not around Whistle Stop past 2 am on the weekends (yikes).

I asked local graphic designer and illustrator, Jason Wilkins, on what he would envision for the gateway into our city, “I actually like the original concept by Basterfield. I’m not sure if with things like this you want something specific, it wouldn’t make any sense to put a landmark on the sign if it’s for tourists, plus the ripples in the water are a great way to capture a lot of what Peterborough is all about.”

Wilkins then went on to explain how he, as a resident of Peterborough and creative

mind, would present the sign, “My first thought is something that would incorporate the arts, for which there is a lot of ways to do so. Whether it be through music, architecture, or pieces featured in the Art Gallery of Peterborough. Although admittedly, I would like to keep true to Basterfields concept of water.”

Further to Wilkins’ points, a number of the Peterborough city council members were quoted in saying that they actually liked the concept.

We are lucky enough to be able to share a view of Little Lake downtown, hear the clock tower chime, and watch the lift locks do their thing. And how could you leave out the 50-year-old relic of Peterborough, Trent University, bringing thousands of new residents each fall, pumping out aca-

demic minds, and conducting research.

We may also be amiss if we don’t stop to think about our earlier history. Beginning in the late 1850’s, Peterborough became one of the country’s largest manufacturers of canoes, and to commemorate this, we have the Canoe Museum.

The truth is, every city has their own distinct identity, and when you really look at the core of Peterborough, I think the common denominator in most of the memorable Peterborough landmarks is in fact water.

It’s the backbone of Peterborough’s economic life, bringing in dozens of large manufacturing companies, as well as its recreational life, whether it is by bringing the community together at Little Lake, or for a game of hockey at the locks.

Movie Review: Get Hard - That Poor Hedge Fund Manager

By Brian Lukaszewicz

What do you do when you have two of the most bankable comedic talents in Hollywood?

That’s the question I’m sure a lot of people were asking themselves as they went about concocting Get Hard, the first collaboration between Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart.

What sort of story gets the best out of both these guys? Each has their own wheelhouse – Ferrell the clueless, yet loveable idiot, and Hart, always a master of pragmatism, at his most entertaining when the situation is spiralling out of control. Likewise, just how scripted do you want to be? Hart and Ferrell are obviously great improvisers, but how do you stop this thing from turning into a sketch show? How much struc-

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ture do you need to keep the whole enterprise from falling off the rails?

The answers to those questions might just be of the blowin’ in the wind variety, because the truth is when it’s all over Get Hard seems to suggest different things at different times, bringing its best in the moments you’d least expect.

James King (Will Ferrell) is a very wealthy, though rather sheltered, hedge fund manager just trying to make it in the cruel world of private islands and multiacre estates. Darnell Lewis (Kevin Hart) works as a car detailer in the same building.

He isn’t nearly as well off, and he’s desperate to shake together $30,000 to put a down payment on a house in a better school district for his daughter.

Now if you caught any sort of preview

for this movie over the course of the last year I’m sure you don’t need me for this, but here goes anyway… James is convicted of mishandling funds and sentenced to 10 years in a maximum security prison. Assuming Darnell has been to prison (he hasn’t), James offers to pay the unsuspecting family man to teach him how to survive in the big house.

In truth, that setup seems to take a lot longer than it should, and it’s particularly unfavourable to Hart. Ferrell gets to play a rich buffoon, which is not only right in his wheelhouse, but a pretty easy backstory to make funny. Hart’s character is much more grounded, which weighs him down with a lot of the rather unfunny exposition.

Still, it’s hard to say that the movie gets better when it leaves behind the compul-

sory setup and finally lets the guys loose.

Most of what’s here is typical of a Will Ferrell comedy. Jokes come fast and often.

Scene premises are kept loose and disposable, to leave plenty of room for improvising. Get Hard hits you with volume, hoping that enough lands to make you feel like it was worth your while.

And Hart and Ferrell are two very funny people – heck, just watch their promotional appearances for this movie for evidence of that – so they do land their punches. They just don’t land enough of them. The prison yard stuff feels played out almost before it begins.

And the pity of it all is, Get Hard desperately tries to cling to that loose premise even when it starts to become clear that maybe it wants to be something else. Ironically, it’s the re-ignition of that plot that seemed oh so obligatory in the beginning that reveals that perhaps Get Hard should have been a buddy comedy all along.

It’s certainly an interesting and unexpected transition. James remembers that someone out there actually framed him and that maybe he should try to clear his name. From there on, the movie seems to hit the unpause button and noticeably pick up. James gets hilariously effective at some of his prison training, we get to better know Russell (played by the surprisingly funny T.I.), Darnell’s rough and tumble cousin, and his charming gang, and Hart and Ferrell demonstrate a level of chemistry that just wasn’t there before.

Is that enough to save this middling comedy? Not really. Get Hard doesn’t stray too far out of either Hart or Ferrell’s safe zone, nor is it all that consistent comedically. But I will say this for it – when it does hit, you’ll remember it. You just have to be willing to wade through the rest of the clutter to get there.

Arts

How to make a zine. How to build community.

By Caleigh Boyle

Dear readers, this is an interactive article that will require one sheet of 8½ x 11 paper and scissors.

Before I explain what this article is about, I want you to take your piece of paper (use recycled if you can as long as it has one blank side) and fold it in half three times creating eight squares. Open up your paper so that it is now only folded in half once and cut along the centre crease, from the folded side, about half way down.

Now open your paper up and fold it in half, length-wise. Holding the two ends of your paper push towards the cut opening until you have a diamond and push the diamond shape together until the sides meet and you have a paper cross. Then fold in half.

What you should have now is an eightpage zine Now what is a zine you may be wondering? A zine is a self-published work of art, which may include poems, visual art, radical information, or whatever you want!

That is the beauty of zines—there are no rules or regulations. They are a form of expression that anyone and everyone has access too! While the one you’ve just made is a mini zine, typically zines are half pages folded and stapled with as many pages as you’d like, not limited to eight.

“Zines started in the 70s and 80s as underground counterculture movements for getting away from big publishing, for embracing grass roots kind of medium movement,” says James Kerr, program director at Trent Radio. They were created because there were so many things not being said.

“They can be about yourself, your own personal artwork or poetry, or they can be about a specific topic that is controversial. So there has been a lot of zines about feminist issues and environmentalism,” says Kristen Mommertz, a librarian at the Sadleir House Library. “I think they’re important because of the do-it-yourself style of publishing. It’s a great way of getting original content out without having to pay.”

The Sadleir House Library is in the midst of launching a zine library, so if you are ever interested in looking into issues of the past, head to the Sadleir House Library and check out the zines (many of the zines come from the OPIRG office just down the hall!).

The Library is also having a Zine Workshop on April 2 form 4:00 to 6:30. So, if my directions above weren’t quite clear enough, or (and more likely) if they were clear and you have now fallen in love with zines and want to learn more, come to the workshop, hang out with some great people, and make some great art.

While talking to several different people about zines, an important aspect that kept coming up was community.

In an age where information is overwhelmingly accessible via the Internet and where blogs are everywhere, what keeps zines relevant? Community.

While at any point in time I can publish something on the Internet, I am not meeting anyone in the process. The beauty of zines is the interaction that is involved with them.

When you have photocopied and stapled your zine together you have the choice of where you want that zine to go and the ability to reach out to the communities that you want to be heard by. How you ask? You walk there, or bike there or drive there or even fly there. Whatever your preferred form of transportation is, you get to place your zine where you want it and in the process you have the chance to meet the amaz-

Pictured is a zine from the Sadleir House Library Archives. Photo by Jenny Fisher. ing people around you and say to them, “Hey, look what I published.”

And even on a smaller scale you can sit with your friends and make DIY zines like the one you’ve just made and it becomes a communal activity.

No longer do we have to be separated by the screens of our computers to get valuable information or information that is not easily accessed even on the Internet because we are now writing it and publishing it ourselves.

“There is a better sense of community.

If I have a zine and I say, ‘Ok, I am going hand this out at Food Not Bombs, I am

going to hand this out at The Spill,’ I am establishing the groups that I want to network with, and the groups I want to share information with. It’s grassroots, it’s local,” says Natalie Paproski-Rubianes, staff member at OPIRG. If there is something you are really passionate about and have had a hard time getting published or haven’t tried to get published in a mainstream form of media, make your own zine and get the information out there because it has never been so easy. Zines provide us the opportunity to talk about controversial topics or silly topics or sexual topics. I cannot stress enough

that there are no limits.

A common thing in zines are the DIY or How To’s. “How to dumpster dive” was an example provided by Paproski-Rubianes which just goes to prove that the options are endless.

“This is what is wonderful about [zines],” Kerr said, “it doesn’t matter your artistic caliber going into it. There’s very funky not-drawings and poor penmanship and brilliant ideas that don’t necessarily have to make sense. That isn’t really the point of it.

“The point is your ability to express yourself. You’re just expressing yourself,” expresses Kerr.

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Volume 49 | Issue 23 | March 31, 2015

arts

TUMS 2015 Battle of the Bands in photos

Television Road, Second Place, Audience Choice

The White Crowleys, Winners

Piss Locusts

I, The Mountain, Third Place

5 Shots to Ragtown

The Beef Boys

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Liquid Larry and The AfterBurners

Opinionpages Editorial: Reflecting on Arthur at the cusp of Volume 50 (a.k.a. A heartfelt goodbye to the communities I love)

By Matthew Rappolt

It’s hard to believe that a full year has gone by since Pat and I were elected co-editors of Arthur for volume 49. That night, March 27, 2014, I was warned that the year would go by way too fast and sure enough, like the blink of an eye, here I am writing my last editorial for volume 49.

Next week this space belongs to Arthur’s incoming editorial tandem, Zara Syed and Yumna Leghari, who will hold the post for this paper’s historic 50th volume. Having had the pleasure of getting to know these two exceptional women over the past few years, I have the utmost confidence that they will serve both this paper and the Trent community with integrity, responsibility, and distinction.

With regards to the current volume, which is now quickly drawing to a close, I am incredibly proud of the way it all turned out. For the past eight months Pat and I have had the immense luxury of having a hard-working team of reporters and production staff who all consistently went well beyond their job descriptions to contribute to each issue. It is no secret that any media production is only as good as its staff, and ours has been beyond compare.

I also want to personally thank every student and community member who contributed to the paper this year through submissions, commentary, or even just by picking up an issue and reading it. After all, the editors are just the curators of the paper, Arthur will always belong to its staff collective and to its community.

For our part, Pat and I worked hard to try to make volume 49 as informative, diverse, and representative as possible. Although it’s true that a publication will always fall short of

covering absolutely everything, I think that in many ways we were successful in these areas.

Now, with all this out of the way (I swear I didn’t mean for it to read like an Oscar speech) I want to reflect a bit on role of Arthur Newspaper within the Trent and Peterborough communities, especially in advance of the 50th volume milestone.

Arthur, like any worthwhile community paper, has always been intimately connected and reflective of the constituencies it serves.

Much like Trent University itself, which grew out of the necessity for higher education in a thriving mid-century industrial city, so too did Arthur grow out of another basic necessity: the necessity for a space of information, investigation, and public comment within a close-knit community of citizens.

Nearly 50 years later, this necessity remains unchanged as the citizens of Trent and Peterborough still need to be informed and inform each other about the goings-on both in their community and outside.

Writing in the very first editorial space in Volume 1, Issue 1, Arthur’s founding editors (P.R. Lerprenier, Graham Weeks, and company) laid out a simple mandate for the paper, saying: Arthur exists “to provide reporting and comment on [university events] and to act as an organ of communication for individuals and organizations.” These were the words that I quoted in my inaugural editorial eight months ago and this was the mandate that grounded Pat and I through the many interesting events of this past year.

In my mind, Arthur is first and foremost a community newspaper and should be primarily concerned with covering the politics, events, and affairs of its communities. While there is certainly room for all forms and media within its pages I believe that Arthur does

itself (and its communities) a disservice when it pretends to be anything else.

This is especially true in the Internet age, as people become less and less engaged in their specific geographical communities. The politics, policies, and administrative affairs of Trent University have never been issues the Peterborough Examiner is particularly concerned with covering and websites like The Huffington Post, Buzzfeed, and Rabble, certainly aren’t pressed to hold Trent’s University’s political leaders to account. Because of this, but certainly not only because of this, Arthur will always have a role to play informing the public discourse of this university and the wider community.

This year Arthur broke a number of important campus news stories that would otherwise have remained unturned and undetected. Furthermore, Arthur gave thoughtful comment, through editorials and op-eds, on matters of university, TCSA, and broader

public policy.

Most importantly, however, this paper gave the diverse individuals and groups of this community a platform through which they could share their ideas, perspectives, and experiences with the broader public, a platform that they might not otherwise have.

News reporting, informed commentary, and community engagement. This, in a nutshell, is what makes community newspapers like Arthur invaluable to their constituencies and this is what community members should expect from Arthur each and every volume.

Next week, after Pat, Zara, Yumna, and I put the finishing touches on issue 24, I will officially be saying goodbye to the university, the city, and the newspaper that have been fundamental parts of my identity for the past five years.

This summer I will be doing some globetrotting before moving on to begin the second phase of my higher education at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo. Undoubtedly it will be a profoundly different experience than the one I’ve had here at Trent and I am both excited and petrified to begin that journey.

However, in many ways I have come to understand my experience at Arthur as being representative of my transformative experience here at Trent. The diversity of people, ideas, and beliefs, as well as the many challenges I’ve encountered at this organization, have fundamentally changed not only who I am as a person, but who I want to be.

And so I wish the best of luck to Zara, Yumna, and everyone who will be involved with the paper next year. No matter what happens I will always consider myself apart of the Trent community, the Peterborough community, and the Arthur community. And no matter where I am I’ll be reading every page.

Comment: The hikes stop here!

By Betty Wondimu, TCSA Women’s Commissioner, and Boykin Smith, TCSA VP Campaigns and Equity

There are many challenges facing our post-secondary education system whether you see it, feel it, or not. The truth is, accessing post-secondary education is becoming more and more difficult. In Canada, tuition fees have nearly doubled since 1999, more than twice the rate of inflation while funding for post-secondary institutions has been cut. Students are now picking up the tab for the difference. And it’s only getting worse.

It’s no secret that the province of Ontario has the highest average tuition fees of any Canadian province, and provincial legislative frameworks such as the Reaching Higher Framework ensure that these fees will keep rising per year.

The Ontario 2012 FY budget saw $12M in funding cuts to post-secondary education, with one of the largest cuts coming to the Ontario Work Study Program (OWSP), a program that many students rely on to find employment to pay for school. The most recent Ontario 2014 FY budget saw absolutely no mention of additional funding to post-secondary educa-

tion.

Today, in real dollars, Ontario spends less on post-secondary education per student than two decades ago and continues to have the lowest per-student funding in the country, 24 percent below the Canadian average.

Higher tuition means higher debt with upfront costs and a lifetime of loans acting as a major barrier for new students.

Today students have to take on part-time work to help fund their living expenses and education which puts a strain on their academic performances. Tuition fees not only dramatically affect current students, as potential students are also restricted from participating within post-secondary education due to high financial barriers.

For those who do take the plunge, low wage jobs and high debt loads will make it harder to start a family, buy a home, start a small business, or serve their community.

The Canadian Federation of Students Ontario will be entering into the ‘red’ under “The Hikes Stop Here” campaign.

Member Locals and student unions, will be taking action on campuses around Ontario to draw attention to this issue.

Beginning in late January, the TCSA will be outreaching and engaging with students on this issue. All students are welcomed to share their stories and testimonies that will help garner attention and spark conversations.

We have worked with Trent University

with three strategies; 1) to freeze tuition fees across the board, 2) Write a joint letter encouraging the federal and provincial government to prioritize alleviating the education-related debt loads burdening Canadians; reduce tuition fees through increases in government funding for institutions across Ontario; investigate in an alternative tuition fee framework and encourage an economically competitive work force. 3) Write a joint letter encouraging the provincial government to; regulate international students’ tuition fees and restore post-secondary funding for international students; eliminate UHIP and simultaneously, restore OHIP for international students; continue advocating for immigration policy initiatives and changes to ensure international students’ lives in Canada are easier.

However, while we recognize that these strategies will not be enough, we will show support during the Day of Action (happening on Tuesday March 24, 2015). To demonstrate to the Trent University administration, and the government at large, that students are seriously concerned about rising tuition fees, student debt, and fairness for international students.

It’s no secret, so let’s speak up. Spread the word, and share the facts, and act now.

Go to itsnosecret.ca and take the first step or contact the Vice President Campaigns & Equity, Boykin Smith for more information. It starts with us!

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Volume 49 | Issue 23 | March 31, 2015

Opinion

Comment: Just because you’re Right, it doesn’t mean that Israel is

By Alexander Walsh

Political ideologies all come with some sort of baggage. As a Conservative, that baggage comes as the expectation that I whole heartedly support the state of Israel. After all, most if not all of my party does, and Stephen Harper has become one of the most vocal proponents of Israel on the world stage. As a result of this preconceived expectation of Conservatives, it comes as a surprise to both liberals and conservatives when I announce that I am in no way supportive of our ‘greatest ally’.

In many ways being a Conservative and a vocal opponent of the state of Israel can be an alienating experience.

Here on campus, the recent recension of the BDS policy against the state of Israel has been labeled as a Conservative campaign, most notably due to the direct involvement of the Trent Conservatives and their relationship to a number of ProIsraeli lobby groups here in Canada. I am in no way speaking against the recension, as I was a vocal supporter of the push to revoke it at the AGM, however I am disappointed that this argument has turned into the typical pro- / anti- Israel narrative, rather than one of academic freedom and inclusivity.

I feel it is important to present some background as to what would convince a very devout Conservative to turn his back on a primary component of his party’s foreign policy, and yet still defend the need to rescind the BDS policy.

This story begins in 2006 with Canadian Army Major Paeta Hess-von Kruedener, a Canadian UN peacekeeper station at a UN compound in southern Lebanon. The compound, a large white concrete bunker with black “UN” lettering painted on all sides, was located in El Khiam and overlooked Israel.

Here, Kruedener and his team of international peacekeepers had survived and observed the war in relative comfort,

confident in their goal of fighting for international peace. On July 25, their compound came under heavy Israeli artillery fire despite being no where near Hezbollah positions. The artillery barrage continued throughout the day, and resulted in the UN Deputy Secretary at the time, Mark Brown, directly contacting Israeli officials several times during the attack. Despite these complaints, the attack didn’t stop.

In the evening, a third wave of artillery attacks began, resulting in twelve 155mm artillery rounds landing within meters of the base and four directly inside the compound, destroying the majority of the surface buildings. By now, UN Command in Lebanon was on the phone desperately shouting at the Israeli Defense Forces to stop their attack. General Alain Pellegrini of the UN forces in Lebanon is even quoted to have told the IDF “You are killing my people.”

With the bunker door destroyed and the surface buildings completely demolished, Major Kruedener and his team called for an evacuation that was scheduled for 7AM the next morning. In Kingston, Ontario, Kreudener’s wife received a phone call from her husband which could only be made out as static.

20 minutes later, an Israeli F-16 dropped a 1,000 pound GPD guided Joint Direct Attack Munition on the compound, right through the previously blown off door of the bunker.

Kruedener and the rest of UNTSO Team Sierra (Australian Peacekeeper Hans-Peter Lang, Finish Peacekeeper Jarno Makinen, and Chinese Peacekeeper Du Zhaoyu) were killed by that final strike.

The aftermath of the event rippled through the UN command structure. Having known about the events of that day, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan released an official statement: “I am shocked and deeply distressed by the apparently deliberate targeting by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) of a United

Nations observer post in southern Lebanon. This co-ordinated artillery and aerial attack on a long established and clearly marked United Nations post at Khiam occurred despite personal assurances given to me by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert that United Nations positions would be spared Israeli fire.”

Canada formed a board of inquiry to investigate the attack but were refused access to information by the IDF. Despite this lack of information and cooperation from the state of Israel, the Canadian investigation found the Israeli Government and the IDF directly responsible. Due to cited “security concerns” this report was not made public, however recently has been published in a government archive.

Direct attacks are not the only events that have put pressure on the claim of Israel being our “greatest ally”. In 1993, Israel was caught selling western weapons secrets to the Chinese. In January of this year Israel attacked and killed Iranian military forces fighting ISIS, a group that is supposed to be an enemy of both Israel and western nations. They disregard the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons with justifications disproven by recently leaked Mossad documents show-

ing that Iran was not developing nuclear weapons.

As a Conservative, I find it difficult to justify support for a country whose actions have repeatedly been against Canadian interests; I find it impossible to stand for fiscal responsibility yet be expected to blindly support hundreds of millions of no strings attached dollars being sent to Israel, and I certainly cannot justify calling Israel our ‘Ally’ when they refuse to sign any formal treaty or alliance stating so.

But despite my negative opinions of the state of Israel, I am still against the BDS movement. Why? Because this debate shouldn’t be about Israel. It should be about defending the freedoms and rights that UN peacekeepers like Kruedener and UNTSO Team Sierra died supporting it.

We shouldn’t permit this debate to be hijacked by self interested lobby groups.

If we lower ourselves to supporting policies of exclusion we become no better than the state of Israel and its abusive actions and policies, Major Kruedener and his team will have died for nothing, and we will continue to perpetuate attitudes of intolerance and conflict.

You can support a free and inclusive campus and still be against Israel.

Pictured is the aftermath of the IDF attack on the Canadian UN peacekeeper station.

Comment: Tuition is spelled with an ‘I’

By Brendan Edge

This attached photo was taken just after the TCSA finished putting the display up and now, two days later; it has yet to be corrected. Perhaps the grammatical error was done purposefully (you know, to highlight the decreasing quality of our education). However, I somewhat doubt it, and I have to say it makes the propaganda from the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) appear even less professional than it already does.

I agree tuition is drastically rising, and not contrary to popular belief, those of us who don’t support CFS are not crazy about having to pay more either! However, there are far more effective options for us to pursue. Furthermore we also know how to spell! Perhaps because we actually spend our time in class, and studying, instead of trying to disrupt the lectures and study areas, which (as the protesters point out) are prohibitive in cost.

Granted some of these protesters perform these actions as an act of rebellion, for they come from privileged backgrounds and can waste an entire summer or a semester protesting because their parents are the top 15% of society. Not all of us are that lucky. More, regrettably, pretend to be the most knowledgeable and least apathetic of all students but are

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far from it.

Instead they present an automated mindset replete with a handful of facts and statistics, rather than an in-depth understanding of the issue and its causes, let alone the capacity to create proposed solutions that are more specific than ‘reductions’. Suffice to say many are unable to answer either the ‘how’ or the ‘why’.

Their leaders are more than willing to allow them to remain so, after all the masses will more readily believe a big lie than a small one (hopefully I need not mention

who said that).

Students like those who actively participate in CFS and the Revolutionary Students Movement, among others, make an effort to apply their resources to a diversity of worthy causes and pressing issues; all under the guise of “student issues”. This is not an inaccurate moniker; we should have a say in many of the issues they bring up, particularly international relations and the environment.

Yet focus on such issues by our student representatives and with our money is a waste of resources as there are already definitive bodies which represent these things and are the experts who should be looking after them. So let us leave it to them and instead focus on issues which more directly relate to us; for when we don’t it decreases the effectiveness of our efforts on those topics.

Think of CFS as the student who tried to do too much (sports, music, theatre, clubs, a full course load, honour roll, and a part time job)! I was that student.

Many of those students are here, we are all passionate about a diverse number of things but we can’t do everything because we burn out; we start failing at everything because we’re overextended and collapse into a writhing heap that used to be a person.

Having a tantrum didn’t work for us

when we were five. The way CFS and the Revolutionary Student Movement are going about protesting, it appears to the passerby that we are spoiled, whiny brats.

No student group has submitted a petition against the tuition increases to either the Ontario Legislature or to Canada’s Parliament. Little effort has been made to hold discussions with government ministers and members of shadow cabinets and very, very few students bother to write Letters to the Editor about their issues or try to get articles published in any newspaper, wherever it is from.

Get your facts together, calm down (grab a dictionary - newspapers don’t use the language of text messages) and compose an articulate, well-argued letter to The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, The Hill Times. Collect the signatures necessary to have a petition submitted to a legislature. Rally to elect students to government; for we do represent a significant portion of society.

If you want to beat the system you have to actually use the system or at least make an attempt to do so. If you’re going to protest, you should have a thorough understanding of what you are doing.

Spelling tuition as ‘tuiton’ is not a great starting point for that, and only increases our apparent immaturity in the eyes of other demographics of society.

Clubs&Groups Trent Radio: The Long Road to Trout

By Hayley Raymond

The Trout Rodeos have officially been distributed downtown and on Symons campus.

For those of you who are unaware, the Trout Rodeo is Trent Radio’s annual Yearin-Review. It is filled with a variety of written and visual content produced by the programmers, operators, and employees of Trent Radio.

Trout Rodeo serves the double-purpose of reminding those who were involved at Trent Radio this past year of all the wonderful things they did here, and of enticing those who have not yet become involved by offering a glimpse into the mad tea party that is Trent Radio.

I did not write an article for the Trout Rodeo. I feel bad about that in one sense, but I’m also reminded of a spiel related to me by James Kerr when he first interviewed me for the job of his assistant.

I’ll try to give a brief version of that spiel now…

As you might already know, programmers are the people at Trent Radio who provide us with the amazing content that emanates from Trent Radio, and goes out into the world. Behind these programmers are people who maintain the facilities, allowing these lovely programmers to share their content. Content would be impos-

sible without form, and form would be pointless without content.

There is a symbiotic relationship at play here. James made sure that when I accepted the job as his assistant, I realized I was accepting the position of someone who would help to keep up the form of Trent Radio so that programmers could come in and fill that form with exciting, artistic radio endeavours.

Of course, there is room for creativity and meaningful achievement within the bounds of those responsible for form—it’s just a different kind of creativity and accomplishment.

If you’d like to pick up a copy of the Trout Rodeo, you can get one at Trent Radio House, 715 George Street North, just twenty-six steps south of the Sadleir House bus stop.

So while you, programmers and future programmers, flip through your copy of the Trout Rodeo that you picked up at the Seasoned Spoon, Dreams of Beans, Sam’s Place, Bata Library, Bluestreak Records, or elsewhere around town, while you sit and enjoy the musings of programmers, the poetry of managers, and the doodles of operators, and before you accuse me of hypocrisy for touting the excellency of the Trout Rodeo without having written anything for it, I ask you to consider one thing—who do you think stapled them all?

OPIRG: Through activism and education to end injustice

By OPIRG Peterborough

As another semester winds down, and the community goes through its summer migration, it’s important to reflect on the achievements and challenges of the past year.

For OPIRG, this has been a year of learning and continued engagement with the community and students to continue the fight towards greater equality and social justice. The organization strives to

provide a safe, accessible, and welcoming space to discuss, take action, and increase education on issues of social justice, both in our community and the world as a whole.

Here are just a few ways that OPIRG has reduced apathy and increased action: This year, OPIRG sought to provide the community with the skills to engage with the government on issues that matter to them, and to bring social justice into their everyday forms of decision making.

This was done through the Light Your Spark workshop series, which included seminars on Consensus-Based Decisionmaking and City Hall 101.

The OPIRG Food Cupboard continues to be the fourth largest Food Bank in Peterborough, committed to the right to quality food for all people, and to the improvement of food security in the community. The Food Cupboard reduces barriers to food security by not requiring

identification for access to the service.

This fundamental staple for community members has continued to grow over this year, and a Steering Committee has been formed to strategize best-practices and how to best provide justice and security in the future.

The OPIRG Free Market also strives to provide access to clothes and other goods at no cost, via donation to promote sustainability in the community.

OPIRG also continually supports youth engagement by giving students multiple avenues to pursue aspects of social justice that are important to them.

This year, OPIRG facilitated the creation of the Anti-Poverty Working Group, and the continuation of the Guerrilla Gardeners, Canadian Mining Awareness, and End Immigration Detention. With the support of OPIRG, these groups provided workshops on the impacts of mining on First Nation com-

munities, fundraised for a Trapp Line to provide support to those affected by immigration detention, and participated in seedling workshops to plant public crops in the spring.

In conjunction with the Trent Work Study Program, OPIRG also provides meaningful employment to students in the form of work placements, and is committed to providing a fair, accessible, and safe work environment for all student employees.

This is just a small cross-section of the many ways OPIRG is committed to making Trent University and the Community of Peterborough a just and equitable place to live, work, and play.

We welcome all those who wish to join the movement for social justice to visit the office, send us an email, or come out to an event to learn more.

Together, we work towards a world free from injustice and oppression.

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Volume 49 | Issue 23 | March 31, 2015

listings Clubs & Groups The Seasoned Spoon is currently hiring TWSP eligible students to work during the 2015/16 school year. The application deadline is Monday, April 6 at 5pm. Cover letters and resumes can be sent to seasonedspoon@trentu.ca. Visit our website for more details www.seasonedspoon.ca Learn to Fence! Practices are Thursday 6:30-8:15pm and Sunday 7-9pm in the Main Gym. No experience required. You need to arrive in workout gear with athletic shoes, all other equipment is provided.

It is $20 for the semester. For more information go to trentu.ca/fencing or email courtneypeeters@outlook.com Weekly Open Mics EVERY Thursday evening at 8pm at the Trend pub in Traill college!

Hosted by the Trent University Music Society. Bring your instruments or just come to listen for a night of good music and good company. Free admission, all welcome! More info: trentumusic@gmail.com.

Come learn basic to advanced Arabic! Our classes cover reading, writing and speaking. Weekly Arabic classes every Tuesday from 5-6pm at GCS 108. Absolutely free!

Sadleir House All events in this section take place at 751 George St N in Peterborough.

Come visit the Sadleir House Library Open Mondays 11am-4pm, 6-9pm, Tuesday 1-9pm, Wednesday 12-9pm, Thursday 1-6pm, Friday 11am-5pm, Saturday 11am-4pm in Room 107 (wheelchair accessible). The Sadleir House Library is a free lending library open to all students and community members. With over 4000 books covering general academic interest and 2000 films focusing on international titles, documentaries, art house, and LGBT interest.

ChiSeries Peterborough: Feminum Might Night: Powerful Women Who Write Powerful Speculative Fiction. Thursday, April 2, 5-11pm in the Dining Hall (room 209) (For those who don’t know, Feminum is the metal used to make Wonder Woman’s bracelets - a metal made powerful by being surrounded by only women.) This will be the third ChiSeries Peterborough event and will feature readings by Speculative Fiction authors Nancy Baker and Marie Bilodeau Centre for Pixel Culture - Critical Play Seminar. Thursday, April 2, 7pm. Lecture Hall (room 106, wheelchair accessible).

The Sadleir House Centre for Pixel Culture is dedicated to the preservation, collection, study, and appreciation of video games and related ephemera as important cultural texts. Through talks, seminars, and curated play exhibitions, the Centre for Pixel Culture encourages interaction with these pixel texts and promotes recognition of the video game medium. Find out more online: http://www.sadleirhouse. ca/pixels.shtml Or on Facebook: CentreForPixelCulture

SUDOKU

Sadler House Library - Zine Making Workshop. Thursday, April 2, 4-6pm. Lecture

send yours to listings@trentarthur.ca

Hall (room 106, wheelchair accessible).

During this workshop, we will explore the history and importance of zines, self-publishing, and DIY communities. We will make our own zines and explore the library’s new zine collection.

(Symons, Traill, or Water St. Residence); rides can be booked online through http:// www.trentu.ca/ohrea/mv1.php. If you have any further questions do not hesitate to contact Trent’s Andrea Walsh (Accessibility Advisor) at 705-748-1011 Ext. 6002.

Home Efficiency Repairs and Upgrading Your Insulation with David Hobson. Tuesday, April 7, 6:30pm in the Lecture Hall (room 106, wheelchair accessible). Transition Skills Forum. Join us for this session; everyone is welcome. $5 or pay what you can, preferably in Kawartha Loons. Pre- registration is requested. Contact Patricia 705 876 -6873 or patremy@bluewin.ch. The Transition Skills Forum is an all-volunteer initiative of Transition Town Peterborough and is Sponsored by Sustainable Trent. The TSF is a member of the Kawartha Loon Exchange

Walkhome—Trent’s safe walk service. Late class? Working in the lab? Call us for a walk; 25 minutes from Symons or Traill (downtown) Hours of operation: Monday to Friday: 7pm to 1am, Saturday & Sunday: 9pm to 1am 705-748-1748

International Tabletop Day! Saturday, April 11, 12-4pm in the Dining Hall (room 209).

Extending from our popular board game pubs, Sadleir House will be joining with gamers around the world for Geek & Sundry’s International Tabletop Day! www.tabletopday.com Kids are welcome with their parents (please bring along age-appropriate games). Bring your friends, favourite games & snacks to share (we’ll provide coffee, tea & water).

A free event! Unfortunately, this event is not wheelchair accessible.

SPARK Photo Festival, April 1-30, Hobbs Library (room 101, wheelchair accessible) & Senior Common Room (room 201). Sadler House is hosting two SPARK exhibits: Gregory Burke and the Trent Visual Arts Network NOTE: exhibit in Hobbs may not be available when room is in use.

SPARK Photo Festival Openings. Wednesday, April 8, 6-9pm in the Hobbs Library (room 101 wheelchair accessible). Both SPARK exhibits will be open and a cash bar available.

SADLEIR HOUSE IS CLOSED FRIDAY, APRIL 3 FOR GOOD FRIDAY STAT HOLIDAY Let’s Go: Learn the Ancient Game of Go, Hosted by James Kerr and Josh Raspberry.

Come play the ancient Chinese board game of “Go” (a.k.a. Weiqi or Baduk) in a fun and welcoming environment, Saturday April 18, from 11am until 4pm in the Dining Hall (room 209). This event is free. No experience required. All skill levels are welcome, from first-time players to seasoned amateurs. From 11:00 to noon we’ll provide some basic lessons geared to first-time players and beginners. After that, the idea is to have a casual round-robin tournament from noon to 4:00 pm. The exact format can be flexible based on the number of people and what everyone is interested in.

Trent Centre for Human Rights, Equity, and Accessibility (CHREA): MV-1 Services. The MV-1 Vehicle provides shuttle services for Trent students, staff, and faculty with a wide range of disabilities. Passengers are individuals experiencing challenges in negotiating distances, topography and pitch that are inherent in the physical landscape of Trent’s campus. The MV-1 service is free-of-charge and can take you anywhere you need to go on any Trent campus

Walkhome—Pre-book your safe walk. Do you regularly have practice Monday night, work in the Library Tuesday night or go downtown Friday night? Our team of volunteers walkers can meet you, on campus or downtown. Monday to Friday: 7pm to 1am, Saturday & Sunday: 9pm to 1am. Call us 705- 748-1748 or email walkhome@tretnu.ca to Prebook a walk.

Worried about a course this semester? We want to help! Register for the Academic Mentoring Program to request an upper-year student mentor. Mentors meet regularly with students to discuss course concepts and build an understanding of course material. To request a mentor, or to volunteer, visit trentu.ca/academicskills/ peermentoring.php.

It’s paper season! Do you need helping organizing your essay, developing a thesis or doing citations properly? Come visit us as the Academic Skills Centre for all the help you need! Our services are always free! Suite 206, Champlain College. Phone: 705-748-1720. Call to book your appointment or book online through your Student Experience Portal at trentu.ca/sep. Click on “Book Appointments” and select “Academic Skills”.

Local 1 Bdrm Apartment - Available May 1st. $680.00/month + Utilities (hydro) 1st & last - 1 year lease. Smoking outside only.

3rd floor apt in a house (sep. entrance), downtown Ptbo., near Bus Terminal &Traill Coll. WIFI Incl. Contact: Wendy - tesltrainer@sympatico.ca Canadian Blood Services will have new clinic hours as of April 1. Tuesday: 3-7pm, Wednesday: 10am-2pm, Thursday: 1-7pm, Friday: 8am-noon, and the second and fourth Saturday of the month: 8am-noon. Walk-ins are welcome, but you can book your appointment online at www.blood.ca, or by phone at 1-888-2-DONATE (366283). The Peterborough Clinic is located at 55 George St. N. The Unitarian Fellowship of Peterborough welcomes you to: An Evening of Stories of Our Land with Doug Williams, Elder of Curve Lake. Friday, April 17, 2015, 7:30 – 9:30 pm. At the Unitarian Fellowship of Peterborough 775 Weller Street (at Medical Drive) $5-10 donation or pay what you can. Free parking.

ESLHelp & Editing.

Contact: worldeslschool@sympatico.ca

one-

First Aid & a CPR/AED certificate. 13 to 14.5 hours of instructional time (2 days); includes 435-page First Aid/CPR/AED book. **This course is required by the WSIB if your place of work employs more than 5 employees per shift.** Upcoming sessions: Weekdays(8:30-4) April 8-9, 20-21, 29-30, or Combo Course SFA/Level-C CPR (8:305:00) April 8-9, 11-12, 18-19, 20-21, 2526. Contact: sjapeterborough@bellnet.ca, 705-745-0331, sja.ca St. John’s Ambulance CPR Recertification (Weekdays at 6:30 pm, or Saturdays at 1:00) April 7. Call for additional dates, or organize your own group at a convenient time at any location--discounts for groups! sjapeterborough@bellnet.ca, 705-745-0331, sja.ca

Arts The Theatre on King is proud to present “Not I” by Samuel Beckett on Tuesday March 31 and Wednesday April 1 at 8:00 p.m. $10/$5. Featuring Kelsey Gordon Powell.

Funded by Theatre Trent. Tickets at the door. TTOK, 159 King Street (around back) The Theatre on King is happy to welcome back Mysterious Entity and Script Club on Thursday April 2. Last one until September! Come listen or read a new work and join the discussions afterwards. Some Mysterious Entity performers will always be on hand, but local actors are also welcome to come and sign up to do a cold read.

Theatre lovers - come and be a part of the process! Participants to arrive at 7pm.

Audience at 7:30pm. PWYC Word*UP! happens Wednesday, April 8, 7 pm at the Spill on George Street. Word*UP! is an evening of spoken word and poetry.

This month’s theme is “Why I Am A Poet” otherwise known as - “Life Hands You Crap - Make Crapenade!” Open mic, no cover, and a community forming around poetry. We’re welcoming, affirming, peace and joy loving. Come share!

The Course of Love: a look at love and marriage in story and music. Betty Bennett, Storyteller & Angelica Ottewill, Harpist and Storyteller, Friday, April 17, 2015, 7pm. At St. Andrew’s United Church, 441 Rubidge Street, Peterborough Tickets - $10.00 Available from Renewal Ctte Members, at the Church Office or at the Door.

More Information – 705-742-2722. Refreshments Following in the Church Hall. Program Suitable for 12 Years of Age and Older.

Send your listings to: listings@trentarthur.ca Next week is the last week to do so before we break for summer!

St. John’s Ambulance Standard First Aid Our Standard Certificate is valid for 3 years! Includes CPR and AED training! This course provides a certificate in Standard

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

t Dionysus 2015: Par- t Del Bel with Sean Con- t The Next Country Muty in the Parking Lot way @ The Gordon Best sic Star Talent Search @ Bata Library (12-6pm) Theatre (9pm) @ The Ranch Resort, Bethany ON (7:30pm) t Dionysus After Party t Retro Video Dance @ The Venue (10pm) Party @ Mark’s Finer Diner (9pm) t Stax/Volt Revue @ Showplace (9pm) t White Cowbell Oklahoma with Chris Culgin and The Muddy Hack @ The Gordon Best Theatre (9pm)

This Weekend in Live Music: presented by ElectricCityLive.ca